Friday, November 18, 2005

$hemp Cashes In

So the Junkees are bringing back Shemp Matsui for four years at $52 million. Sure, the Japanese PR factor will help offset some of that, but on the field, this might not be as good a move as you would think.

First off, as Despiser pointed out, the guy refuses to sit down. And that screwed the Junkees in May, when he was really struggling. And it will continue to screw them over in the future, unless Snorre or whoever's in charge decides to put their foot down.

Also, I think the streak is affecting Shemp's performance. His fielding has gotten more erratic. Remember all those dropped catches near the end of the year? So much for "Mr. Fundamentals."

And the guy's been a mixed bag in the postseason. While that grand slam against the Twins in early '03 may have given him a good reputation for the big spot, he was punchless in this year's ALDS (although Shemp did well in the '04 ALCS, even going 5-for-17 in G4-7 while the rest of the team choked). Who's to say that Matsui wasn't tired out by the streak this year?

This isn't to say the guy's not a very good player. I would definitely like to have him on my team. But he's got his flaws, like everyone else. And four years down the road, he probably won't get any better.

-- I like baseball's new drug policy, but what about HGH? Time for some blood tests. Let's see how Giambi would do then.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

while you are certainly entitled to your opinion, i find it pretty pathetic that you're obviously obsessed with the yankees like most sox fans. why can't you just be happy that you won in '04 and keep that memory with you till they win it all again in 2090. and get a life! why not dedicate a site to the team you actually support??? typical...

Manny Ortiz said...

Dude: 2000!