Tuesday February 17, 2004
TV Thoughts Yes, including thoughts on last night’s My Big Fat Obnoxious Fiance
DISCUSSION QUESTION OF THE WEEK – in case you missed it, please check back to yesterday’s thoughts on the Alex Rodriguez trade to the Yankees.
TWINS THOUGHTS
DETAILS - The Twins signed their first baseman, Doug Mientkiewicz to a two year, $7 million contract with an option for 2006. It is interesting to see how these long term, pre-arbitration deals work out. Mientkiewicz was asking for $3.6 million in 2004. The Twins countered with a $2.5 million offer. The deal breaks down like this:
2004 - $2.8 million
2005 - $3.75 million
2006 - either $3.75 million (or Twins can buy out the contract for $450,000)
In other words, this could be a 3 year, $10.3 million deal should the Twins pick up the 2006 option.
I admit, my first reaction when reading about this signing was shock. My assumption was that 2004 would be Mientkiewicz’s last season before pricing himself out of the Twins plans, and the 1B job was given to Justin Morneau. My thinking was this:
2004: 1B - Doug Mientkiewicz, DH - Matthew Lecroy/Justin Morneau
2005: 1B - Justin Morneau, DH - Matthew Lecroy
2006: 1B - Justin Morneau, DH - Matthew Lecroy
Instead we probably will have:
2004: 1B - Doug Mientkiewicz, DH - Matthew Lecroy/Justin Morneau
2005: 1B - Doug Mientkiewicz, DH - Justin Morneau
2006: 1B - Doug Mientkiewicz, DH - Justin Morneau
The fact is that Justin Morneau, after a little more AAA seasoning will be more than ready for full-time big league playing time. He is the high power, good average hitting prospect that could eventually be a middle of the lineup contributor for years to come for the Twins.
We all know that Mientkiewicz is anything but a typical major league first baseman. He doesn’t hit many home runs or drive in a lot of runs. However, he has hit .300 two of the last three seasons. His On-Base Percentage has been over .385 two of the last three years. His slugging percentage has been above .450 two of the last three years. You may have noticed in my baseball previews that I included doubles a lot of times. I think some of the better hitters in baseball hit a lot of doubles. In the last three seasons, Mientkiewicz has hit 106 doubles. In other words, despite not being a “power hitter,” per se, Mientkiewicz puts together quality at bats. The last two seasons, he has walked more than he has struck out.
The guy who could lose out on at bats in this signing is Matthew Lecroy. My assumption is that he will be the primary designated hitter when the season begins in April. However, after Morneau rips up AAA pitching early in the season, he will need to be brought up to the Twins again, and this time, he needs to be given the full-time job. And yes, I think that is the right thing to do!
TRADEABILITY – Mientkiewicz signed such a reasonable contract that the Twins could have some options. First, the dollars are such that the Twins can keep him. However, his signing for such low terms make him even more valuable in trade terms. Should Morneau prove he can play 1B defensively and Lecroy hit well, the Twins could use Mientkiewicz as trade bait by mid-season, or more likely following the season.
SUMMARY – I think that this is a very fair deal for the Twins. They got the best defensive first baseman in baseball, a guy who should have won four of the last five Gold Gloves, as well as a guy who gets on base, for, at most, 3 years and $10.3 million. It really does give the Twins some options, whether it is keeping or trading him. Don’t get me wrong. Mientkiewicz has been one of my favorite Twins the last three years. I love watching how he plays. I love watching his approach at the plate. I also want to see Justin Morneau get 500 plate appearances and see what happens. So, if Lecroy is the guy squeezed out, I am ok with that!
ESPN.com’s John Sickels wrote up a piece on Twins closer prospect Jesse Crain. It is full of statistics and scouting reports. I’ve waxed poetic about the virtues of Jesse Crain here numerous times, so I won’t go into detail. However, he throws gas. He was a college shortstop, so he is athletic. He doesn’t walk many while striking out a lot. And, in his year and a half of minor league ball, he is yet to give up a home run. He will contribute to the Twins in 2004.
Here is one more A-Rod/Yankees thought. When I read the ESPN.com report yesterday afternoon saying that Bud Selig had approved the trade, I read the following sentence:
(Agent Scott) Boras said the possibility of a trade first came up last Monday while he was talking to the Yankees about another player.
Hmmm… I wonder who that other player could be??? What free agent does Scott Boras represent that might be able to help the Yankees? Oh yeah, that Greg Maddux guy, the pitcher who is on the verge of winning his 300th career game.
So, don’t be surprised if soon we’re hearing that Greg Maddux will become a New York Yankee and be their 4th starter, giving them some flexibility so that Jon Lieber does not need to rush back from Tommy John surgery too quickly.
UPDATE – Later last night I read this headline on ESPN.com’s Baseball page “Now Maddux?”. So, it looks like this is likely to happen. What do you think of that? E-mail me.
DISCUSSION QUESTION OF THE WEEK
(reprinted from yesterday’s posting)
Clearly baseball’s current economic situation leaves much to be desired. So this week’s Discussion Question is devoted to it. It really is more than one question, so I will leave it up to you to answer as you’d like. What is the main problem with baseball’s economic situation? If you were commissioner, what would your plan be to remedy the economic inequities in baseball? I realize this is a big question, but I think it is an important question.
Here is how the Discussion Question process works again.
1.) I post a question on Monday.
2.) The readers read the question and consider their thoughts on a possible answer.
3.) The readers e-mail me with their response to the question.
4.) On Friday, I will post any responses to the question that I receive.
I hope that many of you will take a few minutes out of your busy schedule and send me a message with your response. Who knows? Maybe the right people will be led to this site. Maybe someone in the commissioner’s office or someone with some connections will read it and one of our ideas will lead to a good resolution the next time an agreement needs to be worked out.
For those unfamiliar with these questions, be sure to check back at these previous Discussions:
Who Would You Want to Talk To? - Which ball players would you ask questions to?
All-Time Best Lineups - Who would you pick to play on your team?
Your Thoughts on the Twins Chances- Lots of you were ready to give up on the Twins!!
Is Terry Ryan “The Man” or “The Goat” - Thoughts on Terry Ryan’s moves.
What is your Favorite Sport - Baseball? Football? Basketball? Other? Why?
Twins Bobbleheads/Your Favorite Players - Who you thought would be the 2004 Twins players on bobbleheads, and who your favorite players have been.
(Note - by the way, the Twins have announced their 2004 bobbleheads, they will be:
June 6 - Shannon Stewart
July 9 - Al Newman
August 21 - Paul Molitor
September 19 - Walter Johnson - (part of an 80th anniversary of the Washington Senators championship weekend)
So, please, send me an e-mail and let’s have a great posting for Friday! Thanks!
No volleyball last night, so I was able to enjoy the four Monday night TV shows without setting both VCRs. So, I watched The Littlest Groom, Las Vegas, Average Joe II and I taped and watched My Big Fat Obnoxious Fiance. I had to tape it because odds are I’ll want to watch it again a few times!
The Littlest Groom was good. Las Vegas has had better episodes. Without saying too much, I was shocked with the second person eliminated by Larissa. I didn’t think that it would happen, so I was upset with Larissa, until I heard her reasoning and then it made sense to me, so I wasn’t mad any more. I love the “Mom” visit episodes on this show. It shows people’s true colors and Larissa definitely saw them! I really hope that she picks one of the Average Joes. When Malena picked the “hunk” instead of the average joe (Adam), it actually upset me. If that happens again in Average Joe II, then I have to wonder what the show is trying to show? Is it showing that in reality, there is no way that a beautiful, attractive woman would ever pick the good guy who is average over the attractive guy? I am also looking forward to the next Average Joe, Adam Returns. That should be fun to watch!
Then, my thoughts on My Big Fat Obnoxious Fiance… I know you’ve all been waiting for them, and they are the sole reason you came to my site today, so here we go. Randi is so hot! No question about that. At first, I wasn’t like most people who felt bad for her. I figured that she went into a “reality show” without having any clue what she was in for; she deserved whatever came her way. However, I am changing my tune now. I do feel bad for her and my “anger” is now focused on her siblings, specifically her older brother Pat. What a jerk! I understand questioning her about it, but at some point, he needs to be a little less selfish and be supportive of his sister. Although the other siblings are also being jerky, I think that Pat is the key. If he would give in, I think the other kids would.
I just can’t believe how stuck on themselves that family presents itself as. Sure, they are in an extreme situation, but I can’t believe how negative they are. I can’t believe how overly honest the siblings are being with Randi. I can’t believe that when she is telling them how important it is to her that they be in attendance, and they still say no! Makes me mad!
Anyway, those are my thoughts. I really am looking forward to next week’s final episode. Well, I don’t want it to end, but from the previews, it should be great!
Any thoughts on these shows, any TV shows, or any reality shows, please let me know!
That’s it for today. It’s very short, but following the A-Rod trade, there again isn’t much to talk about. If you have any questions or comments on anything you’ve read, or would like to participate in the Discussion Question, please e-mail me.