Protecting the Shields -- The Nick Cafardo Thread

[PedroKsBambino]

The idea that should regret GMs not being able to 'close a deal over drinks at a bar' epitomizes the difference between what Nick wants and what I want.

What Nick wants is a story, and people who do things quickly and without the distraction and annoyance of research and analysis. What I want is a GM who has researched and analyzed a move many, many different ways before he commits to it.

What Nick wants is 'gut' decisions that writers can pontificate, and turn into narratives about the relative 'feel' of different executives. What I want is a critical thinking-driven analysis process that is trackable, repeatable, and improveable so we can evaluate results, improve them, and change as necessary.

What Nick wants is to be invited to the subsequent round of drinks to hear the story. What I want is for my team's GM to tell no one what they were thinking or why they made the move so that they don't give up any info that can help another team.

Basically, what Nick wants is a team to operate like Irsay's Colts. And what I want is Bill Belichick.

 

[TheoShmeo]

The Analytics versus Traditionalists segment of that notes column may have been Nicky's most idiotic, simplistic and off base piece ever.

Does Cafardo really think there is a burning war among major league executives along these lines? Don't all teams use both sabermetric data and other dreaded analytics AND the more traditional scouting mehtods, including focus on attitudes and make-up, on a daily basis?

If the Red Sox were not factoring in all of those things into their decision making, I would be shocked and pissed off. That some teams may rely on analytics more than others hardly suggests that it's an either/or proposition.

 

[joe dokes]

The Analytics versus Traditionalists segment of that notes column may have been Nicky's most idiotic, simplistic and off base piece ever.
That some teams may rely on analytics more than others hardly suggests that it's an either/or proposition.

This is, of course, the truth. The idea that the Giants or Royals dont employ "analytics" is just bullshit:

http://www.hardballtimes.com/royals-royals/
The club has no fewer than four full-time employees who work in analytics, and that doesn’t include any interns or consultants. Mike Groopman, who has spent eight years with the franchise and previously worked at Baseball Prospectus, was promoted to the role of director of baseball operations/analytics back in January. In fact, he just became the first BP alum to be part of a World Series-winning team.


http://deadspin.com/5956642/the-giants-sure-use-a-lot-of-sabermetrics-for-an-anti-sabermetric-team

 

[JBJ_HOF]

November 6th:

The Indians would make Carlos Carrasco and Danny Salazar available, but likely not Corey Kluber. The Red Sox had a chance to deal for Carrasco at the deadline, but he seems to be more of what they already have.

November 10th:

Dombrowski admits the majority of his trade discussions revolve around the front of the rotation. Obviously, the Mets have it in Matt Harvey, Jacob deGrom, Steven Matz, etc. The Indians have it in Danny Salazar, Carlos Carrasco, and Corey Kluber.

 

[Red(s)HawksFan]

So I'm watching MLB Network's Hot Stove show this morning and they just teased hour two in which they'll have a segment with Nick Cafardo live from the GM meetings to talk about...."the on-going battle of Scouting versus Analytics". One of the co-hosts of this show is Harold fucking Reynolds.

Heads may explode.

 

[E5 Yaz]

So I'm watching MLB Network's Hot Stove show this morning and they just teased hour two in which they'll have a segment with Nick Cafardo live from the GM meetings to talk about...."the on-going battle of Scouting versus Analytics". One of the co-hosts of this show is Harold fucking Reynolds.

Heads may explode.

Brian Kenney might break a chair in the green room

 

[joe dokes]

So I'm watching MLB Network's Hot Stove show this morning and they just teased hour two in which they'll have a segment with Nick Cafardo live from the GM meetings to talk about...."the on-going battle of Scouting versus Analytics". One of the co-hosts of this show is Harold fucking Reynolds.

Heads may explode.

It should be broadcast in 4:3 B&W.

 

[Red(s)HawksFan]

It was every bit as bad as expected. They opened the segment with a disturbing photoshopped image of Cafardo taking a steam with Dombrowski and Wally. All in line with Vasgersian's running gag all morning that the meetings were being held at Del Boca Vista, phase 2. Shudder inducing before they even got into the ridiculous topic at hand.

 

[joe dokes]

It was every bit as bad as expected. They opened the segment with a disturbing photoshopped image of Cafardo taking a steam with Dombrowski and Wally. All in line with Vasgersian's running gag all morning that the meetings were being held at Del Boca Vista, phase 2. Shudder inducing before they even got into the ridiculous topic at hand.

Laugh at your own risk. When the Oakland A(nalytic)'s computer breaks and it can't spit out a starting lineup, Nick will have a pen that writes upside down.

 

[lexrageorge]

Laugh at your own risk. When the Oakland A(nalytic)'s computer breaks and it can't spit out a starting lineup, Nick will have a pen that writes upside down.

Or a pen that writes under whip cream.

 

[JBJ_HOF]

Three months after:

This conversation doesn’t even take place if the Red Sox weren’t such a mess. But they are. They are buoyed by overinflated rankings of their farm system by ESPN and Baseball America. The really good prospects are in Single A, a long way from Fenway Park.
https://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2015/08/04/dave-dombrowski-now-out-there-silver-platter-for-red-sox/nTNzFk2OSrjQstAPRLNb8O/story.html

We get: Red Sox farm system gets rave reviews

 

[joe dokes]

Matt Harvey, Jacob DeGrom, Steven Matz, Noah Syndergaard, and the comebacking Zack Wheeler (who won’t be ready until about June) are not available. At least that’s the story here in the second week of November. How long the offense-needy Mets stick to it is anyone’s guess.

“Just in case, they want to hear it from us that we’re probably not moving them,” Ricco said at the general managers meetings. “And ‘very unlikely’ is what we’ve been telling them.”

OK. So "very unlikely" = "are not available." But . . . .

On the flip side, White Sox GM Rick Hahn, when asked whether there was anyone on his team that was “untouchable,” cited his owner, Jerry Reinsdorf, who also owns the Chicago Bulls.
“Mr. Reinsdorf always said the only untouchable in his career on both teams wore No. 23 [Michael Jordan],” Hahn said.
“I don’t believe in the concept of untouchables. I don’t believe in closing off avenues of conversations, but I do believe in the concept of extraordinarily difficult to acquire. And we have some of those.
“Fundamentally, I’m not doing my job if I don’t listen. You never know; you might be surprised. There are elements of the core of our roster that you’d have to be overwhelmed to move.”
So at least you can talk to Hahn about lefthander Chris Sale.

But "extraordinarily difficult to acquire" means you can talk about Chris Sale.

https://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2015/11/12/making-pitches-for-pitchers-high-red-sox-agenda/OUiL8ONrUr3wcx2LeLIQAL/story.html

 

[John Marzano Olympic Hero]

You guys. Know what's totes unfair? The draft.

And you guys. You know who's got an awesome answer to how to fix it and it's a reason that's completely altruistic and would not put another nickel in his pocket and he's just throwing it out there because he loves baseball sooooooooo much? Scott Boras.

And you guys know who is so adorable that he lets Boras ramble on for six paragraphs without a follow up question or any points of contention? Nick Cafardo.

And BTW, since it's the off season, it's time for the New York Yankees to be rumored in on every single trade and free agent signing. You know why? Because they're only the best!

 

[joe dokes]

If only Nick were writing about himself (except the "athlete" part):

There comes a time in every athlete’s life when his body, his soul, his head tell him it’s over.
You can dangle a zillion dollars in his face, and nothing can change his mind. He looks forward to the last time he has to go through a grueling offseason workout just to endure another season.
He looks forward to the last time he has to make grueling road trips that have gotten worse with the strange scheduling you’re seeing year in and year out around major league baseball.
The older a player gets, the tougher it is to be in shape. Everything starts to hurt a little bit more, and you reach the point of diminishing returns

https://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2015/11/18/david-ortiz-faces-reality-that-all-great-athletes-must-face/yy1bMpd26tVHN4cOK4mlAJ/story.html

 

[ifmanis5]

Wtf is 'strange scheduling?' So playing in Philly once in a while instead of Detroit more often is making you quit? Nick is an old strange dude who should have been shown the door a long time ago.

 

[joe dokes]

I do give Nick credit for being unequivocally in the "yes" camp on the HoF issue.

 

[InstantKarmma]

I do give Nick credit for being unequivocally in the "yes" camp on the HoF issue.

It could just as well be pandering. I imagine that there are very few Red Sox fans who also are Globe readers who don't believe that Papi should be in the HoF.

 

[John Marzano Olympic Hero]

It could just as well be pandering. I imagine that there are very few Red Sox fans who also are Globe readers who don't believe that Papi should be in the HoF.

Don't be so sure of that. There is a slice of the Boston fandom who believe that Ortiz is tainted by PEDs.

 

[Lose Remerswaal]

And there are Red Sox fans who preferred the Sox continue to not win a World Series /CHB

 

[jimbobim]

Nick was on the analytically slanted MLB Now with BK on MLB Network today and he was like a child flailing in the deep end.

Tried to be contrarian on what it meant that guys like Alvarez and Carter were dropped and the other panelists ganged up on him. Continued with Nick saying a big market team would have tendered Holland whose sitting out for year. Hilariously out of his depth.

 

[E5 Yaz]

Continued with Nick saying a big market team would have tendered Holland whose sitting out for year

Quite possibly true, or at least work out a two-year deal with him. After all, the Red Sox once paid Curt Schilling $8M to get fat

 

[Papelbon's Poutine]

Quite possibly true, or at least work out a two-year deal with him. After all, the Red Sox once paid Curt Schilling $8M to get fat

Work out a two year deal, sure. But why would you tender an arb 3 guy that won't play? You'd be paying for quite literally nothing except possibly goodwill when he becomes a free agent, at which point he still can go sign elsewhere. The Schilling fiasco had a few factors that kind of make it apples to oranges.

 

[OzSox]

From today's story on David Price:

His big-game ability — a 68-27 record against teams that finished the season .500 or better, ranks second in modern baseball history. Only Sandy Koufax (64-45) places higher.

This doesn't make any sense, right?

 

[joe dokes]

From today's story on David Price:

His big-game ability — a 68-27 record against teams that finished the season .500 or better, ranks second in modern baseball history. Only Sandy Koufax (64-45) places higher.

This doesn't make any sense, right?

"Scouts say that Koufax pitched those games with more heart and grit; the analytic nerds rely on "winning percentage" to place Price first."

 

[Red(s)HawksFan]

From today's story on David Price:

His big-game ability — a 68-27 record against teams that finished the season .500 or better, ranks second in modern baseball history. Only Sandy Koufax (64-45) places higher.

This doesn't make any sense, right?

Well, he got both records wrong, for one. Price is 68-37 against teams that finished .500 or better (.648 winning percentage). Koufax's record was 84-45 (.651). By those numbers, Cafardo's claim is probably correct (no idea how to verify it easily). But since he got both numbers wrong, he looks like typical bonehead Cafardo.

 

[Lose Remerswaal]

Or just an intern doing the editing.

 

[The Gray Eagle]

If the question is who is more likely to be dumb and wrong, Cafardo or some random intern, I would bet on Cafardo.

 

[E5 Yaz]

Sunday Notes are up

Did you know that Clay Buchholz would make a perfect trade target for the Kansas City Royals?

 

[MarcSullivaFan]

Sunday Notes are up

Did you know that Clay Buchholz would make a perfect trade target for the Kansas City Royals?

"White Sox pitcher Chris Sale seems to be talented enough that the Red Sox should consider sending a package of young prospects to Chicago for him."

Lol. This kind of vapidity doesn't grow on trees folks.

 

[soxhop411]

WUT

http://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2015/12/07/onball/XdqM0GsoDXAROnjPzrWSfO/story.html?event=event25

 

[soxhop411]

White Sox I — Dustin Pedroia for Jose Quintana. Comment: Don’t think the Red Sox would trade their de facto captain, especially with Ortiz leaving after this year. But anything is possible


14. Padres II — Shaw and Brian Johnson for Tyson Ross. Comment: I’ll pass on this one.

16. Reds – Owens, Holt, and a mid-level prospect for Todd Frazier. Comment: A few things would have to take place before Frazier comes to the Red Sox. For one, they’d have to move Ramirez and/or Sandoval to make room at first or third

19. Tigers – Ramirez for Justin Verlander. Comment: Two bad contracts (Verlander has four more years at $28 million per year, plus a vesting option for a fifth year), but this one was already officially shot down by Dombrowski and Tigers GM Al Avila.

How did this shit get approved?

 

[Pilgrim]

That really is one of the worst columns I've ever seen.

 

[Byrdbrain]

White Sox I — Dustin Pedroia for Jose Quintana. Comment: Don’t think the Red Sox would trade their de facto captain, especially with Ortiz leaving after this year. But anything is possible


14. Padres II — Shaw and Brian Johnson for Tyson Ross. Comment: I’ll pass on this one.

16. Reds – Owens, Holt, and a mid-level prospect for Todd Frazier. Comment: A few things would have to take place before Frazier comes to the Red Sox. For one, they’d have to move Ramirez and/or Sandoval to make room at first or third

19. Tigers – Ramirez for Justin Verlander. Comment: Two bad contracts (Verlander has four more years at $28 million per year, plus a vesting option for a fifth year), but this one was already officially shot down by Dombrowski and Tigers GM Al Avila.

How did this shit get approved?

I refuse to click on anything Cafardo writes as I have too much stupidity in my life already but I assume those are potential trades he is throwing out there. That said I don't understand your last comment Cafardo is a columnist, he posts what he thinks, why should there be any approval required? If the question was how does an person who has managed to get a job writing about baseball for a major newspaper think any of these proposals make any sense at all then I right there with you.

 

[E5 Yaz]

One of the most Cafardoian moments ever

Nick Cafardo ‏@nickcafardo 8m8 minutes ago
The Orioles have hired former Red Sox senior advisor Jeremy Kapstein as a consultant to GM Dan Duquette.

 

[burstnbloom]

That column was the worst thing I've ever read. Shaw and Brian Johnson for Tyson Ross. Nick will pass. What is happening?

 

[Pilgrim]

This is the second or third time I can remember him writing a column like that where he asks "baseball insiders" to think up ideas for him and they are completely insane. I wonder if he is making them up, or his sources are fucking with him or something. Not trying to be snide, the article was that weird.

 

[joe dokes]

Nick says that Sox will miss Miley's.................toughness.
http://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2015/12/08/red-sox-traded-away-wrong-guy-wade-miley/F29p2YXUJ8G8Mx3ijW0v0N/story.html?event=event12

 

[John Marzano Olympic Hero]

They finished last with Miley's toughness in 2015. Are they going to finish laster?

 

[Humphrey]

He couldn't knock the Sox for signing Price because he's been blathering about them signing "an ace" since they didn't sign Lester...but signing Price made Miley quite expendable. You can only have so many lefty starters.

 

[joe dokes]

Nick "No Shit" Cafardo mines an unusual topic today:
Hanley Ramirez, Pablo Sandoval big question marks for Red Sox


Anyone have any ideas what an "evaluator" is? If it was a scout, GM, or generic "executive," he would say so.

“Don’t want him on my team,” said one American league evaluator about Ramirez.

We’ve heard from one former Sox teammate who used to keep three of his buttons undone on his jersey, but because Ramirez did the same thing he decided to button up because he didn’t want to be linked with Ramirez.

So who is the more juvenile operator here, Cafardo or the "former player." (Napoli was a big unbuttoned shirt guy, wasn't he? When he was wearing one, that is)

he baggage Ramirez carries as a difficult teammate can only be erased by a monster offensive season.

I could have missed it, but were there any rumblings last year about him being a "bad teammate" (as opposed to just a shitty player?)

 

[Laser Show]

Nothing drives me nuts more than Cafardo's "we've heard" "we've been told" "we all know"

 

[threecy]

Nothing drives me nuts more than Cafardo's "we've heard" "we've been told" "we all know"

All Hanley needs to do to make this go away is hire Boras as his agent.

 

[John Marzano Olympic Hero]

We’ve heard from one former Sox teammate who used to keep three of his buttons undone on his jersey, but because Ramirez did the same thing he decided to button up because he didn’t want to be linked with Ramirez.

An adult person said this? Holy shit this is fucking ridiculous. Even for Nick Cafardo, this is bordering on lobotomy-level stupidity to call this out as a reason to get rid of Ramirez.

What's next, the player is not going to wear pants because Hanley Ramirez wears pants? Hopefully this stupid asshole decides not to breathe because Hanley Ramirez breathes.

 

[threecy]

What's next, the player is not going to wear pants because Hanley Ramirez wears pants? Hopefully this stupid asshole decides not to breathe because Hanley Ramirez breathes.

I may stop eating donuts because Nick eats donuts.

 

[TheoShmeo]

Nicky once again demonstrates his Captain Obvious skills this morning with a review of the Sox infield D.

Guess what?

Hanley is a question mark at first and could be really bad. Dustin is getting older and might have lost a step but is going to work on his quickness. Xander is very good and should get better with more experience. Pablo is overweight and needs to get in better shape.

And playing good infield D is important to run prevention.

Viewing that effort in its most favorable light, there was a sliver of new information regarding Pedroia (with a comparison to Kinsler and his improvement at second).

 

[Granite Sox]

He was also on MLB Tonight this evening calling the Sox infield the worst in the AL, got in another shot about trading Wiley, and then promptly selected the Sox as the favorite to win the AL East.

 

[HriniakPosterChild]

"A lot of people pick you to see you get fired, to put heat on you."

--John McNamara

 

[E5 Yaz]

9. Zach Kapstein, OF, Orioles — The Red Sox never had proper playing time available for the righthanded-hitting outfielder from Tiverton, R.I. A superb athlete, Kapstein, 23, was traded to the Orioles for cash and will finally get a chance to show his ability.

http://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2015/12/27/rich-hill-ready-pitch-for/0rYM41N7NDEUkBy8Wd7K8N/story.html

 

[Lose Remerswaal]

If there was no link I'd swear you were making that up.

 

[John Marzano Olympic Hero]

That blurb made me laugh pretty hard this morning.