Indians slide by Rule 5
Lastoria with a nice little write-up on an uneventful Rule 5 draft. We lost nobody in the major league phase and two guys in the minor league phase who've never made it past the Rookie Leagues. Some folks have kicked up fusses in the past over losing guys like Brian Barton, but I can't help but feel that this was a particularly good year for us not to lose anyone.
In 2008, Chuck Lofgren went through an emotionally wrenching year as a very young man, while Jordan Brown may not have been fully recovered from knee surgery. Just two years ago, when Atom Miller was at his prospecty peak, Lofgren looked to be only one step behind him, and Brown was a consistent performer who appeared headed perhaps toward a Lyle Overbay level of short-term usefulness.
Each of these guys may well have been hampered by One Thing in 2008, and its entirely possible that one or both will overcome their respective One Things in 2009 and re-emerge as significant prospects. Likely? No. Impact players? Almost certainly not. In an actuarial sense, these guys were expendable and needed to be treated as such by the Indians for this draft. But they are more likely than most potential Rule 5 picks to make significant gains in the next year.
over 3 years ago
Jay
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Atkins was shocked that the Indians didn’t lose a player in the major league portion of the draft.
“We agonize over those selections, who to protect and who to leave off the 40-man roster,” said Atkins. “Those players represent important depth for us.”
I hear we’re involved in a 43-player trade involving the Yakult Swallows, the Taipei little league team, a group of Cuban defectors playing in Honduras, and the greater Chicago Connie Mack 15-17 league.
by APV on Dec 11, 2008 7:20 PM EST up reply actions 3 recs
Uh oh. Rumor now is it that we are giving up Gregorio Rosario in the deal. If that’s true I don’t like the deal AT ALL.
by dgcambridge on Dec 12, 2008 1:21 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
it seems like January 1st when everybody’s just in bed sleeping off their hangover or washing their firework inflicted wounds. Too much stuff went on last night, though I was hoping for some updates on Kerry Wood’s physical.
yeah i think it may be quiet on the wood front until something official on monday according to the article on indians.com
The physical is at least a two-day process and the paperwork would have to be completed, as well. So if the Wood deal goes through, it probably won’t be announced until early next week.
As General Manager of this team, I demand to know when I'm getting a start.
How’s this…he was in the Kohl’s on Wilson Mills in Highland Heights yesterday buying a WINTER JACKET!
Think he’s planning on spending some time in Cleveland!?!
At least that’s what my Mom told me yesterday after she saw him two people in front of here in line.
Let the mayhem ensue…
by The DiaTriber on Dec 12, 2008 12:13 PM EST up reply actions
Because he would never have from his time in Chicago or anything….
Still the local "Barfield Bounces Back Believer" and confident that Gutz will succeed in Seattle.
Thanks for picking up on the best part of the story.
Kerry Wood, who has earned nearly $50M in salary, is driving around Cleveland and finds himself in need of a Winter Jacket. He passes a Kohl’s and decides that the answer lies therein.
Makes me like him more.
by The DiaTriber on Dec 12, 2008 1:10 PM EST up reply actions
exactly. only drawback is that i find kohl’s itself dreadful as a matter of personal taste, but that fact that he rolled up in there is awesome. wonder if he opened up a kohl’s credit card account to save 10% on that purchase.
No, I got a Kohl’s coupon in the mail earlier in the week. It was good for like 15% off, which I think, is the current Kohl’s:TJMaxx handicap.
Or, alternately, he just wanted to know what it would be like to buy something that wasn’t taxed at 10.25%.
Yeah what’s with the Kohl’s hate? It’s decent as far as big-box department stores go.
Burn on, big river, burn on...
by Turkmenbashi on Dec 12, 2008 1:46 PM EST up reply actions
That’s fair enough. But as far as those go, I see no reason to single out Kohl’s as being “worse” than the others. But ya know, it’s like debating which is “worse” among Bud, Miller and Coors light>*
*Except the only correct answer to that question is Miller Lite.
Burn on, big river, burn on...
by Turkmenbashi on Dec 12, 2008 4:34 PM EST up reply actions
Phil, I don’t think you and I disagree on anything more than the respective objectionability of the domestic light beers. I think Bud Light is bubbly rice water and Coors is fermented sludge from I-25. I would never take an M-Lite over a real beer, but I think it’s at least made from actual beer ingredients, which I can’t say for the other two.
by fleerdon on Dec 15, 2008 5:25 PM EST up reply actions
John, I think of a Milwaukee bias as tilting the board in the right direction.
by fleerdon on Dec 15, 2008 11:56 PM EST up reply actions
i’m honestly open to arguments. i’m not sure which of the two – miller or bud – i prefer.
Anti-Ben Fran before it was cool.
by Gradyforpresident on Dec 16, 2008 1:02 AM EST up reply actions
i’ve been contemplating buying a bud heavy sixer
Anti-Ben Fran before it was cool.
by Gradyforpresident on Dec 16, 2008 1:15 AM EST up reply actions
Strange thing about my beer tastes: I actually enjoy MGD and High Life, especially over Bud Heavy.
But Lite just makes me gag, literally.
Burn on, big river, burn on...
by Turkmenbashi on Dec 16, 2008 4:42 PM EST up reply actions
Also hate regular Bud, not sure why. My disdain for it is asymptotically approaching my disdain for Miller Lite.
Burn on, big river, burn on...
by Turkmenbashi on Dec 17, 2008 4:47 PM EST up reply actions
I was joshin’ Tyler up there. I can’t tell the difference between any of them.
I learned something about beer from working at the Jake I guess this would have been in 2000:
One of the things I did as part of my job was to change the kegs. I was tought that it wasn’t important to organize them, or to pay any attention to the brand. The cheap beer kegs are attached at random and routed to wherever. If you buy beer at the ballpark—even if you’re in a club seat—if you order any standard domestic beer you’re getting any one of the beers that have been mentioned. You may order Regular Bud and get Miller Lite, and vice versa.
Here’s the funny part: we served hundreds of thousands of beers this way, and no one—not a single soul—ever complained that the beer they were given wasn’t what they ordered. As far as I could tell, no one ever noticed.
Helium Watch: Chuck Lofgren, OF
by jhon on Dec 16, 2008 7:35 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
Yeah, but for a lot of people, their preference in cheap beers is based on drinking out of cans. All beers are improved out of a keg, and the difference between Bud Lite and Miller Lite is probably a lot less out of a keg.
nitpick alert
All beers are improved out of a keg
I actually don’t think so.
All beers are improved out of a keg as compared to aluminum cans.
Some good beers can be preferable in a bottle. Christmas Ale for example, I think I prefer the bottle version.
Actually, I prefer canned Heineken to any other version, if I have to drink it.
Also, have you ever had any Oskar Blues stuff? It comes exclusively in cans and is pretty delicious.
Burn on, big river, burn on...
by Turkmenbashi on Dec 17, 2008 4:47 PM EST up reply actions
don’t get me started on Heineken
Anti-Ben Fran before it was cool.
by Gradyforpresident on Dec 17, 2008 7:37 PM EST up reply actions
Haha, come on, I think we need to hear this.
Burn on, big river, burn on...
by Turkmenbashi on Dec 18, 2008 3:35 PM EST up reply actions
its the piss beer of europe. it has no discernible taste and might be the worst import ever. if it costs the same as any other import at a bar – what the hell are you doing drinking Heineken????
also, they brew the only beer to be found in Egypt (Stella), which is just god, god awful. getting dizzy off too much Shisha is miles better than that watered-down Keystone Light rip off.
Anti-Ben Fran before it was cool.
by Gradyforpresident on Dec 18, 2008 7:55 PM EST up reply actions
might be the worst import ever
Carlsberg?
Burn on, big river, burn on...
by Turkmenbashi on Dec 19, 2008 1:09 AM EST up reply actions
It’s entirely possible that this is a lie, but when I was in Nepal I was told the reason you could pretty much only find Carlsberg there is because they made cheap beer locally and put Carlsberg labels on the bottles… I guess they figured no one could tell the difference.
by Logodaedalus on Dec 19, 2008 12:02 PM EST up reply actions
haven’t had one in a while
Anti-Ben Fran before it was cool.
by Gradyforpresident on Dec 19, 2008 12:06 PM EST up reply actions
that surprises me. I’m pretty sure I could taste-test the difference between a miller lite and bud light. Coors lite might be hard to differentiate from Bud Light.
You probably could in a taste test. If you’re not looking for a difference, you might not notice one.
When running food to the club seats, if one party ordered three different beers, we’d put one straw in one, two straws in another, and no straws in the third. We’d say with a straight face, “who had the Miller Light? Now, who had the Bud Light?”, but it all came from one Keg, whichever happened to be attached.
There are differences, but just like Pepsi and Coke it’s real hard to tell when you’re not looking out for it and when it’s given to you by an honest face.
Helium Watch: Chuck Lofgren, OF
I think the difference between Bud Light and Miller Lite is just as stark to me as the Pepsi/Coke difference. Not sure I could distinguish between Bud Light and Coors Light, but i could definitely pick a Miller out of the bunch.
Burn on, big river, burn on...
by Turkmenbashi on Dec 17, 2008 4:45 PM EST up reply actions
I guess I could too, if I’m in a discriminating mood. I don’t drink any of this stuff for pleasure. I drink it to get as drunk as I can without killing my bank account.
Helium Watch: Chuck Lofgren, OF
Haha, a perfectly reasonable pursuit.
Burn on, big river, burn on...
by Turkmenbashi on Dec 18, 2008 3:36 PM EST up reply actions
I totally misinterpreted the phrase “bud heavy sixer”… thought you were going to mix and match a sixer, but it would have mostly bud. It was a pretty funny image.
by Logodaedalus on Dec 17, 2008 2:28 AM EST up reply actions
I’ve explained it before and I’ll explain it again. Bud Light and Coors Light are varying degrees of “absence of taste.” Miller Lite is “negative taste.” A friend once brought over a mix-and-match 12 pack to party, and it had two Miller Lite’s, both of which I promptly opened and poured down the sink. Rubbish.
Burn on, big river, burn on...
by Turkmenbashi on Dec 16, 2008 4:41 PM EST up reply actions
yep. Nausea inducingly bad.
Burn on, big river, burn on...
by Turkmenbashi on Dec 17, 2008 4:51 PM EST up reply actions
I really believe you’re overstating your case. Or, at least, that you haven’t had enough Milwaukee’s Best Ice in your life to know what nausea-inducing beer really is.
by fleerdon on Dec 17, 2008 6:10 PM EST up reply actions
This is the only beer I’ve ever tried that made me sick on account of its badness alone. Micky’s is also pretty raw. Next to some of the brews that come in 40 oz portions, Miller Light or anything else is a rare treat.
Helium Watch: Chuck Lofgren, OF
whoa whoa whoa. PBR comes in 40s
Anti-Ben Fran before it was cool.
by Gradyforpresident on Dec 17, 2008 7:37 PM EST up reply actions
Isn’t Mickey’s malt alcohol? Something wicked that way goes.
by fleerdon on Dec 17, 2008 9:56 PM EST up reply actions
Am I the only one who had the Cleveland high school experience of drinking MadDog 20/20’s? Mmm….flavored malt liquor.
Lightning Creek is the worst tasting thing on earth. ON EARTH.
For those not in the MadDog Fan Club, it’s commonly referred to as “The Purple.”
Don't be stupid. PUT IN MELOAN.
MD 20/20 was one of the many things I drank on my first real night of drinking. I surprisingly remember it very clearly.
Burn on, big river, burn on...
by Turkmenbashi on Dec 18, 2008 3:38 PM EST up reply actions
I threw up in a tulip patch
Burn on, big river, burn on...
by Turkmenbashi on Dec 19, 2008 1:09 AM EST up reply actions
5’o clock vodka
Anti-Ben Fran before it was cool.
by Gradyforpresident on Dec 18, 2008 7:50 PM EST up reply actions
I used to drink MadDog when I was in high school in Virginia. Also, Boone’s Farm.
What is my problem?
Everyone goes through that “beer is gross” phase where you end up drinking a bunch of other terrible crap that, years later, you realize is orders of magnitude worse than even the worst beers.
Burn on, big river, burn on...
by Turkmenbashi on Dec 19, 2008 1:10 AM EST up reply actions 1 recs
recsof’inglutely
Anti-Ben Fran before it was cool.
by Gradyforpresident on Dec 19, 2008 10:17 AM EST up reply actions 1 recs
What is my problem?
I think, in this case, it’s latent adolescent aggression that has inspired a mild (or worse) alcoholism.
/serious answer to rhetorical question guy
by NickFantana on Dec 19, 2008 12:49 PM EST up reply actions
[woman is trapped in a burning building]
SAtRQG: “Have no fear, Serious Answer to Rhetorical Question Guy is here!”
Woman: “Well are you just going to stand there, or are you going to save me?”
SAtRQG: “In fact, I’m going to save you very shortly!”
Woman: “Can you believe I just asked you, of all people, a rhetorical question, when I’m standing here receiving third degree burns on my limbs?”
SAtRQG: “I was here, madam, of course I believe it.”
Woman [to God]: “Did I do something to offend you?”
SAtRQG: "You’ve made at least six questionable theological assumptions by posing that question… first… "
Woman: “Oh, the pain!” [dies]
/lameo
by Logodaedalus on Dec 19, 2008 1:23 PM EST up reply actions
I just turned to my coworker, our resident beer expert, and asked him to name the worst beer he’s ever had.
His response?
Beast Ice
Helium Watch: Chuck Lofgren, OF
::shudder::
Icehouse is truly awful as well
Burn on, big river, burn on...
by Turkmenbashi on Dec 19, 2008 1:11 AM EST up reply actions
I could drink a 12 of beast ice and smile as it goes down. I can’t drink a sip of Miller lite.
Burn on, big river, burn on...
by Turkmenbashi on Dec 18, 2008 3:37 PM EST up reply actions
Wanna fight?
Burn on, big river, burn on...
by Turkmenbashi on Dec 19, 2008 1:11 AM EST up reply actions
Kohl’s is the Everybody Loves Raymond of department stores.
by Jay on Dec 13, 2008 12:04 AM EST up reply actions 2 recs
I heard he looks tiny and refused to take pictures.
Burn on, big river, burn on...
by Turkmenbashi on Dec 12, 2008 1:45 PM EST up reply actions
Your mom recognizes Kerry Wood on sight? How great is that?
by fleerdon on Dec 12, 2008 2:14 PM EST up reply actions
Actually he wears a jersey everywhere. First and last name.
Steel Nick
by nickjs21 on Dec 12, 2008 2:45 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
She actually saw “a real tall guy” (relatively speaking) in line in front of her that was generating some looks and whispers. Apparently, another guy that was in the store approached him and was talking him to as they made their way towards the cashier. She heard the phrases, “not in town for too long”, “down at the Clinic”, and “Spring Training” – and put it together.
She said he looks like a “country boy”, but stood and interacted with the people (plural as others joined the initial guy) as they told him to get something to eat in Tremont, visit the Rock Hall, etc.
Clevelanders can be so odd that way – they are so eager to embrace this guy and attempt to show him what a GREAT town Cleveland can be and how he should best utilize his time in town.
But, yeah, my mom was pretty proud of herself.
by The DiaTriber on Dec 12, 2008 3:20 PM EST up reply actions
Clevelanders can be so odd that way
This is what I love most about Clevelanders, actually.
Burn on, big river, burn on...
by Turkmenbashi on Dec 12, 2008 4:35 PM EST up reply actions
Somebody near St. Louis is still upset about losing Reyes.
I remember feeling this way about Giles → Rincon → McDougall → Van Dusen.
I will tell you this, though: in the end, the Cardinals basically managed to turn their one-time top pitching prospect into $50K. Congratulations to the Cardinal coaching staff once again for such deft handling of the talent.
It really is hard to understand this move by a non-stupid organization. Okay, you had a falling out with Reyes, but is that a reason to put him on the market and price him at zero?
The reports seem to suggest that Reyes and Dave Duncan had a disagreement in pitching philosophy; it seems likely that the Cardinals figured they would never “get through” to Reyes while Duncan was there, and it doesn’t seem likely that Duncan is going anywhere anytime soon.
Still, I too find it a bit odd that they would just give up on him like that; Reyes wasn’t exactly a no-name prospect or struggled for years in their system. And it’s not like they can spend the gazillion dollars the Yankees, Mets, and Red Sox can spend, so you’d think that the Cardinals’ FO could have come to some compromise between Reyes and Duncan, enough so where they could work together and bring out the talent in the pitcher to be useful to the Cardinals.
In any case, it’s fortunate for us – we get to see if we can turn him into a solid pitcher for the next few years in our rotation – thank you St. Louis. :-)
Just my 2 cents.
The "cream of the crop" doesn't always rise to the top.
No, THANK YOU!
I am a Cardinal fan that absolutely loved Reyes. He sure struggled here, kind of like your Jeremy Sowers has struggled for you all. They said publically they were trading him for three years, then they didn’t. They didn’t like his pre game work out routine, his tatoos, his 4 seam fastball, or his approach. They heaped criticism, in print, sometimes to national reporters. He started 2008 in the bullpen after a very good spring. He was kind of blah there, but when they sent him back to the minors, he wasn’t the worst pitcher in the pen.
Once they burned that last option, on top of everything else that had transpired, they guarenteed that he would be traded for someone like, well, Luis Perdomo. They wanted him to be a different kind of pitcher than he was- and they could never look at him in terms of what he could do-always in terms of what he couldn’t do. They had as much to do with his bad performance as he did IMO.
He never spoke of any ot this while he was with the Cardinals, and he hasn’t said all that much about it since he’s been gone. He will be one of the hardest wokers on your team. You all seem to have a pretty decent pitching coach there, and you all have learned the hard way (um…Jeremy Guthrie) that pitchers are sometimes on a different time table.
It may be too late for Reyes to be what everyone thought he would when he tore through the minors, but as a huge fan of his, I do think he’s going to at least be useful to you. So thank you, Cleveland Indians, for taking the chance that he’s got something useful to you.
My biggest fantasy is that he ends up in St. Louis- as a member of the AL All Star Team. A girl can dream, no?
I
She isn't crazy, she's just not impressed.
Wow, thanks for that perspective. But why did they dump him for nothing? We even got something (value yet determined) for Brandon Phillips.
Wait……he has tattoos?
He sure struggled here, kind of like your Jeremy Sowers has struggled for you all.
Once they burned that last option, on top of everything else that had transpired, they guarenteed that he would be traded for someone like, well, Luis Perdomo. They wanted him to be a different kind of pitcher than he was- and they could never look at him in terms of what he could do-always in terms of what he couldn’t do. They had as much to do with his bad performance as he did IMO.
Ah! What you saying is he was your Andy Marte.
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