CLEVELAND INDIANS
| Roberto Alomar (2B, 33, S/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 BAL 147 588 166 36 1 14 86 56 59 70 282 347 418 18 5 1999 CLE 159 563 182 40 3 24 138 120 99 96 323 422 533 37 6 2000 CLE 155 610 189 40 2 19 111 89 64 82 310 378 475 39 4 |
| Robbie's second season in Cleveland was another success. His legs must be feeling better, because he's a better base stealer now than he ever was. Alomar needs 804 hits to reach 3000; at this point in his career, it seems extremely unlikely that he should miss the milestone. More of the same in 2001, with a chance to hit a few more home runs. |
| Sean Berry (3B, 35, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 2000 AAA 29 105 34 3 0 2 14 12 10 20 324 395 410 1 0 |
| Berry was released by Milwaukee in June, was signed by Boston in July but played only one game, was signed by Cleveland in August but didn't play in any games. That's a disturbing trend; Berry makes his living with his bat, but my guess is that he is out of chances. |
| Russell Branyan (3B/OF, 25, L/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 AA 43 163 48 11 3 16 35 46 35 58 294 417 693 1 1 1999 AAA 109 395 82 11 1 30 51 67 52 187 208 305 468 8 3 2000 AAA 64 229 56 9 2 21 46 60 28 93 245 330 576 1 1 |
| A power hitter in the noble tradition of Dave Kingman and Phil Plantier. No one knows how many home runs Branyan is capable of hitting, or what his batting average will be; it's a pretty good bet that, given a full season's worth of at bats, he would strike out 200 times in a season. Whatever; the Indians have given away some pretty good left-handed hitters the past few years (Sean Casey, Brian Giles, Jeromy Burnitz), so they might want to hold on to Branyan and give him a chance to show what he can do. |
| Jamie Brewington (30, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1999 A 1 10 36 5 0 0 4 81 74 37 81 387 2000 AAA 1 0 17 0 0 0 0 24 19 12 25 304 |
| Brewington debuted as a starting pitcher with the Giants in 1995, and didn't resurface again until last year. He's a very mediocre pitcher, doesn't throw enough strikes to be successful. He is also only a year removed from a 1-10 season at Kinston, which was actually one of the more impressive performances of his career. |
| Dave Burba (35, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 CLE 15 10 32 31 0 0 0 203 210 69 132 411 1999 CLE 15 9 34 34 1 0 0 220 211 96 174 425 2000 CLE 16 6 32 32 0 0 0 191 199 91 180 447 |
| Burba is a durable, consistent pitcher who seems to get stronger every year. He's not a Cy Young candidate, but his record the past three years is 45-25, and you can't expect much more from anyone. |
| Ellis Burks (RF, 37, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 COL-SF 142 504 147 28 6 21 76 76 58 111 292 365 496 11 8 1999 SF 120 390 110 19 0 31 73 96 69 86 282 394 569 7 5 2000 SF 122 393 135 21 5 24 74 96 56 49 344 419 606 5 1 |
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Burks has been a terrific player for a long time now, and last season was one of his best. He also missed 40 games with injury, of course, but we all expected that before the season. He has signed to play with Cleveland, where he will replace Dave Justice in the outfield. Or will he replace Manny Ramirez? In either case, Burks will be up to the task... some of the time. |
| Jolbert Cabrera (IF/OF, 28, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 AAA 129 494 157 24 1 10 94 45 68 71 318 412 431 25 15 1999 AAA 71 279 74 13 4 0 44 27 26 43 265 327 341 20 4 2000 AAA 20 74 25 6 1 3 18 11 5 8 338 383 568 2 1 |
| Cabrera is an infielder who spent most of the season playing the outfield for the Indians. Versatility is nice, but Cabrera is a lousy hitter, and I'm sure the Indians will have different plans for him in 2001. He'll be backing up Vizquel and Alomar, and probably won't get many at bats. |
| Cameron Cairncross (29, L) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1999 AAA 0 3 19 0 0 0 2 19 22 6 13 521 2000 AA-AAA 1 1 43 0 0 0 5 38 33 10 34 167 |
| Cairncross' journey to the majors was a long one; he had to battle through some injuries and other setbacks, but finally got his first major league win last season. He has pitched so infrequently the past three seasons that it is difficult to say how good he is; but he is a left-hander, and that should guarantee a return to the bullpen this year. |
| Bartolo Colon (26, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 CLE 14 9 31 31 6 2 0 204 205 79 158 371 1999 CLE 18 5 32 32 1 1 0 205 185 76 161 395 2000 CLE 15 8 30 30 2 1 0 188 163 98 212 388 |
| Colon was slowed down early in the season by injuries and didn't meet expectations, but still managed to win 15 games and strike out over 200 batters. The injury - a pulled oblique muscle - was not serious; Colon is one of the best young pitchers in the game, and is also one of the few pitchers in the AL who has a chance of winning the Cy Young Award. |
| Wil Cordero (LF, 29, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 CHW 96 341 91 18 2 13 58 49 22 66 267 314 446 2 1 1999 CLE 54 194 58 15 0 8 35 32 15 37 299 364 500 2 0 2000 PIT-CLE 127 496 137 35 5 16 64 68 32 76 276 328 464 1 2 |
| He's just an average hitter, and those are all the good things I can say about him. He's only 29, but both his offense and defensive skills have declined rapidly the past few seasons; I'n honestly not sure how he helps a ball club win games. |
| Jacob Cruz (OF, 28, L/L) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 AAA 132 511 158 25 5 31 92 98 59 83 309 389 560 14 8 1999 AAA 54 202 55 7 2 7 29 31 21 39 272 348 431 4 2 |
| Cruz had a chance to be a big player with the Indians, especially after Ramirez was hurt. But he tore his ACL in April, and missed almost the whole season. Since his debut in 1996, he still has yet to get 100 at bats in a season, and I'm not confident that he will do any better this year. He's is good enough and young enough that he can help someone as a fourth outfielder. |
| Sean DePaula (28, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 A 3 2 28 1 0 0 1 50 50 18 59 236 1999 A 4 2 23 0 0 0 7 51 36 17 75 228 2000 AAA 1 0 9 0 0 0 1 13 16 7 11 554 |
| DePaula's season was ruined by tendinitis in his elbow. He was a good story, a guy who wasn't supposed to be in the majors, but who had caught a break and made it to The Show. He's a decent pitcher, and it would be a shame if his elbow gave out just when he had a chance to make some real money. |
| Einar Diaz (CA, 28, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 AAA 115 415 130 21 3 8 62 63 21 33 313 354 436 3 3 |
| Sandy Alomar was healthier, so Diaz didn't play as often as he did in 1999. He's a good second-string catcher; he's durable and consistent and contributes a little with the bat. He doesn't have much power nor much patience at the plate, so I don't think he would be a good regular unless he could hit .300. This year he will platooning with Taubensee; I don't expect him to play much more often unless Taubensee's back troubles remain a problem. |
| Chuck Finley (38, L) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 ANA 11 9 34 34 1 1 0 223 210 109 212 339 1999 ANA 12 11 33 33 1 0 0 213 197 94 200 443 2000 CLE 16 11 34 34 3 0 0 218 211 101 189 417 |
| Finley probably had a better season than anyone could have expected, reaching his highest win total since 1993. He has been in the league for 15 years now, and has 181 career wins. He's getting old, but there's no evidence that he is about to suddenly decline. I expect him to win 200 games, and to perhaps be pitching in the playoffs with the Indians. |
| Travis Fryman (3B, 32, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 CLE 146 557 160 33 2 28 74 96 44 125 287 340 504 10 8 1999 CLE 85 322 82 16 2 10 45 48 25 57 255 309 410 2 1 2000 CLE 155 574 184 38 4 22 93 106 73 111 321 392 516 1 1 |
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Fryman had a fine rookie season in 1990, at age 21, and looked like a budding star. After 10 years of mediocrity, he finally bust loose with a big season. He was one of the better players in the league. Well, "mediocre" might be a little harsh. Fryman has been durable and consistent, and has had some good years in the past, though never two in a row. He has over 1600 hits and over 200 homers, and he might be entering the most productive phase of his career. I expect him to continue to play very well the next couple of seasons. |
| Karim Garcia (OF, 25, L/L) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 2000 AAA 116 425 121 23 3 28 69 92 45 102 285 355 551 5 4 |
| Garcia has been around so long that it's almost impossible to believe that he is only 25. His career is going nowhere; the Orioles were his fourth team, and he is a lifetime .217 hitter. There doesn't seem to be much chance that he will ever have a good season. |
| Juan Gonzalez (RF, 31, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 TEX 154 606 193 50 2 45 110 157 46 126 318 366 630 2 1 1999 TEX 144 562 183 36 1 39 114 128 51 105 326 378 601 3 3 2000 DET 115 461 133 30 2 22 69 67 32 84 289 337 505 1 2 |
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Somehow, the Juan Gonzalez In Detroit experiment seemed doomed to fail before it began. It was a tough assignment, being asked to revive a Detroit team that has been in the dumps for more than a decade, and to fill the stands in a new ballpark. Never mind that the new park is a terrible place to hit home runs; the Tigers as a team weren't ready for Gonzalez anyways. When Cecil Fielder was driving in a huge number of runs for the Tigers in the early 90's, he had Tony Phillips and Lou Whitaker and Alan Trammell and others getting on base in front of him. Who did Gonzalez have to set the plate for Gonzalez? Juan Encarnacion? Luis Polonia? Gregg Jefferies? He never had a chance to match his prodigious RBI totals from previous seasons, and that, rightly or wrongly, was bound to create frustration for everyone. So now he's in Cleveland, where he will be expected to replace Manny Ramirez. Gonzalez is not the hitter that Ramirez is, but if he is healthy he can be expected to hit .320 with 40 homers, and that's good enough. FYI... some one-year stints by great players of the past: Rogers Hornsby 1927 NY Giants (played with the Cardinals in 1926, the Braves in 1928) GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 155 568 205 32 9 26 133 125 86 38 361 448 586 9 - Rogers Hornsby 1928 Boston Braves (played with the Giants in 1927, the Cubs in 1929) 140 486 188 42 7 21 99 94 107 41 387 498 632 5 - Rocky Colavito 1964 Kansas City Athletics (played with the Tigers in 1963, the Indians in 1965) 160 588 161 31 2 34 89 102 83 56 274 368 507 3 1 Bobby Bonds 1975 NY Yankees (played with the Giants in 1974, the Angels in 1976) 145 529 143 26 3 32 93 85 89 137 270 378 512 30 17 Reggie Jackson 1976 Baltimore Orioles (played with the Athletics in 1975, the Yankees in 1977) 134 498 138 27 2 27 84 91 54 108 277 353 502 28 7 Dave Winfield 1992 Toronto Blue Jays (played with the Angels in 1991, the Twins in 1993) 156 583 169 33 3 26 92 108 82 89 290 378 491 2 3 |
| Bobby Hughes (CA, 30, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 MIL 85 218 50 7 2 9 28 29 16 54 229 284 404 1 2 1999 MIL 48 101 26 2 0 3 10 8 5 28 257 292 366 0 0 |
| The Brewers pulled the plug on the Bobby Hughes experiment, and he spent the entire season at Buffalo. He's a bad hitter, but he has a good defensive reputation, and I won't be surprised to see him make an appearance this season. |
| Steve Karsay (29, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 CLE 0 2 11 1 0 0 0 24 31 6 13 592 1999 CLE 10 2 50 3 0 0 1 79 71 30 68 297 2000 CLE 5 9 72 0 0 0 20 77 79 25 66 376 |
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Karsay battled most of the year, but when the dust had settled he had some decent numbers, and probably did as well as the Indians could have expected. He was handed the closer's job early in the season, and fought it to a draw, blowing a few big games but also earning 20 saves. He is probably best suited to the setup role, though he is still young, and a return to the closer's job a few years down the road can't be ruled out. There are also rumours that the Indians might put him in the starting rotation. He would be good, but he would also get hurt. |
| Kenny Lofton (CF, 34, L/L) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 CLE 154 600 169 31 6 12 101 64 87 80 282 371 413 54 10 1999 CLE 120 465 140 28 6 7 110 39 79 84 301 405 432 25 6 2000 CLE 137 543 151 23 5 15 107 73 79 72 278 369 422 30 7 |
| Like almost every other player in the league, Lofton set a career high in home runs. Otherwise, it was a mediocre year by his own standards. His .278 batting average was his lowest since 1991; he also grounded in 11 double plays, another career high. At his best, Lofton can still get on base and steal some bases; but he can no longer dominate a game with his speed, either on the basepaths or in the outfield, and he's not a sure bet to hit .300. He's about average among centre fielders. |
| Andrew Lorraine (29, L) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 2000 AAA 8 3 14 13 0 0 0 91 97 24 51 347 |
| Lorraine is a left-hander with good control, but after six seasons his lifetime ERA is 6.18. Move along, folks, there's nothing to see here. |
| Jeff Manto (3B/1B, 37, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 2000 AAA 94 324 65 14 1 13 39 46 51 96 201 309 370 0 0 |
| At the tail end of a mostly luckless career, Manto became the first player to be released with an .800 batting average. I always thought Manto could have been a decent player if given half a chance, but he's 37 and he played terribly with Buffalo, and the end is likely near. |
| Tom Martin (31, L) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 CLE 1 1 14 0 0 0 0 15 21 3 12 1289 2000 CLE 1 0 31 0 0 0 0 33 32 15 21 405 |
| Martin is a survivor of shoulder surgery, but he may not survive much longer. He didn't pitch badly last season, but his control was iffy and he went on the DL in June with shoulder tendinitis. The chances of him staying healthy and putting together a good season seem remote. |
| John McDonald (IF, 27, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 AA 132 514 118 18 2 2 68 43 43 61 230 293 284 17 6 1999 AA-AAA 121 463 142 24 1 1 61 51 30 49 307 350 369 13 6 2000 AAA 75 286 77 17 2 1 37 36 21 29 269 315 353 4 3 |
| McDonald is likely to spend the rest of his career in the minors; there is absolutely nothing impressive about him. The Indians have given him a couple of looks the past two seasons, but he's obviously not going to get a regular job; he wants to make someone's roster as the 25th man on the bench, but I think that most teams can find a better option. |
| Mike Mohler (33, L) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 OAK 3 3 57 0 0 0 0 61 70 26 42 516 1999 STL 1 1 48 0 0 0 1 49 47 23 31 438 2000 STL-CLE 1 2 24 0 0 0 0 20 27 15 11 900 |
| Mohler was released by the Cardinals in May, was signed by the Indians, threw one inning, then was released again. You don't suppose that his career is over, do you? |
| Charles Nagy (34, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 CLE 15 10 33 33 2 0 0 210 250 66 120 522 1999 CLE 17 11 33 32 1 0 0 202 238 59 126 495 2000 CLE 2 7 11 11 0 0 0 57 71 21 41 821 |
| Nagy missed most of the season with a bad elbow; he made a comeback late in the year, but hurt his shoulder in September. There is no reason to think that he will pitch effectively this year. |
| Chris Nichting (35, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 AAA 8 6 43 5 0 0 1 96 104 37 97 439 1999 AAA 8 5 25 21 2 0 0 128 135 47 110 529 2000 AAA 2 3 47 3 0 0 26 66 65 16 60 423 |
| Ancient minor league journeyman; Nichting had a good year for Vero Beach in 1988, and another good year for Oklahoma City in 1995, but otherwise has had a depressing career. He managed to get the closer's job at Buffalo last year, and wasn't too awful... but he's not likely to resurface anywhere in 2001. |
| Chan Perry (OF, 29, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 AA 54 203 57 17 2 5 36 27 23 43 281 352 458 3 2 1999 AA-AAA 116 427 120 31 0 17 68 89 30 61 281 328 473 6 1 2000 AAA 92 362 107 18 1 10 48 65 21 55 296 336 434 1 2 |
| Perry is a minor league veteran who got into a few games with the Indians near the end of the season. He's not a good hitter; I don't expect the value of his cards to go up much. |
| Jim Poole (35, L) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 SF-CLE 1 3 38 0 0 0 0 39 47 12 27 526 1999 PHI-CLE 2 1 54 0 0 0 1 36 50 18 22 471 2000 DET-MON 1 0 23 0 0 0 0 11 21 4 8 1097 |
| He was bad with Detroit, and bad with Montreal; the Indians signed him in June, sent him to Buffalo, and he was bad there as well. There is no evidence that he can still pitch. |
| Steve Reed (35, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 SF-CLE 4 3 70 0 0 0 1 79 56 27 83 308 1999 CLE 3 2 63 0 0 0 0 62 69 20 44 423 2000 CLE 2 0 57 0 0 0 0 56 58 21 39 434 |
| Reed is a solid middle reliever, though his numbers have been in decline the past two seasons. His control is still good, but he's not so tough to hit anymore. I expect his decline to continue gradually. |
| Ricky Rincon (31, L) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 PIT 0 2 60 0 0 0 14 65 50 29 64 291 1999 CLE 2 3 59 0 0 0 0 45 41 24 30 443 2000 CLE 2 0 35 0 0 0 0 20 17 13 20 270 |
| Rincon went on the DL in May with an "irritation" in his left elbow. When my elbow (or any other body part) gets "irritated" I smear it with oil and garlic powder, but Rincon's problem was obviously worse, because he missed the rest of the season. His future is in doubt. |
| Dave Roberts (OF, 29, L/L) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1999 CLE 41 143 34 4 0 2 26 12 9 16 238 281 308 11 3 |
| It must have been a tremendously disappointing season for Roberts. He was hoping to increase his playing time, but instead he spent almost the whole season at Buffalo. I don't really understand why; Roberts is a decent player with some diverse skills, and he surely would have provided the Indians with more offense in the outfield than Jolbert Cabrera. Nonetheless, his future is in some doubt. |
| C.C. Sabathia (21, L) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 R 1 0 5 5 0 0 0 18 20 8 35 450 1999 A 5 3 16 16 0 0 0 68 47 36 76 329 2000 A 3 2 10 10 2 2 0 56 48 24 69 354 2000 AA 3 7 17 17 0 0 0 90 75 48 90 359 |
| Sabathia is a kid with the Indians who owns a great name and some impressive strikeout rates. There's a chance that he will make an appearance with Cleveland this year, though I doubt he will be ready for starting duties for another couple of years. |
| Bill Selby (IF/OF, 31, L/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 AAA 97 334 85 23 0 14 45 52 38 50 254 328 449 3 0 1999 AAA 122 447 132 32 5 20 75 85 57 63 295 372 523 4 3 2000 AAA 100 384 106 21 6 21 69 86 48 61 276 355 526 1 1 |
| Selby plays a variety of positions, plus he's left-handed and has some power. He might be more valuable in the National League, where he could pinch-hit frequently or do a double-switch with just about anyone. |
| Paul Shuey (31, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 CLE 5 4 43 0 0 0 2 51 44 25 58 300 1999 CLE 8 5 72 0 0 0 6 82 68 40 103 353 2000 CLE 4 2 57 0 0 0 0 64 51 30 69 339 |
| When the Indians were looking for a closer early the season, Shuey should have been a top candidate. Instead, he blew all five save opportunities that he was presented with. He remained one of the best setup men in the game, and led the league with 28 holds. He's a solid pitcher who has had three straight good years; whether he will ever become a closer is anyone's guess. |
| Ed Taubensee (CA, 32, L/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 CIN 130 431 120 27 0 11 61 72 52 93 278 352 418 1 0 1999 CIN 126 424 132 22 2 21 58 87 30 67 311 354 521 0 2 2000 CIN 81 266 71 12 0 6 29 24 21 44 267 324 380 0 0 |
| He had an off-year, and eventually had to go on the 60-day DL with a bulging disc in his back. He was acquired by Cleveland after the season, and will presumably get the bulk of the catching duties, if he is healthy. Taubensee is a good player, might be best suited to a platoon role at this stage in his career; I expect him to improve on his numbers from last season, though I think 1999 was a career year. |
| Jim Thome (1B, 31, L/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 CLE 123 440 129 34 2 30 89 85 90 141 293 413 584 1 0 1999 CLE 146 494 137 27 2 33 101 108 127 171 277 426 540 0 0 2000 CLE 158 557 150 33 1 37 106 106 118 171 269 398 531 1 0 |
| Thome had a bit of an off-year by his own standards, but was still pretty good. He fell two percentage points short of extending a streak of five straight seasons with a .400+ on-base percentage and a .500+ slugging percentage. There aren't too many other hitters who are that good or consistent... he has always struggled against left-handed pitchers, but last year did better than usual, batting .250 against southpaws with 6 homers. His numbers took a dip because he didn't post his usual monster numbers against right-handers. |
| Omar Vizquel (SS, 34, S/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 CLE 151 576 166 30 6 2 86 50 62 64 288 358 372 37 12 1999 CLE 144 574 191 36 4 5 112 66 65 50 333 397 436 42 9 2000 CLE 156 613 176 27 3 7 101 66 87 72 287 377 375 22 10 |
| As a rookie in 1989 with Seattle, Vizquel hit .220 in 387 at bats, with only 11 extra-base hits and only 1 stolen base. Twelve years later, he is a career .276 hitter with 1605 lifetime hits, 260 stolen bases, and a half dozen Gold Gloves. He's quite a player, and his career is far from over. |
| Jake Westbrook (24, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 A 11 6 27 27 2 0 0 171 169 60 79 326 1999 AA 11 5 27 27 2 2 0 175 180 63 90 392 2000 AAA 5 7 16 15 2 0 0 89 94 38 61 465 |
| The Yankees acquired Westbrook before the season in the Irabu deal, then sent him to Cleveland in July as part of the Justice trade. He didn't pitch at all after that, apparently he had some kind of rib injury. He doesn't look very impressive, but he's still young enough to get healthy and make some improvements. |
| Mark Whiten (OF, 34, S/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 CLE 88 226 64 14 0 6 31 29 29 60 283 372 425 2 1 1999 CLE 8 25 4 1 0 1 2 4 3 4 160 250 320 0 0 |
| Whiten's career needed help; he spent most of the year at Buffalo, but wasn't impressive there. If you can't play your way out of Buffalo, then perhaps it is time to hang up the spikes. |
| Bob Wickman (32, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 MIL 6 9 46 0 0 0 25 82 79 39 71 372 1999 MIL 3 8 71 0 0 0 37 74 75 38 60 339 2000 MIL-CLE 3 5 69 0 0 0 30 73 64 32 55 310 |
| The loss of Mike Jackson left the Indians with a hole in their bullpen; they fixed it by dealing Richie Sexson to the Brewers for Wickman. Wickman has done his part in demystifying the closer's role; he was once a solid setup man, and has made an effortless transition to the money job. He's not one of the elite closers in the league, but's consistent and reliable. |
| Brian Williams (32, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 2000 AAA 4 3 16 0 0 0 2 19 21 11 18 237 |
| This guy has been around forever, though he really hasn't pitched well since 1992. His control is terrible; he has a lifetime 26-38 record with a 5.37 ERA. He must have something that scouts like - a great slider or something - but it's time that ballclubs grew up and started looking for other options. |
| Bobby Witt (37, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 TEX-STL 2 5 12 5 0 0 0 47 55 20 28 494 1999 TAM 7 15 32 32 3 2 0 180 213 96 123 584 2000 CLE 0 1 7 2 0 0 0 15 28 6 6 763 |
| Did he retire? Sorry, I missed the press conference. |
| Steve Woodard (26, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 MIL 10 12 34 26 0 0 0 165 170 33 135 418 1999 MIL 11 8 31 29 2 0 0 185 219 36 119 452 2000 MIL-CLE 4 10 40 22 1 0 0 148 182 44 100 585 |
| That was an ugly season. Woodard had been the Brewers' best young pitcher for a few years, but they finally gave up on him and shipped him to Cleveland. Despite his struggles, I'm going to be as stubborn as I can be and say that I still like Woodard, and I still think he will have a good season. Some day. |
| Jaret Wright (25, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 CLE 12 10 32 32 1 1 0 192 207 87 140 472 1999 CLE 8 10 26 26 0 0 0 134 144 77 91 606 2000 CLE 3 4 9 9 1 1 0 52 44 28 36 470 |
| Wright now holds the distinction of being the guy who prevented the Yankees from winning five straight World Series. He's still very young, and has that great potential... but his arm is screwed up. He went on the DL in May with a strained right shoulder, then again in June with an inflamed right shoulder, then finally shut things down. He may have a comeback in him, but it won't be this year. |