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I hate that stinkin' Pedroia.
I wish the White Sox had him...
I wish the White Sox had him...
Pedroia was 4thGen's coach at one of the ASU camps he attended. He was great with the kids and inspirational. He always knew he was going to be great. After his call up in 2006 he told coach Murphy he expected ML pitching to be better then it was.
That's a funny quote. I love that touch of cockiness. I read earlier that after hitting a grand slam against the evil Yankees, Pedroia proclaimed to his teammates he was the strongest 165 pound player in the bigs.
This may be an obvious question. Pedroia earned 2007 Rookie of the Year and 2008 League MVP. Has this ever happened before?
Cal Ripken Jr. and Ryan Howard. Nice company.
5th place, JP.
Might have been higher if not for the injury.
Might have been higher if not for the injury.
Had he played September at a pace even as bad as Morneau's, it would have been no contest.
"Originally posted by bbscout:
infielddad, Dustin Pedroia is a very good prospect. Where he gets drafted would only be a guess on my part, but he will get drafted quickly and get an opportunity to play pro ball. I have watched him since he was in the 10th grade and he has a couple of tools that are outstanding......he can really hit and is an outstanding fielder. He has a great make up and has a feel for the game that not many players have that will take him a long way."
This was posted by Doug before the 2004 draft and why he is our treasured bbscout. Does not get much better than that!
infielddad, Dustin Pedroia is a very good prospect. Where he gets drafted would only be a guess on my part, but he will get drafted quickly and get an opportunity to play pro ball. I have watched him since he was in the 10th grade and he has a couple of tools that are outstanding......he can really hit and is an outstanding fielder. He has a great make up and has a feel for the game that not many players have that will take him a long way."
This was posted by Doug before the 2004 draft and why he is our treasured bbscout. Does not get much better than that!
Let's hear it for the 2B! Yay! 
I was thinking today how much bbscout thought of Dustin as a player before anyone not on the west coast had ever heard of him. He is listed at 5'9". Numerous references to him put him way under that at around 5-5.
Maybe his MVP, and the 2 Cy Young guys and their "below average" size will minimize concerns folks have about size mattering.
Baseball is unique, which makes it the greatest game.
Baseball is unique, which makes it the greatest game.
quote:Originally posted by OLDSLUGGER8:
Maybe his MVP, and the 2 Cy Young guys and their "below average" size will minimize concerns folks have about size mattering.
Doubt it. Just like lip service is paid to stuff & command over velocity. Everyone likes big studs and big digits on the gun.
I don't have enough history to know what caused the cultural shift, but it seems fairly obvious that in the CYA world, it's easier to justify your mistake with velocity and/or size.
quote:Originally posted by infielddad:
"Originally posted by bbscout:
infielddad, Dustin Pedroia is a very good prospect. Where he gets drafted would only be a guess on my part, but he will get drafted quickly and get an opportunity to play pro ball. I have watched him since he was in the 10th grade and he has a couple of tools that are outstanding......he can really hit and is an outstanding fielder. He has a great make up and has a feel for the game that not many players have that will take him a long way."
This was posted by Doug before the 2004 draft and why he is our treasured bbscout. Does not get much better than that!
Another one of bbscout's guys was Jimmy Rollins who won the NL MVP in 2007. He also is not very big. That was something I always appreciated about bbscout was that he looked beyond the package and at what the package could actually do. Not that he had anything against big guys
CC Sabathia was another of his guys and I believe his son beemax is a pretty big guy I miss bbscout.
I fixed my above post to note that Jimmy Rollins won in 2007 as PG pointed out.
I never meant to imply bbscout was the only one who recognized their talent. Obviously, Philadelphia and Boston did. I remember him posting that he had some of these players in their teens on his Area Code team so he would have been one of the earliest to identify them - certainly not the only one however.
I never meant to imply bbscout was the only one who recognized their talent. Obviously, Philadelphia and Boston did. I remember him posting that he had some of these players in their teens on his Area Code team so he would have been one of the earliest to identify them - certainly not the only one however.
I thought I posted something here? It disappeared!
I'll try again...
Jimmy Rollins was drafted in the 2nd rd out of high school in 1996 (46th pick overall) and he was the NL MVP in 2007.
Dustin Pedroia was drafted in the 2nd rd out of Arizona State in 2004. (65th pick overall)
He was one of the best players in Arizona State history and a first team all American there.
Doug McMillan was a great scout and an even better person, but with all due respect (which is as much respect as can be given to anyone, in this case) Doug wasn’t the only one who recognized the talent above. Two small guys picked in the 2nd rd, one straight out of high school. Both have already become MVP’s.
OLDSLUGGER,
MLB has a history of following the leader, so there is no doubt that what these smaller guys are accomplishing and their teams winning will have a definite affect on thinking in the scouting community.
Years ago when teams like the Cardinals and Royals were world series teams, the most important tool in scouting was “speed”. When teams like the Orioles were winning, defensive shortstops who didn’t hit were still considered a priority. Then as it became more of an offensive game, the most important thing became hitting and power. Not long ago, big and tall pitchers were all scouting departments cared about. Some scouting departments even ordered their scouts NOT to turn in 6-0 and under RHPs. Now we see many not so big pitchers among the best in the game. Things do change and even though the tall pitcher is still much in demand, the outstanding smaller pitchers are getting drafted much earlier than years ago. ie. Tim Lincecum! Successful results changes the way people think.
I really miss Doug a lot, too.
I'll try again...
Jimmy Rollins was drafted in the 2nd rd out of high school in 1996 (46th pick overall) and he was the NL MVP in 2007.
Dustin Pedroia was drafted in the 2nd rd out of Arizona State in 2004. (65th pick overall)
He was one of the best players in Arizona State history and a first team all American there.
Doug McMillan was a great scout and an even better person, but with all due respect (which is as much respect as can be given to anyone, in this case) Doug wasn’t the only one who recognized the talent above. Two small guys picked in the 2nd rd, one straight out of high school. Both have already become MVP’s.
OLDSLUGGER,
MLB has a history of following the leader, so there is no doubt that what these smaller guys are accomplishing and their teams winning will have a definite affect on thinking in the scouting community.
Years ago when teams like the Cardinals and Royals were world series teams, the most important tool in scouting was “speed”. When teams like the Orioles were winning, defensive shortstops who didn’t hit were still considered a priority. Then as it became more of an offensive game, the most important thing became hitting and power. Not long ago, big and tall pitchers were all scouting departments cared about. Some scouting departments even ordered their scouts NOT to turn in 6-0 and under RHPs. Now we see many not so big pitchers among the best in the game. Things do change and even though the tall pitcher is still much in demand, the outstanding smaller pitchers are getting drafted much earlier than years ago. ie. Tim Lincecum! Successful results changes the way people think.
I really miss Doug a lot, too.
quote:Originally posted by biggerpapi:
That's a funny quote. I love that touch of cockiness. I read earlier that after hitting a grand slam against the evil Yankees, Pedroia proclaimed to his teammates he was the strongest 165 pound player in the bigs.
One more Pedroia story: He was held up by security last year in Colorado at the World Series. The Security Gaurd looked at Pedroia and said he was no player. Pedroia got fired up and told him to "Ask Jeff Francis who I am" with a couple of colorful adjectives added in. Of course he was referencing his World Series lead off HR.
It is that attitude that has helped him get where he is.
I love the kid!
quote:MLB has a history of following the leader, so there is no doubt that what these smaller guys are accomplishing and their teams winning will have a definite affect on thinking in the scouting community.
That's a very true statement, and what PG is referencing is a classic example of group thinking. Innovation in baseball is rare and usually followed by a wave of me too behavior, but the real innovators are actually the players themselves. Now is surely a great time to be a draft eligible undersized middle infielder with a big bat.
PG,
Astute observations on your part. I'd like an opinion to build on what you said.
With the success, albiet mid level not championship, that Billy Bean has had with the A's, why does there seem to be such reluctance to move towards re-evaluation of priortizing stats and then giving them higher value than currently afforded?
I understand that some teams, particularly those guided by Billy's understudy's, have gone that way, but the movement seems to come in fits and starts and not really trending that way.
What are your and others thoughts on why?
Astute observations on your part. I'd like an opinion to build on what you said.
With the success, albiet mid level not championship, that Billy Bean has had with the A's, why does there seem to be such reluctance to move towards re-evaluation of priortizing stats and then giving them higher value than currently afforded?
I understand that some teams, particularly those guided by Billy's understudy's, have gone that way, but the movement seems to come in fits and starts and not really trending that way.
What are your and others thoughts on why?
If Billy Bean was winning lots of world series titles I think all would copy his methods.
Over the past decade or two we have seen many teams that have actually instituted more complex studies of statistics to include them for internal evaluation and value to the club. Most notably the Red Sox!
So I think their is a trend going in that direction. However, there are still a lot of old school people running MLB Clubs and some will not change.
Over the past decade or two we have seen many teams that have actually instituted more complex studies of statistics to include them for internal evaluation and value to the club. Most notably the Red Sox!
So I think their is a trend going in that direction. However, there are still a lot of old school people running MLB Clubs and some will not change.