Jim Callis' NL Central comments

mikechamp · Post by **mikechamp** » March 28 07, 1:18 pm

From an ESPN chat. This one's sure to elicit some response.

Mandatory Linkage: http://proxy.espn.go.com/chat/chatESPN?event_id=15156
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Can you comment a little bit on the two trades the Brewers made last week (Clark for Dessens/Hendrickson for St. Pierre)?

JIM CALLIS
I like Clark more than Dessens, but Milwaukee had a glut of outfielders and Dessens can be a decent middle reliever. Hendrickson failed multiple shots in Milwaukee--maybe he's the classic AAAA pitcher. Good move for the Royals to take a shot at him; the Brewers get a defensive-minded catcher in St. Pierre.
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What are your division winners and wild card predictions?

JIM CALLIS
My predictions (not the consensus BA ones that ran in the issue): Red Sox, Indians, Angels, Mets, Brewers, Dodgers win divisions. Yankees and Phillies win wild cards. Red Sox defeat Brewers in World Series.
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Can I have your opinion of Joey Votto and do you think he can help the Reds this season? Thanks in advance...

JIM CALLIS
I like Joey Votto. I think he would hit better than Scott Hatteberg and Jeff Conine will.
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What will the cubs OF be next year? Will Pie be in CF? Is Murton a long term player there?

JIM CALLIS
Next year, Murton will be in LF, Pie will be in CF and Soriano will be in RF.
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is Samardzija a 1-2 pitcher long term? or more of a 3-4?

JIM CALLIS
Samardzija is the prospect I'm most interested to see how he fares this year. We just don't know . . . he could be spectacular quick or he could be a $10 million enigma. The Cubs believe he'll make rapid adjustments now that he's full-time devoted to baseball, and they think he'll be a No. 1 or 2. I can see that upside, but want to see some progress before I make that leap of faith.
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Last year when asked who would be the best prospect that nobody knew about you said Yovani Gollardo. Who's your pick for this yerars best prospect that nobody has heard of yet?

JIM CALLIS
Did I say that? I'll give you three answers . . . From the 1-50 range on our Top 100, Devil Rays LHP Jacob McGee. From the 51-100 range, Cardinals LHP Jaime Garcia. From off the board, Red Sox 1B Lars Anderson and Athletics OF Matt Sulentic. Well, that's four.
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Smardzija = Chad Hutchinson. 95 MPH doesn't make someone a good pitcher. Someone throwing 95 in the Big East should at least be able to strike some hitters out, even without an offspeed pitch.

JIM CALLIS
I know what you're saying, and it's a valid point. I have the same concern. But this guy's makeup is better and he's a much better competitor than Hutchinson, and he's made a lot of progress with a slider. I never bought into Hutchinson, but I can see the light with Samardzija. As I said, can't wait to see what he does this year.
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Samardzija will be a very good pitcher. the guy was playing major college football, you can't expect him to be polished after playing part time.

JIM CALLIS
And there's the other side of the argument. Really, both sides have valid points, which is what makes Samardzija so interesting to me. Talking to other clubs, the reaction is always the same: We liked his arm a lot . . . Don't think I would have gone to $10 million though . . . But it's also hard to argue with Tim Wilken's track record. Uncanny how almost everyone says the same thing.
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What about the Brewers makes you think there Series worthy?

JIM CALLIS
Best rotation in the division, solid lineup and good depth on the bench. If they had a better closer, I'd feel better about them but will stand by my pick!
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Milledge or Pie?

JIM CALLIS
Milledge.
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Smadzija: A, AA, or AAA?

JIM CALLIS
I think high Class A Daytona.
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A-rod in '08: NY, LA or Chicago?

JIM CALLIS
Cubs, but just a guess and Aramis Ramirez has to be accounted for. I can't see A-Rod moving back to shortstop at this point.
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Donald Veal in two years on Dontrelle Willis now?

JIM CALLIS
Take the money in bank and go with Willis.
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what do you see for the reds this year?

JIM CALLIS
74 wins.
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Wood, Braun, Longoria, or LaRoche

JIM CALLIS
Wood.
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Brewers in the World Series!?!? You can't be serious. What makes you think the Cardinals won't repeat as division winners? They have the best rotation in the division and one of the top offenses along with the cubs.

JIM CALLIS
You must be looking at a different rotation than I am.
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Hunter Pence over under 250 Major League AB's

JIM CALLIS
Over.
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If you had to pick an organization to take the reigns of for the next 7 years (and part of the equation is you have to win a couple world series), who would you take? I'm betting you don't say Yankees. (I'd personally say Tigers)

JIM CALLIS
What happens if I don't win a couple of World Series . . . I could answer this in a few ways. From a sheer budgetary standpoint (and they have an interesting system), I'd say Yankees. From a sheer young talent standpoint, I'd say the Devil Rays. And considering their past, I'd look pretty good in Tampa no matter what I did. I think I'd relish the Tampa challenge more than the New York challenge. Brewers would be fun, too.
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Why no love for Cincy this year?

JIM CALLIS
I don't believe in the rotation at all. I'll give Harang some credit, but I think Arroyo pitched over his head last year and I don't like the back end of that rotation at all.
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NY CY YOUNG WILL BE...

JIM CALLIS
Carlos Zambrano.
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When will Braun be called up this year by the brewers?

JIM CALLIS
May 12.
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JL21 · Post by **JL21** » March 28 07, 1:27 pm

If I see another question about Jeff Samardzija, I'm going to punch the next Cub fan I see right in the nose.

MDCardsFan · Post by **MDCardsFan** » March 28 07, 1:36 pm

RC21 wrote:If I see another question about Jeff Samardzija, I'm going to punch the next Cub fan I see right in the nose.

If the Brewers are in the world series, I'm going to punch the next Cub fan I see right in the nose.

Cronos · Post by **Cronos** » March 28 07, 1:39 pm

MDCardsFan wrote:
RC21 wrote:If I see another question about Jeff Samardzija, I'm going to punch the next Cub fan I see right in the nose.
If the Brewers are in the world series, I'm going to punch the next Cub fan I see right in the nose.

robbotis · Post by **robbotis** » March 28 07, 1:40 pm

Cronos69 wrote:
MDCardsFan wrote:
RC21 wrote:If I see another question about Jeff Samardzija, I'm going to punch the next Cub fan I see right in the nose.
If the Brewers are in the world series, I'm going to punch the next Cub fan I see right in the nose.

If I hear another Felix Pie question I'm going to punch the next Cubs fan I see right in the nose.

Joe Shlabotnik · Post by **Joe Shlabotnik** » March 28 07, 1:47 pm

robbotis wrote:
Cronos69 wrote:
MDCardsFan wrote:
RC21 wrote:If I see another question about Jeff Samardzija, I'm going to punch the next Cub fan I see right in the nose.
If the Brewers are in the world series, I'm going to punch the next Cub fan I see right in the nose.

If I hear another Felix Pie question I'm going to punch the next Cubs fan I see right in the nose.

The next time I see Jason Marquis give up the long ball I'm going to pat the next Cub fan I see on the back.

taxman · Post by **taxman** » March 28 07, 2:11 pm

robbotis wrote:
Cronos69 wrote:
MDCardsFan wrote:
RC21 wrote:If I see another question about Jeff Samardzija, I'm going to punch the next Cub fan I see right in the nose.
If the Brewers are in the world series, I'm going to punch the next Cub fan I see right in the nose.

If I hear another Felix Pie question I'm going to punch the next Cubs fan I see right in the nose.

I've been inspired to punch the next Cubs fan I see right in the nose... just on general principle.

stlmark · Post by **stlmark** » March 28 07, 2:17 pm

If I only new a Cubs fan, I could get out my frustrations by punching them right in the nose.

I'll be back, I'm on the search for a Cubs fan.

Post by **heyzeus** » March 28 07, 2:24 pm

The Brewers in the world series.

Bye bye, lingering shred of credibility.

JL21 · Post by **JL21** » March 28 07, 2:29 pm

The Brewers' rotation, though, is pretty stout. I didn't realize what they'd put together until I saw the P-D baseball preview. Granted, it's all contingent on Sheets' health, but....

-Sheets, healthy, approximates Carpenter
-Soup is Soup
-Capuano is a burgeoning work horse with a solid arm and a few years of good numbers now
-David Bush: I don't know much about his arm, but his numbers look like he's on the verge of becoming good to very good.

And then Claudio Vargas is their #5, and isn't bad at all for a 5. That's a pretty solid quartet at the top end.

But yeah, World Series is a bit zealous.