O's to name Kranitz pitching coach

[stef]

I realize this continues the (perhaps unwarranted) Kranitz lovefest but I'm looking for any and all signs of hope:

"I have nothing but praise for Kranny," said Cleveland Indians closer Joe Borowski, who thrived under Kranitz with Florida and Chicago. "He knows different ways to look at pitchers to help them. It's not just, 'Everybody has to throw this certain way.' He can identify if you're doing something wrong. He'll sit with you, he'll watch bullpens. We'll watch video together to see if we can correct it.

"He was the bullpen coach in Chicago when I was there, and that benefited me, too, because last year, I was struggling a little bit, and he was able to remember how I was throwing when I was throwing real well. We fixed that in three days. He helped me out a lot and I think he'll do really well."

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/baseball/bal-sp.orioles18oct18,0,6759684.story

[Leitch]

Say you're a big league pitcher. A Hall of Fame pitcher and one of the most successful pitching coaches in baseball tells you that you should throw a changeup.

You don't. You get shelled.

What does that say about your work ethic and personality?

Nothing, considering the reason he gets walloped is because he's spotting a 3-0 count to almost every hitter because he can't get his fastball over.

[Sports Guy]

I'd love to know where you get your information. Can you provide me a link to this love?

I heard it come from his mouth in an interview with either Thorne or Martinez(i believe the interview was conducted on the third base line in Tampa)...He said Mazzone is the only pitching coach he has liked.

I believe he also spoke highly of him in a Sun article or 2.

[byrdz]

I think the reason people are saying "love" is because Bedard has made it public that he hasn't gotten much from pitching coaches over the years and Mazzone was the first one that he mentioned that he 'liked". Don't take things so literally.

Maybe the reason Bedard liked Mazzone was because he was so hands off with respect to micromanaging mechanics and technique. He did teach him the circle change, right? Or was that Benson? So, maybe this is another reason why he likes him.

[Sports Guy]

http://baltimore.orioles.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070730&content_id=2118847&vkey=news_bal&fext=.jsp&c_id=bal

The 28-year-old attributes his success to being more comfortable in the big leagues and knowing what to expect from every given situation, and he said that his relationship with Mazzone has provided a steady building block.

"When we talk, we kind of think the same way, so it makes it easy to adjust to what he's saying," he said. "And he listens to what I have to say. That's the biggest thing in a relationship with a pitching coach. If it's only one-sided, I'm out of it. You can't be a coach and only have one way. That's not the way life works. But he's not like that. He listens to me and I listen to him."

[byrdz]

http://baltimore.orioles.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070730&content_id=2118847&vkey=news_bal&fext=.jsp&c_id=bal

Sounds like true love to me! By Bedards standards.

[Odenton O]

Maybe the reason Bedard liked Mazzone was because he was so hands off with respect to micromanaging mechanics and technique. He did teach him the circle change, right? Or was that Benson? So, maybe this is another reason why he likes him.

That was Benson. He taught him the same grip that Benson learned from Glavine.

[geschinger]

http://baltimore.orioles.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070730&content_id=2118847&vkey=news_bal&fext=.jsp&c_id=bal

The quotes make it sound like Mazzone was not the "my way or the highway" type of personality that I some assume he was.

[NewMarketSean]

Yup, I've read that too. I agree that he had a good working relationship with him, which is good.

I don't get love from the quote or from his live interview that you referred to. The reason I'm being this particular (aside from the fact that words have meaning, Byrdz, so choosing the appropriate term is important) is that if I "loved" my pitching coach, I'd probably be upset if he was fired. If I just had a good working relationship with him and respected him, it wouldn't be personal to me and hence I probably wouldn't have an emotional reaction to him leaving.

I don't want Mazzone's firing portrayed as a negative to Bedard unless that is actually the case. I don't think it is based on what I know, but I thought maybe I'd missed something.

If I let this go, it could turn into a "fact" like the thing about Mazzone's program not being implemented system wide. This went from casual mention to repeated mention to accepted fact here in less than a month, before it was questioned by a couple of us earlier this week. When links / sources were requested, suddenly all anyone could hear was crickets.

We'll never know one way or another unless Bedard comments on it. But taking into account what we know, which is that Bedard liked Mazzone, he can't be happy about the Mazzone firing and it's probably another small reason on the long list of reasons why Bedard doesn't want to sign an extension. Granted, Bedard might get along with Kranitz, but is that enough to make him want to stay? I seriously doubt it just like I doubt Mazzone would have made Bedard want to stay. Bedard doesn't want to be here and I think that is pretty much a fact.

[longflyball]

You can't work on technique under game situations. He needs to iron these things out at a level where he can afford to fail.

The Orioles won 69 games and Cabrera had a 5.55 ERA. I doubt anyone is going to notice if he irons things out and fails more than he's already failed.

[Leitch]

Bedard doesn't want to be here and I think that is pretty much a fact.

The thing about facts is that they can be proven or disproven

[JTrea81]

The quotes make it sound like Mazzone was not the "my way or the highway" type of personality that I some assume he was.

Probably with a guy like Bedard who had a lot of talent and experience Mazzone was more willing to listen than a guy like Olson who has just gotten his feet wet in MLB...

[NewMarketSean]

There has been ONE off the record quote from an unnamed FO employee that said "watch, he'll be playing for Toronto in 2010". I'd love to know your definition of the word "fact". I'm pretty sure it doesn't mean what you think it means.

The thing about facts is that they can be proven or disproven.

There have been other reports from insiders that point to Bedard jetting from Baltimore the first chance he gets. And I said it's "pretty much a fact." Nothing definite.

Think about it. Why would Bedard want to stay?

[pgsentinelmike]

IMO, the jury's out on Kranitz until we see how the pitchers do under his tutelage. However, what this tells me without looking too deeply into it is that Trembley is being allowed to pick his own pitching coach. That may mean he's going to be allowed to put his stamp on the team more so than some guys in our past.

Remember when Mazzilli was named manager under the condition that he keep Mike Hargrove's staff intact?

We'll get a better chance to see if Trembley's the right guy for the Orioles next season when he has a chance to have a full season under his belt.

[geschinger]

IMO, the jury's out on Kranitz until we see how the pitchers do under his tutelage. However, what this tells me without looking too deeply into it is that Trembley is being allowed to pick his own pitching coach. That may mean he's going to be allowed to put his stamp on the team more so than some guys in our past.

Remember when Mazzilli was named manager under the condition that he keep Mike Hargrove's staff intact?

We'll get a better chance to see if Trembley's the right guy for the Orioles next season when he has a chance to have a full season under his belt.

So far so good but the last guy got to pick his pitching coach as well.