Super Happy Fun Quiz!
by Grant Brisbee on Jan 27, 2009 12:06 AM PST
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PrintOoh, oooh! It's happy fun quiz time! Guess the Giants player -- past or present, though I'm not going to go earlier than the '90s -- based on the following descriptions. Note: if I'm describing a minor league season, it wasn't necessarily within the Giants' organization:
- When I was a 22-year-old in the Midwest League, I hit a punchless .270/.340/.313. I probably should have just packed it up, but then I would never have been able to put on the prodigious power display that I did when I joined the Giants. Keep your chin up, Darren Ford
- After I was drafted in the 15th round, I hit .300 everywhere I went. In San Jose, I had a ridiculous ratio of 103 walks to 47 strikeouts. Still, the Giants took their sweet time with me, moving me up one... freaking... level... at a time.
- Other than Tim Lincecum, I'm the only pitcher on the Giants' projected 2009 staff with a career minor league WHIP under 1.00.
- I had as many wild pitches in my sophomore season of college than I have in my combined career in the minors and majors.
- My middle name is "Lamar" and I HAD A FREAKING 1.421 OPS in the majors in 2004.
- I was a first round pick, and I hit .309/.389/.504 in my first taste of professional baseball in the Northwest League when I was just 20. I probably shouldn't have booked all of those bed and breakfasts in Cooperstown for my family so far in advance, especially when the deposits weren't refundable. I'm just a sucker for pancakes. Mounds of pancakes. Mound. Why do people always associate me with mounds?
- In my first 121 minor league games, I stole eight bases. I guess I do everything else baseball-related so well, my former organization just didn't need to see if I could steal bases.
- When I was Matt Cain's age, I pitched 140 innings in AA, giving up 128 walks and 12 wild pitches.
- I reached AA as a starter when I was 20, and I had a 2.23 ERA at Shreveport. Take that, Tim Alderson! I was slapped around in AAA, though, giving up 100 hits in 76 innings as my strikeout/walk ratio plummeted, and I would never start a game in the major leagues.
- This year will be my 10th consecutive season in the Giants' organization, which is by far the longest streak going.
Pencils down. Answers after the jump.
Highlight the below text with your mouse if you're really that much of a weenie.
1. Randy Winn
2. Bill Mueller
3. Sergio Romo
4. Brian Wilson
5. Jose Castillo
6. Dante Powell
7. Eugenio Velez
8. Randy Johnson
9. Rod Beck
10. Jack Taschner
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I have a feeling that every Tom, Dick, and Harry would be named 3.14159265
/obscure Peanuts reference
//wishes my brain were filled with engineering knowledge instead
by Grant Brisbee on Jan 27, 2009 12:43 AM PST up reply actions
Don’t get me wrong, I loves me my Peanuts. I just wish that would make me money.
(Though my obsessive Peanuts knowledge did get me mentioned in the Wall Street Journal, which is…something.)
by Grant Brisbee on Jan 27, 2009 12:59 AM PST up reply actions
Hmm. I read the Journal everyday and didn’t even realize it had an informal sports-bloggy-type thing.
by non sequitur on Jan 27, 2009 2:19 AM PST up reply actions
From the WSJ
Five pitches later, Mr. Benitez allowed a game-ending home run to Carlos Delgado.
I guess that guy doesn’t like the term “walk-off”. Benitez didn’t really walk off the mound after "doing his job, right? I imagine him disappearing in a puff of vile black smoke after the Delgado dinger .
Castillo got the DFA. Guestimate for Castillo DFA to come before the 2009 season = 2.
Speaking of Number 5
He’s gone 5 for 13 for the Leones in the Venezuelan finals in three game with 1 double, 2 RS and 1 RBI.
by paboperfecto on Jan 27, 2009 7:09 AM PST up reply actions
His defense got a mention as well
From Saturday’s game:
El noveno fue de exhibición defensiva. José Ascanio vino a poner punto final. El primer out lo realizó José Castillo lanzándose de cabeza hacia la raya de la izquierda
Headlong dive by Castillo for the first out in the 9th (This game put them up 2-1 in the series).
by paboperfecto on Jan 27, 2009 7:13 AM PST up reply actions
Uhhh…Sunday’s game, was thinking today was Monday as I didn’t go to work yesterday.
by paboperfecto on Jan 27, 2009 7:13 AM PST up reply actions
also...
I MAYBE WOULD BEGIN TO RECOGNIZE THIS GUY if he appeared more often, under whatever conditions he usually appears. MAYBE ESPECIALLY AFTER MATT CAIN STARTS.
by non sequitur on Jan 27, 2009 9:57 AM PST up reply actions
Tim Alderson = Rod Beck?
I wouldn’t mind..
I only have a signature because I recognize everyone else by their sigs, not their usernames..
This former Giants centerfielder can boast of back to back 100 run seasons and back to back 800+ OPS seasons.
Catcher are base running. Hitters are offense.
Only [hella] games left until the end of Zito's contract.
Marvin!
Proud member of the Adopt-a-Giant program (Aaron Rowand)
YES
It’s hard to imagine Benard having an 800 OPS season…
Catcher are base running. Hitters are offense.
Only [hella] games left until the end of Zito's contract.
Benard’s the kind of player who, when you look at his numbers, doesn’t seem quite as bad as you remember him being.
Plus, his baseball-reference page has a fine McCoven sponsorship.
Never has a poster been more correct in the history of the internet. Ever! - ResDog on yours truly
Marvin Been Hard (on him)
Marvin Benard is one of several players on whom Giants fans have been ignorantly merciless. Was he a great player? No. Was he overpaid? Yes. Was he anywhere near as bad as many Giants fans made him out to be? Not even close.
Marvin was a corner outfielder who moved to center field so that Ellis Burkes could save his legs by playing right field. Marvin wasn’t a very good center fielder — although he wasn’t as bad as he was made out to be — and few seemed to pay attention to his position shift, while personally disappointing at times, being a key to allow the Giants to keep Burkes’ heavy bat in the lineup.
Marvin was actually a decent ballplayer until injuries did him in.
Marvin WAS as bad as I remember him being — because I realized at the time he wasn’t nearly as bad as he was made out to be.
Actually, it wasn’t until 1999 that Burks was moved over to right field, and Benard played around 100 games in CF back in 1996.
He was definitely out of place as a center fielder, though. Unfortunately, he couldn’t really hit enough to justify a corner outfield position either.
I’ll give him this, though: for a 50th round pick, he had a pretty great career.
Never has a poster been more correct in the history of the internet. Ever! - ResDog on yours truly
Web Gems
The thing about Marvin Benard, however, is that he’d have been a perfect candidate for so many web gems if he could have caught up to the ball. I remember so many times watch flyballs to centerfield, and Marvin trotting in to make the catch… Only to sprint full speed towards the wall when he realized he was going the wrong way. And every time he did that, I don’t remember him catching a single ball. That was always infuriating. That is all I have.
"He called the sh** POOP!" -- Adam Sandler
If only he were four inches taller.
Adoptive father to the All-Father. Does that make me the All-Grandfather?
This former Giants infielder can boast that he is the only one to ever share names with a Star Trek actor (albeit, spelled differently).
Catcher are base running. Hitters are offense.
Only [hella] games left until the end of Zito's contract.
DING DING DING DING DING!
My Dave Righetti is better than your Dave Righetti.
by howtheyscored on Jan 27, 2009 8:09 AM PST up reply actions
The answer to all of them is Pedro Feliz.
by xanthan on Jan 27, 2009 9:12 AM PST reply actions 1 recs
Proud adopted parent of future big league slugger Thomas Neal
by nostocksjustbonds on Jan 27, 2009 11:29 AM PST up reply actions
I was confused...
I thought they were 10 hints about one player. I was having a hard time wondering who this renaissance man of Giants baseball was.
Fail for me…
I did too.
That is, until I got to number 5 and realized that it made no sense for Barry to have thrown so many wild pitches in college.
Catcher are base running. Hitters are offense.
Only [hella] games left until the end of Zito's contract.
Fail :-(
My historical Giants knowledge is lacking this morning. Got 2, 8, and 9.
NEED MOAR COFFEE!
"Just take the ball and throw it where you want to. Throw strikes. Home plate don't move."-Leroy "Satchel" Paige
My adopted son Matt Downs . Utility Infielder with a Bat !
Considering these are all about players who’ve been active in the last decade or so, I don’t know if it really counts as “historical.” But maybe that’s just a sign I’m getting old.
Never has a poster been more correct in the history of the internet. Ever! - ResDog on yours truly
Ahhh..
The last decade. I would love to have it back. As a 50 year old, ten years is not really an historical period, but there seemed to be a lot more Giants wins ten years ago :-)
Maybe Giants nostaglia is a more appropriate word. But again, I was lacking sufficent caffiene when I wrote that this morning.
"Just take the ball and throw it where you want to. Throw strikes. Home plate don't move."-Leroy "Satchel" Paige
My adopted son Matt Downs . Utility Infielder with a Bat !
You didn’t get number 5?
Catcher are base running. Hitters are offense.
Only [hella] games left until the end of Zito's contract.
Jose Castillo?
..so allow me to present Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain as two sweet, sweet bottles of warming hooch.
Hint
The answer isn’t really Jose Castillo.
Catcher are base running. Hitters are offense.
Only [hella] games left until the end of Zito's contract.
I just assumed #5 was a trick question.
I’ve never been good at trick questions :-)
"Just take the ball and throw it where you want to. Throw strikes. Home plate don't move."-Leroy "Satchel" Paige
My adopted son Matt Downs . Utility Infielder with a Bat !
i totally messed up on the essay portion of this
i adopt brian sabean... take that dramatic irony!
by Headhunter Rollins on Jan 27, 2009 11:05 AM PST reply actions
They only give you 20 minutes and they want you to take a black and white stance on your thesis.
"While conservatives tell you 'leave things alone and no one will lose,' and liberals tell you 'interfere a lot and no one will lose,' baseball says 'someone will lose.' Not only says it - but insists upon it! ... Democracy is lovely, but baseball's more mature." BVCE supports SF Dugout and Manny Burriss.
by BaronVonCurrentEvents on Jan 27, 2009 11:15 AM PST up reply actions
For those of you who’re baffling me by not listing #5 as one you got right, a hint: the answer isn’t REALLY Castillo. He actually had a Satanic OPS of .666 in 2004.
Never has a poster been more correct in the history of the internet. Ever! - ResDog on yours truly
Heh.
Yeah, I actually looked it up. I thought maybe Castillo had only played like three games in the majors in 2004 or something. I thought it was weird that a Venezuelan guy would have the middle name “Lamar,” though.
Did you know “gullible” isn’t in the dictionary?
OPS of .666
Well, both OPS’s were pretty unholy.
Leading the Pro-Aaron Rowand contingent on the McC!
You can ridicule me in 2009 if you like...
by ThrillisGone22 on Jan 27, 2009 6:38 PM PST up reply actions
I got them all right. It was easy once I realized that the answers were right there.
My Dave Righetti is better than your Dave Righetti.
Who’s a bigger dissappointment?
Dante Powell OR Calvin Murray?
You probably know it as MYANMAR, but it will always be BURMA to me!
More Trivia
What is the significance of the following number? 34,567,500
Catcher are base running. Hitters are offense.
Only [hella] games left until the end of Zito's contract.
That I read it.
The Basil Fawlty Moderating Strategy:
"We could run a nice blog here if we didn't have all these members getting in the way."
Of course
This is the only possible correct answer…
Nah, I figure this one would be really hard to get.
It’s the salary figure for the 1993 Giants.
Catcher are base running. Hitters are offense.
Only [hella] games left until the end of Zito's contract.
I thought it was the actual number of times Barry had led off an inning.
Who has the fun?
Is it always the man with the gun?
- The Stranglers
by victor frankenstein on Jan 27, 2009 3:04 PM PST up reply actions
This .295 career hitter had batting averages of 236, 251, 318, 243, 283, 322, and 291 in seven stops in the minors. He also was a Giant for a lot longer than I remembered him being (4 years).
Catcher are base running. Hitters are offense.
Only [hella] games left until the end of Zito's contract.
Yes sir.
I would have said ugliest Giant ever, too, but Tavarez would have made that part wrong.
Catcher are base running. Hitters are offense.
Only [hella] games left until the end of Zito's contract.
I don't know.
That’s a tough one. Willie McGee’s pretty ugly.
Don’t forget Randy Johnson.
Never has a poster been more correct in the history of the internet. Ever! - ResDog on yours truly
i doubt they'd ever be allowed in the same room together
the earth would stop spinning due to the convergence of fugliocicity.
Dodgers fans eat their young.
This former shortstop hit 227/286/384 in his age 26 season.
Catcher are base running. Hitters are offense.
Only [hella] games left until the end of Zito's contract.
Nope
This one’s my hardest one.
Catcher are base running. Hitters are offense.
Only [hella] games left until the end of Zito's contract.
Hmmm
This is an answer that should be like a Knowlock….
Aaron King is still my homeboy... iffy mechanics and all
Your 2009 Opening Day starter at second base*: Eugenio Velez
*For the Fresno Grizzlies
Joe Nathan
FIRE BRIAN SABEAN... UNLESS HE KEEPS DRAFTING WELL. .. AND SIGNS UNDERRATED PLAYERS LIKE AFFELDT OR PHELPS. .. OR ALRIGHT WHO'S PLAYING WITH THE ALIEN MIND-SWITCHING RAY?
Nope
It’s been answered in the other thread, if you want to know.
Catcher are base running. Hitters are offense.
Only [hella] games left until the end of Zito's contract.
This 3 time Giant is best known for being the number one overall pick. And his throwing arm.
Catcher are base running. Hitters are offense.
Only [hella] games left until the end of Zito's contract.
Shawon Dunston.
Mike Ivie was also a #1 pick.
Never has a poster been more correct in the history of the internet. Ever! - ResDog on yours truly
Yeah, but was Ivie ever known for his throwing arm?
Catcher are base running. Hitters are offense.
Only [hella] games left until the end of Zito's contract.
Didn’t he have to move from catcher at one point because he developed a phobia of throwing the ball back to the mound? He was a little before my time, but I think I remember hearing about.
He definitely wasn’t a three-time Giant, though.
I believe that those two and Darryl Strawberry are the only former #1 overall picks to ever play for the Giants. Although there was a Dave Roberts drafted #1 overall once.
Never has a poster been more correct in the history of the internet. Ever! - ResDog on yours truly
Of course I realize that you can’t see where I’m pointing! I do, however, fully-believe that you can intuit where I am pointing, through a system of sympathetic telekinesis.
My Dave Righetti is better than your Dave Righetti.
Sympathetic telekinesis. I’ve never been that intuit.
Also, did you not reply to me on purpose? Or was that just a happy accident?
Catcher are base running. Hitters are offense.
Only [hella] games left until the end of Zito's contract.
It was on purpose, to tease you for not replying to me.
Or was it?
Also, I have the distinct feeling that sympathetic telekinesis is somehow disgustingly redundant. I could have used a much better turn of phrase.
My Dave Righetti is better than your Dave Righetti.
by howtheyscored on Jan 27, 2009 1:27 PM PST up reply actions
Yeah, I thought it must be on purpose. But, alas, I am tease-proof.
Catcher are base running. Hitters are offense.
Only [hella] games left until the end of Zito's contract.
So’s your mom.
My Dave Righetti is better than your Dave Righetti.
by howtheyscored on Jan 27, 2009 2:33 PM PST up reply actions
OH SNAP
Mackey Sasser?
You probably know it as MYANMAR, but it will always be BURMA to me!
by NuschlerFace on Jan 27, 2009 2:33 PM PST up reply actions
Traded for Don Robinson, incidentally.
Never has a poster been more correct in the history of the internet. Ever! - ResDog on yours truly
Is he still Lost In Space?
Who has the fun?
Is it always the man with the gun?
- The Stranglers
by victor frankenstein on Jan 27, 2009 3:06 PM PST up reply actions
I think I know this one.
My Dave Righetti is better than your Dave Righetti.
by howtheyscored on Jan 27, 2009 2:33 PM PST up reply actions
So does your mom.
Catcher are base running. Hitters are offense.
Only [hella] games left until the end of Zito's contract.
Well, she was a big Steve Decker fan.
My Dave Righetti is better than your Dave Righetti.
by howtheyscored on Jan 27, 2009 3:23 PM PST up reply actions
… no she wasn’t… I just said that to cover up the burn….
My Dave Righetti is better than your Dave Righetti.
by howtheyscored on Jan 27, 2009 4:14 PM PST up reply actions
I didn’t get a big picture of a bear falling out of a tree for mine, though…
Catcher are base running. Hitters are offense.
Only [hella] games left until the end of Zito's contract.
You didn’t even get a little one.
My Dave Righetti is better than your Dave Righetti.
by howtheyscored on Jan 27, 2009 9:06 PM PST up reply actions
I’m a former Giants prospect who twice OPS’d over 1.000 in the minors, had a career .862 OPS, and should have been the greatest first baseman in SF Giants history if everyone in baseball wasn’t working against me, trying to bring me down.
Who am I?
"He called the sh** POOP!" -- Adam Sandler
Nate Schierholtz?
My Dave Righetti is better than your Dave Righetti.
by howtheyscored on Jan 27, 2009 4:14 PM PST up reply actions
no, he would have been the greatest 3B in giants history.
FIRE BRIAN SABEAN... UNLESS HE KEEPS DRAFTING WELL. .. AND SIGNS UNDERRATED PLAYERS LIKE AFFELDT OR PHELPS. .. OR ALRIGHT WHO'S PLAYING WITH THE ALIEN MIND-SWITCHING RAY?
JR Phillps?
FIRE BRIAN SABEAN... UNLESS HE KEEPS DRAFTING WELL. .. AND SIGNS UNDERRATED PLAYERS LIKE AFFELDT OR PHELPS. .. OR ALRIGHT WHO'S PLAYING WITH THE ALIEN MIND-SWITCHING RAY?
I wondered, given the username, but his career OPS was .614.
Looking at baseball-reference, Phillips only had one good partial year in the minors (360 at bats) – plus one bad year and one mediocre year – before he was declared the next coming of Will Clark. I guess everyone was too dumb to realize his home run total was inflated by playing in the PCL. Player evaluation fail!
Never has a poster been more correct in the history of the internet. Ever! - ResDog on yours truly
Oh, wait.
It is J.R. Phillips! The OPS cited above is his career MINOR LEAGUE OPS. Not major league.
One of those 1.000+ OPS seasons came about 3-4 years after Phillips was regarded as a prospect by anyone.
Never has a poster been more correct in the history of the internet. Ever! - ResDog on yours truly
Yeah, my bad
That was supposed to read minor league OPS. FAIL on my part.
I thought I made that one super easy, but more often than not, my sarcasm doesn’t translate well to the interwebs.
"He called the sh** POOP!" -- Adam Sandler
Number 7
was also caught stealing 212 times in that time span.
FIRE BRIAN SABEAN... UNLESS HE KEEPS DRAFTING WELL. .. AND SIGNS UNDERRATED PLAYERS LIKE AFFELDT OR PHELPS. .. OR ALRIGHT WHO'S PLAYING WITH THE ALIEN MIND-SWITCHING RAY?
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