Deal looks better with closer look at Johnny Damon
Johnny Damon lined into a double play in his first spring-training at-bat as a Tiger, but he isn’t worried about that. He stumbled twice on one run to first base, but he isn’t worried about that. Damon never seems worried about anything, actually. But if anything worries him, it’s the book.
I like that set up, kinda like a horror movie set up. I can just imagine James Earl Jones' voice-over for the trailer: "But if anything worries the man with nerves of steel...it's...THE BOOK."
There’s a book on me that’s been out for 16 years on how to pitch me, how to defend me,” Damon said.
I hope it's been updated since then.
I did not love the Tigers’ wooing of Damon, but I like it more now. First of all, they signed him for one year and $8 million, instead of the initial indications of two years and $14 million. That is a big difference to me, because if Damon is washed up, he can’t bog down the 2011 payroll.
That's a good point. But I don't think you needed a closer look at Damon to realize that.
Then there is something I hadn’t considered enough before the signing: the Damon domino effect.
Sweet, we have a new catchphrase for the summer. "The Damon Domino Effect." I'm guessing it has something to do with scoring hot women. Like if you and your good looking friend go out to a bar and he gets a group of girls to come over and talk to you two. That's "The Damon Domino Effect."
With Damon on board, the Tigers are free to try Ryan Rayburn at second base (if Scott Sizemore struggles) or third (if Brandon Inge has an injury setback, though Inge said he is ahead of schedule and could probably play right now if he was needed).
Checking here it looks like the Tigers already tried Ryan at every position except hot dog vendor. Granted we only have small sample sizes to look at, but as far as his major league career is concerned he has not fared too well in the infield.
Damon’s defense declined last year, and his power numbers were skewed by the new Yankee Stadium, a hitters’ ballpark.
I've documented this, but his defense has been declining gradually since '07 and he's arguably been bad since '03. There's a reason he didn't play in center at all last year. The reason was a
-36 UZR. And no, you can't blame Yankees Stadium for that kind ineptitude.
He is 36, and some of the best players in history were washed up at 36. So you never know when the end will come.
Great point~!
And yet … Some players are better from a distance than up close. They make spectacular plays, they put up good numbers, but when you don’t see them every day, you don’t realize how often they miss the cutoff man or foolishly try to take an extra base.
That's ACTUALLY a good point.
I think Damon is the opposite: the more you see him, the more you like him.
“I’m OK with that,” Damon said. “The easiest thing people can always do is talk negatively. Yeah, I don’t have a strong arm. But you don’t see any of those coaches in New York or Boston complaining about it, because I would get the ball in (quickly) so the guy couldn’t even think about taking the extra base. Or: ‘He doesn’t steal enough bases.’ I steal ’em when it counts. I’m not going to steal to pad my stats.”
I know he wasn't taking a direct shot at Rickey Henderson, but I'm going to pretend he was and laugh.
One of the biggest misconceptions about Damon is that he is a finesse player. It’s easy to understand why people might think that: his game is built on speed, his arm is weak, and even when he is in the batter’s box, you can tell he won’t hit a 500-foot home run.That's the definition of a finesse player.
But Damon is tough. He has played at least 141 games for 14 straight years.
What does that have to do with being a finesse player? He shows up. So does Adam Dunn.
And he is mentally tough, too. When he is struggling, he resists the urge to over-think.
I'm pretty sure over-thinking has NEVER been considered Damon's problem.
He hits off a tee and just concentrates on making solid contact.
Terrific, he has the mental toughness of my 5-year-old niece, great point Rosenburg.
When Damon is thriving, he might take four or five swings in the batting cage and get out. That’s all he needs.
I'm not sure what that is supposed to point out other than he gets lackadaisical when he's on a hot streak.
One of these years, Damon won’t be able to fix his problems on the tee and won’t be able to make up for his weak arm with hustle and smarts.
According to his stats he's already unable to make up for his weak arm with hustle and smarts.
This could be that year. But if it’s not, Detroit will love its leftfielder.
Case Closed.
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