With the Dog Days of August about to begin, now is the time for teams to decide whether they are buyers or sellers – that is, whether they should mortgage their future and go for it this year or trade away their veterans for up-and-coming prospects. “Going for it” says to a team’s fans that the organization thinks it has a legitimate chance to win it all, but a more conservative approach can send just as strong a message. While a middle-of-the-pack team may have to acknowledge that this isn’t the year, going out and building for the future – as long as it is not the distant future – can usually be taken to mean that the front office is willing to sacrifice an outside shot at the playoffs in order to increase its chances of winning in the long term. Buyer or seller, every GM will be busy until tomorrow’s trade deadline.
How ‘bout that?
How about Buster Posey? The 22-year-old rookie has been on fire since taking over as the Giants’ starting catcher when Bengie Molina was traded to the Rangers. Though his 21-game hitting streak came to an end on Thursday, Posey has helped San Francisco go 17-8 in the month of July, in the process taking the lead in the Wild Card race. It won’t be easy to edge Jason Heyward and Stephen Strasburg, but Posey has a legitimate chance to claim the National League Rookie of the Year award.
How about José Bautista? Bautista leads the power-happy Blue Jays with 75 RBI and a .585 slugging percentage (teammate Vernon Wells, who is second, has driven in 55 and slugged .515), but more impressively, leads the majors in homers. The journeyman played for Baltimore, Tampa Bay, Kansas City, and Pittsburgh before finding a home in Toronto, and while he has always shown some pop, the Dominican native’s previous career highs were 16 homers (2006), 63 RBI (2007), and a .420 slugging percentage (2006).
How about the Phillies? The Phils have won eight games in a row and are now within striking distance of first place in both the National League Wild Card (1.5 games) and the NL East (2.5 games). They still have work to do, but with the three-headed monster of a rotation in Roy Halladay, Cole Hamels, and the newly acquired Roy Oswalt, the Phillies have a very good chance of returning to the postseason for the fourth straight year.
O’s Notes
After eight weeks of rumors, Buck Showalter has been hired as the next manager of the Orioles. I don’t expect the Birds to suddenly turn things around and finish the season with fewer than 100 losses (they’d have to go 31-29), but I do like Showalter’s experience; he’s led the Yankees, Diamondbacks, and Rangers to a combined .514 winning percentage over 10 seasons, winning 100 games with Arizona in 1999. Nothing against interim manager Juan Samuel, but he hasn’t managed over 1,700 games in the big leagues. I’m looking forward to seeing what Showalter can do with a full season as O’s skipper in 2011.
It’s about time
Congratulations to Jeff Frazier, who tonight will make his major league debut against Jon Lester and the Red Sox at Fenway Park. Frazier has spent the entire 2010 season to this point with the Mud Hens; he leads the International League with 32 doubles, is second with 23 home runs and a .527 slugging percentage, and has truly earned the call-up to the Tigers. Best of Luck in The Show.
Keywords: Arizona Diamondbacks, Baltimore, Bengie Molina, Boston Red Sox, Buck Showalter, Buster Posey, Buyer, Cole Hamels, Detroit Tigers, Dog Days of August, Dominican, Fenway Park, Jason Heyward, Jeff Frazier, Jon Lester, José Bautista, Juan Samuel, Kansas City, New York Yankees, Orioles, Philadelphia Phillies, Pittsburgh, Rookie of the Year, Roy Halladay, Roy Oswalt, San Francisco Giants, Seller, Stephen Strasburg, Tampa Bay, Texas Rangers, The Show, Toledo Mud Hens, Toronto Blue Jays, Vernon Wells, Wild Card
