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Eric Gagne

Another tough outing today.

He enters the game in the 8th inning with a 3-1 lead and one person on base.  He proceeds to give up a 2-run homer to Tejada to tie the game.

Can't catch a break.  Maybe the idea of not closing really just does not sit well ith him.

xx

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Danks
Rough day for him too, gave up HRs 23, 24, 25 on the year and saw his ERA rise to 5.22.

by Brett Perryman on Aug 12, 2007 3:32 PM CDT reply actions   0 recs

still has
very solid K/BB ratio though.
"Jon Daniels is going to end up being the best thing to ever happen to the Texas Rangers." - me, a long time ago...

by Longhorn on Aug 12, 2007 3:34 PM CDT up reply actions   0 recs

Yeah...
But he's allowed the most homers in the A.L. this season, and is averaging a little over 1.8 HR per 9.  That's not a sustainable rate.

by Adam J. Morris on Aug 12, 2007 4:12 PM CDT up reply actions   0 recs

Meanwhile...
McCarthy has been great in the HR department with 8 allowed.

I was against the Danks trade. I've never been wrong before, this feeling may take some time to get used to...

by 3Bagger on Aug 12, 2007 9:16 PM CDT up reply actions   0 recs

Before we claim victory
take a look at the other peripherals.

BMac is at 4.2 bb and 5.2 k per nine, and pretty much steady at those rates all season long.  Those type of rates do not give a rosy outlook.

Saltalamacchia: one player, six vowels.

by tricer on Aug 12, 2007 11:09 PM CDT up reply actions   0 recs

Back End
Are those numbers similar during the last half of this stretch?

Seems like he's improved in all areas recently. There's no place for an HR pitcher in Arlington. Lefty or Righty.

by 3Bagger on Aug 13, 2007 2:11 PM CDT up reply actions   0 recs

Before today
I thought that the mantra was that we had to wait a year before we could evaluate this trade...or has the pendulum swing accelerated the conclusion?
"Hello", he lied.

by Clueless on Aug 12, 2007 10:33 PM CDT up reply actions   0 recs

Huh?
I'm confused.  

by Adam J. Morris on Aug 12, 2007 11:08 PM CDT up reply actions   0 recs

Your post might be relevant
if Adam had ended his post with "and, therefore,  we can now safely conclude that this was a good trade."
I'm going out to the backseat of my car with the woman I love, and I won't be back for 10 minutes!

by t ball on Aug 13, 2007 10:21 AM CDT up reply actions   0 recs

Point taken
I thought that was his implication given that he loves him some B-Mac, and this Gagne blog immediately went to a non-relevant thread on Danks' recent performance.  
"Hello", he lied.

by Clueless on Aug 13, 2007 12:13 PM CDT up reply actions   0 recs

'can't catch a break'
what do you mean by that? He's having bad luck or something?
"Jon Daniels is going to end up being the best thing to ever happen to the Texas Rangers." - me, a long time ago...

by Longhorn on Aug 12, 2007 3:32 PM CDT reply actions   0 recs

nah
simply mean that Gagne was one of my favorites and unless he has changed how he is pitching jut must not be in the right frame of mind and is just not pitching like he was here.

How knows if it is pitching in the 8th or something else.  Obviously, unless he is injured it is all him...but maybe if he could get  little 'luck" then things would turn for him.

Would like to see him succeed.

by simbaa on Aug 12, 2007 3:44 PM CDT up reply actions   0 recs

I caught some of that game today
Saw all of Gagne. He was throwing nothing but fastballs for some reason. He seemed a little off balance in his mechanics, also.

I remember scratching my head at no seeing any changeups in the Tejada at-bat. And the HR was right down the middle, in case anyone missed it.

I will not get my comeuppance!

by Brian Thomas on Aug 12, 2007 8:11 PM CDT up reply actions   0 recs

Type A status
I know that Boston was convinced he was a type A when they acquired him.

But what if Gagne continues to suck it up?  How badly would he have to do to fall down to a type B?

by JBImaknee on Aug 12, 2007 3:47 PM CDT reply actions   0 recs

I think
someone posted here a week or so ago that Boston is certain no matter what he is a Type A, but I don't know allt he rules.

by simbaa on Aug 12, 2007 3:54 PM CDT up reply actions   0 recs

Type A
Elias uses the last two years to determine his type.  Last year he had two or three innings and I think one save.  He had 16 saves with the Rangers, and he may not get another one with Boston.  You can hype ERA, K/BB, and WHIP all you want, but Gagne is a closer.  He will hit the market as a closer.  His job is to record saves.  However, his circumstances (not being a closer) limit his potential as far as free agent types go.  Boston may be convinced he is a Type A free agent, but that does not make it so.

by Excel Hearts Choi on Aug 12, 2007 4:17 PM CDT up reply actions   0 recs

this was the article
i was referring to:

http://www.boston.com/sports/baseball/redsox/extras/extra_bases/2007/07/gagne_expected.html

again, not knowing the rules I don't how this works but thanks to excel for helping.

by simbaa on Aug 12, 2007 4:23 PM CDT reply actions   0 recs

Boston.com
Boston.com is the website for the Boston Herald, which is really nothing more than a cross between a tabloid and a low quality newspaper.  They are not the most reliable source unless they are posting an AP story.  Now if it came from the Globe, then it is more trustworthy.

by Excel Hearts Choi on Aug 12, 2007 5:15 PM CDT up reply actions   0 recs

Actually ...
... boston.com is the GLOBE website, not the Herald. It is very reliable and has excellent writers, with the only exception being Dan Shaughnessy.

by Melmart1 on Aug 12, 2007 5:55 PM CDT up reply actions   0 recs

Hahha ...
... no need for apologies. You are right about the Herald though, it is a rag moonlighting as a respectable paper.

by Melmart1 on Aug 12, 2007 6:18 PM CDT up reply actions   0 recs

Type A, B, or C
What is a type A, B, or C free agent?
Free agents are classified according to how they performed in the previous year compared to their peers. Type A free agents are in

by simbaa on Aug 12, 2007 4:26 PM CDT reply actions   0 recs

sorry
What is a type A, B, or C free agent?
Free agents are classified according to how they performed in the previous year compared to their peers. Type A free agents are top 30% of their position, Type B 31-50%, and Type C the lower 50%.

by simbaa on Aug 12, 2007 4:28 PM CDT reply actions   0 recs

Finally
some Type A and Type B Free Agent info explained by Keith Law:

Explaining Type A, B free agents

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Some top free agents bring a small amount of compensation back to their former clubs when they sign with new teams in the form of extra picks in the subsequent Rule 4 draft. Although this rule was ostensibly designed to give clubs some kind of compensation for losing good players, especially lower-payroll clubs who couldn't or wouldn't retain those top free agents, it was also put in place to produce a slight drag on free-agent salaries. Not only has it clearly failed on both of those goals, but it has slightly distorted the market for free agents, making certain players more or less appealing than they otherwise would be.
The compensation rules were simplified in the most recent collective bargaining agreement, so that now there are only three types of players:

  • Type A players, ranked in the top 30 percent of players at their positions. A team that signs a Type A player gives its top draft pick to the club that the player is leaving. The "losing" club also receives a supplemental pick in the "sandwich" round between the first and second rounds.
  • Type B players, ranked below the top 30 percent but in the top 50 percent of players at their positions. A team that loses a Type B player receives a supplemental pick, but the signing team does not lose any picks.
  • All other players, who carry no compensation at all. There had previously been a third class of "Type C" players, but that was eliminated in the new CBA.
The two compensation classes will shrink beginning in the winter after the 2007 season; the Type A pool will only comprise players in the top 20 percent of their positions, and the Type B pool will only comprise players in the second quintile (21-40 percent). The rankings come from a formula that MLB and the players' union agreed on in the early 1990s, entrusting Elias with the task of generating the statistical rating for each player. The formula -- the specific components of which no one seems to know -- looks at player statistics from the preceding two seasons, combining both bulk statistics (that is, ones that increase with playing time) and simple rate statistics (such as batting average). It then ranks players in each of those categories and then assigns each player a points value inversely related to his ranking. In this respect, the formula is based on where a player ranks in relation to his peers in each category -- not how the player actually performed. If you led all players at your position in home runs over the past two years, it wouldn't matter if you hit 40 or 80 -- you'd get the same number of points.

If a team has a draft pick in the first half of the first round (that is, in the top 15 picks), its first-round pick is protected from the compensation process, meaning that the highest pick it can lose for signing a Type A free agent is its second-round pick. This has already affected three clubs -- the Cubs (for Alfonso Soriano), Orioles (for Danys Baez) and Indians (for David Dellucci) all signed Type A free agents, but lost their second-round picks rather than their first-round picks. Given the rapidly expanding sandwich round and the weak college crop in the 2007 draft, it's likely that one or more of those clubs was more willing to surrender that second-round pick knowing that its value this year is low.

If a team signs more than one Type A free agent, its picks are parceled out to the "losing" clubs in an order determined by the ratings of the free agents the team signed. For example, Baltimore signed Baez, whose rating was 69.810, and Chad Bradford, whose rating was 62.890. Since Baltimore's first-round pick was protected, the Orioles lost their second-round pick to Atlanta (for Baez) and then their third-round pick to the Mets (for Bradford). If, however, the Orioles were to sign a Type A free agent with a rating higher than Baez's rating, then that player's former club would get Baltimore's second-round pick and Atlanta and the Mets would get the O's third- and fourth-round picks respectively.

The picks in the sandwich round follow the normal draft order, meaning that it takes place in reverse order of finish (but only includes teams that have received extra picks). However, a team that has received two sandwich picks must wait until every team that picks in the round has selected once before it makes its second pick; a team that has received three picks must wait until all teams with two or more picks have selected twice; and so on.

There is also a set of quotas governing how many Type A and B players one club may sign as free agents in one winter, with that number determined by the total number of Type A and B players who elect free agency in that offseason.

  • If fewer than 14 Type A or B players elect free agency, no club may sign more than one such player.
  • If 15-38 Type A or B players elect free agency, no club may sign more than two such players.
  • If 39-62 Type A or B players elect free agency, no club may sign more than three such players.
  • If 63 or more Type A or B players elect free agency, "the Club quotas shall be increased accordingly," according to the basic agreement.
Since 93 Type A or B free agents filed for free agency this winter, the per-club quota this offseason is eight. However, each team may sign as many Type A or B free agents as it loses in any particular winter, even if those signings would put it over the quota for that winter. At this writing, only Baltimore has signed three such free agents (Baez, Bradford, and Jamie Walker, who was a Type B).

The rating system groups players into five categories -- catchers, starting pitchers, relief pitchers, infielders other than first basemen, and first basemen/outfielders/designated hitters. Players are ranked in five to seven statistical categories, with the specific categories varying by their position grouping (e.g., there are no fielding stats used in the 1B/OF/DH group, but the catcher and infielder groups each include two defensive stats). Cumulative statistics may be adjusted for players who spent time on the disabled list, restoring stats for up to 60 days of missed playing time.

Each player is then given a point total for each statistical category that is inversely related to his actual ranking. For example, if there are 100 starting pitchers in the ranking, then the pitcher with the lowest ERA gets 100 points, the pitcher with the second-lowest ERA gets 99 points, and so on, until it reaches the pitcher with the highest ERA, who gets one point just for writing his name. This system has an obvious flaw, of course, as it gives no weight to the distance between any two players: If the top pitcher's ERA is 0.1 or 0.01 or 1.0 runs better than the ERA of the next-best pitcher, it doesn't matter, as he still only gets one extra point. Point totals within each position are then scaled to make 100 a perfect score.

by simbaa on Aug 12, 2007 4:29 PM CDT reply actions   0 recs

important change
The two compensation classes will shrink beginning in the winter after the 2007 season; the Type A pool will only comprise players in the top 20 percent of their positions, and the Type B pool will only comprise players in the second quintile (21-40 percent). The rankings come from a formula that MLB and the players' union agreed on in the early 1990s, entrusting Elias with the task of generating the statistical rating for each player.

by simbaa on Aug 12, 2007 4:30 PM CDT up reply actions   0 recs

as of right now
gagne is still type a.

for the season he has these numbers...

38 games
31 games finished
16 saves
36.7 IP
2 home runs
14 walks
33 strikeouts
3.44 ERA
ERA+ 134

he's played 4 games for boston posting an ERA of 16.20 and ERA+ of 28.  those numbers are bound to improve.  when they do, he'll get that ERA back down below 3.00.

Al Gore 2008 http://www.myspace.com/igotsculture

by gossamer on Aug 12, 2007 4:51 PM CDT reply actions   0 recs

oops
those figures don't count today's game of course...
Al Gore 2008 http://www.myspace.com/igotsculture

by gossamer on Aug 12, 2007 4:54 PM CDT up reply actions   0 recs

A friend of mine ...
... who is a huge Red Sox fan says that it's a different type of pressure, especially with the Yanks breathing down their neck. Perhaps it's just an adjustment. Gagne himself said it doesn't matter what inning it is, he just needs three outs like any other and is very frustrated. He cussed a bit in interviews after the game on Friday.

No matter if he blows lately, I would take him back here next year if the contract was reasonable.

by Melmart1 on Aug 12, 2007 6:00 PM CDT reply actions   0 recs

Thank God
we traded Gagne instead of signing him long term.

Go Yankees!  Catch the Red Sox!

by DJCahill on Aug 13, 2007 6:21 AM CDT reply actions   0 recs

He should
have turned down the trade and stayed a closer.  He would be closing here in Texas and he would have been the closer over Coco in Milwaukee.
Ephesians 1:3-10

by kwellborn on Aug 13, 2007 5:56 PM CDT reply actions   0 recs

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