Armadillo: Friday's List of 13: Greetings from the desert.........
Greetings from Las Vegas; here are some notes for the second half of the season, that starts tonight with a full schedule........
13) July 31 is the next big thing, the trading deadline; what teams will be buyers, which will throw up the white flag and be sellers?
12) Will Tampa Bay trade David Price and Ben Zobrist, or will they draw a line in the sand and compete for the rest of this season? A lot will depend on the package of prospects they could get back for those two fine players.
11) Will the Phillies finally dismantle their aging nucleus and start over? Jimmy Rollins/Jonathan Papelbon seem most likely to go; Ryan Howard has a horrible contract and Chase Utley has said he won’t waive his 10/5 rights, so those two are unlikely to be traded.
10) Will the Cubs bring up all their top prospects and if so, where will the four shortstops be put in the field?
9) Have the Angels re-tooled their bullpen enough to win the AL West and if so, can they keep Weaver/Wilson healthy enough to make the bullpen relevant?
8) NL Central is a four-team race; Brewers had a big lead at one point, but played lousy the last two weeks, then the tragedy involving Juan Segura losing his young son has made playing a game seem insignificant. It’ll take a lot to get them jumpstarted for the second half of this season.
7) Pirates are 19-13 with Gregory Polanco in the lineup, 30-33 without him. Clint Hurdle should get new lineup cards made, with Polanco’s name permanently written in the leadoff spot.
6) Can the Giants regroup and give the big-money Dodgers a run for their money? Marco Scutaro is back at 2B, which gives SF stability in the infield, but they need more offense, too.
5) Anyone have a reason why 16 of 18 All-Star Game starters bat right-handed? Just a random fact? Still not sure why any baseball player would bat righty; why not just start two steps closer to first base?
4) Texas Rangers are 4-23 in their last 27 games; will they continue to be awful, or can they right the ship some and keep Ron Washington employed? Injuries are why Texas is terrible, but since when is a manager being fired fair?
3) Kansas City made a run at first place, then fell back. Again. Can they make another run at Detroit? Cool moment at the All-Star Game, when closer Greg Holland brought his dad to Monday’s All-Star press conference. Just seemed like a neat thing to do.
2) Why haven’t any heads rolled in the Bronx, which has a mediocre record despite an enormous payroll? If old man Steinbrenner were still around, he would be making a fuss and firing people weekly. Not saying that’s the right way of doing things, but their management’s current passive style ain’t working, either.
1) Will Tony Larussa can Kirk Gibson, or go forward with him as Arizona’s manager? Have to be lot of nervous people in the Arizona front office and dugout.
Greetings from Las Vegas; here are some notes for the second half of the season, that starts tonight with a full schedule........
13) July 31 is the next big thing, the trading deadline; what teams will be buyers, which will throw up the white flag and be sellers?
12) Will Tampa Bay trade David Price and Ben Zobrist, or will they draw a line in the sand and compete for the rest of this season? A lot will depend on the package of prospects they could get back for those two fine players.
11) Will the Phillies finally dismantle their aging nucleus and start over? Jimmy Rollins/Jonathan Papelbon seem most likely to go; Ryan Howard has a horrible contract and Chase Utley has said he won’t waive his 10/5 rights, so those two are unlikely to be traded.
10) Will the Cubs bring up all their top prospects and if so, where will the four shortstops be put in the field?
9) Have the Angels re-tooled their bullpen enough to win the AL West and if so, can they keep Weaver/Wilson healthy enough to make the bullpen relevant?
8) NL Central is a four-team race; Brewers had a big lead at one point, but played lousy the last two weeks, then the tragedy involving Juan Segura losing his young son has made playing a game seem insignificant. It’ll take a lot to get them jumpstarted for the second half of this season.
7) Pirates are 19-13 with Gregory Polanco in the lineup, 30-33 without him. Clint Hurdle should get new lineup cards made, with Polanco’s name permanently written in the leadoff spot.
6) Can the Giants regroup and give the big-money Dodgers a run for their money? Marco Scutaro is back at 2B, which gives SF stability in the infield, but they need more offense, too.
5) Anyone have a reason why 16 of 18 All-Star Game starters bat right-handed? Just a random fact? Still not sure why any baseball player would bat righty; why not just start two steps closer to first base?
4) Texas Rangers are 4-23 in their last 27 games; will they continue to be awful, or can they right the ship some and keep Ron Washington employed? Injuries are why Texas is terrible, but since when is a manager being fired fair?
3) Kansas City made a run at first place, then fell back. Again. Can they make another run at Detroit? Cool moment at the All-Star Game, when closer Greg Holland brought his dad to Monday’s All-Star press conference. Just seemed like a neat thing to do.
2) Why haven’t any heads rolled in the Bronx, which has a mediocre record despite an enormous payroll? If old man Steinbrenner were still around, he would be making a fuss and firing people weekly. Not saying that’s the right way of doing things, but their management’s current passive style ain’t working, either.
1) Will Tony Larussa can Kirk Gibson, or go forward with him as Arizona’s manager? Have to be lot of nervous people in the Arizona front office and dugout.
