I have just finished reading Steve Gilbert's latest edition of MAILBAG. It is full of ideas for trading Eric Byrnes.  How quickly you forget what he did for you in 2006 and 2007. Yes, it is unfortunate he was out for most of 2008 with an injury, but even before then a lot of you thought he was not worth the money.

You want to run out of town one of the most exciting players your franchise has ever had. A team leader who helped you get to the playoffs in 07, and without whom, your vaunted youth movement did not do so well. (Hello, Chris Young!) It is clear to me that the Diamondbacks are all about saving money rather than putting the real goods on the field. How reflective of the rest of this screwed up society in which people are urged to get those promotions and raises then are thrown away as too expensive because they took the rewards they were offered!

If you want to say that baseball is a "what have you done for me lately" game and all Byrnes has done lately is rehab, let me turn the tables on you. What Mark Reynolds has done most recently is set a major league record in strike outs while leading the majors in errors (11 more than the second place guy).  Yet I know of only one other person besides me who would send Reynolds beck to the minors for a year and let Tracy play third.

Conor Jackson, an excellent hitter, had a position at first base. BoMel's handing him left field because of the way he played and GM Byrnes saying that Eric shouldn't expect to get playing time because of his incumbency is a bunch of BULL. Jackson is at best an adequate left fielder. He's no Byrnes. Byrnesie is not the most elegant fielder but he gets to stuff the slower Jackson and the unsure Young don't get to.

And quit the suggestions that the D'Backs should offer Adam Dunn a deal. Dunn is a born DH who should be in the American League.

But most importantly, there is little plate discipline on the D'Backs.  I've already laid out the strikeout totals in other posts. The batting averages are awful. I cannot get excited about guys who hit homers but cannot break .250. A healthy Eric Byrnes, and I'm expecting a healthy Eric Byrnes in '09, can hit at least .280-and he knows I think he's capable of more than that-while striking out less than 100 times. And I would rather have a team full of guys like that than a bunch of .230-.240 hitters that are striking out, the most useless thing you can do, when they aren't hitting it over the fence. As you saw last year, that kind of lineup doesn't make the playoffs.

If this team is to have any chance, it needs to have Byrnes AND Jackson on the field simultaneously. Together with Steven Drew, who hit .291 last year, they could form the nucleus of the lineup.

Stop being bedazzled by homer totals and demoralized by contract numbers. Geez, you'd think Byrnesie was pulling down A-Rod money the way you people act! And the game is still baseball, not accounting. Maybe you all shouldn't have parked the Brinks truck in Chris Young's driveway when he had barely a year in the majors under his belt. Let a guy get some more experience and show what he's capable of before you part with the big bucks.

News Item:

Melvin sounded a little more certain when it came to where Conor Jackson would be playing. Jackson, who played first base in 2006, 2007 and the first part of 2008 was moved to left field when a hamstring injury sidelined Eric Byrnes.

Jackson played well out there and will go into Spring Training as the starting left fielder with Eric Byrnes getting a chance to play all three outfield positions and Chad Tracy at first against right-handers. Jackson could move to first against left-handed pitching with Byrnes playing left.

So now Eric Byrnes becomes the 4th outfielder! Back to square 1 April of '06. This is bad news. Shove all that talk about wanting competition when there is no talk of Tracy competing for the third base job against Mark Reynolds, WHO LED THE MAJORS IN ERRORS AND STRIKEOUTS LAST YEAR!!!! Why is his job secure while Byrnesie has to fight for time?

I'll tell you why: Byrnesie will go into spring training with 11 million due him this year and next, and the Diamondbacks are so poor that they can't afford RJ even though he is willing to take a 50%  paycut. They couldn't afford Orlando Hudson. (And Mark Lorretta signed with the Dodgers). And so we hear BoMel singing of the virtues of youth. Reynolds is one of the young guys who figures to get better.

Well, if you want to keep Tracy, then let Reynolds get better in Triple A. He missed that step and it shows.

BoMel also told Steve Gilbert that: "Based on what [Jackson] did last year, he certainly deserves a chance to be the everyday left fielder, and as we're sitting here, he is the left fielder." In the words of John McEnroe, "You cannot be serious!" Jackson is at best an adequate left fielder. He gets to the balls you expect hm to get to. He made a few good plays. But he doesn't have Byrnes' speed or daring.

Without Byrnes, the outfield will be leaderless. Chris Young is wonderful at going back to the wall for balls, but he doesn't know how to take charge. This is evident when he has to come in for those Texas leaguers where the centerfielder, shortstop, second baseman, and possibly the left fielder converge. (I saw one of these plays in SF in September. The ball dropped in front of Young. He never goes for it the way Byrnesie does!)

Will somebody tell me why Eric Byrnes has been the odd man out, fighting for playing time virtually his whole career? He's never led the majors in errors for an outfielder-I recognize infielders, who get more chances lead the league in errors.  In fact, in 2007, Bill James recognized him as the best left fielder in the majors, according to his various statistics.

And Byrnesie's highest total for strike outs was 111 in 2004, nowhere near the MAJOR LEAGUE STRIKE OUT RECORD SET BY MARK REYNOLDS LAST YEAR. He had precisely 111 before the All-Star break.

I am after Reynolds because I don't see him having to compete for time even after setting two of the worst major league records you can set, while Byrnesie goes into camp having lost his starting role.

I'll tell you what, Diamondbacks. If you love Reynolds so much, tell him he's going to play second base next year. Tell him now so he can start getting ready. The shorter throw to first might save him some errors. And Reynolds at second will save you the money of signing another second baseman. Tracy can play third; Jackson can play first; and Byrnesie can go back to everyday left fielder.

Because without Hudson, and with Byrnesie as only a fourth outfielder, the team lacks field generals.  IF Tony Clark signs again, he can fill that clubhouse leader role that he's so good at. But on the field, day  in and day out, you need somebody to lead. And Byrnesie can fill that role well.

But you know I figured that you front office people have pretty much written off this year anyway, because you don't have the money to compete with the Dodgers. CC Sabathia is now rumored to want to go to LA. And they can make him an offer competitive with what the Yankees have put on the table for him. And the possibility of them signing Manny Ramirez is still out there. That deal seems to hinge more on years than on money. You just lost Mark Lorretta to them. So you don't really need a field general for a team that will finish at best third and maybe even fourth next year. But you'd love to free up the money you really didn't want to give Byrnesie anyway but gave him because you had to give the fans something after parting sloppily with Luis Gonzalez.

Yeah, I know, Byrnesie's legs were declared healed last month, but the gods forbid he pops that hammy again. Then what? Then you go with Jackon in left, Tracy at first and Reynolds at third.  But you are thinking that even if Byrnesie's legs are completely healed and he is able to resume his baserunning ways,  the Snakes, true to their namesake, don't run, even when they have native speed. Chris Young, who can steal bases standing up, was a disappointing 14/19 last year, after stealing 27 in 33 attempts in '07, when Byrnesie stole 50 of 57 bases. Young is a follower. Byrnesie's leadership made Young better. The two of them were in a race for team homer leadership in '07 that Young won 32 to 26.  '08 No Byrnesie and only 22 homers from Young.

Yeah, Front Office, I know that in your perfect scenario, you would have had the dough to make Adam Dunn an offer and Byrnesie would have ridden the pine till he begged to waive his no-trade clause for the likes of Pittsburgh.

That didn't work out, but you are still trying to throw Byrnesie under the bus. Just don't do it under the guise of competition when the major league leader in strike outs and errors is as snug as a bug in a rug come spring.

I've got to go now. More ranting later!

The Arizona Diamondbacks, who were batting below .200 as a team during the last six games-they won 2 and lost 4-went back to the formula that led to their early success in beating Atlanta 11-1. They scored early and often, handing Doug Davis a 5-run lead before he threw the first pitch in his comeback from thyroid cancer surgery. Davis then cruised to victory, giving up only 1 run in a 7 inning, 5-hit, 89-pitch effort. (Max Scherzer pitched the 8th and Doug Slaten the 9th).

The five-run barrage in the first inning started with a solo homer by Stephen Drew, batting second. They got another homer later in the inning-a two-run shot by Eric Byrnes, batting seventh, for the 100th of his career. If he managed not to hurt himself today, let's hope that this gets Byrnesie going; sometimes hitters slow up as they approach a milestone. Next time up, he singled and eventually scored from third on a single by Chris Young. So Byrnesie had two hits, two RBI and he also scored two runs.

Homers were the name of this game for the D'Backs. In addition to Drew and Byrnes, Conor Jackson, Chris Young, and Mark Reynolds went yard. Chris Snyder had a 2-run double.

Welcome back, DD!

___________________

It's been a long time coming. And it barely made it, hitting the top of the wall in left field and bouncing in the good direction. But there it was in the fifth inning, Eric Byrnes' first grand slam. And it came off of Tom Glavine, of all people. Only the second grand slam the future Hall of Famer has given up in his long and illustrious career. It changed the score from 3-2 Braves to 6-3 Diamondbacks, and the Snakes never looked back. The final score was 9-3, giving Micah Owings his 6th W of the year.

True Elation? More than that really. But if I call it something else, it will ruin my numbering system. More than redemption for the pop-up with the bases loaded in his previous at-bat and the 5 LOB on the day. Two homers in 3 days! Maybe he is coming out of his slump. Or maybe there is something extra he reaches back for every time people start asking again if he should be on the DL.

Eric Byrnes has been on a very steep roller coaster ride this year. And he's still got a long way to go to get the batting average back into respectable territory. It will be interesting to see what happens now with the bases loaded. He finally cleared them. Now he should approach a sacks-full situation in a different way. It has often looked like he was trying to be too careful, trying not to make an out, instead of trying to get a hit. Or he was being desperate, swinging at anything, like the junk off the plate that Glavine threw him the time before. This time Glavine threw it in Byrnesie's wheelhouse and Byrnesie sent it out. And I hope that any and all anxiety and self-doubt he's had with the bases loaded in the past went with it. Of course, not every time up with the bases loaded will have this glorious result. But now, Byrnesie knows he can do it because he HAS done it. And I look forward to him doing it again.

Four beautiful RBI. The game-winner.  (And let's not forget two walks after the grand slam, one of which resulted in his second run scored. He needs better plate discipline to get out of the slump, and walks are indicative of better discipline).

Beyond True Elation. A new level of achievement for Eric Byrnes.

Congratulations!

ByrnesBlogger1

Many knowledgeable baseball people, including Eric Byrnes, consider the 2001 World Series one of the best, if not THE best World Series ever. Seven games between the storied New York Yankees, winners of the previous three World Series, and 26 championships overall, versus the upstart Arizona Diamondbacks, in existence for only four years and playing in their first World Series. And Game 7 was an epic pitchers' duel that went down to the wire.

On April 29th, A&E Home Video (aetv.com) and MLB Productions make a DVD set of this series available. Buy it. Unless you win the one I have available as a giveaway on this blog. Details about that further down.

The DVD player I have attached to my TV is not working for some reason. So I was pleased to find that the DVDs will play on a PC with DVD playing software. I'm running Windows XP Home Edition and NTI DVD software on a 2 GB system with 512 MB Ram of which only 448 MB is working properly; but the DVD's ran perfectly despite the RAM problem. The mouse substitutes for TV remote control and is much easier to use.

The pictures, basically the Fox broadcast of each game, are crisp and clear. The games are edited to bring you the best shots...and no commercial breaks! You just go from one inning to the next and through the pitching changes with all baseball. The only non-baseball information is in the form of the graphics that were part of the game broadcast that day. For example, Game 7 updated the viewers on the Emmy Awards that were presented that night. That's a nice historical touch.

Bonus features include highlights of the NLDS and NLCS, trophy presentations, and several on-field post-Game 7 interviews with the winners. Each of the seven games comes on its own DVD, in its own jewel case with a liner that provides the box score, an inning-by-inning summary and tidbits that will satisfy any trivia buff. The set comes in a box that easy to store; It's 18 hours and 49 minutes of material for only $69. Even though the set emphasizes the Arizona Diamondbacks, it's a great addition to the libraries of Yankees fans and anyone else who enjoys great baseball.

For those of you who are interested in the one I'm giving away, the way to get it is to send me an Eric Byrnes story from anywhere starting with his college days to the present. Keep it family-friendly as I want to post the entries here. What was it like to meet Byrnesie? Did you go to school with him, see him as a minor leaguer, banter with him in the stands in the majors, or meet him in the supermarket? Did he visit your school, hospital or Little League?

My stats reports say that a lot of people visit, but only a few people ever comment. My usual commentators, the guys who run the AZSportshub & MLB.com websites, members of Byrnesie's family and current social circle, professional journalists who have interviewed Byrnes, and anyone who has ever been featured on The Eric Byrnes Show are not eligible to win the DVD set but are welcome to contribute a story to enrich the visiting experience for my readers.

I'm looking for Byrnes fans who have never commented here before. I'm hoping a chance at this wonderful DVD set will entice some of you into joining the discussions. Don't be shy. You don't have to be a literary genius to enter, but the winner will be the story I find most interesting, so don't just say you were there when Byrnesie did thus-and-such.

Send your stories to byrnesblogger1 [at] azsportshub.com by May 15th. The decision of the judge (me) is final.

ByrnesBlogger1

I downloaded the Tony Gwynn documentary from MLB.com last night. Ihave yet to watch it, but I have made an important discovery about MLB downloads: You are not downloading a file to keep and play as much as you want, you are only renting the file for a limited number of viewings, or in my case, attempts to view.

I am a novice at using Windows Media Player. And my experience with it last night and this morning have made me long for the days when you just opened a file in Real Player and it played. Now there are libraries, and playlists, and all sorts of complications.

One such complication is Digital Rights Management (DRM). When I first tried to play the file, my computer went out and searched for a license. I was not surprised by this. I assumed that somebody somewhere would want assurance that I had a legal copy of the documentary. But I was surprised that the computer retrieved a new license every time I tried to get the documentary to play. This morning, after I tried, unsuccessfully, to turn the documentary on twice, I got a message saying that I had maxed out on the number of licenses for this download and I should call customer support or email them.

So you basically get 5 or 6 opportunities to view a download. (Opportunities only, the license count is triggered before the documentary actually plays so if it fails to play, you are out of luck).

F**K DRM. When I buy something, I expect to be able to use it whenever and how many times ever, I want. And F**K MLB for not making it clear that you are only renting a limited number of licenses.

Frankly, it isn’t worth my time to call or email customer support and I am certainly not going to pay any more money; I have received no value for the money I have already paid. Now I didn’t pay a whole lot ($3.99) but that shouldn’t limit the number of times I can watch what I paid for. I figured that the low price was a function of both the fact that the documentary was a download, and therefore much cheaper to produce than a DVD, and the fact that MLB.com boasts huge traffic stats, meaning that MLB could go for volume sales. But no, they went further, using DRM to turn downloads into de facto rentals.

I will never buy another download from MLB and I hope that this post spreads far and wide and other people decide to boycott also. The fascist DRM regime has got to end! The only way it will end is if enough consumers reject it so that rights-holders realize that there is more money to be made from selling a product than from withholding it.

The purpose of copyright was to allow creators a chance to control distribution of their work. But nowadays, a creator typically makes things on a “work for hire” basis for a large corporation, like MLB, or any of the Hollywood studios the Writers Guild is currently striking, and the big corporation reaps the benefits while most creators get next to nothing. With Digital Rights Management, the big corporations have found a way to give the consumer next to nothing also.

ByrnesBlogger1

is at http://byrnesblog.azsportshub.com

Be sure to listen to the podcast, which is a slightly longer version of the story that I filed for KPFA.
Needless to say, this is not my last word on the subject.

ByrnesBlogger1

Hear my interview with MLB.com's Diamondbacks beat writer Steve Gilbert on the possibility of the Snakes getting Dan Haren, Tony Clark re-signing, Micah Owings playing first and more at

http://byrnesblog.azsportshub.com

ByrnesBlogger1

I was on the scene for the Bonds arraignment. Hear my podcast at http://byrnesblog.azsportshub.com/

ByrnesBlogger1

I have an interview with Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic from the WInter Meetings at http://byrnesblog.azsportshub.com/piecoro-at-winter-meetings

See you there!

ByrnesBlogger1

I will keep this space open until the end of the subscription sometime next August. But it will be like Rumor Mill's. New Posts will direct you to stuff at AZSportshub.

Thanks to Mark Newman, Matt of Diamondhacks, Russell of Arizona via Slough, Tracy of Chicks Dig The Long Ball, Michael and Christopher of Some Ballyard/Clubhouse, more Red Sox bloggers than I can name, and all  the other past & present MLB folk who shared my ups and downs following the fate of Eric Byrnes. I learned alot; I had a good time, but with Eric signing a 3-year contract with the Diamondbacks, it makes sense for me to affiliate with this Arizona contingent, especially since they asked me.

BTW, Eric and Tarah got married Dec. 1. Within just under 5 months Eric Byrnes has gotten his first multi-year contract (with a complete no-trade clause no less), an XM Radio show, and a wife. Could he be growing up? Naaah! Don't let the trappings of adulthood fool ya! He'll always be "our boy" and we'll always love him for that childlike quality of not taking himself or his money too seriously.

Eric, all we ask is that you always do your best at work, respect the game and the fans, be good to Tarah, and don't drink and drive!

See y'all at the new place! http://byrnesblog.azsportshub.com/

ByrnesBlogger1