The Sports Idiot

The Phillies had a presser yesterday announcing that they have signed Pedro Martinez for the rest of the season. The deal is a one year, $1million contract, which could turn out to restrict them from being able to add Roy Halladay to the mix due to financial constraints (yeah, Neetz, I heard that the Phils might not be able to “afford” Halladay, even though they are at something like a 101.8% attendance rate?). They took a long look at Pedro, to make sure he is healthy, then they inked him with the intention of sliding him into the back end of the rotation. He was placed on the 15 day Prior List due to a mild strain in his right shoulder. Actually, Pedro needs to make a few starts in the Minors to get ready for the Majors. The real reason he is on the Prior List is just to ensure that the Phillies do not have to tie up a roster spot while he does so. Of course, if the Phillies and Pedro are being completely honest about this, then it would be confusing as to why they signed him with an issue in his throwing shoulder.

Bottom line, unless the tied up cash prevents them from adding Halladay, this is a no lose gamble by the Phils. Pedro is not going to be the Pedro we remember tearing it up before his days with the Mets, mind you, but he is better than 40% of the starting rotation in Philly right now. All he really needs to do is sure up the fifth spot in the rotation, and it is a win for the Phillies. Color me blah on this one, as I want to wait and see what Pedro can do against Major League hitters before jumping on the bandwagon. Also, it is reported that his velocity tops out at about 91, while sitting in the 88 – 91 range. How will that work out in Citizen’s Bank Park? Then there is the whole issue of why Pedro was still a free agent on July 13th. He can talk about having a short list of NL teams that he wanted to go to (and he did say he way waiting for the Mets to make the call, for what it is worth), but it seems a little strange to me. The fact that the Phillies rotation is so bad keeps me from labeling this a move made out of desperation. That, and the fact that the Phillies have done an excellent job with their farm system, so they could easily add a fourth or firth starter by the way of a trade.

As a Pedro fan, I hope it works out. As a fantasy baseball guy, we should all ignore Pedro until we see him throw the ball a few times. It does not look like he will be a K machine anymore, and with his velocity where it is his WHIP and ERA could suffer.

The Philadelphia Phillies are going through a rough stretch, losing eight of their last nine games.  Throw in that they have been swept in their last two series, against the Toronto Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles, and you have the makings of death spiral.  Settle down, Phils fans, it is not the beginning of the end, it is just the June swoon the Phillies always seem to endure.

When things are going badly, though, they always seem to get a little bit worse before getting better.  When closer Brad Lidge went on the Prior List, most thought Ryan Madson would step in and do a stellar job filling in for him.  When Lidge blew his sixth save of the year, after going 41 – 0 in save opportunities during the 2008 World Series winning campaign, it made sense that something was not right with the hammer.  Be it mentally, or phyically, something was not adding up, and it looks like his knee may have indeed been the issue.  Enter Ryan Madson as the closer.

Madson nailed down his first two opportunities against the Mets.  Since then, however, he has an 0-2 record with two blown saves.  While I do think that Madson can get the job done as a closer, it does not appear that he is ready to do so yet.  The good news for the Phillies is that Brad Lidge should return this week, possibly as early as Wednesday.  When we hear the exact date, we will be sure to pass it along to you.

Philadelphia Phillies Left-fielder Raul Ibanez has hit the 15 day Prior List, with a strained left groin.  MRI scheduled for today, so hopefully the extent will be known later this evening.

Also hitting the Prior List is Toronto Blue Jays closer Scott Downs with a sprained big toe.  Taking his place in the 9th should be Jason Frasor, who is a must grab and should be owned anyway (he was only owned in 25% of Yahoo leagues as of this morning).  Also landing on the Prior List is Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay, also of the 15 day variety.  Halladay’s stint is retroactive to the 13th, and he has been diagnosed with a mild groin strain.

Keeping with the theme, Erik Bedard hit the Prior List dated back to 8th with inflammation in his left shoulder.  He is going to visit with Dr. Andrews, which is about the worst news we could give you.  When more is known, we will pass it along.

Hat tip to RotoWorld.com for these Prior List updates.

Joey Votto has not laced up his cleats for the Cincinnati Reds since May 29th.  He was placed on the 15 day Prior List on May 30th, and can return whenever he is ready.  Dude has had one hell of a season so far.  He has battled the flu, an inner-ear infection, and some sort of personal issues that finally landed him on the Prior List.  While he has been very quiet about what said personal issues are, he does plan on telling the public something in the near future.  He also plans on stepping foot back on the baseball diamond very soon as well.  Votto is on his way to Sarasota, Florida for a minor league rehab assignment.  Sarasota is also where Votto makes his offseason home, so that should help with his “issues” as well.

Before things took a turn for the worse, Votto was killing NL pitching to a tune of a .378 batting average and 1.091 OPS.  He has eight homers on the year through 126 at-bats, which equates to a pitcher hanging his head every 16 times Joey steps up to the plate.  Throw in his 33 RBIs, 23 Runs and two stolen bases and you have one of the top one baggers in the league at the ripe old age of 25.  It is unclear of when he will make it back to the Bigs, but I would expect that he will arrive sometime next week.

For a great read on Votto, check out this Fox Sports column by Jon Paul Morosi.

It is no secret that we are big fans of Mike Missanelli of ESPN950 out of Philly.  Yesterday, he had Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr on to discuss Brad Lidge being put on the 15 day Prior List.  Sounds to me like dude’s knee might actually be fine, and that they want Lidge to work through his mechanical issues in the Minors rather than Flushing Meadows.  Mikey Miss had the same feeling.  Throw in the fact that Lidge was not happy at all with the decision and we have the makings of testy situation in the Philadelphia bully.  The good news is that the Phils have Charlie Manuel, who I think is one of the best managers in baseball, and if anyone can get Lidge comfortable with this decision it is “Uncle Charlie”.

Personally, I do think Lidge has something wrong with his knee, and that he thinks he can pitch through it.  I do not think that his knee is why he was placed on the Prior List, however.  That move was made to protect Lidge’s state of mind.  If dude were to go into Queens and blow a save, he might once again fall into the death spiral of fail that paved his way out of Houston.

Brad Lidge was just placed on the Prior List (the 15 day variety) because of a knee sprain.  One has to immediately wonder how much of this is his knee, and how much of it is getting him a mental break.  His knee has been a problem in the past, so it seems pretty legit to me.

Look for Ryan Madson to get the bulk of the 9th inning work while Lidge is on the shelf.  Go ahead and see if he is available in your league, and if he is, find a more competitive one to join.  With Lidge already having six blown saves on the year and an ERA of 7.27 it was pretty clear that something is wrong with Lidge.  Hopefully he has not done too much damage to his psyche as well (see the end of his tenure in Houston).

This also increases the value of roider J.C. Romero, who should take over the 8th inning duties and be in line for some spot saves or cheap wins.

Hopefully you did not draft John Smoltz this year in your fantasy league.  You were probably like me, and picked him up to stash in one of your Prior List slots.  So now you are beginning to wonder if you have been wasting that spot for a good reason (okay, it is not really wasting it, especially if you have not needed it yet), and when the Great One will be taking the hill for you.  We will soon begin to get those answers, as Smoltz threw three rehab innings yesterday in Augusta, GA.

In those three innings of work, Smoltz have up one hit while striking out two for A Greenville.  As far as we can tell, he is on track for a June return, it is just unclear how early in June that return will be.  The upside with Smoltz crushes any risk in stashing him for a few months, so continue to be patient.  The good news is now that he is actually on the hill pitching, we should start to get some good, solid information on when to expect him back in the Majors.  With the Braves scheduled to visit Fenway for a three game set beginning on June 19th, you can trust that Smoltz will do all in his power to be ready for that series.

Tim Hudson is working his way back from Tommy John surgery.  While he is rehabbing, he is not oblivious to the pitching that the Atlanta Braves have amassed.  Hudson is on track for an August arrival, and adding a number one starter to the mix could give the Braves a huge boon in the pennant  race.  The problem might be finding a spot for Hudson in the rotation.

With Kris Medlen making his MLB debut tonight, and Tommy Hanson waiting in the wings, the Braves have two rookie starters who could make an impact this season.  Throw in Tom Glavine, and you suddenly have a logjam in the rotation, without even considering Charlie Morton.  This is not lost on Hudson, who says that while he wants to start, he wants to help the team however he can.  Even if it means starting out in the bully.  Braves fans can only hope that this “problem” has to be faced in August, and one has to wonder if a move for a bat will come about near the deadline.

Tom Glavine is working his way towards rejoining his Atlanta Braves teammates on the field.  His wife, Chris, however, is working on expanding their family.  This is a great read about Glaves’ wife and her chance encounter that led to Tom standing in a delivery room (which I’ll be doing soon myself!).  If you needed another reason to like Glavine, look no farther.

In baseball news, Glavine is still trying to get back to the Majors by the end of May.  I am now pulling even harder for him, and with Kenshin Kawakami pitching like Hideki Irabu instead of Dice-K, the Braves do indeed need him to return.  Glaves pitched a simulated game on Monday, and other than being drilled by a Greg Norton line drive, things went well.  He plans on pitching a few innings for AAA Gwinnett on Saturday, so we should know more by Sunday.  Glavine should be ignored in all fantasy formats either way.

Joakim Soria took his first steps towards returning from the Prior List yesterday.  Dude threw from flat ground, and basically just played catch for a while.  While it went well, with no reported issues yesterday, they want to wait until today to make any decisions on his next step.  He is eligible to come off the Prior List on Saturday, but I would not expect him back until next week sometime at the earliest.  He will need to get his arm ready to close again, and possibly work some rehab games to see how he feels.

Obviously, getting Soria back on your squad would be huge.  Dude is one of the top closers in all of baseball when he is healthy, but be careful with him this season.  His arm troubles worry us here at The Sports Idiot, as we have been high on Soria for a few years now.  Stay tuned.