Out of Town Scoreboards

This time of year, normal Phoenicians have long since tired of what the usual opinionistas profess did in our local nine. Derrick Hall looks to injury and happenstance, Levski targets the EB contract, and my dear friend Jim McLennan blames Colangelo, stupid fans or anyone other than Jim's put upon franchise princelings. This blog, Diamondhacks, ID's pretenders undermining not just our NL West chances, but Western civilization itself.

So there you have it. We know where everyone stands. Or bends. Let's fill our lungs, instead, with some fresh air from beyond our well dug trenches. From Andrew Baggerly, for example, an SF Giants beat writer. Keep in mind, "beats" normally come down more critically on the orgs they cover every single day. Three days v. the Dbacks apparently made quite an impression.

Baggerly:

The Arizona Diamondbacks are a hot mess. I used the word “dysfunctional” in my game story, but only because I write for a family newspaper.

The players don’t appear to hustle or care, they make embarrassing fundamental errors and almost every inning, you get the sense they’ve never scouted their opponent or pay any attention to detail. I suppose that’s what happens when you replace your manager with your farm director in the name of “organizational advocacy.” (And while I don’t know much about A.J. Hinch, it’s pretty clear a Stanford degree only gets you so far.)

Let’s put it this way. If a runner is standing at third base with less than two outs, the game situation often compels you to play the infield in, right?

When that runner is Bengie Molina, uhhhh… not such a smart move.

The most embarrassing part was when pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre Jr. went out to talk to Dan Haren, got snippy when plate umpire Hunter Wendelstedt tried to move things along, and ended up getting tossed. Then Hinch got tossed, too.

All the while, Haren was standing on the mound, getting cold. Brilliant stuff, boys.


Another out of towner, Spink Award winner Tracy Ringolsby, rumors the reeling Dbacks are for sale. One can certainly pray. His unsourced tidbit drew a blustery denial from Earl "Ken" Kendrick, the moralist legally squabbling over Jeff Moorad's outgoing share, while preaching he's not in baseball for the money.

Kendrick:

"It's a complete and total fabrication of the highest order. That's [selling the Dbacks] the last thing on my mind."

Well, hardly the last thing, given recent sale of another major league franchise all but confirmed "the last thing" on Kendrick's mind was his most embedded partner's vigorous interest in the San Diego Padres.


Ringolsby points out "there is no indication that there have been any serious talks with a prospective buyer...", so he's not floating a baseless rumor that a sale is imminent. He's implying a credible, unnamed source has hinted to him that the Dbacks are "available", open to discussion, etc. Kendrick calls that a complete and total fabrication? It's not much of a story, is it? The idea Kendrick would sit down with a hypothetical buyer? Why would Ringolsby completely fabricate something so mundane out of thin air?

It's true he shares my general disdain for Dbacks brass, and more specificially their hollow cult of organizational aggrandizement, but as a columnist, he's entitled that. The issue isnt who likes who - it's whether there's anything to the sale rumor and who's telling the truth.

We dont know the answer, but I would ask two questions pursuant to it.

1. Who sounds more credible, less bombastic here? A high ranking journalist who claims the Dbacks are "available" but there's no evidence of any serious sit downs, or an owner who dismisses such tame talk as "a complete and total fabrication." How could Kendrick possibly know what others have confided in Ringolsby to make such a sweeping indictment?

2. Who's got the larger potential conflict of interest? A very well-connected journalist relaying an unsourced aside, or the owner of an unstable $400M concern, worried about his position amid rumor he wants out? Who has more to gain by hiding the truth for their own profit?

Perhaps Jeff Moorad could shed some light on the subject.