Giovanni Carrara's Independence From Las Vegas

Any Fourth of July plans Giovanni Carrara may have planned were put on hold, as he migrated from Sin City to join the A-Squad. Perhaps you haven't noticed (or more likely live in a cave without TV access, since nobody paying the slightest bit of attention could have missed it) but the Dodger pen hasn't been exactly rock solid. One could even make the argument that it's been straight up erratic. And with that in mind, the hope is that Carrara, certainly no stranger to a Dodger roster (24-10, 3.21 ERA with the club), can bring a little stability to the mix.

"The guy's gonna take the ball for us everyday," said Grady Little, on Carrara's ability to get outs in middle relief. "Whether it be with a big lead or trailing by more runs than we'd like to talk about." In order to make this work for the 40-man roster, Ricky Ledee was added to the 60-Day DL (a formality, since he already left to start a Jacksonville rehab assignment) and reliever Hong-Chih Kuo was optioned to Vegas. Kuo's appearances during this stint remind me of Clint Eastwood ("The Good, the Bad and the Ugly"), but Little hasn't lost faith in Kuo's potential. "We're still convinced that this kid is not going to be beat by people hitting him all over the park. He's only going to be in a situation where he beats himself by allowing too many base on balls. Too many free passes.... Hopefully, he can go down there and keep his tempo to where we want it to be, a little bit quicker...just basically throw more strikes. But he's got a great arm."

Little's had some time to think about Nomar Garciaparra's thrice-beaned Monday evening and whether or not it deserves revisiting today. To put things simply, it doesn't. "This is something we're going to put behind us and go forward." Retaliation isn't something he or pitching coach Rick Honeycutt felt a need to discuss amongst themselves or with their hurlers. "Things like that are usually settled on the field and this is behind us." Asked if he felt a sense of closure, Little replied "There's closure in my discussion of it right now." And with that, the topic changed.

For that matter, Nomar himself didn't feel a huge need to relive the whole night. The All-Star hopeful (your Internet vote still counts, folks!) said he felt fine today. No lingering soreness or aches. His mind was actually more occupied by the World Cup and the topsy-turvy world of who's advancing and who's dropping. Turns out the guy is a huge soccer fan. But before you start making the "whipped" sound, his enthusiasm has nothing to do with being married to Mia Hamm. Nomar's played his entire life and throughout high school. And in news that will shock roughly nobody, the absurdly athletic Nomar was pretty good. He could have played in college, but opted for baseball and football at Georgia Tech. I asked him what his favorite position was growing up and he couldn't decide. He settled on midfielder for a sec, but then remembered his love for playing sweeper, and finally left it cause he liked to "play everywhere."

As you see, Rafael Furcal is leading off again after a night of hitting seventh in the order. Little said yesterday's move was to add "a little spark" (mission accomplished), but repeatedly emphasized the fact that Furcal is "our leadoff hitter. He has been all season." When a writer pointed out that the success of experiment might prompt some to think it should be a permanent thing, Little wasn't too concerned. "I don't know if you've noticed yet or not, but what other people think doesn't bother me one way or the other. I'm gonna do what I think is the right thing to do."

Last minute scratch — Jeff Kent was supposed to be playing second tonight, but he was taken out of the lineup at the 11th hour. His side is bugging a bit (the flare-up began last night) and everyone thought it would be best to give the condition some rest. Kent's never had an injury to that area which caused him to miss much time, a trend that will hopefully continue. He didn't seem too worried, so I'm taking my cue from him.

Tonight's lineups
D-Backs
Craig Counsell ss
Orlando Hudson 2b
Shawn Green rf
Eric Byrnes cf
Gonzo lf
Chad Tracy 3b
Tony Clark 1b
Chris Snyder c
Enrique Gonzalez p

Dodgers
Furcal ss
Lofton cf
Nomar 1b
Drew rf
Martinez 2b
Ethier lf
Izzy 3b
Martin c
Sele p

—AK

Comments

[Makoto Ueno]

Nice move promoting Carrara, I just think Kuo should have been gone two weeks ago.

[HFreed]

Hey,
Just why were the D'backs aiming for Nomar. Is there some history there? Or were they really just trying to "crowd Him"?

[Michael Teniente]

Izturis just got caught stealing...I'm telling you the guy can't steal a base.

mike

[LoLo]

Giovanni???

Are we THAT desperate?

The answer is YES!! (and not proud of it)

It’s a sad day when we have to rely on Giovanni for relief. The guy has no business being in the major leagues again.

Furcal is back to leading off (where he should be) and we are up 7-2. I can only attribute people's obsession with Izzy to people having gotten used to mediocrity over the years. The guy is back to hitting .239, much like he has his whole career. He’s a number 8 hitter at best (I’d bat him No.9 when Penny pitches) and an automatic out.

Looks like my lucky Cooperstown bat is going to go 2-0. I hope it keeps its magic touch!

[LoLo]

ANOTHER hit batter??? That's it, I want to see Green get hit in the face!

[bluebleeder]

You people absolutely amaze me. It is unbelieveable how hypocritical some so-called dodger fans are. This time last year everyone was going around saying " vote for Izzy!" and this year theyre loving Furcal, who by they way is being paid 13 million a year, and has 18 errors already!! He isnt hitting well either, and he has been stricking out alot. Not to mention he'd have more errors if it wasn't for Nomar's acrobatics. As for Izturis, so he's not doing wonderful at the plate, but so what? Who here thought he'd be belting homeruns? He has taken on a completely NEW postion ( sure he played 2 innings at 3B 7 years ago ) and has handled it flawlessly with only 1 error. You people must not watch the games because you really don't know what you are talking about.
As for Carrara, he was never horrble with the Dodgers. And with the horrible bullpen we had last year, he was probably the safest guy to trust. If you are going to bash anyone in the bullpen it should be Kuo, who thank god is no longer in it.

[LoLo]

Like I said...NO business being in the major leagues.

[LoLo]

Well maybe it wasn’t the face, but I will settle for the hip!

The message: If you are “REALLY” not throwing at the Dodgers, but your pitchers are SO undisciplined that they can’t pitch inside without hitting the batter, then DON’T F’N DO IT!!!

This isn’t just L.A. Baseball; it’s BASEBALL 101, PERIOD!!

[LoLo]

Well, as for being “hypocritical” I know you’re not talking about me since I have never been an Izzy fan and have certainly never ran around yelling “vote for Izzy”. Izzy is an overrated Alex Cora. They both can play “D” but they both stink at offense. My nephew playing T-ball has a better chance at getting on base than Izzy does. So he has made “only” one error at third base; so what? Nomar has made one error at 1B all year long. It’s not like they asked Izzy to shift over to the other side of the infield like they did Nomar. I was a SS and was asked to “shift” over to 3B many a time. It’s not that big of a deal, especially for a Gold “Glover”. That opinion hardly makes me a “so-called” Dodger fan. If you love mediocrity then it’s your own darn business, but it hardly makes you a “true” Dodger fan.

Furcal has a history of being a solid leadoff man. Izzy has a history of stinking with the bat (compare his numbers to Furcal’s). Just because Furcal is struggling this year it doesn’t mean he stinks. You want to start counting money for performance then here are a few names you should consider:

Gagne is making something like $10 million this year. Yeah, he is really providing a boost for the pen (notice my sarcasm).
Drew makes $11 million. The guy can’t even go 5 days without needing a day off. Yeah, his offensive numbers are very becoming of an $11 million a year player (again, notice my sarcasm).
Kent just signed an extension. He is missing games left and right and is batting a whopping .273. That’s a very nice hit to dollar ratio if you ask me (man, I’m on a sarcastic role).

Before you start pointing fingers at Furcal maybe you should look at what our other high-priced payers are doing (or not doing, in this case).

Giovanni stinks. This is the same guy who is a walk-o-holic, serves up bombs, and can’t get anyone out. Just because everyone else stinks it doesn’t make his crap smell like roses. I will get on HIM and the rest of the clowns in the pen ALL YEAR LONG.

And for your info, I really do watch the games (no, really, I do) and I most certainly know what I’m talking about (no, really, I do). I question YOUR baseball knowledge if you think .238 is a good average and an OBP under .300 will get the job done.

[LoLo]

“Flawlessly with 1 error”

Hmm, is it me or did you just contradict yourself there?

[Steve Schmol]

And Finally Shawn Green gets hit in the back with one out to go. Tommorrow should be interesting since D-Backs want to play bean ball. Lets see who gets hit tommorrow

[bluebleeder]

I never said Izturis was a great leadoff hitter or was even doing good at the plate. But Furcal sure isn't getting it done. I don't care about his history if it's not happening NOW. And yes. there's alot of payers that are being payed alot that aren't exactly living up to expectations, but they don't have errors like Furcal that have allowed extra runs and prolonged the innings. Ican't remember who they played but Furcal had 2 eerors in the 1st inning that allowed 4 runs. At least Izzy can save runs with his glove, unlike furcal who more often than not gives them up. If you want to talk about overrated, then talk about Furcal.

[CamTheFan]

Bluebleeder:

I agree with yoiu whole-heartedly; Furcal, with rare execption, has killed the Dodgers offensively in the lead-off spot, with his poor OBP and high number of stikeouts.

That's why weeks ago (before Izturis's return to the team) I suggested that Little move Furcal down in the order, particularly since we have the luxury of having another leadoff hitter who IS getting on base in Lofton.

Now, with Cesar's return, we can also engage in a debate on who is better for the team defensively at SS. I would expect even LoLo would agree that Cesar's defense is superior to Furcal's. Indeed, Furcal has cost us a couple of games this year with his poor defense. (BB I think the game you referenced where RF made two errors in the first inning leading to 4 unearned runs was in SD against the Padres, I DO recall that the starter in that game was Sele.)

I don't know why RF is neither hitting nor playing defense well this year for us, but it is a plain fact that he hasn't performed the way we all hoped he would (e.g., Colletti!) when his was signed to the big contract. I just think moving Furcal down in the lineup might help take pressure off of him and get him back on the right track.

I agree with LoLo and others who recognize that Cesar is not a candidate for lead off (case in point, he was caught stealing again last night) and should be hitting no higher than 7th or 8th.

However, the strong criticisms leveled at Izturis by LoLo are not deserved. But, sometimes I think LoLo tends to use hyperbole when making his case, afterall following the Navarro trade LoLo claimed that precious Dioner was good enough to start on 75% of the teams in MLB!

[LoLo]

I think CamTheFan fails to realize that we are currently tied for first place, so I would hardly qualify us a dead (a state that results from being killed), and the real reason we are not ahead by 10 games is because our pitching, especially our bullpen, has not been good, not because Furcal is killing us. CamTheFan also doesn’t realize that while Furcal did make some crucial errors that may have cost us a time or two, most of the runs that our pitchers have allowed are earned and had nothing to do with defense. Kent and Drew have also had their share of mishaps that have cost the team dearly, but I don’t see anyone calling for THEIR heads like they do Furcal’s.

While CamTheFan is very correct in assuming that LoLo would agree that Izzy’s defense is superior to Furcal’s, LoLo doesn’t agree that Izzy helps the team more than Furcal does. LoLo points out the historical facts (without hyperbole) that say Furcal has always been a better ballplayer than Izzy has. Furcal may be struggling this year but Izzy hasn’t done anything to prove that he more of an asset than Furcal is. This is what LoLo is trying to get across to CamTheFan and others.

CamTheFan must realize that there are only a handful of catchers in the Major Leagues that are considered to be better than Navarro. Everyone else is arguable. LoLo claims that even though Navarro is young he is already as good as most catchers in this league, meaning that a team won’t lose anything if they substitute Navarro over whatever they have. LoLo also points out that Navarro will only get better; he calls a great game, handles the staff very well, is a solid contact hitter, and while he has had some defensive problems this year he has been solid in years past and probably only needs to make a few adjustments. LoLo also points out to CamTheFan that Navarro is gone not because he struggled somewhat, but because we found a better catcher. That hardly makes Navarro bad and it hardly makes LoLo’s argument hyperbole.

[CamTheFan]

Let’s see, LoLo claims that “there are only a handful of catchers in the Major Leagues that are considered to be better than Navarro.” Hmm, just who, pray tell, would it be that is doin’ this “considering”? And does this person have 2 to 3 times the number of fingers on his hands as the average person?

Come on LoLo, I can tell from your postings that you are a very knowledgeable baseball fan, but you don’t really believe that DN could supplant 23 of the catchers starting in MLB. After all, dear Dioner couldn’t even beat out the Dodgers’ rook, who has only been playing the position for 3 years!

Let’s look at the facts:

DN would not start for the following teams (I think you would agree, with little discussion LoLo):

Balt.—Hernandez
NYY—Posada
Bos—Varitek
Sea—Johjima
Min—Mauer
Det.—Rodriguez
Oak—Kendall
CWS—Pierzynski

and that’s just the AL!

As for the NL, Navarro certainly would not start over any of the following:

Ariz.—Estrada
SD—Piazza
Atl.—McCann
Cubs—Barrett
Mets—LoDuca
Phil.—Lieberthal
Fla--Olivo
Oh, yeah, and that new kid in LA (the real LA, not LAA), Russ Martin!

That’s 16 of 30 teams DN would NOT start for which, by my calculation, exceeds 50%.

Then there are those teams where DN would not likely start given other “intangibles” that the current starter brings to the game, like better defense, handling of pitchers, etc.
These include:

Hou.—Ausmus
Tor—Molina
SF—Matheny
Milw—Miller

And then there are these guys, who are up and coming youngsters themselves (Angels’ Napoli, Pirates’ Paulino, Rangers’ Laird, Cards’ Molina), or resurrecting their careers (e.g., Reds’ Ross).

So, as I see it, at the time of the trade there were only about 7 or 8 teams where DN would have had a shot to become the team’s starter: T. Bay, Wash, KC, Col., along with these “possibilities”: Cincy, Milw., St. Louis and SF.

Consequently, LoLo, as you can see I disagree strongly with you that Navarro is good enough to become the starter on "all but a handful" of the teams in MLB.

[LoLo]

OK, CamTheFan. I’ll play since I am sitting through this boring seminar on the web and need some stimulation.

First of all, let me define “good enough to start”. I’m not saying that teams would kill for Navarro to start for them, like they would have for Piazza and/or Pudge in their prime. I’m also not saying that teams would be willing dump their current catchers just to get their hands on Navarro. What I’m saying is that that a majority of catchers out there are nothing special right now. In Navarro you have a catcher that is arguably their equal and has nothing but upside considering he is young and has shown that he has many intangibles to be a great catcher. Case in point, he’s doing very good ever since we traded him, just like he did last year when everyone was singing his praises.

You are taking my 75% too literally. I just threw that number out there since it is over 50%. I didn’t use a regression equation or Depo’s laptop to come up with a percentage. Did I exaggerate the 75%? Did I use a hyperbole, as you said? Sure. But the percentage is still up there, and it is certainly over 50%. So let’s see what we got off your list (I’m not going to dig up new names)…

Hernandez – I’ll give you that one
Posada – The Yanks have been thinking about moving him because he is expensive and way past his prime. If the Yanks had a chance to take Navarro straight up, why wouldn’t they? Navarro gives them a younger option and a chance to rebuild that position despite their depleted farm system. He’s good enough to start over Posada.
Varitek – Duh (that’s 2)
Johjima – Navarro’s OBP is better, and so is his slugging. They’re both unproven, so what makes Johjima better than Navarro?
Mauer – Unproven but he’s been lights out. I’ll give you that one (3)
Pudge – Still a good solid catcher, but he is getting old. Why wouldn’t you look toward the future considering Pudge only has a few years left? But I will concede that one since the Tigers are winning (if it ain’t broken then don’t try to fix it) (4)
Kendall – You’re joking right? Tell me you are joking! He’s a Moneyball catcher and he’s not doing much “Moneyballing” of late. Besides, Navarro is a Depo boy, so Beane will be all over that one.
Pierzynski – He can hit for average, but his OBP stinks. I can’t stand him, and since I don’t believe he does anything better than Navarro of note, in my opinion, I will be biased and say that I will take Navarro over him.
Estrada – Is nice, but I consider it a wash. What makes Estrada better than Navarro?
Piazza – Again, you’re joking right? Please tell me that you are merely trying to be funny. Piazza’s claim to fame was his hitting. He stunk at defense, horrible in fact. Now he can’t even hit. So what does that leave you with?
McCann – Young catcher playing very well, much like Navarro. Again, a wash in my book (what makes him so much better than Navarro?).
Barrett – I’ll give you that one simply because he punched Pierzynski, who I can’t stand. Anyone who does that is OK in my book (5).
LoDuca – I LOVE Paulie! He’s my boy! But Navarro is basically the same catcher with a better OBP. But I will give you that one since Paulie is my boy (6).
Lieberthal – Again, you’re kidding right. What makes him better than Navarro? He’s par with him, but Navarro is a better hitter, much better.
Olivio – He’s done well his last 2 years. But what makes him better than Navarro? Again, a wash.
Russ – Well obviously (7).
Ausmus – I too would take Ausmus. (8)
Molina – No way! He handles the staff but I would not take Molina over Navarro. The Angels didn’t want him even though they didn’t even have a legitimate replacement. Molina is old and slow, and Navarro is more than good enough to replace him.
Matheny – He used to be good, so good it wasn’t even a competition. But he’s not that good anymore. He can handle a staff, but so can Navarro. Two years ago, or even last year, I would give it you, but not now. Don’t get wrapped around the reputation; truly look at what some of these catchers have become and what Navarro is and what he could be.
Miller – He is almost 40 and a shadow of himself. You wouldn’t replace him with Navarro? Well, you can keep your old man and I will build for the future with a catcher who is already par with my relic.

Does that cover your list? So we have 8. Wow, my 75% exaggeration is looking pretty good.

Also remember that Navarro is young and cheap. That is very appealing to teams, especially ones that are trying to cut payroll and/or make room to sign someone to help them in an area they are weak in (does “pitching” ring a bell?).