posted on Wednesday, June 06, 2007 2:05 AM
by
Jim
Didn't see that coming, Part XII
If you look at the
bottom of the list of major-league regulars sorted by OPS, it's a pretty dreary sight. You have your has-beens (Jason Kendall, Omar Vizquel, Adam Kennedy), never-wases (Dioner Navarro, Nelson Cruz), rookies (Alex Gordon) and flameouts (Corey Patterson, Jay Gibbons).
Unfortunately, you also have Joe Crede, who missed
tonight's game thanks to an escalation of his back problems. At this point last year, one could legitimately argue that
Crede was having a better year than Alex Rodriguez. Fast-forward to the present, and Rodriguez just blasted his league-leading 21st homer while Crede's having difficulty standing upright.
Oh, how the mighty have fallen ... in
an utterly predictable fashion. Once again, a degree from
the Dustin Hermanson School of Mind Over Body has very little practical application in the real world.
Josh Fields didn't play today in Charlotte, and hopefully that's sign of moves to come. He doesn't have Crede's glove, but he also doesn't have Crede's back. Nor does he have Crede's legs or Alex Cintron's arm. Nor does he have Jerry Owens' bat, Brian Anderson's strike zone judgment or Ryan Sweeney's stagnation issues at Triple-A.
He's a completely different entity, and that alone awards him a chance to see if he can stick in the majors. It's always dangerous to say that he couldn't be any worse, but at least in this lineup it'd be damn hard to notice if he were.
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Out-of-context blurb time! From Scott Podsednik, via Scott Merkin:"I'm pretty much useless."
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Minor league round-up:- Charlotte 2, Louisville 1 (10 innings)
- Gavin Floyd had his best outing of the year: 8 IP, 7 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 6 K, 0 HR. The only run came in the eighth, when a leadoff double came around to score on a sac bunt and a groundout.
- David Aardsma pitched two scoreless innings for the win, allowing a hit and a walk while striking out three.
- Craig Wilson, Brian Anderson and Ryan Sweeney went 0-for-11 combined; Wilson had the lone walk; Kenny Kelly hit a solo homer.
- Birmingham 7, Tennessee 5 (12 innings)
- Jack Egbert gave up three runs in 7 1/3 innings, allowing six hits and two walks and striking out three.
- Thomas Collaro went 4-for-7 with two homers and three RBI, including the go-ahead shot in the 12th; Jeremy Frost added a solo homer, and he, Victor Mercedes, Cory Aldridge, Chris Kelly and Ricardo Nanita had two hits apiece.
- Robert Valido went 0-for-7 out of the leadoff spot.
- Frederick 7, Winston-Salem 5
- Paulo Orlando had two hits and two stolen bases; Aaron Cunningham didn't start, but drew a bases-loaded walk in a pinch hitting appearance in the bottom of the ninth.
- Matt Zaleski gave up two runs over five innings in his start, but Gary Bakker and Brian Omogrosso were both hit hard in relief.
- Kannapolis 12, Greenville 5
- Leadoff hitter John Shelby led the way with three hits and two runs scored; Anderson Gomes, Archie Gilbert and Brandon Allen each had a pair of RBI.
- Chris Carter hit a solo homer, his 12th of the year; Maurice Gartrell and Scott Madsen were the only regulars without a hit, yet they each scored two runs.
- Jacob Rasner took advantage of the run support, earning the win despite giving up five runs and nine hits in six innings. Joseph Winn and Kanekoa Texeira combined for three scoreless innings.