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02/19/2003 Archived Entry: "Cooperstown Confidential; by Bruce Markusen"
Hot Stove League Edition #8
Let Rickey Play
Oakland A’s general manager Billy Beane hasn’t made too many mistakes during his tenure in the Bay Area, but he’s showing some uncharacteristic shortsightedness in refusing to give Rickey Henderson a tryout, thereby negating even the remotest chance of the Oakland fan favorite making the team’s 25-man roster. Henderson is obviously a shell of his former self—he can’t hit for average or power anymore, has become susceptible to any fastball above the belt, and might have the worst throwing arm among all outfielders in the game—but even a shell of Hendu can still fill a viable role on a championship team. In 2003, Henderson reached base at a more-than-respectable percentage of .369, including a still decent rate of .364 against left-handed pitching. That percentage would certainly justify Henderson’s presence in the Oakland lineup against left-handers (especially on a team that has no true leadoff hitter), as a platoon partner for either Terrence Long in left field or Erubiel Durazo at DH, or some mix-and-match of the two spots. Durazo hasn’t hit left-handed pitching at all over the past three seasons, while Long has been a mediocre-to-below-average hitter all the way around… Although Henderson no longer approaches the blazing speed and acceleration he once featured as the game’s premier basestealer, he still has enough spring in his legs and knowledge of opposing pitchers to steal at a high percentage, including a success rate of eight out of 10 in 2002… Henderson has already stated his readiness to sign a minor league contract with the A’s and might even be willing to start the season at Triple-A if he has some kind of assurance that he would be brought up to the Bay by a certain deadline… Beane really stood nothing to lose by at least offering Henderson a tryout, then cutting him later, either stating an erosion of his skills, or citing the overcrowding numbers in the Oakland outfield. By refusing to even look at Henderson, Beane has made some baseball observers wonder why he’s not more open-minded on the issue… If Henderson fails in his quest to secure a major league job this spring and ultimately decides to call it quits at age 44, he’ll join the following players on the list of first-year eligibles for the Hall of Fame ballot in 2008. Shawon Dunston, Travis Fryman, David Justice, Tim “Rock” Raines, and Randy Velarde have all officially announced their retirements, and could be joined by the likes of Ron Gant, Chuck Knoblauch, and Kenny Lofton, assuming they fail to latch onto major league roster spots. Of the names listed above, only Henderson has a realistic chance to gain election to the Hall in his first year—and he’s a virtual lock—with Raines probably forced to settle for the 49 per cent (or less) showing that Ryne Sandberg garnered in January’s Hall election.
Big Ben In Camp Chaos
Lost amidst the clutter that has gathered at “Camp Chaos” (that’s Tampa, where the New York Yankees train) is the saga of former Philadelphia Phillie and Mexican League refugee Ben Rivera. While much of the New York and Florida media sifts through the arrival of “Godzilla” (Hideki Matsui), George Steinbrenner’s verbal jousting of Derek Jeter and Joe Torre, and the new limitations being placed on Jason Giambi’s personal trainer, Rivera is quietly making an impression at the practice diamonds surrounding Legends Field. The six-foot, six-inch right-hander is 34 years old, hasn’t pitched in the major leagues in nearly a decade, and probably faces the stiffest bullpen competition of any team in either league. Yet, the Yankees like what they see of “Big Ben,” who dominated the Mexican League in 2002; he still throws in the low to mid 90s and features a legitimate out pitch in his split-fingered fastball. Now, Rivera’s chances of making the Yankees’ Opening Day roster aren’t very good; in fact, the touted Jose Contreras would probably have to be demoted to Columbus and someone like Antonio Osuna would have to get hurt, and even then Rivera would still be looking at long odds. That said, Rivera still has a chance, if for no other reason than he’s already been included on the Yankees’ 40-man roster. And even if Rivera can’t overcome the numbers game in Tampa, an impressive spring training would go a long way toward securing him a job with a major league team looking for pitching—and there are only about 29 teams that fall into that category… One note on Matsui: he could be batting second in Joe Torre’s revised lineup this season. Under such a scenario, Derek Jeter would move into the leadoff spot, with Alfonso Soriano dropping into the middle order, probably in the number five position behind Jason Giambi and Bernie Williams.
More On The CASEY
As mentioned in the last “Cooperstown Confidential,” Howard Bryant’s wonderful book, Shut Out: A Story of Race and Baseball in Boston, captured the CASEY Award as the best baseball book of 2002—and deservedly so. The prestigious award has been given out for the last 20 years by the editors of Spitball Magazine, a publication that specializes in baseball poetry and literature. In this year’s balloting, Shut Out won in a landslide, garnering two first-place votes and a second-place tally from the three-judge panel. One of the judges for the award, Lisa Winston of USA Today Baseball Weekly, was especially lavish—and on the money—in offering praise for the groundbreaking book that focuses the history of racism within the Red Sox organization and the city of Boston. Winston called it “one of the best baseball books I have ever read, and in fact, one of the best non-fiction books I have read in years. To simply call it a baseball book is to do it a disservice, in that people interested in American history, race relations in America, and simply human nature might not read it, which would be their loss. It is an absolutely riveting book, and I am amazed that it is Bryant’s first…” Bryant will be on hand to accept the bronze CASEY plaque on March 2, when the annual CASEY awards banquet is held at the Madisonville Community Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. The banquet lineup will include a baseball poetry reading, a trivia contest, a variety of book signings, and an acceptance speech by Bryant. Tickets to the banquet are $10.00. For more information on the CASEY banquet, call Spitball editor-in-chief Mike Shannon (not the former St. Louis Cardinals’ third baseman) at 513-385-2268… Ironically, Bryant is a beat writer for the New York Yankees, the Red Sox’ chief rivals. Bryant works for the Bergen Record, based in New Jersey… While we’re on the subject of baseball books, here are a few recommendations on past tomes from SABR member extraordinaire Maxwell Kates, a voracious reader and researcher. Kates suggests George Cantor’s The Tigers of ’68, an especially timely choice given that this year marks the 35th anniversary of that World Championship team. Kates also likes the little-known A Six-Gun Salute: A History of the Colt .45s, by Robert Reed. Then there’s the Red Smith anthology, consisting of some of the great works of the late New York Times sportswriter, and anything written by Doug Lyons (another standout SABR researcher and the brother of the noted film critic Jeffrey Lyons). And for those readers who understand French, Kates suggests Les Expos du Parc Jarry au Stade Olympique (The Expos of Jarry Park and Olympic Stadium), written by Denis Brodeur… Thanks also to Max Kates for pointing out that former Oakland A’s Gold Glover Joe Rudi has remained active in baseball by working as a part-time scout for the Chicago White Sox in recent years. In a previous article, I had listed Rudi’s post-playing career in baseball, but had mentioned only his earlier service as a coach with the A’s.
Hollywood Meets Cooperstown
Who says that Hall of Fame and Cooperstown are only about baseball? This spring, the Hall of Fame will host two of Hollywood’s biggest names when the Tinsel town team of Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon visits Cooperstown to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the film, Bull Durham. In what turned out to be one of his breakthrough performances, Robbins starred as mythical pitcher “Nuke LaLoosh,” while Sarandon (now Robbins’ common-law wife) co-starred as the memorable “Annie Savoy” in the 1988 box office hit. The two actors will visit the Hall on Sunday, April 27, and take part in a Legends Series roundtable discussion with noted film critic (and diehard Boston Red Sox fan) Jeffrey Lyons. The event is exclusively for Friends of the Hall of Fame members, with tickets pricing at $5.00 and going on sale beginning March 31. To purchase tickets, or to find out more about becoming a member, call the Hall at 607-547-0397.
Bruce Markusen is the author of A Baseball Dynasty: Charlie Finley’s Swingin’ A’s (ISBN number 1-878282-23-9), which is now available at www.amazon.com and at many major bookstores, including Borders Books. Markusen has also written The Orlando Cepeda Story and Roberto Clemente: The Great One.
Replies: 1 Comment
After seeing that "The Ricky" might be forced into retirement, I had to throw out a rumored story about baseball's greatest lead-off hitter.
It was on a team trip. The players were boarding the aircraft.
There was a young player sitting in a desirable seat when Ricky approached him. From the back of the plane, a scream came out, " Get out of that seat, let Ricky sit there, he has tenure."
Shocked at this comment, Ricky yelled back, "Ten years?, Hell, Ricky's got about fifteen years."
Posted by Hammer @ 02/19/2003 05:40 PM EST
