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3/31: Open Game Thread

Wbc_029_tiny by Jeff Sullivan on in Seattle Mariners Game Threads

So Chris Jakubauskas is still hanging around.

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How's the tour?

Can California handle all of your rock?

by marc w on Mar 31, 2009 12:46 PM PDT up reply actions  

Back home now, unfortunately.

Oakland is a terrible place with an amazing scene.

by Aaron Campeau on Mar 31, 2009 12:53 PM PDT up reply actions  

I had to stand alone outside of a locked warehouse on San Pablo with a guitar for about 15 minutes.

I considered writing my will on a piece of litter but then I realized that the only thing I own that’s worth anything is my guitar.

by Aaron Campeau on Mar 31, 2009 1:01 PM PDT up reply actions  

They were playing High on Fire and they had my all-time favorite band's sticker displayed prominently on the wall.

They were exceptionally friendly and really knowledgeable despite the fact that it was totally packed. I am in love.

by Aaron Campeau on Mar 31, 2009 2:51 PM PDT up reply actions  

They were friendly?

They were kind of dismissive and terse with us, which I liked.

by Jeff Sullivan on Mar 31, 2009 2:58 PM PDT up reply actions  

Well, not friendly necessarily but they weren't dicks like I had been led to believe.

I was also with some regulars so that might have helped. When I asked a question they were more than happy to answer which was awesome. Much better than the staff at the Monk tends to be.

by Aaron Campeau on Mar 31, 2009 3:00 PM PDT up reply actions  

Weird.

I was at the monk on Friday and overheard the tender having a long beer discussion with a customer.

by Matthew on Mar 31, 2009 3:01 PM PDT up reply actions  

I agree on this.

It just would not have any impact on me personally and thus, I care little.

by Matthew on Mar 31, 2009 3:08 PM PDT up reply actions  

I take bad customer service personally

because I have to be nice to people that are total assholes on a constant basis. It’s really not hard to be at least cordial to customers.

by Aaron Campeau on Mar 31, 2009 3:10 PM PDT up reply actions  

It is not, no.

What kind of behaviour have you’ve seen, because I have never had a bad experience there.

by Matthew on Mar 31, 2009 3:14 PM PDT up reply actions  

Eh, nothing awful (the above comment was more of an aside)

but they’ve just never been very helpful when I ask questions about the stuff on tap. I don’t really have a problem with their bartenders, but I thought the staff at Toronado was better. And like I said, I was with regulars (who might have even been their friends) so it probably skews things a bit.

by Aaron Campeau on Mar 31, 2009 3:16 PM PDT up reply actions  

Cake, porn and beer.

I’m ashamed of myself for never having gone.

by Teej on Mar 31, 2009 3:25 PM PDT up reply actions  

I loved Toronado my first time there too.

Subsequent visits dulled the experience somewhat for me. I still really like it, but for me, nothing has topped Uber’s rotating taps. Perhaps because I have more access to it, but Uber seems to get more rare imports on tap while Nado focuses a lot on SoCal breweries. That was my impression anyways, and not that that’s bad, just that it gets somewhat repetitive.

by Matthew on Mar 31, 2009 3:00 PM PDT up reply actions  

I can see that.

I also haven’t been to Uber yet (which I feel like a total lameo for) and tend to prefer American craft beer to imports.

by Aaron Campeau on Mar 31, 2009 3:01 PM PDT up reply actions  

It is not overly difficult, no.

But it can involve waiting for people to clear the bar area. It is the same at Uber except there is generally less people and more bar area.

by Matthew on Mar 31, 2009 3:18 PM PDT up reply actions  

More bar area?

The picture of Uber in my head must be incorrect.

by Jeff Sullivan on Mar 31, 2009 3:20 PM PDT up reply actions  

In terms of ratio.

Uber’s capacity is smaller by say 50, but it’s bar area is only 33 smaller than Toronado.

by Matthew on Mar 31, 2009 3:21 PM PDT up reply actions  

Well, see, they asked.

They could have just demanded some.

by royalcurve on Mar 31, 2009 2:16 PM PDT up reply actions  

I'll let it slide if you bring me a bottle too.

Oh, and Jeff, what do YOU think of Serpent’s stout?

by marc w on Mar 31, 2009 3:08 PM PDT up reply actions  

I'll bring you a bottle if you show up in Seattle around Opening Day

I quite enjoy Serpent’s Stout and will have you know that it doesn’t lose any of its appeal when consumed in bulk out of a growler. Even though I’m kind of stouted out at the moment, it still somehow found a way to be exactly what I wanted. Excellent masking of its strength.

by Jeff Sullivan on Mar 31, 2009 3:10 PM PDT up reply actions  

I'd been in a stout drought, so it hit the spot.

Though I thought it changed markedly between the first sip and the last. Maybe it was I who had changed between ml1 and ml750…..

Yes, it masked its strength quite well.

by marc w on Mar 31, 2009 3:27 PM PDT up reply actions  

3 strikeouts, 1 inning

Who needs Morrow when you have talent like that

by Malcontent1 on Mar 31, 2009 1:25 PM PDT reply actions  

Ooooh, Jakubauskas strikes out the side.

Yeeeesss, Cleveland, send lefties to face Jakubauskas…

by marc w on Mar 31, 2009 1:27 PM PDT reply actions  

This can be the key to his success

for like a month or two before everyone with a spinal chord figures it out.

by Bearskin Rugburn on Mar 31, 2009 1:38 PM PDT up reply actions  

About Jakubauskas

I can’t figure this guy out. Everyone says he has no stuff so I’ve ignored him all Spring. And yet he had very good numbers in AA and AAA last year in a short stint.

http://www.fangraphs.com/statss.aspx?playerid=paL07539&position=P

What am I missing? Why can’t this guy be a long relief/mopup guy?

by gustafm on Mar 31, 2009 1:42 PM PDT up reply actions  

You're not missing anything. Yes, he can be a long reliever.

He doesn’t have overwhelming stuff, but he’s got a nice change up. That means he often lacks a pitch to get righties.

by marc w on Mar 31, 2009 1:44 PM PDT up reply actions  

He can. And realistically. that's what he is...

Spiroid without the roids and Spiro, and with a much harder name to spell.

I don’t have an issue with him occupying space at the back of a rotation or in a bullpen, as long as he isn’t blocking anyone better (since if he develops into the sort of rubber armed, slightly above replacement level*, defense-dependent pitchers Spiroid was, he’d be useful, in the right situations, as long as you don’t think they are anything other than that or start paying him much above a million or two), and given that our FO is probably smart enough to try and flip him if he lucks into a season like Spiroid’s 2003, I won’t have a cow if he pitches his way onto the roster. I like the odds of being able to trade him for anything useful better than Silva’s or Beluga Tits, anyway.

*the “slightly above” is the rubber-armed part- if someone can bounce between starting and relieving, that’s handy when you have doubleheaders or need emergency starters due to injury and don’t want to blow out your bullpen.

by eponymous_coward on Mar 31, 2009 1:53 PM PDT up reply actions  

I know Dave Cameron's going to come tell me to shut up, but I still don't buy the Spiroid comp.

One’s a flyballer throwing a FB/slider/everything else, the other’s a FB/CH guy who gets a lot of GBs.

He’s Cesar Jimenez or Rich Dorman (another converted position player). Maybe you like those guys, maybe you hate ‘em, but Jakubauskas just isn’t Spiroid.

by marc w on Mar 31, 2009 2:01 PM PDT up reply actions  

Franklin adjusted his approach in the majors some.

Not surprising when your fastball isn’t all that and a bag of chips and you’re a righty, plus you end up in the rotation and you lose a MPH or three.

I wouldn’t get hung up on the comp in terms of the mix of they throw, and would focus more on “if he fulfills his potential, he would be _”. And yeah, that’s Ryan Franklin- a guy who’d be rotation filler in the back end of a rotation, a little bit better in the bullpen, stuff isn’t dominating, needs defense or they look terrible.

by eponymous_coward on Mar 31, 2009 2:06 PM PDT up reply actions  

And by that I mean...

Ryan Franklin has had a 9 year MLB career and 1000+ MLB innings. Jakubauskas would probably be very, very happy to end up with a career like that. Oh and Spiroid’s career as a reliever: 24-18, 379.1 IP 3.75 ERA.

*yes, I know, ERA and W-L. sigh The point is he comes off as an effective reliever.

by eponymous_coward on Mar 31, 2009 2:11 PM PDT up reply actions  

Why do you say that?

Just curious.
I may be biased, as ‘Spiroid’ is now an epithet for M’s fans, and because Franklin’s so close to replacement level.
Forget about pitches then, and look at batted ball type. Why not Kyle Lohse? Why not someone like Livan Hernandez (late, crappy Livan Hernandez)?

Spiroid’s career as a reliever isn’t bad, but I still don’t think it’s the best comparison.

by marc w on Mar 31, 2009 2:49 PM PDT up reply actions  

I never got into the Spiroid hate.

Ryan Franklin is what he is, the same as Willie Bloomquist is: roster filler that shouldn’t stop you from improving the roster if it’s a choice between him or a more talented player, or evaluating his true talent level, but if the worst player on your roster is Ryan Franklin or WFB, and you have a number of BETTER players, he isn’t going to stop you from winning a lot of ballgames (see: Cairo, Miguel or Sojo, Luis), and can be useful in the right role.

Lohse isn’t much better, if at all, IMO (the Twins have generally had better defensive teams so a marginal defense-dependent pitcher will appear to be marginally better). Neither is craptastic Livan Hernandez.

by eponymous_coward on Mar 31, 2009 2:59 PM PDT up reply actions   1 recs

Still didn't get into the hate. (assuming I am just not oblivious to sarcasm)

I tend to assume I don’t have the best perspective on the measure of a person compared to a front office and teammates, but maybe the Cardinals all hate his guts, save for Tony LaRussa. Maybe I’m just clueless as to why he’s WORSE THAN HITLER!!!!!111-shrug-

by eponymous_coward on Mar 31, 2009 3:15 PM PDT up reply actions  

He was Washburn before Washburn except worse.

All he ever did was bitch about his run support.

by Matthew on Mar 31, 2009 3:16 PM PDT up reply actions  

Or Silva, or Pineiro, or (fill in the blank)

We seem to have a recurring issue with whiny pitchers.

by eponymous_coward on Mar 31, 2009 3:17 PM PDT up reply actions  

I tried to sympathize with Franklin.

He largely just went out there and pitched regardless of whatever results he got. Then he got dinged for performance-enhancing drugs, coughed up 8 runs in an outing and claimed he “pitched well”. Couldn’t wait until he got out of there after that (he just had a bad attitude).

by ThundaPC on Mar 31, 2009 3:32 PM PDT up reply actions  

Like I said, you could say something to object to about

Freddie (Belltown carousing)
Pineiro (steroids, douchiness)
Spiroid (same)
The Bus (general douchiness)
Silva (out of shape AND douchiness)

Each of them have managed to do some things to get some element of the fan base annoyed at them. I dunno what it is, but for some reason we’ve needed to have a quotient of at least one whiny/misbehaving pitcher in the rotation the last few years.

by eponymous_coward on Mar 31, 2009 3:38 PM PDT up reply actions  

Better/worse/whatever - my point is that there are better comparisons, in my mind.

Spiroid will always be a loaded word, and in any event he was a very different starter.

It’s actually kind of odd that he’s getting more GBs and Ks now, but yeah, he’s not the same as Lohse or Cesar Jimenez or whatever.

Lohse is underwhelming, but his FIP has been intermittently good. His ERA sucks, but blah blah ERA sucks. What you can clearly see is that Lohse is quite different (and better) compared to, oh, Jarrod Washburn, whose FIP is solidly higher and whose xFIP is replacement level. This is why GBs matter, and why I don’t think it’s all that useful to ignore if your 5th starter candidate is a flyballer versus a ground baller.
Someone’s going to bring up RRS, but clearly, things are different for Aussie lefthanders….

by marc w on Mar 31, 2009 3:14 PM PDT up reply actions  

I don't think it's odd.

Weaker league, different park, maybe changed the pitching mix. I suppose I would look at the pitch mix if I cared.

I might also note that Lohse and Spiroid BOTH got time with Dave Duncan, who is notorious for bringing out improvements in pitchers (see: Stewart, Dave). He’s the one of the few pitching coaches in MLB I actually think makes a dime’s worth of difference to a player’s or team’s performance

by eponymous_coward on Mar 31, 2009 3:24 PM PDT up reply actions  

I should say

it’s not weird that he’s getting more Ks. This is what starters DO when they move to the pen. But just that he’s getting more GBs. It may have something to do with changing from a pure change to a splitter (at least according to fangraphs). So good for him and all that.

But again, Jakubauskas /= spiroid. I’m not saying you have to think he’s actually GOOD, I just think skills/pitches are relevant.

by marc w on Mar 31, 2009 3:29 PM PDT up reply actions  

That is a good writeup

That’s how I view him too. And hey, there is “some” value in that guy. He saves your pen in blowouts and doubleheaders or if you have a starter who needs to skip a turn. And like you said, he can be included in trades at some point if he gets lucky for a while.

Bottom line – I’ll root for Jack to keep him over Beluga

by gustafm on Mar 31, 2009 2:01 PM PDT up reply actions  

One critique:
He saves your pen in blowouts and doubleheaders or if you have a starter who needs to skip a turn. And like you said, he can be included in trades at some point if he gets lucky for a while.

Those aren’t points in Jakubauskas’ favor. Those are points in pretty much everybody’s favor.

I’d rather keep him than Batista, too, but I’m not going to lose any sleep if the team believes otherwise.

by Jeff Sullivan on Mar 31, 2009 3:15 PM PDT up reply actions  

Yeah, that's where I'm at.

Replacement talent is replacement talent.

by eponymous_coward on Mar 31, 2009 3:16 PM PDT up reply actions  

I won't lose sleep

But I think Batista is below replacement level at this point. So I’m rooting for Jakubauskus simply because he’s the guy supposedly competing with Batista right now.

If some other pitcher were competing against Batista, I’d root just as hard for that guy. Regardless, it’s a minor decision as you say.

by gustafm on Mar 31, 2009 3:22 PM PDT up reply actions  

I haven't been paying attention- is his velocity OK?

Last year he was not only missing continents, he was down a few MPH. If he’s still throwing 87-90… ugh.

by eponymous_coward on Mar 31, 2009 3:29 PM PDT up reply actions  

To put my fanboy persona on hold here,

I actually thought it might be nice to have him work on a slider in Tacoma. I never thought he’d make the team, and I’m OK with that. Now that he’s actually got a shot, it’s sort of odd and hilarious.

by marc w on Mar 31, 2009 3:30 PM PDT up reply actions  

Nice.

I’m just happy to see the K’s back against anyone after he started the spring as a (successful) pitch-to-contact guy.

by marc w on Mar 31, 2009 1:45 PM PDT up reply actions  

So our offense doesn't appear to be our problem this year.

But then again, pitchers have been getting lit up all Spring. This offense gaining confidence isn’t such a bad thing, though.

by Wilder. on Mar 31, 2009 2:16 PM PDT reply actions  

Hello spring training/AZ stats

Seriously, I think if you looked, the AL bats something like .300 over the course of Spring Training. Unless you think the 2009 AL is going to play like the 1930 AL, you pretty much need to throw away ST stats (not to mention Small Sample Size Theatre).

by eponymous_coward on Mar 31, 2009 2:19 PM PDT up reply actions  

.

McCafe?s have delicious coffee?

Determined, Jonesing Commentor | Proud proprietor of Wyomingroutes.org & Washingtonhighways.org

by Corco on Mar 31, 2009 2:33 PM PDT up reply actions  

I haven't had anything from McDonald's in about four years

but from what I’ve heard their coffee is actually pretty decent. They apparently beat Starbucks and Tully’s in a Consumer Report’s survey.

by Aaron Campeau on Mar 31, 2009 2:35 PM PDT up reply actions  

Their hot chocolate

isn’t it just steamed milk and nestle syrup?

You know what? Fuck you Sports Gods, fuck you.

by bluemax on Mar 31, 2009 2:42 PM PDT up reply actions  

No.

They have their own chocolate blend. If they do the syrup for you, they did it wrong. I have had it happen to me before and I quickly get the real stuff.

Also, I like to put either an almond or hazelnut extract shot in my hot chocolate.

by Wilder. on Mar 31, 2009 2:44 PM PDT up reply actions  

I'm just going off what the pseudo star bucks

on campus did.

You know what? Fuck you Sports Gods, fuck you.

by bluemax on Mar 31, 2009 2:56 PM PDT up reply actions  

That's probably it, then.

Some of the smaller stores do not carry the hot chocolate because they are not a full-fledged store and do not have the inventory space. They carry the best sellers and that’s it.

by Wilder. on Mar 31, 2009 3:00 PM PDT up reply actions  

What's funny is that when I'm anywhere along the I-5 corridor I scoff at its mere mention

but as soon as I venture away it becomes a shining beacon of light and representation of all that is right in the world.

by Aaron Campeau on Mar 31, 2009 2:41 PM PDT up reply actions  

Lopez and Endy must have got a hold of some of that Boli stuff A-Rod talked about.

I don’t know if Balentien can do anything to earn an everyday job with Endy slapping hits every which way. And Lopez could make a run at Edgar’s single-season doubles record the way he is going.

by Wilder. on Mar 31, 2009 2:31 PM PDT reply actions  

I sure hope it is.

The change in his batting stance makes it even more SSS, but it also might be the element that takes his game to the next level.

by Wilder. on Mar 31, 2009 2:38 PM PDT up reply actions  

Once again, hellllooooo AZ stats!

However, a young player who is hitting 40+ doubles and less than 20 HRs has a good shot of adding 5-10 HRs as they age (it’s a very common aging pattern, and Lopez slugged pretty decently in the minors). But I’ve always thought (irrationally, I guess) Loafie had a bit more growth potential in him than CW would suggest.

by eponymous_coward on Mar 31, 2009 2:50 PM PDT up reply actions  

Well...

Lopez did most of his damage during the WBC, not in Arizona. Pitchers certainly not in regular season form during the WBC, but they weren’t “just getting their work in,” either.

He looks good and let’s hope it’s the real deal.

by Wilder. on Mar 31, 2009 2:54 PM PDT up reply actions  

Yeah he had 41 doubles last year, right?

And 17 homers. Considering he’s 25 years old, he could get to 25 and 45 in his prime.

by gustafm on Mar 31, 2009 2:55 PM PDT up reply actions  

I don't know if I'd go there.

Generally, you gain the homers but lose the doubles as the aging curve goes.

by eponymous_coward on Mar 31, 2009 3:02 PM PDT up reply actions  

"Stop sucking, Olson!"

They should put together sound bites from the fans at Spring training.

by Wilder. on Mar 31, 2009 2:58 PM PDT reply actions  

Hey, it's Johan Limonta!

Haven’t heard from him since that disastrous performance in the Hawaiian Winter league.

by marc w on Mar 31, 2009 3:35 PM PDT reply actions  

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