In light of the Dan Haren trade, I found the need to drop a few words on the current state of the Arizona Diamondbacks. It seems as if mismanagement is the name of the game for this team. Dan Haren’s exit interview was appallingly clarifying regarding the organization’s outlook. Haren’s time ended having played for three different managers since coming here in 2008. The team progressively got worse during that time. Remember, he was traded to the Diamondbacks the offseason on the heels of a surprising season that saw the Diamondbacks win the National League West. That was followed by an outstanding month of April, which was so great it took the entire season for the Dodgers to finally catch them after trading for slugger Manny Ramirez. That disappointment led to another, equally disappointing 2009 that included the mismanagement of century (more on that to come later).
Then of course we get to this season. Haren continued his own downward trend from the second half of last season. He finished his time in the National league with a 7-8 record and 4.60 ERA. Those are not good numbers. Especially for a guy who is supposed to be considered the ace of the rotation. That, coupled with potentially the worst bullpen in MLB history and a roster leading the Majors in strikeouts has brought this team to a new low given the expectations coming into the season.
How did this happen? It’s just a downward spiral. When asked about the team’s losing ways, he said (courtesy of azcentral.com), “It wears on everybody, me included. The last game I won, I couldn’t even tell you. It’s been about a month. It’s been tough going. When you’re not winning, it’s not fun.”
The most telling part of the interview were Haren’s comments about his future with the Angels organization, “Being able to be near family and going to a ballclub that’s dedicated to winning, not just this year and a lot of years, I’m very excited for the opportunity.”
If that’s not a slap in the management’s face, I don’t know what is. It’s very rare that we see an athlete be so candid and casual about leaving a team. There were not many clichés in Haren’s words and we can undoubtedly imagine that this is the same sentiment throughout the rest of the team. Brandon Webb must have noticed this trend at the beginning of last year, that’s why he got out while the going was still good. Say what? Brandon Webb is still on the roster?
Yes, Brandon Webb still is on the roster after the decision makers decided to pick up his option worth $8.5 million, even though he hasn’t pitched since the four innings he put up on opening day 2009. This is easily the worst mismanagement of an injury that I’ve ever seen. The thing is there was never really a significant, sustained injury. It started as just stiffness in his shoulder and never really got better, regardless of treatment. And really, I don’t think anyone in the organization really knew what was going on this entire time. How can a player miss two entire seasons with stiffness!?! Here are a few headlines over the past two seasons from the Arizona Republic:
April 8, 2009: “Webb will miss start vs. Dodgers”
April 19, 2009: “Webb shows no effects of shoulder injury”
April 24, 2009: “Webb shut down with recurrence of injury”
May 25, 2009: “D-Backs need Webb, but won’t rush return”
June 19, 2009: “Webb could require surgery on shoulder”
June 29, 2009: “Webb’s future in doubt over shoulder”
August 2, 2009: “Webb to undergo shoulder surgery”
January 21, 2010: “Brandon Webb playing catch as part of recovery”
February 17, 2010: “Opening day conundrum: Webb or Haren”
March 5, 2010: “Brandon Webb may start season on DL
April 1, 2010: “Arizona Diamondback’s Brandon Webb has nothing structurally wrong”
May 19, 2010: “Brandon Webb to change arm slot”
June 5, 2010: “Brandon Webb close to throwing off mound”
This has gone on for over a year and a half and there is still no end in sight. My predictions, Webb signs with another team this offseason to bargain-basement contract compared to what he would have gotten after 2008. He rids himself of the negative vibes of the organization and goes back to his normal self while winning a Cy Young for the 2011 World Series Champion Los Angeles Dodgers. That would complete the downward spiral this team is in and officially send me over the edge. But look on the bright side, at least we’re not Pirates fans.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Offseason Moves and the ESPY’s
I’m going to be writing this post during the ESPY’s, so this could be a little disjointed and it could include references that don’t make any sense at all unless you watched the ESPY’s. So with that said, funny opening monologue by Seth Meyers. A few too many off color jokes for Brett Favre’s wife, and a few too much humor for Danica Patrick. I don’t think she’s smiled since 1987.
Okay, the real reason for this post is to rate the Suns’ most recent offseason moves. The Suns picked up Josh Childress and Hedo Turkoglu giving up a future second-round draft pick and Leandro Barbosa to get them.
Let’s start with the Childress deal. Childress is a long, talented player and a good on ball defender, and the Suns only gave up a second round pick and part of the trade exception from the Amare deal. In most regards, this would be a great pickup and a great addition to any team. The only problem is, the Suns already have three players in this spot, Grant Hill, Jared Dudley and Earl Clark. I don’t know if the front office has plans to move either of the previous three or if Dudley or Childress will just spend more time backing up Jason Richardson and guarding opponents’ twos. As long as the latter is the case, the move is a good one, especially for the price, but Hill and Dudley were far too valuable to the chemistry of the team to risk replacing them. (Holy smokes, Danica Patrick just smiled! Because an octopus hinted that he wanted to hook up...I’m not going any further with that one).
As far as the Turkoglu trade goes, I have mixed feelings. Initially, when it looked like Amare was going to leave after the season ended I wanted the Suns to use the freed up cap space to go after Nash’s old buddy Dirk Nowitzki. I even wrote about the necessary scenario that would make it most likely. But that was before we realized that the 2010 Free Agency Extravaganza that at least five teams had been gearing up for since 2006 was actually settled two years ago in China. Well, Hedo Turkoglu is a poor man’s Dirk Nowitzki. It should be a decent replacement given that we almost ended up with nothing, right? Well, maybe not. Chemistry is what made this team surprise so many last season. Had Dirk joined the team, the chemistry wouldn’t have been affected due to his relationship with Steve Nash. Turkoglu on the other hand is a different story. First of all, he looks like Rocky Balboa after he fought Apollo. Can that really be a good locker room guy? Probably not. Second, it’s well known that his time in Toronto was a disaster. Only months after signing a five-year, $53 million contract, he wanted out.
Athletically, he could end up as a solid addition. If he replaces Amare Stoudemire in the starting lineup, he will get pushed around defensively be bigger, longer forwards, and his rebounding isn’t spectacular. But his size and outside shooting will be a great in the pick and roll with Nash. Think Channing Frye’s pick and pop with more versatility towards the basket. As long as nobody tells him where Scottsdale is, he might be able to stay focused on basketball. I’m counting on the rest of the team to clean up whatever issues might be on this team.
I’m also a little skeptical about the Lon Babby fellow. First of all, think about his name on an alphabetical list (Babby, Lon). You’ve got to be skeptical already with a name like that. Second, he’s Turkoglu’s agent, and Childress’s former agent. Is it just me, or does something seem a little shady here? Now don’t get me wrong, if it got the Suns a good deal, then I shouldn’t complain, but there definitely seems like there is some potential backlash on this one. But hey, do you really need to be a member of the American Bar Association to be an NBA General Manager? Besides, this is the NBA or in other words the Notoriously Dubious Association. Remember? The league where frozen envelopes happen, Miami collusion happens, and of course where referees arrested for gambling happens. This is nothing to David Stern.
(Brett Favre wins ESPY for best play. Weaksauce! It should have been the minor leaguer. David Stern is watching this proud. Remember, Favre’s play came on Monday Night Football. On what channel? Oh yeah, ESPN. What are these awards again? Oh yeah, the ESPY’s.)
One last thing about Lon Babby: reports say that he is actually going to have the title, "Director of Basketball Operations." The plan is to hire a General Manager who will work under Babby and handle more of the personnel decisions. Babby's expertise will be focused more on the salary cap, collective bargaining agreement and contract negotiations. Um...doesn't this seem a little backwards to you? Shouldn't the guy making the final decisions be the personnel guy, while being advised by the contract/salary cap guy? Again, this entire front office situation just confuses me day after day. Was Babby already making moves for the Suns before he officially joined the team? Were Babby and Turkoglu a package deal? I guess this front office structure shows what Robert Sarver's priorities really are. The financial guy works above the personnel guy.
Okay, the real reason for this post is to rate the Suns’ most recent offseason moves. The Suns picked up Josh Childress and Hedo Turkoglu giving up a future second-round draft pick and Leandro Barbosa to get them.
Let’s start with the Childress deal. Childress is a long, talented player and a good on ball defender, and the Suns only gave up a second round pick and part of the trade exception from the Amare deal. In most regards, this would be a great pickup and a great addition to any team. The only problem is, the Suns already have three players in this spot, Grant Hill, Jared Dudley and Earl Clark. I don’t know if the front office has plans to move either of the previous three or if Dudley or Childress will just spend more time backing up Jason Richardson and guarding opponents’ twos. As long as the latter is the case, the move is a good one, especially for the price, but Hill and Dudley were far too valuable to the chemistry of the team to risk replacing them. (Holy smokes, Danica Patrick just smiled! Because an octopus hinted that he wanted to hook up...I’m not going any further with that one).
As far as the Turkoglu trade goes, I have mixed feelings. Initially, when it looked like Amare was going to leave after the season ended I wanted the Suns to use the freed up cap space to go after Nash’s old buddy Dirk Nowitzki. I even wrote about the necessary scenario that would make it most likely. But that was before we realized that the 2010 Free Agency Extravaganza that at least five teams had been gearing up for since 2006 was actually settled two years ago in China. Well, Hedo Turkoglu is a poor man’s Dirk Nowitzki. It should be a decent replacement given that we almost ended up with nothing, right? Well, maybe not. Chemistry is what made this team surprise so many last season. Had Dirk joined the team, the chemistry wouldn’t have been affected due to his relationship with Steve Nash. Turkoglu on the other hand is a different story. First of all, he looks like Rocky Balboa after he fought Apollo. Can that really be a good locker room guy? Probably not. Second, it’s well known that his time in Toronto was a disaster. Only months after signing a five-year, $53 million contract, he wanted out.
Athletically, he could end up as a solid addition. If he replaces Amare Stoudemire in the starting lineup, he will get pushed around defensively be bigger, longer forwards, and his rebounding isn’t spectacular. But his size and outside shooting will be a great in the pick and roll with Nash. Think Channing Frye’s pick and pop with more versatility towards the basket. As long as nobody tells him where Scottsdale is, he might be able to stay focused on basketball. I’m counting on the rest of the team to clean up whatever issues might be on this team.
I’m also a little skeptical about the Lon Babby fellow. First of all, think about his name on an alphabetical list (Babby, Lon). You’ve got to be skeptical already with a name like that. Second, he’s Turkoglu’s agent, and Childress’s former agent. Is it just me, or does something seem a little shady here? Now don’t get me wrong, if it got the Suns a good deal, then I shouldn’t complain, but there definitely seems like there is some potential backlash on this one. But hey, do you really need to be a member of the American Bar Association to be an NBA General Manager? Besides, this is the NBA or in other words the Notoriously Dubious Association. Remember? The league where frozen envelopes happen, Miami collusion happens, and of course where referees arrested for gambling happens. This is nothing to David Stern.
(Brett Favre wins ESPY for best play. Weaksauce! It should have been the minor leaguer. David Stern is watching this proud. Remember, Favre’s play came on Monday Night Football. On what channel? Oh yeah, ESPN. What are these awards again? Oh yeah, the ESPY’s.)
One last thing about Lon Babby: reports say that he is actually going to have the title, "Director of Basketball Operations." The plan is to hire a General Manager who will work under Babby and handle more of the personnel decisions. Babby's expertise will be focused more on the salary cap, collective bargaining agreement and contract negotiations. Um...doesn't this seem a little backwards to you? Shouldn't the guy making the final decisions be the personnel guy, while being advised by the contract/salary cap guy? Again, this entire front office situation just confuses me day after day. Was Babby already making moves for the Suns before he officially joined the team? Were Babby and Turkoglu a package deal? I guess this front office structure shows what Robert Sarver's priorities really are. The financial guy works above the personnel guy.
Friday, July 9, 2010
The Aftermath
Like always, we’ll start with the local team. And, as you’ve heard by now, All-Star power forward, Amare Stoudemire has signed with the New York Knicks to be the King of New York. Ironic, I know. Amare left because owner Robert Sarver just couldn’t talk himself into giving out $100 million to a player with a history of bad knees and bad eyes. That’s understandable, but I just hope that’s how we hear it from him. I don’t want to hear any spin about how Amare didn’t want to be here, and how he was itching to leave from the moment the Suns drafted him. If Sarver would have been willing to spend the money, Amare would have stayed.
I don’t blame him for leaving, and I don’t blame Robert Sarver for not paying him either. Maybe that’s just because I’ve had five months to ponder what the Suns would be like without Stoudemire on the team. I cushioned the blow for myself and didn’t go into this process with high expectations. With that said, I still expect good offseason moves by the front office. Let’s discuss.
Channing Frye: overpaid. Really, as a fan, I don’t really care if my team is paying luxury tax or not. I just want to see good players play good basketball, but the front office can’t think like that. They have a budget and they need to find players that will fit into those parameters and into the basketball system.
Unfortunately, the Suns were doomed from the beginning. They don’t have a General Manager anymore. They have a coach making these decisions, and coaches tend to think along the same lines as fans. “We had this guy. He played well for us. We need to keep this guy.” See Alvin Gentry doesn’t really care how much Robert Sarver is paying Channing Frye. As a matter of fact, the odds are high that once Steve Nash retires/leaves/ascends to the basketball heavens, Alvin Gentry won’t be the coach of the team anymore. The future is not in his mindset, hence the need for a real GM. As long as Sarver is willing to pay (which he’s not) this wouldn’t be a terrible move, especially if there was a real GM and talent evaluator in the front office to re-bolster the roster through the draft, because big-time free agents aren’t going to be able to sign if Suns are over luxury tax.
As bad as a contract that will turn out to be, 5 years $32 million for Frye, I really like the Hakim Warrick signing. Warrick is a good value pickup. His career numbers aren’t outstanding, but he hasn’t ever really had a chance to play big minutes. Most likely, he’ll be the starting power forward, and he WILL get better by playing with Steve Nash. Nash tends to have that effect on super athletic forwards who cannot create their own shot. Just ask Shawn Marion. All in all, I think the Suns did pretty well for the situation that they were in. Or in other words, I think the 2010-11 team can still be entertaining and competitive for the financial restraints that were put on the organization.
Now of course, this post would not be complete without a few words on the man of the month, LeBron James. I think my sister just threw up in her mouth a little. I think the general public has had enough of this guy. After all the speculation and the hours of ESPN airtime devoted to this announcement, LeBron decided to play for the Miami Heat, referencing his desire to win now and in the future, oh and to play with his Olympic buddies.
This was a terrible decision on multiple levels. First let’s dissect his reasons for choosing Miami. He wants to win. They are going to have an extremely talented team no matter who else they can find to put around these three, but there is no guarantee this team will win. It is a fatally flawed team. They don’t have a go-to-guy. Who’s going to take the last shot? Who is going to take the blame when or if things go wrong? I guarantee this team will not last the five year duration of their contracts. This will combust. LeBron basically left Cleveland and the chance to be the biggest star in sports history (winning multiple titles in New York) to hang out with his buddies on South Beach. That’s what it boils down to. Dude! You’re LeBron James! You can BUY some buddies to hang with! Not only that, but he turned himself into an instant villain WWF style by spurning Cleveland on a primetime TV special. We haven’t seen a fall from sports grace this quickly since…well, last November (See Woods, Tiger).
That’s what I’m saying. His legacy will never live up to the potential that it once had. This is Dwayne Wade’s team. He’s already The Man in Miami. He’s already won a championship in Miami. Even if they do win titles, LeBron will never have as many as Wade does. LeBron gave up chance of sports immortality to be a second fiddle to Dwayne Wade! This blows me away! I thought he had a whole slew of people advising him on just this type of stuff. I guess they all couldn’t get the thought of spending the winters on South Beach every year. LeBron’s only hope is to become Magic Johnson-type playmaker. And even that might not be enough. I’m sure he won’t have Magic’s blessing after what he did to his hometown fans. Only time will tell if this king turns out more like Henry VIII, cutting off heads whenever and wherever to get what he wants, or the King of Pop whose legacy only grew after a midlife transformation. Time will tell.
I don’t blame him for leaving, and I don’t blame Robert Sarver for not paying him either. Maybe that’s just because I’ve had five months to ponder what the Suns would be like without Stoudemire on the team. I cushioned the blow for myself and didn’t go into this process with high expectations. With that said, I still expect good offseason moves by the front office. Let’s discuss.
Channing Frye: overpaid. Really, as a fan, I don’t really care if my team is paying luxury tax or not. I just want to see good players play good basketball, but the front office can’t think like that. They have a budget and they need to find players that will fit into those parameters and into the basketball system.
Unfortunately, the Suns were doomed from the beginning. They don’t have a General Manager anymore. They have a coach making these decisions, and coaches tend to think along the same lines as fans. “We had this guy. He played well for us. We need to keep this guy.” See Alvin Gentry doesn’t really care how much Robert Sarver is paying Channing Frye. As a matter of fact, the odds are high that once Steve Nash retires/leaves/ascends to the basketball heavens, Alvin Gentry won’t be the coach of the team anymore. The future is not in his mindset, hence the need for a real GM. As long as Sarver is willing to pay (which he’s not) this wouldn’t be a terrible move, especially if there was a real GM and talent evaluator in the front office to re-bolster the roster through the draft, because big-time free agents aren’t going to be able to sign if Suns are over luxury tax.
As bad as a contract that will turn out to be, 5 years $32 million for Frye, I really like the Hakim Warrick signing. Warrick is a good value pickup. His career numbers aren’t outstanding, but he hasn’t ever really had a chance to play big minutes. Most likely, he’ll be the starting power forward, and he WILL get better by playing with Steve Nash. Nash tends to have that effect on super athletic forwards who cannot create their own shot. Just ask Shawn Marion. All in all, I think the Suns did pretty well for the situation that they were in. Or in other words, I think the 2010-11 team can still be entertaining and competitive for the financial restraints that were put on the organization.
Now of course, this post would not be complete without a few words on the man of the month, LeBron James. I think my sister just threw up in her mouth a little. I think the general public has had enough of this guy. After all the speculation and the hours of ESPN airtime devoted to this announcement, LeBron decided to play for the Miami Heat, referencing his desire to win now and in the future, oh and to play with his Olympic buddies.
This was a terrible decision on multiple levels. First let’s dissect his reasons for choosing Miami. He wants to win. They are going to have an extremely talented team no matter who else they can find to put around these three, but there is no guarantee this team will win. It is a fatally flawed team. They don’t have a go-to-guy. Who’s going to take the last shot? Who is going to take the blame when or if things go wrong? I guarantee this team will not last the five year duration of their contracts. This will combust. LeBron basically left Cleveland and the chance to be the biggest star in sports history (winning multiple titles in New York) to hang out with his buddies on South Beach. That’s what it boils down to. Dude! You’re LeBron James! You can BUY some buddies to hang with! Not only that, but he turned himself into an instant villain WWF style by spurning Cleveland on a primetime TV special. We haven’t seen a fall from sports grace this quickly since…well, last November (See Woods, Tiger).
That’s what I’m saying. His legacy will never live up to the potential that it once had. This is Dwayne Wade’s team. He’s already The Man in Miami. He’s already won a championship in Miami. Even if they do win titles, LeBron will never have as many as Wade does. LeBron gave up chance of sports immortality to be a second fiddle to Dwayne Wade! This blows me away! I thought he had a whole slew of people advising him on just this type of stuff. I guess they all couldn’t get the thought of spending the winters on South Beach every year. LeBron’s only hope is to become Magic Johnson-type playmaker. And even that might not be enough. I’m sure he won’t have Magic’s blessing after what he did to his hometown fans. Only time will tell if this king turns out more like Henry VIII, cutting off heads whenever and wherever to get what he wants, or the King of Pop whose legacy only grew after a midlife transformation. Time will tell.
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