If the Giants — surprisingly still in the National League West race (10 games back) and certainly in the NL Wild Card race (one game behind Chicago) — are looking to add a Major League arm to give them a boost for the pennant race at the trade deadline, it seems likely that the guy pictured to your left would have to be involved in any serious talks.

But anyone who’s seen Madison Bumgarner pitch will tell you that they’d be foolish to deal him.

Still more will tell you he might just be that big league arm they need.

Back when the Connecticut Defenders made their final trip into Waterfront Park this season — a trip in which Bumgarner did not pitch — I was able to spend a few minutes with the soon to be 20-year-old outside of the visiting clubhouse.

Mike Ashmore: A lot is being made about you being a 19-year-old kid in Double-A…do you feel like a 19-year-old kid in Double-A?

Madison Bumgarner: “Yeah, it’s weird.  Not really, though.  I just feel like one of the guys, you know.  I don’t really think about the age difference.”

Ashmore: But you are more or less hanging out with a bunch of older guys…that wasn’t always the case when you were coming up through the lower levels…

Bumgarner: “When I first started playing in pro ball, it was a little different.  That was really the only time.  Last year there were some older guys on the team and then in San Jose and then here it’s been the same way.”

Ashmore: You’ve got grown men climbing over chairs to get you to sign your name on a baseball or a piece of paper or whatever…I guess what has the adjustment been like to really being in the spotlight on a full-time basis like you are now?

Bumgarner: It’s…I don’t know, I don’t really have a good answer for that.  It’s definitely weird, at first especially.  You don’t really have that…mostly it was little kids was all I’d had before.  Now, people collect cards and stuff and always want your signature.  It’s pretty cool though, that’s for sure.”

Ashmore: It has to be pretty cool to be on cards, too.  Did you collect at all when you were a kid?

Bumgarner: “Yeah, it is.  When I was about eight or nine, I did a little bit. I went through that stage, but I kind of grew out of it.”

Ashmore: You were the 10th overall pick in the 2007 draft…take me back to draft day, what was that like for you?

Bumgarner: “We were at graduation practice in high school.  It was definitely exciting.  I didn’t really have a real good idea of where I’d go, I was hoping in the first round but I didn’t know what team.  When they called my name for that spot, I was definitely thrilled.  It was exciting to get started.  It took a while to get the deal down.”

Ashmore: So you signed when you were 17 still…

Bumgarner: “I’d just turned 18, I was 18 for about ten days.”

Ashmore: So you went from being a high school kid to signing a multi-million dollar deal…did you have like a high school job or anything like that before all of that?

Bumgarner: “No.  My parents didn’t really want me to get a job because they knew I’d have to work one day, so they wanted me to just have fun while I could.”

Ashmore: OK, so you went from essentially pitching for free to landing a bonus check for two million dollars…I think it’s safe to say most 18-year-olds don’t have that kind of cash in their wallets…

Bumgarner: “It’s humbling, because I couldn’t have got here without my faith in the Lord.  It’s awesome to be able take care of your family and take care of your mom, because she’s taken care of me my whole life.”

Ashmore: What kind of role did your parents play in helping you in your career?

Bumgarner: “They were always there for me, you know.  They drove me practice all the time, whenever I needed to.  They’ve always supported me.  I couldn’t be where I’m at without them, that’s for sure.”

Ashmore: In reading scouting reports on you, it seems the fastball is the big pitch for you.  Is there something you feel makes your fastball stand out compared to other pitchers or your other pitches?

Bumgarner: “I don’t really know.  I just know it’s my best pitch for sure.  I’d like to be able to see it for myself, to be in the box or something and see me throw it.  But I don’t think that’s ever going to happen.”

Ashmore: So with your fastball where it is, how important is the command and execution of your secondary stuff to you?

Bumgarner: ”It’s definitely a lot more important the higher you go up.  Here, it’s way more important than it was last year.  The last year was way more important than it’s ever been for me in high school.  You’ve got to keep locating.  My slider and changeup is getting a lot better, so hopefully they’re both on the way to being plus pitches.”

Ashmore: In the Baseball America Prospect Handbook, the scouting report says that you kind of scrapped throwing the curveball in order to work on the slider…is that still a work in progress?

Bumgarner: “Well, I never really threw a curveball, so I don’t know where that’s coming from.  I’ve heard a couple people say that.  But I’ve thrown a slider the whole time.”

Ashmore: For someone who hasn’t seen you pitch before, can you kind of give me a self-scouting report on what kind of pitcher you and what you like to throw and so on…

Bumgarner: “I like to think of myself as a power pitcher.  I don’t know, I just like to go out there and go after guys and try to get them out and stay in the game as long as I can.  I’ve been trying to get quicker outs so I can stay in the game longer, so that’s kind of a tough adjustment from being more of a strikeout guy.”

Ashmore: When you look at the young pitching in this organization — yourself, Tim Lincecum, Tim Alderson — are you excited of being a part of that at the big league level soon?

Bumgarner: “Oh yeah.  That’s for sure.  I’d love to be there and contributing as soon as possible.”

Ashmore: You’ve got Alderson here with you on the Defenders, so naturally a lot of people are comparing the two of you.  What is something you do better than him and what is something he does better than you?

Bumgarner: “I don’t know what I do better than him.  He’s definitely a good pitcher.  His offspeed stuff and throwing that for strikes, he can just do that any time in the count.  He doesn’t really walk guys, doesn’t give up many hits or many runs.  He’s just a good pitcher.”

Mike Ashmore, mashmore98 AT gmail.com

Well, here we are at the All-Star break so what better time to summarize the Orioles 2009 season than at the halfway point.  So yeah…this could will be a long post.  First things first, I have to preface this post by mentioning that I couldn’t care less about the Orioles record this year.  No one (including the front office) expected the Orioles to contend or even come close to contending this year.  When COO and GM Andy Macphail took over in 2007 he said he didn’t expect to put a contender on the field until 2010 at the earliest.   The key to this season for the O’s is progress…on the major league club and in the minors.  So if you go by that judgment scale, the first half of ‘09 has to be seen as a success.  So let’s break it down:

Overall Summary:

At the break, the Orioles are 40-48 and 14 games behind the Red Sox in the AL East, while sitting 11 games back of the Yankees for the Wild Card spot.  The AL East is the only division in baseball that a 40-48 record puts you in last place.  As a matter of fact, a 40-48 record would put the Orioles only 7.5 games out in the NL Central, and of course if the O’s were playing in that division they would undoubtedly have a better record due to, well, playing in a weaker division.  It’s interesting to note that against the 3 best teams in the AL (Red Sox, Yankees, and Angels) the Orioles sport a 5-17 record, making them 35-31 against everyone else.  So that tells just how far away this team is from competing with the best, but also how the current record may be a little deceptive.    It’s also interesting to note that the O’s are 13-12-4 in their 29 series up to this point, so obviously those series losses have been pretty rough.  At the friendly confines of Camden Yards, the Orioles are 26-21, but on the road are a dreadful 14-27.  The Orioles had a second straight successful interleague campaign in 2009 matching last year’s 11-7 record.  This year the O’s faced off against the NL East and won 5 out of 6 series with the sweep by the Marlins being that only series loss.  And finally the O’s pythagorean win-loss record is 39-49 meaning they’re playing right around what their run differential would expect.

Jones, Scott, and Markakis

Offensive Summary:

This has probably been the most disappointing part or the Orioles season.  The offense was picked by many to be up with the likes of the Yankees, Red Sox, and Rangers as one of the best in the AL.  It hasn’t worked out that way.  Despite having the 8th best batting average in all of baseball, the Orioles have scored the 10th most runs in the American League (out of 14 teams).  The top 3 guys in the lineup all started out red-hot (Roberts, Markakis, and Jones) but have all cooled off considerably the last few months.  Aubrey Huff isn’t showing the power he did last year when he won the Silver Slugger award for DHs and led the AL in extra base hits.  Melvin Mora has been horrendous, showing a major drop off from last year.  Luke Scott has probably been the Orioles MVP to this point with his 18 HRs and 51 RBI along with a .305 batting average and .976 OPS making it possible for the O’s to have the best DH in the league 2 years in a row.  Nolan Reimold has come up and solidified himself as the Orioles LF for years to come and created a very exciting outfield.  After a slow start, uber-prospect Matt Wieters has started to come around and allowed Greg Zaun to move to the back-up catcher role causing Greg to be much more successful in his starts.  Adam Jones is having the breakout season many predicted and was the Orioles lone representative in the All-Star game driving in the winning run for the American League.

Pitching Summary:

The pitching staff is what was holding this team back from being able to be considered a contender and really, no surprises here as the staff ERA is 28th in baseball and 13th in the AL.  Easily the story of the starting rotation has been a lack of being able to pitch deep into games, which in turn has killed the bullpen.  The rotation has certainly seen some turnover, as 4 different rookies have been called on thus far to contribute.  Staff “ace” and opening day starter Jeremy Guthrie has been miserable sporting a 6-8 record and a 5.35 ERA while giving up 20 (!) home runs.  The best pitcher and biggest surprise has easily been rookie Brad Bergesen.  He is 6-3 with a 3.54 ERA which puts him in the top 20 in ERA in the AL and in his last 9 starts he is 5-1 with a 2.35 ERA.  At this point he is one of the leading contenders for Rookie of the Year, along with fellow Oriole Nolan Reimold.  But if there is a positive to be taken from this year’s staff, it would be that the Orioles have given up the 5th fewest walks in all of baseball and 3rd fewest in the AL, which is a huge turn around from previous seasons (not having Daniel Cabrera around any longer is a huge help).

Minor League Summary:

The progress of some of the O’s minor leaguers is what the real focus of 2009 is in determining it’s success or not.  Through the first half of ‘09 it’s going about as good as anyone could have expected.  Brad Bergesen, David Hernandez, and Jason Berken have all been called up to join the Orioles rotation and have seen some success, although Berken’s time may be running short.  Nolan Reimold was promoted from AAA after crushing the ball down in Norfolk and has been very impressive inserting himself into the O’s every day line up.  And of course, Matt Wieters got his highly anticipated call up and is doing about as good as can be expected for a 23 year old who is trying to learn the hardest position in baseball while only playing a little over one full season in the minors.  In fact, Wieters made it to the majors faster than any other starting catcher in the majors right now, by about 100 minor league games…so some growing pains are to be expected but he has looked pretty impressive to this point.

But the key to the Oriole’s success in upcoming seasons is the development of the “Big 3″ pitchers, Chris Tillman, Brian Matusz, and Jake Arrieta.  At this point, none of these guys has done anything to lower their highly regarded prospect status, and really they have all probably increased it.  Tillman and Matusz were each invited to participate in the MLB Futures Game over All-Star weekend (Tillman started the game).  Arrieta already had his Future’s Game experience being invited to participate in the 2008 version.  So let’s throw some stats out there:

Chris Tillman

In AAA Norfolk, Chris Tillman is 7-5 with a 2.50 ERA in 16 starts.  In 86.1 innings, he has 88 strikeouts and only 22 walks.  Quick math…that’s a 4:1 strikeout to walk ratio (which is very good).  He still needs to work on going deeper into games as averaging only 5.1 innings or so per start isn’t exactly a glowing statistic.  However, people keep forgetting this guy just turned 21 which is ridiculously young to be putting up these kind of numbers in AAA.  There are rumors of a promotion to the bigs within the next month, but there’s no doubt he will be called up sometime this season.

Jake Arrieta started the year in AA Bowie and after posting a 6-3 record and a 2.59 ERA got promoted to AAA but after 7 starts is struggling a bit thanks to a couple lousy starts boosting his AAA ERA to 4.42 with a 2-3 record.  But overall, his stats sit at 8-6 with a 3.29 ERA with 103 strikeouts to go with 34 walks in 95.2 innings coming in 18 starts.  It was obvious he was too good for AA, but it’s also obvious he could use a little more time in AAA before getting the call up to Baltimore.  A September call up seems possible for the 23 year old, and considering many scouts think he could be the best of the “Big 3″, I would love to see what he could do in a few starts for the O’s later this year.

And finally, I’m saving the best stats for last.  Brian Matusz has been absolutely sick in the first half of ‘09.  Last years first round pick started this year in High-A Fredrick and after a slow start went 4-2 with a 2.16 ERA in 11 starts.  He got the promotion to AA and has since gone 4-0 with, get this, a 0.34 ERA!  Dating back to his last couple starts in Fredrick, Matusz has allowed 1 earned run in his last 50 or so innings…nasty.  Totals on the season put Matusz at 8-2 with a 1.65 (!) ERA with 107 Ks and 27 BBs in 93 innings over just 15 starts.  Good Lord.  He is easily, easily, a major league pitcher right now, but at only 22 and just 15 freakin’ starts into his professional career, the Orioles have already said they will not promote him to Baltimore this year as tempting as it may seem.  That means, if he can continue to pitch like this, Matusz has a very good shot at being the Minor League Player of the Year, which would of course be the second straight season for an Oriole to win that award.

Baseball America recently released it’s Midseason Top Prospects list which serves as an update to the pre-season list taking out any players who have since graduated to the majors.  Wieters was #1 on the preseason list, but is now with the Orioles so is no longer listed, but in the updated list Tillman and Matusz moved up to #8 and #9, respectively.  That puts them as the #2 and #3 pitching prospects in all of baseball…2 of the top 3 pitching prospects are in the Orioles system…i just love saying that.  Also of note is Jake Arrieta who did not make the top 25 but is listed as one of The Next 25 (in alphabetical order) and considering only 20 pitchers were included total between the 50 players, the O’s safely have 3 of the top 20 pitching prospects in the game, but that’s probably being conservative.

Brandon Snyder

There are of course plenty other happenings in the minors so far this year but the other minor leaguer I want to make note of is 2005’s first round pick Brandon Snyder.  Last year at this time, Snyder was being talked about as a bust, but after posting a breakout season in High-A Fredrick he was back on the map as a legit prospect and started 2009 in AA Bowie.  In 80 games in Bowie, Snyder hit .343 with 10 HRs and 45 RBI sporting a 1.018 OPS.  The O’s front office decided to go ahead and move him up to AAA to see what he can do, but he has hit a wall a bit only hitting .217 with 1 HR  and 15 driven in.  Drafted as a catcher, Snyder was moved to a corner infield spot and considering the opening at 3B with Mora’s departure after this year, and a likely opening at 1B if Huff isn’t re-signed, the front office needs to see if Brandon could slide into one of those positions.  He’ll probably need most of next year in AAA as well, but he has been a huge lift to the O’s system struggling to find big time position prospects after Wieters and Reimold.

The Rest of 2009:

The big thing for the remainder of 2009 is to see if the Orioles can avoid another late season collapse that seems to happen every single year.  With progress being the major measuring stick for 2009, another collapse would probably cause this season to be looked on as another failure, but if the team can still remain fairly competitive, 2009 will go end with some very big smiles on the faces of O’s fans and the front office.  With the development of the minor leagues, I think there is much more depth to the Orioles in ‘09 that can help avoid another late season swoon.  However, with the possible trades of Aubrey Huff and closer George Sherrill, along with some other guys at the deadline, a little struggle down the stretch would probably be expected.  Whatever the case, I don’t really care what the record says at the end of the year, I just want to see a team on the field that gives me hope for the future.  And to this point in 2009, I’m not disappointed.

Congratulations are in order for former Spinner Casey Kelly, who yesterday pitched a scoreless sixth inning in the MLB Futures Game for the United States team. Kelly was joined by fellow prospect Junichi Tazawa, who was unable to enter the game because of a rain delay. The Futures Game capped off a successful season on the mound for Kelly who will now transition to playing short.

Casey Kelly on the mound for Greenville earlier this season

Kentucky’s three minor league teams will be represented in the MLB Futures Game by two player this weekend.  The Futures Game is sponsored by XM Radio and will take place Sunday as part of the first MLB All-Star Week festivities.

The game is a chance to see some of the top prospects in baseball match up in a US vs. World format.  Each major league team must be represented by at least one player.  Prospects from higher levels of the minor leagues are sometimes favored in the roster selection process.

The Bowling Green Hot Rods had one player selected to the World roster.  Outfielder Kyeong Kang was ranked the 27th best prospect in the Tampa Bay organization by Baseball America before the season.  Kang is the first South Korean to go through the amateur player’s draft.  He spent the final two years of high school in Georgia after moving from South Korea.  The Rays took him in the 30th round of the 2006 draft and signed his as a draft-and-follow the next year.

Kang ranks second on the Hot Rods team with a .285 batting average.  He also has two home runs and 22 RBI.  According to Baseball America he is “a raw player with above-average power potential and good speed.”

The second Bluegrass Futures Game representative is Louisville outfielder Chris Heisey.  Heisey was already named a minor league mid-season all-star by Baseball America for his first half performance.  Heisey’s .350 average is the fifth highest batting average in full-season leagues this year.  He has the fourth most hits (113), seventh most runs scored (64), fifth most total bases (189) and the tenth highest slugging percentage (.585) in the minors.

According to BA, Heisey might be the most unheralded U. S. outfielder in the Futures Game this season.  BA ranked his the 22nd best prospect in the Reds’ system before the season and said he had the potential to grow into a valuable role-player at the major league level.  After batting .350 with 16 home runs and 53 RBI between AA Carolina and AAA Louisville, Heisey has shattered those predictions.

You can find individual capsules about every member of the Futures game at Baseball America.

NOTES — White Sox

Tyler Flowers and Dayan Viciedo will represent the White Sox as part of the 11th Annual XM All-Star Futures Game.

Flowers and Viciedo are both a part of the Double-A Birmingham team that won the first-half title of the Southern League South division. Here’s some information, courtesy Scott Merkin.

The 11th annual XM All-Star Futures Game, pitting the best Minor League prospects from the United States against the best from the rest of the World, will be held at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on All-Star Sunday, July 12, at 1 p.m. CT.

[snip]

Flowers, a catcher, will be part of the United States team. Viciedo, a third baseman who came over from Cuba, will be part of the World team.

Flowers has a .281 average with 10 home runs and 38 RBIs. The right-handed slugger has walked 46 times in 61 games, but he also struck out 63 times.

Viciedo, who agreed to a four-year, $10 million deal this offseason, has a .274 average with six home runs and 43 RBIs.

Merkin notes that while Viciedo is a third baseman, he has the size to also play first base or even one of the corner outfield spots.

MLB.com:

Flowers and Viciedo were chosen to participate in the 11th annual XM All-Star Futures Game.

The 11th annual XM All-Star Futures Game, pitting the best Minor League prospects from the United States against the best from the rest of the World, will be held at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on All-Star Sunday, July 12, at 1 p.m. CT. MLB.com will provide complete coverage before, during and after the game, which can be seen live on ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD and followed live on Gameday.

Flowers, a catcher, will be part of the United States team. Viciedo, a third baseman who came over from Cuba, will be part of the World team.

Mark Gonzales adds that Birmingham Barons’ manager Ever Magallanes will be one of the coaches for the World team.

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Going back a few years for this card.  This is one of the only pictures I’ve seen of Josh playing in the MLB Futures Game.  Held in conjunction with the All-Star game, it gives the future of MLB their moment in the spotlight.  At the time, I doubt anyone thought it would take so long for Hamilton to make his debut in the main event, but stuff happens.

The COA on the back of this card is suitably vague, but I am fairly certain this is a piece of the Futures Game jersey.  I suppose a little research would likely turn up a release from when the product was issued confirming the fact, but based on the material, and on what has appeared on other Hamilton jersey cards, I am guessing this was a one-off deal.  Also of note – these jerseys would have been heavy. Not at all like the thin material you usually see in basic jersey cards.  If its anything like hockey events of this ilk, Topps probably sponsored the event, and the players wore 3 or more different jerseys for a couple innings each.  No matter.  Its still a really cool addition to my collection.

It’s been quite a while since I sat down to put something up here…let’s go back in time a ways.

A few weeks ago I took a trip to New York for the All-Star Game and to finally see a game at Shea Stadium before it closes and they move next door to the very impressive looking Citi Field.

That seems to be the most interesting part of my recent life, so I’ll start there.

After a 5-hour flight and a hour-plus long car ride from Newark to our hotel in Manhattan, we finally went out for dinner at Mickey Mantle’s. On the way, I started feeling a bit funky, and realized that I had something that wasn’t agreeing with me and would subsequently force me to spend a good amount of time in the restroom the rest of the trip. Bear that in mind as you read this.

While my appetite didn’t show up at Mickey Mantle’s, I wasn’t all that impressed with the food. I had a vision of it being a bit of a more fine-dining establishment, but in reality it’s standard American food, a good amount of which was fried or had otherwise had extra calories added to it. Our waitress wasn’t as speedy as I expected, but overall it was a good trip.

There’s lots of memorabilia on hand, all of it – at least I think so – up for sale. The Michael Jordan game-used bat was pretty cool to see, as were some of the photos and mementos that line the walls. The price tags are all pretty hefty though, so be prepared for a bit of sticker shock. Maybe I went in with expectations too high, but I’d question if I’d go back again.

One positive of the visit was that I started my trek to see as many of the team logoed Statues of Liberty that I could. Mantle’s was home to the Texas Rangers, so cross that one off the list.

(I’m always a fan of writing the side notes that come up, particularly as I’m writing this. You’ve undoubtedly had the experience of being hungry but having no idea what in the world you wanted, or conversely nothing that was an option sounded good. I’m in that spot right now, a couple of minutes before the Mariners-Red Sox game, and nothing sounds appealing, let alone something worth standing in line for 15 minutes for and paying a ballpark markup for.)

We found a few more statues that night as we walked around midtown Manhattan before calling it a night. After breakfast with friends on Saturday morning, we made the trek to Coney Island before catching a Brooklyn Cyclones game.

Let me say this, it was thoroughly minor league. Read into that what you will.

I was seated behind a father-son pair; the son was distraught at apparently not getting an autograph from Angel Pagan, who had been assigned to the Cyclones on a rehab assignment, I believe. I’ve been frustrated by not getting the autograph you wanted, but this kid was taking it to the next level.

Enough about him though – the game was enjoyable, even despite having non-stop promotions, contests, and on-field distractions by the MC, for lack of a better word. This guy was the master of nothing, other than being loud.

Sunday took us to Yankee Stadium for the Futures Game, a relatively uninspired event that I’m glad I didn’t buy the premium-price ticket for. We had great seats behind home plate on the third level that worked out just fine.

It’s disappointing that more fans aren’t into the Futures Game — I know that the price makes it unrealistic for most fans to justify, especially when you don’t know who most of these guys are and it doesn’t affect or determine anything; it’s simply an exhibition. But there’s something special for me when I get to see the future stars of the game play, no matter where it is.

Following the Futures Game, we stayed for about 20 minutes of the Legends & Celebrities Softball Game, another added-value event that wasn’t really worth it. We were too far away to justify being there by getting autographs, so we headed out for our next destination: Shea Stadium.

Let me first say that Citi Field looked so good from the outside that it might warrant me returning to the Big Apple next season to see it’s debut.

Now onto Shea — let me just say that I can see why they’re building Citi Field. It’s easy to see how the stadium has become outdated – the concourses are small, the sightlines from the main level aren’t great, and 40+ years of use have taken it’s toll. But I have a hard time calling a stadium bad after only one visit – and for a lot of people that place is full of great memories, and I respect that.

But it was nice to add it to my list of places I’ve been to, especially in it’s final year. Plus the Mets beat the Rockies, and a pair of homeruns allowed me to see the apple come up twice. Always nice when you get the full package.

Monday took us to the workout day and Home Run Derby, which if you watched, you know was a pretty special thing to see, especially when it came to Josh Hamilton. We had the chance to trade our tickets in from our rightfield seats to between home and third, and let me say that I’m glad we didn’t, for two reasons. First, we got to be near the landing area for lots of the homeruns, and second, we would have had to give up our cool tickets, which I’m glad I hung onto. MLB did a really nice job on the tickets this year, and they’re cool mementos to have.

On a realted note, I had never seen kids on the street after the game with signs asking for ticket stubs before. I should have asked them why they wanted them; instead I was left to my own speculations. The optimistic side thought they wanted to keep them as souvenirs; the realistic and slightly more jaded side thought they were going to sell them on eBay and make a few bucks.

The All-Star Game itself was a blast – 15 innings, debating whether or not we’d have to leave in order to get back to our hotel in time to get to the airport. Let’s just say that we got on the subway a little after 2 a.m., and the car was coming to get us at 5:30 am to take us to the airport for a 7:40 am flight. I literally fell into my chair and passed out for about 5 hours on the plane ride home.

Looking back on it, MLB did a pretty darn good job covering Manhattan in All-Star stuff. When we got up Tuesday morning to go walk around before the game, we were greeted the mascots of the Royals, Rockies and Indians outside our hotel. There was no shortage of signs, logos and other reminders of what was going on, although a cab driver who drove us on Saturday morning was apparently unaware of the game.

Had I not been feeling funky, I think I would have only enjoyed the trip more. Needless to say I’m looking forward to hopefully going to many more.

The uncanny ability of the Oakland A’s to be so successful while spending so little money has been nothing short of amazing. Books have been written about his unconventional style. Execs from around the league have modeled their strategies after Beane’s brilliance in Oakland. Even as the eyes of baseball watch their every move and play copycat, Billy Beane and the Oakland A’s manage to stay ahead of the curve, and spend less money than almost everyone, without compromising the organization’s success.

In 15 years when we look back at the Billy Beane era in Oakland, it’s entirely possible that we won’t be looking at the 2002 “Moneyball draft” as the defining moment of Beane’s tenure, but rather the year 2008—a season where Oakland won’t even make the playoffs. With just a few trades, Beane has completely retooled the farm system, revamped the pitching staff, and positioned the organization for success in the forthcoming years—and somehow he did it without completely mortgaging the 2008 season. Amazingly, despite trading away most of their star-power, and essentially deciding they won’t go after it in 2008, they are still in second place in the AL West, and will finish ahead of the Seattle Mariners, a team that spent lots of money in the off-season with intentions of contending.

Sure, they traded away one of the most talented young pitchers in the game, Rich Harden. But how far will that set them back? Despite his immense talent, when considering Harden’s rap sheet of injuries and his trade value at an all time high, it was time for Oakland to cash in their chips. You get the feeling that Billy Beane and company have been waiting for this—the season where Harden is healthy just long enough to have significant trade value. The fact that they could get a future ace like Sean Gallagher in return, made the trade just that much more of a no-brainer for Oakland.

Peter Gammons recently said, “I’d be shocked if Gallagher doesn’t win more games than Harden in the next five years.”

Along with Gallagher came a 2003 first round supplemental pick by the Red Sox in Matt Murton, whose ceiling is probably higher than his career numbers would indicate. The A’s also received 25 year-old Triple-A outfielder, Eric Patterson, and 22 year-old catcher, Josh Donaldson. Both have seen a noticeable spike in their numbers since joining the A’s farm system. Perhaps this means that Oakland scouts saw something that the Cubs coaches missed when developing these players. When Billy Beane is involved, it’s very possible that the Cubs were trading away something they didn’t know they really had.

This year, Oakland has brought in 3-4 players who could potentially become top of the rotation arms—led by Sean Gallagher, followed by Fautino de los Santos, who was ranked the best prospect in the White Sox organization last fall, and left-handed pitcher Gio Gonzalez who was ranked number two—both acquired in the Nick Swisher trade. Gonzalez, 22, led all minor league pitchers with 185 strikeouts in 2007, and he will likely fill the void left behind by Joe Blanton. He may even be an upgrade. The fourth potential ace is Brett Anderson, one of the six prospects on the return end of the Dan Haren deal. Still only 20 years-old, Anderson holds a 1.50 ERA with a K:BB ratio of 21:6 in four starts since being promoted to Double-A Midland. The young lefty was one of the most heralded American pitchers in this year’s Futures Game during the All-Star break, where he pitched a scoreless inning.

Southpaws Dana Eveland and Greg Smith, also acquired in the Dan Haren deal from the Diamondbacks, were considered lesser pieces in the transaction. Both have been instrumental for the big club this year, occupying the back end in Oakland’s starting rotation. Combining for 13 of the A’s 51 wins and sporting very respectable ERAs of 3.49 and 3.79, these 24 year-olds have been a huge reason for Oakland’s surprising 2nd place spot in the current AL West standings. The lefty duo appear to have bright futures as Major Leaguers.

In the Joe Blanton trade with the Phillies, the A’s received another highly touted prospect in Josh Outman. Outman is yet another left-handed pitcher to add to their growing pile of young lefty arms. Outman has cruised through every level in the minors, and his claim to fame is a 37 inning scoreless streak that he amassed in 2006. One issue that may haunt him as he climbs the ranks is his unfavorably high walk rates, but so far his stuff has been good enough to offset any control issues.

Not only did Oakland swing six solid, young pitchers during their 2008 swap meet, they grabbed an abundance of one of the hottest commodities in baseball—five left-handed pitchers.

According to the old adage, pitching and defense wins championships, and the pitching talent acquired by the A’s in ’08 is pretty impressive, but they offensive acquisitions should not go unnoticed. Their new crop of young bats should be a nice compliment to Daric Barton and the rest of the up-and-comers in Oakland’s system.

Outfielder, Carlos Gonzalez and corner infielder Chris Carter were two more major trade chip in the Dan Haren deal, and both are looking like stars-to-be. Baseball America ranked Gonzalez the 22nd best prospect in all of baseball prior to the 2008 season and the 22 year old has been with the Major League club since the end of May. Carter is still playing A-ball, where he is absolutely tearing the cover off the ball. He’s swatted 27 homers through 95 games with the Stockton Ports.

Adrian Cardenas, the 20 year old second baseman acquired in the Blanton deal also figures to play a significant role in A’s future. He was also featured on Baseball America’s list of top 100 prospects in professional baseball. Along with being an absolute speed demon, Cardenas boasts a high on-base percentage and walk totals, which the A’s organization values so highly.

These new additions bolster an already talented A’s ball club that will certainly contend for the top spot on the AL West for years to come, just as they previously had for the better part of this century. But unlike previous years, by auctioning off their coveted commodities in 2008, they have put themselves in the position to not only make the playoffs every year, but contend for a World Series. All while avoiding handing out big paychecks to veterans.

Here are a couple of news items that may interest you:

• Michael Fensom has a nice read out on Jesus Montero (C) and Ramiro Pena (SS), two touted prospects in the Yankees’ farm system. Both players represented NY in this week’s Futures Game. They played on the World Team, which squared off against the Team USA squad (and won).
• Jorge Posada seems like he’s fine with catching after seeing his playing time behind the dish cut down considerably. Part of it had to do with the teams the Yankees were facing (Tampa Bay, Red Sox) and how well they’ve run on their opponents. However, Jorge’s shoulder definitely appears to be an ongoing problem and he’ll likely get days off when facing the quicker teams in the league.
• Next, we have a story on A-Rod and his wife, Cynthia. Apparently, Scott Boras stepped into their personal situation in order to arrange a truce between the two. According to the Daily News, it’s unknown whether or not Boras was helping to hasten what could be a messy divorce, or if he was simply trying to help with damage control (public relations). Either way, the DN reports that Boras has the Yankees’ support (and “blessings”) and that anything he can do to get A-Rod’s mind back to baseball would be wonderful.
• Finally, the Yankees’ second half rotation will open with Mike Mussina, then Joba Chamberlain, then Andy Pettitte. I like sandwiching Moose and Pettitte with Joba, as he’ll provide a very different look in comparison to his older teammates. The top 3 will be followed by Sidney Ponson (a number 4 starter, wow) and Darrell Rasner. Only time will tell how long this rotation can hold up. I’m not sold on Ponson and Rasner right now, so I’d expect that to change, somehow (whether from within or from an external party).

Thank you Baseball America for having the only decent Futures Game picture I could run.

Even though I was out on the lake enjoying the gorgeous day yesterday, I still managed to take in most of the Futures Game, so it’s time for some thoughts:

- I get the whole idea of drawing the US Olympic team from the rosters, but I don’t see how USA Baseball is going to determine anything about these players in an exhibition like this one that watching them in the minors couldn’t tell them. I don’t think I learned anything new about the US team than I didn’t already, except that it might be tough for them to score runs in Beijing.

- The best defensive play of the game was turned in by center fielder Dexter Fowler, of the Rockies organization. Fowler has to be the favorite to man center field on the Olympic team now that Denard Span looks like he’ll be in Minneapolis and not Rochester in August. Fowler robbed an extra base hit from Ivan DeJesus, and Fowler showed that he could man center field better than a lot of players currently doing so in the majors.

-If Greg Golson makes the Olympic team and plays at all beyond being a pinch runner, Davey Johnson should be fired. Joe Sheehan of Baseball Prospectus summed up his thoughts a lot more eloquently than I could, but Golson is a perfect example that for every amazing athlete that makes it in baseball, there are tons more that don’t because you just can’t mask a lack of hitting ability.

- 7 World pitchers got holds. So that’s something.

-Nate Schierholtz and/or Jamie D’Antonia probably will make the team, and I can see why: Olympic teams generally have a veteran or two to help carry some of the younger hitters, think Pat Borders in 2000. They both can hit ok, Shierholtz with not a lot of power but with some batting average, and D’Antonia as the reverse, but would you really want either of those guys on the team instead of, say, Matt Wieters? Sure Wieters is young and hasn’t done it against advanced competition, but why not? And if there’s some rule precluding him from being on the team, whoops.

-For all the hype Fernando Martinez got, I was expecting a lot more. His numbers are a little down this year, but he’s 19 and in AA so that is to be somewhat expected, plus he’s had some injury troubles. In the game Martinez went 1-2 with a seeing eye single. The announcing duo of Gary Thorne and Steve Phillips mentioned that Martinez was untouchable in the Johan trade talks, but I think the Twins preferred Gomez. And what’s more, I think they got the better of the two players. Martinez could be in the majors as soon as next year, but I think Gomez will easily have the better career.

- Giants prospect Angel Villalona is absolutely massive, and hopefully for Giants fans he’ll end up being massive in a good way, and not a Brett Wallace type way.

-A’s prospect Henry Rodriguez was one of the stars, easily throwing in the high 90s and even hitting 100 on the gun. Rodriguez has struggled to find the zone a bit this year, but I could easily see him as a shutdown short reliever very soon.

The US Olympic team roster will be announced on Wednesday, and I’ll have my thoughts on that team after the rosters are announced.

I went digging through my binder to find some cards to scan and share.  I was hoping for one with a ‘Future All Star’ designation, but I couldn’t quite find one.  I didn’t come up completely empty.  I found this 2001 Topps Stadium Club card, #183, with a note about his 2000 Future Games Appearance.  They play the Futures Game this time of year too, so it is close enough for me.

Does anyone know if he has any ‘Future All Star’ type cards?  I can’t think of any off the top of my heads, but it really seems like a late 90s – early 2000s card to make.

Two days until the All Star break, and the Home Run Derby.  As you may have guessed – I am kind of looking forward to it.

The most exciting aspect for me during the All Star Game festivities isn’t the Home Run Contest, or the Celebrity All Star Game, or the All Star game itself, it’s the Futures Game. Since it’s inception in 1999, this has been a major talent pool. Almost every superstar who was in the inors since 1999 played in this game.  Here are just a few names:

• Rick Ankiel – 1999
• Josh Beckett – 2000
• Lance Berkman – 1999
• Joe Blanton – 2004
• Ryan Braun – 2006
• Jay Bruce – 2007
• Mark Beurhle – 2000
• Pat Burrell – 1999
• Miguel Cabrerra – 2001 and 2002
• Robinson Cano – 2003 and 2004
• Joba Chamberlain – 2007
• Carl Crawford – 2002
• Stephen Drew – 2006
• Prince Fielder – 2004
• Bill Hall – 2002
• Josh Hamilton – 2000
• Rich Harden – 2003
• JJ Hardy – 2003
• Felix Hernandez – 2004
• Ryan Howard – 2003
• Bobby Jenks – 2005
• Evan Longoria – 2007
• Russell Martin – 2005
• Victor Martinez – 2002
• Mark Mulder – 1999
• Hunter Pence – 2006
• Hanley Ramirez – 2005
• Fancisco Rodriguez – 2002
• CC Sabathia – 2000
• Ben Sheets – 2000
• Grady Sizemore – 2003
• Alfonso Soriano – 1999
• Troy Toluwitzki – 2006
• BJ Upton – 2004 and 2005
• Justin Upton – 2007
• Chase Utley – 2001
• Kevin Youkilis – 2003
• David Wright – 2004
• Barry Zito – 2000

U.S. Roster

Pitchers:

• Brett Anderson – Oakland Athletics – AA – 9-4/4.14/1.16
• Jake Arrieta – Baltimore Orioles – A+ – 5-4/3.02/1.15
• Trevor Cahill – Oakland Athletics – AA – 5-4/2.78/0.95
• Will Inman – San Diego Padres – AA – 8-4/3.18/1.22
• Kevin Jepsen – Los Angeles Angels – AAA – 2-1/1.42/1.26/11 saves
• Ryan Mattheus – Colorado Rockies – AA – 2-2/2.97/1.27/12 saves
• Kevin Pucetas – San Francisco Giants – A+ – 7-0/2.72/1.14
• Clayton Richard – Chicago White Sox – AAA – 5-0/2.53/0.75
• Jess Todd – St. Louis Cardinals – AA – 2-2/1.56/0.85
• Casey Weathers – Colorado Rockies – AA – 1-0/2.51/1.24/1 save

Catchers:

• Bryan Anderson – St. Louis Cardinals – AAA – 0.344/1/21
• Lou Marson – Philadelphia Phillies – AA – 0.331/4/41
• Taylor Teagarden – Texas Rangers – AAA – 0.353/5/14

Infielders:

• Chris Davis – Texas Rangers – AAA – 0.333/23/73
• Jason Donald – Philadelphia Phillies – AA – 0.298/10/42
• Chris Getz – Chicago White Sox – AAA – 0.309/6/33
• Mat Gamel – Milwaukee Brewers – AA – 0.381/15/75
• Matt LaPorta – Milwaukee Brewers (currently on the Indians) – AA – 0.291/20/66
• Cliff Pennington – Oakland Athletics – AAA – 0.270/1/26
• Chris Valaika – Cincinnati Reds – AA – 0.312/12/53

Outfielders:

• Dexter Fowler – Colorado Rockies – AA – 0.321/7/49/15
• Greg Golson – Philadelphia Phillies – A – 0.299/7/36/17
• Andrew McCutchen – Pittsburgh Pirates – AAA – 0.280/8/33/23
• Nate Schierholtz – San Francisco Giants – AAA – 0.290/11/51/9
• Denard Span – Minnesota Twins – AAA – 0.340/3/14/15

Tomorrow I will put up the roster for the World team.  The best hitters on this team are probably Gamel, LaPorta, and Davis.  The best pitchers are Cahill, Jepsen and Richard.  Should be fun to see what they can do at Yankee stadium against a very tough World team.

Rick Vanden Hurk	Jeff Niemann
9-2, 3.52 (AA)	9-5, 3.75 (AAA)

GAME TIME 3:00 CDT

Just for the fun of it, I decided to throw up a game thread for the Futures game. Hope someone notices, I’ll be here at the computer watching the game so I figured what they hey. Here’s a little primer on how the Futures Game works. And here again is who you need to know on the rosters per Bryan Smith. Here’s the lineups-

WORLD
Michael Saunders, cf, Mariners
Chin-Lung Hu, ss, Dodgers
Wladimir Balentien, rf, Mariners
Joey Votto, 1b, Reds
Max Ramirez, dh, Indians
German Duran, 2b, Rangers
Robinzon Diaz, c, Blue Jays
Carlos Gonzalez, lf, Diamondbacks
Freddy Sandoval, 3b, Angels

UNITED STATES
Jacoby Ellsbury, lf, Red Sox
Justin Upton, cf, Diamondbacks
Evan Longoria, 3b, Devil Rays
Ian Stewart, dh, Rockies
Steven Pearce, 1b, Pirates
Brent Lillibridge, ss, Braves
Jay Bruce, rf, Reds
Chris Coghlan, 2b, Marlins
Bryan Anderson, c, Cardinals

And courtesy of First Inning, here are the full rosters. Colby will be coming off the bench, no shame in following Upton. Nice to see Anderson get the start.

Oh, and Nate Silver is liveblogging the event.

And I should also say if you are a new commenter and you see your comment will be held in moderation, don’t let that discourage you from posting. I’m checking them often and freeing them as I see them. After that, you’re free to comment as much as you want without interference. (Unless I deem interference necessary.)