True value
Every now and then, I'll get an e-mail from a Red Sox fan telling me they recognized greatness in Dustin Pedroia way back in 2005, when he was a Portland Sea Dog.
I even believe some of them.
Okay, that was snide. I'm just a little defensive today, that's all. You see, it seems I've been tagged with the reputation as an Original Pedroia Skeptic, someone who was convinced early on that the Red Sox' dynamic second baseman -- and as you might have heard, the 2008 American League Most Valuable Player -- couldn't play.
While such a reputation is fair to an extent -- I may or may not have mentioned the name "Brent Abernathy" in semi-jest while describing what I saw during Pedroia's early days as a slightly chubby young Sea Dog -- I swear I was not one of those twits who pegged him as another David Eckstein simply because he was tiny and pasty and a little bit precious. I thought he was more of a Jody Reed-type -- a .280 hitter who'd dent the wall for 40 or so doubles and provide a steady if unspectacular glove at second base. I didn't consider that an insult.
Sure, I might be a big dummy. Hell, I am a big dummy. But I'm not an Evan Grant-level dummy. So I've got that going for me, which is nice.
While I admit I still have a hard time wrapping my head around the concept that the MVP Scoreboard now reads Pedey 1, PedroNomarMannyPapi 0, in all honesty I haven't been happier that a Sox player won a major award since . . . well, since I was 8 and Jim Rice stole the '78 AL MVP from the Yankees' Ron Guidry. Back then, we had to settle for those sorts of moral victories. Especially that year.
Pedroia deserved this, and I imagine every Sox fan outside of the Youkilis household is wholly thrilled for him. Before his time with the Red Sox is done, Pedroia might be the most popular player in franchise history, and there's not a consonant of hyperbole in that statement. There's just so much to like, from his Tanner Boyle attitude, to his grip-it-and-rip-it approach at the plate, to his relentless effort from Game 1 to 162 and beyond. He is an absolute joy to watch, and his style and regular-dude appearance make him a perfect example to kids that great things can be accomplished if you set your mind to them.
While embracing such a compelling underdog story, however, I hope fans don't sell his him short (sorry -- can't help myself) in terms of pure ability. We've come to realize the past two years that Pedroia is a immensely talented athlete and ballplayer, one who is blessed with a wide receiver's soft hands and truly amazing hand-eye coordination. When you see his unusual swing in slow motion, it's uncanny how perfectly he squares up to the ball. That is not something you can teach yourself with hours in the batting cage. That's a gift.
We also must tip our cap to the Red Sox organization, which deserves nearly as much credit for what happened yesterday as Pedroia does. Theo Epstein and his player development staff put considerable faith in a player who had minimal surface appeal to tools-loving scouts (and dim-bulb bloggers). While the words were never spoken, Pedroia's victory yesterday stands as one enormous We Told You So for everyone who believed in him.
My only defense for misreading him four years ago is that he was playing alongside the unusually charismatic and gifted Hanley Ramirez, who hasn't been too shabby as a big leaguer either. Which, in my usual roundabout way, brings me to one of my favorite topics -- those 2005 Sea Dogs, and how ridiculously loaded they were.
Check out these names that dotted their roster that summer: Pedroia. Ramirez. Jonathan Papelbon. Jon Lester. Anibal Sanchez. David Murphy. Manny Delcarmen. Cla Meredith. Kason Gabbard. Brandon Moss. Craig Hansen.
All right, you can probably scratch that last name, but it's still a remarkable collection of talent to pass through one minor league clubhouse in a single season, even if all of those players didn't play for the Sea Dogs at the same time. Three years later, they've accounted for one MVP award, two Rookie of the Year trophies, a pair of no-hitters, a win and a save in the clinching game of a World Series, and countless other victories and feats.
Reminiscing about that team -- which actually did not win the Eastern League title -- sent me poking around the internet in search of other minor league teams that featured a similar amount of talent in a given year. While my list is by no means complete -- this list is far more thorough and was a helpful resource -- here are few I thought were interesting:
1992 Greenville Braves: This Double A farm club of the Braves had a future Hall of Famer in Larry "Chipper" Jones, a future 40-homer guy in Javier Lopez (though his legacy around here is that of the most indifferent defensive catcher in Red Sox history), a trio of very promising outfielders who didn't quite pan out in Tony Tarrasco, Mike Kelly, and Mel Nieves, future (and forgettable) Red Sox pitcher Nate Minchey, and a certain hillbilly manager who would later make you, me, and Pedro Martinez suspect he ate a lot of lead paint as a infant.
1980 Denver Bears: The star of the Expos' Triple A club was Tim Raines, who blossomed into the second-best leadoff hitter of his generation and, like Chipper Jones, belongs in Cooperstown. The Bears also featured third baseman Tim Wallach, who hit 260 homers in 17-year career, righthander Bill Gullickson (162 wins in 14 seasons), three Quadruple A superstars in Danny Briggs, Dave Hostetler and Randy Bass, current Mets manager Jerry Manuel, who hit .150 in his brief big league career, and Red Sox bench coach Brad Mills, forever known in Tito-speak as "Millsy."
1993 Harrisburg Senators: Cliff Floyd was the centerpiece of the Expos' Double A team -- he was pegged as the next Dave Parker, and might have lived up to the hype if not for injuries -- and others of note included Rondell White, Shane Andrews, Curtis Pride, Miguel Batista, and Ugueth Urbina, who added an entirely different meaning to "sabermatrician."
1974 Pawtucket Red Sox: Couldn't find a full roster with a cursory Google search, but Jim Rice -- who won the International League Triple Crown -- and Fred Lynn is enough for me. And the '81 PawSox weren't too shabby, either (Boggs, Hurst, Barrett, Gedman, Ojeda, Smithson, and TATB favorites Chico Walker and Sam Bowen).
You know what, though? I'd take the '05 Sea Dogs over any of the aforementioned teams in a seven-game series. They were just that talented. If you can come up with a more loaded single-season minor league club, you must work at "Baseball America" or something.
* * *
As for today's Completely Random Baseball Card:
Happy trails, Covelli Loyce. It never quite worked out here as well as we'd hoped, but you were a class act and a joy to watch in center field, and we'll always have that incredible at-bat in Game 5 versus the Rays. Here's hoping you find that old Cleveland mojo in Kansas City.
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Don't forget that catch Coco made against the Mets (it was David Wright, I think) in June 2006. One of the best ever
Even though he didn't work out exactly as we hoped, you really have to tip your cap to Coco and wish him the best.
I was almost as excited the day that the Boston Red Sox traded for Coco Crisp as I was the day that they acquired Manny Ramirez. Yes, Manny grew to be a head-ache, but was a phenomenal hitter for years and an exciting acquisition. I wish Coco Crisp the best of luck, and will proudly wear a KC jersey that says Crisp on the back.
What about the 1999 Princeton Rays (A)? Josh Hamilton and Carl Crawford in a minor league lineup is just scary.
For all of Coco's relative disappointment on the field, I don't think any rational (key word here) Sox fan wishes anything but the best to him. I can't count the number of times I saw the ball come off a bat as a sure-fire gappah fired into left-center, only to see Crisp come flying in to make yet another spectacular grab. That surprise quickly turned into expectation - that he would catch any and everything in the field of play - and that's the legacy he leaves with me. Thanks for the memories, and Godspeed.
Coco definitely is a class act, but, damn, I can't believe we gave up Kelly Shoppach as part of that deal. I imagine it would take a package of at least Clay Bucholtz to get Shoppach back in Boston.
"In a trade with the Indians, the Boston Red Sox got Crisp, relief pitcher David Riske and backup catcher Josh Bard for reliever Guillermo Mota, third base prospect Andy Marte, catcher Kelly Shoppach, a player to be named and cash. Randy Newsom was the player to be named later"
Coco definitely is a class act, but, damn, I can't believe we gave up Kelly Shoppach as part of that deal. I imagine it would take a package of at least Clay Bucholtz to get Shoppach back in Boston.
"In a trade with the Indians, the Boston Red Sox got Crisp, relief pitcher David Riske and backup catcher Josh Bard for reliever Guillermo Mota, third base prospect Andy Marte, catcher Kelly Shoppach, a player to be named and cash. Randy Newsom was the player to be named later"
Let's rewind all the WEEI/ESPN-Bos shows from April '07. Read every Globe/Herald/Courant.... Sox article from the same month....you won't find one supporter of Pedrioa. Including me or anyone. I'm dubious of anyone who claimed he was going to be even good.
Coco was the perfect 4th outfielder. I only hope Rocco Baldelli stays healthy enough to fill his shoes.
I remember seeing a Durham Bulls game back in '90 or '91. Chipper Jones was starting at SS. The starting pitcher for the Bulls in that game was this weird little dude named Turk Wendell. He pitched a complete game shutout and the Bulls won 1-0 on a straight steal of home. Definitely may favorite minor league memory.
A little perspective on Shoppach, please! Given his age, stikeouts, OPS he is still a back up catcher. I think it is fair to say Coco was a major factor in 2 WS years. Basically Coco for Shoppach is and was a no brainer for that RS team.
Coco's catch that ended the 2007 ALCS will be forever etched in my memory. What's my wife supposed to do with her Coco Nuts t-shirt now? Good luck in KC Coco.
As to the Pedroia MVP, I'm sure that the Youkilis household doesn't begrudge him the award. It is rather jaw-dropping that he's got one while Papi doesn't, but that's just the curse of the DH...
for talented minor league teams, you should check out the late-90's new britain rock cats.
like 1998: torrii hunter, christian guzman, jacque jones, doug mientkiewicz, aj pierzynski, and jc romero.
or 97: hunter, mientkiewicz + corey koskie + a certain mr. ortiz
still not stacked like those '05 sea dogs, but that was a FUN team to go watch. there was a lot of great baseball in new britain those years
Not sure you can say that Rice "stole" the MVP in '78 from Guidry. Granted Guidry's year was historic but Rice was absolutely dominant that year and his statistics (406 total bases in particular) were out of line with the MVP standards of the decade.
Watching Pedroia and Ramierez in Portland, I remember thinking what a perfect player they would be if somehow combined- Hanley looked like a man among boys with all of his physical skills, and Pedroia was so intense and focused. I loved watching Pedroia play, but, I never imagined he'd have a season like 08. I thought he'd be the kind of player that wouldn't succeed in Boston but who would reappear in the NL and have a nice career. I'm thrilled to have been so wrong.
I've said this before, but the current Sox administration has a remarkable success rate with developing young players. Most franchises experience a very high failure rate with prospects; the Sox have relatively few failures, a lot who have fulfilled their promise, and a surprising number who have outperformed any reasonable expectation -- Lester, Papelbon, Pedroia, H. Ramirez, Freddy Sanchez. And even though Youkilis was a Duquette draftee, he reached the majors and exceeded expectations under current management.
So do they know how to spot raw talent, or how to spot kids with the drive and dedication to outplay their talent, or how to manage the tough transition from minors to majors? Or all three? I don't know, but if they keep it up, it's gonna be a long and glorious era in Red Sox history. If it isn't already.
Manny ramize should suspened games next year .red sox paid him 7 million for nothing .he hit los dodger team they trade him again .
Acquiring Baldelli as a fourth outfielder would be lunacy. You need a guy that you can count on starting once or twice a week as regulars rest, vs. lefties, etc; and also playing 30 to 40 games when Drew has his usual back maladies. Counting on a guy with a rebuilt acl, Tommy John surgery, one helluva hamstring injury, and a bizarre muscle/fatigue issue.
We're happy for Coco and happy to welcome Ramone Ramirez. Coco is a class act and will be a great addition for the Royals. We will certainly miss the weekly Web Gems and the incredible catches. That being said, we do have a theory about the Ramirez signing......
We're thinking it was the Red Sox's clever idea to move some of those extra Ramirez jerseys that none of us would want. Will Ramone wear number 24? Stay tuned!
You call Randy Bass of the 80 Dencer Bears a AAAA superstar---but don't forget he was one of the biggest American Stars EVER in Japan, I'm pretty sure he won a Triple Crown one year, and was another (if not the first) of those "Gajins" who was walked to death by Satahru Oh's Yomieri Giants team when he got close to Oh's single season HR record. Also, never forget Reggie Niles, he was the THIRD guy in the OF with Rice and Lynn in 73 in Bristol, and ask Jim Ed about him (I have) Rice says he was superstar material--sadly killed before he came to the parent club in a love triangle shooting.
Hey, Sven
Have your wife wear it! I still wear my El Guapo shirt on occation.
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Irreverence and insight from Chad Finn, a Globe/Boston.com sports writer and lifelong and incurable sports nut. Yes, he realizes how lucky he is. You can e-mail him at chadfinn4@yahoo.com.
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