Tony Beasley

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review – PTR interviews Pirates third base coach Tony Beasley. What do you do when you get the opportunity to ask 5 questions to a major league coach … You ask him 5 questions about singing the national anthem … FAIL

“Q: Other than “Take Me Out to the Ballgame,” you’ve heard “The Star-Spangled Banner” more often than any song in your life. Do you rate other singers and performers?

A: Sometimes, yeah. (Hitting coach) Donny Long messes with me every now and then, saying, “That guy was better than Beasley.” One of my main things is not to wind up on one of those bloopers shows. I wanted to keep it nice and clean and get through it.”

Jayson Stark, Daniel Descalso, and more…

Astros Dugout – Lisa Gray posts a copy of the interview of her from USA Today.

“USA: What does the team need to do in order to attempt to make it to the postseason?

LG: It needs to acquire 2 ace pitchers for essentially nothing, then run into a streak of good luck in which the opposing team doesn’t turn balls in play into outs as well as have the starting pitchers give up 2 or fewer runs in 8 innings. These things won’t happen.”

FutureRedBirds.Net – FRB interviews Double-A Springfield second baseman Daniel Descalso.

“You seemed to be really struggling in the month of May and June but have since turned things around. What sort of adjustments did you make, if any?

Those were a couple of tough months for me. I had some bad habits at the plate that I needed to break. I was chasing pitches and getting myself out. I worked a lot with our hitting coach to stay on top of the baseball and just think line drive. I also made a couple of adjustments with my hands and my stride and they seem to be working out for me.”

Baseball Digest Daily – Eric SanInocencio interviews Jayson Stark, Kevin Goldstein, and Reds prospect Yonder Alonso.

Ron Santo, Cecil Fielder, and Brandon Kawal

Yahoo! Sports – David Brown interviews Cubs announcer Ron Santo.

“Q: If the Cubs of your era go to a World Series just one time, are you in the Hall of Fame already?

RS: I don’t know that. I can’t say that. Let me say this. I believe very strongly — and I never brought this up as a player — but I put up, I feel, Hall of Fame numbers with diabetes. If I didn’t have diabetes — nobody realizes that, when I was diagnosed at 18, even the doctors didn’t know what to do about diabetes. I took insulin but I didn’t have anything to check [insulin/blood sugar] and I played with it and got through 15 years. In that era, that was the best pitching in baseball history.”

NYBaseballDigest.com – Mike Silva interviews Mets Prospect Brandon Kawal, who is battling int he playoffs for the Brooklyn Cyclones.

“MS: I have spoke to agents and many believe it’s unfair that players in the minors are asked to live on such little money ($800 – $1,200 per month) and be asked to eat right as well as pay for their own equipment. Is this representation given to me of the minor league life financially accurate?

BK: It is very accurate. Most people try to overshadow the money you get per month with the fact that you are a professional baseball player and the team picks up travel and some of the food. The problem is that after equipment, food, rent, and any other things you have to pay for outside of the game, you are left with almost nothing. I do think it is very unfair but you are also in a situation where one side has a ton of power, and you do not.”

NY Baseball Digest Podcast - Silva interviews Cecil Fielder to discuss a few different topics.

Wolff, Buursma, and more…

AthleticsNation.com – Blez posts the 3rd installment of a 4 part series of his interview with A’s managing general partner Lewis Wolff.

“Blez: Is it basically Fremont or bust right now?

Wolff: If I say that and you print it then the guy who has one of the hand grenades will say, “Ooooh”.  (laughs) Our focus is this.  We don’t have any other options that are in our mind directly.  I like the Fremont location.  I don’t think it’s as big a traffic deal or anything as what could be built there.  The answer is that’s about it.  In Alameda County, I don’t think there’s another site we could do and we’re not going to go to Contra Costa County.  Those are the only two territories we have from baseball. “

FutureRedBirds.net – Another FRB interview with a Batavi Muckdog. This time it is with pitcher Jason Buursma.

“You had a very nice season at the plate last year at Bucknell. Do you miss swinging the bat and playing the field or do you prefer to focus on pitching?

You have no idea how much I miss swinging the bat. I was excited to be drafted by a NL team but I have to make it to AA before I get to touch a bat again. I was always a hitter before I was a pitcher until my last two years of college, so it has been really tough watching everyone get to hit each game. I would be content taking a few swings in BP once a week but I know that is never going to happen.”

HardballTimes.com – THT interviews Pete Wilhoit of Fiction Plane. He isn’t really a authority on baseball, but we love THT and are glad to give them pub.

“Name your top five Cubs.

Ryne Sandberg’s my favorite; everything about him on and off the field was just great. Larry Bowa wasn’t the most amazing player, but he was all heart, tough as nails, and he was always giving 110 percent. Jody Davis was great—not flashy, big catcher, great in the clutch. Of course, there’s the Hawk (Andre Dawson)—he had this Sammy Sosa-like ability to find a way to win it with a home run; just a fantastic player. Last would be a tie between Ernie Banks and Rick Sutcliffe. Banks is so important to the franchise, but I didn’t get to see him play, so it’s harder to identify with him, which is why I have to put Sutcliffe up here.”

Longoria and many others

MLB.com – Jeff Moeller interviews Rays Rookie of the Year frontrunner, Evan Longoria:

“MLBPLAYERS.com: You’re a West Coast guy playing on the East Coast. How do you like it on the East Coast?

Longoria: I like it a lot. That’s one of the main reasons I decided to sign the long contract with the Rays. I definitely wouldn’t have signed a long-term deal with Tampa Bay if I weren’t comfortable living here for a while. I love St. Pete. I love Tampa. It’s a great place to be for me. The people in the community are great, and I seriously couldn’t ask for anything more.”

RightFieldBleachers.com – RFB interviews well-known fan Mark “The Doorman” Simons.

“So, it sounds like you do a little research before the guys come in then.

Yeah, there’s a great book called “The Who’s Who in Baseball” and that has basically everybody’s stats that’s in the Major Leagues. It’s a great resource when you need to find out whether or not somebody is coming off a career year or a guy that’s basically coming up, that’s basically nothing, you know?”

FutureRedBirds.net – FRB back again with another Batavia coach. This time it is with the hitting coach Jeff Albert.

“Did your writing experience at Baseball Analysts and your own site in any way help open the door for you in getting a job with the Cardinals?

I believe Brent Strom is the one who really put my name out there as a candidate for my current position, but I think my writing and site served almost like an extended resume for me. When I was being interviewed, I was asked about some of the articles, so there was at least some recognition there.”

Beeer Leaguer and Mets Blog – Jason Weitzel and Mike Nichols exchanged questions regarding each others teams. You can check out these two articles by clicking on the respective links.

Joba, Bob Smizik, and Antonio Caceras

Boston.com - Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe sits down with injured Yankees pitcher Joba Chamberlain.

“NC: Are you pleased about the way your rehab is going?

JC: “I’m getting excited. I’ve been able to throw off flat ground without any discomfort. Throwing fastballs and changeups right now, and I feel it’s coming along, so I hope it won’t be too much longer.”"

Pittsburgh Sports and Mini Ponies: An interview with Bob Smizik of the Post-Gazette to talk Pittsburg sports.

“BS: I saw the Costas show with Bissinger and I was shocked at Bissinger’s attack mode. There was no call for that and I certainly don’t share his views.

I am 100 percent behind freedom of expression. Absolutely, blogs can write whatever they want. But when one goes to extremes, it hurts all; just as one mainstream media outlet can hurt the rest with irresponsible reporting.”

BattersBox.ca - Interview with Antonia Caceras, the pitching coach of Blue Jays Single-A affiliate Auburn Doubledays.

“BB: Finally, three quick questions, who has the best fastball on the team?

AC: I think Marcus Walden, Castillo Perez and Josh Wells are all in that 90-94 range.

BB: Best change-up on the team?

AC: Bobby Bell, he has a big league change-up, I know I said Liebel has a good one too, but Bell’s is too good for this league.

BB: Best breaking ball?

AC: it’s tough to answer that in this league, these guys are inconsistent, one day these guys have a good breaking ball and the next day they don’t have it. When Carreno is on Carreno has a good one and Perez and Huggins are good too.”

Omar Minaya, Gordon Edes, and more…

MetsReport.com – Podcasts of two interviews conducted on WFAN. First is an interview of Mets GM Omar Minaya conducted by Evan Roberts. The second is an interview of Mets beat reporter Eddie Coleman conducted by Steve Somers.

Yahoo! Sports – An interview with the newest member of Yahoo baseball analysis, Gordon Edes.

“ Q: OK, my final two questions are baseball-related: Which uniform will Manny Ramirez be wearing on Opening Day ‘09?

A: I think Omar and the Mets take another run at Manny, and he helps them open the new Shea.

Q: And who’s your World Series pick for this October (plus who will they beat?)

A: I’m going with the Cubs over the Angels, but I think it would be a great story if Tampa Bay could sneak in.”

FutureRedBirds.Net – FRB does an interview with Cardinals prospect Xavier Scruggs. Xavier is a 1B for the Batavia Muckdogs of the New York-Penn League.

“Q: Is there a particular major league player you try and pattern your game after, or maybe just someone you watch real closely and try and learn from?

A: There isn’t just one, but actually I try to watch them all closely and learn from them all. I watch all of them because because they are all where I expect to be one day. There isn’t just one guy I want to be like, but if I had to name a favorite player it would have to be Gary Sheffield, just because he attacks and drives the baseball, just like I aspire to be doing one day for the St. Louis Cardinals. “

Baseball Time in Arlington – Jason Parks interviews Rangers prospect Kasey Kiker. Kazey is a starter for Single-A Bakersfield Breeze of the California League.

“ Q: Most pitchers coming out of high school have underdeveloped change-ups. How has your change-up progressed since you’ve been in the minors?

A: I think it’s my best pitch right now. Just being in the Cal League now I feel like that pitch has been my savior, man. When I can get the count in my favor I can just dump it in there and it does the job. The change-up is the most important pitch to have in the Cal League.”

Andrew Friedman, Luis Gonzalez, and Stan Kasten

OutsPerSwing.com – Tommy Rancel of OPS interviews Rays Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman.

“TR: You were able to acquire Chad Bradford after the trade deadline to help bolster the bullpen. With the recent rash of injuries, do you plan to stay aggressive on the waiver wire? Or are you confident that the guys we have here and in Durham can get the job done?

AF: This is a special group and I have enormous confidence in our guys. They’ve battled through adversity all year and there is no doubt in my mind that they can continue to do so. We look closely at the waiver wire every day and if something presents itself that is in our best interests, we are ready to act. If that doesn’t happen, we all feel like the group we have here is good enough to get us where we want to go. The only downside to having the record we have is that it is nearly impossible to be awarded a claim on a player we like. “

Palm Beach Post -PBP Staff Writer Joe Capozzi interviews Marlins outfielder Luis Gonzalez.

“JC: Maybe you can swirl some and spit it out into a cup and then auction that off. After all, didn’t they once auction off your chewed bubble gum?

LG: That was back in 2002. That was ridiculous. It made national news. They auctioned off the bubble gum for ten grand! I went on the radio with the guy who bought it. The deejay asked him, “Why would you buy that gum for ten

grand?” He said he wanted to motivate his employees. I said, “If you want to motivate your employees take that $10,000 and spread it out among them. I guarantee they’ll work harder!”"

Nats320 – Interview with Nationals President Stan Kasten.

“Q : Just to clarify this last minute negotiating. If you sign a guy at midnight, is that a verbal commitment? Or how does that work? (SBF)

SK: “Both sides file an email. We send an email in and there are no problems there. There is even a few minutes after the deadline when the paperwork is being filed.””

Mad Dog, Ron Washington, and more…

MetsReport.com - “The Sports Guy” Bill Simmons interviews Chris “Mad Dog” Russo on WFAN. They discuss Russo moving to Sirius XM Radio.

BaseballProspectus.com – David Laurila of Baseball Prospectus interviews Rangers manager Ron Washington. Subscription required.

NYPost.com – Steve Serby of the New York Post sits down to ask some questions to Mets rookie Daniel Murphy.

“Q: Your best attribute as a hitter?

A: That I don’t give anything away. I treat every at-bat, and every pitch, like it’s the last one I get. Just being a competitor every day in the box.”

BaltimoreSun.com – Dean Jones Jr. of the Baltimore Sun interviews Orioles prospect Jedidiah Stephen.

Cole Hamels speaks with Yahoo!

Yahoo.com – Cole Hammels talks with Yahoo! Sports reporter David Brown, with a guest appearance from Ryan Howard.

“Q: You took a lot of flak about what you said after your contract was renewed for $500,000. How did you handle all that?

CH: Immaturely. It was a lack of experience, not knowing when to keep your mouth quiet and just go about your business. But, if I never would have said it, I probably never would have learned the lesson and it probably would have bitten me further down the line and got me in some trouble. Sometimes, you are human, and everybody has that situation where you want to get that raise and it’s hard to go up and confront your boss — or else you’re going to get walked-all-over (in negotiations). I do understand the situation a lot better. I’m just going to go out and play the game I love, because if it was taken away from me, I don’t know how I’d be able to handle my life. I talked to mentors — other players — my wife, my parents. Basically people who’ve lived longer than I have who said to just let it go. There will be a time to stick up for yourself. That wasn’t it.”