SSH2005

I liked it because it strengthened the bottom of our lineup. But I really don't like Uribe's low OBP in front of Thome, Konerko, and Dye. By the way, Ian Kinsler hit that bomb off of Armando Almanza. I bet he will be sent to the minors after today's game.

I wonder how the rest of the lineup will shake out then? Podsednik Iguchi Thome Konerko Dye Pierzynski Crede Anderson Uribe That's my guess.

85 MPH meatballs don't excite me too much. But then again, neither do 96 MPH fastballs no where near the strike zone. There will be better relievers available in a week or so.

The real question is -- when will Nomo be dropped?

Matt Thornton (2005 stats) vs. Left: 1.69 WHIP / .262 BAA vs. Right: 1.68 WHIP / .235 BAA Matt Thornton (career stats) vs. Left: 1.75 WHIP / .273 BAA vs. Right: 1.64 WHIP / .231 BAA

July 31, 2004 -- a date which will live in infamy. July 31: CWS @ DET • Tigers walk to win: 56K | 350K Enjoy the soothing silence of Hawk and DJ.

And it really wouldn't be that big of a loss. We were going to dump Borchard anyways. He asked for a trade out of here. Get a guy here who can throw strikes. Just my opinion. The problem is that there isn't much time to fix Thornton. When we claimed Jenks off waivers, he had plenty of time to work on his control as a closer at AA. Cooper and Thornton have less than two weeks to work on his control before opening day. Don't get me wrong, I love the potential of fixing a lefty with a 96 MPH fastball but I'd rather see it done in the minors; not as a work in progress during the regular season where every game counts.

Give me a righty who throws 90 MPH and can actually throw strikes any day of the week. It's worth the gamble, but not if he's going to blow games. Try to sneak him through waivers and send him to Charlotte.

Agreed, Bottalico is most likely done. But there will be relievers cut soon who are better than Thornton. If Thornton still had options, he would probably be replaced by someone more reliable and headed for Charlotte to work on his control problems. But since he's out of options, he will likely be on our opening day roster. That's my problem with the situation.

Greatest pic ever.

It won't be hard to find a reliever better than Thornton when the roster cuts commence. The guy has a 1.68 career WHIP. That's just plain awful. Ricky Bottalico was just released by the Orioles. He's older than dirt but he would probably outperform Thornton.

I suggest you read the timeline of Thornton's outings at that link. He actually blew games in mop-up situations. Once again, there will be relievers cut during roster trimming in a week or so that are better than Thornton. I hope that KW doesn't just stick with Thornton because he's out of options.

It really is scary, and I hated Vizcaino. I thought that Hermanson would be replacing Vizcaino's role for this season. I thought wrong.

Yes, there is. If a better reliever becomes available, pick the guy up and take Thornton or Ozuna off the roster if you have to. There will more than likely be a few relievers cut who are better than Thornton. Just ask Mariners' fans if Thornton won't have an effect on very many ballgames in mop-up situations... http://www.lookoutlanding.com/story/2006/3/20/204935/255

I don't think so. Ozzie said that he already had a meeting with Jenks last week to get him motivated and serious about the closing job. The reason Ozzie is worried about Jenks is probably because he looks horrible this spring and is walking the world.

As far as I know, neither the Indians nor the Twins are depending on a reliever with 5.1 innings at Single A as his highest level like Boone Logan and a horrible reliever who can't throw strikes like Matt Thornton.

He's a lefty that throws 96 MPH. GM's and pitching coaches fall in love with these guys. KW thinks that Cooper can fix him and make him throw strikes. It probably won't work but we needed bullpen help with Hermanson likely headed for the DL. Of course, Thornton is more likely to hurt us than help us IMO. I just hope that KW won't disregard any decent relievers that may become available during roster cuts just because he added Thornton.

Don't worry, Matt Thornton will save us. I'm still waiting to see the roster cuts coming up. There may be a decent reliever or two available. I realize that Kenny wants to keep Thornton on the roster so he won't lose him to waivers but we could still carry 7 relievers. I like Ozuna but with Mackowiak, Cintron, and Gload on the bench, he is basically a pinch-runner. Ozuna has a split contract -- he will earn $500,000 if he is in the major leagues or $330,000 if he is in the minors. If a decent reliever becomes available, I think KW should pick him up and send Ozuna to Charlotte. If we need Ozuna due to an injury or whatever, try to slip Thornton through waivers then and bring up Ozuna. Matt Thornton: extreme blowout mop-up guy (Jon Adkins' role from last season) Boone Logan: LOOGY Extra reliever picked up during roster cuts: middle relief (replacing Hermanson)

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?...SPGELHSH8A1.DTL

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/basebal...sports-baseball

http://redsox.bostonherald.com/redSox/view...rticleid=131794

They don't call him "The Legend of Boone Logan" for nothing.

At least he throws strikes.

Iguchi wasn't bad in ST last year (.275 / .329 / .362 / .691). He just showed no power. Koch couldn't find the strike zone but the velocity on his fastball also dropped a ton (*cough* roids *cough*). I'm worried a lot more about Jenks' control than his velocity.

Exactly. If Ozzie wasn't concerned about Iguchi's performance thus far, would he be moving him back to his old spot in the lineup?