Re: NYT article on Dempster

[dew1679666265]

“I hope he stays, because his decision will impact other people’s decisions on whether they want to play here — because they enjoy being around him so much,” DeRosa said. “He’s one of the driving forces behind our chemistry. To take him out of the clubhouse would cause a huge rift.”

 

This quote sort of stood out to me. What do we make of this, I wonder?

 

Fans that think in numbers and talent first, as many around here do, might discount or dismiss the value of team chemistry in baseball. But that doesn't mean the players, coaches, GMs, and owners devalue it. That's what you make of it.

 

I definitely think there's something to team chemistry, but wasn't sure if this quote was truly heartfelt by DeRo or just kinda talking up a buddy.

[CuseCubFan69]

Dempster’s élan is unmistakable: Last Sunday, after pitching the Cubs to a win at Wrigley Field, Dempster arrived with the Cubs in Atlanta at 3:30 a.m. — but still woke up to run at 7 and was back and showered for a golf game at 9.

 

“And he’d picked up Starbucks for all of us,” second baseman Mark DeRosa said. “He just operates on a different plane.”

 

I love this. The guy obviously really likes being a Cub, working with these guys. How much is it going to cost us to keep him again? I'm not so sure this is a fluke season for him. He's been a good starter before this with Florida. I'd think very long and hard before letting him go.

 

We'll see how much he likes being a Cub when they offer 8 schillings and the Yanks 13M a year.

[CubFanPhilly]

Dempster’s élan is unmistakable: Last Sunday, after pitching the Cubs to a win at Wrigley Field, Dempster arrived with the Cubs in Atlanta at 3:30 a.m. — but still woke up to run at 7 and was back and showered for a golf game at 9.

 

“And he’d picked up Starbucks for all of us,” second baseman Mark DeRosa said. “He just operates on a different plane.”

 

I love this. The guy obviously really likes being a Cub, working with these guys. How much is it going to cost us to keep him again? I'm not so sure this is a fluke season for him. He's been a good starter before this with Florida. I'd think very long and hard before letting him go.

 

We'll see how much he likes being a Cub when they offer 8 schillings and the Yanks 13M a year.

 

If the Cubs offer 10M and the Yankees offer 13M I think he's a Cub next year. If the difference is much more than that I'm skeptical.

[Jon]

re-sign dempster, his k/9 and g/f ratio suggest to me that this is not a fluke. his babip is perhaps a bit low, but he gets a lot of ground balls, so i dismiss it

We'll see if he can maintain those rates through the end. He was getting a ton of grounders through the first 6 weeks or so of the season, but until very recently, his GB% was dropping pretty steadily since then. His FB% is relatively consistent, but his LD% is significantly higher than the first 6 weeks or so, as well. Not that those rates early on were sustainable, of course.

 

I don't think any decisions can be made now. If he can avoid tiring out in September and October, then I think Hendry will probably try hard to re-sign him.

 

That made sense in May and June. But we're nearly done with 80% of the season. If he tires down the stretch, that doesn't tell us much other than an arm that hadn't thrown 100 innings in 5 years struggled as he approached 200. If he stumbles a bit, he's still going to finish with fantastic numbers.

 

 

Dempster is an obvious candidate to be a rich Yankee next year. He looked great pitching in Yankee Stadium and has a chance to shine in October this year. The one thing weighing against him, however, is that the Yankees have had a lot of issues with NL pitchers. Brown, Johnson, Pavano, Wright and Leiter were all guys whose success in the NL was a big reason they became Yankees, and all of them were disappointments to a certain extent.

I meant maintain the season rates he has now. His actual GB and LD percentages have been getting worse since the start of the season up until pretty recently. I'm just hoping he can level those off.

 

http://www.fangraphs.com/graphs/517_P_daily_full_9_20080817.png

 

Of course, he compensated by striking more guys out.

[CuseCubFan69]

Dempster’s élan is unmistakable: Last Sunday, after pitching the Cubs to a win at Wrigley Field, Dempster arrived with the Cubs in Atlanta at 3:30 a.m. — but still woke up to run at 7 and was back and showered for a golf game at 9.

 

“And he’d picked up Starbucks for all of us,” second baseman Mark DeRosa said. “He just operates on a different plane.”

 

I love this. The guy obviously really likes being a Cub, working with these guys. How much is it going to cost us to keep him again? I'm not so sure this is a fluke season for him. He's been a good starter before this with Florida. I'd think very long and hard before letting him go.

 

We'll see how much he likes being a Cub when they offer 8 schillings and the Yanks 13M a year.

 

If the Cubs offer 10M and the Yankees offer 13M I think he's a Cub next year. If the difference is much more than that I'm skeptical.

 

It's going to be interesting to see how much of a "discount" he gives the Cubs CFP. I think the amount of years might mean more to him as well.