Cubans

[Redsfan1507]

I hear the Cardinals are in the mix for a Cuban SS/2b. Might be backup in case Peralta/Wong aren't all they want. Tough to catch up much less stay one up on those damned Cardinals.

I dunno exactly what's changed, but it seems a lot more baseball players are finding the 90 miles to Miami more often than it's been in a long time. They're still "escaping", but from the pre-Castro 60's to just a few years ago, almost none made it out. Now it seems like 1-2 a year are MLB bound.

 

[HammerDown]

And if he plays for the Cardinals, no one will be allowed to speculate about his PED use.

 

[mrwallace2ku]

Plenty of Cuban talent out there, why should MLB discriminate? Sometimes old battles (hatchets) need to buried.

Just as long as their cigars can come thru customs too. By the ship fulls I mean.

 

[JohnU]

It's a matter of time before the embargo ends. It's childish to keep playing like spoiled brats. It's not like Cuba has any missiles hidden. It's more than ballplayers. It's about being human.

That rant aside, I hear some rumors that LaLa isn't especially convinced their prodigy Guerrero, the 2B of all time, is going to work out like they planned.

A good Cuban baseball player is a good baseball player.

The entire Caribbean area is loaded with them.

 

[HammerDown]

It's a matter of time before the embargo ends. It's childish to keep playing like spoiled brats. It's not like Cuba has any missiles hidden. It's more than ballplayers. It's about being human.

Of course, the issue with Cuba is much more complex than resentment over the past and no one is "acting like spoiled brats" by enforcing an embargo. Are you aware of just how badly Castro has abused the people of Cuba with Communism? The people have nothing and he's one of the richest men in the world. He could have ended the embargo any time he wanted to.

 

[JohnU]

Hammer ... not defending Castro, didn't think I implied that. Cubans aren't dying in the street. Whatever else is going on there probably relates to parts for a 1949 DeSoto.

There are plenty of regimes that are abusive and we maintain relationships with them.
But I won't discuss the politics of this. That should be handled on another level. I seriously question whether anything political doesn't first deal with oil.

The embargoes affect the nature of humankind.

As for who is or isn't in charge of ending the embargo, it's time the discussion got serious.
Castro will be dead soon, regardless of how rich he is. Life tends to even out. In eternity, the peasant sups with the monarch, or so goes the saying.

 

[HammerDown]

Hammer ... not defending Castro, didn't think I implied that. Cubans aren't dying in the street. Whatever else is going on there probably relates to parts for a 1949 DeSoto.

There are plenty of regimes that are abusive and we maintain relationships with them.
But I won't discuss the politics of this. That should be handled on another level. I seriously question whether anything political doesn't first deal with oil.

The embargoes affect the nature of humankind.

As for who is or isn't in charge of ending the embargo, it's time the discussion got serious.
Castro will be dead soon, regardless of how rich he is. Life tends to even out. In eternity, the peasant sups with the monarch, or so goes the saying.

My parents spent 4 months there with permission of the State Dept. and Castro has established a regime of terror and fear. It's complex and the problem doesn't end with Fidel's death as his family is poised to continue the reign of terror. I'm not interested in discussing politics here either and apologize for misunderstanding you. I tend to bristle when people pretend like the US is being a bully by imposing economic sanctions on Fidel Castro, errr... I mean Cuba.

 

[JohnU]

Oh, I have no doubt about Castro's methods. Dictatorships rarely run on human kindness.
I just find that some of the rhetoric over Cuba through the years bordered on dogma instead of common sense. Castro isn't quite the bully that Kim has been in North Korea, which isn't to say that he might not have been. And I'm not naive enough to think that a "DC-style democracy" is poised at the funeral home, waiting to take the government.

I just see this from the point of view of the people and not the U.S. government, which hasn't done much to make life better in the Caribbean. Other than park a few ships in their harbors.

And, yeah, the complexities over property rights in Cuba will never be resolved. It's been 55 years.

 

[mutigers1fan]

Not to jump in to hostile territory environment but I was reading through and noticed the Cardinals were mentioned. Going back to baseball, I have been hearing through media sources that an offer will be made by the Cardinals by the end of the day and Diaz is expected to sign by the end of the weekend.

Now if this were to happen he'd prolly go to Memphis initially. My personal ideal scenario would be to put him at SS and slide Peralta to 1B. I want Adams gone which would make this possible. Then whenever they want to sit Wong for a time they could put Diaz at 2B, Peralta back at SS, move Craig in to 1B and use Oscar in the OF alongside Jay/Bourjos (Holliday a fixture in LF).

For the life of me I can't find it, but does anyone know if he bats right or left?

 

[JohnU]

Not to jump in to hostile territory environment but I was reading through and noticed the Cardinals were mentioned. Going back to baseball, I have been hearing through media sources that an offer will be made by the Cardinals by the end of the day and Diaz is expected to sign by the end of the weekend.

Now if this were to happen he'd prolly go to Memphis initially. My personal ideal scenario would be to put him at SS and slide Peralta to 1B. I want Adams gone which would make this possible. Then whenever they want to sit Wong for a time they could put Diaz at 2B, Peralta back at SS, move Craig in to 1B and use Oscar in the OF alongside Jay/Bourjos (Holliday a fixture in LF).

For the life of me I can't find it, but does anyone know if he bats right or left?

I don't think we're too too hostile here. We just don't like trolls.
Odd about your thoughts on Adams. I hear mixed signals there but for sure, they have to find a spot for Craig in that lineup, based on his 2013 numbers.
Diaz hits right.

POST-DISPATCH STORY

 

[mutigers1fan]

Adams can't hit breaking balls or anything away and until that changes I have no use for him. Craig will play RF or 1B. I personally think in a year or 2 it could be Holliday, Oscar, Craig in the OF with Bourjos as a 4th outfielder and Jay in another organization.

Thanks for the info, I read that article yesterday and I guess that info didn't stick. I looked around today and couldn't find it.

 

[JohnU]

As much as we all opine about the spring training, the fact is, most teams have room for one or two players, tops. Unless it's the Astros or the Marlins.

For anybody to come out of the Caribbean, they have to be a hoss to make a big-league roster out of camp. The only foreign players who do are usually the elite Japanese players, and none of them come cheap. There are a lot of Japanese guys who never sniff the show.

I don't think the Reds have any open roster spots, unless it's the spare infielder job. Even that, Santiago is almost a lock. The only question is whether Bernadina gets a job on the bench.

All in all, though, I like the game the Cubans bring to U.S. baseball, despite their behavior off the field here and there. It's in-your-face, old-school ... and in the case of Chapman, a touch on the dangerous side. Chappy will whiz one past a guy's ear just to send a message. They learn that in Cuba, from all I have read about them.

Learned it here too, but the U.S. kids seem to have been domesticated a little more.

 

[Redsfan1507]

Not many Americans have been in a 3rd world country, and don't get why the media quizzing the Russians about their hockey loss isn't entertaining for them. The people in Kiev dont live the Western view if freedom, and arent going to get the American legal system to represent them.

Anyone that knows someone that has been to Gitmo knows Cuba isn't just a pastoral beach. For Cuban ball players that win the lottery sized chance of making MLB money, it isn't all fresh air and harmony...they left family and friends that might be punished for their good fortune. They're in a foreign country where most "friends" can't be trusted not to extort and exploit them. Real or imagined, there is fear that a visit to the Bahamas or even Miami might result in kidnapping or murder. Distractions aren't just with cars and women.

Anywhere there is warm weather, sports and poverty, there are going to be 15 year old kids with more playing experience, and motivation, than in softer environments. There are probably more 22 year olds as a percentage that are MLB ready in Cuba than in Japan, just because of those reasons. I don't have empirical evidence, but suspect there are a lot more Spanish speaking Americans than Japanese speaking Americans, but there are probably fewer Cubans that speak English than Japanese that speak English, too. I think it would be a tougher transition for Cubans, by far.

At any rate, I doubt Fidel's brother is more lax on escapees, or softer on application of despotism/communism, he's probably just more limited financially in keeping the gate closed. IMO, economics is what drove the Berlin Wall down, not diplomacy.

At any rate, it's looking like a trend, and IMO, one that will positively impact the game. More competition usually raises the bar and adds to the flavor.

 

[Redsfan1507]

...and for what it's worth, Grizzly Adams is very likely to hit 20 fastballs in the Mississippi, and 15 more in the Missouri, and if he does, no one will care if he doesnt hit any curveballs into the Ohio. If we didnt have Votto, I'd take him...and probably still take him and call him a left fielder, if he just stood there and got in the way once in a while.

He looks like Boog Powell. He did pretty well for a fat guy that couldn't hit a curveball.

 

[JohnU]

What's this about fat guys?

 

[Redsfan1507]

Pretty conmon...Ott, Ruth, Wagner, Boog, Pops, Lolich, the Molinas, Manny, C.C. the Panda. Griz....shoot, Puig gained 25 lbs. this winter...of course might be the horse meds he was taking, or maybe he just ate a horse.

 

[Redsfan1507]

How could I forget Papi ?

 

[mutigers1fan]

That guy wasn't fat. That guy hit .342 with .474 OBP career. Ruth struck out a lot and hit for a lot of power but was getting on base. If Adams his 25 HR's but strikes out 200 times and hits .235 I don't want him on my team.

 

[JohnU]

That guy wasn't fat. That guy hit .342 with .474 OBP career. Ruth struck out a lot and hit for a lot of power but was getting on base. If Adams his 25 HR's but strikes out 200 times and hits .235 I don't want him on my team.

Most years, Ruth was in good shape. He was like all ballplayers of his time, came to camp out of shape and got into shape in spring training. Funny how those guys never had lat strains or hammy pulls ... or they did and we just don't care to know about it.

Actually, the bulk doesn't have a ton of impact on a hitter who has exceptional bat speed.

 

[Redsfan1507]

Yep. Training has changed, medical science has for sure. Look at film of just 30 years ago or so- BRM looked skinny, compared to the buffed up roid heads today...but remarkably, the play hasn't changed that much.

Haven't invented a new pitch in about a century...and the benchmarks really haven't inflated...in fact, many have decreased- don't get nearly as many GS, CG, IP as the 4 man rotations did. There are more saves but far fewer with more than 1 inning. They say the modern player is faster, but catchers percentage of throwouts isnt much different, and still somehow, they dont steal as often now. (Smaller parks and DH) .300 is still important and .350 is still elite. 50 HR is still rare. 200 hits by hitters and 200 K's by pitchers aren't as common, but more hitters strike out over 100 times a year than they used to.

There are definately more teams, and therefore more players, a LOT more money, and subsequently that means there are players who wouldn't have even been MLB players back in the days if 24 teams, that will make a million ( or much more ) with a 5.00 ERA or .215 BA.