Houston's Lima makes the most of his opportunity
Posted: Wed May 27, 1998 at 4:24 PM ET
Who in the world is Jose Lima and why is he is 6-2?
Here was a guy with a lifetime 9-22 record who was in
danger of not making the Astros in spring training.
About a week before opening day, GM Gerry
Hunsicker, manager Larry Dierker and pitching coach
Vern Ruhle told him he wasn't long for the
organization if he didn't control his emotions on the
mound and learn how to pitch.
A few days later, Pete
Schourek went down with an injury and Lima went into
the rotation. Presto.
Lima made the necessary
changes, and is making the most of a live fastball, a
wicked changeup and a so-so breaking ball. And even
though Lima seems like a veteran -- he broke in at age
20 -- he's still only 25 years old.
Who's next for Drew?
The Phillies spent almost a year banging their head
against a wall trying to sign J.D. Drew.
Next up?
Probably the Oakland A's.
The A's are strongly
considering taking Drew with the second pick in the
draft next week. They are likely to offer him a similar
package that Philadelphia did: $3 million guaranteed,
including a $2.6 million signing bonus.
Drew might
actually accept this deal. After he wisely realized
there was too much bad blood with the Phillies to sign
there, now he's eager to play.
And if Drew signs quickly enough, Oakland could have
six homegrown rising stars in their lineup next year:
catcher A.J. Hinch, a double play combination of
Miguel Tejada and Scott Spezio, and a kiddie corps
outfield of Drew, Jason McDonald and Ben Grieve,
who is fast becoming a franchise player.
Budig surfing the net
American League president Gene Budig is rarely seen
at a ballpark. It turns out that he likes to monitor the
pace of games by following them on the Internet.
And
here's how obsessed he's become with the length of
the game issue: he ordered the Orioles to cut two
minutes off their average between now and the All-Star
break.
Hey, why not just do away with innings and
keep a running clock?
Marking McGwire
Finally, here's a couple of more ways to appreciate
the majesty of Mark McGwire:
* By Memorial Day, McGwire already had 25 home
runs -- which would have led the Cardinals in home
runs in 31 of the 37 years since the expansion era
began in 1961.
* Also, Big Mac hit 49 home runs in his first 99 games
with St. Louis. No Cardinal has ever hit more than 43
in a season.
Stay tuned.
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