Phoenix.BloggersPub

Deserving of its own diary, I feel. News breaking today - finally - involving Haren:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/12/14/SPQTTUU9P.DTL&tsp=1

(12-14) 14:49 PST — The A’s have completed a trade to send Dan Haren to the Diamondbacks along with pitcher Connor Robertson, The Chronicle has learned.

In exchange, Oakland will receive a total of six prospects, including outfielder Carlos Gonzalez and left-handers Brett Anderson and Greg Smith. Arizona’s first-round pick in 2006, pitcher Max Scherzer, is not a part of the deal.

More news coming, I’m sure, but I don’t see anything on MLB.com or the Republic or Yahoo…

The other part of the shoe has dropped. Valverde to Astros That one also gives the names of the other players involved in the A’s trade.

SO, looks like this is what we did today:

OUT
• Jose Valverde (Astros)
• Alberto Callaspo (Royals)
• Carlos Gonzalez (A’s)
• Brett Anderson (A’s)
• Greg Smith (A’s)
• Dana Eveland (A’s)
• Aaron Cunningham (A’s)
• Chris Carter (A’s)

  IN

• Dan Haren (A’s, ML)
• Chris Burke (Astros, ML)
• Chad Qualls (Astros, ML)
• Juan Gutierrez (Astros (ML/AAA)
• Billy Buckner (Royals, ML/AAA)
• [Edit: plus Connor Robertson (A’s, ML/AAA)]

Hmmm….

Hi everybody. Hope you’re all enjoying (or not) the World Series. Well there’s not enough news yet to do a “Daily” but there have been some things posted this week that are of note.

First, as Ben pointed out, the Diamondbacks lost another scout to the Nationals. Sounds like the Nats will have a good team in a few years time.

The MLB.com Mailbag for last week discussed the options of pitching. We expect to lose Livo to free agency and who knows about RJ’s back, so we need at least one starter. The Chicago Tribune reports that Livan would like to join his brother in New York. He’s looking for a 3 or 4 year deal and I’m sure Arizona’s management is not going to concede to that. Nippert is a possibility, but it looks more likely to happen via trades. Rumors have Jackson, Tracy and Gonzalez on the trade block, with Tracy less so than Jackson because of his knee.

MLB.com notes discuss Melvin’s future - he met with Josh Byrnes at several Fall League games, almost assuredly about an extension, but had no comment on his situation. Byrnes said he intends to bring all the coaching staff back, and he’s one step closer to that with exercising Bryan Price’s option for 2008.

Tonight is World Series Game 4, and it could very well be the last MLB game of the year. Personally, I would be very sad if Boston won, not only for Colorado, but because the streak of 7 different winners in 7 years would be broken. But the irony here is rich - Arizona swept Chicago and then was swept by Colorado, will Colorado sweep Arizona and be swept by Boston? Tune in tonight to find out…

Quotes of the Day

#1: “It breaks your heart. It is designed to break your heart. The game begins in spring, when everything else begins again, and it blossoms in the summer, filling the afternoons and evenings, and then as soon as the chill rains come, it stops and leaves you to face the fall alone.” ~ A. Bartlett Giamatti

#2: “People ask me what I do in winter when there’s no baseball. I’ll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring.” ~ Rogers Hornsby

#3: “To make no mistakes is not in the power of man; but from their errors and mistakes the wise and good learn wisdom for the future.” ~ Plutarch

Well, here we are, 12 hours later, and it’s still sinking in and the questions are still unanswered. How can our season be over already? How can we have just gotten swept by the Rockies? How come luck didn’t go our way? Why didn’t the offense show up? Who should we root for now? What’s going to happen in the off-season?

There’s plenty of time to think about all those questions now that we’re out after 4 (Republic). Yes, a lot of things went the Rockies’ way all series (MLB.com) but they were the catalysts for all those things happening - the good baserunning, the fabulous defense, the timely hits, the surprising bullpen. The Rockies were everything the Diamondbacks weren’t (except our bullpen was pretty darn fabulous too). But the Diamondbacks never stopped battling (MLB.com) and came close, once again, in the 9th - they played all 27 outs, they were never out of it until the last ball was caught by Helton. Congratulations to the Rockies on a fabulous run, and stay hot. I hope you sweep right over the American League team you face next week.

A lot of things in this series can sum up the Dbacks’ year.. the year of the strong bullpen, a lack of offense, young baserunners. But think of what we did right - we started three rookies, sometimes four. We blasted some mammoth home runs. We struck out some big opponents. We made some diving, leaping, and acrobatic catches. We have TSN’s NL Manager of the Year. (MLB.com) And that is also indicative of the Dbacks’ season, a season in which we had the best record in the league, won the NL West, and played our way into the NLCS. We should be very proud of the way they played through the year and remember they are likely to get even better next year. (MLB.com) This experience hurts, yes, but this team will come out strong again next year, knowing they can do it again.

Believe it or not it may be a relatively quiet winter (Republic) with a lot of the players still tied to us. But there are still plenty of questions to be answered. Do we trade away Chad Tracy and Carlos Quentin? Do we get a healthy RJ back (heh) come spring? Can Mark Reynolds learn not to strike out as much? Will Bonifacio beat out Callaspo for the reserve infielder spot? Who in the world will be our #5 starter? (Hm, that question sounds familiar…)

Stay tuned for all that and more… the off-season is just beginning.

Sorry guys, I’ve been sick the past few days and hardly had the energy to type, but I figured if you wanted to read the bad news, there was no shortage of it. And unfortunately, that trend continues today, because the losing trend continued last night.

Eric Byrnes was right, this team hasn’t given anybody any reason to believe they’re going to win this thing. They’re not up there scratching and clawing for runs as they did all season long, they’re swinging at first pitches (Drew, Callaspo) and popping out (Byrnes, Young) and striking out (Reynolds, Salazar, Upton) when we need hits. The team isn’t really here, not the team that picks itself up after losses like this. We aren’t out there roaring for a win with only 4 runs scored in the first three games. This team can do better, but it hasn’t shown up yet, and it’s hard to tell if it will.. Down 3-0, it’s not impossible to come back from this, but frankly I’d almost (not totally) rather be swept tonight and have the Rockies go on to sweep the AL team out of the World Series… that would be pretty cool to see.

Anyway. On to some of the news of the day. (There’s plenty more out there.) Torrealba spoiled Livan’s (Republic) magic show last night with a blast to put this one firmly out of reach in the 6th. At the moment, Owings is still set and ready (Republic) to pitch tonight in Game 4, but that could change.. Other changes include Jeff Cirillo starting tonight (Republic) at second base in place of Ojeda, who hasn’t looked terribly good at the plate all series.

Despite the hole and the need for a great comeback (MLB.com), the Dbacks actually still have a lot of confidence (MLB.com) that they can come back and rattle off some wins. And as Tony Clark says, he’s been on the losing end of it, so he knows how possible that is.

The Rockies are ready to put this one away, (SportsTicker) but there’s still a game to be played. Maybe Micah Owings’ bat will do some good (SportsTicker) in the lineup tonight. It’s Game 4, tonight, (InsideEdge) 7:18pm, TBS.

Sorry for the delay in this, I didn’t have a great night last night. (And I don’t just mean the game, I mean the Chinese food.) But it’s not like much of the news this morning is positive, anyway. (Sorry, Devin.)

Clearly last night was not a pretty game: not from the offense, not from the umpires, and not from the fans. The offense did not come through when it needed to pick up Webb. The umpires didn’t have the best judgement, not only at second base but also with the variable strike zone. And the fans, while I applaud their noise and getting involved in the game (finally), should not have actually gotten involved in the game, thereby further allowing the media to paint us all with the same brush.

Obviously the latter is the big storyline of the day, and we all know it. I won’t spend too much time dwelling on it but I will list the articles for discussion: Jeff Passan - Hello? Any Diamondbacks fans out there? (Yahoo); Amy Nelson - Touch of controversy (ESPN); Unruly fans stop game (AP). Tulowitzky didn’t like (Republic) Upton’s antics but Upton says he did as he was taught (Republic).  Derrick Hall says that the fans will be watched closely tonight (Republic). (Another rehash of the situation at MLB.com.)

Believe it or not, there was actually a game played last night.. not that it was very good. Willy Taveras was activated (Republic) and gave the lineup a different look, not to mention he can cause problems (MLB.com) on the base paths. Jeff Francis isn’t a wow-pitcher, but certainly cruised after the first (Republic). The Rockies frustrated Webb as they have all year (AP), which Webb says was tough luck last night (MLB.com), and the offense couldn’t bail him out (MLB.com). And so the Diamondbacks head back to the drawing board after a loss in Game 1 (Republic).

And today is another day, another day to play the game, another chance for a W. We throw Doug Davis tonight (MLB.com), who seems unfazed by this, and don’t forget we’ve got Hernandez in Game 3. These starters’ experience outweighs (Republic) that of the Rockies’ starters, and hopefully that’ll prove to be an advantage.

Here’s a tidbit: a contract extension for Melvin (Tribune) will likely be discussed soon. The Trib also explains why Bonifacio, Petit and Medders are still with the team (injury insurance). And here’s something I had no clue about: Carlos Quentin underwent surgery (Republic) on his left shoulder and will be sidelined until April. That could put a kink in the Dbacks’ off-season plans (aka trades).

Alright everybody, let’s get our heads in the game, let’s hope the Dbacks get theirs in the right places, and let’s WIN tonight! Davis vs Jimenez, 7:18pm. Be there or be here or… or else.

Devin said he was thinking of going into anti-media lockdown (presumably to keep himself from choking every 20 minutes, rightfully), I figured it’d be a good thing to have a ‘Daily for today and tomorrow with emphasis on the * positive * stories. So when we post links in here, let’s mark them as thumbs-up or thumbs-down so people can avoid them if they want to. All neutral or thumbs-up things here on the front page.

Game times have been announced for Games 1-6 according to the Republic.

1. Thu Oct 11, Chase Field, 5:37pm PT (8:37 ET)
   
   
2. Fri Oct 12, Chase Field, 7:18pm PT (10:18 ET)
   
   
3. Sun Oct 14, Coors Field, 5:37pm PT (8:37 ET)
   
   
4. Mon Oct 15, Coors Field, 7:18pm PT (10:18 ET)
   
   
5. * Wed Oct 17, Coors Field, 5:37pm PT (8:37 ET)
   
   
6. * Fri Oct 19, Chase Field, 5:37pm PT (8:37 ET)
   
   
7. * Sat Oct 20, Chase Field, TBD

Notes in the Republic talk mainly on Jeff Salazar, and his connection to the Rockies. He still likes those guys but he’s very happy where he is now and certainly doesn’t want to see them celebrate again! Also note that the rotation after Webb is not yet set (at least, not yet announced); Micah Owings is set to throw in the Instruction League game today and would be a likely candidate for Game 4. Brief un-baseball related Q and A with Justin Upton. Nick Piecoro writes about the rise of the NL West (nothing there we didn’t already know) and there’s also a small story about the lack of “Dbacks Fever.”

Also not announced is anything about the NLCS roster; that’ll be tomorrow, and it sounds like there might be a roster move announced. Both teams welcome the rest (Hurdle was out yesterday with the flu) and BoMel, of course, is hoping it helps cool the Rockies down from their hot streak. The Rockies hope the break lets them get back some of their injured players. Dbacks get an A in chemistry: team chemistry that is. This is a complete team they’ve assembled here, good guys without egos and where everyone contributes.

From mediocre players to marvelous managers come this group in the NLCS. Francona, Wedge, Melvin and Hurdle all had quiet playing careers but are finally getting their World Series chances as managers. Know what else is mediocre? The payrolls of these CS teams. Okay, so Boston’s #2, but the rest of us are at least 21 spots behind that! Cleveland’s #23, Colorado’s #25, and Arizona’s #26. It makes some interesting comparisons to football and basketball as well.

That’s it for now, more tomorrow.

So… what’s everybody watching on TV tonight? I’m lost without a baseball game.

Take that, “experts”!!! Hardly anybody picked us to win, let alone predict we would sweep. I think it even surprised a lot of us. Was it our good pitching and defense that kept the Cubs’ offense in hibernation, or did they just suck? It better be the former, because we are definitely going to need our pitching when we face the rockin’ Rockies. This will be the first time two teams from the NL West will meet in the NLCS.

But more on that later. Now it’s all about the Dbacks, baby! The Republic recap talks about the celebration, including noting that they celebrated with goggles this time (Juan Cruz’s idea). A true sign of an inexperienced team learning their way through the playoffs! The AP recap is more of a recap on the series but has some game action at the end. And it’s hard to tell which of the many articles on MLB.com is supposed to be the recap! I think it’s this one, and this one is a lot better than the other two recaps.

There’s some good stuff today. Eric Byrnes’ hustle paid off last night with his would’ve-been double play ball. Livan Hernandez doesn’t feel pressure, not even in big games or big situations such as last night. Dbacks defy critics and stage a celebration in Stunned-town. (The Republic’s notes feature the same topics: Wrigley was raucous in the 5th, the pitchers have been great, and Byrnes’ hustle helped his series.) Jayson Stark of ESPN has a pretty good article on the Dbacks and how they defy “logic” and yet are a really great team. (Well, of course!)

People are finally taking note of the NL West. Both teams made it work with young players ahead of their time, and this is a sign of things to come. We face a familiar foe in the NLCS (breakdown for those who aren’t familiar with the team) later this week. For now, let’s rest up and be ready!

Quote of the Day #1: (to be found by you… funniest media quote)

Quote of the Day #2: Have to say, for 2 pitchers, Lilly and Hart sound more like a Valentine card. - hotclaws

Well Papa Grande saved (not technically) yesterday’s game for us, and off we go to Chicago!! We take a 2-0 series lead with us, but we can’t get cocky. The last time a team lost a 2-0 series was Oakland (and Byrnes was a part of that loss) and it was an absolutely terrible feeling. That said, I feel pretty good about this one! Even if the Cubs’ bats do come alive in the friendly confines, I think we can match them, and our bullpen is pretty well rested if needed.

The media certainly didn’t think we’d be up 2-0 in this series (honestly, who did?) so I think there’s going to be a lot of news today and tomorrow. I’m sorry that I don’t have time to capture everything or even read them right now, let alone write about them in a better format. ‘Skins will provide more in the comments, I know. As should you all! This is what this thread was intended to do, be the center of information, and I’m very proud of everybody’s contributions.

Arizona Republic

• Diamondbacks take 2-0 lead in series
  
• Ojeda is Dbacks playoff pest
  
• Webb for Game 4?
  
• Clark a father figure
  
• Superfan truly loves his Dbacks
  
• Dan Bickley blog
  
• And something I missed yesterday: Hudson’s daily journal

AP/Y!

• Young, Dbacks take 2-0 series lead (also the AP recap)
  
• Young Snakes show they belong in post-season “Our young guys are playing like it’s not their first rodeo,” said Diamondbacks first baseman Tony Clark, one of the few veterans on the team. “It’s impressive and gratifying to see.” Thanks, TC, we really needed the media to grab more western references…
  
• Dbacks 2B Ojeda contributing in starting role

MLB.com

• Dbacks fans raise the volume
  
• Chess match: Lilly lingers too long
  
• Short hops: Game 2
  
• Ojeda plays his way into prominent role
  
• Ten things to like about the Dbacks Hey, I know we can think of more than 10!
  
• Young shines on national stage
  
• Dbacks sail to 2-0 lead over Cubs

Two American League contests going on today, not terribly exciting yet as they’re only Game #2 for each series. I think I’ll worry about the AL in the CS. In the meantime, rest easy, and be patient, my young Dbacks. Do not feel overwhelmed with the increase in media attention you are surely noticing… play your game, and you will win!

… ‘Cause we win tonight. [Well we won last night, at least.]

Hey Jim? Can I steal your QotD and use it here too? I’ve got two really good ones for today:

Quote of the Day #1: “Reynolds breathed it and then delivered.” - Nick Piecoro I sure hope that’s nothing like Experience It. (And, Nick? You have to breathe in before you deliver, but Mark won’t ever have that problem.) (I know it’s related to the sentence above it but that wasn’t there last night and it was much funnier.)

Quote of the Day #2: What movie? I’ve been trying to figure out who’s country this is. - Devin There were a lot of funny comments about TBS last night, but Devin’s is the one I’m going to keep laughing at for quite some time. Thanks, Devin. Very clever.

Well we took Game 1, and I think we all feel better about this series. I know I do! What a game yesterday! I think it was everything we expected, a low-scoring battle of aces which the D-backs pulled out of the hat. You know, while everyone’s going to be criticizing Pinella’s move last night, it wasn’t a bad move in theory. His bullpen has been terrific all year, and he’s bringing back his pitcher in Game 4 if it’s played. Zambrano kept them in Game 1, and he knows the likelihood for a sweep against these Diamondbacks is low, so he wants Zambrano to be good in Game 4 too. So he hands the ball to his reliever who has a a 1.43 ERA with 96 Ks in 69.1 innings. It backfired, and that sucks, and for a short series it’s even worse, but in theory it’s not bad.

Dang, there’s a lot of news today. I don’t know what’s going to be the best way to cover all this… I may have to just categorize them by source.

Arizona Republic

Dan Bickley and Nick Piecoro both talk about said Zambrano move. Zambrano wanted to pitch more, he says, but the Cubs blamed their lack of offense. Notes on the Cubs discuss the move at catcher, benching Kendall and starting Soto.

Drew and Reynolds come through in Game 1, and if they were anonymous before, they are no longer. (But people on the east coast went to sleep, as we all know, so they still are.) Davis worked hard to get this team to the post-season, and he’s ready for his chance to show why. Stephen Drew’s hot streak continues; he says he’s been comfortable a while, and hopefully these hits will continue to “fall in” to the bleachers!

AP/Y! Sports

• Jeff Passan bullet points Interesting, but not aimed at the true Arizona fan.
  
• AP Recap Not bad for game action, should anyone here actually happened to have missed the game
  
• Nice little ditty on Mark Reynolds by a SportsTicker writer

MLB.com
(follow the Entry Link for more)

Reynolds makes debut - better little article on Mark Reynolds. Also one on Stephen Drew’s Game 1 performance and season-long learning experience

Cubs, Dbacks set hits home for Grace Discusses (sort of) Grace’s ties to both teams. Quote:
“My mom and dad taught me a long time ago not to bite the hand that feeds you, and right now I’m being fed very well by this team,” said Grace. Really Gracie? That’s the best thing you can think of to say in that situation?

Davis rides momentum into Game 2 Quote:
That Davis on Aug. 25 defeated the Cubs — a team that’s just 19-24 this season against left-handers — certainly didn’t hurt Davis case, either. But why has he been successful against the Cubs? “It just seems that every time I face them, it feels like I can execute a plan that I’ve been working on for the week before that,” Davis said. “It’s something that I study and figure out what hitters’ weaknesses are, and I try to execute my pitches and let my fielders work behind me.”

Colangelo returns to throw out first pitch I didn’t know this, this was a nice touch, especially to RJ (who apparently sat in on the radio broadcast) Quote: “My thought to do this was to kind of connect the great success of the past to the present,” Kendrick said.

• Chess Match: Pitcher Selection Conor Jackson and the bullpen help Bob Melvin look good again in pulling Webb after 7; Pinella, not so much..
  
• Notes: Melvin goes with 11 pitchers Melvin felt more comfortable with 11 pitchers, and I can’t blame him! He was so excited to tell Hammock he made the post-season roster, he told him early. Jay Bell & Matt Williams are to throw out first pitches in Game 2.
  
• Short Hops Brief look at the key players of Arizona’s win.
  
• Webb gem boosts Dbacks past Cubs I guess this would be the MLB.com recap. It talks about Webb, his nerves (if any), his pitch selection, troubles in the 6th, and the offensive support.

More stuff can be found at MLB.com on the Cubs-Dbacks Division Series page: interviews, highlights, articles.

Others
Experts: Who’s going to win? Nobody picked us to even make the World Series, and 4 of 20 picked us to beat the Cubs. Well, let’s see what they say 2 or 3 games from now!

Yahoo’s being stupid again so I can’t get the game preview. But, as we all know, it’s Davis vs Lilly. Tonight at 7, be there or be here. (And remember, TBS is your exclusive home for the Division Series. ::gag::)

(It’s my goal to use song lyrics for the titles throughout the post-season. Caution, I have eclectic music tastes.)

First of all, note the new blog a little ways down the right sidebar: that of the old man himself, Mr. Tony Clark. It’ll be cool to get a little inside perspective for what hopes to be a fantastic post-season.

Lots of news again this morning, but I still don’t see the official roster for the LDS. I’ve seen other teams’. I think the deadline is 10am, but I’m like Veruca, and “I want it now!”

Many articles compare different aspects of the Cubs and Diamondbacks - mangers, pitching, power. Two managers, two paths to success is a nice glimpse at who Melvin and Pinella are and a look at their managing styles. The AP has a story on the Webb vs Zambrano match-up, as does MLB.com which discusses aces and underdogs.

Nobody’s picking the Dbacks (Republic) in this series, and I for one am glad of that. I think it’s more fun to win as the underdog and throw it back at em than to try to live up to expectations. And the Cubs have 99 years of expectations to try and surpass. The Dbacks themselves (MLB.com) relish the underdog role too! There’s a really nice story on Jose Valverde and his family (Republic) and the confidence his team has in his closing abilities.

The Dbacks bring a mighty ‘pen (MLB.com) to the post-season with them, one that has accounted for 30 of our wins and 51 saves. But we all know how important it is for our offense to step it up (MLB.com) or at least to defy the numbers yet again.

There’s a feature from MLB.com on Webb’s readiness for Game 1. Also, from the Republic are notes discussing Webb’s taste at the playoffs, tonight’s starting lineup, and a slight injury to Mark Reynolds. The Republic also has a breakdown of the Cubs’ road to the playoffs.

Good news - the O’Dawg can sit in the dugout (Tribune) for this series! There’s also a really nice story on how a first baseman, a left fielder, and a second baseman walked into a bar. (Tribune) (Just trust me.)

MLB has worked hard this year to tweak the playoff schedule (AP) so as not to start two games at once or too early for the West Coast. Don’t forget that all games are on TBS unless otherwise noted. (Game 4 would be on TNT.)

Oh and if you have some free time between 1 and 1:30 (PT) today, tune in to the Outsider Radio on MVN webcast to hear, at some point, a discussion on the Dbacks. I’ll need some feedback!

Tonight. 7pm. Game 1. Webb vs Zambrano. Be there!