The Continuing Careers of Ex-Mets

[Guest Edgy DC]

Score that against the "Nobody's struggling like the Mets are" table.

It also belongs in the BSotD files.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Bill Mueller is your new Dodgers batting coach, hired as special assistant to GM Colletti upon retirement, and somehow getting himself a swell (but not very stable) coaching appointment less than half a season in, with no coaching experience.

[Guest iramets]

Farmer Ted wrote: Wheeler said. "I love Chris."

Not that there's anything wrong with that.

[Farmer Ted]

This is some endorsement for the former Met:

"It's his eighth save of more than one inning. He's like Rollie Fingers and Goose Gossage." -- Reds manager Jerry Narron on Reds reliever David Weathers

[metirish]

Farmer Ted wrote: This is some endorsement for the former Met: "It's his eighth save of more than one inning. He's like Rollie Fingers and Goose Gossage." -- Reds manager Jerry Narron on Reds reliever David Weathers

That's pretty cool thing to say,Weathers is certainly a gamer.

[Guest Edgy DC]

http://colorado.rockies.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070702&content_id=2062147&vkey=news_col&fext=.jsp&c_id=col

07/02/2007 12:55 PM ET
Q&A with Kaz Matsui
Fans elect infielder Player of the Homestand for July 2-8
By Thomas Harding / MLB.com

http://colorado.rockies.mlb.com/images/2007/07/02/qWfJzTyD.jpgDENVER -- Second baseman Kazuo Matsui has been a sparkplug for the Rockies since arriving in a trade with the Mets last season. After missing 33 games with a back injury early this season, Matsui returned and helped ignite the team during its hot streak in May and June.
The surge was an example of why the Mets paid Matsui $20.1 million over three seasons to leave the Japanese Central League. Now healthy and playing second base rather than shortstop, his position in Japan, Matsui is beginning to make his mark in the Majors.

But there's more to Matsui than hits, stolen bases and excellent defense.

What few know is if Matsui didn't get a job that required him to use a batting helmet, he just might be wearing a hard hat.

Here's more about Matsui, chosen by voting of the fans at www.coloradorockies.com as the Rockies Player of the Homestand for July 2-8. He spoke through his interpreter, Yoshita Ono.

Who were your favorite players when you were growing up?

I was a big fan of the Yomiuri Giants, a player Tatsunori Hara, he's the manager right now. He played third base. I watched him on TV when I was in, like, first grade and second grade. He was just so cool.

I think he had a blue glove. Or maybe just part of the glove was blue, I'm not sure about that. Then I went out and got a Mizuno glove like that.

My favorite player in Major League Baseball was Rey Ordonez. In 2000, the Cubs against the Mets, they came to Japan to play. I went to that game. He hadn't made an error in, like, 100 games. And in that game, he made an error. I saw the error.

I did get to meet him once. It was either Spring Training or maybe when he came to Japan to play against the Seibu Lions, maybe one of those, we exchanged jerseys.

You wore No. 7 in Japan, but it wasn't available when you came to the U.S. You wore 25 with the Mets and 16 with the Rockies last season -- in both cases, the digits added up to seven. Why No. 7?

When I became a professional in Japan, I liked 1, 3, 5 and 7. But 1, 3 and 5 were unavailable. The No. 7 at that point, a guy, Darin Jackson, went back to the U.S., so I told them I wanted his No. 7.

Is wearing your favorite number making you play better?

I don't know about that. But I like No. 7.

Have you thought about living in Denver during the offseason?

It's [laughing] very cold.

You do have a home in the Los Angeles area, and I understand you're recognized in public in the Japanese community. Is that much of a problem?

They might know me, but they don't say much to me. I go to the Japanese grocery store every day, but I don't think anyone thinks much of it. I'm there all the time.

Your daughter, is she an athlete?

I want her to be in a sport. She's playing a little tennis right now.

What other sports did you play?

I played basketball, soccer, volleyball. If I didn't play baseball, I'd have tried to become a professional in basketball. I was not that good at it. In junior high and high school, when I was not in baseball season I'd join the basketball team, or maybe track.

If you didn't become a professional athlete, what would be your profession?

I'd work road construction. I haven't done that, but my friends, they got construction jobs. So probably, I would have done construction to work with my friends.

What's the best part about being a member of the Rockies?

I'm so lucky to be on this team. They let me play aggressively. They let me play baseball how I want to play it.

You came over as a shortstop. Do you still dream of being a successful shortstop in the Majors?

Right now I'm just trying to establish myself as a second baseman, since I got converted to second base from shortstop. I find things at second base enjoyable. And [having his interpreter shout in the direction of rookie Troy Tulowitzki], we've got a good shortstop on the team.

Are you excited to open the homestand against the Mets?

I played against the Mets last year, and it was real exciting because it was the first time. But this year it's the same as if I play another team. But playing against David Wright, Jose Reyes, that will be fun.

Do you miss the large media contingent from New York, and will you be happy to see them this week?

Well [smiling and shrugging his shoulders], I got used to how many media are going to come.

[MFS62]

From this weel's Baseball America hot sheet:

]Timo Perez, of, Triple-A Toledo (Tigers) Many will remember Perez from his playoff run with the 2000 Mets, during which he tied the NLCS record with eight runs scored. An IL all-star this season, the 32-year-old Perez has hit .314/.353/.492 this season with a league-leading 29 doubles. Along with sluggers like Mike Hessman, Chris Shelton and Ryan Raburn, Perez has made a Toledo three-peat a distinct possibility.

Later

[Guest Edgy DC]

Ex-Met news coming from... The Cecil Whig!

Bubba�s long road back

Tuesday, July 3, 2007 9:48 AM EDT

By Mike Phelps mphelps@chespub.com

Out of professional baseball since 2004, veteran outfielder Bubba Trammell is attempting to make a comeback. The first step on the path back to the major leagues for Trammell was a stint with the Aberdeen IronBirds. Cecil Whig Photos By Matt Given

Bubba Trammell has seen a lot of cities and a lot of games in his professional baseball career. From the small town of Jamestown, N.Y., to the bright lights of New York City, the 35 year old has played in more than 1,000 combined major and minor league games and called at least 10 cities home.

Thirteen years after his pro career began in Jamestown with the Jammers, Trammell came back in the New York-Penn League, this time with the Aberdeen IronBirds, trying to make the jump to the big leagues yet again.

The former University of Tennessee Volunteer last played in the major leagues in 2003 with the New York Yankees and in the minors with Triple-A Durham in 2004 before problems at home forced him to put his career on hold.

Trammell�s mother and sister had both been diagnosed with cancer and on top of that, he was going through a divorce with his wife.

�I�ve always loved the game � but family came first,� he said. �It was tough mentally, but I�ve always been taught that family�s first and then your career and that�s the way I did it.

�Now everything�s fine at home so I wanted to go back to my first love, and that�s baseball.�

But not without yet another bump in the road.

Trammell was supposed to begin his season in Double-A Bowie, but tore his meniscus during spring training. His rehab assignment from the Baysox led him to Ripken Stadium, where the veteran is literally a man amongst boys.

Trammell is the team�s elder statesman by 11 years, but that hasn�t kept him from enjoying the experience.

�Actually, that�s kept me going because I enjoy talking to these guys,� Trammell said. �They�ve taken me right in and acted like I�m just one of them. I tell them anything I see or if I can help out at any time, they ask me and I tell them what I think. It�s kind of nice to be able to do that.�

The helpful advice has been well received by the crowd of 20-somethings, many of them in their first season of pro ball, and all of them, like Trammell, striving for the ultimate goal.

�It�s awesome,� IronBirds outfielder and 2007 12th-round draft pick Wally Crancer said. �To be your first season and play in the outfield with a former big leaguer, you learn a lot. He�s been everywhere, so anything he says you kind of pick his brain and listen to what he has to say. He�s not just any old guy, he�s been through everything.�

Everything, for Trammell, includes an appearance in the 2000 World Series with the New York Mets. He appeared in four of the series� five games, went 2-for-5, walked once, scored a run and knocked in three.

Trammell had his most productive regular season in 2001, when he played in 142 games, hit 25 home runs and tallied 92 RBIs with the San Diego Padres.

Now, he just wants to make it back and contribute in any way possible.

�I�m pretty educated about the game,� Trammell said. �I�d probably be in a left-handed platoon type situation, power threat off the bench, something like that. Obviously, I�d be grateful of any opportunity to show them that I can still hit. You never know once you get there what�s going to happen.�

Trammell�s stay in Aberdeen began with a bang, as he notched a two-run single in his first at-bat in the IronBirds� season-opener. He didn�t exactly light the scoreboard on fire after that, hitting just .143 with three RBIs and nine strikeouts in 28 at-bats before being reassigned to the Class-A Advanced Carolina League�s Frederick Keys on Sunday, but that hasn�t suppressed his spirits just yet.

�As far as my hitting, I feel like I�m starting from scratch right now,� Trammell said. �I�ve always been a hitter, so once you can hit, you can hit.

�I have some timing issues. I haven�t had many at-bats yet. Trying to pick up the curve ball and stuff like that. It�s kind of like spring training all over again right now. I still feel like I have a quick bat and as long as I can hit the fastball I definitely think I can go back to seeing curveballs.�

That sort of determination seems to have spilled over into the remainder of the Aberdeen clubhouse.

�A lot of people have a lot of talent but you have to have the drive,� Crancer said. �You have to want to be out there every day and he�s shown that. He could have hung it up and had a great career, but he still thinks he can play and a lot of other people think he can too.

�He�s going out there and whoever doesn�t think he can, he�ll prove them wrong and he�s going to keep playing.�

Trammell said that while his goal is to make it to Baltimore this season, he hopes to play for at least another three years, regardless of how this one turns out.

�That�s my goal, but I don�t know what�s going to happen,� he said. �It would mean a lot to me to get back, especially with what I�ve gone through. It was a tough time for me. To get back would be something very special and very rewarding and I would be very proud of myself to get there.�

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

It's too bad there were no Ironbirds when I worked there. Technically though they must be a bigger boost for our "competitors" here:



I covered a lot of little league games.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Victor Zambrano, cut loose like a deuce by the Blue Jays.

[stevejrogers]

="Edgy DC"]Ex-Met news coming from... The Cecil Whig! Bubba�s long road back Tuesday, July 3, 2007 9:48 AM EDT By Mike Phelps mphelps@chespub.com...

Saw Bubba and Aberdeen when they played in Staten Island recently



I tried to get a better shot but I was too high up for a profile or anything.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Cornelius Clifford Floyd Sr.: 1950 - 2007
Dad of Cubs outfielder also quite a ballplayer

By Mary Owen
Tribune staff reporter

August 13, 2007


For those who saw a young Cornelius Clifford Floyd Sr. play baseball around the West Side housing development where he grew up, it's no surprise that his son became a professional baseball player.

"I'd like to think that his son was genetically predisposed to playing baseball," said Charles Crooms, Mr. Floyd's brother-in-law and friend. "He was a hell of a baseball player."

Mr. Floyd, 57, the father of Chicago Cubs outfielder Cliff Floyd, died Sunday, Aug. 12, at the University of Chicago Medical Center after suffering a stroke a few days ago. The Hazel Crest resident battled kidney problems for about two decades and recently had open-heart surgery, Crooms said.

Early Sunday, Cliff Floyd returned to Chicago from Colorado, where the Cubs faced the Rockies, after he had gotten word that his father's health was declining. Upon his eldest son's arrival, Mr. Floyd was removed from life support, Crooms said.

Mr. Floyd made an emotional visit to Wrigley Field on June 29, his final opportunity to watch his son play.

A Chicago native, Mr. Floyd's family moved to the Henry Horner Homes housing development when he was 8, Crooms said.

Crooms, who lived in the housing development with his family, said the two played baseball with Little League, PONY League and Connie Mack teams. They both also served in the Vietnam War.

But before enlisting in the Marines, Mr. Floyd -- known in the neighborhood as Big Flood -- married a neighborhood girl named Olivia Crooms, who was Crooms' sister.

After the military, Mr. Floyd worked in an iron factory in Chicago Heights, then as a delivery truck driver. But his kidney problems forced him into early retirement and an eventual kidney transplant, Crooms said.

The couple had two other children. Shanta died of breast cancer about 18 months ago. Julius was on his honeymoon when his father died and was on his way home, Crooms said.

Mr. Floyd was a sports fan with an encyclopedic grasp of players' stats, Crooms said. ESPN was always on his TV, and he devoured sports magazines.

"He knew their batting average from this season and the previous season and where they came from and what they did there," Crooms said. "He was really good at that."

But he kept the closest watch on his son's sports accomplishments, filling his south suburban home with memorabilia, including newspaper clippings dating to when Cliff Floyd played basketball at Thornwood High School in South Holland.

Crooms said Mr. Floyd was proud that his son had advanced to a higher level of baseball than he had reached as a power-hitting outfielder.

Cliff Floyd was drafted out of high school by the Montreal Expos. He also played for the Boston Red Sox and the New York Mets before returning to Chicago for the 2007 season.

"We'd sit up and talk about baseball, and he'd say if we had the opportunities, we could have played too," Crooms said.

In addition to his wife and sons, Mr. Floyd is survived by two grandchildren.

Funeral arrangements are pending.

-----------
mowen@tribune.com

[Guest Edgy DC]

[Guest Rockin' Doc]

My thoughts and prayers go out ot Cliff Floyd and his family on the loss of his father. Cliff was always a favorite of mine during his tenure with the Mets. I find myself still pulling for him whenever I tune in to WGN to get a baseball fix.

[metirish]

] Catching up with Piazza Frustrating season calls for reflection By Nick Cafardo | August 26, 2007 Mike Piazza has amassed Hall of Fame numbers: a .308 career average, 424 homers (including a record 399 as a catcher), 1,324 RBIs, a .377 on-base percentage. But he has had a trying year with the Oakland A's, missing 10 weeks with a sprained right shoulder that has relegated him to DHing. Having passed through waivers, Piazza could be dealt before the playoff-roster deadline (Aug. 31). The Angels have expressed the most interest. Here are a few questions for Piazza, who turns 39 a week from Tuesday: How frustrating has this season been for you? MP: "It's been a little frustrating, obviously, getting hurt. At this point in my career, I'm definitely an optimist. I just haven't been able to come along throwing-wise. I was hoping to get back behind the plate. I was very receptive to catching some and DHing some, but then once I wasn't able to do it physically, it was frustrating because I really wanted to catch. When I got back from the injury [July 20], they were very willing to accommodate my personal situation, put Jack [Cust] in the outfield a little bit. The injury bug on this team this year is like nothing I've ever seen before." Would you like to be traded into a pennant race? MP: "I've always considered myself a good soldier. Back when it was being discussed at the deadline, I've never been one to rock the boat either way. If they want me to finish here, I'll do it. If they wanted to trade me, I would have listened and been as accommodating as possible. We never really discussed it, so I never really brought it up. I didn't come here to expect to be traded. I thought about being here the whole year." Pop-up Coming down the stretch In a perfect world, how much would you have DH'd and caught? MP: "It would be based, I think, on how it flowed with the team. We had this unique situation in San Diego last year where we had this -- the announcers joked about it -- a three-headed monster. Catching-wise, we led the major leagues in average, home runs, and RBIs as a trio. 'The Three Stooges' I called us. Had I been 100 percent physically, it would have been interesting to catch 50 games or so, but that obviously wasn't in the cards. I'm just going to try to finish the year rehabbing and getting as healthy as possible and take it into the offseason and see what comes up in the offseason." Have you thought about next year at all? MP: "I don't feel at this point in my career I'm going to make a decision this soon. I just hope to finish strong, healthy, and see if there's any option next year. My wife and I have a baby now, seven months old, so that's something I need to consider. There's potential off-the-field stuff. I've dabbled in some broadcasting and I've gotten some pretty good objective reviews. When you're a catcher, I think you have a unique perspective that some other players don't have. I love guys like Rex Hudler and guys who have fun broadcasting. Jerry Remy is another one who has a lot of fun." You know what I'm going to ask. You and Roger Clemens. Hitting you in the head in 2000. Throwing the splintered bat at you in Game 2 of the 2000 World Series. Did you guys ever patch that up? MP: "We're just different people, I guess. I don't carry a resentment or anything like that. Someone made a comment to me the other day in Canada that, 'With all your accomplishments, you're going to be remembered for that.' Are you that shallow that you only remember me for that? If that's true, then you're too stupid and I can't help you. I don't look back in any sort of regret. He's who he is, I am who I am, we're two different people, but we're both very competitive and strong-willed. He does his own thing and he's had a very successful career. I'm sure we can coexist in the future in some way, shape, or form." What would enshrinement into the Hall of Fame mean to you? MP: "I've been up there in Cooperstown a couple of times, and just talking to the people . . . it's so much more than just a personal thing. It's a fraternity thing, which in this game is pretty unique. Being able to associate with the greats of the game, the reminiscing . . . Being enshrined is a tremendous honor, but from a personal perspective, it's going to be fun to just go to the events and hang out with the greatest players, and if I make it, feel like, 'Wow, you were one of the best.' " Any regrets about anything? MP: "That's a good question. I really don't. I've had a unique career. Getting traded from LA to Florida when Fox bought the Dodgers and that contemptuous sort of [contract] standoff we had was tough. Looking back, it built a lot of character for me. Your life sometimes is like muddy water and you have to wait for things to settle so you can see clear. Looking back, I wouldn't trade that experience for the world. I remember Jim Leyland took me into his office and he said, 'Let me tell you. You're going through a tough time now but you're going to get paid. You earned it. You worked hard for it. It's obviously not going to be here. Just keep yourself in shape. We're going to get you somewhere where you need to go.' That was an experience I wouldn't trade in." Feel you can still hit at a high level? MP: "Yeah, I do [Note: after our interview, Piazza went 4 for 5 with two doubles and a home run vs. Tampa Bay Thursday night]. At this advanced age, I have to be 100 percent healthy. That for me has been tough this year. This game has a way of telling you when it's time to go. You have to kind of know it and feel it. It's a decision you really can't make unless you feel you're at a good place. I've enjoyed it in Oakland. The young guys have been very respectful and inquisitive and asked me questions, so that part is fun for me. I still have fun playing the game."

[Guest Edgy DC]

Wow, Jorge F. Velandia rides again.

Velandia Making His Presence Felt

By MARC LANCASTER

The Tampa Tribune

Published: Sep 18, 2007

http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20070914/capt.fbfc9dc51c0e4a35b29827464322e9f9.devil_rays_mariners_baseball_waet107.jpg

ANAHEIM, CALIF. - Jorge Velandia had grown accustomed to the routine. As a reliable pro who was handy with the glove at various infield positions but not quite big-league ready at the plate, he would shuttle back and forth between Triple-A and the majors, always right there on the fringe.

Six times in seven seasons from 1997 to 2003, Velandia spent at least some time in the majors - including spending an entire (albeit injury-shortened) 1999 campaign on Oakland's big-league roster. At the end of his September call-up with the Mets in 2003, he had no reason to believe he would slog through almost four full seasons before breaking free of Triple-A again.

But he spent a year in Richmond without seeing Atlanta, then Indianapolis without a call to Pittsburgh and Charlotte without a summons to Chicago. And at age 32, with a wife and daughter at home in Illinois, he had no qualms about reporting to Durham when he didn't make the Devil Rays' roster this spring.

"I never thought about hanging it up, but I always thought, 'Am I going to get a second chance? Am I going to get another break?'" Velandia said. "Sometimes early in my career, you took it for granted whenever you got called up, and they'd send you down, and then you'd get called up. But this one was really special for me."

The Rays' players and coaches got to know Velandia a bit during spring training, but he already has made a significant impression in his first week with the team. Everyone seems to love having him in the clubhouse, and he has performed when given an opportunity - reaching base eight times in 12 plate appearances over three starts while playing flawless defense.

http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20070916/capt.9fbc4675b70e4aba9d107b217da428b4.devil_rays_mariners_baseball_wajf106.jpg

That last part isn't a surprise, as Velandia's glove has been major-league caliber for at least a decade.

"My thing is that I've never been able to hit in the big leagues," he said. "That's one of the reasons I always go down to Triple-A."

Velandia had played in 150 big-league games entering this season and was carrying a .151 batting average - the lowest by a non-pitcher in major-league history with at least that many appearances. "He's everything you want in a player and a friend," said reliever Jeff Ridgway, who spent all season with Velandia in Durham before joining the Rays on Monday. "He's always going to be there no matter what. He's just a fluid guy in the field, doesn't make errors, and the presence in the clubhouse is always positive. He's a guy you can go to with any question you have - just a real class act."

Rays manager Joe Maddon raves about Velandia's presence, praising him as a "steady, relaxed professional."

The production that has gone along with it already has earned Velandia more playing time than expected, and he figures to get a few more starts before the season ends. Velandia will use any chance he gets to try to open the eyes of the Rays and any other organizations that might be paying attention, looking to position himself as well as he can heading into another spring training fraught with uncertainty.

"You always see nice stories with different guys around the league, and you always think to yourself, 'Is that going to happen to me?'" Velandia said. "You play with a guy for a long time and he's in Triple-A for three or four years, and then you see him on TV doing it [in the majors] and you're like, 'Why not?'"

Reporter Marc Lancaster can be reached at (813) 259-7227 or

mlancaster@tampatrib.com

.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Park Chan-Ho, returning to the Dodgers.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

75 million yen sounds like more than $670,000 US dollars doesn't it?

]3 foreign players to join Yokohama YOKOHAMA, Dec. 7 (19:40) Kyodo The Yokohama BayStars announced Friday the acquisition of three foreign players, including left-hander Dave Williams who played for the New York Mets in the 2007 season. Yokohama and Williams have agreed on a one-year, 75 million yen contract. Outfielder Larry Bigbie and right-hander Travis Hughes have also reached agreements on one-year deals worth 65 million yen and 60 million yen, respectively. Williams, 28, has a 22-31 record in 82 games in his major league career, which also includes stints with the Pittsburgh Pirates and Cincinnati Reds. Bigbie, 30, has appeared in 392 major league games, including 139 with the Baltimore Orioles in 2004, with a .267 average, 31 homers and 137 RBIs. Hughes, 29, posted 24 saves for the Boston Red Sox's Triple-A affiliate this year.

[Valadius]

Timo Perez was sent outright to AAA Toledo by the Tigers.

[Guest Edgy DC]

The Phils have gone nuts and announced 13 signings of minor-league free agents, including sex-Met Jason Anderson, and Juan Tejeda, a firstbaseman who spent half of 2006 with Norfolk.

[seawolf17]

Cliff Floyd, Ray.

Edgardo Alfonzo, Ranger.

[Fman99]

According to the St. Petersburg Times, Jae Seo has signed a 1.5 million dollar deal to return to pitching in his native S. Korea.

[Guest Edgy DC]

The Dodgers have signed ephemeral Met Gary Bennett, perhaps the first to sign after being outed by Senator George Mitchell.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Matt Ginter, minor league deal with the Indians.