M’s Q&A on MLB.com
As mentioned in the comments, always good for a chuckle.
My reactions every time I read this (and I can’t stop):
“What? Why would you ask that?”
“What kind of answer is — what?”
“What?”
I’m continually baffled that there are people out there who write in and want to air their pet theories — and their theories are like “should the M’s go get Ben Davis back… to DH?” (Street’s answer is awesome, by the way)
And then there’s every week’s token factual error, like
The switch-hitting Delgado would seem to fit the Mariners’ most pressing need, but all it takes is one other team to get into a bidding war and it’s goodbye Carlos.
Delgado learned to switch hit? When did he manage that? And considering his career success as a lefty… why?
Comments
73 Responses to “M’s Q&A on MLB.com”
Let’s not leave out Vance Lovelace, Mickey Lopez, and Pat Rice (Rice is only a one-gamer).
AJ Zapp recently signed with the Cincinnati Reds organization I believe.
Scratch that, he must’ve been called up in September that year and got in a couple more games. Sorry.
Pat Rice pitched 7 games in 1991. Lopez was in a couple and Lovelace played in 5
Tomko, Kingsale and Mecir also appeared in way more than 2 games, so I figured, it was just for players who had been in very FEW games. I also have an itching to add Melvin Bunch and Shawn Boskie to the list. Boskie being just a 2 gamer, Bunch was in a couple more.
I shall hide in shame, and next time read before I post when it comes to certain players. I see Mecir only appeared in two games as a Mariner, but for some reason, I thought he appeared in several. Kingsale wasin more than two games, played in 12 total with the M’s.
You are right about Kingsale. I only counted his 2002 stats. Silly me. Also, I was wrong about Tomko. Looked at his Games under “Hitting Stats”
Wright is only going to sign somewhere that will supply him with 2 pounds of chewing tobacco per game.
Jim Street once printed a letter I sent him.
But he edited it, totally changing the meaning. Before the 2003 season, I asked Jim a question about keeping SS warm for a year while we waited for Kazuo Matsui. Jim edited the question so it said I was asking about playing Hideki Matsui at SS (which would be idiotic), and then told me that we probably wouldn’t get Godzilla and that he played OF anyway.
I got him to correct himself the next month, but he never did address the original question.
Here’s a list of players with four or fewer games appeared in as a Mariner, either as a batter or a pitcher. Data are through 2003 season, from Sean Lahman’s database:
Player Games================= =====
Luis DeLeon 1
Zak Shinall 1
Bud Black 2
Shawn Boskie 2
Roy Branch 2
Kevin Brown 2
Jim Bullinger 2
Jeff Darwin 2
George Glinatsis 2
Tim Harikkala 2
Mark Leiter 2
Jim Mecir 2
Sean Spencer 2
Joe Klink 3
Frank MacCormack 3
Doc Medich 3
Jose Melendez 3
Rich Monteleone 3
Dave Schmidt 3
Dave Wainhouse 3
Allen Watson 3
Mark Watson 3
Justin Kaye 3
Matt White 3
J.J. Putz 3
Randy Kramer 4
Jim Lewis 4
Andrew Lorraine 4
Aaron Scheffer 4
Wayne Twitchell 4
Well I tried to format it.
Don’t forget Vance McHenry. I believe he appeared in just one game, in 1981 or ’82, as a defensive shortstop replacement, and promptly made a game-losing nionth-inning error. I was there .,.. just can’t remember if I was a junior or senior in high school.
ok did anyone read the part where street says “Everyone associated with the team hopes that last season was just one of those years and not the start of a prolonged victory drought. Who would have predicted that most of the players on the 25-man roster would have one of their worst seasons — all at the same time”….is he serious. Last off season i was preparing to deploy to iraq(i was very busy) and i still knew we were in for a very long and painful season…ahhh….street is…talentless…..hack…ahhh
Guess I should have looked up McHenry before I posted. EIGHTEEN games? Holy crap.
My only excuse is that I just turned 40, and it just sucks.
I love the quote about targeting free agent pitchers Pavano, Leiber, and Villone. Gee, you think they will pay out $9M-10M to Pavano or $3M to Villone(though it should be $1M)….. I don’t think we need to think more than a second to know what the outcome will be two months from now. Why even bother to have Pavano even visit? The $20,000 we’re losing to get him out here and show him a good time is going to come out of our 2005 and 2006 budgets(and probably the year 3000 too, not to mention the 20 grand will end up a cool million or two also) just to lowball him or not even submit an offer?
Re 35 (and way off topic): Who is this Phil Rogers loon anyway?
“The Nationals’ new owners… will take over with a baseball-only palace in the works. Even better, it will be built largely with public funds…While the 2005 Nationals are expected to operate with a payroll in the range of $55-60 million, it won’t be a surprise if they follow the examples of Jerry Colangelo and Arte Moreno and increase that by 50 percent or more for 2006, creating an instant contender.”
This F-Wit is giddy with excitement about the new Nationals getting a half-billion-dollar stadium that DC does not want, cannot afford and has voted against. And he’s promising a glorious future of Diamondback-like unsustainable expendiditure and a 111 loss season within a few years.
And he gets paid for this twaddle?
I’m pretty sure that Delgado was a switch hitter when he came into the league. He dropped the right handed swing some time ago though.
Re #60:
That is incomplete! Where is Arquimedez Pozo???!??!?!
#65–I quote: “Phil Rogers has covered baseball at the Chicago Tribune since 1997, including the White Sox beat in 1997 and the national baseball beat since 1998. He has covered baseball since 1984, including stints both as a beat writer and national reporter for the Dallas Times Herald and Dallas Morning News. He has also worked at the Florida Times-Union, Albuquerque Journal and Shreveport Journal. A graduate of North Texas State University, he is a frequent contributor to ESPN.com and author of one book, “The Impossible Takes a Little Longer.”
Ok…he’s a list that includes Pozo and my personal favourite Tom McMillan from back in ’77. The list is culled from retrosheet and includes everyone with 5 games or less.
Mariners with <=5 games =========================== Greg Erardi 5 P 1977 Frank MacCormack 3 P 1977 Tom McMillan 2 SS 1977 Doc Medich 3 P 1977 Roy Branch 2 P 1979 Jim Lewis 4 P 1979 and 1985 Wayne Twitchell 4 P 1979 Rick Anderson 5 P 1980 Bud Black 2 P 1981 Rich Monteleone 3 P 1987 Terry Taylor 5 P 1988 Luis DeLeon 1 P 1989 Jim Wilson 5 DH 1989 Mike Gardiner 5 P 1990 Vance Lovelace 5 P 1990 Scott Medvin 5 P 1990 Jose Melendez 3 P 1990 Kevin Brown 2 P 1992 Randy Kramer 4 P 1992 Dave J. Schmidt 3 P 1992 Mike walker 5 P 1992 Zak Shinall 1 P 1993 Dave Wainhouse 3 P 1993 Shawn Boskie 2 P 1994 Jeff Darwin 2 P 1994 George Glinatsis 2 P 1994 Quinn Mack 5 OF 1994 Tim Harikkala 2 P 1995-1996 Jim Mecir 2 P 1995 Arquimedez Pozo 1 2B 1995 Joe Klink 3 P 1996 Brian Raabe 2 2B-3B 1997 Jim Bullinger 2 P 1998 Raul Chavez 1 C 1998 Rickey Cradle 5 OF 1998 Andrew Lorraine 4 P 1998 Melvin Bunch 5 P 1999 Mark Leiter 2 P 1999 Damaso Marte 5 P 1999 Aaron Scheffer 4 P 1999 Sean Spencer 2 P 1999 Allen Watson 3 P 1999 Carlos Hernandez 2 3B 2000 Brian Lesher 5 1B-DH 2000 Justin Kaye 3 P 2002 Mark Watson 3 P 2002 Ron Wright 1 DH 2002 Brian Sweeney 5 P 2003 Matt White 3 P 2003 Rene Rivera 2 C 2004
Hmm… I’m not sure what happened on the last post.
Mariners with <=5 games =========================== Greg Erardi 5 P 1977 Frank MacCormack 3 P 1977 Tom McMillan 2 SS 1977 Doc Medich 3 P 1977 Roy Branch 2 P 1979 Jim Lewis 4 P 1979 and 1985 Wayne Twitchell 4 P 1979 Rick Anderson 5 P 1980 Bud Black 2 P 1981 Rich Monteleone 3 P 1987 Terry Taylor 5 P 1988 Luis DeLeon 1 P 1989 Jim Wilson 5 DH 1989 Mike Gardiner 5 P 1990 Vance Lovelace 5 P 1990 Scott Medvin 5 P 1990 Jose Melendez 3 P 1990 Kevin Brown 2 P 1992 Randy Kramer 4 P 1992 Dave J. Schmidt 3 P 1992 Mike walker 5 P 1992 Zak Shinall 1 P 1993 Dave Wainhouse 3 P 1993 Shawn Boskie 2 P 1994 Jeff Darwin 2 P 1994 George Glinatsis 2 P 1994 Quinn Mack 5 OF 1994 Tim Harikkala 2 P 1995-1996 Jim Mecir 2 P 1995 Arquimedez Pozo 1 2B 1995 Joe Klink 3 P 1996 Brian Raabe 2 2B-3B 1997 Jim Bullinger 2 P 1998 Raul Chavez 1 C 1998 Rickey Cradle 5 OF 1998 Andrew Lorraine 4 P 1998 Melvin Bunch 5 P 1999 Mark Leiter 2 P 1999 Damaso Marte 5 P 1999 Aaron Scheffer 4 P 1999 Sean Spencer 2 P 1999 Allen Watson 3 P 1999 Carlos Hernandez 2 3B 2000 Brian Lesher 5 1B-DH 2000 Justin Kaye 3 P 2002 Mark Watson 3 P 2002 Ron Wright 1 DH 2002 Brian Sweeney 5 P 2003 Matt White 3 P 2003 Rene Rivera 2 C 2004
Ooops. wrong symbol to use I guess
Mariners with less than or equal to 5 games
===========================
Greg Erardi 5 P 1977
Frank MacCormack 3 P 1977
Tom McMillan 2 SS 1977
Doc Medich 3 P 1977
Roy Branch 2 P 1979
Jim Lewis 4 P 1979 and 1985
Wayne Twitchell 4 P 1979
Rick Anderson 5 P 1980
Bud Black 2 P 1981
Rich Monteleone 3 P 1987
Terry Taylor 5 P 1988
Luis DeLeon 1 P 1989
Jim Wilson 5 DH 1989
Mike Gardiner 5 P 1990
Vance Lovelace 5 P 1990
Scott Medvin 5 P 1990
Jose Melendez 3 P 1990
Kevin Brown 2 P 1992
Randy Kramer 4 P 1992
Dave J. Schmidt 3 P 1992
Mike walker 5 P 1992
Zak Shinall 1 P 1993
Dave Wainhouse 3 P 1993
Shawn Boskie 2 P 1994
Jeff Darwin 2 P 1994
George Glinatsis 2 P 1994
Quinn Mack 5 OF 1994
Tim Harikkala 2 P 1995-1996
Jim Mecir 2 P 1995
Arquimedez Pozo 1 2B 1995
Joe Klink 3 P 1996
Brian Raabe 2 2B-3B 1997
Jim Bullinger 2 P 1998
Raul Chavez 1 C 1998
Rickey Cradle 5 OF 1998
Andrew Lorraine 4 P 1998
Melvin Bunch 5 P 1999
Mark Leiter 2 P 1999
Damaso Marte 5 P 1999
Aaron Scheffer 4 P 1999
Sean Spencer 2 P 1999
Allen Watson 3 P 1999
Carlos Hernandez 2 3B 2000
Brian Lesher 5 1B-DH 2000
Justin Kaye 3 P 2002
Mark Watson 3 P 2002
Ron Wright 1 DH 2002
Brian Sweeney 5 P 2003
Matt White 3 P 2003
Rene Rivera 2 C 2004
The person that wrote “Are the M’s thinking of getting Ben Davis Back for a DH role” is/must be some kind of cruel joke. DH??????????????PUHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHLEEEEEEEEEEZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ