Shouldn't the original be good enough?

This is a random post just to see if the automatic Twitter update feature I set up works. [Two-minute update: It sure did, faster than my Google Reader, in fact.] I didn't want to simply do a basic post that says nothing but "testing," so I flipped through some photos and decided on this gripe.

Check out the photos below. I hate this -- why would you want your team's hat in another team's colors? Shouldn't an original hat be good enough? This is just lame.

I saw this Phillies cap in A's colors at Notre Dame over Labor Day weekend.

And this Yankees cap, also in A's colors (I know the green and gold is pretty cool, but come on) was spotted at the train station in New Jersey, just a few days before I saw that Phillies cap. The guy is wearing a Yankees BP jersey and "NY" cap in Oakland colors on a night the A's were playing at Yankee Stadium. So I assume he was going to the game. That's idiotic.

Why would you want your team's hat in another team's colors? Shouldn't an original hat be good enough?

Listening to history

As I was getting ready to drive into work last night, I got the text alert that Dallas Braden was perfect through six innings. As I waited in traffic heading into the Lincoln Tunnel, it occurred to me that I had yet to receive an update saying that the perfect game bid was over. So I fired up At Bat on my phone and listened to the Oakland radio feed just as the ninth inning was beginning.

Braden breezed through it in 12 pitches but it seemed like about four. Listening to the picture painted on the radio was a treat. Ken Korach's play-by-play was descriptive and unobtrusive. I've watched the no-hitters thrown by Jon Lester, Carlos Zambrano and Ubaldo Jimenez in recent years, but in each case, the TV announcers were a little too loud, too over the top. If anything, the radio broadcasters should raise the excitement a notch while the TV commentators should let the images speak for themselves. Twice I held my breath, wondering if the balls hit would find the outfield grass. There was Dioner Navarro's line drive to left fielder Eric Patterson on which there was a moment I wondered if it would fall in, and then Gabe Kapler's ground ball to shortstop Cliff Pennington, who fielded it cleanly and threw to first for the final out. If anything, I could've used a touch more excitement from Korach to know that it was a routine grounder to Pennington, but I can't really criticize his even call which, those who listen to A's games on the radio may know from experience, was an indication that it was all routine.

And then there are the Rays, who were perfected by Mark Buehrle just 10 months ago. Seven of Sunday's starters also played in that game in Chicago, including reserve Gabe Kapler, who nearly broke up Buehrle's with his drive to center in the ninth that Dewayne Wise made an amazing play to grab, and who made the final out yesterday. Only the Dodgers, who were on the wrong end of history for Tom Browning in 1988 and Dennis Martinez in 1991, have been the victims of two consecutive perfect games. Los Angeles had just one player in both games -- shortstop Alfredo Griffin. The Rays had seven. What baffles me about Tampa Bay, usually known as a strong and patient offensive club, is that those three batters in the ninth -- Willy Aybar, Navarro and Kapler -- weren't standing at the plate taking pitches until strike two. Especially Kapler, who made the final out on a 3-1 pitch. Braden came into the game averaging 1.70 walks per nine innings -- why not make him work in the final inning? He hadn't pitched out of the stretch all afternoon, so even a walk might be enough to throw him off his game and result in a fat pitch easily drilled for a base hit.

But I'm not complaining. It was a lot of fun listening to the ninth and a great story for a kid from a tough background, one who lost his mother to cancer in high school and had his grandmother in the stands on Mother's Day. A great day for baseball.

Photo Friday: Cactus League action

Fontenot flop

The vacation got off to a glorious start. Our flight arrived in Phoenix half an hour early and we got our rental car and headed over to HoHoKam Park in Mesa (with a pit stop at In-n-Out Burger in Tempe).

Moments after Randy Wells made the first pitch of the spring for the Cubs, it hit me and I turned to Casey and said, "We're at a ballgame!" Baseball is back. Thank God.

It was a great day for the Cubs, which made for a wonderful afternoon. We spent the first four innings in our seats on the first-base side, then got up to grab a beer, roam the ballpark and take in the atmosphere.

Upon reaching the left-field corner, Casey's eyes lit up at a sign advertising a group of former players signing autographs. "Rollie Fingers!" she said. "I have to see that mustache in person!"

Rollie was there, sitting next to fellow Hall of Famer Ferguson Jenkins. Joining them beneath the tent were Bert Campaneris, George Foster, Lee Smith and Pete LaCock. For a $30 donation -- as it was called -- I bought an autographed postcard of Jenkins' Hall of Fame plaque and an 8x10 color glossy photo of Fingers delivering a pitch in Oakland's glorious yellow jerseys of the '70s.

Sadly, this game is the only baseball stop on our Arizona/Utah vacation. From here, it's north to higher elevations and colder climes, to the desert and the national parks. I may have another update or two over the next week, but if not, this will have to stand for the time being.

Mets can't miss out on Sheets, too

The interest in free-agent rehab project Ben Sheets seems to involve four teams: the A's, Cubs, Mets and Rangers. There might be a few others lurking on the fringe, waiting to swoop in with a stealth offer, but it seems likely that Sheets will eventually sign with one of those four clubs.

While the Rangers might seem like the frontrunner, based on their near-deal a year ago and their employment of Sheets' former pitching coach, Mike Maddux, it's unlikely. For one thing, the Rangers seem to be finished with any major acquisitions, they were just sold and Sheets' current demands probably price him out of their remaining budget. OK, so three things. Plus, as a coworker speculated, would they want to take the chance with another risky signing after putting so much into their addition of Rich Harden?

The Cubs' interest seems to have been devalued almost as soon as it was speculated, which may leave the two teams who have been jilted the most this offseason fighting over a question mark who is asking for a lot of guaranteed money for a guy who last pitched in September 2008 and could not contribute to the Brewers' final push to the Wild Card and their NLDS against the Phillies.

Jilted so much already this offseason, the Mets need to bring in Sheets just on the chance that he can once again be a strikeout pitcher who won't be hurt by Citi Field's expansive outfield gaps or the team's suspect defense on the right side of the infield. They need a fifth pitcher to pencil into the rotation heading into Spring Training -- when they'll be watching closely a rotation that has no sure things. Johan Santana, John Maine and Oliver Perez are coming off of injuries. Mike Pelfrey didn't make the strides expected of him. And Jon Niese, just to throw out one possibility for the fifth starter, is both coming off of injury and still unproven. Sheets is necessary and Jon Garland might be, too, simply to give the Mets a fighting chance at hanging around the division leaders through the summer solstice.

And, frankly, the Mets might need to sign Sheets just to give some of us a little more hope heading into Spring Training.

Final evaluation of the 2004 Beltran blockbuster

It has been 5 1/2 years since the Royals traded Carlos Beltran to the Astros in a three-team deal also involving the Oakland A's. Houston, of course, only had Beltran through the 2004 postseason (that amazing eight homer, 14-RBI, .400+ postseason) before he signed with the Mets. The A's got Octavio Dotel in the deal and used him to save 22 of the 45 games he pitched the rest of the way in 2004, but only got 15 games from in 2005 before he had Tommy John surgery. The following offseason, he signed with the Yankees.

And for dealing Beltran, the Royals got right-hander Mike Wood and third baseman Mark Teahen from the A's and catcher John Buck from the Astros. Wood went 11-19 with the Royals through 2006, then signed with the Rangers. After pitching in 21 games for Texas in '07, he's spent the rest of his time on the Rangers' and Marlins' Triple-A clubs. Teahen averaged 14 homers, 70 RBIs and a .749 OPS in his five seasons with the Royals before they traded him last month to the White Sox for Chris Getz and Josh Fields.

Now K.C. has lost the last remaining player from that deal after non-tendering John Buck last night (in favor of new backstop Jason Kendall, who signed a two-year deal) and watching him agree to a deal with the Blue Jays.

So despite having their haul from the deal for the shortest time, the Astros probably made out the best, nearly reaching the World Series with Beltran in 2004 (and perhaps building the momentum or belief for their run to the Fall Classic in 2005). The A's finished second in 2004 and 2005, the only years they had Dotel, but won the AL West in 2006. And the Royals never won more than 75 games or finished higher than fourth in the AL Central with the players the got in return for Beltran.

2008 preview: AL West

I'm not sure how much predicting, per se, I'm going to do with my previews this year. I didn't even do any last year, so I think I'd grown tired of the standard prognostication that everyone does this time of year and over the next six weeks. I will still list the teams in each division in the order I think they'll finish, and in that space between the Red Sox-A's series in Japan and the true opening of the season on March 31, I may take a crack at how the postseason might shake out, but I don't know that I want to put numbers on player performances like I have in the past. There's a lot I'm looking forward to seeing this season, and I think I'll make that the focus of these posts. That's not to say I won't change my mind by the time I'm through with the divisions, but it's how I'll start.

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LOS ANGELES ANGELS OF ANAHEIM

In general

Don't underestimate the Angels' ability to add another starter (Jon Garland) and the right-handed power bat they needed (Torii Hunter) -- if not the one they wanted (Alex Rodriguez or Miguel Cabrera) -- without having to give up young pitching or their top young hitters in established second baseman Howie Kendrick or shortstop/third base prospect Brandon Wood. Now the question remains is whether or not Wood can win a job and stick with the club -- and produce the 25-30 home runs he's capable of in his first full big-league season. Down the road, he could be a 40-homer guy.

Shortstop Orlando Cabrera is the only significant loss from last year's AL West champions, and his departure brought in Garland. Erick Aybar will man shortstop to start the season and the flexible Chone Figgins will take third, but Wood will be waiting in the wings for one of those spots. The Angels in the outfield will be the best in the game, particularly when Gary Matthews Jr. plays left field, with Hunter in center and Vladimir Guerrero in right. Hunter and Matthews will run down just about everything with loft underneath it, while Guerrero will fire anything that hits the grass into the infield so quickly that the runners will hesitate to take an extra base or be thrown out trying. It's not a bad hitting group, either, though Matthews' 18 homers and 72 RBIs weren't really what owner Artie Moreno paid for when he signed him to a five-year, $50 million deal last winter. Garret Anderson is a liability because of his injury history and advancing age (36 on June 30), but he's penciled in as the cleanup hitter between Guerrero and Hunter. The young right side of the infield -- Casey Kotchman and Kendrick -- will be a joy to watch as they gain experience.

The rotation is stacked with Cy Young contender John Lackey at the front, followed by Garland, Jered Weaver, the only Santana left in the AL (Ervin) and Joe Saunders, who is a fill-in until No. 2 Kelvim Escobar recovers from his shoulder soreness. Lackey and Escobar would actually match up well with Erik Bedard and Felix Hernandez in Seattle, but Anaheim clearly has the better depth through the back end. The bullpen, anchored by Francisco Rodriguez and set up by Scot Shields and Justin Speier, remains one of the best in the league, so to beat these Angels, you're going to have to keep them to four or five runs -- or fewer -- on most nights.

What I look forward to seeing


How good will this outfield be? They all can hit and they all can field, even when Anderson is out in left with Matthews at DH. Hunter has a new home for the first time in his career, which may make a difference, and it will be interesting to see how he responds to the life-altering contract he signed minutes before Thanksgiving. Figgins' six-hit game last year was thrilling to watch, particularly because he won it with that sixth hit, and he's a fun player to focus on each time he's on the field. He's got the speed to swipe 80 bases, which is something you don't see in today's game outside of Shea Stadium. But I'll be most interested in Wood's progress. His arrival would give the Angels a potential homegrown infield of future All-Stars. And I think he's got the kind of power that makes it a risk to leave your seat if he's due to bat in the inning.

SEATTLE MARINERS

In general

Adding Bedard to the rotation in front of Hernandez easily gives them the most impressive young 1-2 punch in the division, but where do they go after that? Jarrod Washburn, Carlos Silva and Miguel Batista? Does that scare anyone? The Mariners have the modern-day equivalent of Spahn and Sain and pray for rain. Except that they have a retractable roof at Safeco Field, so that approach won't help them at home. Beyond the starters, they have a closer in J.J. Putz who won't lose many -- if any -- games with a lead after eight innings, but the question will be getting the lead to him. Slated to set him up are untested second-year man Brendan Morrow and unheard-of Sean Green.

Offensively, Ichiro will rap out 200 hits and cover the ground in center field, but Jose Vidro batting second as the powerless DH and Raul Ibanez in the three-hole? Adrian Beltre can slug 30 homers as the cleanup guy, Kenji Johjima should provide decent protection as the fifth hitter, but then you fall into the abyss of inconsistency and, in two cases, longevity issues with Richie Sexson and Brad Wilkerson. Rounding out the order are middle infielders Jose Lopez and Yuniesky Betancourt.

What I'm looking forward to seeing

Just how good will Bedard and Hernandez be? It'll be a treat for fans in other AL cities when the Mariners come to town with the two both slated to pitch. Can Ichiro keep it up? I love watching him hit and hope his career carries on into his 40s to see just how many base knocks he piles up. Can Putz put up Eckersley numbers? His 1.38 ERA and 0.70 WHIP are on the block, and 82 strikeouts with just 13 walks are in the neighborhood. Does he get even better this year? And does Sexson become this generation's Rob Deer?

TEXAS RANGERS

In general

They didn't really lose anything in bidding adieu to Sammy Sosa, Wilkerson and Akinori Otsuka, but the additions of Josh Hamilton, Kazuo Fukumori, Milton Bradley, Ben Broussard, Jason Jennings and Eddie Guardado don't do much for me beyond Hamilton and Fukumori. Bradley could pay off, but the question remains if he'll be ready by Opening Day after his knee injury last year. And Jennings is coming off that horrendous year in Houston, while Guardado is starting a season for the first time after Tommy John surgery. A former closer, he'll probably start out as a setup man along with Fukumori and one of last year's co-closers at the end of the season, C.J. Wilson and Joaquin Benoit. The other will finish off games.

But how many? A rotation that starts with Kevin Millwood -- an ace by default only -- and pencils in Jennings as its No. 2 ahead of Vicente Padilla, Brandon McCarthy and Kason Gabbard isn't going to inspire many pitching duels.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre lineup we've come to know in recent years is a shell of its former self. Mark Teixeira is gone and Hank Blalock was -- or wasn't -- on the trading block this winter; if he was, it doesn't look like he drew much interest. Setting the table ahead of No. 3 hitter Michael Young will be left to a possible platoon of Frank Catalanotto and Nelson Cruz leading off followed by Ian Kinsler. The duo at the top leaves a lot to be desired (though Cruz is an unknown quantity and could pay off), but Kinsler may be ready to make another step toward being the heir to Alfonso Soriano that the Rangers think he can be. Bradley, Hamilton and Blalock will form the meat of the order, while the bottom third should feature super stud Jarrod Saltalamacchia (got that spelling correct on the first try, without looking), either as the catcher over Gerald Laird or as the first baseman over -- or along with -- Broussard. One-time Phillies prospect Marlon Byrd likely will man right.

What I'm looking forward to seeing

Just how good will Kinsler be? Can he keep improving? He got off to a hot start last year -- .298, nine homers, 22 RBIs in April -- but had just six homers and 26 RBIs after the All-Star break, despite hitting .288 in the second half (as opposed to .241 overall in the first half). Fatigue may have been a factor in his second-half power decline, but his .045 rise in OBP in the second half helped Kinsler post a .807 post-break OPS after just .786 in the first half. Can Salty be as big as his name? Will the Hamilton feel-good story continue? And when will Bradley snap? Watching him in each new city is like watching the Grammys last Sunday to see whether Amy Winehouse could keep it together for her performance, which took place live from a London studio -- meaning she had to sit around until about 4 a.m. with any manner of elixirs to pass the time.

OAKLAND ATHLETICS

In general

I put them last because just who are these guys? Gone are Dan Haren, Nick Swisher, Mike Piazza, Shannon Stewart and Mark Kotsay. In are Emil Brown, Joey Devine and Mike Sweeney? They even lost catching prospect Jeremy Brown, one of the stars of Moneyball (along with Swisher). GM Billy Beane set himself up well for the future, but he's left with nearly nothing -- especially if he deals now-No. 1 Joe Blanton before April.

I'll start with the offense this time, where Jersey boy Jack Cust gets the cleanup spot and DH role all to himself, but he could hit 35 home runs but drive in just 75 runs if Travis Buck, Daric Barton and the oft-injured, shell-of-his-former-self Eric Chavez can't get on base. But getting on base is what Beane builds his teams for, so the BBC top of the order should be expected to do just that. But after Cust? Mark Ellis is your five-hole protection, with Emil Brown behind him followed by DL resident Bobby Crosby, Chris Denorfia and Kurt Suzuki. Though I don't agree with the assessment, ESPN.com's A's fantasy preview projects only Ellis, of all people, to be drafted from that lineup, and in the 20th round at that. But there's just one opinion of what the Oakland lineup will produce this year.

The rotation doesn't fare much better in the fantasy projection. Only Blanton stands to be drafted, in the 19th round they say. In between Blanton's starts will be Rich Harden -- once again coming off injury -- Year-After Effect risk Chad Gaudin, converted setup man Justin Duchscherer and soft-tosser Lenny DiNardo. If Blanton goes, Dana Eveland and his 7.55 career ERA is next in line to step into the rotation. Yikes.

What I'm looking forward to seeing

Does Harden stay healthy? I've given up caring whether or not Crosby does. I'd also like to see Chavez bounce back a bit, if only because he's the one Beane chose to keep, letting Johnny Damon, Jason Giambi and Miguel Tejada leave via free agency rather than spend the money. Interesting how he let the hitters leave, but traded the pitchers -- Tim Hudson, Mark Mulder and Haren (with the exception of Barry Zito) -- in order to get something in return. And Cust is a good story -- always a big hitting prospect, he never stuck with his previous clubs (Baltimore, Colorado, Arizona, San Diego) because he was a disaster in the outfield. It was always clear that he'd have to be a DH somewhere, and when he got that chance last year, he provided some exciting moments.

Division Series predictions

What a start to the postseason. Oakland-Minnesota starts off with a pair of Cy Young Award winners in left-handers Barry Zito and Johan Santana. That game starts in about 10 minutes, so I'm going to do my best to run through my postseason thoughts before turning on the game.

A's vs. Twins
No one wanted to face the Twins in the shorter best-of-five series when they knew they'd have to face Santana and Francisco Liriano in three of the five games. Now, Minnesota is without the phenom Liriano, but because it edged out Detroit for the American League Central title, it gets homefield advantage against Oakland. The Twins went 5-1 against the A's at the Metrodome this year, and Santana was 12-0 at home. He gets the Game 1 start, and could either take a potential Game 4 on the road on short rest, or be held for a winner-take-all Game 5 back at the dome. Add in the fact that the Twins had the third-best team ERA in baseball and the best bullpen ERA (not to mention the fewest losses by relievers), and that the A's had one of the worst offenses in baseball, and Oakland's dark Division Series history does not look like it will get any brighter.

Twins in three.

Tigers vs. Yankees
Many of the Yankee fans I know are thrilled that they don't have to face the Twins -- and Santana -- in the first round. Detroit, which seemed to be on a tear heading into August and was expected to coast to a division title, faltered down the stretch, with losing records in both August and September. No too many teams reach the postseason with a 25-32 record in the final two months.

But the Tigers made it, becoming the first AL Central team to win a wild card, but now they have to turn their rotation upside-down to face the Yankees. Veteran and Opening Day starter Kenny Rogers gets the start in Game 3, with likely AL Rookie of the Year Justin Verlander taking Game 2. That leaves Nate Robertson for Game 1, where he'll match up with Yankees 19-game winner Chien-Ming Wang. Verlander gets Mike Mussina, and Rogers may be the healthy left-hander in an ancient pairing with Randy Johnson in the third game -- if the Big Unit is able to pitch despite his back problems. I think he will, but he won't be effective. Rogers leads the Tigers to a Game 3 win at home. Unfortunately, they'll have lost the first two and will fall in the next one.

Yankees in four.

Cardinals vs. Padres
Each league's Central Division nearly saw a monumental collapse, but the Cardinals managed to hold off the Astros despite losing seven in a row while Houston won seven straight in late September. In the end, the Braves got what they wanted, eliminating the Astros, who had taken them out of the previous two postseasons. So Atlanta didn't make it to the playoffs for the first time since 1990, but they still managed to end someone's season -- which they hadn't done since 2001. Yes, despite reaching the postseason in an unprecedented 14 straight seasons (1994 strike year not included), Atlanta hadn't advanced in their last four before the Mets ended the Braves' dynastic run this year.

Sorry, didn't mean to delve so deep into Atlanta's woes, as enjoyable as it is. Last year, the Cards swept the Pads in the first round, with NL Cy Young winner Chris Carpenter getting things rolling in Game 1 despite the best efforts of the St. Louis bullpen, which nearly blew an 8-0 lead. Today's Game 1 provides a rematch, with Carpenter again facing off against Jake Peavy, who revealed after last year's opener that he had sustained cracked ribs in the Padres' NL West-clinching celebration. I'm sure this year's party was a bit more subdued. But in addition to Peavy, San Diego's rotation has the stellar Chris Young and seasoned postseason veterans David Wells and Woody Williams. St. Louis has to go with Jeff Weaver, Jeff Suppan and Jason Marquis after Carpenter, in addition to a closer-by-committee after Jason Isringhausen had season-ending hip surgery. The Padres get revenge.

Padres in four.

Dodgers vs. Mets
Everyone wants to eliminate the Mets from the postseason because they don't have Pedro Martinez. While it's true that Martinez helped them jump out to an early lead by going 5-0 in April, the Mets won only six of his final 18 starts the rest of the way. They built upon their lead and coasted to the division crown essentially without their ace.

But they do have the most formidable lineup in the National League, one of the deepest benches in baseball, and a superb pitching staff -- particularly the bullpen -- even without Martinez.

The Dodgers, meanwhile, outpaced only the Pirates in the National League in home runs this season and went just 7-30 against this year's postseason field. They played the Mets close, winning three of the seven games between the teams and outscoring them by a slim 32-29 margin. However, two of those three wins were by rookies Hong-Chi Kuo and Eric Stults in a September series that meant much more to the Dodgers than it did the Mets.

Orlando Hernandez gets Game 1 for the Mets, who should have a pitching edge even in the rotation, considering Kuo's inexperience, Greg Maddux's mediocre postseason history (and the Mets' ability to score off him this season) and Brad Penny's back issues.

Mets in four.

Time to get these up before the games start. The rest of the postseason predictions to come shortly.

Separated at birth

There's no excuse for why I haven't posted as much as I should've been the past month or so. I just didn't devote any time to making sure I found something about baseball to write about and then sitting down to write it. There's been plenty to ponder, so I'll pick it up with some of this week's happenings and go from there.

The A's made a good move in signing Frank Thomas to a one-year deal with a base salary of $500,000. It fits their financial model, but the potential $2.6 million in performance bonuses will make it worthwhile for Thomas if he's able to stay healthy.

From Thomas' perspective, it all hinges on his left foot. He will earn, according to the ESPN.com article, "$1.4 million in roster bonuses if he is on the active major-league roster or not on the DL related to a left foot injury. He would get $325,000 each on May 1 and June 15 and $375,000 apiece on July 15 and Aug. 15."

So if he's going to get hurt -- rather than apply the Big Hurt -- he's better off dropping a weight on his right foot or carrying deer meat up the stairs to his house than he is in fouling a pitch off that left foot.

Ironically, while Thomas missed most of last season with injuries, so did another potential Hall-of-Fame first baseman with whom he has a lot in common. Thomas and Jeff Bagwell were born on the same date -- May 27, 1968 -- and made their major league debuts within three baseball months of one another (Thomas on August 2, 1990, Bagwell on April 8, 1991). And Thomas trails Bagwell in career home runs by the slimmest of margins: 448 to 449. (Not to mention less than 100 RBI and less than 200 runs.)

However, while Thomas appears to be healthier than he's been in several seasons, Bagwell and the Astros could be heading for an uncomfortable final season together. The Astros are saying Bagwell's right shoulder injury hasn't healed enough after last season's surgery to allow him to play. If you watched him in last fall's World Series, you saw just how much it affected his ability to swing the bat. Houston has some incentive to have Bagwell miss the season: $15.6 million of his salary would be covered by insurance if he retires or is disabled all season because of the injury.

That's some way to treat a guy who is probably the best hitter -- certainly the best slugger -- in franchise history. Still, Bags insists he'll be in Florida for spring training, which could make for an akward start to the season. I just hope he's able to play and not embarrass himself; he's one of those upstanding, honest players whom you enjoy rooting for and like to see do well. He's the kind of guy who should be able to go out on his own terms.

Reggie strikes out with A's one last time

I had no idea that Reggie Jackson attempted to by the Oakland Athletics. It's a shame it didn't happen — is there a better way to promote baseball than to have its first black majority owner be a Hall of Famer returning to own a team he once played for?

It's not that Reggie was outbid for the franchise that retired his number last year; he wasn't given a fair shot at making an offer. In May, the commissioner's office told Jackson to sit tight and he'd be given a chance to make a bid. They didn't give him that chance until December, at which time the current owners of the Athletics had already reached a deal with Lewis Wolff, the Los Angeles real estate developer who will become the team's new owner. Wolff is currently the vice president for venue development for the team. That is, he's been trying to figure out where to get the A's a new stadium, and apparently he's still going to do that in the Bay Area.

But what really makes this whole deal stink is that Wolff is not just an acquaintance of "commissioner" Bud Selig, he's his freakin' fraternity brother. Do you think Wolff, in his efforts to find a place to build a new stadium for the A's, will look for anything but a publicly financed venue? Would Bud accept anything less?

The thing is, Bud's done this before. Remember contraction? One team involved, the Montreal Expos, was eventually "sold" to the other 29 owners and moved to Washington, D.C., two years later than it could have been because Bud wanted to make sure he gave Orioles owner Peter Angelos enough of a sweetheart deal.

The other team was the Minnesota Twins, a small-market club that, in the three seasons since the C-word was first uttered, have finished ... um, wait, let me look it up here ... Ah, yes: First, first and first, with records of 94-67, 90-72 and 92-70 from 2002-2004. Why the Twins? Perhaps because the owner, Carl Pohlad, is a dear, close friend of Bud (also mentioned in the Nightengale column in the previous link) and would have stood to receive a nice "contraction package," no doubt worth more than the team might bring were it put up for sale.

It's a shame the way things go down sometimes.

Black jersey plague

I have always abhored the alternate jersey phenomenon that has overrun Major League Baseball in the past six or seven years. While I've acquiesed and come to understand that it is, above all, a business, and alternate jerseys -- particularly black ones -- sell well, and these teams all need as much money as they can get.

I'll admit that, at first, it didn't bother me, but that was back when only the Orioles and the White Sox did it. They were the first. Sometime back around 1996, you started seeing highlights and pictures of the White Sox in a black jerseys with a classic "Sox" over the heart. And the Orioles had a policy in which that day's starting pitcher chose whether the team wore the home white or road gray jersey, or the alternate black. But the thing with both of these teams is that black is one of their core colors. The White Sox are black and white; the Orioles black and orange. A black jersey wasn't that much of a stretch, nor was it something new since both teams -- I believe -- wore black for batting practice. If that's not the case, then I admit I was misled in my beliefs on the origin of their alternate jerseys.

But then the other teams caught on, and it got out of hand. The A's started wearing their green jerseys (also an homage to their green and yellow tops of the 70s) and other teams followed suit, with a few holdouts. The Yankees, Dodgers, Red Sox, Giants, Braves, Marlins and Rockies never stooped to such gimmicks. Shortly after the Dodgers were sold to Fox, they wore their blue batting practice jerseys for games, and it looked ridiculous -- and many commentators and others said so. The following season, they had an alternate blue jersey made for the team, but they never reappeared after that campaign. Wonder why?

The Marlins, Rockies and -- alas -- the Red Sox have since relented, but to Boston's credit, they went with red.

What really gets me, though, is the teams that suddenly made black one of their official colors. The Mets were the worst offenders, I thought. They've always been blue and orange -- a nod to the Dodgers and Giants, who left New York without National League baseball in 1957. Then, in 1998, they decided to get into the ridiculous uniform game. If they did it, I'd hoped that they'd go with the classic blue batting practice duds they wore then. Instead, they sold out and added black to the mix.

It sure seems permanent now. In hindsight, I should've seen it coming with the ridiculous changes in 1997 -- ridiculous mainly because of the white cap they added. (Check out the Mets' uniform history here.)

The Mets hurt the most, but I cringed when the A's, for one year, didn't think green was good enough and made a ridiculous black jersey with "Athletics" written out in green script. The Royals did the same -- again, what's wrong with blue ones? -- and then teams like Texas and Seattle added black either in jerseys or, stupid Texas, in an ugly black bill to an otherwise blue cap.

The idiocy of it all became apparent on Sunday, when Mets catcher Tom Wilson wore the wrong one in Yankee Stadium. The Mets' road black jersey says "New York" across the front. The home one says "Mets." He packed the wrong one for the bus ride to Shea and didn't realize it until, apparently, a reporter pointed it out.

None of this would happen if the Mets would just get rid of the black jersey plague. I've come to terms with the white uniforms without the pinstripes, and I've always loved the road grays that have the city written out in a classic font as it was on the original Mets uniforms in the 60s. They'll still occassionaly don the pinstripes for random home games, but not nearly enough of them. And, as far as I can tell, there's no rhyme or reason to the Mets' uniform choices on a given day. Home day, night, weekend or holiday could be plain white, pinstripes or black tops. It could also be either white jersey with the black hat with blue brim, or the white jerseys with the classic (and best) all-blue hat. On the road, it's either gray or black jerseys, but always the black hat with blue brim. (However, all black jersey games feature the all-black hat.)

For those of you keeping score at home, that's five different jerseys and three different hats for a total of seven previously used and accepted combinations (all-black hat only goes with black jerseys, etc.):

1. Plain white/black & blue hat
2. Plain white/blue hat
3. Pinstripe white/black & blue hat
4. Pinstripe white/blue hat
5. Home black/black hat
6. Road gray/black & blue hat
7. Road black/black hat

Ridiculous. The Mets' colors are blue and orange. Their uniforms have pinstripes. Their hats are blue, all blue. The road uniforms are gray. That's the way it should be.

But until gangs go away, until teenage hoodlums stop thinking black clothes every day is the way to go, teams are going to bring out the alternate jerseys to make a buck -- tradition and color scheme be damned.

My take on the Carlos Beltran trade

I sat here on the couch last night watching the Astros-Pirates game on my MLB Extra Innings package when the play-by-play man made the announcement:

"The Astros have acquired Carlos Beltran in a two-team deal with the Kansas City Royals."

He said it with all the enthusiasm of announcing the daily lottery numbers. That surprised me. I would've expected more excitement at acquiring the A-Rod of the outfield.

You know, C-Belt.

(And seriously, what is it with the Astros and their "Killer Bs"? Biggio, Bagwell, Berkman, now Beltran? They used to have David Bell in that mix. They traded catching prospect John Buck in the deal, who very well could've become another one. If they were in the American League, they'd probably get Barry Bonds in another year.)

For about an hour, I fretted. I own Octavio Dotel in my primary fantasy league. I kicked myself at not acting on my urge a month ago to try to acquire setup man Brad Lidge, a player I covet not only for his ability, but because he was drafted out of Notre Dame as the Astros' first-round pick in 1998. I searched the rosters, considering possible trades, coming back to some deals I considered proposing weeks ago. Dotel in Kansas City wouldn't have been that bad. He wasn't getting too many save chances with the 37-34 Astros; or at least they were sporadic. I read an analysis earlier in the season that proved that better teams -- winning teams -- do not necessarily get more save opportunities than bad ones. But I just didn't feel as comfortable with Octavio Dotel, Royals closer as I did with Octavio Dotel, Astros closer.

Then, just after Houston GM Gerry Hunsicker left the booth, the announcer came back with the same low-key monotone:

"Octavio Dotel is now an Athletic. The Royals have turned around and traded him to Oakland for third-base prospect Mark Teahen and pitcher Mike Wood."

Whew. Now I feel better. Octavio Dotel, A's closer. That's better. Oakland has done well with closers during their successful run these past few years. There's a winning attitude around that clubhouse, and with a reliable pitcher at the back of the bullpen, they've thrived. Arthur Rhodes is not a reliable pitcher at the back of the bullpen, that's been their problem this year. The only problem I could foresee is that Oakland no longer has pitching coach Rick Peterson -- he's in New York now, helping the Mets to the best ERA in the majors.

But as for the Astros, they made out well in this deal. They gave up one young closer who has struggled just a bit this year, but certainly looks like he's on his way to being a reliable stopper. They traded a catching prospect who likely would've replaced Brad Ausmus next year, but he's not a sure thing. And they got a five-tool player, even if it's only for three months. In dealing Richard Hidalgo for David Weathers last week, Houston got itself another reliable setup man who can step into the seventh/eighth inning role vacated by Lidge now that he's coming on in the ninth.

What makes it such a great move for the Astros is perhaps more than any team outside Boston, they're built to win Now. You hear that a lot, but no where is it more true than Minute Maid Park. Bagwell and Biggio are not getting any younger, faster or healthier. Who knows if Robot Roger Clemens will return next season -- or if he'll have the same amazing success? Their pitching staff, outside Clemens and Weathers, is on the young side, and when Clemens does retire, Andy Pettitte can assume the experienced veteran leader role. Taylor Buchholz, acquired in the Billy Wagner trade, could very well become a No. 3/4 starter someday. But the bulk of the offense is aging, and replacing Bagwell, Biggio, Ausmus and Jeff Kent will be the more pressing needs in the coming seasons.

If Houston is going to win its first playoff series -- ever -- it will need to make a run with this team.