sdporter's Open Salon Blog

Finalizing the 25-man roster: Kurt Suzuki

Tue, 24 Mar 2009 10:03:43 -0400

The next few posts will take a look at the players comprising your 2009 Oakland A's. They're still playing at Papago Park, so clearly some battles are yet to be won. Some positions, however, don't need to be fought over this year.

Catcher is one of these; go ahead and write in Kurt Suzuki with pen.

Background

Kurt was a second-round selection in the 2004 amateur draft out of Cal State Fullerton, 2004 College World Series champs. Hawaii native. Called up to the big club in June 2007 to mentor under a rapidly declining Jason Kendall. Kendall is shipped out a month later, leaving primary catching duties to the 23-year-old rookie. Rob Bowen, a piece of the Kendall trade, backs him up.

2008

Zook comes into spring the unquestioned starter, and by all accounts does a great job handling a young pitching staff. A disappointing 2008 was highlighted by a 4.01 team ERA, good for 4th in the AL. His .279 average leads the team, more a testament to the disgraceful 2008 Oakland offense than to Suzuki's hitting prowess. He's not bad, though -- his grand slam against the White Sox in September was memorable enough to be featured in this year's TV ad campaign. Suzuki's true value was defensive -- he finished with a surprising 14.9 VORP and a 5.5 WARP-1, good for 2nd on the team behind Duke.

2009 Outlook

Kurt's the starter again this year, and Bowen, who I've always been fond of, was released last week. Big Landon Powell, a switch-hitting rookie, will back him up. Powell's two years older. The task of handling a young pitching staff will be steeper this year, as Blanton and Harden are now both in the senior circuit, and Duchscherer looks to start the season on the DL. The opening day starting five looks to be Eveland (age 25), Gallagher (23), Braden (25), Gio Gonzales (23) and Anderson or Cahill (both 21). Eveland's the only one who's spent a full season in the majors. Only in Oakland will you have a catcher who's older than the average age of the starter, and both are younger than this blog's author.

Kurt will never be a hitting star. That said, if he can hit .280 in 500+ at-bats, Bob Geren's got to be pleased. Again, his true value is behind the plate, and 2008 showed he is progressing nicely and should continue to improve defensively. Baseball Prospectus isn't quite so kind -- their 2009 projections indicate that 2008 was an aberration. They project a .260/.330/.379 line and fewer than 400 plate appearances. Good catchers are tough to find, I know, but I do hope Kurt can provide a little more pop and a few more plate appearances.

The additions of Giambi, Holliday, Cabrera and Garciaparra to a lineup featuring Jack Cust and a healthy Eric Chavez should turn a few of last year's close losses into close wins. Assuming, of course, that pitching and defense remain constant. This is why Kurt Suzuki's value is significant, and why, with another solid year, he could have best-on-the-club VORP and WARP-1. Let's just not bat him leadoff anymore, ok Bob?

Oh, hi. How was your off-season?

Mon, 23 Mar 2009 20:03:35 -0400

This blog derailed near the time the A's season did. Hope springs eternal, of course, particularly in spring. So, let's quickly recap the last 8 months.

July 8

Rich Harden traded. Sure, he's fragile. But Gallagher has some promise, I hear. Murton I've heard of. Still, the trade doesn't feel right. This is all we could get from the dominant-when-healthy Harden?

July 13

Oakland Athletics surrender the look of a playoff team. Duchscherer, ink on his "best AL pitcher" label still wet, throws seven solid innings before Street lets it get away. K-Rod then ends a near-miraculous comeback; and for the first time in recent memory, I know the postseason is out of question by the All-Star break. The gravity of the moment doesn't seem to affect my wife and father-in-law as it does I.

July 17

Joel Blanton traded. I'm not surprised, but it does seem the dismantling has begun. The prize appears to be Cardenas, a second basemen. Outman looks like a serviceable reliever. Our rotation is looking pretty thin.

July 27

Ziegler breaks the consecutive-scoreless-innings-to-start-a-career record. The season's highlight, no doubt. A wonderfully obscure and old record (but impressive, no doubt) for a great guy, by all accounts.

August 7

The A's lose their 10th in row. Kansas City, Boston, and Toronto have swept us consecutively. This is what they mean when then speak of the dog days. Offense is non-existant.

September 28

The season ends at the merciful hands of J.J. Putz. September brought us two 4-game winning streaks and ends with a five-game losing skid.

Nobody notices.

October 22

Mike Gallego is named 2009 third base coach. Nice! A touching nod to my earliest days as a baseball fan, Gallego the unsung, slick-fielding second basemen. Or, I always assumed his bouncing athleticism to be emblematic of a good fielder. What happens to Tony DeFrancesco, I wonder? Didn't it seem he was being groomed? Can a manager be sent back down to Sacramento?

October 27

Philadelphia defeats Tampa Bay in a relatively non-descript World Series. Great stories, both of them, but Tampa Bay feels like the real winner. Their first winning season in history, surpassing everyone's expectations. Seems like they're built for the long-run, too.

November 4

We elect a new president. Huzzah.

November 14

Carlos Gonzalez is traded. Didn't see this one coming. Street's time had run out, I assumed with the emergence of Ziggy, but I understood Carlos to be untouchable -- the gem of the Haren deal. Greg Smith is gone, too. That's the real disappointing one for me -- he didn't seem as though he'd be a necessary piece in this trade, and he I thought he showed real promise as a solid lefty, a 3-4 starter. And that pickoff move! The booty: Matt Holliday. I am stunned.

A genuine offensive star, acquired for two-up-and-comers and an exiled reliever. Usually the A's are on the other end of deals like this. Does Beane think the time to win is now? He must -- Holliday only has one year remaining on his expensive 2-year deal, and you can't think that Oakland will improve on that or suddenly become a prime destination for marquee free agents. Anyway, Holliday's a great player. Hits for average, power, runs and fields well. I know, I know, the home/road splits are troubling, particularly coming to the Coliseum, but he instantly becomes the best hitter on the team. A threat not seen since Giambi/Tejada/Chavez of the early 00's.

January 7

Validating the rumors, Jason Giambi inks a one-year $5.25m deal, with a club option for another. GREAT deal. Not sure what this means for Barton, but no A's fan can be unhappy with this deal. You basically know what you're getting -- a fan favorite who might swat 30 homers for a very reasonable investment.

February 24

Fremont is dead. After what seems like months of silence, it appears the flailing economy has killed the A's Ballpark Village pipedream in Fremont. I am not disappointed.

March 6

Oakland signs the best available shortstop, Orlando Cabrera. And Nomar, on the same day! Crosby's days in Oakland are likely over. Suddenly this lineup has some pop to it. Lots of injury potential, too, but Beane didn't overpay for anyone this offseason.

March 16

Lew Wolff kicks Oakland in the shins. He says he's not interested inworking on a stadium deal here. No surprise, of course -- this was the reason the Fremont courtship began. I suppose there was a glimmer of hope after that plan collapsed. Or a glimmer of hope that he might decide the Coliesum wasn't so bad after all. San Jose now looks likely. Vegas also a possibility, I guess. Any others (Sacramento, Portland, Ukiah) seem highly unlikely to me.

March 23

A's are 12-12-1 in Cactus League play. Nobody knows what a spring training record means, so let's be happy with .500. Plenty of decisions yet to be made before the April 6 opener, but we'll get into that in subsequent posts.

this is a test

Tue, 23 Sep 2008 18:09:07 -0400

testing.

Liveblogging: 2008 All Star Game

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 00:07:58 -0400

Fox presents the 2008 All Star Game tonight. With Fox, you expect a certain amount of overproduction, but tonight's pre-game show surpassed those expectations by leaps and bounds.

One by one, Joe Buck introduces EVERY living Hall of Fame member, positioned appropriately around the field. Brooks, Brett, Boggs, etc. at third; Carew, Sandberg and Morgan at second. There's a lot of them, it turns out!

Most interesting introduction for me was Willie Mays, somehow coming off angry, almost, yet stone-faced (and simultaneously chewing gum). Buck extends a longer pause for Mays, allowing the orchestral in the background to quicken. It now resembles the theme from Jurassic Park. Buck calls him one of the greatest greats in history. Wow, that was uncomfortable. Can we blame the awkwardness on Barry Bonds? I'm only half kidding.

The fans love them some Yankees, and hate them some Red Sox. Seem to really hate Francona. That's fair. Jeter's a fucking god, of course. So is Yogi, and Reggie. All the one's you'd expect.

Finally, after this year's starters are introduced (including the painfully awkward Fukudome, Hamilton and Mays trifecta), the music crescendos and Buck proclaims,

"IN THIS LEGENDARY ARENA, WHERE CHAMPIONS WERE DEFINED AND LEGENDS BORN, WE PRESENT TO YOU THE MOST AMOUNT OF GREATEST BASEBALL PLAYERS EVER GATHER IN ONE PLACE, LIKE EVER. THIS IS THE FINEST MOMENT IN ALL HISTORY, FOR REALZ."

Jeter steals second, and Soto's throw wasn't close. That is, the Sheets-Soto-Ramirez relay wasn't close. These men have never played together. Would-be base stealers would seem to have a huge advantage in exhibitions such as the All Star game, right? Could someone look that up?

Did you see that funny Taco Bell commercial? I'm serious, it really was funny! Bob Melvin, manager of the Diamondbacks, goes out ot the mound to consult his ace, Brandon Webb. He reminds the infield that the Taco Bell Frutista Freeze comes with real strawberries on top. They all grunt acknowledgments and return to their positions. A nice blend of silliness and attention to detail. And they didn't kill the joke. I'm serious, I laughed for a second!

At the risk of sounding a bit Bill Simmons-ly, I must make an additional comment about an ad that just came on. It's for Fox's 2008 postseason coverage, appearing to be a continuation of last year's slogan: "There's only one October." Except this year, it's not that comedian who everyone hated by Game 3 of the ALDS, it's some teenaged kid, giggling and blogging, I think. He's genuinely excited about the baseball season, clips of Joe Carter, Gary Carter, Ozzie Smith play in the back. He's a likeable kid, actually. Disclaimer: I am dressed exactly like this kid at this moment. Whatever.

So that's a real improvement over last year, Fox! I think so, anyway. Pat yourselves on the back. But you know, it could be that he'll have worn out his welcome by the time the Angels regress to their pythagorean expectation (read: September 1).

Some good action. No blogging.

I turn back to the keyboard when I see Fox's promo for their new series, FRINGE. How'd I know what it was called? It was super imposed in lasers on the hallowed Yankee Stadium outfield. I mean, I think the whole sacred ground thing is a bit over-played, but just two hours ago I was felt like I was watching an event at the Vatican itself what with the pomp, ceremony, and Yogi Berra. Greatest living Yankee? Most granfatherly, for generations of Yankee fans? More likely that.

Duchscherer's pitching! Buck and McCarver notice Duke's ERA. Some season! As a starter! Duke gets hit around a bit. Too bad. His start on Sunday, due a post of its own, is the story of Oakland this year. Haren's pitching for the NL. Good stuff.

Ok, so this liveblogging thing is hard work. So this is the end. Go watch the game -- it's a close one, still. Go... NL?

I'm back, to cover what will likely be a great ending. We're 3-3 in the top of the ninth, Mariano Rivera in, with a runner on first. Enter Sandman plays, a combination that never stirred me. On that topic, as if there were any doubts, the greatest closer song of all time? Oakland's own Huston Street, with Nas's "Hate Me Now." I mean, seriously! I'm not even a Street fan, really. But what a song.

Rivera gets a strike-em-out-throw-em-out DP, and my reaction is: The Tampa Bay Rays have three all stars?

Dempster pitches in the bottom of the ninth, and the game looks as though it will go into extras. Fingers crossed that Selig has prepared a doomsday scenario. Now that it counts, and all.

He's out of the inning, painlessly. Rivera deals to the senior circuiters. He's taking his time, and beginning to bore me. Russel strokes a single. Anyone else miss Josh Hamilton? I mean, it's been probably 60 minutes since we've heard about his story. A great story and all, but does anyone feel like his star has risen awfully quickly? Of course we do, because it has. But good for him.

Tejada singles and Martin advanced to third. All of a sudden, Rivera looks vulnerable. I'm reminded of game 7 in the 2001 World Series, when The Bronx needed Rivera to hold the ship together to save the season (the nation!).

I spoke to soon. Uggla grounds into a 4-6-3. A shiny nickel says Rivera comes back out for the top of the 11th, only to be replaced by George Sherrill before he throws a pitch.

Uggla appears to be paid off -- after grounding into the double play, he boots one and dodges a second to put runners at the corners with no outs for the AL. Odds of the AL scoring, and winning: 84.6%, says Baseball Prospectus's scoring expectation chart. Just so you know

Sizemore grounds to Uggla who redeems himself by throwing cleanly to home. They only get one. Gonzalez with a game saving scoop, McCarver and Buck astutely recognize. Then Longoria grounds to 3B Guzman, who throws home again. Will Aaron Cook defy the odds and get out of this? He of the 81-pitch complete game (seriously, look it up!).

Wow! Tejada makes a great play to get Morneau's slow roller, and the NL escapes. What's clearly fast becoming a great game apparently isn't enough to let me stop worrying about a tie.

A great game. Young singles up the middle, and Navarro is nailed at the plate ,McLouth-Martin. A textbook assist all the way. Buck notes that 3 of the last 5 outs have occurred at home plate. That's good baseball. Then Guzman makes a good play to get the inning-ender. On to the 12th.

Game 34: Oakland 2, Baltimore 1

Tue, 6 May 2008 02:05:33 -0400

On to the 10th. Emil Brown walked to lead off the bottom of the 9th, and Ryan Sweeney promptly bunts Brown to second. Really! Okay, so Sweeney, a fringe major leaguer, is swinging a .267/.325/.320. But he's not a guaranteed out. He's no Jack Cust (whom was replaced, wisely, as a defensive replacement last inning, A's up 1-0), but still. Just gave away our 25th out of the ball game. Brown moves to second, Crosby grounds him to third. Hannahan walks, and Rajai Davis grounds out to end the inning. Brown does not score.

A's still win the game, on an exhilarating walk-off single by Brown in the 10th. Huzzah! A great win. But we were given 30. Yes, I'm counting the 10th inning, because we were fortunate enough that Huston Street only allowed the single, albeit tying, run in the 9th. He gives up more than that, and we're playing from behind in the bottom of the 9th. And giving away the 25th out. Not so much an annoyance as it is a curiosity, I think -- earlier I heard Korach and co. calling a Donnie Murphy steal in the third. Who are these guys? I thought. A steal and a sac bunt in the same game. In Oakland!

A quick look at the books -- okay, we're 13th in the AL in steals, and 14th in sac bunts. Let's not make it a habit, boys. I'm serious: with the bats humming like they are (.318/.418/.442 as a team, RISP), why give away any runners (the risk associated with a stolen bases) or any batters (with sac bunts) at this time?

Anyway, high five to Emil Brown, who doesn't look like he's going anywhere when the roster gets shaken up. My prediction, for what it's worth:

Harden replaces Smith in the rotation, straight up. Smith returns to Sacramento, he of the 1.03 WHIP and 7.15 K/9. He won't be there long, whether he comes back in long relief or to replace Harden (who just tweaked his shoulder as you read this sentence).
Foulke replaces Braden in the bullpen, straight up. In mop-up duty. Yes, I know, he's Keith Foulke. But he needs the work. And really, who does he replace? Do you really want to disrupt Brown, Casilla, Devine, Embree, or Street (who isn't going anywhere, until July, at least)? All but Street are red-hot, and Street had a nice little streak going into tonight. Braden's the only guy to go. And he has options remaining.
Buck replaces Sweeney in the outfield. They're pretty similar players, on the whole. Buck has a bit more power and upside, it seems, but Sweeney appears to be able to stay healthy. Bottom line, neither dynamic enough to share a roster spot, probably. Especially with Davis now on the roster. Can't say I'm a huge Davis fan yet (but I should be!: .357/.400/.571), but he does have the righty thing going, and is nice late-inning insurance for the frying pan that is Jack Cust's glove.

Sweeney has options, I think. And the infield seems to work, despite my worries of having two designated hitters in Sweeney Sr. and Thomas. We do this again when Chavez rejoins the team, but it smells a bit like the Harden return: you know it's not going to last long and someone who's been exceeding expectations (Donnie Murphy, most likely, in this case) is sent packing. Unless Beane can talk Steinbrenner & co. in to acquiring Chavey as insurance for A-Rod. I could actually see that happening, if A-Rod, who's never injured, has any complications.

Sorry, Chavey -- a great guy, by most accounts, but you're just not a fit on this team any longer. You know, something like one or two promising young players, not a Haren-6 passel of prospects. Beane'd be crazy not to do this. And it's not so crazy of a scenario, actually. So let's start that rumor now:

Chavez and his remaining two-and-a-half years (totaling ~$30m) for Damon Sublett (2B, A) and David Robertson (RHP, AAA), says a source close to David Forst.

That's enough wishing/rumoring for one night. I leave you with Emil Brown: