Jorg

Hey Jorg, I've got a couple questions for ya. 1: What's your take on the whole steroid scandal? Do you think the current punishment is enough for offenders? 2: What was your favorite team growing up? Also, where do you see yourself realistically in 5 years? Thanks in advance! Great to see an active ballplayer answer fans questions. 1. sure it's good. congress was about to intervene so the players union had to come up with something. i think both sides (union vs selig / congress) agreed to something around 40 for first time. but selig wanted his mark so he made it 50. 2. i liked the astros cause i'm from houston. the cubs cause of WGN. and the braves cause of TBS. pretty much the only 3 teams i watched growing up. where do i see myself in 5 years ?? tough question. hopefully in the show somewhere. Hey Jorg when are you going to come over to the dark side and join Shadez Nation? not real sure what this is

Thanks so much for doing this, Jorg. A question...amid the news that Jeffrey Allison has "disappeared," what's your take on him? Have you interacted with him personally? Have you ever caught him? What are some opinions you've heard about him? Thank you so much. never met the guy or seen the guy

I have another question I've been wanting to ask someone who plays professional baseball... There was a great debate here last year whether Bill Robinson deserved some on the blame for the way the line-up underperformed most of the season. My question to you is, does the hitting coach make much of a difference at the pro level and do they deserve some blame when a good part of the line-up tanks for an extended period of time? yes and no. usually there is someone they need to point the blame to. nowadays hitters should be groomed enough to know their own swings. a hitting coach usually just helps you out when you're in a rut Jorg--(I don't know if this has been asked already)...I remember last year you said that the veterans of the team would take the rookies and ST invitees out to dinners sometimes...Are you considered a veteran of the team now, and do you have to pay for dinner?? Also, been gambling lately? :mischief i consider myself a big league ST veteran that's for sure but a veteran of the team, no. that being said i try to look after the younger catchers if we're ever out together. that's one of the things i miss about having all the big money guys on the team last year. we'd usually have a spread (meal layout) after the games. this year we've had 4 - and dontrelle paid for 2

thanks for posting jorg. with a good spring, what do you think your chances are of making the team and where do you feel your talent puts you on the depth chart? that i can't answer, but if you give me a day or two i'll come up with Admin's number and you can call him :call Hmm.....from roster I think the other possible arms are Borowski, Delgado, Messenger, and Resop with long shots to Anibal Sanchez and Adam Bostick. borowski - he'll more than likely be your closer delgado - still needs to work a litlte on his curve - mainly throwing it where he wants it. change-up is his secondary pitch messenger - has slimmed up a little this spring. had a great outing today. will continue to do well my opinion resop - throws hard and heavy. as long as he keeps his control down he should be effective. sanchez - haven't seen him throw really except for bullpens early on bostick - great outing last time. struck out two i think. continue to throw strikes. has a dangerous curve. not real sure on the change-up though. you left out lightenburg which i'll add. i've caught him in a few of his bullpens and watched another. he makes it look easy. pinpoint accurascy with his fastball and a bugs bunny change up. nuff said anyway, i'd say the pen will be shaping up nicely. whether there's some names that should make the roster out of ST, i'm sure they'll get the chance throughout the year. like Joe said, the break with 25, but there's no doubt they'll use more throughout the year. just the way it is, people get hurt (not that you want them to) or something happens, that they'll need more players sooner or later.

Hey Jorg thanks for doing this for us, we all appreciate it. I was just wondering if you could give your assessment on the clubhouse atmosphere. Does it seem more competitive than years past with so much uncertainty surrounding the team and spots up for grabs? with basically 23 positions open for a job, of course it's competitive. but not to the point where any fights have broken out. guys just go out and play their game on the field, and once in the clubhouse we're all friends again playing cards and goofing off (not that they weren't before, but you know what i mean) We've heard a lot about the arms that could possibly be in the rotation this year and beyond, but how are the pen arms looking, like Bowyer, Bump, Kensing, and co? well bowyer supposedly throws hard. he throws light during his bullpen, and i was busy during the 1 outing that i was around to see him throw (although he's thrown more). bump threw the other day in melbourne vs. the Nats. his fastball is still sinking like usual - it's filthy i tell you. despite his line, i thought he threw exceptionally well. he's even featuring a cut-fastball these days which in my opinion is the nastiest pitch ever. kensing has struggled with command lately and his change-up definitely needs work. he'll get more outings during the spring though to sharpen up. as for company...well you name some names and i'll give you my best on the 411 on them. Did Vargas develop the slider he's been working on? caught the last part of his bullpen today and yes, he has kept it. very sharp and very late break make this a great pitch for him. especially since he relies on command with his fastball. look to see a lot of sliders following a fastball inside How do you feel you've improved your game over the last year? How did it feel to get your first Major League AB last year? Any goals for the upcoming year? And how has it been working with Gary Tuck. Has he been working with you guys a lot. well after i got the demotion last year i worked on my hitting alone in memphis off an iron-mike pitching machine. i realized that you don't have to swing so hard to hit the ball far. so, i continued that into the off-season hitting workout once i started up. plus i changed my stance up a little and i'm now featuring more of an upright open stance. my main concern is pitch recognition - mainly the off-speed stuff. laying off the bad ones isn't that hard, it's more of hitting the ones that are strikes which i'm concerned about. as far as my first AB. well it was the same for all 4 - i was nervous as heck. stats pretty much proved it too. i'm working on getting my nerves under control and just relaxing a little when i'm at the plate. ST is good for that becuase the games really don't count and the crowds aren't that big goal for this year - make it back to the show. after a small taste of what "the life" is like last year, i definitely want more. gary tuck is what they say he is - the catching guru. it's like being back in college ball again and doing extensive catching drills every day. wasn't really like this last year. defensive is my game. What do guys think of the world baseball classic? How about you in particular? I have to say, I've been so pumped watching these games. I love watching the games. Hopefully the US stays in it. the WBC. i think it's cool i guess. sure guys have a chance to get hurt, but it's representing their country since the olympics took baseball away. it's more fun since i personally know some people in it.

Of the young pitchers you've caught, which has impressed you the most and why? i almost need to be at the ballpark so i can see the names on the lockers to make my pick for this one. there's a lot of great youthful arms in the organization now. as for a single one or even two or three, i can't really think of names right now. i actually remember the guys who don't do so hot - but that info i can't post since i'm not sure on who all reads this. sorry

what do you make of Dan Uggla's defense at second base so far? so far i haven't seen him make any bonehead plays. he doesn't look to be as smooth as luis did, but i think he'll fill the position just fine. How about Willingham as a catcher...see anything promising? figured someone would ask this. what about me ?? he's definitely improved his defense since last year and you'll know he'll hit.

well just got home from the field and turned the tv on to watch a little of the WBC. i see USA is getting worked 7-0 in the 4th inning - not looking too good. another offensive game for the fish today, eh ?? we scored at least 1 run in every inning - always have to like those games. moehler looked real strong in his 3 innings of work. pinto started and did well, but somewhat struggled with his command. he was able to get out an ealry jam though and ended up only giving up 1 run in his 2 innings of work. kranny (kranitz) has been working with a few of the younger pitchers on getting them to throw down in the strike zone - one being tankersley (did i spell that right??). as a pitcher it doesn't matter how hard you throw (ie the becketts or burnetts b/c if you leave it up in the strike zone and it's flat, it's going to get hit. ok, questions will be answered in the thread they are created in and the threads that i create. i'll try to check back in a few times after i post and answer them. feel free to ask me anything. well....almost anything i'm off to play ps2 for a bit - socom 3 is my online game of choice. i'm addicted (and i'm very good too )