Oh, shit. I forgot Ensberg. He became a star briefly.
Redding and Rodriguez were huge disappointments. Elarton was there on injury rehab, I think, I do not remember Robertson there at all, and my faulty memory thought Redding was a major factor at RR the next year.I saw them nearly every night that season, either working radio or in my season ticket.
My basic point is unaffected by the list. Many of those guys were not a factor in MLB, and the funnel gets very small.
Redding did not have a major role in 2000. Neither did McKnight. Maybe why I did not associate them with that season. The list posted above apparently includes everyone who played at least one game there in 2000.
My two biggest disappointments were McNeal and Rodriguez. The âbig sluggerâ (he was large) could not pull a pitch if you underhanded it to him. He eventually went to the bench and pouted and was replaced by Burns.
Rodriguez had the big head from his success the year before. He never dominated the hitters and was an enigma to manager/coaches and fans alike. He started wearing out his welcome fairly soon.
Ah, Mantrangaâs fake hustle dives! He was a nice guy, but boy, what a hot dog. Ginter was juicing and got caught eventually, I think. Cole was one of my favorites, and I got to know him fairly well. He never made it to MLB, which surprised me. I got to know Ensberg, too, and he was a great guy who was not at all impressed with himself.
Most of what I remember from that season were David Matrangaâs effort dives on balls he had no chance of fielding, saying âExcellentâ every time Kevin Burns hit a home run, and really really REALLY horrific umpiring.
Animating #MLB strikeouts and what percentage of pitchers all time have how many strikeouts⌠Nolan Ryan has 839 more strikeouts than than the next closest pitcher. Insane. pic.twitter.com/nnlJulTPYD
While Carlos Hernandez was not on that list, and I believe he came along in â01, Iâll always wonder how things would have turned for out for him if he had not tried to dive into second base.
Iâve mentioned before about talking with someone who faced off against those Astros AA teams, particularly with respect to Redding and Oswalt. The general feeling amongst the opposition was that Redding had every bit as good of stuff as Oswalt, perhaps even a little better at times, but they instilled a completely different feeling in opposing hitters. With Redding, the thought was yeah, heâs got good stuff, but we can hit this guy. With Oswalt it was youâd better scratch and claw for any base you could get because they were going to be few and far between. The difference was attached at the neck, not at shoulder.
Interesting article about Andrelton Simmons and his decision to opt out at the very end of last season. Lots of folks speculated on the timing. Turns out he was dealing with lots of personal mental health issues.
We were in Montgomery, Alabama a couple of years ago, and went to a Montgomery Biscuits game. Ensberg was the manager, and it was great to see him on the field. As I recall, the Biscuits lost.
I was working in the ticket office when Redding showed up for the first time to the stadium upon being promoted. He was alone and didnât know anyone and was surprised to say the least to run into someone who knew who he was just from following the prospects. I showed him where the clubhouse was. My impression was of a not very tall guy with thinning hair already. I think he stayed with the team for all of â01, though?
Oswalt came to the ticket office too that year to get seats for guests. He was short and shy as fuck!
Redding nibbled way too much and didnât trust his stuff. Such a frustrating pitcher to watch since he could throw 97 and seemed to have a meltdown if a man got on base. Oswalt had that bulldog mentality and could hit his spots. I thought Hernandez had that Oswalt mentality when he first came up but he just wasnât the same pitcher throwing 92 as opposed to 97.
I probably have told this story before but maybe not. I worked as color guy the night Oswalt came up âfor one game onlyâ and struck out 15 SA Missions in an important game. My job was to do the post-game interview, but when I got on the field, I could not find him. I asked one of the players where he was, and the guy pointed into the dugout. There Roy was, in the dugout, on his knees, elbows on the bench, hands folded in front of his face, praying.
My favorite McNeal Moment was in the opening game when he gave up on a high pop foul only to see it blow back and land at his feet as strike 1. At least it did not blow fair for a double.
Stripping his name from the award? Good, obviously. Renaming it the BBWAA Career Excellence Award? That was the best a group of writers could come up? Good lordâŚ