The 2011 All-Division Team, Part 2: NL East

Jose Reyes won the 2011 NL batting title.

Part 2 of 6: National League East


C Brian McCann, ATL (2nd)
Most importantly, McCann avoided becoming a hostage in Venezuela like one of his competition at this spot, Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos.  McCann has been the most consistent catcher over the past half-decade, earning his sixth straight All-Star selection.  His annual production of 20 homers and 70+ RBIs is welcome on a disjointed and aging Atlanta offense that has literally no speed outside of Michael Bourn only one other major power threat, the recent addition of Dan Uggla.  Truth is, the Braves would be lost without McCann, but not even he could carry his tired team into the playoffs as the Braves blew their big wild card lead.  Competition: Josh Thole (NYM), Carlos Ruiz (PHI), Wilson Ramos (WAS), John Buck (FLA).

1B Mike Morse, WAS
Where did this guy come from?  Morse was ironically exactly what the Nationals expected out of Jayson Werth, who was hampered by injury and had a down season.  The 29-year-old Morse got his first full season in 2011, but few expected such a breakout.  Morse had never even hit 20 homers in a minor league season, and he comes out with 31 for Washington.  He also became a team leader along the way.  Competition: Ryan Howard (PHI), Gaby Sanchez (FLA), Freddie Freeman (ATL), and Daniel Murphy (NYM).

2B Dan Uggla, ATL (2nd, first with Braves)
In a season highlighted by a 34-game hitting streak, Uggla batted only .233.  That is probably the last time we will see such a low average from a 30-game hit streak player.  But as stated in the McCann argument, the Braves offense would be near incompetent without Uggla.  The Braves don't really have any other dynamic power hitters, as other pieces like Martin Prado, Chipper Jones, Freddie Freeman and Alex Gonzalez really only have power as an extra bonus to their hitting-for-average skills.  It took Uggla a long time to get going in 2011, but the power was there and kept them afloat in the NL East.

3B Chipper Jones, ATL
In another position smashed by injury, David Wright and Ryan Zimmerman both missed significant time.  Jones, in his age 39 season, is a shadow of the player he once was, which is quite depressing to be honest.  Jones has his job for as long as he wants it out of respect from the Braves, but his offensive skills are limited.  Just 18 homers and 70 RBIs came off his bat in 2011, but he's obviously still a team leader and loved by his fans.  Competition: David Wright (NYM), Ryan Zimmerman (WAS), Greg Dobbs (FLA), Placido Polanco (PHI).

SS Jose Reyes, NYM
Unfortunately, Reyes' season ended in controversy when he got a bunt single in the last game of the season and took himself out of the lineup in the last game of the season to ensure the greatest chance at a batting title. Ryan Braun failed to do the impossible, and Reyes won the first batting title in Mets history.  A return to the Mets looks far fetched, so Reyes is sure to cash in big soon.  Most impressive?  In 586 plate appearances, he walked 43 times and struck out 41 times, an 86% contact rate!  Competition: Ian Desmond (WAS), Hanley Ramirez (FLA), Jimmy Rollins (PHI), and Alex Gonzalez (ATL).

LF Logan Morrison, FLA
Lo-Mo finally was disciplined for his Twitter tendencies in 2011, and his relationship with the front office is unclear.  Morrison was sent to the minors temporarily for bad off-field conduct (specifically, Twitterness) and promptly filed a grievance with the players association.  Trade rumors involving the budding star heated up, but he was a runway model for the Marlins' new uniforms presentation at the new ballpark, confirming his status as an integral part of the team core.  The ever-changing Marlins roster doesn't have much of an established core outside of Hanley Ramirez, but I still believe Lo-Mo will definitely be a Miami Marlin next season.  Competition: Jason Bay (NYM), Raul Ibanez (PHI), Martin Prado (ATL), and Laynce Nix (WAS).

CF Angel Pagan, NYM (2nd)
He doesn't bat as well or walk as much as the ideal leadoff man, but Pagan does a fine job in center field for the Mets.  After being superb defensively in 2010, Pagan really struggled in 2011 at times.  However, 32 steals got the job done in his role behind Reyes.  He serves as a fine table setter at a relatively cheap price.  He's never going to be an All-Star but he fits this team fine.  And finally, his speed role will be magnified with the departure of Reyes next season.  Competition: Shane Victorino (PHI), Chris Coghlan (FLA), Nate McLouth (ATL), and Rick Ankiel (WAS).

RF Mike Stanton, FLA (2nd)
Stanton's home runs soar higher than the voices of the Marlins TV announcers (which is hard to do) with great regularity.  The 21-year-old has all the looks of a major power hitter for years to come.  The Marlins are currently being aggressive in the free agent market for the first time in their history, but if they plan to win, they'll need Stanton, who is already an elite outfielder.  And fantasy draftee.  Competition: Jason Heyward (ATL), Hunter Pence (PHI), Carlos Beltran (NYM), and Jayson Werth (WAS).

SP Roy Halladay, PHI
Dealing with a loss of confidence at the plate?  This Doc won't help with that.  Roy Halladay was the best of three Phillies starters with ERAs below 3.00 and decreased his homer total from 24 to 10.  He threw eight complete games and one shutout with the lowest ERA of his career at 2.35.  Even with ridiculous stamina and decent run support, Halladay failed to win 20 games which could even be seen as a surprise.  However, starting pitcher wins are overrated.  Bottom line: Halladay's a beast for the time being.  Competition: Anibal Sanchez (FLA), R.A. Dickey (NYM), Tim Hudson (ATL), and John Lannan (WAS).

CP Craig Kimbrel, ATL
127 strikeouts.  In 77 innings.  In his first full season as closer, Kimbrel was the best at the position in MLB.  As I've said in earlier posts, Kimbrel didn't allow a run for a stretch of about two and a half months in the middle of summer and only allowed three homers all year.  The Braves have the best bullpen in MLB and actually have three options at closer in Eric O'Flaherty, Jonny Venters, and Kimbrel.  The chances are that any of the three of them would have been the best in the league no matter who was chosen as closer.  For 2011, though, Kimbrel was the best in the business in talent.  Somehow, however, he blew eight saves along the way and the biggest one of the season, the one that would've gotten them to a Wild Card tiebreaker.  Three blown saves in September helped the Braves collapse hard.  Competition: Francisco Rodriguez (NYM), Ryan Madson (PHI), Juan Oviedo (FLA), and Drew Storen (WAS).

The 2011 All-Division Team, Part 1: AL East

Jose Bautista highlights a stacked division yet again.

Part 1 of 6: American League East

Here again for the second year in a row is the Cubs Insider All-Division Team, back for 2011.  This year the posts will be divided into six; one for each division, going East to West in both leagues.  In this first installment of my ramblings, I'll be going over the best (most valuable to his team's season performance) of the Orioles, Blue Jays, Rays, Yankees, and Red Sox by position.  Runners-up are listed in no particular order and any player who has won the award again after winning it last season is noted as such.

C Matt Wieters, BAL
After 2010 award winner John Buck departed Toronto for Florida last offseason and Jorge Posada was effectively benched indefinitely from the Yankees' signing of Russell Martin, there was not a clear favorite to take the throne in this division.  In his third season, Wieters blossomed at age 25, earning his first trip to the All-Star Game and capping off another forgettable Orioles season with a little hardware for himself, his first Gold Glove award.  A 4.0 WAR and 22 homers don't hurt either, and a notably decreased strikeout rate (which was already low to begin with) show that these probably won't be the last of awards for the South Carolina native.  Competition: Kelly Shoppach (TB), Russell Martin (NYY), J.P. Arencibia (TOR), Jarrod Saltamacchia (BOS).

1B Adrian Gonzalez, BOS (2nd, first with Red Sox)
A-Gon narrowly had the best season of his career despite playing in a drastically better lineup in 2011 than ever before.  That speaks to Gonzalez's consistency no matter who his teammates are, whether they're on base or not.  The fact is Gonzalez was an excellent fit for the Red Sox with his opposite-field power for the Green Monster and he proved it with an All-Star selection, Gold Glove, and Silver Slugger.  There's certainly talent at the position in the division with Mark Teixeira blasting 39 homers in the Bronx and Adam Lind holding his own north of the border, but Gonzalez fit right in with the established Red Sox core and got them deep into the playoffs.  Competition: Casey Kotchman (TB), Mark Teixeira (NYY), Adam Lind (TOR), Derrek Lee (BAL).

2B Robinson Cano, NYY (2nd)
Critics will argue that Dustin Pedroia's combination of power and speed both contributed more to the Red Sox, but I make the argument that if Pedroia goes down for a month in the regular season, I see the Red Sox surviving in the standings more than I do if the Yankees were to lose Cano.  On an aging team where Cano is one of only three starters under 30, Cano is great lineup protection for Teixeira, especially this season as Alex Rodriguez had a dismal year.  Competition: Ben Zobrist (TB), Dustin Pedroia (BOS), Robert Andino (BAL), Aaron Hill (TOR).

3B Evan Longoria, TB 
In a group with Mark Reynolds, Alex Rodriguez, Kevin Youkilis, and Longoria, I would have thought this running would come down to the wire.  Instead, this choice was rather easy.  Despite a .244 batting average, Longoria's OBP that's over 100 points higher and 31 home runs helped him win the running.  Besides, he'll always be remembered this season for one of the biggest hits of the year, the walk-off homer against the Yankees to win the AL Wild Card away from the Red Sox.  Competition: Kevin Youkilis (BOS), Alex Rodriguez (NYY), Mark Reynolds (BAL), and Brett Lawrie (TOR).

J.J. Hardy's career is back in
full swing (pun intended).

SS J.J. Hardy, BAL
Perhaps Hardy has found a permanent home on his third team in as many years, as a breakout season saw consistent power throughout on his way to an incredible 30 home runs from the shortstop.  I want to believe it isn't a fluke, and I have confidence that it is not.  But no matter how the Orioles were doing this season, Hardy was the team MVP in being a model power hitter; never great at getting on base, but a decent contact hitter and defender nonetheless.  Competition: Derek Jeter (NYY), Marco Scutaro (BOS), Reid Brignac (TB), and Yunel Escobar (TOR).

LF Sam Fuld, TB
'Super Sam' walked onto a weak field of incumbents by taking left field in 2011.  Early on the season, however, Fuld made a real impact on the Rays.  Despite getting nearly a full season's worth of at-bats, his defensive WAR exceeded his offensive WAR.  Making highlight reel catches and clutch hits on a daily basis, the scrappy little former Cub even inspired a Super Sam cape promotion at Tropicana Field.  Competition: Nolan Reimold (BAL), Brett Gardner (NYY), Carl Crawford (BOS), Eric Thames (TOR).

CF Curtis Granderson, NYY
I didn't think it was possible, but my man Curtis failed to get enough love in the MVP consideration, finishing only fourth in voting after a 40-25 season as a by-product of his revamped swing built with Yankees hitting coach Kevin Long in late 2010.  Granderson did have the benefits of the insanely short porch in right field at Yankee Stadium and good lineup protection, but brought a swagger-factor to the 2011 Yanks.  Oh, and led MLB in runs scored, proving that the Grandy Man Can.  Competition: Jacoby Ellsbury (BOS), Adam Jones (BAL), Rajai Davis (TOR), and B.J. Upton (TB).

RF Jose Bautista, TOR (2nd)
Was there really any doubt?  Joey Bats finished off his second season in out-of-nowhere stardom much like he did his first.  Bautista added 43 homers to his stat sheet like it was no big deal.  Most impressive to me, however, is his 132 walks to 111 strikeouts, resulting in an OBP of .447, nearly 150 points higher than his batting average!  Regardless of being a big slugger who often gets pitched around, 132 walks is a thing of beauty.  And after the Black Blue Jays ended another spending-October-on-the-couch season, he got to play dress up to display the Jays new threads.  Competition: Matt Joyce (TB), Nick Swisher (NYY), Nick Markakis (BAL), and J.D. Drew (BOS).

DH David Ortiz, BOS
If the designated hitter's role is known as a low on-base, high power and strikeout batter, which it often has been, then Ortiz is the anti-DH.  Getting on base nearly 40% of the time, Big Papi's late career demise of 2008 and 2009 has recovered to the extent that Ortiz is still a very smart hitter who knows how to take a few pitches.  He does strike out plenty walked nearly as much in 2011, and a new team could replenish his systems after the bad spiral the Sawks' season took.  Competition: Jorge Posada (NYY), Vladimir Guerrero (BAL), Johnny Damon (TB), and Edwin Encarnacion (TOR).

SP Ricky Romero, TOR
Yet another interesting piece the Jays have found, this 26-year-old Los Angeles native completed his third season in the big leagues and already is the definite ace of his team.  Romero doesn't give up many hits, just walks and strikeouts mostly.  Ironically, his 2.92 ERA and 15 wins were the 'stuff' of aces, and yet his 26 homers allowed wouldn't suggest an ace and was 11 more than the year before.  This kid has a lot of good years to come however.  Honorable mention to James Shields, who made this decision extremely tough.  Competition: C.C. Sabathia (NYY), Josh Beckett (BOS), and James Shields (TB), and Jeremy Guthrie (BAL).  

CP Mariano Rivera, NYY
'Mo', now 41-years-old, just struck out 60 and walked eight in 2011.  If that doesn't tell you all you need to know, maybe his .897 WHIP or his 1.91 ERA will.  Rivera is still the best at the position in the league and might as well pitch himself to the grave.  I hate the thought of handing double-digit millions to closers, but Rivera is the exception to the rule.  Just unbelievable.  Competition: Kevin Gregg (BAL), Kyle Farnsworth (TB), Jonathan Papelbon (BOS), Frank Francisco (TOR).

Well that's all I have for now.  Back with more soon.  I hope everyone is having a nice holiday weekend!

Cubs Name Dale Sveum Manager, Beat Red Sox Again

New Cubs manager Dale Sveum

Free agency bidding wars have hardly begun, and yet the Cubs have already stolen two key role players from the Boston Red Sox.  Obviously the first was Theo Epstein in a dramatic move between historic franchises, and the second was Dale Sveum, hired as the 52nd manager in Cubs history.  Technically Sveum never got the manager's job in Boston and hadn't even been offered the job - yet - but the Cubs made the aggressive move at the right time to get him.

Just a few hours after the Red Sox said they were getting close with Sveum, the Cubs officially offered him the job.  Sveum allowed time for the Red Sox to counter but ultimately took the Cubs job, which will have him manage the Cubs for at least three years.  His only other major league managing experience came with the Brewers in 2008, a team that won the wild card.  Sveum replaced Ned Yost with only 12 games to go in the season because the Brewers were scuffling terribly in September and Milwaukee needed a fall guy.  I don't think it's fair to judge him on his 7-5 record from that nor their three games to one disposal from the NLDS by the Phillies.  So even though Sveum was the only candidate with previous Major League managerial experience, it's hard to call 16 total games much experience.

Like I've said before and often do, I'm not going to pretend I know a bunch of stuff you don't about Sveum and how his tendencies to do this or that will affect the clubhouse.  I like what I see and hear from others who have spoken in recommendation of him, however.  I kept hearing about he's a big believer in each player being responsible for fulfilling their duty as being part of the team, and he talked about that a lot in his introductory press conference.  He specifically used the word 'accountable' a few times, in the context of players being accountable for running out ground balls and playing a full nine innings.  According to his recommendations, he's not going to have any problems doing that as he will get players to run out grounders or not play them.

He may not seem like the type (I didn't think so), but according to an analyst on MLB Network, Sveum is actually a 'new-school' type, sabermetrics believer manager.  That definitely can't be a bad thing for the Cubs, but it probably was the deciding factor in whether or not Theo & Co. gave him the job or not.  Theo and Jed Hoyer wanted a guy who would buy into their system and found one.

From what I can tell, I like the move.  Obviously Mike Quade was not going to be the guy who would lead this team to accountability, and the Cubs have a lot of holes to fill before they do.  Their chances are increased by Sveum, though, and that was shown in the press conference.  He didn't make any bold predictions or crack-the-whip clichés but that's not what the Cubs and fans should want.  Gone are the days of the Cubs hiring the 'celebrity manager' which they did in Dusty Baker and Lou Piniella, both of whom were already storied managers in the Majors and had won a World Series as manager.


In this current era of a few years we're in, there is a lot of manager turnover, as we've seen some of the most legendary of skippers call it quits.  Tony La Russa, Bobby Cox, and Joe Torre, ranked third through fifth on the all-time managerial wins list, have all retired in the last 14 months.  Even Lou Piniella, ranked 14th, is out for good.  In are the days of the young, former player, sabermetric-believer in shape guy.  That fits the description of Sveum pretty well.  


I think he'll do well.  I was told he wasn't going to be a rah-rah guy who ignites the clubhouse positively, but rather a more reserved, do-your-job-the-right-way-and-I'll-respect-you kind of manager, oddly similar to Lovie Smith.  If there's one thing for sure, it's that this was a move that needed to be made.  Quade completely lost the clubhouse down the stretch because he failed to assess the team for what it was.  Sveum will not take that.  And for the record, it's pronounced 'sWEHM' (no, you weren't the only one who struggled with that).   

Managerial Search Rolls On

Mike Quade's firing was not really a surprise to anyone.  I was really surprised, however, on how little media coverage there was of it.  Of course it made the afternoon SportsCenter and was one of the top baseball topics of the day, but there wasn't a backlash of defense or arguments sparked by those coming to his defense.  Not that I would defend him either, but it was really a shock at how quickly Cubs Nation was willing to dismiss him.

I think much of that is Quade's own fault.  There are managers that show more confidence in his team than is actually there, and then there's the delusional Quade.  Even when the Cubs were well under .500 and about the be swept by the first-place Brewers, Quade declared that the Cubs were still in the race in July.  The Cubs hadn't been in the race since April.  He refused to examine his team for what it was and never seemed to understand how lost his team looked on the field for most of the season.  Maybe he thought remarkable optimism would help him frame a case to keep his job for 2012.  It seems to have done the opposite in addition to making him look like an idiot.

Too many times I found myself wondering what Jeff Baker was doing in the cleanup spot (regardless of lefty-righty matchups) or why Quade barely made an effort to get minor leaguers on the field in September on a team well out of the race.  Isn't that the idea behind September roster expansion?  Not for Quade anyway, who still started Carlos Pena most of the way so he could have a chance at hitting 30 homers on the season.  Really?  We're playing for stats now?  If Starlin Castro was in pursuit of .300, I would understand.  But 30 homers isn't a huge deal.

Thankfully, relief is coming.  The highly-publicized candidates include Phillies bench coach Pete Mackanin, Rangers pitching coach Mike Maddux, Brewers bench coach Dale Sveum, former catcher Sandy Alomar Jr., and a few write-ins.  Maddux and Sveum have been the favorites for the past week or so, but Mackinan and Alomar Jr. have both worked their way into the conversation.

It's really hard to project manager performance.  They don't come with statistics (which can be broken down into sabermetrics).  Their main judgment?  Wins and losses.  Sometimes, however, managers rally the team to more wins and sometimes teams win despite their manager.  It's hard for the public to tell because we only hear what the media or player twitter pages report.  So therefore I will infer my preferred choice for Cubs manager but won't pretend I know what he'll do for the players.

I want to see Maddux as manager.  He most definitely had a role in turning around a decade of pitching futility in Texas and that's exactly what we want; a role-player.  If Maddux can get his pitchers to make adjustments and be successful, he can do it for the rest of the team in their own ways.  Plus, Maddux just pulled out of the Red Sox candidacy which nearly doubles the Cubs' odds of landing him.  This would create a unique possibility.  What if Mike Maddux were manager and Greg Maddux were pitching coach?  There has been some buzz that Greg might eventually want to take a coaching role with the Cubs, but it won't be for 2012.  Greg needs some family time first.

I see Sveum going to the Red Sox and Terry Francona to the Cardinals.  Francona would be a bad hire for the Cubs.  I don't see him turning things around in the same way he did for the Red Sox curse.  Theo Epstein and Francona would have one of the most awkward relationships ever, and Epstein played a role in Francona's firing only to jump ship himself for the Cubs.  Having to work over a man who just endured the Boston smear campaign (including the beer-and-fried-chicken-in-the-clubhouse controversies) would not be a good move for a Cubs team trying to rebuild a mainstay manager here for the full cycle of rebuilding.

The Cubs will most definitely name their new manager within two weeks, if not one.  Hopefully it'll be Maddux, but who knows.  Getting a manager is just the first on the long to-do list for the offseason.  More importantly, Theo & Co. need a team to put on the field.

400-Foot Fly Outs No More

The 'Black Monster' of Citi Field will be obsolete
in 2012, replaced by a Mets-blue wall closer
to home plate and half the height.

The Mets are making the right call in moving in Citi Field's fences; it's time for the Padres to do the same at Petco Park


Citi Field's fences will be dramatically shorter and close to the plate in 2012.  After three years of far too many 400-foot flyouts, the Mets will abandon the 16-foot wall in left and place an 8-foot wall in front of it.  The weird indentations in the outfield walls in right field will be smoothed over, too, and those walls will be dramatically shortened.  And in a move that will make the park a whole lot less depressing looking even when the Mets lose, as they seem to do inevitably now, the wall will be painted blue all the way around.

According to the Mets, the adjustments reduce the in-play surface area of the field by two percent, a notable figure for a ballpark.  When ESPN reached David Wright for comment, he told them that he'd be lying if he told anyone he enjoyed hitting at Citi Field.  He seemed pleased with the changes, but he's probably been anticipating them for some time.  He hasn't been the first to criticize the overly-spacious new park.  Even I became frustrated with the walls when playing a Mets franchise on MLB 10: The Show.  It was awfully hard to get anything over those walls, much less a David Wright fly ball.  Plus, this provides the Mets with new revenue opportunities.  What's not to like?

Citi Field's dimensions are changing
for nearly the entire outfield.

Is there really a need to drastically change the playing conditions so much?  Yes.  No doubt.  In 2011, Citi Field only gave up 1.33 total home runs per game, third-least in MLB behind only Petco Park and AT&T Park.  The face of the franchise, Wright, hit 50 home runs at Shea Stadium combined from 2006-08.  In his first three years at Citi Field, however, he has only hit 22, including only five to the opposite field.

In 2008, playing half their games at Shea Stadium, the Mets hit 172 home runs as a team., good for a respectable 14th place in MLB.  In 2009, playing half their games at Citi Field, they hit 95.  Carlos Delgado or no Carlos Delgado, teams just don't do that.  Teams don't see their home run total cut in half from one year to the next.  As nice as Citi Field has been for the fans, power hitters have yet to catch a break in the cavernous stadium.  In fact, no left-handed hitter has ever hit an opposite-field home run there.  No home run from any hitter has ever hit the apple in straight center, nor has one hit the tarp to the left of it or even the first section of seats there.

Citi Field's new and old dimensions.

Not only will the new wall eliminate all of the weird angles and corners in right field, it gives the ballpark a better feel.  Citi Field is the only park in MLB in which the home run poles and line are not yellow.  At Citi Field they are orange, but with the black walls that looks really ugly.  The Mets have been a disappointing and somewhat depressing team the last three seasons.  Even when fans did show up there was little excitement.  The wall in left is a Black (or soot, depending on how you view the color) Monster - a take on Fenway's Green Monster - except that it's not like 10 feet from home plate like its green counterpart.  That is the wall of which no lefty has ever hit a homer over.  Looking at the field diagram above, it might not look like much, but that change makes a world of difference.

Give it up for Cameron Maybin, who
led all 2011 full-season Padres with
an underwhelming nine homers.

Now in case study number two, the San Diego Padres hit only 91 home runs in 2011, worst in MLB and the lowest single-season total by any team in over a decade.  Their home ballpark, Petco Park, only allowed a combined 1.23 home runs per game, second lowest in MLB behind only AT&T Park.  Of the 100 home runs hit there, only 42 were hit by the Padres.  This means the Padres hit seven more homers on the road than at home, and they won more games on the road than they did at home.  Basically, their home field advantage was nullified.

Since Petco Park opened in 2004, the organization has prided itself on creating contenders based on pitching and defense.  They did steal the most bases in MLB with a second-best 79% success rate, and their pitching staff had the third best ERA of the 30 teams, but clearly the formula didn't work as the Padres finished at 71-91.  The team was led in home runs by Ryan Ludwick, who was traded to Pittsburgh midseason.  Of full-season players, Cameron Maybin led the group with nine (but only two at home)!

Granted, the Padres currently aren't a team built for power.  When they moved into Petco, however, there were a couple guys not quite as bashful (pun intended) as the rest of the team.  Ryan Klesko and Phil Nevin had made nice livings as power hitters at Qualcomm Stadium before both saw decreases in power numbers upon moving.  Klesko especially struggled with the new digs, hitting only three homers at Petco in '04 after 21 total the year before.  No matter how a team is constructed, however, no team in this day and age will ever make the playoffs without hitting 100 home runs in an 162-game schedule.  Even hitting 120 would be a stretch.

Petco Park: Although the field is too big,
it's a shrine of a baseball stadium.

I believe I have made a compelling case.  As you can see in the photo, the park has a very modern style.  The dimensions, however, are kind of old school, and this park probably was the one that started the over-obsessive pitchers'-park-dimensions-in-new-stadiums fad, which has been copied by Target Field, Citi Field, and more.

From the fan's perspective, however, it is an excellent ballpark.  Besides Wrigley, it's my favorite place to see a baseball game, and I've only been there once.  It's the only ballpark in the league that allows the baseball fan to satisfy his or her play-in-a-sandbox cravings, which he or she can do in front of the right field bleachers.  But if 'the beach' were expanded a bit in right (which would move the fences in), home games would feel even more like a sunny day at the beach for fans of the team with ocean waves on its home jersey.

What if Petco Park looked like this (proposal in blue)?

To put this plan into motion, I've created a prototype dimension blueprint.  The black line with red numbers represents Petco Park's current dimensions and the blue line with blue numbers represents the proposed design.  It may not seem like much, but this move would drastically change the way the ballpark plays.  It wouldn't just become a neutral park; it would be a hitters' park.  I don't have a problem with that, and neither should the Padres.  After all, in runs scored, they've finished in the bottom six of the 16 NL teams six of the eight years they've been playing at Petco.

This is the first time I've ever created something like this.  However, I don't see the Padres ownership doing anything like it.  It would could be completed in one offseason but would require construction costs.  However, they could add more seats which would create more revenue, so the project would actually pay for itself eventually.

From a playing field standpoint, though, this is a necessary move.  The Padres are a small-market team that builds from within, so they boast good young arms in the rotation and bullpen.  In 2010 the Padres had the best bullpen in MLB.  But they're getting help from these obnoxious dimensions, and far too much of it.

If the Padres ever want a competent and balanced offense that can keep up with its pitching staff and not have win games 3-2 all the time, they're going to have to do something about the dimensions.  With all the extra room in the power alleys, it's no coincidence the Padres led the league in triples this season (the Mets were 4th).  They're going to have to recognize the issue for what it is, an issue, and act.  That's what the Mets have done, and the improvement will be seen next season.  I hope someday soon we'll never see another 400-foot fly out in either of these parks.