Dream Job: Acquired!

I've been sitting on some pretty big news for a while now. About two weeks ago, I went to Secaucus, New Jersey for a job interview at MLB Network - and I was offered the job!

I couldn't be more excited to start - this is everything I worked for in graduate school, and everyone I met when I was down there as extremely friendly and welcoming.

Perhaps the most exciting part of the whole process (aside from the whole "gainful employment" thing), was that the interview was conducted in Chris Rose and Kevin Millar's office. Since the two of them often work from home, it was vacant for the day, and I sat in Kevin Millar's chair, trying to act like it was no big deal.

I discovered while covering the Nationals this summer that the awe of professional athletes wears off very quickly when you see them every day, but I'm still pretty pumped to get to work in the same building as Sean Casey, Mike Lowell, John Smoltz, Millar, and even old friend Heidi Watney, among others.

I'll be working behind the scenes (and that's how I prefer it), mostly cutting video teases to start. Tune in if you can, I'll be starting the second week in December!

FAQ: The First Year Player Draft

Since there was no Red Sox game last night, I decided to watch the first round of the MLB First Year Player Draft on MLBNetwork until the Bruins played.  My mom, a casual fan, was watching with me, and had a lot of questions about the process.  If she had questions, I'm willing to bet some of YOU have questions as well:

• How do they decide who picks first?
• Generally, the teams pick in reverse order of the final standings from the previous year.

• But they didn''t pick in exact reverse order - what's up with that?
• Here's where it gets a little more complicated.  When teams sign top-ranked free agents, they have to sacrifice some of their draft picks.  Elias Sports Bureau ranks players by position every year, and the top 20 percent are considered Type A, while the players lower than 20% but in the top 40% are Type B.  Teams signing Type A free agents must surrender their first round draft pick to the team the FA is leaving, and that team will also receive a pick in the supplemental first round.  Teams that lose a Type B free agent only get a supplemental pick.

• That's a little confusing; can you explain it in terms of the Red Sox?
• Sure!  This year, the Red Sox had to give up their own first round pick to the Tampa Bay Rays, because they signed Type A free agent Carl Crawford.  However, they received first round picks from the Detroit Tigers for Type A free agent Victor Martinez, and from the Texas Rangers for Type A free agent Adrian Beltre.

• Who gets drafted?
• The pool of players for the MLB draft is quite large.  Players must be from the US or Canada, and must be high school graduates.  Any high school graduate who has NOT attended college, players attending a four-year college who have finished their junior or senior years, and any player attending a community or junior college is eligible to be drafted by any team.

• How many rounds are there?
• As many as 50.  A club can choose to "pass" it's pick at any point, after which they may make no more selections in that year's draft.

• Why so many rounds? The NBA only has two!
• Unlike the other major sports in the US, baseball draft picks are almost never expected to make a major impact at the major league level right away.  There are 4 levels of minor leagues that players can progress through, and each of those levels must be able to field a full team.  Thus, players taken in the later rounds are almost never expected to make it to the majors, but are essentially used to fill the rosters of the minor leagues.  Of course, now and then a pick from the lower rounds will surprise everyone.

• Do most players take high school players? College players? Junior college players?
• I'm sure many of you are familiar with the bestselling book Moneyball, which made the argument that college players are nearly always the better investment, since they play against a known level of competition, and so their stats might actually mean something.  However, teams often pick high school phenoms, with the understanding that it will take a large signing bonus to lure them away from the college they might have committed to.

That's all my mom asked me, but I'm happy to answer anything else you guys might want to know.  Leave any further questions in the comments section!

Josh Beckett is the key to 2011

I'm finally home for break, and I have to say that the thing I consistently look forward to about getting out of Hartford is renewed access to MLB Network. I've been watching it whenever I can commandeer the remote (pretty easy to do now that my older sister has her own house), and last night on Hot Stove, the analysts were asked to rank their top five teams of 2011, as they were constructed at airtime. That means no assuming the Yankees will flex their financial muscle, and no calculating the Rangers chances if Vlad Guerrero is back - the analysts agreed that both scenarios are all but certain.

However, of the three personalities asked to rank their five, all three had the Red Sox as the best American League team (one ranked the Sox first overall, with the Phillies second, while the other two ranked Philly first and Boston second). It's easy to understand Philadelphia's appeal: they have four legitimate aces in their rotation. Boston, on the other hand, has made a few MAJOR moves to add to an already formidable roster.

However, all three analysts - and the host - agreed that there was one thing that the Red Sox absolutely needed if they wanted to live up to their potential, and that was a rebounding Josh Beckett.

I'll spare you the ugly details, but if you're any kind of red Sox fan, you already know how bad Beckett's 2010 went: when he wasn't on the disabled list, he was floundering horribly. This was even more disappointing than it would normally be, because the fiery Texan had signed a very lucrative extension in the spring, and then immediately went out and sucked all season.

Next year, Bill James expects Beckett to make 26 starts (just five more than last year), with a 10-9 record and a 3.86 ERA. No offense to James or Becks, but we need better than that, and I think we can reasonably expect better. First of all, wins are dependent on the team's offense at least as much as they are dependent on the actual pitching performance, and the 2011 Red Sox should be an offensive force.

Also, Josh Beckett is a very proud man. I'm certain that he's all but ashamed of his fail-tastic performance last year, and he's apt to come out swinging.

If Josh can figure out his life and make this work, 2011 should be one for the ages.

Stop teasing me, Connecticut!

Today, it was fifty degrees and pouring rain in Hartford. There's no snow to be found; indeed, there's even green grass. All these things conspire to make me feel like baseball is closer than it truly is, and I'm not a fan.

As of tonight, there are twenty-three days until Spring Training. There are more than two months left until Opening Day [Night?] on April 4th.

I don't know about you guys, but as much as I try to distract myself with basketball, football, and hockey, the reality is that I spend the entire winter counting down the hours until I get to see baseball again. Winter break is a temporary respite, as I can take solace in the MLB Network, but all too soon I have to return to Trinity College and the realm of basic cable.


I got some good baseball books and movies for Christmas, and I received some Red Sox themed games for my birthday, but there's nothing like the real thing. I even stooped to the level of watching Sportscenter's "All Favre, All the Time" coverage for half an hour just to hear the thirty second blurb about Johnny Damon (but that's another post).

The moral of the story? It was rainy and miserable all day, Hartford is trying to trick me, and there's no baseball in sight, so if any of you have any quick cures for the offseason blues, please let me know!

Remember When...

Remember when...
...Pedro was traded to Boston from Montreal in 1997? I'll be honest here: I don't (give me a break, I was seven). Did anyone guess then what an impact the diminutive pitcher would have on this franchise? This was one of the best deals of the Duquette era (along with DLowe and Tek for Heathcliff Slocumb; Manny Ramirez; and Timmy Wakefield), as Pedro enjoyed amazing success in Boston. (Nice tie, Duke.)

...the 1999 All Star Game was at Fenway. So much awesome, including Teddy Ballgame throwing out the first pitch, and Derek Jeter serving as Nomar's backup... Pedro started the night off in style, striking out Barry Larkin, Larry Walker, and Sammy Sosa in the first, and mowing down Mark McGuire and Jeff Bagwell (on a strikeout/throwout DP) in the second. Martinez was awarded the AS-MVP Award for his efforts.

...later that year, Pedro took home his second Cy Young Award (first with Montreal in 1997), as well as the AL's Triple Crown. Martinez was also named The Sporting News AL Pitcher of the year. According to MLBNetwork, Pedro Martinez had the most dominating single-season pitching performance in MLB history that year, recording a 23-4 record, with a 2.07 ERA, and a league leading 313 strikeouts.

...#45 helped the 2004 Red Sox break an 86 year drought for the fans of New England. Pedro remembers, according to the Boston Globe:

"I'm pretty sure that every Boston fan out there can feel proud that I'm going to try and beat the Yankees and I'm going to give just the same effort I always did for them. They're special fans and they will always have my respect."

He really gets it:

"I know they don't like the Yankees to win, not even in Nintendo games."

Even though he doesn't fit the criteria for having his number retired (10+ years with the Sox, Hall of Famer, end career here), I expect to see 45 up on that right field wall when Pedro finally hangs up his spikes. He spent the most dominating years of his career here, and they were a joy to watch. He provided us with endless entertainment on and off the diamond ("Wake up the damn Bambino and have me face him... Maybe I'll drill him in the ass.").

So here's to you, Pedro: once again, New England will hang on your every pitch... and you know what? It feels damned good.

Five Minute Musings

(1) It was almost warm enough today in Hartford [45 degrees!] for me to believe that the snow will eventually melt, spring will come, and there will be baseball in Boston again.  Is it bad that this thought made me feel almost as optimistic as I did during the inauguration?  Not in the same way, but I am SO over this whole "offseason" thing.  Especially on years like this one when the so-called "Hot Stove" is colder than January in Maine [from experience, that's freezing, literally... and to add to the metaphor, Maine in January is boring, too. But I digress...].

(2)  Rocco Baldelli is a class act, huh?  I mean, can you imagine any other player making a gesture like that?  Especially since the fans in Tampa Bay have been, shall we say, unenthusiastic [and that's charitable].  I can't wait to see him play up close next year: here's hoping his illness is the most minor of inconveniences for him.

(3)  I think I'm suffering withdrawal from the MLB Network.  Apparently, Trinity College only gets the most basic of cable packages, which I guess is understandable, but after spending my Winter Break being spoiled by 24/7 baseball coverage, I feel like there's a tangible void in my life without it.  Studying the Federalist Papers just can't fill the emptiness.

(4) I'm a big fan of the Sox Front Office using the $20 million they saved on Manny/Marky Mark to sign Paps, Youk, and Pedroia, especially the latter two.  I expect you'll get tired of hearing it, but I hold the right side of the Sox infield in the highest esteem: what's not to like?  And there's still payroll left to sign Jason Varitek, should he decide to swallow his pride and put his money where his mouth is [so to speak], with all that "loyalty" talk .

(5) I got Watching Baseball Smarter by Zack Hample for Christmas, and in skimming through it, have to admit that it contains more insight than I initially expected.  Hample does a good job of making the book simple enough for the most casual fan, and still informative and entertaining enough to hold the attention of a diehard.  I definitely recommend it.