They lost 108 games, why are we doing so good with so many rookies. What was the difference that seerate both team?

talent.

talent.

From what I remember, '98 was a hybrid team, with some of our guys in that Dodger trade a month or two into the season (Sheff, CJ off the top of my head), so the rooks never really got a consistent group of guys to play with early on. That and the fact that we didn't have as many good rookie pitchers as we do this year.

They lost 108 games, why are we doing so good with so many rookies. What was the difference that seerate both team?

 

That's a great question. It's amazing it's never been brought up before. I credit Beinfest and Lloyd Bridges. Beinfest knows how to see and rate talent, and Lloyd can hunt them down.

The '98 team had a lot of young players that went on to have solid careers such as DLee, Renteria, Castillo, Kotsay, Gonzalez, Floyd and Livan and other young players that went on to have okay careers such as Counsell, Alfdonseca, Zaun, Redmond, Wilson, Millar and Dempster. Mantei was also good but injuries got him. That's 14 players taht are still playing and Mantei.

 

I don't think the '98 team lost 108 games because they had no talent, I think they lost 108 games because although they had talent most of them were not ready for the big leagues.

I think the main difference is that the players acquired in this round of trades were more MLB ready. Also the players weren't just given away for magic beans, Beinfest held out for higher quality.

I think the main difference is that the players acquired in this round of trades were more MLB ready. Also the players weren't just given away for magic beans, Beinfest held out for higher quality.

 

I dunno about that....Didn't we get Penny, Lowell, Lee, Wilson, etc?

 

Granted, we did get a helluva lot more top prospects this time around.

Penny acquired in 99, Lowell in 99, Wilson towards the end of 98 and Lee would struggle through 98 in the show and spent a good part of 99 in AAA.

Penny acquired in 99, Lowell in 99, Wilson towards the end of 98 and Lee would struggle through 98 in the show and spent a good part of 99 in AAA.

 

Thanks for looking that up.

One reason. Beinfest!

To me, a lot of the prospects we brought back from the '97 fire-sale had the same talent ceiling (if not greater) only they (the '98 batch) were far more raw.

 

Lee, Burnett and Wilson were not close to ML ready in '98, and guys like Alou and Bonilla were simply given away because of the length of their deal signed in the previous offseason.

 

Also, you have to remember, the '98 rotation was a hodge-podge. Fernandez was hurt and unable to contribute, Livan had a "hang-over" and then you had guys like Alfonseca and Heredia thrown in there, not to mention the immortal Kirt Ojala.

 

In essence, the remnants of the '97 team brought in higher ceilinged young players than we did previously, but few if any lived up to expectations.

 

This past fire-sale brought in guys who were performing close to their talents with only a select few (like Hanley) really having substantial room for growth.

 

Plus you have to factor in an offense built around a raw Castillo, Kotsay and Renteria isn't exactly as potent as one built around Cabrera, Willingham and Jacobs.

 

Maybe it's just me, but if that '98 team keeps Sheffy, Bonilla and CJ, I think they'd certainly have smelled 70 wins as well.

 

Just my take...

Two good answers already: Beinfest and talent. There's also Cabrera who's an absolute beast.

We just got better talent in these trades than we did in 98. Plus we had better home grown talent at the time now then we did back then.

Hey Dombrowski was no slouch on talent either. I think you can also blame Leyland for what happend in 1998 because how do you stay motivated for a job when you win a World Series one year and then have a team full of rookies the next? I think about midway through the season he just gave up and didn't improve the rookies nearly as much as Girardi has done with this team.

One reason. Beinfest!

 

And his staff. We have some of the best scouts in the league.

Hey Dombrowski was no slouch on talent either.

I agree. He built a WS winner in '97. He should get at least as much credit as Beinfest for the '03 WS winner. And look at where the Tigers are now. The '06 Marlins are on pace to win about 75 games. Take out Cabrera and Willingham, 2 of the 3 best hitters on the team and both signed by Dombrowski, and this team is in the low 60s in wins.

The pitching we got back in exchange for the massive fire sale was virtually nothing. Scrubs like Rafael Medina, Brian Meadows, and Ryan Dempster were the basis of our rotation.

 

This fall, we pretty much robbed the Cubs with the Juan Pierre deal, and the Red Sox for both Anibal and HanRam.

 

However, I still think we should have demanded Lastings Milledge for Delgado. Petit does not look like he has the stuff to be a good MLB pitcher. Mike Jacobs was a good pickup, and probably the best of that deal.

The pitching we got back in exchange for the massive fire sale was virtually nothing. Scrubs like Rafael Medina, Brian Meadows, and Ryan Dempster were the basis of our rotation.

 

This fall, we pretty much robbed the Cubs with the Juan Pierre deal, and the Red Sox for both Anibal and HanRam.

 

However, I still think we should have demanded Lastings Milledge for Delgado. Petit does not look like he has the stuff to be a good MLB pitcher. Mike Jacobs was a good pickup, and probably the best of that deal.

 

I agree but lets give Petit some some time Lasting Milledge been looking good like we should have traded for him right now I just hope Petit proves me wrong