Catch 8

Cross him off then!

That argument is valid. We certainly did not expect CD to fall off a cliff after signing his name. Though there were warning signs since CD had a pitiful year separating two sensational years. The item here is Machado--we needed to be aggressive with him. And if we were not resigning Machado, IMO that should have been a rebuild--however, I understand my opinion here is not a slam dunk by any means. Just my perspective. At the time, I would have been happy had we got CD and Manny. And CD would have failed and I would have been wrong. But I can be wrong b/c I wasn't privy to things that decisions-makers should be. CD had easy easy power. I also wouldn't have been upset had we not signed him and took the picks. Again though, if we knew no Manny, don't sign CD. My $0.02

CD is getting his money: the players, Tony Clark and his super union, etc. would be fine with any outcome whereby Davis collects his money. I doubt Elias is shooting straight right now--and that may be the right call for now *shrug*.

Sorry to continue the slight derail, but Belle was a good signing that did not work out due to injury. AB murdered pitching and Pete signed him b/c he was headed to the Yankees. We had just lost Palmeiro and Mussina was in his last year--and I'm sure everyone thought Moose was re-upping. Good decision (at the very least, def not a bad decision), unfortunate and unforeseen outcome. If Pete couldn't tell the difference between bad luck and a bad decision--as the narrivate goes--and then hid his money under a mattress until Tejada, well... yeah. SIgning Belle was a line out to center: the hitter did his job, just tough luck. Keep hitting it there! We still had players on that team. I did forget we kept Belle on the 40-man.

I'm at least pleasantly reminded of my grandfather who, after his second stroke, maintained his obsession with Lucent years after it devolved into a penny-stock. Prior to losing his remaining marbles (and small fortune), my grandpa's dot-com darling was a wild performer. My father and I had to eat the shares we were once gifted because Pop Pop and the mouthy broker were bffs from A.G. Edwards. LOL, he was also blind at the end but spent an hour every day "reading" his investment reports--or whatever my aunt handed him. Loved him!

If I wasn't clear, I meant code used in scouting reports and memos not designed for public consumption.

third or cleanup on this team

I've been told "athlete" is code for black. Tony, Luke, other scouts--have you heard of this?

Adley has a lot of on-field responsibilities and further is the unquestioned face of the franchise. Let's see how being away from home, mom, familiar territory, family barbeques, etc. treats him. Make up is off the charts, but he has a lot of responsibility, ain't used to losing and our team is still eons away. OR, put him on the 40, sign him to 12/85 and we will see just how Captain America he is He aint no use to us when he gets old, and he aint no used to us as a youngster. Bottom line: do what is best for his development. Easy answer, right? I wish I knew more about him. I will in time.

Let me your idea a step farther. Tell me what yall think. A good coach encourages you to think and, in some ways, teaches you to think. I always give this math example. How do you add 99 to a number, mentally? Math was my thing as a kid, so I was fortunate to alone pick up the concept of adding 100 and subtracting 1. This is a simplified and non-baseball example of the message I try to push to kids when I coach, help out, speak, etc. As a catcher, I believe you pick up many of these things. You are also challenged to discover other things like this yourself. Let's begin with Tony's example as handsome 15-year-old. We can even ignore than Tony knew the hitter couldn't hit a breaking pitch and ignore that tony was squatting a fart away from the hitter every plate appearance, knew the umpire, knew his pitcher, etc. How many 15-year-old hitters are good curveball hitters? How many are expecting one in a 2-1 count? All that kid's life you know he has been tough to not swing at the CB when ahead in the count. If Tony calls the curveball, say the pitcher misses it. Still, you have a man on base. You still aren't serving up a cookie. If you THINK you can get away with a borderline FB, maybe try it. The only reason I say try the FB is b/c he will expect it on the 3-2 count and you can punch him out with even a get-me-over breaking pitch. Nonetheless, the hitter's job up there is not to walk--it is to win the game. Unless the pitcher has no control--and it IS an all-star game--that extra base runner is for the pitcher's comfort only. The 2-1 fastball is just what the kid wants and it's a walk-off. That coach was either obsessed with having control over teenagers, or he never thought himself into that 2-out 2-1 count situation with tying and go-ahead runners in scoring position. The easy thing to do is say "2-1, so the book says throw a fastball." God forbid the pitcher goes to 3-1 and then walks the dude. Then the bases are loaded and.... that means absolutely nothing, coach. A maniac personalty and thinking only inside his comfortable box cost his team the game. And I'm sure he ripped someone else for it. I've lost games before as a coach and it sucks. And I am loud and clear when I am wrong. Not because I am holier than thou, but because it was a teaching opportunity. Learn to think! It comes easiest to catchers! But anyone can do it or encourage it to your son. It applies to everything in life. And make mistakes, own them and explain them. Thinking on another level is the fun way to play the game.

Tony, I feel you. I didn't catch until college, so I never had one of those moments. The one thing I would have differently done is try to at least extract the coach's thought process out of that pitch-call. It is an all-star game so the kid is there to hit, you have a base open and he is expecting FB. In that count and situation--and age--you only throw the fb if he didn't catch up to the previous one. But you cannot have a discussion with many coaches today, which is unfortunate, because that is how you learn. If he was so hellbent on a fb, he should have approached you at some point--since he IS the coach--and explained his perspective. Maybe you would have learned something. Stubborn for the sake of being stubborn. Glad you called games after that! Respect goes both ways. Sure the Coach is boss, but what good is he if you can't approach him or he doesn't explain his madness? And by the same token, instead of yelling, a good coach probably finds an opportunity to ask why the catcher wanted to call something. And if the catcher had no answer, then let him have it. So this is what I missed not catching as a teenager.

Bad comparison by me in my previous post. Wieters' swing was longer than the B & O Warehouse.

I've watched a lot of Wieters, obviously. I have only read about Adley. The difference pointed out to me about Adley from scouting report is good athleticism for a catcher. Wieters had terrific SKILLS, but hardly any athleticism (relative to MLB catchers or position players). One scout describes Adley's swing as rotational. I just hope it isn't as long as Wieters'. I brought up athleticism b/c better athletics can get away with longer, rotational swings. And many players are more rotational than directional these days.

Especially at the age-group you mentioned, the biggest guys with the biggest arms are going to be catching. What your dad says is very true, IF you take the potential learning opportunity to heart. I'm not sure if your dad was profiling 10-year-olds for positions they would ultimately wind at--he was probably more concerned that they continued to like baseball. Either way, calling pitches should be listed on every catcher's job requirement. Even the guys who don't care enough or are too dumb should know responsibilities the position entails. And let's be honest, how many little league coaches actually know how to call a game? If someone is going to learn through trial and error, let it be the young new backstop! Group conversations about pitch calling is where everyone learns. Any you don't have to be the catcher to have a discussion on pitch calling or even question a pitch (obviously, respectfully). A good bench coach asks his team why "did he throw a 2-2 curveball?" The next-level baseball thinker stands up and says "he better have the nuts to throw it again, right here, right now."

What's slot? 8.something mil? I take it football isn't an option. Buy out his arb and offer 12/80.