Thursday, November 20, 2008

The First Member of the Hall of Shame Is....



STERLING -- With great disdain and discomfort I would like to announce the first member of the Hall of Shame. JBB's powers that be will induct a new member to the H.O.S. periodically. Factors such as an abysmal statistical output, minimal cost vs. reward, and overall downright damning damage to the organization's competitive performance will all be factored into who is truly Shit material.

The first inductee to the Hall, without further a due, is none other than alleged pitcher Danny Kolb. Alleged in the since that a solid attorney could argue he was not a pitcher at all during his stint with Atlanta, rather a batting practice coach. In fact, catcher Ivan Rodriguez, after losing to Bobby Abreu at the 2005 Home Run Derby, proclaimed "I'm disappointed Dan [Kolb] could not make the trip. I think if I kept a good eye at the plate and avoided taking a walk, his sinker could have won this Derby for me."

Dan was traded to Atlanta during the previous offseason. Kolb was a pitcher while with the Milwaukee Brewers the two years preceding his arrival in the peach state. In 03 he racked up a respectable 21 saves in 41.3 innings, with an ERA+ of 219 (100 is League average). To put that in to perspective, in John Smoltz's four years of closing, his ERA+ was better than that only once. The Kolbinator followed up the next year, 2004, with 39 saves and a 146 ERA+. Smoltzie's ERA+ was 157 in 04 with 44 saves.

So, it seems reasonable that with Smoltz heading back to the starting rotation, Dan Kolb would be a suitable replacement right? Braves' GM John Schuerholz went on to trade top pitching prospect Jose Capellan and a player to be named later for Kolb. While Jose has yet to find success at the Major League level, he was a prospect with huge upside at the time. So Capellan and 3.4 million dollars later, what kind of numbers did Kolb throw up (literally) for Atlanta? In 57.7 torturous innings, he posted a 5.93 ERA, 71 ERA+, eight losses, and went 11 for 18 in save opps. Kolb was thankfully demoted from the closer's role later in the season, thus lessening his chance to break the single season blown save record he could have easilly attained.

In just 0.4 more innings in 05 compared to 04, Kolb gave up a whopping 28 more hits than in 04, 14 more walks, and 19 more earned runs. His failure caused effective relievers in the Braves' pen like Chris Reitsma to have to step into roles they were not accustomed to, which led to one of the worst bullpens in baseball. His downfall also caused the Braves to waste their first round pick in the June amateur draft on a college relief pitcher named Joey Devine, with hopes he could provide an immediate fix. Devine was subsequently rushed through the minor league season and set up for failure at the big league level. He gave up a grand slam in his first inning of work in the Majors, and posted a 12.60 ERA. Despite only pitching five innings in the Majors, Devine was the one placed onto the Braves' postseason roster and not the preseason closer, Dan Kolb. Devine, a guy a few months removed from pitching to English majors in the NCAA was now about to be placed on a postseason roster over Kolb, a year removed from 39 saves.

The saga continues. In an 18 inning marathon of one of the most classic NLDS games of all time, the last man standing in the Braves pen was Joey. In lieu of this writer's painful flashbacks to this game, I will cut this short and say Devine gave up a walkoff, game ending, season ending home run to the Astros three foot four utility infielder Chris Burke. There is no one more deserving than Illinois State alum Dan Kolb, the proud son of Sterling, Illinois. Dan and his family now reside in Sterling where he works first shift at a local title pawn establishment. He also works part time at night and the occasional weekend as a sushi chef at a local buffet.

Other Notable Ramifications of the Dan Kolb Debacle...
- Braves were forced to trade for Kyle Farnsworth in mid season. While effective during the season, they traded two pitching prospects. One of which, Zach Miner, has shown effectiveness in the Majors as both a starter and reliever. Also, Farnsworth imploded in the postseason that year, causing the likes of Joey Devine to be hung out to die in the 18th inning.
- By panically taking a college reliever to help them that season in the June draft, the Braves passed up on Colby Rasmus, now of the most promising outfield prospects in baseball.
-Due to Devine's poor performance in his short time in Atlanta, the club feared his pitching psyche might have been damaged and a change of scenery was in order. Devine was traded in the 2007 offseason for A's outfielder Mark Kotsay. A deal that backfired as the Braves missed the playoffs by a long shot, and Devine had 0.59 ERA with Oakland in 2008.

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