Why I'm Late Tonight

[cubfan33]

Yes, it's a bit late for getting this out. People have asked me why I put this out at night rather than first thing in the morning. The main reason is I am so not a morning person. If you look for me on Yahoo first thing in the morning, forget it. If you try to talk to me before my cup of coffee (from Freshcoffeenow.com) kicks in, forget it. I have a life sometimes even. Actually, I do it because its easier for me to collect the info I need in the afternoon and to catch injuries that happen during night games. I miss some, but I do catch some. Tonight, I watched "24" and I worked on a special report I'll have for you later this week on the effects of creatine abuse in baseball. Forget steroids - creatine may have near 100% penetration and may be costing your team more than you can imagine.

I'm trying something new tonight at the request of a couple readers. Each "paragraph" will start with a marker of three asterisks. (***) Also, player last names will be CAPITALIZED the first time they appear. I hope this helps.


*** UTK broke the Dmitri YOUNG news today that he would be activated. Some places questioned the Tigers in doing this, but Young went 1-3 with a homer, so that sounds pretty healthy to me.

*** As we speculated yesterday, Brad RADKE will miss one start. The Twins placed him on the DL and will use Tony FIORE in his stead. Due to off days, the Twins can go with four starters until Radke returns.

*** Edgar MARTINEZ may be a bit further back than we anticipated. While June 1 is a reasonable goal, the M's will play several interleague games in NL parks just after this date. Since there will be no DH, it wouldn't make much sense to activate Edgar at that point.

*** Shannon STEWART will be back for the Blue Jays when activated tomorrow. He will probably DH for a few games with Vernon WELLS staying in LF. Stewart and CRUZ are still the subject of myriad trade rumors, all involving the Yankees and usually involving Nick JOHNSON. Once Stewart proves himself healthy enough to play the field, expect the rumors to heat up.

*** Brandon INGE is disputing his placement on the DL. He claims that team doctors for the Rangers did not feel that his injury was severe and he claims he can make throws without pain. Inge also acknowledged that he hid the extent of his injury and would pop his shoulder back in when his manager wasn't looking. This should be interesting to watch.

*** Cliff FLOYD has a bruised knee that will sideline him for a few days, but will not lead to a DL stint. Kevin MILLAR may be rushed to replace Floyd. This is one of those injuries that kills you in a weekly move league.

*** Rehab assignments all around ... Rick ANKIEL will report to a Single A team within the next week. Matt MANTEI looked tentative in his first stint with El Paso (AA), but reported no pain the next day. Kyle FARNSWORTH pitched from a mound and should report to Iowa (AAA) within the next two weeks. Wade MILLER will start Thursday in New Orleans (AAA) and may only make one rehab start, depending on the result. Wilson ALVAREZ reported to extended spring training and should return to the Devil Rays in time to lose some more games around June 1.

*** Wiki GONZALEZ is ready to return to the Pads lineup and should by Thursday. The Pads have some roster decisions to make, but are taking their time and playing a bit short-handed while they see how Sean BURROUGHS and Phil NEVIN heal up. Both could avoid the DL. There's no team in baseball besides the Reds with as much potential as the Padres, in my opinion.

*** The Blue Jays have played well under my expectations, but help is on the way. Esteban LOIAZA looked good in his return, while Mike SIROTKA, Cris CARPENTER, and Steve PARRIS are closing in on a return. While we still hear that Mike Sirotka has more problems in that shoulder, it should be interesting to see if the Blue Jays can play better and make some deals that will help them in the future.

*** Big Head Benny AGBAYANI goes on the DL and Jack Cust is not called up. I'm beginning to lose faith in Dan O'Dowd. According to Baseball America's latest stats, Cust is hitting 308/481/667 in Colorado Springs (AAA). I don't care if he doesn't wear a glove, let alone use it. That's a bat I'd want in my lineup.

*** I've mentioned my respect for Lee Sinins and his Sabremetric Baseball Encyclopedia before. When I pay thirty bucks for something, I expect a lot. With the SBE (www.baseball-encyclopedia.com) I got all that and more. Please, don't just take my word for it. During his chat today on a sports web site that isn't Foxsports.com, Bill James said the following:

Chris (Cleveland): I've really enjoyed the Historical Abstract and Win Shares. One of the main problems I see with good research going forward in baseball, is that many of us don't have access to complete and accurate databases -- at least not without either money or a great deal of work. Any chance this is something you would invest some time in producing?

Bill James: (4:15 PM ET ) Yeah, its kind of ironic to see statistics guys getting behind the curve in this area, given modern computers. I don't have any immediate plans. There is a very good product called the Sabermetric Encyclopedia, from a man named Lee Sinins. . .I have never met Mr. Sinins, but enjoy his product.

*** I'll see everyone over on Netshrine.com later, right?