Ryan Ludwick
If I told you that a 26-year-old right-handed outfielder, who makes the league minimum, and is slugging .512 on the strength of 4 home runs in 41 at-bats so far this year got designated for assignment this morning, would you be interested?
Say hello to Ryan Ludwick. The Indians removed him from their roster to make room for Juan Gonzalez, meaning they have 10 days to trade him or put him through waivers. Now, Ludwick’s not a spectacular player. He’s got holes in his swing, a mediocre approach at the plate, and his defense isn’t great after knee surgery, but he’s got legitimate power as a right-handed bat off the bench and reserve outfielder. His .812 OPS would rank fourth on the team, if he was added to the roster. His slugging percentage is higher than the OPS for Willie Bloomquist, Greg Dobbs, or Wilson Valdez.
At this point, he could be had for something resembling a song. He won’t be a starter on the M’s next championship team, but he could be a very nifty fourth outfielder and a useful pinch hitter, something the organization simply doesn’t have at the moment. If the front office really wants to improve the team, they’ll inquire about guys like Ryan Ludwick, a great example of the freely available talent philosophy that has eluded the organization for a long time.
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58 Responses to “Ryan Ludwick”
#50 … yes WV’s OPS > GD’s OPS, but they are both so low (and Dobbs’ sample size is tiny) that I doubt the FO would even look at that.
When you joked earlier …
… this is probably closer to the FO belief than anyone would want to admit.
This is from the AP story. I swear I’m not making this up. I wish I could write humor this good.
“The Mariners have 10 days to trade, assign to the minors or release Valdez. Hargrove said he loved what Valdez, who committed five errors, gave to the Mariners defensively.”
Stan Javier. I dream of Stan Javier.
I sometimes even dream of Desi Relaford.
How low has my team fallen?
Hm. Where’s this organizational myopia coming from? Not just from Bavasi, is it? I got the feeling there’s been stuff like this pre-dating him…
There’s a cancer in the front office. What we are seeing is simply the results of a management team whose first and last priority is running a financially profitable ballclub. Their commitment to winning only extends as far as it contributes to keeping fans coming to the games and the TV deals going. They will never do what it takes to actually (instead of giving the appearance of) make a legitimate run for the World Series, because it doesn’t make business sense — too risky.
This is why Lou left. His first and last priority is winning, and it was made clear to him that management didn’t and wouldn’t support that.
Howard Lincoln has turned this baseball team into one that is not only bad, but also boring as hell to watch. This stuff trickles down, folks – for a great illustration, you only have to look as far as our hometown football team during the Holmgren era. Despite a Superbowl-caliber coach and enough talent to excel, the front office managed to poison the punch enough to ensure mediocrity. At least they had the sense to identify the root of the problem (Whitsitt) and replace him with someone whose priorities are centered around winning, rather than consolidation of power or profit-grubbing.
Sad to say, I don’t see that happening with the M’s anytime soon.
I think it’s facile to say top management’s sole concern is being a profitable business….mainly because, after doing research on the individual owners, they aren’t cut throat enough to emphasize that above all else.
I think it’d be better to say that they have no clue as to what makes up a winning tradition (up to and including the World Series) and what the risks involved are with them. Their inexperience with building a team leads them to misvalue the moves needed to make an extended run of excellence.
Too, some of the problems are do to persistent failure at talent management and evaluation. With the years of poor pitcher development and the bare cupboard for everyday players, there’s someone to blame there besides the CEO spot…
While I don’t agree with your first paragraph, your second point is an excellent one. A combination of not having the ultimate on-field success as your #1 goal, plus years of organization-wide cluelessness and ineptitude, brings about the results we see today.
True, the CEO is not the only person to blame, but if the CEO doesn’t get it, it’s pretty much impossible for success to flourish at the lower levels. And if the primary focus isn’t on winning, that attitude pervades throughout the organization and eventually has an impact on the on-field performance.
Ludwick cleared waivers and was sent to AAA.