May 21, 2006

Wells On Bonds; Tiz Greatest DH?

David Wells turned 43 yesterday and chatted away. On Bonds:
He hit a few home runs off me while he was juiced. But he's still a hell of a ballplayer. He's admitted taking it, but not knowingly. I think that's a crock. ... I don't think anyone in here would put something in their body without knowing what the effect could be. ... If you do do it, you're an idiot. ... Without asking questions, you're an idiot. ... I respect Barry as a person, as an athlete. ... But if he's cheated as a player, then to me that's just as bad as being a scab.
Okay, so Wells clearly hates cheaters. But then he says:
David Cone always said, 'If you ain't cheating, you ain't trying.' It's a pretty good motto.
?!? Is hoping Wells will make sense when he speaks too much to ask?

The birthday boy also pissed off David Dellucci:
You see a little bitty guy hitting 30 home runs ... what, Dellucci, I guess? How many home runs did he hit last year? 29. Has he ever done that in his career? How many has he hit this year? So, the numbers have gone down tremendously since all this has come up. I know Dave, I've never suspected him of doing them.
Dellucci:
It's a huge slap in the face. ... Anyone that's ever played with me knows I spend a lot of time in the weight room. ... I played with [Wells] in New York. I got along great with him. I have no idea why he would bring me into it. ... It's absolutely uncalled for.
Dave Sheinin of the Washington Post wonders if David Ortiz might someday be thought of as the greatest DH of all time [sic]:
Among players with 500 or more games as a DH, Ortiz, the Boston Red Sox slugger, has the highest slugging percentage (.560 through Thursday) as a DH, and only Edgar Martinez (.959), who retired two years ago, has a higher on-base-plus-slugging (OPS) than Ortiz (.930) at the position. ...

By early in the 2008 season, Ortiz, who had 158 homers as a DH through Friday, should surpass Martinez's DH record of 243. Only a handful of additional players -- such as Harold Baines, Don Baylor and perhaps Frank Thomas -- are even in the argument of the greatest designated hitters in history.
Philly Press:
Silent bats, sloppy play negate Phils' pitching (PI)
Listless bats, one big error, and Phils fall (PI)
Rollins throws away Myers' gem (Delco Times)
Probable matchups fthiseis week's Yankees series: Curt Schilling/Chien-Ming Wang, Tim Wakefield/Jaret Wright and Matt Clement/Randy Johnson.

But first, Lenny DiNardo will start this afternoon -- on 13 days rest, against Cory Lidle. Ortiz gets the day off; Trot Nixon is batting third. 1:30 PM.

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