Can a Careless Whisper Cure Reddicks' Batting Woes?

If you are an A's fan and let's face it you probably are because you are actually reading my blog then you're probably well aware of Josh Reddick's new theme song Careless Whisper by Wham ... it's quite the unusual walk up song but since premiering it on Monday in the first of a three game series against the Chicago White Sox Reddick has been hitting. He went 2-4 Monday night with a triple and 2-5 Tuesday night with a two-run home run. The fans in Oakland love it and so do the other players. Here's a longer version of video than just the Vine clip that has been circulating on Twitter.
The big question though is should we be believing that the 2012 Reddick has returned? I'm gonna say, "No," at least not yet. I know that every A's fan wants to believe it and with the song, it's really hard not to. Yet, let's not be too hasty! It's only two games so I am not ready to eat my words just yet. Back on April 6th I said that the A's should send Reddick down to Triple-A Sacramento. The guy couldn't hit, desperately needed to shorten his swing and was basically just fanning everything. His batting average in April? .241. Could have been worse but you'll see that even when we move on to May, it's only gotten worse.

However I did say that I would totally take it all back if he turned it around and no, I am not ready to do that .... YET. These last two games he's appeared to be the 2012 Josh Reddick who hit 32 bombs and batted .241. 

I'm certainly not questioning that his defense is still superior to almost every other right fielder out there. In 2013, while fighting a wrist injury that required off season surgery, he barley lost out on winning the Gold Glove to Boston's Shane Victorino. He made two insane "Spider-man" like grabs to rob San Francisco's Mike Morse of two home runs in the first game of spring training. So I have never questioned his defense but his offense has been pretty bad, really ugly even. As much as you want to believe he's back, I still need more proof.

In the month of May Reddick is batting .216 with eight strikeouts, only two walks and just three RBI. All three RBI came in the last two games against Chicago. So am I NOT ready to take back all of what I wrote about Reddick but I will take back the fact that I thought he should be sent down, for now. Here's what I said about Reddick after the first week of the season in my article on OPSN Five Changes the A's Need to Make Right Now:

"1. Send Reddick Down to Triple-A: Reddick is currently hitting .100 in 22 plate appearances with eight strikeouts. Now some question why I would single out Reddick when Josh Donaldson‘s batting average is similar to Reddick’s. I would answer that by looking at Reddick’s numbers in Boston and his numbers post 2012.  You would see that they are not that different meaning his so-called breakout year could very well have been a fluke. Donaldson’s breakout year was only last season so I would keep him and give him a chance to turn it around. Reddick has had his chances. Let’s be honest, Reddick slumped down the stretch in 2012 and started 2013 on a slow note. Granted he was injured in April slamming his wrist into a wall in a game in Houston. The wrist injury did not affect his defense as he was in the running for the AL Gold Glove in 2013 and his excuse that the injury hindered his swing is worth a grain of salt but he’s repeatedly said that he is 100 percent healthy this season so there is no excuse for batting .100 even in the first week of the season."

I had a chance to reread it and I still stand by the majority of my convictions but I will say that my wanting him sent down to Triple-A was, and still is, a bit rash. Can a simple Careless Whisper bring back the 2012 Reddick? I absolutely hope so and the past two nights have shown a marked improvement but two ballgames in the grand scheme of 162 means next to nothing. To believe he's back after two games is just naive.

I will say that I am pleased with his recent success and if he keeps it going then I will take back every negative thing I have said about him, however true it may have been at the time but that, my friends, is still a promise. I want to see our boys in the white cleats win as much as y'all do so ... I'd say let's have fun with the song for sure but don't see it as a sudden cure for Reddick's offensive woes at least not just yet. Let the numbers be your guide. Remember Reddick is still batting a measly .233 on the year with just two homers, so don't let his bravado fool you. In my opinion he still has something to prove at the plate.

Chris Sale to Go on the 15-Day DL. Is he Actually one of the Lucky Ones?

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It was announced Monday night that White Sox pitcher Chris Sale was headed for the 15-day disabled list. Unlike the long list of pitchers before him, however, he does not have ligament damage but a flexor strain. In 2014 that is especially good news for a pitcher suffering from elbow soreness. It makes him extremely lucky, but let’s back up a little.

On Thursday Sale threw a career high 127 pitches in a performance in which he and his opponent, Red Sox pitcher Jon Lester, both took no-hitters into the sixth inning. Lester and the Red Sox ended up victorious and Sale ended up with a lingering soreness in his left arm. Over the weekend it was made clear by the White Sox manager Robin Ventura that Sale would not be available for his next schedule start Tuesday.

For more on this story CLICK HERE!! Brought to you by Sports Unbiased.

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Konerko Will Not Start His Final Opening Day

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The captain of the Chicago White Sox, Paul Konerko, will not be in the lineup Opening Day. This will be his final opening day as the veteran first baseman announced this past winter that the 2014 season, his 18th in the Major Leagues, will be his last. He played on the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Cincinnati Reds in 1997 and 1998 but has spent the last 15 season with the White Sox. He has started with Chicago every Opening Day until now. The White Sox manager Robin Ventura made the announcement Sunday.

For More on this Story CLICK HERE! Brought to you by Outside Pitch Sports Network LLC

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Bo Knows: Sends Advice Russell Wilson's Way

When given advice from easily the best two-sport athlete of all time, it is probably a good idea to listen. Bo Jackson told CSNChicago Tuesday,

“Stick to what got [Wilson] in the headlines, not baseball. Twenty-five or 30 years ago when I did it, I’m not trying to say anything negative about other athletes, but the talent pool wasn’t that deep. In this day in age, with all the high-tech training, computer-engineered workouts and the proper food and diet, if you try to concentrate on two sports, I guarantee you’re going to ride the bench in both because the talent is that deep. Stick to whatever sport you’re comfortable with and let everything else go.”

To Read the Rest of the Story on Outside Pitch Sports Network Click Here!

Indians to Unveil Statue of Jim Thome

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The Cleveland Indians announced Saturday that they will unveil a statue of former player Jim Thome at Cleveland’s Progressive Field on August 2 of this year. Thome, who played two stints (1991-2002, 2011) with the Indians over his 22-year career, is the Indians’ all time leader in home runs (337) and one of their most popular players ever. Only one other Cleveland player, Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Feller, has received the same honor.

The statue is going to be a depiction of Thome in the batter’s box directing his bat towards the pitcher. The stance was inspired by Robert Redford’s character, Roy Hobbs, in the movie The Natural. While in coming up in Cleveland’s minor league system his hitting coach, Charlie Manuel, suggested the stance to Thome as a way to loosen him up while at the plate. It certainly worked for Thome. He told members of the Associated Press,

Charlie had seen a clip of Roy Hobbs pointing the bat. When I got in the box, I was tense, everything was tight. He wanted to create that relaxing feeling in the box for me and pointing the bat did that. It got my trigger ready to hit.

Thome is humbled and honored by the Indians’ tribute to him saying,

As a player, I don’t even want to say you dream of that. When it happens, when the opportunity comes about, it’s humbling. It’s just a wonderful thing. My family is just ecstatic about it.

Besides his two stints with the Indians, Thome also played for the Philadelphia Phillies, the Chicago White Sox, the Lost Angeles Dodgers, the Minnesota Twins and the Baltimore Orioles. He retired in 2012 with a total 612 home runs (seventh all-time) being one of only eight players to ever hit over 600 home runs in their career.

Thome now works as a special assistant to the White Sox.

For more check out MLB Nation!

Announcing the 2014 MLB Hall-Of-Fame Inductees

It’s now official for the first time since 1971 there will be six living inductees to Major League Baseball’s Hall-of-Fame. This includes three players along with the three managers, Bobby Cox, Tony LaRussaand Joe Torre, who were voted into the hall in December 2013. The three players inducted into MLB’s HOF for the class of 2014 are pitcher Greg Maddux, pitcher Tom Glavine and first baseman and long-time designated hitter Frank “The Big Hurt” Thomas.

Last year’s Major League Baseball Hall-of-Fame announcement came and went rather quickly, leaving the baseball world in shock. It was the first year in baseball history that absolutely no one, living or deceased, was elected into the hall at Cooperstown, NY.  Of course it had to do with the issue of performance enhancing drugs (PED’s) and their rampant use during the 1990′s. Many of the eligible players had and still have that stigma attached to their names, that asterisk that will most likely haunt them forever regardless of their induction or not. In 2013, the only players to come close to the 75% of the vote needed for induction were Craig Biggio with 68.2% and pitcher Jack Morris with 67.7%. This year marks Biggio’s second year on the ballot and he came in just shy of induction with 74.8% of the vote. Morris actually lost votes from last year even with it being his 15th and final chance to become a member of baseball’s most elite club.

This morning all eyes were on Greg Maddux. There was talk, until MLB.com writer Ken Gurnick made his ballot public, that Maddux would make history by getting voted in unanimously. With that opportunity gone, Maddux still had a chance to make history by eclipsing Tom Seaver who was elected with 98.84% of the vote. Maddux, who played for the Chicago Cubs, most notably the Atlanta Braves, and the Los Angeles Dodgers over the course of his 22-year big league career, received 97.2% of the vote from the members of the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA).  Maddux’s resume is most certainly incredible. He accumulated 355 wins, won 4 consecutive Cy Young Awards and was an eight-time All-Star. Maddux is one of only ten pitchers to have over 300 career wins and 3,000 strike outs. He also won a record-setting 18 Gold Gloves as well as being the only player ever to win at least 15 games over 17 straight seasons. Needless to say he will now be immortalized where he belongs, in Cooperstown, NY.

The second player elected to the HOF today was part of one of baseball’s greatest pitching duos on the Atlanta Braves, alongside Greg Maddux. Tom Glavine spent the majority of his career vying for Cy Young Awards with his teammate taking home two in 1991 and 1998. Glavine, a ten-time All Star, was also a four-time Silver Slugger. He was MVP of the World Series in 1995 with the Braves winning both games two and six of the series. In his game six performance he pitched eight innings of one-hit shutout baseball with the only run in that game coming off a home run by his teammate David Justice. Glavine also played in four other World Series (1991, 1992, 1996, 1999) with the Braves and achieved success as a member of the New York Mets, playing there from 2003-2007, making two of his All-Star appearances during that span. He returned to the Braves for his final season in 2008.

The third and final player receiving baseball’s highest honor is one of the only players to spend the majority of his career as a designated hitter (he also played first base), playing for the Chicago White Sox from 1990-2005, the Toronto Blue Jays in 2007-2008 and had two stints with the Oakland Athletics in 2006 and again in 2008. Nicknamed “The Big Hurt” because of his powerful swing and home run hitting abilities, Frank Thomas was a menacing presence in the batter’s box.  Thomas was a five-time All-Star, two-time American League MVP (1993, 1994), four-time Silver Slugger, the AL batting champion in 1997 and the 2000 Comeback Player of the Year. But his real accomplishments lie in his overall numbers. He is tied for 18th all-time with 521 home runs and has a lifetime career batting average of .301. He is the only player to play seven consecutive seasons hitting over 20 home runs, 100 RBI, 100 walks while maintaining a .300 batting average. His final MLB game was played with the Oakland Athletics on August 29, 2008. He went 2-4 even after having spent most of the season on the disabled list.

This year’s Hall of Fame announcement far eclipses last year’s. With six living inductees, three managers and three players there is a lot to celebrate in the baseball world. The induction festivities and ceremony which will take place in Cooperstown from July 25-28 will be one for the ages.

For more on the MLB Hall of Fame Announcement check out MLB Nation.