Womack Traded to the Rockies...

"Brian J" <blj_junk.RemoveThis@cox.net> wrote in message
news:M6_Ra.12963$u51.7116@fed1read05...
> WOOHOO
>
> Matt Williams, now Womack... what am I going to have to complain about
> now....
>
> Oh yeah, Mike Myers.
>
>

Elmer Dessens and Danny Bautista, too.....

Impressions:

1) Tony is still doing the work of the angels (not the Angels); he joins
Colorado in time to help beat the Jints.

2) The kid (Mike Watson) we get back hasn't exactly distinguished himself
this year with a high (over-five) ERA in single-A, but has some good numbers
behind that (K/IP over 1, nearly 3:1 K:BB ratio) and is still only now in
his first full minor-league season. I'd like him more if he were a lefty,
but the organization has been quite successful in grooming righties for the
majors in recent years.

3) Financial terms -- anyone have 'em? Neither ESPN.com nor the official MLB
release mentions who is stuck with the rest of Womack's 2003 salary. If we
were able to shed that, it'd be nice to use that cash to pick up someone who
could be a factor down the stretch (hello, Michael Tucker); if not, that's
at least one more roster dilemma cleared up. And there's a (modest) prospect
in the system in return.

4) While this was a good deal in either event as mentioned in (3) above,
let's not forget there's a risk involved; behind an injury-prone Craig
Counsell and an Alex Cintron of untested mettle insofar as the heat of a
pennant race is concerned, the system has nothing ready at short. I'm not
saying this =will= be a problem..... but this is one area on which to keep
one's eye.

5) There are still two more moves to be made this weekend -- three, if
Junior's ready to go -- so don't think this is it; it's just the beginning.

--
_____

"The company that makes double mint gum has announced that it is coming out
with a new Viagra chewing gum. The company claims this will be the first
gum that really does double your pleasure."

-- Conan O'Brien
_____
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"YKW '03" asks
> 3) Financial terms -- anyone have 'em? Neither ESPN.com nor the official
MLB
> release mentions who is stuck with the rest of Womack's 2003 salary. If we

I heard Joe Jr on gambo and ash radio interview this afternoon confirm that
the DBacks are picking up "part of what Womack is due for the rest of this
year". He didn't elaborate further, nor mention any dollar figures.
 >> Stay informed about: Womack Traded to the Rockies... 

YKW '03 <vpotus.DeleteThis@undisclosed.loc> wrote:
[...]
> 2) The kid (Mike Watson) we get back hasn't exactly distinguished
> himself this year with a high (over-five) ERA in single-A, but has some
> good numbers behind that (K/IP over 1, nearly 3:1 K:BB ratio) and is
> still only now in his first full minor-league season. I'd like him more
> if he were a lefty, but the organization has been quite successful in
> grooming righties for the majors in recent years.

He's 22, so he's got time to get to the majors before he's considered old,
yet he's old enough that the worst risk of injury is already past
(although no pitching prospect--or pitcher, for that matter--is ever truly
safe from injury ending or muting his career). The K rate is excellent,
and as any stat-head will tell you, K rate is the single greatest
predictor of future success.

> 3) Financial terms -- anyone have 'em? Neither ESPN.com nor the
> official MLB release mentions who is stuck with the rest of Womack's
> 2003 salary. If we were able to shed that, it'd be nice to use that cash
> to pick up someone who could be a factor down the stretch (hello,
> Michael Tucker); if not, that's at least one more roster dilemma cleared
> up. And there's a (modest) prospect in the system in return.

The D-Backs are paying the rest of Womack's salary this year, according to
the Republic:

http://www.azcentral.com/sports/diamondbacks/0718womack-trade-ON.html

> 4) While this was a good deal in either event as mentioned in (3)
> above, let's not forget there's a risk involved; behind an injury-prone
> Craig Counsell and an Alex Cintron of untested mettle insofar as the
> heat of a pennant race is concerned, the system has nothing ready at
> short. I'm not saying this =will= be a problem..... but this is one area
> on which to keep one's eye.

What about Danny Klassen and his ever-injurious extremeties? Isn't he out
for the season again, BTW? Oh, wait, I see he belongs to the Tigers now.
Not sure if he was a Rule V pickup, or what.

> 5) There are still two more moves to be made this weekend -- three, if
> Junior's ready to go -- so don't think this is it; it's just the
> beginning.

It'll be interesting to see what happens with Bautista. BTW: There were
rumors that the Dodgers were interested in picking up Reggie Sanders from
the Pirates. I wonder if the D-Backs would consider trying to get Reggie
back, or if he burned too many bridges after the World Series when he was
upset about not getting to play in Game 7.

--Paul
** Note "removemunged" in email address and remove to reply. **
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Brian J <blj_junk RemoveThis @cox.net> wrote:
[...]
> Matt Williams, now Womack... what am I going to have to complain about
> now....
[...]

Oh, and before you get *too* excited about getting rid of Womack, keep in
mind that while he still can't draw a walk to save his life, Womack tends
to heat up significantly with the bat after the All Star break. His OBP
and SLG have each gone up by 40 points after the All Star game during the
last three seasons. They've never been spectacular, even so, but it is a
significant improvement.

Here's his OBP, SLG and OPS by month averaged for the last three seasons:

APR 304 379 683
MAY 310 358 668
JUN 271 316 587
JUL 301 326 627
AUG 335 385 720
SEP 359 394 753
OCT 429 632 1061

Okay, so his October numbers are pretty much entirely from 2001, but even
though a .753 OPS isn't great, it's not horrible for a shortstop, and a
..359 OBP for a guy with his speed is certainly helpful, even if it's not
great. IOW, down the stretch is when Womack has historically played his
best, and I don't think it's a coincidence he had two of the biggest hits
in team history (the double to win Game 5 against St. Louis and the double
to tie Game 7 against the Yankees).

I'm sorry to see him go, in spite of how poorly he usually plays in the
first half of the season--hell, until August, for that matter.

I wish him the best, and I hope he takes it to the Jints tonight.

--Paul
** Note "removemunged" in email address and remove to reply. **
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"Brian J" <blj_junk DeleteThis @cox.net> wrote in news:M6_Ra.12963$u51.7116@fed1read05:

> WOOHOO
>
> Matt Williams, now Womack... what am I going to have to complain about
> now....
>
> Oh yeah, Mike Myers.
>
>

He will surely come back to haunt you. These guys always do.
 >> Stay informed about: Womack Traded to the Rockies... 

Yeah, but the air is thinner in Colorado, so he'll steal more bases.

--Blair
"Right."
 >> Stay informed about: Womack Traded to the Rockies... 

>He will surely come back to haunt you. These guys always do.

Just like Yamil Benetez, and Brent Brede.
--Ryan "Not *always*"
 >> Stay informed about: Womack Traded to the Rockies... 

"Ryan" <viper4789.DeleteThis@aol.communist> wrote in message
news:20030721092551.03043.00000455@mb-m01.aol.com...
> >He will surely come back to haunt you. These guys always do.
>
> Just like Yamil Benetez, and Brent Brede.
> --Ryan "Not *always*"

Or Travis Lee, or Erubiel Durazo, or Karim Garcia, or Tony Batista, or
Vladimir Nuñez -- to name just a few young'uns who've gone on to have decent
careers post-Arizona, but who wouldn't have been the players they became had
they remained here.

As for veterans, I can't think of a single established player doing anything
of note after his tenure here was up -- aside from Reggie Sanders, but it
wasn't his on-field work that got him sent packing. I don't think anyone in
the organization would change that decision now, even with perfect
hindsight.*

In fact, I somehow doubt there's =any= trade Jerry and Joe would like back,
when all is said and done. (I'd amend that to "one", but that's just me.
--
_____

"The company that makes double mint gum has announced that it is coming out
with a new Viagra chewing gum. The company claims this will be the first
gum that really does double your pleasure."

-- Conan O'Brien
_____

* There's a case to be made, I suppose, for Dan Plesac's last few years
being "significant"; I'll stay agnostic on it, though, for now.
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