A Boy Named Seo

Translate? Bags: Byrnes CF Jackson 1B Headquarters = Hudson 2B Reynolds 3B Hairston LF Quentin RF Snyder C Callaspo SS Davis P

Looks like the draft is on ESPN2, in addition to MLB.tv. Here's a thing from a San Diego paper. Wonder if there will be a bunch of players sitting around and MLB will do the hat/#1 jersey thing the other sports do? ]Must-see TV? MLB hoping to see its draft evolve By: JEFF SANDERS - Staff Writer Thirty years ago, when the New York Mets selected Wally Backman with their first-round pick, he was notified by the school intercom with the rest of his Aloha High classmates in Beaverton, Ore. Naturally, at first, Backman figured he was headed to the principal's office. Dustin Moseley and Joe Saunders, more than 20 years later, invited their closest friends to join their family to huddle around their computer to follow the draft live via the Internet. Matt Antonelli's father, likewise, re-rigged the speakers hooked up to his computer to accommodate the 100-plus party that showed up to celebrate the Wake Forest product's induction as the Padres' 2006 first-round pick. Now enter the next phase of the evolution of baseball's amateur draft: Live TV. For what so many people call the national pastime, it's about time. "I think it's great; there's no reason in the world Major League Baseball shouldn't have the same notoriety and marketing and publicity that the NFL and the NBA do with their drafts," said Grady Fuson, the Padres' scouting and player development director. "We're at a point now where ESPN has found a market for it. I only expect it to get bigger and bigger." The Tampa Bay Devil Rays will kick off the 2007 draft Thursday at 11 a.m. on ESPN2, marking baseball's first attempt to give a broad audience an inside look at the ground-up development of organizations. Only don't expect the same kind of spectacle that comes with the NFL or NBA's draft. You probably won't see projected No. 1 overall pick David Price squirming in his seat at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.; his Vanderbilt team is a No. 1 seed in its regional and in the College World Series hunt. You probably will see plenty of game film on Price and Georgia Tech catcher Matt Wieters. But top the quality of tape available on top prepsters, like Cypress High third baseman Josh Vitters and Norwell (Ind.) High right-hander Jarrod Parker, remains to be seen. A Mel Kiper-like best available list? Maybe ---- Baseball America has scouting reports on the country's top 200 prospects. An in-depth look at a Major League war room? Most likely not. Teams will have only five minutes to pick. Nobody will make any trades. Clubs' representatives headed to Florida ---- the Padres are sending senior advisor Dave Winfield and Randy Smith, the director of professional and international scouting; the Dodgers are sending, among others, Tommy Lasorda ---- will have little, if any, inside info on the players selected. But even if next week's dog-and-pony show is only a dressed-down look at the draft, it beats the 48-hour window in the 90s that used to elapse before the draft was publicized. "I think there's a big baseball world out there, and I think it'll be followed pretty well," said Saunders, the Angels' first-round pick out of Virginia Tech in 2002. "It's baby steps. I think they have to start at the collegiate levels and the high school levels just to get the word out there to the public, which probably doesn't know who these guys are. ... "Hopefully, it grows and becomes a really great thing." Will it ever become Must-See-TV like the first day of the NFL draft? The odds are stacked against baseball. Trading picks in a 50-round draft doesn't seem feasible, at least not any time soon. College baseball doesn't yet have the popularity that college football and basketball do. The stars selected in the first round of the baseball draft often take at least a year to reach the big leagues. The Padres' Xavier Nady, in 2000, was the last drafted player to head straight to the bigs and only 20 players have done that since 1967. Every year, top-round NFL and NBA selections become prominent players in their leagues. Minor League Baseball's popularity, though, has never been better. The draft can cash in on that now. And perhaps a lot more down the road. "I always watch the NFL Draft," Antonelli said. "I'm sure it won't be as big as those sports; those guys are going right in. We're not going right into the bigs; we're going into the minors. But I'm sure there's tons of college baseball fans that will like to see where their guys go and I'm sure there's tons of people interested in Minor League Baseball, with all the fans that come out and watch us. "I'm sure it'll be pretty big."

Yahoo's already got lineups posted: Bags: Byrnes CF Jackson 1B Headquarters 2B Reynolds 3B Hairston LF Quentin RF Snyder C Callaspo SS Davis P =blue]Mets: Reyes SS Chavez CF Wright 3B Delgado 1B LoDuca C Easley 2B BJ LF Cargo RF Ollie4Prez P

Massive love-fest out of Chicago today. I guess if you're going to have two guys on your team rumble, this is exactly how you'd want it to play out the next day. Whatever happens in Vegas stays in Vegas? Whatever you say, Carlos. Zambrano, Barrett put dugout scuffle behind them Associated Press Updated: June 2, 2007, 2:23 PM ET CHICAGO -- Cubs pitcher Carlos Zambrano blamed himself for Friday's fight with teammate Michael Barrett that started in the dugout, resumed in the clubhouse and left the catcher needing six stitches at a hospital. "It's all my fault," Zambrano said Saturday. "That's all I can say. I feel bad for that." The Cubs fined Zambrano and Barrett an undisclosed amount. Neither player was suspended. The outburst came during the fifth inning of Friday's 8-5 loss to Atlanta. Barrett wound up with a bruise below his left eye and a cut lower lip. He said he and Zambrano have had their differences, but it never became physical until Friday. He said there's no need for the pitcher to apologize. Fighting Mad at Wrigley "I think it happened because Zambrano and I are so close," he said. "I think of him like a brother. It's like a sibling rivalry." The Cubs had lost nine of 11 and were 22-30 entering Saturday, and frustrations finally boiled over. "There's no need for what happened," manager Lou Piniella said. "The important thing is there's no continuation." The Braves had scored five runs in the top of the fifth when Zambrano and Barrett went at it in the dugout. Zambrano pointed at his head and screamed at Barrett, who allowed a run to score on a passed ball and throwing error. "I was just telling him, 'Are you out of your mind?'" Zambrano said, referring to the gesture. Barrett yelled back while pointing toward the field, and matters escalated. Zambrano shoved Barrett and slapped him. He had his right fist cocked as the two were being separated. Piniella and several players escorted Zambrano to the clubhouse. Barrett went back to the clubhouse to talk to Zambrano, but there was more than talk. "It came unexpected," Barrett said. "I just wanted to clear my mind, clear my head a bit. I underestimated what he was going through. I never would have thought it could have [happened]. I love Carlos. I know he loves me." Neither player would reveal exactly what happened in the clubhouse. "Whatever happens in Vegas stays in Vegas," Zambrano said. Zambrano and Barrett have expiring contracts, and both emphasized their loyalty to the organization. When asked if he wants to remain a Cub, Zambrano said, "Of course." I think it happened because Zambrano and I are so close. I think of him like a brother. It's like a sibling rivalry. Barrett added: "I love this organization from top to bottom." He said he looks forward to catching Zambrano again, but Piniella made clear that won't happen soon. Barrett was not in the lineup Saturday but was available. Zambrano's emotions are his strength and weakness as a pitcher. He's off to a slow start at 5-5 with a 5.62 ERA. This wasn't the first fight for Barrett, who touched off a bench-clearing brawl last season when he punched the White Sox's A.J. Pierzynski in the face. "I respect this game and I respect others," Barrett said. "Sometimes our behavior speaks differently, and that's unfortunate because that's not what I'm about."

Was that guy's face cut? And why would using George Brett as a pinch hitter for Miller (Keith??) be a stupid-ass fucking thing to do?

Blow Job works, too.

What the hell are those tubular necklaces El Duque's wearing? I've seen a few of those things on ball players lately.

"...lists Roger Clemens as his favorite sports figure." What are they teaching at that college of his?

BA has their top 30 dudes which may mean nothing to us drafting in the 40's, though somebody's bound to drop. I've heard of both the high school kids from Chatsworth. The LA Times had a write-up about Mike Moustakas a couple weeks ago as he set the state high school record for career homers with 50-something and he has over 20 this year. Not bad. I'm guessing neither one of those dudes is around by the supplemental round. Omar in the in-game interview right now just said "best player available" is the team's draft policy. No surprises there.

Ben Baumer lives. Who was the other guy? Adam Fisher?

He had a run-in with Aurelia at first and fell kind of awkward on his leg. Didn't look like much at first, he stayed in the game and scored on Wright's double. He was walking around the dugout and looked okay, but pulled himself out.

Where's HoJo on that one? He's gotta be all over Endy to take two.

The draft starts a week from today and for the first time, will be televised kinda, on MLB.tv. Also different this year will be the absence of a team's ability to "draft-and-follow". According to an MLB.com article, basically this means "teams will no longer be able to select a player late in the Draft, send them off to junior college and then sign them the following season after watching their development closely." Using the entire year and going down to the wire before signing your #1 guy (Humber and Pelfrey for example) is no longer an option either as clubs now have until 11:59 PM (EDT) August 15 to sign their dude or he's back in the draft for next year. If I'm getting that right, teams now have just over 2 months to sign their guy, which is pretty huge. The Mets have no first round pick this year, but have 2 sandwich picks (#42 and 47 overall) and also pick at 77, 93, and 99 giving them 5 of the first 100 picks which ain't so bad. The Mets had just 2 picks in the first 100 last year and grabbed RHP Kevin Mulvey out of Villanova at #62 (currently pitching pretty well at Binghamton) and one Joseph Smith out of Wright State at #94.

"It's game time, dipshit."

Vic Sage wrote: i'm already clearing a space on my mantel... thanks, folks. I'm going to cherish it forever. well, for a few minutes, anyway. Talk about reverse jinxes. Poor Vic lost like 20 points within a half hour of typing this message.

Great IGT. Nice to see my baby doll Squinty make an appearance. Just finished it on the Tivo. Was thinking Marsh called a decent game until Wagner came on and he squeezed him a bit, but was really happy he had the stones to call balls or strikes on the check swings on his own until that Lo Duca one. That was terrible. Lincecum's wind-up reminded me a little of Hideo Nomo the way he twisted so much to his right that his back was completely turned to home before he unwound and fired. He was bad-ass, though. As advertised. Speaking of advertising, SNY had the superimposed computer ads behind home plate tonight, I guess to accommodate ESPN's green screen for their computer ads. That's always been an annoyance of mine for some reason, but SNY did it better than ESPN has and way better than FOX does it and they've had years of practice. I'm not even sure I would've noticed if not for the green screen. Weird ending, but a win is a win is a win, I guess.

attgig wrote: his name is ben. ben johnson. came from SD in a trade along with adkins We gave up Heath and Ring this past winter. he's still young enough, but hasn't proven himself to be any better than a utility OF'er at this point. That structure is joelmon-esque. Thanks.

Ben for anyone else stoopid like me.

Who the hell's Johnson?

Ray Durham, BTW, tweaked his oblique or something this past week and is day-to-day, according to him. The team was talking DL, so who knows.

Lincecum is amazing. 98-MPH heater out of a pretty small dude and exploding junk (one of my favorite baseball terms/sexual euphemisms). His minor league numbers are completely and utterly ridiculous. Must-see TV tonight.

Great job. The Marlins have been taking advantage of Hanley's extra-base pop and have been batting him third lately, but he's still running lots in front of Cabrera. Since she's got his Marlins jersey on, Treanor should be wearing her sports bra.

Blade was my adopted prospect on the old board. Big lefty, line-drive hitting first baseman with all this power that was supposed to show up at any minute. He went .242./.353/.408 in 331 AB's (91 K's!) last year in high A for Boston, but was just 23. Surprised they cut him loose even though he did pretty much suck.

GYC wrote: Willie is a pussy. Way to stand up for your players, asshole. It's not like he's going to get the call reversed. He'd just get thrown out, and getting run in the 3rd doesn't leave the team in better shape and won't help Wright his next AB.

When did the authority to call for an appeal shift to the catcher?