Fred Lewis: A Story of How the Orioles Stay Mediocre
by James F on Jun 4, 2010 5:05 PM EDT
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PrintAt the end of May, the Toronto Blue Jays finalized their acquisition of Fred Lewis from the San Francisco Giants. They got him for $75,000.
The Jays acquired Lewis on April 16th, the same day the O's put Pie on the DL. Since joining the Jays, Lewis has hit .310/.344/.518 with 19 doubles and four home runs. Fangraphs puts his value at $3.2 million to date.
That same day, the Orioles promoted Lou Montanez, and signed Corey Patterson to a minor league deal.
Surely, no one expected Lewis to be as good as he has been for the Blue Jays, although it was clear he was better than Patterson on Lou would be. He's youngish at 29 and has years of team control remaining. And he was baseball's equivalent of free.
Instead, we went with two guys who have none of Lewis' upside nor his future years under team control.
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You're helping me make my argument
Other teams are just flat out better at identifying and signing talent. The Orioles must get better at this or I will go to my son’s HS graduation before I see an O’s playoff game again. And he’s 10.
When you watch the Orioles every night, a beer after dinner turns into a six pack WAY too many times. Stacey
Well, I don't know that it is a question of identifying talent
As much as it is one of identifying opportunities. I think they do a decent job of identifying talent, at least in the minors and US amateurs. I think they suck at seeing the opportunities to add talent cheaply (and I also thing that MacPhail has some other disturbing tendencies).
On the other hand, I don’t know what argument you’re making that you think I disagree with. I think Jordan is a good scouting director who drafts well, albeit not quite how I’d like him to. But I don’t know that we disagree that there is reason to be concerned about MacPhail’s performance.
To be understood is to be a prostitute. ~ Fernando Pessoa
So he graduates in 7, maybe 8 years
I don’t think that’s completely out of the question. Especially not in this division.
"things like locig and prrofreading are actually valued here" - zknower
I'm an optimist, so
my money is on him seeing the Orioles in the playoffs in his lifetime.
Librarians are hiding something
by dfa on Jun 5, 2010 3:26 AM EDT up reply actions
I'm convinced I'm not going to see a winning a record from us until high school.
"There's rock bottom, 50 feet of crap, then the Orioles."-Stacey
by BaltimoreSportsFan on Jun 5, 2010 7:37 AM EDT up reply actions
What grade are you in now?
High school isn’t that far off.
Isn't it almost impossible to believe that none of the perfect games this season have been thrown against us? -O'sFan21
Well if you've raised him to be an O's fan
chances are he will start drinking at a young age to swallow away the pain of such travesties such as Adam Jones Batting Average in the majors, Nolan Reimolds Batting average in the minors, Garrett Atkins teeth, and Peter angelos’ existence, which will lead to him dropping out and there being no graduation and no O’s playoff chances. is that about right?
Mediocre? Don't sugar coat it.
I bet if Lewis came to the O’s he would not be so successful. This is one of those unquantifiable statements and I’m sure plenty will think ‘BS’, but players on teams doing well are expected to rise to the occasion. It’s human nature to do so, at least to the best of one’s ability. I bet Wieters, Jones, etc would also be doing better on a different successful team.
Anyhow, we’ll see how long Lewis can keep it up.
I bet Wieters, Jones, etc would also be doing better on a different successful team.
I think there is a lot to this. It’s something that does not show up in stats, because there’s no way to measure it. A lot of sabery types would therefore discount it out of hand. But I think “team mood” affects a player’s performance, no question.
"I put a pepper rub on the scallops so you have a little contrast. You have sweetness from the coconut oil and little acidity from the splash of lemon." – Luke Scott
It shows up in stats
as in, their stats aren’t all that good.
I mean, that’s like saying how sabery types discount bat speed, because it doesn’t show up in stats, but it’s obviously a fundamental building block of stats.
Fire Garret Atkins.
by Andrew_G on Jun 8, 2010 3:14 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
7th
"There's rock bottom, 50 feet of crap, then the Orioles."-Stacey
by BaltimoreSportsFan on Jun 5, 2010 11:31 AM EDT reply actions
bah, reply fail.
"There's rock bottom, 50 feet of crap, then the Orioles."-Stacey
by BaltimoreSportsFan on Jun 5, 2010 11:31 AM EDT up reply actions
and Kevin Frandsen
claimed off waivers by the Angels in late April.
by Dingbat Charlie on Jun 5, 2010 10:02 PM EDT reply actions
Lewis 0-6 today
He’d have fit in quite nicely on this team….
Make the world a better place; punch a Yankee fan in the face!
I'm pretty sure the reason we didn't go after him
may have been because the front office was optimistic about Pie. Lou Montanez should not be on a major league roster. In all honesty he should probably be sent to Japan. Paterson out-performed himself and has manged ti imrpove his approach and skills slightly. He makes a decent fifth outfielder, possibly a fourth. But he really shouldn’t be starting. In fact I’d move Luke to left and start rotating players or signing a DH player special just for him. Hell we could even hire Bonds. At least people would show up at the ballpark then
Wigglypuff uses Walk Off. Papelbon faints. -Jakattak88
Actually
the Bonds thing doesn’t sound half-bad. Am I crazy?
Wigglypuff uses Walk Off. Papelbon faints. -Jakattak88
Yes, you are insane.
Fuck Barry Bonds. He is as worthless a human being as our current back up 2nd baseman.
Make the world a better place; punch a Yankee fan in the face!
by PBR me ASAP! on Jun 6, 2010 10:00 AM EDT up reply actions
He could have helped OJ with his ex-wife problem ....
… and I’d be ok with him as a hitting coach so long as he was any good at it.
Clarence, It's better to have a gun and not need it, then need a gun and not have it.
i'm starting to think he's not even worth of b2b
i mean…he doesnt even deserve to be somebody’s backup.
I don’t have much tolerance for stupid. Or cheese on food that doesn’t need it. -duck
Luke in LF....
with
2B b2b
3B Miggy
RF Nick
1B Wiggy
LF Luke
DH TBA
C Wieters
CF Adam
SS Izzy
Who would we get to DH? Who’s available?
But I like Patterson and Atkins on the bench. Nailed there. And glued with epoxy.
When you watch the Orioles every night, a beer after dinner turns into a six pack WAY too many times. Stacey
I've given up hope
of the O’s trying to trade for the unappreciated Kila Ka’aihue. Maybe they are trying and the Royals won’t trade him or are asking for a fortune, but I’m not giving them the benefit of the doubt on that.
by Dingbat Charlie on Jun 6, 2010 12:11 PM EDT reply actions
Intriguing, I'll admit....
When you watch the Orioles every night, a beer after dinner turns into a six pack WAY too many times. Stacey
I hate to do this, but...
James, check your email. Unrelated to this topic, but wanted to be sure you saw it.
When you watch the Orioles every night, a beer after dinner turns into a six pack WAY too many times. Stacey
Off topic but it does illustrate the overarching point of this post...
Jon Miller just told a story about St. Louis pitcher Jamie Garcia. He was a 30th round draft pick of the O’s in 2004. He was required to take a written ‘test’ of some sort before the O’s would sign him. The ‘test’ was poorly translated into Spanish for the Mexican born Garcia and he did poorly on it, thus the O’s refused to sign him. Now he is a very good starter for the Cardinals. I understand this event took place under a previous regime, but this is another example of the Warehouse not being able to get out of it’s own way, costing the farm system potential talent. Great job guys…
Make the world a better place; punch a Yankee fan in the face!
but, truly...
wasn’t that a big thing of flanny and talent evaluation? he was into all sorts of wacky psychological evaluation methods that seemed to hold no water elsewhere in the league.
"If they pitch to you, make them pay."
--Diamond Dave to the Phenom
I understand the O's fumbled the opportunity to sign Carlos Pena a few years ago
His agent contacted the Orioles while he was a free agent. The agent never got a return call. Tampa was contacted and signed him. Since then he has hit for low average but averaged 40 HRs a season. Not sure I have all the facts but if anyone knows the story please fill me in.
For the 2011 Amateur Draft the Baltimore Orioles take Anthony Rendon, 3B, Rice Univ with the drafts first pick.
Fred Lewis=Tike Redman
Tike Redman ’07—.318/.341/.462. .803 OPS, 30 years old.
Fred Lewis ’10—.291/.325/.484. .809 OPS, 29 years old.
Its just a six week hot streak. Nothing to get excited about in either case.
Fred Lewis has a career OPS of .781 and OBP of .351
Nothing to go crazy about but thats serviceable considering we have Lou who cant hit and CP manning our outfield. The only thing i can think of is that he wanted no part in playing for the O’s. Which wouldn’t be a good sign when even Fred Lewis wont have any part in your team.
"I have seen the future and his name is Matt Wieters." Keith Law
by Reddrummer9187 on Jun 7, 2010 9:01 AM EDT up reply actions
Yeah
The point isn’t that Fred Lewis is great, it’s that he’s not terrible … unlike Lou and Corey.
by Joltin Joe Orsulak on Jun 7, 2010 9:09 AM EDT up reply actions
I know
I cant think of any reason why we wouldnt have gone after him other than he wanted no part in the O’s
"I have seen the future and his name is Matt Wieters." Keith Law
by Reddrummer9187 on Jun 9, 2010 8:46 AM EDT up reply actions
An offensively challenged NL West team didn't have room for Lewis
He is 1 for his last 19. He is falling to earth as this thread continues. His .368 BABIP is probably unsustainable in the AL East. Yeah, he’s better than Lou Montanez, but he isn’t a symbol of Oriole mediocrity. 28 other teams didn’t want him too much either. Some of them have outfield problems and also passed on Lewis. The Jays just got a lucky six week hot streak out of him. Its meaningless in the big picture.
BTW, I believe it was a trade, not a free agent signing, so Fred Lewis had no say in where he went. It is irrelevant whether Lewis wanted “any part” of the O’s.
i didnt realize it was a trade
yea he would have been a nice upgrade
"I have seen the future and his name is Matt Wieters." Keith Law
by Reddrummer9187 on Jun 9, 2010 8:47 AM EDT up reply actions
+1
Not to mention Nolan Reimold was still here and the team still seemed to think he could turn it around.
There’s a lot of issues with this team, not picking up the likes of Fred Lewis wasn’t one of them. Lewis has also been extremely luck in terms of BABIP too.
I've got nothing against the bunt...in its place. But most of the time that place is the bottom of a long-forgotten closet. - Earl Weaver
http://dempseysarmy.blogspot.com
by DempseysArmy on Jun 10, 2010 9:40 AM EDT up reply actions
Why?
I don’t have the same faith in him. Relievers are notoriously hard to predict, and an xFIP of 4.39 doesn’t exactly excite me.
To be understood is to be a prostitute. ~ Fernando Pessoa
He only 24
with plenty of room for improvement. Meanwhile Albers has an xFIP of 5.05, Simon is at 4.65, Castillo 4.78, and our best relievers at comparable 4.30, 4.16, and 4.33. It would have been a real cheap, quick way to inject new blood into the bullpen and give it a slight improvement.
Fire Garret Atkins.
Eh
I mean, sure, I’d have had little against dumping Albers for him. But he’s a sinker-slider reliever who tops out at 93 and sits at 90 who has a history of conditioning problems.
But I’ll admit to having an overall lack of interest in what they do with the bullpen, so long as it isn’t too expensive. Texeira is fine, and I’d be fine with him replacing one of our relievers. But I’m not getting too bothered by our not getting him; another reliever who is just as good is likely to be on waivers next week, and the week after, if we want one.
To be understood is to be a prostitute. ~ Fernando Pessoa
Just so that we're clear, this post wasn't about how we needed Fred Lewis
The point is about how we add marginal players.
Fangraphs today had a great post about how the Marlins do this. The lesson is the same.
To be understood is to be a prostitute. ~ Fernando Pessoa
Fred Fred
He’s never been a below-average offensive performer, is one of the best baserunners in the game, plays good defense (save for an occasional, pull-your-hair-out gaffe), and most importantly, would be cheap this season (and probably a few more). I don’t get the people who are hating on him here.
Aaron King is still my homeboy... iffy mechanics and all
McFAQ for all you newcomers out there.
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