Archive for May, 2006

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Tuesday: 05.2.2006

Trade Redux: 2002

On June 26, 2002, the Montreal Expos were 41-36 and seven games behind the Atlanta Braves for the lead in the National League East.  They were the surprise team of the season thus far led by Vladimir Guerrero.  The team had a host of young starters including Tony Armas Jr. (24), Tomo Ohka (26), and Javier Vazquez (26).  A 26-year old by the name of Carl Pavano was struggling to round out the rotation and the team knew that if they were to catch the Braves, they would need to solidify the rotation.  Enter the Cleveland Indians.  Armed (pun-intended) with one of the best pitchers in all of baseball at the time, they dangled Bartolo Colon in front of the Expos.

Colon, 27 years old at the time, was 10-4 with a 2.55 earned run average in 116.1 innings pitched.  He had 41.2 VORP (Value Over Replacement Player) according to Baseball Prospectus.  I cannot tell where that ranked at the time, though I presume top five at worst, but it was good enough for 16th in the American League for the entire season of 2002.  The Indians sent the right-hander with Tim Drew to the Expos for uber-prospect Brandon Phillips, Cliff Lee, Grady Sizemore, and Lee Stevens.  Phillips was rated the #1 prospect in the Montreal Expos system at the beginning of 2002 according to Baseball America.  Sizemore ranked third and Lee just missed the Top 10 coming in at 11th.  Drew was chip-in with Colon, but did rate 12th in the Indians minor leagues. 

At the time, the key pieces were obviously Colon and Phillips, and little was known of the other parts outside of veteran Stevens.  Fast forward to 2006 and we have a much different story.  How did things work out for both teams in the 2002 summer deal?

Bartolo Colon
Colon went over to Montreal and nearly matched his early season success from Cleveland.  He posted a record of 10-4 as well as doubling his complete games total to eight in 117 innings pitched.  He 22.9 VORP with the Expos good enough for 31st overall amongst starters with 115 or more innings pitched in the National League.  The Expos eventually faded, despite this and another deal that acquired Cliff Floyd, in their pursuit of the Atlanta Braves.  They finished 19 games back in 2nd place.  Colon was dealt in that offseason to the Chicago White Sox for Rocky Biddle, Orlando Hernandez, and Jeff Liefer. 

Cliff Lee
Lee pitched in three levels with the Indians in that second part of the 2002 including a cup of coffee with the big league team.  All told, including his time with Montreal's AA affiliate in Harrisburg, Lee struck out 159 batters in 156 innings.  The 24-year old's control wasn't excellent with 63 walks, but he showed promise.  His performance was good enough to merit the #3 ranking for the Indians in the 2003 minor league rankings.  In 2003, he pitched just under 80 innings (79.2) in three different levels and while he was able to nearly sustain his strikeout rates dropping from 9.15 to 8.81 per nine, his already poor walk rate shot up from 3.63 to 4.29 per nine innings.  In June, he was called up to the Indians and has been there since.  He pitched nine games with the big-league club and brought his walk rate back down allowing 3.45 per nine, but also dropping his strikeout rate to 7.60 per nine innings.  After an up-and-down 2004, Lee used last season to establish himself as one of the premier lefties in the American League.  He traded in overwhelming strikeout numbers for more control posting a 2.32 walks per nine rate, the lowest in any of his career stops. 

Year Team Name League Age Org. Level W L ERA G GS IP H R ER HR BB SO WHIP BB/9 K/9
2002 Akron East 24 Cle AA 2 1 5.40 3 3 16.67 11 11 10 1 10 18 1.26 5.40 9.72
2002 Harrisburg East 24 Mtl AA 7 2 3.23 15 15 86.33 61 31 31 12 23 105 0.97 2.40 10.95
2002 Buffalo IL 24 Cle AAA 3 2 3.77 8 8 43 36 18 18 7 22 30 1.35 4.60 6.28
2002 Cleveland Indians MLB 24 Cle MLB 0 1 1.74 2 2 10.33 6 2 2 0 8 6 1.35 6.97 5.23
2002 TOTAL         12 6 3.51 28 28 156.33 114 62 61 20 63 159 1.13 3.63 9.15
2003 Kinston Caro 25 Cle A+ 0 0 0.00 1 1 4.33 0 1 0 0 3 4 0.69 6.24 8.31
2003 Akron East 25 Cle AA 1 1 1.50 2 2 12 7 2 2 1 4 13 0.92 3.00 9.75
2003 Buffalo IL 25 Cle AAA 6 1 3.27 11 11 63.33 62 24 23 4 31 61 1.47 4.41 8.67
2003 Cleveland Indians MLB 25 Cle MLB 3 3 3.61 9 9 52.1 41 28 21 7 20 44 1.17 3.45 7.60
2003 TOTAL         10 5 3.14 23 23 131.76 110 55 46 12 58 122 1.28 3.96 8.33
2004 Cleveland Indians MLB 26 Cle MLB 14 8 5.43 33 33 179 188 113 108 30 81 161 1.50 4.07 8.09
2005 Cleveland Indians MLB 27 Cle MLB 18 5 3.79 32 32 202 194 91 85 22 52 143 1.22 2.32 6.37

 

Brandon Phillips
The 2003 season marked the second time that Phillips would head his team's list of minor league prospects, taking the number one spot with the Indians as well.  That was as bright as star would shine with the Indians organization.  He posted a .300/.336/.493 line in 136 games in 2002, but then followed it up with an abysmal .198/.261/.302 line in 146 games between AAA and the majors in 2003.  He spent all but six of his 146 games in 2004 with the AAA team for the Indians and seemed to find himself once again.  Phillips feel off of the top 10 list for Indians prospects at the start of 2004, but had a .291/.331/.410 line and slowly started to once again gain some believers.  It was a short-lived rejuvenation.  Phillips was again sank into mediocrity in 2005 hitting .256/.326/.409 in 112 games with AAA Buffalo last year.  The bandwagon was almost entirely evacuated save for one Wayne Krivsky.  Krivsky, the new general manager for the Cincinnati Reds, acquired Phillips for a PTBNL and some cash.  For now, Phillips's career has experienced a much-needed resuscitation with the Reds.  He has hit .343/.375/.567 with 9.3 VORP in 72 plate appearances.  He certainly didn't deliver the dividends the Indians expected when they dealt Colon that summer.

Year Team Name League Age Org. Level G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS
1999 GCL Expos GCL 18 Mtl Rk 47 169 23 49 11 3 1 21 12 3 15 35 0.290 0.352 0.408 760
2000 Cape Fear SAL 19 Mtl A 126 484 74 117 17 8 11 72 23 8 38 97 0.242 0.306 0.378 684
2001 Jupiter FSL 20 Mtl A+ 55 194 36 55 12 2 4 23 17 3 38 45 0.284 0.404 0.428 832
2001 Harrisburg East 20 Mtl AA 67 265 35 79 19 0 7 36 13 6 12 42 0.298 0.333 0.449 782
2002 Buffalo IL 21 Cle AAA 55 223 30 63 14 0 8 27 8 2 14 39 0.283 0.321 0.453 774
2002 Ottawa IL 21 Mtl AAA 10 35 1 9 4 0 1 5 0 0 2 6 0.257 0.297 0.457 754
2002 Cleveland Indians MLB 21 Cle MLB 11 31 5 8 3 1 0 4 0 0 3 6 0.258 0.343 0.419 762
2002 TOTAL   21     143 554 71 159 40 1 16 72 21 8 31 93 0.287 0.325 0.475 830
2003 Buffalo IL 22 Cle AAA 43 154 14 27 7 0 3 13 7 3 12 22 0.175 0.247 0.279 526
2003 Cleveland Indians MLB 22 Cle MLB 112 370 36 77 18 1 6 33 4 5 14 77 0.208 0.242 0.311 553
2003 TOTAL   22     155 524 50 104 25 1 9 46 11 8 26 99 0.198 0.256 0.302 763
2004 Buffalo IL 23 Cle AAA 140 551 88 163 34 4 8 50 14 11 44 56 0.296 0.353 0.416 769
2004 Cleveland Indians MLB 23 Cle MLB 6 22 1 4 2 0 0 1 0 2 2 5 0.182 0.250 0.273 523
2004 TOTAL   23     146 573 89 167 36 4 8 51 14 13 46 61 0.291 0.331 0.410 788
2005 Buffalo IL 24 Cle AAA 112 465 79 119 24 1 15 46 7 5 39 90 0.256 0.326 0.409 735
2005 Cleveland Indians MLB 24 Cle MLB 6 9 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0.000 0.000 0.000 0
2005 TOTAL   24     118 474 80 119 24 1 15 46 7 5 39 94 0.251 0.315 0.401 870

 

Grady Sizemore
Though hardly a throw-in, Sizemore, as I mentioned, didn't come over with nearly as much acclaim as Phillips.  He hit the majors at age 18 and immediately made a splash in rookie league with a .293/.380/.376 line and 16 stolen bases in 55 games.  That was good enough to give him #6 spot in Montreal's 2001 rankings.  What was true then in true now.  His weaknesses, as noted by Baseball America's Michael Levesque, were: "Sizemore has average arm strength and still displays some stiffness in his throwing stroke because of his football background. Montreal officials believe it will smooth out with time. He has trouble catching up to anything up in the strike zone."  In 2001, he balanced out his 92 strikeouts with 81 walks, excellent for a 19-year old.  He put up .268/.383/.335 totals in A-ball.  That performance, as I noted earlier, was good enough for 3rd overall in the Expos organization.  He played in High-A ball for both the Expos and then the Indians and was able to once limit the damage of his strikeouts with a 1.03 K:BB ratio.  Sizemore started 2003 as the 7th rated prospect in Cleveland's farm system, but he was the third ranked prospect from the Colon trade behind Lee and Phillips.  That was the first season that Sizemore started to exhibit some power with 50 of his 151 hits going for extra bases including 13 home runs.  He went .304/.373/.480 in AA that season.  That gave him the top spot in the Indians system to start 2004 and he delivered.  In 102 AAA games, Sizemore posted a .288/.361/.440 line including 40 extra base hits.  That earned him a 43-game stint with the big league where he scuffled a little bit, but still went .246/.333/.406.  From there, Sizemore enjoyed last year's breakout season going 20/20 with 22 home runs and stolen bases.  He hit .289/.348/.484, but did strikeout 132 times with only 52 walks.  He is off to fine start this season, but is averaging over a strikeout per game with 27 in 26 games. 

Year Team Name League Age Org. Level G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS
2000 GCL Expos GCL 18 Mtl Rk 55 205 31 60 8 3 1 14 16 2 23 24 0.293 0.380 0.376 756
2001 Clinton Midw 19 Mtl A 123 451 64 121 16 4 2 61 32 11 81 92 0.268 0.383 0.335 718
2002 Brevard County FSL 20 Mtl A+ 75 256 37 66 15 4 0 26 9 9 36 41 0.258 0.351 0.348 699
2002 Kinston Caro 20 Cle A+ 47 172 31 59 9 3 3 20 14 7 33 30 0.343 0.451 0.483 934
2002 TOTAL         300 428 68 125 24 7 3 46 23 16 69 71 0.292 0.358 0.402 760
2003 Akron East 21 Cle AA 128 496 96 151 26 11 13 78 10 9 46 73 0.304 0.373 0.480 853
2004 Buffalo IL 22 Cle AAA 102 423 75 122 24 8 8 51 16 10 42 72 0.288 0.361 0.440 801
2004 Cleveland Indians MLB 22 Cle MLB 43 138 15 34 6 2 4 24 2 0 14 34 0.246 0.333 0.406 739
2004 TOTAL         145 561 90 156 30 10 12 75 18 10 56 106 0.278 0.336 0.431 767
2005 Cleveland Indians MLB 23 Cle MLB 158 640 111 185 37 11 22 81 22 10 52 132 0.289 0.348 0.484 832

It is interesting to go back and see how things have shaken out in a big-time deal. Obviously, the Indians got the better of it long-term, but the Expos knew they were sacrificing some future earnings for immediate gains. The odd part is the significant gains for the Indians came from the secondary sources of the trade while Phillips fizzled out with the Indians. It also goes to show you how uncertain the art of prospecting can be. Sizemore and Lee weren’t spares by any means, but no one would’ve forecasted their futures to be brighter than Phillips’s and now both sit on the cusp of stardom. This is one of several trade reviews I have planned for the site. I think it is both fun and interesting to look back and gauge how things turned out against the perception of the trade at the time it was made.

References:
Baseball America
Baseball Cube
Baseball Prospectus
Retrosheet

Posted in Data & News | 1 Comment »

Monday: 05.1.2006

Month in Review

The following is my weekly column found also at Sportsblurb.com

American League East:
New York Yankees (13-10): The Yankees are only on pace for 864 runs scored after the first month of this season. However, they find themselves in first place despite three starters carrying earned run averages over 4.50. Most impressive is the 2.64 collective earned run average of the bullpen in 64 and two-thirds innings.
Player of the Month: Mike Mussina
Dud of the Month: Mariano Rivera

Boston Red Sox (14-11): Posting the record they have despite allowing more runs than they have scored (127 to 117) is a surprise. Jon Papelbon has been a smashing success and allowed Keith Foulke (0.76 WHIP) to settle into a role where he doesn’t cost the team an exorbitant amount of games. Curt Schilling has returned to form, but Matt Clement is still brutal. No wonder they have offered Roger Clemens the world to come to Boston.
Player of the Month: Mike Lowell
Dud of the Month: Mark Loretta

Toronto Blue Jays (12-11): Hitting the ball hasn’t been a problem with the addition of Troy Glaus and Vernon Wells’ emergence from his April funk (sub-.650 career OPS). Unfortunately, the staff has allowed similar levels of hitting to the other team on a regular basis. A.J. Burnett has, predictably, been a colossal bust and only Roy Halladay and Gustavo Chacin are consistently making starts.
Player of the Month: Wells
Dud of the Month: Burnett

Baltimore Orioles (13-13): The Orioles have to be pleased with a .500 record after one month given their pitching staff woes. Inconsistent doesn’t begin to describe the talented Daniel Cabrera, Bruce Chen and Rodrigo Lopez look awful on the mound, leaving Erik Bedard and Kris Benson as the only worthwhile starters. Chris Ray has been excellent in filling the B.J. Ryan void at closer. The team closed out the month with three straight series losses and now had to put Brian Roberts on the disabled list with a groin injury.
Player of the Month: Miguel Tejada
Dud of the Month: Chen

Tampa Bay Devil Rays (11-14): A familiar position for the team, but they are only three games out. I don’t mean to imply they can contend, but all the new-season hope hasn’t faded for them yet. The pitching remains awful in Tampa Bay. Scott Kazmir is the obvious focal point to build around, but still lacks a great deal of control. Every other bit of the staff is garbage. Jonny Gomes has picked up the slack in a big way for Aubrey Huff and Julio Lugo, but he hasn’t had enough help and now Jorge Cantu takes his .814 OPS to the disabled list.
Player of the Month: Gomes
Dud of the Month: Travis Lee

American League Central:
Chicago White Sox (17-7): The World Champions have revamped their approach to offense and now muscle the way back to home plate with 33 home runs. Much of that has to do with the arrival of the rejuvenated Jim Thome. He has sparked this offense to excellence. If it weren’t for this newfound offense, the Sox might not be doing as well considering two-fifths of the rotation has posted a 6.52 earned run average. It appears as though Jon Garland’s contract with the devil has been non-tendered and he’s been designated for assignment.
Player of the Month: Jose Contreras
Dud of the Month: Scott Podsednik

Detroit Tigers (16-9): With all the talk surrounding the team’s home run surge, specifically focused on Chris Shelton, the unbelievable start by the pitching staff gets lost in the shuffle. The staff leads baseball in earned run average, OPS-against, batting average-against, and WHIP. Their five shutouts are also a league best. Powered by a 33-1 three-game thrashing of the Minnesota Twins, the team leads baseball in home runs with 38 and the American League in total bases with 414.
Player of the Month: Shelton, the pitching rotation
Dud of the Month: Placido Polanco (despite yesterday’s defensive gem)

Cleveland Indians (13-12): Who knows how high this team’s earned run average (5.52) would be if it weren’t for Cliff Lee and Jason Johnson? The two have been the only stabling factors in the entire staff. The team will welcome back C.C. Sabathia, who went down just three innings into the season, this week. Travis Hafner and Victor Martinez lead an explosive offense, but the top of the order needs to stop striking out. Grady Sizemore, Jason Michaels, and Jhonny Peralta have combined for 73 whiffs so far.
Player of the Month: Martinez
Dud of the Month: Paul Byrd

Minnesota Twins (9-15): They should thank the Royals for existing and saving them from the depths of the AL Central basement. This team has so many problems linked to hitting, pitching, and defense that it’s tough to know where to start the healing process. The best place to start would be with a youth movement including Jason Bartlett, Jason Kubel, and Francisco Liriano.
Player of the Month: Luis Castillo
Dud of the Month: Kyle Lohse, Brad Radke, and Carlos Silva

Kansas City Royals (5-17): No real surprises here and many projected the Royals to be one of the worst teams in all of baseball. The best part of this team, closer Ambiorix Burgos, is hardly ever used because they are rarely in a position to win. Mark Grudzielanek is the only regular hitting above .266.
Player of the Month: Shane Costa
Dud of the Month: The team.

American League West:
Texas Rangers (13-12): One of the bigger surprises, not so much because they are doing well, but because they lead their division. The team has continued their trend of hitting, but has sprinkled in some worthwhile pitching. The rotation has been able to keep them in some games, but the bullpen is carrying a 5.01 earned run average. Without a great improvement there, they won’t be able to contend for too long.
Player of the Month: Kevin Mench
Dud of the Month: Francisco Cordero

Oakland Athletics (12-12): The A’s are up to their old tricks of starting off the season poorly. At 12-12, they are right where they were last year heading into May. The strength of the team, starting pitching, has struggled out of the gate as no starter has an earned run average below 4.00. The hitting remains a problem despite the uncharacteristically hot start from third baseman Eric Chavez. We’ve learned in the past not to judge the A’s on April.
Player of the Month: Chavez
Dud of the Month: Huston Street

Los Angeles Angels (12-13): The bulk of the Angels’ struggles center around the team’s .305 on-base percentage. Garret Anderson and Vladimir Guerrero have powered the offense, but the team has a league-worst 47 walks. John Lackey and Kelvim Escobar have led the staff, but now Escobar finds himself in a familiar state… hurt.
Player of the Month: Scot Shields
Dud of the Month: Jeff Weaver

Seattle Mariners (11-15): Four of the five starting pitchers carry earned run averages under 5.00. The only one? Felix Hernandez with a 5.06. He is fifth in the American League in strikeouts, but he hasn’t been able to keep guys off base (1.61 WHIP). Offensively, Adrian Beltre has been a huge disappointment… AGAIN! He does have seven stolen bases, but he’s hitting .189.
Player of the Month: Jarrod Washburn
Dud of the Month: Beltre

National League East:
New York Mets (16-8): Sadly, both Steve Trachsel and Victor Zambrano remain in the rotation ahead of Aaron Heilman. Despite that, the Mets have jumped out to a good start powered by their pitching. Jorge Julio has been brutal out of the pen, too, but picked up nicely by both Duaner Sanchez and Billy Wagner. David Wright is off to a great start at the dish, but has struggled mightily in the field.
Player of the Month: Sanchez
Dud of the Month: Cliff Floyd

Atlanta Braves (10-14): It has only been a month, but the streak is over. This team simply doesn’t have what it takes to grab another NL East crown. They can’t hit and beyond Johns Smoltz and Thomson, they can’t pitch much. On the bright side, Andruw Jones is on pace for another big home run season (48).
Player of the Month: Ryan Langerhans
Dud of the Month: Jeff Francoeur

Philadelphia Phillies (10-14): Another underachieving start for the Phillies sunk by an abysmal rotation outside of Brett Myers. The middle of their lineup has been excellent, but they’ve struggled to string any wins together. Another down month could seriously hamper their chances of contending with the Mets.
Player of the Month: Pat Burrell
Dud of the Month: Ryan Madson

Washington Nationals (8-17): With a 1-7 home record, it’s no wonder the Nats have struggled so much during the season’s first month. Nick Johnson is getting on almost 50% of the time (.455) and newcomer Alfonso Soriano has been excellent, but several others in the lineup have scuffled while the pitching staff has been inconsistent. Now, ace John Patterson is on the disabled list leaving Tony Armas as the most reliable arm. Given his injury woes, that doesn’t bode well.
Player of the Month: Johnson
Dud of the Month: Jose Guillen

Florida Marlins (6-16): This young team is playing exactly to expectations… poorly. With a team salary of about $18 dollars, any win is gravy for this team. The offense sports just five regulars, one of whom is hitting .192 (Mike Jacobs), but the pitching has been solid (team ERA of 4.39). This is still a team that is destined to lose over 100 games.
Player of the Month: Hanley Ramirez
Dud of the Month: Jacobs

National League Central:
Cincinnati Reds (17-8): Landing Bronson Arroyo for Wily Mo Pena has been quite fruitful for the Reds to this point. Arroyo has been excellent leading a pitching staff not expected to do much coming into the season. Brandon Claussen and Eric Milton have continued to pitch poorly, but Arroyo has paired with Aaron Harang for a worthwhile 1-2 punch. The offense remains potent and Edwin Encarnacion and Brandon Phillips have made fans forget that Ken Griffey Jr. is once again back on the disabled list.
Player of the Month: Arroyo
Dud of the Month: Javier Valentin

St. Louis Cardinals (17-8): Everyone knows how amazing Albert Pujols’ April was, but the team as a whole certainly hasn’t hit like they are known to. Two regular hitters have posted OPS under .580 (Encarnacion and Molina). Scott Rolen has missed time and Jim Edmonds has had his problems at the plate with 24 strikeouts. Questions from the staff circle around Jason Isringhausen (and his 6.00 earned run average) rather than Sidney Ponson, surprisingly enough. Chris Carpenter is putting together another Cy Young season thus far.
Player of the Month: Pujols
Dud of the Month: Molina

Houston Astros (16-8): Granted the team has been a beneficiary of a light schedule; any headway the team can make as they await a Roger Clemens decision is great, especially considering their start from last year. Four starters have kept earned run averages below 3.00 including Taylor Buchholz’s 2.05. The offense has been able to pick up Preston Wilson and account for his 26 strikeouts with stepping up their performances.
Player of the Month: Lance Berkman, Buchholz
Dud of the Month: Andy Pettitte

Chicago Cubs (13-10): Everything the Cubs have done, good or bad, is overshadowed by the devastating loss of Derrek Lee. He joins Mark Prior and Kerry Wood on the disabled list. With him out, Juan Pierre and Aramis Ramirez need to step up immediately before the Central division laps the Cubs. Greg Maddux is doing his part to keep the team in contention in the interim.
Player of the Month: Maddux
Dud of the Month: Ramirez

Milwaukee Brewers (14-11): Everyone’s favorite as surprise team of the season, the Brewers have been solid, if unspectacular. Prince Fielder has arrived and Carlos Lee has really put it all together as the two drive that lineup. The rotation, outside of Chris Capuano, has been sporadic to downright bad (Doug Davis). Derrick Turnbow has come out and shown that last year was no fluke.
Player of the Month: Turnbow
Dud of the Month: Davis

Pittsburgh Pirates (7-19): Despite how bright the future looks with youngsters Zach Duke, Paul Maholm, and Ian Snell, when they are all experiencing growing pains in the same lineup, it’s going to lead to bad things. Mix in the gas can commonly referred to as Oliver Perez and you have a 7-19 record. The silver lining for the team is that three offensive players have OPS above .930.
Player of the Month: Craig Wilson
Dud of the World: Perez

National League West:
Colorado Rockies (15-10): I’m not going to rain on the Rockies’ parade and suggest that the only reason they are atop the West is because it is baseball’s worst division. Instead, I’ll point out that they have achieved this honor after one month despite missing nine games from Todd Helton with a stomach virus and that the offense has a higher road OPS to date with .929. A 3.15 bullpen earned run average has also contributed to their fast start.
Player of the Month: Brad Hawpe
Dud of the Month: Danny Ardoin

San Francisco Giants (13-11): Jason Schmidt seems to have lost it in terms of his control and overall effectiveness. Noah Lowry went out on the disabled list two innings into his first start of the season. That leaves Jamey Wright as the anchor at the moment making their position in the division tenuous at best. Moises Alou and Omar Vizquel still showing more than adequate signs of life.
Player of the Month: Alou
Dud of the Month: Pedro Feliz

Arizona Diamondbacks (12-13): The D’Backs are scoring more than they are allowing and Brandon Webb has been fantastic as the ace, but half of the pitching staff is toting an earned run average over 5.00. The offense has mixed and matched several players as they continue to look for the winning combination.
Player of the Month: Webb
Dud of the Month: Orlando Hudson

Los Angeles Dodgers (12-13): Of the six regular hitters, two have OPS totals above .697. That won’t win you too many ballgames even with a team earned run average of 3.81. Danys Baez has been great replacing Eric Gagne, his Sunday performance in San Diego notwithstanding. Rafael Furcal and Jeff Kent can’t stay this bad, meaning the Dodgers should improve and could find themselves in the driver’s seat a month from now.
Player of the Month: Brad Penny
Dud of the Month: Furcal and Kent

San Diego Padres (9-15): If only Jake Peavy was pitching as well as Woody Williams and Chris Young, the Padres might have a few more wins. Instead Peavy has scuffled until finally getting on track against San Francisco last night. The offense is putrid, to say the least. No regular player has an average of .271 or OPS above .776. It is impossible for words to describe just how awful that is for a team.
Player of the Month: Trevor Hoffman
Dud of the Month: the entire lineup

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