News and Announcements
Being a Senator means giving your best effort on the field at all times. That said, we do recognize that "effort" can be subjective.
Example from last year: I know that my friend Frank Rose, our #1 starter, ALWAYS gives a full effort. On one occasion, he tried to move up a base, was thrown out, and caught some flack from his Indian Mills Yankee teammates because he did NOT slide. Now, I know that Frank has a VERY bad knee -- no cartilege -- and that it can be very dangerous and scary for him to have to slide. So his 100% effort does NOT involve sliding into bases.
As manager, I need to know about those things so that if I desperately need to get an extra base, I can think about possibly running for Frank in that spot.
Bottom line: if you give the best you've got, we will be happy at all times. Play hard, have fun, and we will win games!
The Senators have a long-standing reputation in this league for being a "class" organization when it comes to umpire relations. This does NOT mean that we've never had a guy tossed or had an argument with an arbiter. However, we NEVER whine incessantly, but rather have our say and continue on with the ballgame. On the occasions when we've had players tossed, the ejections have come quickly via an over-heated comment or gesture. There have NEVER been any major "incidents," and we don't intend to have any moving forward.
That said, if there is any "serious" jawing to be done, it will be done by me. If you have something to say to one of the gentlemen in blue, by all means feel free. But once you have it off your chest, please focus on the next pitch, the next AB, the next play, the next inning, the next game, whatever. I'll take care of the major yapping (if necessary).
And believe me, I know that some of these guys are not very good at what they are being paid to do -- as with ANY profession. But umpiring is HARD work, and requires a focus completely different from that of a ballplayer. So please give the men in blue their due respect -- it's very rare that these guys are the difference in a ballgame, anyway. It usually comes down to runs, hits and errors.
Finally, fair warning: anyone behaving in a fashion that I consider to be against the Senator code of conduct will be invited to go play for some other team pronto. We will not sit still for that kind of behavior. I've seen it on occasion from other teams, and it's not a pretty sight.
Our pitching situation is, of course, somewhat unsettled, as I am hoping to add one more solid starter to the staff. Honestly, this may or may not happen. However, we have one of the league's top starters in my good friend Frank Rose (R). Frank's career stats can be found here.
I expect Frank to take the mound each and every week, probably for 5-6 innings in most cases, and he will probably have the chance to go even deeper later on in the season -- we'll need to get him ready for complete-game action in the playoffs! I have not yet decided if those innings will happen at the beginning or the end of games. A lot of that will depend on what our bullpen looks like. Other pitchers:
John Fitgerald (L). Since I haven't seen John throw, tough to say what his workload will be. But we will need to find out, so he can expect to get some innings each week in the early going so we can see where we are with him.
Mike Daly (R). Mike threw some innings against us in the Over 30, and he appears to be a solid starter who will do well in this league. He's being looked at as the #2 guy right now, health permitting. He will also get a solid look early so that we know the scoop.
Joe Pavlik (L). Joe threw as a Senator a few years ago, but hasn't played since. He is a junkballer with a very nasty curveball, but he'll need to display command, which has been an issue in the past. Still, an "A" curveball is a commodity in this league, and he could do well if he throws strikes. We'll give him a shot to show his stuff early.
Ted McKinney (R). Ted is a 1-3 inning set-up or close option. He has a good, hard fastball, -- not a lot of experience on the mound. He will be used situationally, as needed, if needed.
Frank Izzi (L). Frank is a guy who faced us for a inning during the Senators first season in the UDVBL Over 30. I believe Mr. Izzi is the hardest thrower I have ever faced, and I have NEVER seen a fastball move on me the way his did. It was downright UGLY! He has had some severe arm problems, though, and we will only use him in CLOSER situations, and then ONLY if he is healthy. He's too good a hitter and outfielder to lose to injury.
As you can see, we have a GREAT mix of lefties and righties, so I might certainly use the time-honored major league practice of matching up left vs. left or right vs. right situationally. A manager's dream!
As the Over 30 Senators already know, it is our custom to basically "take turns" on defense. That can mean inning on, inning off, or perhaps three on, then three off -- whatever works. Those matters are usually worked out among the position players assigned to the various jobs, but there may be occasions where I make these decisions.
Anyway, here's my thinking in the VERY early going -- and this could change drastically by the time we get going:
I have a TON of guys who who are basically first-basemen -- me, Emil, Mike Daly & Joe Pavlik. Therefore, I have to figure that me & Mike Daly might have to spend a lot of time in the OF supplementing our "regular" outfielders, Frank Izzi and John Fitzgerald (yes, we sure do need another "regular"). I'd like to use five guys in the OF regularly, which will mean about six innings per player (which is the basic goal for every position).
The infield situation is that we have John Toryk, Ted McKinney, Mike Dettra (health permitting) and Frank Rose to split the 3b/2b innings, with Brian Barnabie looking to get most of the SS play (barring any unforeseen roster moves). Ted and/or Frank might also spell Brian at short, though. Rose will be on the mound for the majority of innings, so that leaves Ted, John & Mike to split 2b/3b between them. Mike might also see some OF time as needed.
The catching will be done by Dan Laudisio, an awesome defensive receiver and great hitter besides. Danny will get all the catching he wants, with Ted relieving him as needed.
All this goes out the window when playoffs roll around, and for certain big-game situations. In those cases, our strongest defensive lineup will be on the field as needed.
Pitching? Well, that's another subject, on another day!
In most cases during the season, everyone who is there will hit (we will be carrying no more than 15 players). We're all 40-years-old-plus, so we ought to be able to put egos aside and live with 2-3 ABs per game in most cases. Hey, get some hits and we can all get 3-4 ABs! But if you're hitting .015 in May or June, don't be surprised if you watch one -- we're out there trying to play winning baseball, remember.
Playoffs are a different story, and I expect to bat no more than 12 then, with the hot hands getting the wood. Might use the A-B rule, or even have some guys start and leave the lineup after just 1 or 2 ABs. We'll see how it goes.
