[Westheim]

Odd fact: Daniel Miller walked 16 batters in 56 innings in 1994, while pitching to a 1.45 WHIP and 6.43 ERA. This season, he doubled his walks to 33 in 63.2 innings, but pitched to a 1.15 WHIP and 2.26 ERA. Strange game this is.

I will tell you what is even stranger. I consider Miller a candidate for the closer’s job.

His career numbers don’t look like much, but he has a really mean slider that is hardly hittable. As long as that slider works, you have to try to go for his 98mph fastball. Vince Guerra however thinks otherwise, not seeing him even in an eighth inning role.

As a matter of fact, we will have to procure closing services from inside the organization. Money will prevent us from going after a closer on the free agent market, since we really only have enough bucks to chase after one player. And I want to improve the offense.

The areas where I will try to get something done are first base and catcher. Baldivía and Vinson both were about the weakest links we put into our lineup last season. Vinson’s defense has been annoying for some years now, and he will never reproduce that rousing 1990 season. Baldivía just lacks the power I want from the position. That will not change, either. I hate to waste a backup spot for a first baseman, so we will have to see whether we can trade him and something extra for a slugger, preferably a left-hander. I have an eye on Denver’s Liam Wedemeyer, but the Gold Sox, frankly, would be nuts to give him up.

But the Aces gave up Royce Green, too, so …

October 19 – The Raccoons and Buffaloes strike a deal that sends AAA CL Tony Vela, 25, to Topeka for C Nori Kondo, 29. Kondo is a career .257 batter with excellent defensive skills.
October 23 – The Crusaders acquire 25-yr old RF/LF Avery Johnson (.268, 60 HR, 265 RBI) from the Gold Sox for 26-yr old MR Xavier Herrera (12-7, 2.28 ERA, 2 SV).
October 27 – 30-yr old OF Tadanobu Sakaguchi is traded from the Warriors to the Indians for Australian outfield prospect Baden Speed, 20. Sakaguchi is a career .280 batter with 70 homers and 405 RBI.
October 28 – Someone’s rebuilding: the Warriors trade veteran MR Luciano Parrilla (50-46, 2.75 ERA, 48 SV) to the Falcons for two prospects, including #46 prospect RF/LF Tony Velasquez.
October 29 – Raccoons are left unrewarded with Gold Gloves, while the Bayhawks claw up four for C Didier Bourges, 2B Pete Thompson, 3B Roberto Rodriguez, and LF Roberto Guevara.
October 30 – TOP C Carlos Ramos (.290, 11 HR, 64 RBI) and TIJ 1B/3B Jose Morales (.286, 2 HR, 50 RBI) are Rookies of the Year.
October 31 – LAP SP Angel Romero (22-10, 2.45 ERA) and IND SP Neil Stewart (24-4, 2.89 ERA) are Pitchers of the Year.
November 1 – Batters of the Year are announced: CIN LF/RF Dan Morris (.352, 41 HR, 117 RBI) and POR 1B/2B David Brewer (.359, 7 HR, 53 RBI) are rewarded.

Batter of the Year, hoo-hoo-hoo!! That million and a half bucks didn’t go to waste after all!

Tony Vela pitched to a 6+ ERA in AAA, plus a 1-7 record. Whatever is wrong with him, I have enough places to work on. He was not an option to throw back into the bullpen after this dismal 1995 season he had. Yet, at the moment, we had only four relievers lined up for next season: Miller, De La Rosa, Burnett, and Martinez. Grant West had retired, Jackie Lagarde was bound for free agency, and Mike Dye was so too, although technically he was on the DL at this point anyway. Grandridge and Mallandain had already proven not to be big league caliber relievers (not even mopping up), and were not included in the plans for the future.

Looking at my AAA team, the outlook was dire. There was nobody there who could survive the big leagues, really, nobody. I would have a hard time finding anybody for the mop-up role. The only option was maybe Cesar Salcido (who had a sour cup of coffee in the Bigs with us in 1994) as a left-handed specialist. That was it. We needed at least two relievers from the open market or through trades. As late as three years ago, our system was spilling relievers left and right.

But the farm lay barren, and deserted.

I also threw in a waiver claim for Topeka’s Steve Galloway, a right-handed reliever, in early November, but our claim was superseded by the Thunder. Those Thunder… (bites a chunk out of the desk)

Back to Kondo, he easily filled the backup spot to Vinson. Or could he fill more? He had only managed OPS scores of .641 and .679 in his last two seasons, both clearly beneath the league average, but Vinson’s .683 last year certainly had not been a revelation equivalent to the Ten Commandments in magnitude.

Now about Baldivía. He doesn’t even hit double digit dingers. I want more from a first baseman. I have glanced at Denver’s Liam Wedemeyer, and we would probably have to trade half the team to obtain him. Another option would be to move O-Mo to first and put Mike Crowe on third base. Crowe hit 19 home runs in 252 triple-A AB’s this season. Why only so few AB’s you ask? Well, he broke his knee and has been in a cast for a few months now.

Probably not the best plan right now, huh?

Next: salary arbitrations, free agents file.

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Milestone report says that the Rebels’ Gabriel Cruz has retired. Cruz, 38, hangs up the bat as the all time home run leader with 318. Mark Dawson is still second with 304, but Michael Root is breathing down on him with 302, and so Root is the active career home run leader now, and with a decent 1996 he should overtake Cruz, too. Root is only 34, so the 400-train has not sailed yet.

Who is still fourth with 223 dingers, but probably not for very much longer? Daniel Hall.

Ah, I miss Daniel Hall.

Daniel Haaaaaaall … (cries)