Andruw Jones: Major League Enigma

Yesterday, Andruw Jones was released by a team in my fantasy league after new Dodgers Manager Joe Torre benched his high-profile center fielder (please notice my refusal to describe Jones as a ‘star’ center fielder). I jumped on the opportunity to stash Jones on my roster this early on in the 2008 season. Currently, I have Alfonso Soriano and Grady Sizemore as the two regulars in my outfield. The final spot consists of a platoon featuring Rick Ankiel and Johnny Damon (who I defend against fantasy critics here). Naturally, I thought Jones could only help this situation…

This transaction occured the same day Matthew Berry blogged about “regretting the Andruw Jones prediction” of batting .265 with 30 home runs in 2008. Baseball Prospectus knocks about ten points off the average (.256) with one less home run (29). Ron Shandler’s Baseball Forecaster projects nearly identical numbers for Jones as well with a .254 BA with 28 homers. Aside from Berry’s Richie Sexson-esque prediction, BP and Shandler are eerily similar in their projections.

Now let’s look into what people thought about Jones before he began to take the same shape as his fat contract:

Baseball Prospectus: They look at Jones’ stats over the past three seasons as ask “was it a change in his skills, or just one of those fluke seasons?” Due to his age (31) and his somewhat robotic output of 30+ homeruns, 100+ RBI, and a .260 BA, BP views 2007’s lows as “one of those fluke seasons.” I’m sure the crew over at BP may be reconsidering that view as Jones has looked sloppy in physical stature and sluggish on the field as a member of the Dodgers.

Baseball Forecaster: Quite simply: “Lotsa oddness.” Shandler points out that Jones’ second half was more in line with his career batting peripherals. However, his power was still missing. Personally, I think the 51 HR / 45 HR Jones is gone forever, so I can’t really gripe about the lost power source in 2007; but Shandler’s right, once everything else (BA, OBP, SLG, Contact%) improves for the second half, it’s really a head scratcher that the power doesn’t follow suit.

Obviously, Jones has been absolutely putrid in April thus far. Let’s take a look at his OPS, HR, RBI, & Runs Scores in 2008 compared to 2007:


In 2007, Jones had 88 At-Bats in April that resulted in the numbers above. However, Jones’ current pace puts him nowhere near the April numbers of last year (which was recognized as a “bad” year).

This bring us back to my predicament: Am I certifiably insane for picking up this mess of a ball player for my squad? Maybe. But my thinking is that he’s, at most, 1/3 of a starter for my team. I’m not going to be relying on Andruw Jones to carry my team by any means, but (as Ron Shandler reminds us all) once a player demonstrates skills… he owns them. As I said before, I think the 45-125 Andruw Jones is lost and gone forever, but I think that he still possesses enough skill to be the man who Matthew Berry is afraid to stand by. My bold prediction is that Jones will win me at least one fantasy game this year… and for that, this transaction was well worth it.

Clinton & McCain in Memphis on MLK's 40th Anniversary

Today marks the 40th Anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr’s assassination on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. Commemorating this anniversary, Presidential hopefuls Barack Obama, John McCain, and Hillary Clinton appeared in Fort Wayne, IN and Memphis, TN respectively to pay tribute to Dr. King’s life and the fight for equality that he died trying to achieve.

Earlier in the day, there were a number of different speeches were delivered. First, Senator Obama discussed Dr. King’s dream for equality in all spheres of life. King Jr’s dream to bridge the racial gap was also a dream to bridge the economic gap, as Obama pointed out. He continued, noting that Martin Luther King was in Memphis on the day of his assassination in order to fight for sanitation workers’ rights in the city. Obama, drew parallels to the economic divide that our nation witnesses today and how it is important continue the fight to bridge the gap between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have-nots.’

John McCain did not stand in a cozy gymnasium hundreds of miles away, he stood, under storm clouds and rain, in the very location where Dr. King’s assassination took place. Right off the bat, McCain talked about how he initially voted against having Martin Luther King Jr’s birthday as a national holiday years ago. He said he “made a mistake,” by initially voting this way and was sorry he did. Boo’s reigned down on McCain from the crowd as he struggled to maintain his political smile and composure. He repeated near three times that he “made a mistake,” as voices from the crowd gathered began to die down. One voice was heard through the podium microphone saying, “It’s okay, we all make mistakes.”

I am not a McCain supporter, but it was inspiring to see McCain go to the very place where King Jr was murdered and ask for forgiveness from the masses in attendance today. As the crowd’s booing died down, allowing McCain to finish his speech (miraculously without one of his bad jokes), I can't help but think that he won a few votes with his public apology and decent speech delivered today in Memphis.

At first, I was surprised not to hear from Hillary Clinton this morning. In fact, I was angered that she was not going to show up and speech about the life of Dr. King, especially since she appeared on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno the night before. My anger subsided when she MSNBC, CNN, and Fox News all announced that she would be speaking in Memphis within the hour…

A question then entered my mind: Why is Barack Obama in Fort Wayne, Indiana? His two main competitors, Clinton and McCain, traveled to Memphis to pay homage to Dr. King’s life and sacrifice on a disgusting Memphis day, while he stood in a temperate, dry Fort Wayne gymnasium dozens of miles away. This is, in the least, a questionable decision by the Obama campaign and, in my opinion, could cost him in upcoming polls (not so important) and subsequent primaries (very important).

Again, I can’t say for certain that this will hurt him in the upcoming primaries, but Hillary Clinton, his competition, was on the West Coast less than 24 hours ago. If she can catch a flight across the country to be in Memphis on this important day, the least Obama could’ve done is the same…

President Bush 'Booed' at Nationals Park on Opening Day

What a difference it was back in 2001. The image of George W. Bush standing on the pitcher’s mound before Game 3 of the 2001 World Series between the New York Yankees and Arizona Diamondbacks in engraved in my mind. The President walked out to the mound and stared into the roaring Yankee Stadium crowd. It was as though he wanted to look each ticket holder in the eye to provide assurance that it would be ‘okay.’ ‘It,’ of course, being the September 11th attacks witnessed by the Stadium crowd, and others, less than two months beforehand.

Todd Greene, the Yankee’s backup Catcher, crouched behind home plate awaiting President Bush’s delivery. Toeing the rubber, the President fired a 2-Seam Fastball to Greene—a perfect strike. Flashbulbs flashed, the crowd roared, and President Bush sauntered off the field waving to all the New Yorkers in attendance.

Today, less than 7 years later, George W. Bush was set to toe the rubber once again. The Washington Nationals, who originally played their home games at Robert F. Kennedy Stadium, hosted the Atlanta Braves in ESPN’s national baseball game. The hype leading up to their match-up was the new Nationals’ ballpark, the optimism each Major League team possesses on Opening Day, and the President throwing out the first pitch.

George W. Bush stood in the tunnel waiting patiently for his introduction across the public address. Donning a bright, red Nationals wind-breaker, Bush heard the intro and made his way up the steps of the Nationals’ dugout. The crowd reaction was something much different than the one he received all those years ago…

Boo’s reined down unmercifully from the upper tiers of Nationals’ Park. Those cheering were completely drowned out, despite attempting to compete with the boo’s throw at the President. Talk about visual and audio aids for the President’s approval rating.

Bush’s body language took the cake, though. After making his way to the field, he quickly shook the hands of three Nationals and quickly made his way to the mound. The boo’s, however did not die down. In fact, it seemed as though the volume of the crowd's booing increased the longer the President remained on the field. There was no staring out into the innumerous fans in attendance tonight. No eye contact providing assurances that it would be ‘okay.’ All those in attendance received was a quick, over-the-shoulder wave.

Just as soon as President Bush toed the rubber, he fired another two-seamer in to Manny Acta; the pitch was high and outside.

After Acta caught the ball, he had to chase after the President, who already began to walk quickly back to the dugout. There was no sauntering to be seen, a brisk walk back is what everyone saw…

It’s just interesting to see how quickly and viciously public opinion has changed over the past six-plus years. If anyone was unaware of the incredible 180-degree about face that a majority of the President's supports took over that time span, they surely were made aware of it tonight.