Tag Archives: Mark DeRosa

September 9, 2012

Feeling Good

Mark DeRosa offered his ear and his story to help Stephen Strasburg. First DeRosa let Stephen vent:

Strasburg, generally a reserved person, shared some of his feelings with DeRosa. Strasburg’s biggest reservations are about the shutdown are that he feels like he is letting his teammates down and that he feels good despite never pitching this much before in his career.

“There is no right or wrong answer to this,” DeRosa said. “His body is telling him one thing but the doctors are telling him another. And he’s got to be smart because he’s got too much at stake.”

Then Mark talked about his own injury experience:

DeRosa had two messages he wanted to convey to Strasburg. When DeRosa was with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2009, he was recovering from a wrist injury and was faced with a situation where he could continue to play through it or end his season. He continued playing and said his wrist has never been the same. DeRosa wanted Strasburg to understand that his teammates don’t feel like they’re being let down.

I think one of the points lost in this situation is that you want to shutdown Strasburg when he is feeling good. If he felt tired or hurt, the team would have pushed him too far. He built up to 160 innings. Next season he goes for 200 IP starting out with a healthy elbow and shoulder. The Nationals look like the Braves of 1991. Three great, young starters and a good offense. The Nats hope the next few seasons play out the same way.

January 27, 2010

Players A to Z, Mark DeRosa

Mark DeRosa played infield for the Indians and Cardinals in 2009. He recently signed a contract with the San Francisco Giants. DeRosa followed three good season of getting on base with a disappointing 2009. He only managed a .319 OBP in 2009. DeRosa’s power didn’t fade, however. He posted an isolated power of about .160 the previous three seasons, .180 in 2009. At age 34, his total walks and hits declined, but he still managed to get over 1/3 for extra bases. While this may be a decline, I would not be surprised to see the OBP bounce back up a bit.

Given that AT&T Park is tough on hitters, we should probably expect a bit of a power decline. That’s not what the Giants need. I wonder when they’ll stop hiring aging veterans ready for a decline.

December 29, 2009

Giants on DeRosa

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Andrew Baggerly bullet points the Giants press conference on Mark DeRosa:

DeRosa had other offers, but other teams saw him more as a contingency plan. DeRosa said he always enjoyed playing in San Francisco and the Giants showed the greatest interest in him. “I was just tired of being a lot of team’s plan B,” he said. “I wanted to go to a place where I felt comfortable and the team wanted me and needed me to be productive. I just felt this was a good spot. I didn’t want to wait around and get caught in a situation where I’d have to go somewhere I didn’t want to go.”

That must make Giants fans happy, that they signed everyone else’s plan B.

December 28, 2009

DeRosa and the Beanstalk

It looks like the Giants and Mark DeRosa are close to a deal.

Mark DeRosa is in serious discussion with the San Francisco Giants on a possible two-year deal, sources say. The Giants offered him a two-year contract for $12 million a couple weeks ago, as SI.com reported, and talks have heated up the past few days.

The Giants would employ DeRosa at third base, first base and possibly in the outfield. Pablo Sandoval could play first or third. The Giants could still be in the market for an outfielder but like some of the young outfielders they have already.

Why don’t the Giants get someone who they know is really good, like Bay or Holliday? DeRosa holds a .343 career OBP, which is good but not great. If he plays at that level, he’ll improve the Giants. He’s coming off a .319 OBP season, however, and at age 34, we might be seeing a decline.

DeRosa hit his peak late in his career. We shouldn’t be surprised if it turns out to be short lived.