Kent McDill of the Daily Herald writes,
Put another way, Joe Crede is next year's Jon Garland.
Just as Garland appears to have reached his vast potential this season, Crede is expected to reach his sometimes in the future.
Let's examine the statement I quoted. -- Since Joe is underachieving for the 3 straight year, like Garland was perceived to have done, he's going to be good next year? Does that make sense to anyone else?
In the three seasons preceding this one, Garland was the definition of average. He posted ERA+ marks of 100, 99, and 100. You can't get anymore consistently average than that. He posted those marks in his age 22-24 seasons, a time when most pitchers are still making their way through the minor leagues. Garland would be entering his age 25 season, a time when most players are just breaking into the majors, with the track record of being consistently average at worst. It would have been reasonable to expect some improvement out of him this year.
Joe Crede has posted OPS+ marks of 94 and 79 in the last two seasons, marks which are decidedly below average. And while Crede is young, (He turned 27 a little over a month ago) 27 is supposed to be when you are in your prime as a baseball player. If this is Joe Crede's prime, I want nothing to do with his decline.
Currently Crede is posting a .241/.308/.427 line. Terrible? no. But not good either. AL average for third basemen is .270/.337/.432, and a league-wide average of .265/.328/.417. If I were to calculate his OPS+, which I can't accurately do without the updated park effects, it would be in the low 90's. That's three consecutive seasons of below average output from a player who plays a position where offensive production is at a premium. You can't win like that.
Next season, Joe will be entering his age 28 season, and assuming things remain at status quo, he will be coming off his third straight sub-par season. Why should we expect this guy to improve?
Moving down the dial
The Sox made it official on Thursday, announcing that they will be moving their radio broadcasts from ESPN 1000 down the dial to 670 The Score.
I've got mixed feelings about the move. I like that I'll be able to hear more Mac, Jurko, & Harry because they won't be pre-empted by pre-game shows. I like that the Sox will be available to a larger number of people because of the Score's greater signal strength. But I never listen to the Score. I don't like any of their radio personalities, and I don't see that changing in the near future.
I bet they lose your luggage
From the looking for free publicity department: United Airlines cut-rate little brother airline Ted announced yesterday that they will be running a free flight from O'hare to Midway on Sunday, June 26th in honor of the Sox-Cubs concluding their crosstown series.
The most ridiculous thing about the flight?
Estimated travel time: 90 minutes.
Estimated travel time for a car ride from O'hare to Midway: 45-90 minutes, depending on traffic.