The Jeff Mathis Dilemma

Whenever Jeff Mathis comes to the plate I cringe. Whenever he bats with men in scoring position, I expect the worst. When he bats at a crucial juncture of the game and there are two outs, I close my eyes.

And yet…

I really want Jeff Mathis to succeed. Yes, I really do because when all is said and done, I want the Angels to win. And therein lays the dilemma.

You see Mathis is monumentally and historically bad. How bad? Well ESPN's David Schoenfield sums it up pretty good: “It's hard to overstate just how poor a hitter Mathis truly is. For his career, he has a .197 batting average in 1,299 plate appearances. According to Baseball Reference, there have been just three others players in history to amass 1,300 PAs while batting below the Mendoza Line, and two of them, Mike Ryan and Ray Oyler, played much of their careers in the 1960s, arguably the most pitcher-friendly era in baseball history.”

I’m happy when he does something good offensively. I’m overjoyed when he makes a play that helps the team win a game on offense or defense and yet I have come to expect something far less from him after his seven seasons in the big leagues and because of that, I always fear that any positive output from him will earn him more playing time and that may ultimately cost the Angels a pennant.

I’ve spent a lot of time on this blog ranting about my disdain for Mathis. I’ve heard hours and hours of complaints from fans calling in on talk-radio and from those at ball games or talking Angels baseball in any environment. I've read volumes of opinions and poured over tons of statistics that all point to how bad he is and yet - he plays on. We don’t get it; none of us do.

In yesterday's game against the Yankees, Jeff Mathis came up to bat with the bases loaded in the top of the sixth and much to my surprise, he delivered a ground rule double that scored two and had the ball not hopped the fence, it would have cleared the bases. Normally, when a play of that magnitude happens, I throw my hands in the air, cheer, high-five someone and scream woo-hoo; however, when Mathis hit that double, I shook my head, smiled a bit and thought to myself – “Go figure.”

Terry Smith had just got done telling the radio audience that Mathis was 0-6 this season with the bases loaded (which was probably just what needed to be said – so that something positive could happen because that seems to be the way baseball works a lot of the time).

It was kind of amazing to hear the play unfold.

Just this past Friday night against the last-place Mariners, Mathis came up to bat twice in key situations. Once with the bases loaded and the other time with two men on. In both instances, he failed miserably – striking out both times. These kinds of events aren’t forgotten.

So… it’s easy to see why so many Angel fans feel tormented, isn’t it? We expect the worst and hope for the best.

Here we are in August and the Angels are 12 games above .500 and just 1.5 games behind Texas. They are most definitely in the hunt and engaged in an intense pennant race. Emotions are high and nerves are frazzled. Jeff Mathis adds to the anxiety.

It’s clear he’s here to stay; at least for this season. Regardless of any and all rants on the matter, Mathis is going to receive significant playing time. I guess we’d all better get used to it. Some of us might even have to start actively cheering for Mathis.

Any volunteers?

Hello?

Anyone out there? Anyone... anyone?

Catching flack is not as fun as catching a baseball

One has to wonder if Ryan Budde likes living on the edge. I mean, there is no quicker route to Mike Scioscia’s dog house than via the passed ball. Yesterday, Budde let two balls get past him and the mental lapses/failures in execution were part of the reason the Angels lost.

Budde also had a very embarrassing moment when he nearly walked off the field after the second out, thinking the inning was over with a runner on third at the time... That could have really set off Scioscia. Yikes.

When Angel catchers don’t do their jobs on the defensive side it reflects poorly on Scioscia (a former major league catcher himself). I would even venture to guess that he might even take this kind of stuff personally. Much is made about what it means to be a catcher in the Angels' organization and it should. These guys get put through the paces in the spring and the expectation is for them to be solid, fundamental players on the field.

Losing a game because of three unearned runs is the kind of stuff that turns hair grey. If this keeps up, the next thing you know - grown men and women will be pulling those grey hairs out of their heads.

Speaking of miscues, Kevin Frandsen isn’t winning over any fans. Okay, so he has a couple of base hits. Big deal. He’s also got two errors in two games. Now I know that third base isn’t his natural position, but he’s on pace to set some sort of record and we’re not talking about the kind you celebrate either. I'm beginning to see why he never stuck with the Giants and why he might have been released by the Red Sox before being claimed by the Angels. Just play Brandon Wood, please.

The way I see it, the Angels have had very few bright spots outside of Jered Weaver and Kendry Morales. Joel Pineiro has also had his moments; and a few others have been "okay," but the vast majority get a huge FAIL.

How bad is it? Mark Whicker of the O.C. Register points out that this year’s start is the Angels worst in 20 years.

Gulp.

All of this adds to the frustration and the level of angst is getting quite high. Quite frankly, I’d rather not be ranting on this blog every dang day. There isn't much joy in it.

So let’s have some fun….

Did you hear about how upset Bengie Molina is with ESPN? Apparently, ESPN showed a clip of Molina getting thrown out at the plate. That in and of itself, isn’t all that bad, but they decided to add some sound effects… like the music from the movie “Chariots of Fire”

Molina was so upset, he even blogged about it.

Shame on ESPN for trying to humiliate a major league baseball player! That’s what bloggers are for! I’m wondering if ESPN or Bengie read my post from a couple days ago titled There’s Slow and then there’s “Bengie Molina slow.” Just saying.

By the way, even though I do make fun of Bengie's lack of speed - you should know he's my all-time favorite catcher.

Meanwhile, over on the Baseball Think Factory site, some sabermetric types were going at each other pretty good over the new debate about whose better – Jered Weaver or Felix Hernandez?

A like a closer look at the statistics between the two shows us they’re not all that different. The article begs the question as to whether or not Jered Weaver is an ace or if Felix Hernandez is just an innings eater (as Weaver has been described from time to time). The point of the piece is to challenge the perception of two pitchers as they previously existed. It's an interesting discussion and kind of humorous as well.

What’s really funny are the shots some of sabermetic types take at one another in the comments section of the article. This is kind of a common practice among this group in my opinion. Then again, I like taking a shot or two now and then too. Difference is I really don't take myself nearly as seriously as some of them appear to.

In any case, I could have saved them all a bunch of time on this. I don’t need any statistical analysis to tell me that Jered Weaver is an ace. He does all the things that aces do. He stops losing streaks. He pitches well in big games. He has “top of the rotation” stuff and is a leader in the club house. He hasn't always been an ace, but he most certainly is one now.

Weaver has always been hyped, but never embraced. Even after coming out of Long Beach State; where he had an amazing career, some “experts” labeled him as “over-rated” and even projected him to be nothing more than a #3 starter at best.

Weaver has never really been considered a power pitcher. He’s basically been a fly-ball pitcher for most of his major league career. If you’re not a power pitcher, you’re usually not considered a top of the rotation guy.

Well, Weaver is changing the labels that were previously attached to him. Now, he also has some statistics to back up the idea that he is indeed an ace. Last year he reached a career high in strike outs with 174 which placed him among the top 24 in all of baseball and 10th in the AL. He also currently leads the AL with 59 K’s. His ERA is 2.47 and batters are only hitting .219 against him.

Now, some sabermetric types will dig deeper to demonstrate their belief that he’s still not an elite pitcher, but what’s the point? He’s clearly the Angels’ ace and has a shot to be the starter for this year’s All-Star game in Anaheim (I'll be hyping this idea a lot so get used to it).

As for the comparisons to Felix Hernandez... I could care less. All I know is that the two have gone head to head seven times and the Angels have won five of those contests. Now, I know enough to say that using wins as any kind of criteria to determine whose better is enough to send the sabermetric types into a hissy fit, but I like mentioning it anyway. And if you noticed, I didn’t say Weaver was better (although I might secretly believe that).

Let’s just say that when the two square off, I like the Angels' chances.

Side note: I feel much better now that I've posted something that wasn't necessarily a "rant" about the Angels' play of late. Whew!

Oh and to those of you who stumbled on this site today when googling Bengie Molina and the word "slow" - I'm glad you found this blog; even if it wasn't intentional. :-)

Come and get some swagger

Admit it. I know exactly what’s been on the minds of some of you Angel fans. You’ve still got that bitter taste in your mouth from an ALCS that seemed winnable. You’ve probably been focusing on what went wrong and some of you keep coming back to a guy who was supposed to make a difference. You keep coming back to Scott Kazmir. I’m right, aren’t I?

I know you’re wondering why the Angels traded for this guy. You’re thinking, “If this is the insurance policy for John Lackey’s departure; somebody got swindled.” You’re ready to call the baseball police or at least your local sports talk show to ask “What we’re the Angels thinking?”

I know the off season hasn’t gone like you hoped it would and you’ve got lots of things to get off your chest and the first item on your agenda is Kazmir. Go ahead and bring it.

Better yet, step into the batter’s box of public opinion and take your swings at Kazmir. You know you want to do it. You want to bash this guy because somebody has to take the blame and you’re thinking you know all about this guy and what he’s going to do or not do in 2010.

You want a piece of Kazmir? Like I said, step into the box, but know this and know it well; Kazmir is going to strike you out. In fact, he’s going to blow away that negative opinion and bad attitude you’re hanging on to. He’s going to make you wonder what happened. You’ll be shaking your head and looking over your shoulder and saying “Man, he’s pretty darn good after all.” And then, it’s going to happen; you’re going pause and a grin is going to find the corner of your lips and then that grin is going to turn into a Cheshire cat-like smile because Scott Kazmir just blew your mind by showing you what he can really do. I’m telling you that day is coming. You are going to learn that you were wrong and for one of the few times in your life, you’re actually going to be glad you were wrong and not be afraid to admit it.

Mark my words. Quote me all you want. Scott Kazmir is going to be an ace and he’s going to have a great season. In fact, I believe he’s going to have the kind of season that will make us forget about that guy who left town to pitch in Boston.

What’s that I hear? Do I detect a bit of skepticism? You want to know what happened to Kazmir in the 2009 post season. Well, it beats the heck out of me. Let’s just say that I don’t believe Kazmir’s 2009 season and more specifically his 2009-post season is indicative of what he’s capable of doing. 2009 will not define Kazmir; I believe it will motivate him to greatness in 2010.

I’m thinking all that because reports from Buster Olney of ESPN (subscription required for whole article) indicate Kazmir is working hard to get back to being that top-of-the-rotation guy the Angels believe he can be. Word is he started working out one week after his season ended. Let me remind you that was three months ago. Kazmir is no slackey, err slacker.

This is a guy who’s clearly on a mission. I know, I know – that phrase gets used to death, but it fits with what’s going on here. According to Olney, Kazmir has been working on some very specific goals; things like strengthening his core, allowing him to repeat his delivery consistently. And that delivery is going to feature what he hopes is an improved slider. He’s working on a new grip to give his slider more spin.

What’s it all mean?

Let’s just say that Kazmir is working on stuff that isn’t going to show up in any of those projections that have become so popular. How could it? Did Bill James know that Kazmir was going to be stronger and more fit before he projected Kazmir to have a 3.90 ERA, a 3.84 FIP and 176 K’s in 2010?

No, he didn’t. You can’t measure stuff like this and if one could factor this stuff in; wouldn’t it stand to reason those projections (courtesy of FanGraphs.com) are shy of what he really might do?

Are you thinking what I’m thinking? I’m thinking boo-ya! Heck yeah, Kazmir is going to blow his projections away and then some.

Look, most projections already have Kazmir showing significant improvement over his 2009 season. And that’s without factoring in the work he’s doing.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m learning to appreciate sabermetrics, but sometimes things happen that you just can’t predict. Kazmir is throwing a wrench into the projections by doing work that’s going to make a huge difference in how he performs.

It’s time to expect big things from Kazmir. Time for roto geeks to move Kazmir up on their draft sheets (myself included) and for Angel fans to flock to the team store to buy his jersey.

It’s also time to wipe that bitter taste of losing in the ALCS from your lips and time to start thinking about a better season in 2010. Come on, you know you want to believe. Spring is almost here and being optimistic will put a little extra pep in your step or even; dare I say… a little swagger!

Look who's talking

Happy New Year! To start off the 2010 Blogging season (is there such a thing?); I thought I’d take a look at the local sports-talk radio scene.

Here in the greater Orange County/Los Angeles area we are very lucky to have a variety of choices for sports talk radio. There are basically three stations in KLAC 570, KSPN (ESPN) Los Angeles 710 and KLAA AM 830. You can usually also catch XX Sports 1090 in San Diego.

No matter what your sport (USC football, Angels baseball, Lakers basketball, etc.), you can find a place to get your fix. We’ve always had choices, but I’d say the current batch is better what we’ve had in recent history.

I once considered the sports talk radio scene in this area a vast wasteland. Not so much any more and if you’re an Angels’ fan, you have no doubt found your way to AM 830 in the morning and afternoon drive times for either the Sports Lodge (with Roger Lodge) and/or The Drive (with Jeff Biggs). It’s really nice to have a place where baseball (and more importantly Angels’ baseball) is a part of the programming year round.

I used to be so desperate for baseball talk that I would to tune in to 1090 in the off-season because they’d include some baseball (even though it was about the Padres) in their discussions. Sandy Alderson, Kevin Towers and Paul DePodesda were regulars on the station and they provided fans with great insight and information. I used to envy the Padre fans and their relationship with the XX Sports Radio.

The 1090 station and their crew do a great job of connecting with the Padre community. They conduct broadcasts from Spring Training and have hours of coverage leading up to and after each Padre home game.

Having the Angels on AM 830, is a big step; providing Angel fans with an outlet and place we can call our own. This was a huge step forward in the continued branding of Angels baseball, in my opinion. That’s not to say 830 is perfect because there are some constructive suggestions I would make for improvements and I’ll get into that in a bit.

First of all, let’s sing the praises of the station. They’ve given Angels fans a forum to connect with one another and members of the team via live pre-game broadcasts from various establishments in and around the stadium. They’ve even given a couple of great fan web sites like AngelsWin and Halos Heaven a place on their broadcasts, inviting key individuals from those fan sites (who also happen to have blogs) on to the show to talk Angels baseball.

The result is expanded coverage of our team and a destination for the latest news and happenings surrounding our favorite team. It appears to me that it’s all been a huge hit.

That being said, there are some things I’d like to suggest some things.

This is directed at the on-air personalities (not just at AM 830) and the people who put these shows on each day. First of all, we don’t want to hear about your fantasy baseball teams. There is nothing more boring and uninteresting than hearing about someone else’s fantasy baseball or football team. We really don’t care about the details that lead you to a fifth place finish in your league.

Next… while having fans call in to the shows is great, some of your fans need some restrictions. Take a cue from Terry Smith who only allows callers to participate once a week. Seriously, it appears to me that some guys call in every day just to hear themselves talk. These individuals take themselves a little too seriously and I usually change the station when they come on the air.

How bad are they? Well, I’m not certain, but I honestly believe Jeff Biggs of AM 830’s “The Drive,” has fallen asleep a time or two when one his regulars calls in. Either that or he’s making snarky comments off the air to his colleagues at the station. No need to name names, because if you listen enough, you know who I’m talking about. If you really have that much to say, start blogging! I’m just saying…

I’d also like to request you to please give us more interviews. We love it when players, coaches, front office personnel and baseball insiders in general come on the air. All we ask is that you ask interesting questions and get these people to reveal a little bit of their personalities and/or give us information we didn’t previously know.

Dan Patrick is the best sports interviewer in the business (in my opinion). He makes me want to listen to interviews of people involved in sports I don’t even watch or care about. He has a knack for making the interviews interesting and compelling.

Next, let’s stop with the attempts to be the radio version of “Saturday Night Live.” Having a sense of humor is great and welcomed, but when you start trying to do comedy routines on the radio, you’ve lost me. There was a time when John Ireland and Steve Mason did this way too much. Joe McDonnell (who I like) went down this road a time or two and it just wasn’t good radio.

Speaking of McDonnell, when he’s focused on just talking sports, doing interviews and getting the inside scoop on the latest sports news, he’s as good as it gets. When he was teamed with Doug Kirkorian he was hard to listen to. Kirkorian brought out the worst in McDonnell (in my opinion). I know the two are great friends, but I don’t think they mixed well on the radio. I always wanted more McDonnell and less Kirkorian.

Now, along the same lines as “bits” and “comedy routines,” please don’t over do it with the contests. It’s great when you give fans an opportunity to win tickets, but keep it simple and don’t try to turn it into a comedy show.

I remember calling into the Mason and Ireland show when Jered Weaver first got called up. I was excited and wanted to make sure they got the breaking news and discussed it. What I got was a producer who was angry with me for interrupting his preparation for a contest/bit he was setting up. When your contests become more important than the sports you’re supposed to cover, you’re clearly clueless about your audience.

Most people don’t listen for the contests; in fact, I’m guessing the participants represent a very small part of your audience.

Remember the main reason we tune in is because we want to discuss or hear about Angels baseball (depending on the station). That means your take on the economy, politics or whatever isn’t really of importance to us. We have other places to go for that. Know your audience and stay focused on delivering what we want.

And what we want is knowledgeable people doing their jobs well. One of my biggest pet peeves is professional broadcasters who aren’t prepared. If you’re on the air to talk Angels baseball or any sport or team; know your subject.

I expect you to know more than me or at least have a solid understanding of the team and sport you’re involved in. I can’t tell you how many times certain personalities give out the wrong information or simply don’t know some of the basic things about their team and the sport they’re discussing. It’s embarrassing.

Angel fans are savvy and we expect you to know your stuff when you hit the air or mingle with us. This includes knowing a bit about the history of the organization. Your level of knowledge is an indication of just how much you care about the topic/team you’re covering. If you don’t care, we don’t give a rip about what you have to say.

Last, but not least; take off the rose colored glasses. Be objective; really objective. I imagine the more you’re around a team, the deeper your relationships with that team becomes. That doesn’t mean you should lose objectivity and just spout the company line all the time. We can see right through you when you’re not sincere. Don’t just go through the motions because we expect better.

Let’s face it, there is a wealth of information available today through the internet with blogs, twitter, fan sites, etc. There was a time when Lee “Hacksaw” Hamilton was the source to get the latest news and rumors in sports, but that’s all changed. Hamilton’s headlines are basically yesterday’s news now. I know about everything he “puts on the table” long before he hits the air.

I’m basically a fan of just a couple of sports-talk types. Dan Patrick and Joe McDonnell are two of the best, in my opinion. I can’t stand guys who spend most of their time yelling on the radio. I don’t want to name names, but you can find him on 570.

I’m not a huge Jim Rome fan because I never wanted to bother having to learn a whole new lingo to keep up with his show nor have I been interested in listening to guys who want to be his “clone.” Rome does a good job on interviews, but sometimes goes a little overboard with what appears to me to be “brown-nosing.” I also can’t get the image of him trembling when former pro football quarterback, Jim Everett dumped a table on him after Rome kept calling him “Chrissie.”

I should also add that I’m a huge fan of Terry Smith and the job he does on the Angels’ post-game call in show on AM 830. I like the way he handles callers and for the way he doesn’t back down from anyone. He’s knowledgeable, passionate about the game, honest and provides great insight.

So there you have it. The first post of 2010 is in the books… err, on the web. I hope to write about some Angel minor leaguers in the coming weeks including Trevor Reckling. I will also be doing some reports from Spring Training and I will even write a primer for those of you looking to enhance your Spring Training experience and/or provide tips for those of you going for the first time.

Stay tuned.