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Rob Neyer

  (1:07 PM)

Happy Friday, everybody. Let the questions begin!

Mike (Houston, TX)

Rob...always enjoy your columns. One thing that has surpised me this year is Jose Guillen's performance thus far. I thought 2003 was a fluke, but perhaps not? What do you think?

Rob Neyer

  (1:10 PM)

It's a funny thing. Early in his career, Guillen was often compared to Roberto Clemente, who didn't really establish himself as a good major league player until he was 26. Guillen, meanwhile, didn't have his first good season until he was 27. I'm not saying they're the same, but I won't be shocked if Guillen turns out to be pretty good.

Jeff (Boston, MA)

Mr. Neyer,Great article on catchers, and I do think longevity at the position counts for something (fisk at 3). Do you think Josh Gibson was a top 10 catcher of all time?Thanks.

Rob Neyer

  (1:12 PM)

I do think Gibson was one of the greatest, though I don't really know where on the list he belongs. For more on this, see today's column (which will be posted within the next couple of hours, probably).

Craig (Rochester, NY)

You may have mentioned this before, but where does Graig Nettles place on the all-time best 3B list?

Rob Neyer

  (1:13 PM)

Top 15, in my opinion, and very nearly of Hall of Fame quality. I'd vote for Ron Santo, Stan Hack, and Darrell Evans before Nettles, though.

John D. (Chicago)

Seeing has how Bonds wears more armor on his arm than a 13th Century knight and stands 6 inches from the plate, why don't more pitchers pitch inside to brush him back?

Rob Neyer

  (1:15 PM)

Because it's not a winning strategy. If you pitch inside and you miss one way you've got an HBP, miss the other way and you've got a home run. And the HBP might lead to a warning, limiting your ability to pitch inside to other hitters. MLB hasn't done enough to address the problem.

Jeremy, NYC

This may sound odd, but it strikes me that players should take a lot more batting practice than they do. One rarely hears of players who take more than a small number of swings at BP each day. Is this an area in which an innovative team's farm system could gain a significant competitive advantage by requiring players to spend several hours a day taking BP?

Rob Neyer

  (1:18 PM)

Several hours is pretty extreme, and probably would result in significant fatigue. I don't know if players should practice <i>more</i>, but I do think they should practice <i>better</i>, against pitches that better resemble the real thing. But sophisticated pitching machines cost a lot of money, and teams are often penny-wise and pound-foolish.

Duffman (Springfield)

Why would they change the intentional walk rule for one player? Wouldn't getting players on base ahead of Barry solve the 'problem'?

Rob Neyer

  (1:20 PM)

First, they're not going to change any rules. And second, if it did happen it wouldn't be for one player, it would be for millions of fans. Does it really serve the sport to have Bonds -- or any other exciting player -- essentially eliminated from the action? I think the intentional walk should have been outlawed a long, long time ago.

George (NYC)

Rob- Enjoyed your column on the 10 greatest catchers ever, but I have one question. Why did you put as much emphasis on Piazza's inability to throw runners out as you did with stolen bases being such a small part of his era's offense? He seems to handle the other aspects of catching just fine. Is he really giving back that much of his enormous advantage in ops+ on defense?

Rob Neyer

  (1:22 PM)

Yes, I think that he is. It's true that teams don't steal bases like they used to . . . except when Piazza catches they <i>do</i> steal like they used to, or nearly so. The funny thing is, a lot of readers were upset with me for ranking Piazza as high as I did.

Ron (Hoboken, NJ)

Rob,All rumors in NYC point to Beltran being closer to becoming a Yankee with each Royals loss. What do you think? If so, what happens to Bernie and Lofton?

Rob Neyer

  (1:25 PM)

Bernie could share the DH slot with Sierra, and Lofton could be the fourth/fifth oufielder, get traded to the Royals (with the Yankees eating his contract), or just flat-out released. All that said, my friend Joe Sheehan over at Baseball Prospectus argued yesterday that the Yankees don't have enough good minor-league prospects to swing a deal for Beltran. I think Joe might be over-estimating Beltran's trade value, considering that he'll be a free agent after the season.

Nick(NYC)

Which players have surprised you with their fast start, and will they keep it up for the whole season?

Rob Neyer

  (1:31 PM)

We're roughly 20 percent into the season, and most of the big surprises have dropped back a little. Adam Dunn's made a nice little comeback, and I think he's for real (granted, his numbers will slip some). Adrian Beltre (.379) and Michael Young (.371) both have batting averages that don't seem to be supported by the supporting skills. And Melvin Mora's doing it again! (Go figure.)

John (Portland, ME)

I just read about a Red Sox/Seattle/KC 3-way deal involving Beltran. Beltran to the Sox, Garica and a prospect to KC and Damon and Kim to Seattle. Is this realistic, seems like a steal for Boston?

Rob Neyer

  (1:33 PM)

I'm answering this because I'm getting a lot of similar questions, but it sounds to me like the product of someone's overactive imagination. Why would the Mariners want Damon and Kim?

ALEX CORA, Los Angeles, CA

Are the Dodgers for real? Do you think there is a chance anyone besides the Padres can compete for the NL West? By the way, did you see my at-bat?

Rob Neyer

  (1:35 PM)

I did see "your" at-bat, Alex. My friend Eric Enders thinks your 18-pitch AB, capped by a home run, is the greatest AB <i>ever</i>. (That'd be a fun research project, by the way.) I think the Padres are the best team in the division, with the Dodgers right there, and everybody else tying for distant third.

Justin (NYU)

Could teams gain a tactical advantage by deceiving opponents about who they intend to pitch? For example, imagine the D-Backs announcing Johnson as the starter. The other team sets a predominantly righty lineup. After one pitch, you bring in Schilling. Wouldn't this really screw up the other team's lineup (rotational sceduling aside)?

Rob Neyer

  (1:39 PM)

Sure, you can do that, and it's not done basically because there's a gentleman's agreement that you don't do it. Which I think is stupid. Here's how I would do it. I would have six starters: Nos. 1 through 4, and two co-No. 5 starters. When playing a team that platoons at two or three positions, let your left-handed starter pitch to a batter or three, and then bring in the righty. It's hard to do anything interesting these days, actually, because pitching staffs are loaded with "specialists."

Kevin (Mass)

Hey Rob. Just wondering your thoughts on the 4 man rotation in Colorado. It doesn't seem to me to be the best place to put together a 4 man rotation.

Rob Neyer

  (1:40 PM)

Hey, why not? They've tried everything else.

Fawaz (Toronto)

Does the difference between the actual record and the Pythagorean record have any correlation to the ability of the manager to handle a game? I know the Jays are -3 now and Tosca's been making decision that would put Grady to shame.

Rob Neyer

  (1:42 PM)

Bill James looked at this a few years ago -- sorry, I don't remember if the study was published or not -- and found very little correlation. I do remember that Tony Muser seemed to fare poorly, though.

Austin R. (Austin, TX)

Bidge shortened his swing and his been ageless with a bat so far in this fifth of a season. He didn't even get an announcement in Atlanta for 2,500. Please tell me you love him.

Rob Neyer

  (1:45 PM)

I do. I do love him. Even though he's playing better than I thought he could and is thus making me look bad, which could jeopardize my livelihood as some sort of "expert." On second thought, I hate him.

Jay (Newingington, CT)

Hey Rob, what's the point of eliminating intentional walks if you can just pitch around someone? Throw 4 balls in the dirt and you're golden? There doesn't seem to be a good solution for the Bond's dilemma. Thanx!

Rob Neyer

  (1:47 PM)

There are ways around that. In a particular situation -- the second time in the game, or when it's a particular hitter -- you could treat any four-pitch walk "intentional." Trust me, if we wanted to come up with something workable, we could.

Matt (casper, wy)

Please tell me how bad you feel for CC Sabathia. Poor guy couldn't have pitched much better than he has been. Cleveleand's bullpen is atrocious.

Rob Neyer

  (1:52 PM)

Tough luck, when you've got a 2.38 ERA but just one win. A bigger problem, though, is Sabathia's strikeout rate, which is 4.75 per nine innings, significantly lower than the last two seasons and <i>far</i> lower than his rookie season. I wonder if we haven't already seen the best of C.C.

Greg (Madison, WI)

What do you think of Overbay's hot start? Do you think it will continue? Who do you see got the better end of that trade Milwaukee or Arizona?

Rob Neyer

  (1:54 PM)

Depends on how quickly Sexson recovers from his injury. About Overbay, I think the comparisons to Mark Grace are apt.

Jim (Chicago)

With Borwoski's yet another poor showing for the Cubs yesterday what do you think are there are options for closer on?? Maybe a trade for Urbina? Guardado? Smoltz? Kolb? I need some names.

Rob Neyer

  (1:57 PM)

Borowski filled a need, and kudos to him. But isn't it time to see if LaTroy Hawkins or Kyle Farnsworth can handle the job? I know Hawkins failed as the Twins' closer, but does that mean he can't ever get another shot? He's clearly the best reliever on the staff.

UMPunk

Can't believe you haven't mentioned Wood and Prior's injuries and Baker's "over use" of pitchers as being related yet.

Rob Neyer

  (1:58 PM)

It's not nearly as much fun now that everybody's doing it.

John (Seattle)

Okay Rob, here's your last Mariners question for the week - Edgar just hit his 300hr. Will he be voted into the Hall of Fame as the best DH ever, and the one of the best hitters of the 90's? Thanks.

Rob Neyer

  (2:00 PM)

My gut feeling is that no, he won't make it. I'm not going to argue his qualifications here, because I still haven't decided for myself. But I think his relative lack of home runs and his DH-ness will prevent his election.

Rob Neyer

  (2:01 PM)

Thanks for all the questions, and I'll be back next week, same bat-time and channel.