Week in Review

Jason Michael Barker

In case you haven't noticed, we're in a bit of a lull, baseball-wise. The World Series seems a distant memory, yet all the fun of free agency can't begin for another week or so, and might not really get going for another month. Things are so slow, in fact, that I was reduced to writing about the NBA schedule as if the games were of a baseball nature this week. You did notice that, right?

Just when it appeared the wire was going flatline, things slowly started happening this week. And thank goodness for that, because I wasn't looking forward to writing about the NFL schedule.

Is anyone else surprised Will Clark decided to hang up his spikes? If this had come a year ago, after he fought through an injury-plagued season in which he played just 77 games, I would have commended him for recognizing when his body just couldn't give any more, even if .303/.395/.482 line was more than respectable for a player his age.

Healthy this year, Clark hit .301/.413/.473 with the Orioles before being traded to the Cardinals. He proceeded to explode after the trade, hitting .345/.426/.655 over the final two months and helping fans forget that Mark McGwire was essentially out for the season.

Would I expect Clark to hit that well again next season? Certainly not. But the fact that he did over a two-month period suggests that he's still capable of helping a club with his sweet left-handed swing. Give the guy credit, though -- he's walking away on his own terms and is now going to focus on being a father and husband. And there's nothing wrong with that.

In a similar story that very easily could have gone the other way, the Orioles and Cal Ripken Jr. agreed to a one-year, $6.3M contract for the upcoming season. I know Ripken's a fan favorite -- he practically is the Orioles -- but at what point do you throw up your hands and say "enough!"?

After playing a gazillion games in a row (a.k.a. "The Streak"), Ripken has managed just 169 over the past two seasons combined, and both his bat and his glove have slipped dramatically. I would say this is likely his last go-round, but the two sides discussed a contract option for the 2002 season. At least the Orioles don't have any talent in the farm system that Ripken will be getting in the way of...

On the other coast, it appears the Padres may have finally said "enough!" regarding Tony Gwynn, as they declined his $6M option for the 2001 season. Gwynn appeared in just 36 contests last year, after playing in 111 in 1999. Assuming he can stay healthy -- if he simply lost some weight he wouldn't put so much pressure on his cartilage-less knees -- I don't think there's any question that he can still hit for average, but he's never had much power and he doesn't draw many walks either.

Assuming the Padres don't bring him back at a reduced rate, which seems to me the most likely option even though he said his career with the Padres is "probably" over, I'm sure some club (in the American League?) will take a chance on Gwynn as a pinch-hitter and occasional designated hitter. Even with his health concerns, there are much worse hitters sitting at the end of various benches in baseball.

In managerial news, the Blue Jays passed on Ken Macha in favor of Buck Martinez. You probably know Martinez, the former Blue Jays catcher and current ESPN analyst, who to me always seems like something of a doofus on television. You might not know Macha, who was Oakland's bench coach last season.

Martinez may be a former player, but he has no coaching experience, let alone managing experience. Macha, on the other hand, has years of managerial experience in the minor leagues and I'm guessing he picked up a few things sitting on the Oakland bench.

I'm not saying Martinez won't do a good job, but it's clear to me that Macha is more qualified and more than ready for a big league job. I know the trend these days is to hire broadcasters (Larry Dierker was first, followed by Bob Brenly and Martinez this season), but why is it that guys like Macha always get passed over when jobs come available?

Finally, I'd like to step up on the proverbial soapbox for a moment.

This season, the Seattle Mariners embarked on a "Refuse to Abuse" campaign against domestic violence. I'm certainly in favor of such an effort, as domestic abuse is one of the most despicable things I can think of. As such, the sad irony was not lost on me when the Mariners traded for Al Martin, who at the time had domestic abuse charges pending against him.

I know, I know. In this country, a man is innocent until proven guilty. And that's the thing -- Martin plead guilty to the charges against him this week, meaning he is, in fact, a domestic abuser.

Ideally Martin would be released, as his very hypocritical presence flies in the face of the "Refuse to Abuse" campaign.

If he's still around next season and the Mariners keep with the "Refuse to Abuse" campaign, they'll be sending the horrible message that domestic violence is wrong...

...unless you're on the team.

Fear not. Unlike Will Clark, Jason Michael Barker whas n0o plans to hang it up any time soon. Why not write and let him know how relieved you are at jmb@strikethree.com?