[editor's note, by Randy Booth] Please be aware that this is a rant. The editor is frustrated that the Red Sox had a tight 1-1 game going with the White Sox before Tim Wakefield served up moon shots for dinner. Still be aware though, that even though it is a rant, the editor means every word.
My question is simple, and to the point. Why can't we have Scott Podsednik?
I want Podsednik. All the guy does is hitting around .300, steal 70 bases a season, and score 100 runs. That's all. Imagine if he was the leadoff hitter for the Red Sox. He would get a single, steal second base, and then Edgar Renteria would either A) knock him in, or B) let David Ortiz or Manny Ramirez do it.
What about Johnny Damon, you say? Forget about Damon! He's not worth a 6-year contract that he wants. Podsednik, though, I would give a lung, three toes, and a player to be named later to have him on my team.
Damon is having a good season this year in one aspect: batting average. He has a high on-base percentage, but he only has a high OBP because of his average. Drop Damon's average down, and everything else plummets around it.
Why can't Boston ever have a guy like Podsednik? It seems to be an unwritten rule that we can never play small-ball, and we can't have a base stealer on the team. In the past five years, our best base stealer has been Damon himself as he stole 31 back in 2002. Podsednik could do that in the first quarter of the season.
The closest thing we've had to a Podsednik is Dave Roberts last season. Roberts had 33 steals before he came to the Red Sox. After that? Five in 45 games.
I don't care if Marc Normandin (Beyond The Boxscore) comes and leaves a nice little comment that says, "but with steals you are risking outs." I tell him all the time to stop giving me S.A.B.R. stuff, and just give me the real deal. My real deal is this: if you steal bases like Podsednik does, let him do it ever time he's on base! He stole once tonight, and Doug Mirabelli's throw wasn't even close to getting him. The pitch wasn't a curveball or anything either. It was a fastball right down the middle. Mirabelli is no slouch, either; he has a pretty good arm.
There may be only a few players in the league that are either as fast or faster than Podsednik, so I don't expect to get him, or someone better than him. I just want an everyday player that steals at will, and has the ability to steal 100 bases in a season. We may never see that again, and I know that, but I just want a guy that has the ability to do that.
End of rant.