star-telegram.com: Anthony Andro

In these power rankings, Utley looks second to none

Sun, 11 May 2008 09:06 CDT

By Anthony Andro

Chase Utley is putting together a run at a historic season in what might be the quietest way possible.

While many in Philadelphia have focused on the early season injury to reigning National League MVP Jimmy Rollins and the rapid strikeout rate of '06 MVP Ryan Howard, Utley is going about his business.

His business could soon have him on the brink of baseball history. Utley is leading all of baseball with 13 homers and is an early front-runner in his bid to become the third consecutive Phillie to win the MVP award.

And he's doing it all while being a second baseman.

There used to be a stigma attached to shortstops and their lack of power. But the run of Alex Rodriguez, Miguel Tejada and Nomar Garciaparra changed short into a power position.

Now the power vacuum is at second base. Utley is trying singlehandedly to change that this season.

The 13 homers he's hit are five more than any other player has at the position, and only four every-day second baseman have hit at least five.

Of the 18 second baseman in the National Baseball Hall of Fame, none of them are going to be remembered for their power.

There are some great second baseman in the Hall of Fame, including Rod Carew, Rogers Hornsby, Jackie Robinson, Joe Morgan and Ryne Sandberg. But of all of them, only one cracked the 300-home run mark: Hornsby, who finished with 301.

Hornsby's best season came in 1922, when he hit 42 homers and had 152 RBI for the St. Louis Cardinals. He topped the 30 home run mark just two more times in his 23-year career.

The best of the lot since the 1970s has been Sandberg, but he finished with 282, while Morgan had 268 homers and Carew just 92.

The most homers by a second baseman in a season is 43, which Davey Johnson did while playing for the Atlanta Braves in 1973. He hit 42 playing second and one while pinch hitting. Jeff Kent holds the career record for home runs by a second baseman with 342 entering Saturday, but he isn't likely to join Hornsby as a 300-homer Hall of Famer.

Utley already has 110 and could one day surpass Hornsby. In his last three full seasons, Utley has hit 82 homers. But that number is misleading because he was limited to 132 games last year. He still finished with 22 homers and 103 RBI.

While it is doubtful that Utley can continue at this pace, which would result in more than 55 homers, don't bet against it.

Teams can't afford to pitch around the 29-year-old because the top of the Phillies order is loaded with Rollins, Howard and Pat Burrell.

Even if the Phils phlop, watching Utley's run at history is reason enough to keep an eye on Philadelphia.

Local watch

John Lackey, Los Angeles Angels: The Angels' ace and former UT-Arlington player is getting closer to making his season debut. Lackey, who strained his triceps in spring training, has made three rehab starts for Rancho Cucamonga and will make his Angels debut later this month.

Jordan Walden, Los Angeles Angels: The former Mansfield pitcher has had a hard-luck season with Class A Cedar Rapids. Walden has made six starts but is just 1-3 despite his 3.03 ERA. Opponents are hitting just .240 off the right-hander, and he has 27 strikeouts in 32 2/3 innings.

Craig Italiano, Oakland: The former Flower Mound pitcher has been dazzling at Class A Kane County. After having his 2007 season ended after being hit by a line drive, the right-hander is off to a 4-0 start this season with 48 strikeouts in 34 innings.

Making a move won't mean you'll win in the interim

Sun, 11 May 2008 09:06 CDT

By ANTHONY ANDRO

So you really think that if the Texas Rangers fire manager Ron Washington everything will work itself out this season?

If that's the case, you might want to check your facts.

The Rangers have become experts at making managerial changes in the middle of a season. Since the team moved to Texas, it has pulled the plug on the skipper eight times during seasons. How many times have those teams gone on to make the playoffs? None.

Only twice -- in 1977 and '78 -- did the Rangers change managers during the season and finish at least .500 (and in '78, the change was made with one game left in the season).

It's not a trend that's limited to the Rangers.

Since Opening Day 2003, 13 teams have changed managers during seasons. Two made the playoffs. Ten of the other 11 failed to finish with winning records. The non-playoff team finishing above .500 was Seattle, but that is skewed because Mike Hargrove quit last season even though the Mariners had a 45-33 record.

So if you think replacing Washington with bench coach Art Howe or third-base coach Matt Walbeck is going to suddenly turn the Rangers into winners, you're wrong.

Just ask Cecil Cooper, Dave Trembley, Pete Mackanin (twice), Sam Perlozzo, Jerry Narron, Buddy Bell, Al Pedrique, John Gibbons and Dave Miley what it's like to take over for a team in the middle of a season.

They've all done it and finished exactly where the Rangers are destined to finish this season -- out of the postseason picture. Each manager wore the interim title as if it were an albatross; the team's struggles with the former manager continued with the new skipper.

If you want signs of hope, there are two. The 2003 Florida Marlins and 2004 Houston Astros made the switch pay off in a playoff berth. Houston fired Jimy Williams after a 44-44 start and replaced him with Phil Garner. The Astros went 48-26 the rest of the way and earned a wild-card spot.

But that Houston team was supposed to be good, with an offense led by Jeff Bagwell, Jeff Kent, Craig Biggio, Lance Berkman and Carlos Beltran. It also had a pitching staff led by Roger Clemens, Roy Oswalt and Andy Pettitte.

No one is going to confuse that team with these Rangers.

As for the 2003 Marlins, they fired Jeff Torborg after a 16-22 start and replaced him with Jack McKeon. That team went on to win the World Series, making it to the Series with a little help from a Chicago Cubs fan.

That team also was loaded. Pudge Rodriguez, Derrek Lee, Mike Lowell and a 20-year-old Miguel Cabrera supplied the power while Brad Penny, Dontrelle Willis and Josh Beckett shut down teams.

Again, there's little doubt there wouldn't be a mix-up between that team and a Rangers team that is currently using A.J. Murray, Scott Feldman and Sidney Ponson in its starting rotation.

So, sure, pull the plug on Washington and bring in the new guy if you think that's going to help. Chances are you're dead wrong.

This report includes material from other newspapers.

American League

Best team: The Los Angeles Angels went to Boston and took two of three from the Red Sox on April 22-24, then won a series against Oakland last week. Ace pitcher John Lackey is currently on a rehab assignment, but the rotation is rolling behind Ervin Santana and Joe Saunders, who are each 5-0.

Team on the rise: Anyone who had the Tampa Bay Rays in first place in the AL East on May 1, give yourself a pat on the back. The offense is solid, but Tampa has to hope Carlos Pena finds his hitting stroke and B.J. Upton's shoulder injury isn't serious.

Astros just got burned by a couple of extra candles

Sun, 11 May 2008 09:06 CDT

By ANTHONY ANDRO

One of the biggest stories in the young baseball season has nothing to do with the surprising St. Louis Cardinals or the dismal start of the Texas Rangers.

It involves a birth certificate.

One-time Most Valuable Player Miguel Tejada lied about his age. He's been living a lie since he was signed by the Oakland Athletics as a teenager.

The Athletics signed him in 1993, believing he was 17. In fact, Tejada was 19. He had lied about his age because he didn't believe teams would be as interested in a 19-year-old prospect as a 17-year-old one.

Now this isn't a Danny Almonte kind of lie. Almonte was the Little Leaguer who everyone could tell was pitching well beyond his 11- and 12-year-old peers. It turned out that Almonte was 14 and his team had to forfeit its third-place finish in the World Series.

That incident has nothing on Tejada, who was found out through an ESPN report last week.

Tejada was already implicated in the Mitchell Report. Although he has denied taking steroids, his credibility has to have taken another hit because of the age issue.

For his part, Tejada has said his age isn't an issue, and the Houston Astros are playing along.

He's said he's playing like a 25-year-old. But you have to wonder what he means by that. Is he playing like he was when he was really 25 or when he was 27?

The Astros shouldn't be so quick to let Tejada off the hook. There's a big difference between a 31-year-old shortstop and a 33-year-old one. Tejada is getting paid $13 million this season and is due another $13 million next year.

That's a lot of money for a shortstop who turns 34 next month. How many great 35-year-old shortstops have there been in recent history? Not many.

Cal Ripken Jr. had a great season as a 35-year-old, hitting 26 homers with 102 RBI. But he's the exception. Ozzie Smith? He hit .254. Ernie Banks? He had already moved to first base by then, but still hit just 15 homers and batted .272.

Tejada is having a standout season, hitting .347 with four homers and 20 RBI. Houston GM Ed Wade said last week that Tejada's age has no effect on the club and he wants the shortstop to play for the Astros for many years.

But you have to wonder if Houston would have given up Luke Scott, Troy Patton, Matt Albers, Dennis Sarfate and Mike Costanzo in the off-season had it known the truth.

American League

Best team: Losing two of three to the Los Angeles Angels doesn't help the Boston Red Sox, but they are still the class of the American League. The Red Sox have three of the top hitters in baseball: Kevin Youkilis, Dustin Pedroia and Manny Ramirez. David Ortiz's average is also starting to creep up after a horrendous start.

Rising: A sweep of the Rangers helped the Detroit Tigers get over their early-season funk. It also helps that Carlos Guillen, Miguel Cabrera and Magglio Ordonez are getting hot at the same time. The only question remaining is how Guillen will accept a move to third and how Cabrera will do at first base.

Falling: No one really expected the Kansas City Royals to keep up their early momentum. They went through a 3-7 stretch in which they slipped along with a power outage. The Royals have just 11 homers this season.

Worst team: The Rangers made their way to this spot by posting the most April losses since the team moved to Texas in 1972. No team hits worse with runners in scoring position. The pitching staff allowed 37 runs in a three-game sweep to Detroit.

National League

Writing is on the outfield wall for Angels' Matthews

Sun, 11 May 2008 09:07 CDT

By ANTHONY ANDRO

A familiar face returned to Rangers Ballpark in Arlington last week in an unfamiliar position.

Outfielder Gary Matthews Jr., who left Texas after the 2006 season for Hollywood and a five-year, $50 million contract with the Los Angeles Angels, was back patrolling the outfield.

But Matthews wasn't in his usual center-field spot.

Signed to be the Angels' center fielder before last season, Matthews is now last season's starting center fielder. The addition of Torii Hunter, who rejected the Rangers to sign with the Angels, has meant a shift in positions for the popular Matthews.

"It's not something I thoroughly enjoy," Matthews said. "But it's something we deal with in our unique situation. It's not the easiest thing to do. You're playing in a different spot and, most likely, a different stadium on any given night. That's what makes it the most difficult."

Los Angeles seemed as though it had plenty of outfielders before it signed Hunter. Matthews, Rangers killer Vladimir Guerrero, Garret Anderson and Reggie Willits all started in the outfield last year.

But the chance to sign a seven-time Gold Glove center fielder was too much for the Angels to pass up, and now Matthews has to deal with the consequences. He's started just two games in center this year while also starting in left, right and at designated hitter.

It's difficult preparing to play different spots, even for a veteran such as Matthews.

"When I was younger, I used to take fly balls and ground balls everywhere," he said. "But physically, you can't do that. You'll wear yourself out. So I work specifically in that place that I'm going to play that night and just let my natural ability take over."

Matthews, who spent three years as a Ranger and had a career year in 2006 (.313 average, 19 homers and 79 RBI), didn't match those numbers in his first season with the Angels. Matthews, 33, is hitting .250 with two homers and 11 RBI this season.

The signing of Hunter raised questions about how Matthews fit into the Angels' plans. He isn't interested in discussing the subject, as he'd rather focus on winning games.

"I've talked it to death," he said. "I'm not even going to address it any more. It's going to work out how it's going to work out."

Despite his fondness for Texas and the signing of Hunter, the Californian has no regrets about his decision to sign with the Angels.

"It's probably 50 minutes from where I grew up," said Matthews, who was born in San Francisco and made his major league debut with San Diego in 1999. "It's close to family but it's not too close. It's like being back home."

Now if only Matthews could return to his home on the field.

American League

Best team: All is now right with the world, as the champion Boston Red Sox seem to be over their haze that started with a season-opening series in Japan. The Red Sox took series from the Indians and Yankees and then got a solid performance from ace Josh Beckett in a split with the Yankees.

Rising: The loss of ace Erik Bedard to a hip injury hasn't hurt the Seattle Mariners. Raul Ibanez has sparked the offense as Seattle swept a short series from Oakland after taking two of three from the defending AL West champs Los Angeles Angels last weekend.

Falling: The Cleveland Indians were supposed to compete for the World Series. But ace C.C. Sabathia has been getting rocked, and Cleveland entered the weekend without having won a series. It won't get easier. Closer Joe Borowski is now on the disabled list.

Worst team: The Detroit Tigers have the worst record in the American League but at least the offense is starting to come to life. The Tigers reached double figures in runs twice last week. The problem is they also had games when they gave up 11 twice and nine once.

It's early but it's probably already too late for Tigers

Sun, 11 May 2008 09:05 CDT

By ANTHONY ANDRO

Can I get a do-over on my World Series pick?

Can everyone who picked their world champs for the Star-Telegram get a mulligan?

We all picked the Detroit Tigers to win the World Series. We weren't alone. With the acquisitions of Miguel Cabrera, Dontrelle Willis and Edgar Renteria, the Tigers were the trendy choice not only to win the American League Central, but also the World Series.

It's not going to happen in 2008. The Tigers have already made sure of that and therefore are playing out the string with 150 games remaining on the schedule.

Why are the Tigers being counted out after less than two weeks of play? Numbers don't lie.

No team in major league history has ever started the season 0-7 and gone on to make the playoffs.

In the last 20 years, no World Series champion has even come close to the Tigers' start. Their losing streak mercifully came to an end when they beat the world champion Boston Red Sox on Wednesday. Detroit was the last team in baseball to get its first win.

So is there any hope for the Motown Not-So-Mashers? A little. Very little. The Tigers can look to a pair of teams: the 2002 Florida Marlins and the 1991 Minnesota Twins.

Those two teams at least give Detroit a reason to keep playing, even if it won't matter.

The Marlins started 2003 0-2, were 2-6 after eight games and 10 games under .500 on May 22. But they rallied to make the postseason by winning 91 games and grabbing the NL wild card.

Unlike Detroit, that team was one of destiny, as any Chicago Cubs-loving, Steve Bartman-hating fan can attest to. Stuff like that doesn't happen twice.

The 1991 Twins started the season 2-2 but dropped their next seven games. But they put together a 15-game winning streak during the regular season and went on to win 95 games.

The worst start by a World Series winner in the last 20 years? That honor belongs to the 1998 New York Yankees. They started the season 0-3 but went on to win 114 games.

No other World Series winner in the last 20 years has started the season with fewer than two wins in their first seven games. Most have used the start of the season as a springboard to a title.

The 1990 Cincinnati Reds set the stage for their World Series season by getting off to a 9-0 start. Other recent fast starters to win the World Series include the 1997 Marlins (8-1), the 1999 Yankees (7-1), the 1995 Braves (7-1) and the 1992 Blue Jays (9-1).

And while there's the old saying about championships not being won or lost in April, that's really not true. Of the last 20 champs, eight of them never spent a game below .500 and eight others never dipped more than one game below the .500 mark.

If you want to believe in the Tigers, more power to you. The numbers say otherwise.

American League

Best team: Even without John Lackey and Kelvim Escobar, the Los Angeles Angels are setting the pace in the American League West. The big reason has been the addition of center fielder Torii Hunter, whose four homers rank near the top of the AL.

Rising: Even though they lost a series with the Rangers, the Baltimore Orioles are off to a surprising start. Newcomers Adam Jones and Luke Scott have added a touch of youth to the Orioles, who have also benefitted from a strong start from White Settlement Brewer ex Aubrey Huff.

Wood happy to save games if it ultimately saves career

Sun, 11 May 2008 09:05 CDT

By ANTHONY ANDRO

It looks as though the 20-strikeout days for Kerry Wood are officially history.

That's fine for the Cubs pitcher, who now must settle for being the next Dennis Eckersley or John Smoltz.

The oft-injured right-hander is making the switch from starter to closer and, while his debut got off the a rocky start, Wood is excited about his new opportunity.

"I appreciate the fact that I've been given another chance to get out there and play the game I love," Wood said during spring training at the Cubs' facility in Mesa, Ariz. "I'm going to take full advantage of it. It's going to be something new, but that's exciting for me."

Wood won the closer's job this spring by posting a 2.84 ERA with two saves. He also showed flashes of his old flamethrower self, striking out 13 batters in 12 2/3 innings of work.

He knows the transition from starter to closer won't be easy, but he's ready for the challenge.

"Talking to guys who have done it before, the mental preparation is probably more important than anything," he said.

Wood has already experienced the ups and downs of his new position. In the Cubs' season opener, he allowed three runs in his one inning of work in a Chicago loss. But on Thursday he struck out two batters to earn his first save of the season.

The former Grand Prairie pitcher won 13 games as a rookie in 1998, but elbow soreness that season led to Tommy John surgery and a missed 1999 campaign.

From 2000 until 2003, Wood was back in form and won 46 games. But elbow, shoulder and knee problems dogged him for the next four years. After another injury-filled season, the Cubs stuck Wood in the bullpen last season, where he made 22 appearances.

But with the Cubs moving Ryan Dempster from closer to starter, Wood entered the spring with the inside track to the closer's job and won it.

Now he has to show he's right for the job.

"Last year, I was just happy to be back," said Wood. "Toward the end of the season, I felt much better than when I first came back. The more I threw, the better I felt and the more comfortable I felt coming in. I never really thought about it last year."

Wood, 30, is confident his arm can hold up to the rigors of the bullpen. But with him, there's no certainly. Throwing in back-to-back games is different than starting once every five days.

Always a fan favorite, Wood is now more visible because he's going to be used more.

That also puts the spotlight and pressure back on Wood. He isn't too concerned.

"It is definitely something new, but it's exciting for me," Wood said. "The way I feel, I feel I can go out and be consistent doing it, so I'm looking forward to it."

This report contains material from other newspapers.

American League

Best team: The Boston Red Sox are the best team in the United States and Japan. Even without starter Josh Beckett, Boston took three of four games from Oakland in a series that was played in Japan and Oakland. The world champs are already in midseason form.