Baseball. Blogging. Whenever.

Tuesday, March 03, 2009

The Death of John C. Odom


Remember John C. Odom, the minor leaguer who was traded for ten bats last year? It was all worth a chuckle at the time, but there's nothing funny about it anymore:

Bat Man" or "Bat Guy" or "Bat Boy" — that's what they called him.

Ask the most hard-core baseball fan about John C. Odom and most likely you'll get a blank stare. Yet millions of people have heard of the slender right-hander. He was the minor league player traded for 10 maple bats. It became a big joke last May, when word of the unusual swap jumped off the sports pages, and Odom went from pitcher to punch line . . . Six months after the trade, he was dead. The medical examiner said Odom's death in Georgia on Nov. 5 at age 26 was an accidental overdose from heroin, methamphetamine, the stimulant benzylpiperazine and alcohol . . .

. . . "I guarantee this trade thing really bothered him. That really worried me," said Dan Shwam, who managed Odom last year on the Laredo Broncos of the United League. "I really believe, knowing his background, that this drove him back to the bottle, that it put him on the road to drugs again."

No one can know that obviously, but the story makes a convincing case that the whole ordeal contributed to the decline of a guy who was already on the borderline to begin with.
Posted by Craig Calcaterra at 4:23pm (11) Comments

Strawberry on Steroids


Darryl Strawberry on steroids:

"Hell yeah I would have used them," Strawberry said. "Are you kidding me? I mean, c'mon. Some things are part of what athletes go through and they happen ...We're competitive creatures, and we have tremendous drive, a high tolerance, all these things. I'm not saying that it was the right thing to do. But if that was going on in the 80s, that probably would have been in my system too."

Straw: they were around in the 80s. It's just that you were too coke and boozed up to notice. We do appreciate the candor, however.

You know, Strawberry has a book about his wild years coming out soon. I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that his admissions about how his out of control behavior and wasted promise negatively impacted pennant races for his teams won't get nearly the tut-tutting by the sporting press that has greeted A-Rod and Bonds' efforts to help their teams, however misguided they may have been. I mean, A-Rod may have been giving the Rangers an unfair adavantage, but didn't the unfair advantage Strawberry gave to the 1987 Cardinals, 1989 Cubs, and 1990 Pirates cause more damage? Unlike the Rangers, those teams actually won something.
Posted by Craig Calcaterra at 3:38pm (9) Comments

The NIMBYs


Scott Herhold of the Merc lives near one of the possible landing pads for the A's in San Jose, and while he's a fan of the prospect, his neighbors aren't:

You see, I live in the Hanchett Park neighborhood of San Jose, about a mile as a City Hall falcon flies, from the potential site of an A's ballpark next to the main Caltrain station.

And my neighborhood message group, usually sprinkled with tips on handymen or warnings of car break-ins, has buzzed about the potential downside of a stadium — traffic, lights, noise and the need for double-pane windows.

The whole debate is probably premature. The A's lack permission from Major League Baseball to invade the assumed territory of the Giants. Last week, A's managing partner Lew Wolff suggested everyone chill until he decides his next move.

Since it's my neighborhood, I'm still intrigued by the passionate difference between the brave few who welcome a ballpark — I counted three on my message group — and the majority who think it's the worst idea since Donald Rumsfeld.

One poster suggested the gulf was shaped by the like or dislike of baseball. I think it's a more classic NIMBY battle: The neighbors might like baseball in the abstract. Just not here. Not now. Not with their money.

In truth, the NIMBY people have raised searching questions. How does a baseball stadium fit with plans for high-speed rail at the same site? What about the lights and noise? What about the inadequate parking or the choked freeways?

Leaving the question of finances aside -- you all know where I stand on that -- I am struck by the initial responses, even if they're the mere anecdotal ramblings of a columnist's neighbors. I'm curious: is there a Major League ballpark anywhere that brings with it the kinds of negatives described by Herhold's neighbors?

I'm not asking this rhetorically. I really don't know. Are there any ballparks, particularly new-builds, that truly antagonize their immediate neighbors? The only example I can think of at the moment is Wrigley Field, which seems to kick up problems in connection with night games and traffic issues and stuff. Of course Wrigley is a special case in that (a) it's literally smack dab in the middle of a residential area; and (b) it probably does more to enhance the lives of its neighbors than detract. At any rate, unless you're 95, it was there first, so complainers don't get a lot of sympathy from me.

Anyone have any real life horror stories of living near the ballpark?
Posted by Craig Calcaterra at 2:35pm (20) Comments

Pedro’s Value


Pedro wants a bit more than the going rate for his services:

Pedro Martinez wants to pitch in the majors this season, but the three-time Cy Young winner prefers retiring to his fishing boat if the alternative is accepting a Tom Glavine-like contract. Glavine, Martinez's former teammate with the Mets, signed with the Braves for a base salary of $1 million.

"If I wanted to pitch that bad, I probably would," Martinez said about agreeing to a low guarantee comparable to Glavine's. "But I don't think I'm in that stage. I believe I'm very comfortable. I'm not going to let anybody disrespect my abilities or the way I am. I wouldn't say I would want to pitch that bad."

As Jason noted earlier today, Pedro isn't exactly in the position to be demanding anything in this market. I find the Tom Glavine analogy particularly instructive. Last year, Glavine threw something like 60 innings with an ERA+ in the mid 70s. Last year Pedro threw something like 100 innings with an ERA+ in the mid 70s. Yes, I suppose 40 innings means something, but I don't think it means nearly as much as Pedro has in mind.

That said, I'm not going to pile on here, because I kind of like his overall attitude about all of this:

Martinez said he isn't annoyed that he's unemployed.

"No chip on my shoulder," he said. "I understand business, and I understand the ugly face of baseball, which is the business of baseball. Whether you like it or not, the last few years I'll be the first one to tell you I haven't been the Pedro Martinez that I'm used to being. If nobody takes a chance, well, I'll go fishing. If I'm healthy and I'm able to do the things that I used to do, I think a lot of people are going to probably regret not taking a chance."

Martinez said that he particularly holds no grudge toward Omar Minaya. The Mets GM signed Martinez to the four-year, $53 million contract that expired during the offseason, but has not moved to re-sign him.

"If I happen to stay out, it's not his fault," Martinez said.

Athletes are different from you and me in that they spend a huge portion of their life in competition. Many of them gear up for such competition by building their enemies up to greater threats than they actually are. This is understandable and probably even useful as they ride into battle. Unfortunately, such a posture usually spills over into the business side of things, with players finding enemies and disrespect in places where, quite frankly, they don't exist.

It's good to see Pedro eschewing that game. He knows he isn't the pitcher he once was. He knows that if he were, people would be beating down his door to sign him. They're not, and that's cool with him, even if he thinks they're making a mistake.
Posted by Craig Calcaterra at 12:57pm (5) Comments

Ducksnorts


Each year, Geoff Young blows his whole winter (and then some) putting together the single most comprehensive single-team book you're ever going to find. It's called Ducksnorts, and it has everything you ever wanted to know about the San Diego Padres. It's so detailed that I'm putting even odds on Geoff being called as a witness in John and Becky Moores' divorce case.

Well, it's that time of year again: Geoff has finished Ducksnorts 2009. Free excerpts can be read here. The whole kit-and-caboodle can be purchased here, in either paperback or downloadable form. Sorry, if you buy a kit, you must purchase a caboodle too. No exceptions.

Now that the book is out, you're officially on notice: if you can't name any Padres other than Adrian Gonzales and Jake Peavy, you have no one to blame but yourself.
Posted by Craig Calcaterra at 12:24pm (1) Comments

The jet stream ain’t what it used to be


Apparently Rangers' hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo is a member of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change:

"You know all this [bleep] that’s going on around the world, weather-wise, well, we’re seeing it in Arlington. The jet stream at The Ballpark ain’t what it used to be. That’s changing. I think it’ll help our arms. It's true."

I'll admit that I have relied on news summaries and have not actually read any of the IPCC's reports. Thanks to Jaramillo, however, now I can just flip to the index and look under "bleep."

(thanks to Pete Toms and Ballpark Digest)
Posted by Craig Calcaterra at 9:20am (2) Comments

Sigi Schmid Appeal


Like white people all over this country, I really love the idea of soccer. So do folks in Seattle:

The Seattle Sounders FC may be the upstarts on the local sports scene, but the new pro soccer team appears to be having little trouble attracting sponsors and ticket buyers . . . The Sounders have sold about 20,000 season tickets, which eclipses the number sold by the 32-year-old Mariners team, which estimates it will sell about 14,000 by the start of the season.

Apples and oranges, sure. There are way more baseball games, the cost structure is totally different, the recession may be sending would-be baseball fans to the cheaper option of soccer, and of course, Major League Soccer is a novelty in Seattle. But I have to ask: are MLS teams outselling baseball teams in any other cities? This is one of those things I'd look up this morning if I didn't have a day job, but I'm going to guess that the answer is no.

(thanks to Pete Toms and Ballpark Digest)

Posted by Craig Calcaterra at 8:45am (13) Comments

Bonds appeals dates set


The prosecutions' appeal in the Barry Bonds case is on the accelerated calendar:

The U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco said in a filing today it’s expediting the government’s appeal of the ruling. The judge barred positive drug tests and other evidence unless they are supported by testimony from Greg Anderson, Bonds’s former trainer, who has refused to be a witness.

Government lawyers must file arguments for overturning the ruling by June 1. Bonds’s lawyers must respond by July 1. A hearing on the arguments and a decision are to follow.

Not too much to read into this other than the notion that the issues on appeal are pretty straightforward. This is fabulous for bloggers, though, because the accelerated calendar means shorter briefs, thereby allowing us to more easily pretend to be experts.

Posted by Craig Calcaterra at 8:11am (2) Comments

Little Pieces


Remember back in January when I told you about the tell-all memoir by former Angels farm hand Matt McCarthy? Yeah, it seems like there may be less there than meets the eye:

Matt McCarthy, a graduate of Yale and of Harvard Medical School now working as an intern in the residency program at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia hospital in New York, has gained national attention in recent weeks for “Odd Man Out,” his salacious memoir of his summer as an obscure minor league pitcher. He writes about playing with racist, steroids-taking teammates, pitching for a profane, unbalanced manager and observing obscene behavior and speech that in some ways reinforce the popular image of wild professional ballplayers.

But statistics from that season, transaction listings and interviews with his former teammates indicate that many portions of the book are incorrect, embellished or impossible . . . Several times in the book, which he devotes mostly to the antics of libidinous teammates and his manic manager, Tom Kotchman, McCarthy directly quotes people stating incorrect facts about their own lives and tells detailed (and mostly unflattering) stories about teammates who were in fact not on his team at the time. The book’s more outrageous scenes could not be independently corroborated or disproved; several teammates who were present said in interviews that they were exaggerated or simply untrue.

McCarthy is standing by his story. Well, sort of:

During the interview Monday, McCarthy said that the notebooks in which he wrote most nights that summer were very specific and “extremely detailed with regards to dialogue.” After being told of the many errors, he said several times that he strived to recollect events six years afterward.

“I think that there are a handful of details that I did my best to re-create,” said McCarthy, 28. “For the most part, it’s a detailed account of what was going on. If somebody comes out and says, ‘I would never have said that, therefore it’s not true,’ I can’t do anything about that.”

That, my friends, is stage 1 of a classic backpedal. I'm not entirely sure what the next stage will be, but you can bet that the final stage will be a teary interview on "Outside the Lines" or "Oprah" or something.

(thanks to Neate Sager for the heads up)



Posted by Craig Calcaterra at 7:30am (1) Comments

Today at THT


Things to read while taking full advantage of the extra three days the Civil Rules give you for responding to a brief that was served by regular mail:

  • Victor Wang ranks the farm systems. Victor's approach is different than many you'll see in that he weighs multiple prospect lists first, and works from there. I'm not an expert, but it seems pretty comprehensive. Unfortunately for Astros fans, however, their team would finish last under every ranking system known to man.


  • Steve Treder tells the sad, fascinating story of Cass Michaels. This is one to save later in the day when you have a lot of time to enjoy it.


  • A couple of weeks ago, Jeff Sackmann looked at the quality of play of NCAA Division 2. Today he looks at Division 3. And save it -- you could not have played second base for a Division 3 team either because you peaked at 15 just like the rest of us.


  • Finally, over at Fantasy Focus, Eriq Gardner asks whether it's OK to platoon stars on your fantasy team. The biggest downside he sees: having to wake up early each day to check pitching matchups. I know exactly what he means. Waking up before 6AM each day to get onlne and look at baseball stuff is a total, total drag.


    • Ah, screw it. I'm just going to move for an extension. It's the cornerstone of my legal practice.
    Posted by Craig Calcaterra at 5:38am (0) Comments