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Roch Kubatko
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Roch Kubatko Orioles
Minor moves (updated)
In a surprising move, the Orioles have released left-hander Bobby Livingston, who was 6-2 with a 3.62 ERA in 13 games at Double-A Bowie. Livingston also went 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA in 20 innings with Triple-A Norfolk.
I haven't seen him pitch, but it's hard to argue with those numbers.
Update: Though I haven't gotten it confirmed, a clause in Livingston's contract might have allowed him to seek his release if he remained on a Double-A roster after July 1.
In a corresponding move, reliever Luis Lebron has moved up from Single-A Frederick to Bowie.
Lebron was 2-3 with a 3.00 ERA and 11 saves in 28 games at Frederick, with 52 strikeouts in 33 innings.
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I guess he just didn't fit into the Orioles plans and since he is 27, might as well give him a chance to get to the bigs again with another team. I cant imagine we just released him based on performance.
shocking indeed?? I don't get it?
Hey Roch, a little random and off topic, but did you hear that the Cubs DFA'd Ryan Freel? Poor guy can't catch a break, huh?
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Yep, I heard. I wonder if he'll order a clubbie to burn his Cubs gear. - Roch
Come on Roch. We need the why on this. We'll be waiting for your update, OK?
Bobby Livingston and Troy Patton have the same birthday, only Patton is 3 years younger. Livingston is turning 27 this year, so he probably would have never made it to the big leagues with lefties like Patton, Matusz and Perez ahead of him and guys like Zagone coming up fast behind him, but you'd think he'd be a good organizational guy to have down there. Just one of those things I guess.
I thought they are always looking for pitching depth in AAA & AA, the proverbial organizational man..... very strange. Especially with all the call ups from AAA the last month, this seems odd. He must have p!ssed off the wrong people or something.
Freel deserved better. He was just recently the poor Cub guy that got hit in a recent beanball war too. That should have earned him another week at least.
Roch- People were bashing Tillman's numbers, but I vwanted to post that, In his last 6 starts yes, he lost 5 straight decision to fall to 5-5. However, he had 6inn 2 er, 6 inn 3er, and 6inn 2er in 3 straight and lost all 3 games. You have to remember...this team had Weiters, Salazar, and Reimold at season start, and they are not there now. Otherwise, who knows what Tillman would be at. 9-2? 8-2?
Yeah, what is the why on this? He may be only an organizational, depth guy, but he is left-handed.
Livingston’s WHIP at Bowie was 1.52, with 34 SO and 21 BB in 69.2 IP. Not particularly dominating. But, yes, the timing does seem a little odd.
More catch up:
Koji: I’ll bet Dave’s right that he was pitching in pain for a while. Big heart. Get well soon.
To the smart Brian: I sure wish you’d use an initial. That other guy’s a real dork.
Barry: If Guthrie even *faces* Figgins with two on and two out in the fourth, I owe you a beer.
Bms: Great job citing Sherrill’s comps with Paps. Here they are:
Papelbon: 1.80 ERA, 20 SV, 35 IP, 34 SO, 17 BB, 1.34 WHIP, 258 (!) ERA+
Sherrill: 2.51 ERA, 17 SV, 32.1 IP, 31 K, 12 BB, 1.14 WHIP, 182 ERA+
Not quite Paps, who gets credit for a better ERA in a hitter’s park, but none too shabby. Earlier this year I compared Sherrill to the elite closers, saying he wasn’t one (Pap's WHIP has been sub-1 the past three years), but he’s come closer lately. He certainly has to be right up there in the happy surprise department this year, along with Nolan, Bergy, and Adam.
Roch,
Maybe I can guess, I looked him up on the Baseball Cube.
He started pro ball in 2002, so he's already a six-year minor league free agent. Unless the O's put him on the major league roster, he'll be free to sign with whoever he wants at the end of the year. Which, I think, is how the O's got him in the first place. I guess, they were sure they weren't going to give him a shot in the majors, so they let him go. Better to see what Luis Lebron can do than keep someone you don't want.
Alan
PS Has anyone asked about Andino wearing his hat over one ear? That would drive me nuts wearing a hat like that!
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Thanks. Haven't asked about the hat, but I agree. I always want to walk up to him and straighten it. How do you think that would go over? - Roch
I asked him to do that OCJ. I have been the original Brian since way back in the early Sun blog days of Roch.
Yeah OCJ,
They would've been even better had the umps not had money against us yesterday.
If you watch the home plate ump after Tek's check swing he actually punches him out before the 1st base coach gives the safe sign.
CHECK THIS OUT!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA
Chuck,
Yes, we should blame the owner and the manager because of the product they put on the field. Teams that want to win have the likes of Rivera, Pappelbon, and K-Rod closing the game when it counts, not some scrappy, washed up, fat reliever who can't throw strikes, who they got for cents on the dollar, because Angelos was too cheap to resign BJ Ryan.
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Pete's reply: Jack, I've never said this to anyone on this blog before, but you are an idiot. Pure and simple. That fat, washed up reliever was the hottest reliever in baseball when he took the mound yesterday. Get a clue. KRod and Papelbon, who are considered the two best relievers in the game, both have blown saves to the Orioles in the past two weeks. It happens.
Posted by: Jack | July 2, 2009 8:19 AM
So That guy asked for his release...
Roch,
Yup. That makes more sense than my scenario.
Alan
goobs said:
Hey Roch, a little random and off topic, but did you hear that the Cubs DFA'd Ryan Freel? Poor guy can't catch a break, huh?
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Yup, I heard. I wonder if he'll order a clubbie to burn his Cubs gear. - Roch
Excuse my ignorance, but is there a story behind this? Sounds like it would be a pretty good one.
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Thought I read about him asking a clubbie to burn his O's gear. I'm sure he was joking. - Roch
Roch,
Your Sano post...was that MacPhail saying an outright no to Sano or just not "immediate future" as in today. I wasn't sure how to read it.
Didn't Stockstill make it pretty clear he wanted Sano and to be outbid by either the Pirates or the Twins for him?...that'd be pathetic.
Yankees or Red Sox outbidding us - of course - Pirates or Twins - NO Excuse!
If we are waiting to confirm his age still that's 100% understandable and the smart move.
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Not an outright "no," but the club isn't expected to sign him, or anyone else, anytime soon. He's not out of play, but I'm not holding my breath. - Roch
JPA, thanks, I didn't know that one.
Other Brian, do even read the other comments made here? Please......
Alan, that hat on the ear thing...it's the young guys thing.... one segment of them at least. Check out some music videos & you'll see. The one that really annoys is the hat twisted way off center, I always wonder, why bother, just get a bowl & put it on their head.
Yet more catchup and then I'm done:
Okajima: Yes, we have pounded him the past couple of years. Very odd. I remember last year seeing his ERA against the O’s vs. against everyone else. We own him, for some reason.
Roch: Surprised that Bazooka wasn’t happy to be asked about his health. What the heck did he expect you’d ask about, his love life?
Kay from CP: Yes, Nolan has a very strange gait, sort of a lope. Hard to believe he gets down the line so fast. I think he surprises infielders because he looks like a big slow guy.
Ryan: Berken isn’t someone they care about. Tillman is. That’s why Berken’s here and Tillman isn’t.
Agreed that one of the best things about that Tuesday comeback was Palmer slamming the home plate ump’s competence on the second strike to Pie.
I had asked Roch about Andino's ear a while back. I'm sure he'll get around to asking. And asking Adam what he's doing with his hand on his arm just before he crosses the plate on homers (which we haven't seen often enough lately). No question too small or irrelevant, that's my motto.
BaltJohn: Baltimore Beatdown. I like it. It had a 2004 ALCS Game 4 feel to it. Finally beating the oppressor.
Remember Finding Nemo, where they’re deep down at the bottom of the ocean enjoying the good feeling of that eerie light when all of a sudden they realize it’s attached to a fish with huge jaws and the Albert Brooks fish says, “Good feeling’s gone!” That was how Wednesday afternoon felt.
Sorry class for playing hookey for 5 days on a cruise ship...life's good. I started on June 27th to try to catch up on all the entries AND comments, but it started to get to be War and Peace.
Few observations:
Gumby_Oriole
You left off one of my favorite 'food-challenged' players...Mickey Lolich. I just remember him in that WS against the Cards...68?
P.S.
Sidney Ponson wasn't 'food-challenged'...he was just 'challenged' (possibly alcohol, but skinny players have had that challenge also) period.
-trying to not get sued-
Amarie-
You're a 'cougar'? Go girl.
I had a girl, who when I worked for Sony, wasn't happy w/ me because she thought she was getting a TV...looking back on 21 years of marriage, what a bargain that would have been. BADA BOOM
OCJ-
Sorry I missed your Boddicker stats. I don't know what they were, but I loved watching him pitch. Real competitor!
Oreo-
Nice find...don't know any details, but if I was an immediate relative of the deceased, I would love to have had those articles of memory.
Roch-
I have a Doctor's note that says I was sick of this place and had to get away.
I tried to keep in touch, but ESPN and WiFi was constantly on the fritz, so I just kept indulging.
However, School of Roch was always in my heart w/ every Vodka/Red Bull on my tab.
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Thanks! So how many Red Bulls can one person consume on a given night before their heart explodes? Where's Jennifer when you need her? - Roch
Bedard's coming off the DL next week and guess who he faces? He'll be on an 80 pitch count so maybe they can wait him out to get to the bullpen.
I was kind of hoping Livingston could make it up to being a lefty reliever but oh well.Right now I'm just hoping the two relievers from Bowie are the real deal.
I couldn't care less about this Nano guy.$5 million is a lot of money for a pig in the poke.Pie was signed as a 16 year old out of the DR and look where he is 8 years later.Not that Pie is terrible but you have to go through a lot of growing pains with someone like this. Maybe the O's are hoping the other teams get cold feet and his price comes down,who knows.Besides if the O's get the right players for 1st and third they should score enough runs to carry someone like Blake Davis or Andino.The funny thing to me is that the O's are well stacked at 2nd base and they have Roberts for 4 more years.
Head Man, Rochettes and Rocheteers,
In the wake of yesterday's heartbreaker, here is a little bit of happiness that I found on The Hardball Times web site today. THT reviewed a new book by Larry Tye, "Satchel: The Life and Times of an American Legend." It reminded me of the stuff many of us devoured when we were inexorably falling in love with baseball and its almost mythical heroes.
Here is a snippet from Larry Tye's book that should bring a smile to even the most unhappy posters:
Consider two stories, courtesy of Whitey Herzog, which illustrate Paige's arm strength and extraordinary control. First, Herzog once won a distance-throwing contest in the minor leagues by hurling a ball 380 feet. Satchel told him "I can throw farther than that" and hurled it 400 feet the next night. Almost from the outfield wall to the backstop.
Herzog also used to playfully try to throw a ball through a hole in the outfield fence in their minor league park. The hole was just big enough to accommodate a baseball, and Herzog wasn't able to do it. Paige bet Herzog that he could do it in three tries, from 60 feet, 6 inches away. He did it on his second try.
Here's the kicker: Herzog was 26. Paige was over 50.
And, from the official Satchel Paige web site:
It is estimated that Leroy "Satchel" Paige was born on July 7, 1906. The mere idea that his birthday is an estimate provides perfect evidence to the mystery that was Satchel Paige. In 1965, 60 years after Paige's supposed birthday, he took the mound for the last time, throwing three one-hit shutout innings for the Kansas City Athletics against the Boston Red Sox.