Comments on: An Open Letter to Billy Beane http://www.curveballcity.com/?p=263 Baseball banter for Athletics fanatics! Fri, 27 Aug 2010 05:14:52 -0400 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: WalksWillHaunt http://www.curveballcity.com/?p=263&cpage=1#comment-1423 WalksWillHaunt Fri, 11 Jan 2008 02:02:42 +0000 http://www.curveballcity.com/?p=263#comment-1423 Yeah, seriously. Quit whining. You don't have any idea what it's like in Pittsburgh. This, only worse, every year, forever and ever, and they don't even try to pretend anymore that it's not this way. You know what? Drive to Fremont. It's a lot closer for you than it is for us to drive to 1992. Yeah, seriously. Quit whining. You don’t have any idea what it’s like in Pittsburgh. This, only worse, every year, forever and ever, and they don’t even try to pretend anymore that it’s not this way. You know what? Drive to Fremont. It’s a lot closer for you than it is for us to drive to 1992.

]]> By: JosefFreedom http://www.curveballcity.com/?p=263&cpage=1#comment-1422 JosefFreedom Thu, 10 Jan 2008 22:09:02 +0000 http://www.curveballcity.com/?p=263#comment-1422 Actually Billy Beane is really, really smart. In mid-market baseball economics you need to get a large group of talented young players coming up at the same time. In the best case scenario this group couldn't compete next year, now in the past he could have waited and traded his stars in the final year of their contract but with other GM's getting smarter he realized he needed to unload these guys sooner and get guys who will improve the next round of players chances at being great. Think of it like trying to re-create a sine curve, you unload current underpaid young players if you can't compete now to give you a better chance for the future. Actually Billy Beane is really, really smart. In mid-market baseball economics you need to get a large group of talented young players coming up at the same time. In the best case scenario this group couldn’t compete next year, now in the past he could have waited and traded his stars in the final year of their contract but with other GM’s getting smarter he realized he needed to unload these guys sooner and get guys who will improve the next round of players chances at being great. Think of it like trying to re-create a sine curve, you unload current underpaid young players if you can’t compete now to give you a better chance for the future.

]]> By: jamie http://www.curveballcity.com/?p=263&cpage=1#comment-1421 jamie Thu, 10 Jan 2008 21:17:39 +0000 http://www.curveballcity.com/?p=263#comment-1421 Swisher may be fun to watch, but his career line of .251/.361/.464 is not really that impressive for a corner OF/1B (he's never slugged .500). Yes, he might get slightly better for a couple of years, but take a look at all his comparable players at Baseball-Reference.com: http://www.baseball-reference.com/s/swishni01.shtml Bubba Trammell? Phil Plantier? Jose Cruz, Jr.? Yikes. And then to get a lefty who led the minors in Ks last year at AA, plus another good pitching prospect and a young OF who could still develop into something? Sign me up. Swisher may be fun to watch, but his career line of .251/.361/.464 is not really that impressive for a corner OF/1B (he’s never slugged .500). Yes, he might get slightly better for a couple of years, but take a look at all his comparable players at Baseball-Reference.com:

http://www.baseball-reference.com/s/swishni01.shtml

Bubba Trammell? Phil Plantier? Jose Cruz, Jr.? Yikes. And then to get a lefty who led the minors in Ks last year at AA, plus another good pitching prospect and a young OF who could still develop into something? Sign me up.

]]> By: Greg http://www.curveballcity.com/?p=263&cpage=1#comment-1420 Greg Thu, 10 Jan 2008 20:20:06 +0000 http://www.curveballcity.com/?p=263#comment-1420 The Swisher trade makes no sense. I'm still trying to figure out the benefits of that one. Beane usually gets it right, so lets give it a while before we get all up in arms. The Swisher trade makes no sense. I’m still trying to figure out the benefits of that one. Beane usually gets it right, so lets give it a while before we get all up in arms.

]]> By: The Pittsburgh Pirates http://www.curveballcity.com/?p=263&cpage=1#comment-1419 The Pittsburgh Pirates Thu, 10 Jan 2008 20:17:32 +0000 http://www.curveballcity.com/?p=263#comment-1419 Quit your whining and always remember how good you have it. A GM with an actual plan and an eye for talent to boot. You have no idea what it is like to look the worst team in baseball in the face every year, and certainly not for fifteen straight years. Always remember the words of Andy Dufresne - "hope is a good thing, maybe the best thing, and no good thing ever dies." We lost hope roughly ten years ago... Quit your whining and always remember how good you have it. A GM with an actual plan and an eye for talent to boot. You have no idea what it is like to look the worst team in baseball in the face every year, and certainly not for fifteen straight years. Always remember the words of Andy Dufresne – “hope is a good thing, maybe the best thing, and no good thing ever dies.” We lost hope roughly ten years ago…

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