RAMON HERNANDEZ
My line: 425 AB, .282/.341/.476, 23 HR, 44/61 BB/K
The community line (my projection included):
AB AVG OBP SLG HR BB/K 418 .286 .333 .462 21 34/51
Nice to see we're expecting good things out of Ramon, who has kind of flown under our radar since he was acquired. It was a quiet, sensible acquisition that none of us questioned at all apart from maybe saying, "That's a decent amount of clams for Ramon Hernandez, isn't it? Oh well, good move."
I also asked a yes/no question about whether or not Ramon would help our staff improve, and we do seem to think so. Personally, I think he should be good for everything. His reputation as a game caller is something I have to go just by reputation with, because I haven't seen him enough and what do I know about game calling anyway? But catcher defense for the O's last year was pretty bad between Javy, Big Sal, Da Chief and Mr. Whiteside, so I'm definitely excited for someone reliable back there.
BRUCE CHEN
My line: 33 GS, 210 IP, 3.56 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, 145 K, 29 HR allowed
The community line (my projection included):
GS IP ERA WHIP K HR 31 198 3.82 1.30 134 30
Only merdon had a more optimistic projection than I do. I really like Chen. I liked him last year and if you were around for the baby stages of this community, you will remember me pulling hard for Chen to win that fifth starter's spot in spring training. I just had a good feeling about Chen, and after watching him pitch last season, I still have one. I think he'll be better, and I think he's found himself as a crafty lefty. He's never going to be a dominator, but if he's got his change and curve on, he'll keep you in games at the least. You might say Bruce Chen is my boy.
Guys we have left that I want to get to: Bedard, Benson, Hawkins, Roddy, Ray, The Todd, Javy, Brian Bob, Niner and Matos. We'll get a start on those tomorrow.