Big news today is Mike Hargrove resigning. An odd move, given that the Mariners have won 9 of 10, so you wonder what sinister reason is behind it. He says none, so maybe he just got burned out. I love baseball, but I often wonder if I could stand 6 straight months of going to ballpark every day. For the Mariners, I don't think Hargrove is any great loss, yeah he brought the Indians to the postseason, but those late 90's Indians teams were absolutely loaded. Look at the 1995 team (the one that lost to the Braves in the Series). I must admit, I didn't realize Jim Thome plied his trade at third for a few years. His HOF case just got a bit stronger in my mind. He also took the 1997 team to the Series, losing to the Marlins. I suppose you could say they got unlucky playing in the same league as the dominant late 90's Yankees, but you could also say a team that good should've won at least one Series. Anyway, I think that this might be a good thing for the M's, as Ichiro and Hargrove weren't exactly drinking buddies. Anything that makes Ichiro (the cornerstone of my team) more likely to stay in Seattle is a good thing. Unless of course I could use the compensation pick to acquire Cameron Maybin. Major man-crush on Cam.
Other news today (at least for me). I just noticed that Billy Butler is back up with the Royals. Later in his career he'll probably be only a DH, but from all I've read, his bat will carry that. Right now, unless he gets more of a chance to play (and does more with it than his first stint) he's not worth owning...
Last thing for now, the Tigers traded a Single A pitcher (Chris Cody) to the Brewers for Jose Capellan. Capellan lacked gruntle earlier this year (hence, he was disgruntled) but appears to be a decent bullpen arm (lead the Brewers in WXRL last year) acquired fairly cheaply, given market for bullpen help. I can remember my man Dan Messier (probably the only person who reads this blog) saying in Spring Training after Capellan's gruntleless stretch, that some AL team should trade for him. Anyway, as far as Capellan, I doubt he's anything other than a decent middle reliever with little chance to close (unless Todd Jones continues to do his Todd Jones impersonation). Even still, at some point soon other options to close will be back on the active roster, either Fernando Rodney, or everybody's choice, this guys:
Lastly, check out this article about how $15,000 may have radically changed baseball history. Maybe Bonds might've already been the HR king, having already passed the previous king, Babe Ruth?
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