The Last Cut is the Hardest

Several MBL Veterans Left on the Outside Looking In

SAN FRANCISCO- The San Francisco Giants released veteran lefthander David Wells yesterday in favor of outfielders Matt Lawton and Brandon Watson. Wells, 32-23 with a 4.52 ERA in 82 starts for the Giants since 2002, however, is hardly the only MBL longtimer soliciting offers across the league over the next couple of weeks as many other notables are sitting by their phones this spring.

"I went to the local Gold's Gym and saw Al [Leiter] hanging by a treadmill," Wells said, surprisingly correctly identifying the piece of workout equipment. Indeed, Leiter, 42-45 with a 5.19 ERA over the same time period for the Toronto Blue Jays, was released earlier this year and is contemplating retirement.

Since the MBL reenacted a salary cap three years ago, the league gradually reduced the overall cap to this season's $23 million, catching many veterans in the snare. Although player movement itself is not unusual, what surprises some onlookers is the higher percentage of veterans with long tenure's on one team that have been released this season. In fact, the cap itself was responsible for Matt Lawton's availability, himself a casualty despite four seasons with the Mets in which he put up a combined .272-.372-.429, 57 HR, 216 RBI.

"The cap is really unfair to the vets," Wells said between tokes on his cigarette. "I mean, not a single team offered anything ... ANYTHING ... to the Giants before I was kicked to the curb. This collective bargaining agreement is unfair."

In addition to Leiter and now Wells, the following veterans with four consecutive seasons in the same clubhouse are sitting on their couches watching the NCAA tournament hoping for a call.

• Brian Anderson, 19-31, 5.56 with the Cardinals.
• Brett Boone, .287-.346-.487, 98 HR, 370 RBI with the Yankees.
• Carl Everett, .270-.332-.444, 39 HR, 155 RBI with the Red Sox.
• Juan Gonzalez, .292-.337-.502, 50 HR, 188 RBI with the Senators.
• Richard Hidalgo, .287-.349-.487, 57 HR, 227 RBI with the Astros.
• Damian Miller, .292-.347-.423, 21 HR, 99 RBI with Chicago-Minnesota, but released by Seattle after the Roger Clemens trade.
• Troy Percival, 2.90, 90 saves, for the Cardinals.
• Sidney Ponson, 22-31, 4.60 in 72 starts for the Diamondbacks.
• Sammy Sosa, .276-.363-.556, 170 HR, 432 RBI with the Indians.
• Woody Williams, 32-49, 5.21 in 110 starts for Cleveland.

With Dmitri Young and Matt Lawton being signed by the Devil Rays and Giants, respectively, is there hope for the others or have they made their last appearance in the Molson Baseball League? Of the above, only Leiter, Gonzalez, and potentially Sosa have an opportunity to be enshrined in the MBL Hall of Fame.

SIX SHOOTER - 6 Questions shot by The Pistol

SIX SHOOTER - 6 Questions Fired by The Pistol, is back this month and today's target is former Chicago Cubs owner and current brother Jim Spellos. Spellos the Younger left the Cubbies (now the Twins) late last year due to many time constraints in his professional and personal life. "The Cubster" joined the MBL with Spellos the Elder (seen here at the SF Giants Champiohsip Gala) in 1999, due to the latter's incestuous relationship with the Montgomery Clan of LV nee NYC.


What was your favorite gift your received for Chrtistmas?

Jim - The Book “The Game 7 I Should Never Have Lost” by Jack Buchanan. I hear it’s an easy read.

What will you miss about the MBL?
Jim - I’ve missed being a full time participant the past few years. It was a lot of fun when you & I joined, but I just don’t have the time to put into it and be fair to all of the owners anymore. Blame it on rock & roll…but I will offer the CD when it comes out to the league members at a special rate.

Excited to be covering the WBC for MLB.com?
Jim - Let’s see. Six days in Puerto Rico, splitting time between the baseball games & the beach. What’s not to love? Consider the fact that the last time I was in Puerto Rico for MLB.com I was covering the Expos, and that was way too much fun.

Can your favorite team, the REAL NY Mets make it to the 2006 WS?
Jim - Hope so, and they have to be one of the favorites. However, I think World Series expectations might be a bit too high for this year. A lot would have to come together quickly.

Eric Clapton or Jerry Garcia?
Jim - Well… Chateau Petrus or Rothchild? Van Gogh or Monet? Snickers or Pop Tarts? Some choices are just too tough to make.

It's game 7 – Any pitcher, any era. Who starts for you?
Jim - Sandy Koufax. Most dominant pitcher of his (albeit brief) era.


Want to be "shot" by The Pistol? Drop him a line......

Giants Begin Title Defense, split 6 with A's

Sushi. Salt air. Steroids. Bay Area baseball is back! The MBL Champion SF Giants open their 8th MBL season under the ownership of Greek Olive Tycoon Nick Foulpopups with a three game home-and-home series with their newly improved Easy Bay rivals the Oakland A’s. The Giants won the division by 20 games last year. Not so this year, evident by the 3-3 split by the Bay combatants in Series 1.

The G-Men have won two of the last three MBL crowns, and begin their 2006 defense by sending the Big Unit, Noah Lowry and Josh Towers to the mound for the trio of games in San Fran. David Wells, along with Johnson and Lowry, will serve nothing but southpaws whilst across the Bay Bridge. The Boys in Research think this is the best way to attack the A’s new look line-up.

At SF
Game 1 – SF 7 OAK 3
With Curt Schilling, now sadly a Minnesota twin, throwing out the first ball, the 2006 season began with a bang, as Luis Matos hit the first pitch from loser Johann Santana
(0-1) and SF never looked back, beating the A’s 7-3 on opening day.

Randy Johnson (1-0) easily out-dueled Santana, striking out 7 in 7 IP wile giving up only 1 ER on 6 hits and 2 BB. Newly aquired Aubrey Huff hit a pinch homer in his first SF at at bat and last year’s batting champ Mark Loretta added two hits with a dinger. Juan Pierre went 2 for 4, RS, SB in a losing effort.

Game 2 – OAK 8 SF 6
SF threw this game away (literally) and blew a great comeback. The G-Men spotted the A’s a 6-2 lead thru 5 ½ innings, courtesy of btb dingers by Eric Chavez and Bobby “why do they keep trading for other shortstops” Crosby. Giants battled to make at 6-all by the 9th, when close BJ Ryan took a perfect back to the box DP ball and plunked it in the Bay.
OAK’s Marcus Giles (3 for 4, 3 RS) and SF’s Ryan Howard (3 for 4, 3 RS, HR, were the hitting stars.

Game 3 – OAK 4 SF 0
A’s rookie Joe Blanton tossed a 4 hit shutout, and Oakland took the rubber game in
SF 4-0. Blanton frustrated the Giants, and was terrific though a bit wild, hitting two batters. None was more frustrated than SF’s Emile Brown, who when popped high on the shoulder in th 8th, charged the mound, and was wrestled to the ground. When order was restored, Brown was ejected and the Giants were dejected, dropping their 2nd straight game to their rivals.

at OAK
Game 4 – SF 7 OAK 3
Boomer lowered the boom on Oakland, scattering 8 hits while tossing a CG as David Wells and SF defeated the A’s 7-3 in Oakland’s home opener. Wells mound counterpart Nate Robertson was tossing up BP, allowing 11 runners with 2 WP’s in his 4.2 IP. 2005 MBL MVP Miguel Tejada went 3 for 4 and c Toby Hall was 2 for 4 with a 3 run HR.

Game 5 – SF 6 OAK 3 (15 inn.)
Game 5 almost became game 6 as our Bay buddies battled until the 15th inning, when Carlos Lee slammed a 2 run HR and the Giants outlasted Oakland 6-3. Each team used 7 pitchers, and SF even had p Noah Lowry pinch hit in the 13th. Eric Chavez had a horrific 0 for 7 with 4 K’s. This one kinda reminded me of the Foreman-Lyle heavyweight fight of 3 decades ago. Shit, I’m getting old!

Game 6 – OAK 3 SF 2
A good pitchers duel between Johan Santana and Noah Lowry, with rookie Rickie Weeks hitting a tie breaking 8th inning HR that was the difference in this one and Oakland a split six with the Champs. Hudson Street got his 2nd save of the series for the A’s.

Series Notes:
Runs - SF 28, OAK 24 (7 unearned)
SF bullpen gave up 1 run in 17.2 IP
OAK hitters fanned 56 times in 59 innings
OAK starters had 3 QS, SF had 4 (2 by Big Unit)

SF
Ryan Howard – 7 for 14, 2 HR,
Toby Hall – 7 for 20, 6 RBI
Pedro Feliz – 2 for 12, .481 OPS
Emil Brown – 5 for 24, 0 RBI

OAK
Brian Giles – 10 for 22, 8 RBI, 5 RS
Bobby Crosby - .471 OBP
Eric Chavez - 3 for 26, 11 K
Jermaine Dye – 3 for 25, 7 K

In Case You Missed It...

Observations from the League Office

The first week of the 2006 Molson Baseball League season featured several groundbreaking news stories. Here is a quick look at what happened.

• The Minnesota Twins returned to the MBL losing to the Mets at Shea Stadium, 6-0, on March 5th. Baseball returns to the Metrodome this week as the Yankees come to the Twin Cities.
• The Tampa Bay Devil Rays had a more successful debut, besting the Dodgers at the Tropicana Dome on opening day.
• Opening Day starter Roger Clemens threw a grand total of five pitches in his Seattle debut before landing on the 15-Day Disabled List. His replacement, rookie Felix Hernandez, won his first MBL start six days later, but also landed on the DL after the game.
• Atlanta's Zach Duke won his MBL debut over the San Diego Padres, 14-2, throwing eight strong innings. On the same day, Oakland rookie Joe Blanton shut out the San Francisco Giants for his first MBL win.
• The Yankees' Jose Contreras threw 141 pitches in 7.1 innings at Fenway Park on March 10th, dropping a decision to the Red Sox. Nationals manager Al Newman the next day channeled Frank Robinson, leaving Doug Davis on the bump for 155 tosses in a 6-1 win over Florida.
• The Seattle Mariners have a team ERA of 1.45 after sweeping the rebuilding Houston Astros this week. The Cleveland Indians are as a team hitting .342-.409-.551.

Let us hope that week two has as many interesting events.

Seattle Ready for Opening Day

Houston (AP)- The 2005 Seattle Mariners surprised everyone by battling through two seven-game playoff series last fall to make the first World Series appearance in franchise history, a heart-breaking seven-game loss to the San Francisco Giants. As the team prepares to open the 2006 campaign tomorrow here against division rival Houston, The Home Plate Press previews the opening-day squad.

Catchers
With the recent trade of Michael Barrett to Minnesota, Joe Mauer (D1-2005) becomes the principal backstop with Yorvit Torrealba (D6-2006), who was cut and then redrafted, offering periodic relief.

Infield
The 2006 infield hardly looks like the one that opened in San Diego last April. David Bell, Marcus Giles, and Angel Berroa have been released or traded with only Bell of the three staying with the team throughout 2005. Paul Konerko (D3-2004) returns at firstbase and will be joined by Jorge Cantu (D3-2005) on the right side of the infield, while Rafael Furcal (T-ATL 2005) will be joined by newcomer Joe Randa (D2-2006) on the left. Jose Lopez (ID-2005), Michael Cuddyer (D1-2003), and Edwin Encarnacion (D1-2006) will provide depth.

Outfield
The outfield has more offensive potential than 2005's edition with J.D. Drew (T-OAK 2005) available for a full season. Drew will be joined by holdovers Ryan Freel (W-2004), Jeremy Reed (ID-2005), Ken Griffey, Jr. (T-CWS 2004), and Joey Gathright (D4-2005), and draftee Ryan Langerhans (D3-2006). Torii Hunter, Eli Marrero, Wily Mo Pena, and Gary Matthews, Jr., will all be playing elsewhere in 2006.

Pitching
The Mariners received a late boost by acquiring Roger Clemens (T-MIN 2006) from the Twins to anchor the young rotation. Clemens will mentor Ben Sheets (D1-2002), Rich Harden (D1-2004), Josh Beckett (T-FLA 2002), and rookie Felix Hernandez (ID-2006). Odalis Perez (T-ATL 2004) will get some starts from the left side of the bump. In relief, Joe Nathan (D2-2004) returns as the primary closer, supported by returnees Mike Gonzalez (D2-2005), Aaron Fultz (W-2005), Bob Howry (D5-2005), and Ugueth Urbina (W-2005).