Knights 2008 Report Card (Viewer Discretion Advised)

(New York Daily Mirror - October 29, 2008)

Well, don’t say we didn’t warn you.

Back in the winter depths of January, a scant nine months ago, the Mirror provided an in-depth preview of the Knights upcoming season and predicted that the club would have a very difficult time producing enough runs this year to compete in the NASBL and that since the club had not upgraded its starting rotation, carnage would ensue. Unfortunately for Knights fans (however many are left), our prediction could not have been more accurate, as the Knights were badly outplayed all year, fell out of contention before the end of Block 1 and staggered, bloody and beaten, to a dismal 118 losses. The 44 wins is the lowest total since the Knights moved to New York and is the second-worst showing in franchise history (only the 40-122 ’99 North Celtic Druids were worse). But even we could not foresee how bad the pitching was.

First, some of the ugly realities of the season.

There were two 14-game losing streaks and a third schneid of 10 games. The Knights did not have a single month where they won even 10 games. Not one.

The Knights fell into the LF Central cellar on May 4th and guarded it jealously for the rest of the season.

The offense was truly offensive. The Knights managed to score only 4.31 runs per game, while allowing 5.96 runs to their opponents. They were held to 4 runs or less an astounding 116 times. Think about that for a minute. The team finished 14th in batting average (.256), 14th in hits (1,453), 15th in runs scored (690), last in on-base percentage (.311) and 14th in slugging (.414). Despite finishing 9th in team home runs with a very respectable 193, the team drove in just 674 runs, meaning that there were a lot of solo shots. They hit just 277 doubles, last in the league, and down a staggering 113 from 2007.

The story was worse on the pitching side. The starting staff won a combined 22 games and lost 78 with a 6.90 aggregate ERA. They managed one shutout all year and just 19 complete games. Erstwhile ace Barry Zito, whose star has fallen farther than anyone would ever have imagined, became the first pitcher in NASBL history to lose more than 20 games without winning at least one. And in the category of “misery loves company,” Doug Davis and Matt Cain, a 15-game winner a year ago, also lost 20 games. The trio of 20-game losers actually surpasses the starting staff of the infamous 1962 Mets, who only had two 20-game losers.

Even more ugliness: the team finished 15th in ERA (5.64), 15th in earned runs allowed (905), 15th in hits allowed (1,652), 14th in home runs allowed (239) and dead last in walks allowed (722).

And so on. You get the picture. This Knights team was beyond atrocious. They were beyond brutal. Frankly, they were bad beyond this page’s ability to adequately describe.
As you would expect, there were many villains complicit in the crime that was the ’08 campaign, although there were a few hardy souls who tried their best. The Mirror names names and hereby presents its annual report card for the 2008 New York Knights.

Michael Young – Grade: B+

In 2007, the captain had a bad season (4-60-.276) and largely escaped media scrutiny because the Knights were contending. He rebounded well in 2008, hitting .291 with 14 homers, 70 RBI and 184 base hits, fifth in the NASBL and third most in his career. Gained his 1,000th career hit in late September. Committed another 23 errors, however; the Knights would be well-served to at least consider moving Young to DH in 2009 and looking for a shortstop with better defensive skills.

Manny Delcarmen – Grade: B+

Delcarmen was the Knights’ third round pick in the 2008 rookie draft and he delivered a solid season in middle relief. Posted a 2.82 ERA in 28 appearances, spanning 51 innings. Struck out 47 while walking just 20. Held opponents to a .218 average.

Justin Miller – Grade: B+

Miller was another member of the Knights’ middle relief corps, which actually did have a pretty good year. Miller posted a 3.06 ERA over 47 innings, fanning 49 and walking just 14.

Xavier Nady – Grade: B+

Often overlooked, Nady delivered a solid year, batting .272 with 23 homers, 62 RBI and an .829 OPS in just 390 at bats. Was especially effective against left-handed pitching, batting .338.

Ty Wigginton – Grade: B

Wiggy had a great power year, blasting a team-leading 30 homers, tying Troy’s Matt Holliday and Vermont’s Albert Pujols for 4th in the league. Also tied Pujols for 8th in RBI with 86. Gets demerits for a .242 BA, a lowish (but good for an infielder) .769 OPS and for grounding into 21 double plays (tied for 6th with Seattle’s Brian Giles). Was no bargain defensively either.

Kevin Gregg – Grade: B

Gregg, along with Delcarmen and Miller, formed the nucleus of the Knights middle relief corps. Assumed the closer role after the trade of Takashi Saito, and posted 8 saves and a 3.13 ERA. His walks were a cause for alarm, however, as he issued 34 bases on balls in 60.1 innings, compared to 52 strikeouts. Held lefties to a .154 average.

Orlando Hernandez – Grade: B

By a large margin, El Duque was the Knights’ best starter in 2008. Had a winning season at 11-10 in both starting and relief roles and posted a good 4.16 ERA. Also posted two saves. Limited by usage requirements to just 149.1 innings.

Scott Hatteberg – Grade: B-

Hatteberg delivered another good year in a part-time role for the Knights, batting .307 with 10 homers, 38 RBI and an .845 OPS in 95 games. Gets demerits for inability to hit lefties (.056).

Ruben Gotay – Grade: B-

Gotay was a late-round draft pick intended to platoon with Wigginton at second. Delivered a good year (.312, 11 homers, .881 OPS) but his usefulness was severely curtailed by usage requirements, limiting him to just 68 games and 234 at bats. Hardly played during the season’s second half.

Scott Linebrink – Grade: C+

One of the club’s long men, Linebrink had a subpar year, going just 1-5 with a 4.75 ERA in 54 games. Was most effective against lefty batters (.236 average against). Struck out 70 in 91 innings while walking 41.

Matt Kemp - Grade: C+

Kemp was the Knights’ first overall pick in the draft and while he didn’t perform badly, he was disappointing. Batted .287 in 314 at bats, but his lack of power (just 3 homers), low OPS (.713) and poor plate discipline (72 strikeouts) hurt the club. Stole just 3 bases. Does figure to have a starting role in 2009.

Garrett Atkins – Grade: C+

Atkins fell off considerably from his All-Star season in 2007, batting just .261 with a .716 OPS. Did hit 19 homers (compared to 21 in 2007) but drove in just 63 runs. Of his 137 hits, an unacceptable 97 were singles. Also grounded into 16 double plays.

Mike Jacobs – Grade: C+

Became a semi-regular player in 2008 and delivered an adequate season, batting .267 with 13 homers and 48 RBI in 91 games. Had a low .307 on-base percentage and batted just .171 against lefties.

Hideki Matsui – Grade: C

Don’t let the All-Star nomination fool you: Matsui’s season may have been the most disappointing of any Knights position player. Despite battling injuries during all of 2007, still managed to lead the team with a .370 BA and .998 OPS. Reported to camp completely healthy in the spring, but nevertheless fell off tremendously. His .235 average, .321 OBP and .724 OPS tell a more accurate tale. Did hit 21 homers, most since his 47 homer season in 2005. The Knights are looking to move Matsui, who is now 34.

Eric Gagne – Grade: C

Performed better than expected but since no one expected anything from this reclamation project, anything he provided was a bonus. Posted a 2-2 record with a 4.89 ERA in 35 games. Had control problems, resulting in 50 strikeouts against 30 walks. Allowed 62 hits in 49.2 innings, but kept the club in games.

Johnny Estrada – Grade: C-

Estrada was drafted by the Knights as insurance in the event prized rookie Jarrod Saltalamacchia did not work out as planned. Salty flopped and Estrada was pressed into service, playing 122 games and batting .240 with 7 homers and 38 RBI. His .573 OPS was abominable and unacceptable, even for a backup.

Grady Sizemore – Grade: C-

Sizemore is another player whose 2008 performance fell off sharply from the year before. Inexplicably could not get his batting average over .230 for the majority of the season and finished at .224 with a .699 OPS. Strikeouts shot up (156, second only to Ryan Howard in the LF) while his slugging percentage fell all the way to .385, awful for an outfielder. His 91 runs scored were good for 8th in the LF and did hit 22 homers. Stole just 9 bases and was caught 7 times.

Adam LaRoche – Grade: C-

Fell off substantially from his 2007 numbers, batting just .234 with 8 homers and 38 RBI. Was benched later in the season in favor of Mike Jacobs. Struck out 77 times in just 282 at bats and had a weak .680 OPS.

Chad Qualls – Grade: D+

The Knights were pleased to bring Qualls back to the club after cutting him after the 2007 season, but Qualls did not come close to repeating his superior ’07 performance. Was the least effective of the entire middle relief corps, posting a 5.63 ERA and allowing 86 hits (including 15 homers) in 76.2 innings. Righties blasted him for a .345 average against. Did have 74 strikeouts.

Adam Wainwright – Grade: D

To paraphrase Dean Wormer’s missive to “Pinto” Kroger in “Animal House,” Wainwright was the valedictorian of the Knights’ brutal starting rotation. Lost “only” 14 games, as opposed to winning 5, and posted a high 5.60 ERA. Opponents crushed him for a .304 average. Allowed 239 hits in 191.1 innings, including 21 homers. Only saving grace were his 4 complete games. Remember - Wainwright was the best of the Knights starters!

Jarrod Saltalamacchia – Grade: D

Salty was one of the Knights most disappointing draft selections in club history. Taken in the second round and was sought after by several clubs. Batted a paltry .194 with 2 homers and 11 RBI with a ridiculous .493 OPS. Had more strikeouts (43) than hits and walks combined (27), always the sign of a failed season.

Mike Piazza – Grade: D

Piazza was well past his prime the day he set foot in New York and his numbers showed it. Batted just .227 with a .561 OPS, 3 homers and 10 RBI in 38 games, easily the worst numbers of Piazza’s illustrious career. Spurred on perhaps by the Knights’ abysmal performance in 2008, announced his retirement after the season ended.

Cliff Floyd – Grade: D

Floyd was taken in the late rounds of the draft as a pinch hitter and spot starter in the outfield. Even given his age and milage, his .205 average, .262 OBP and .587 OPS were not good enough to help this team in any capacity.

Matt Cain – Grade: D

Went from being a 15-game winner in 2007 to a 20-game loser in 2008. Avoids a failing grade by the fact that his ERA this year (5.74) was just marginally higher than it was in 2007 (5.33), suggesting that Cain suffered greatly from the drop in run support between the two seasons. Was 6th in the LF in strikeouts with 169 and tied for 5th in complete games with 8. Allowed way too many home runs (37).

Doug Davis – Grade: F

Won 6 games (as opposed to Cain’s five) but gets a failing grade because his performance was much worse than Cain’s. Posted a hideous 6.28 ERA and allowed 260 hits, second worst in the LF. Was also tied for second in homers allowed with 39. Control and arm strength continued to decline from his sterling 2006 numbers, allowing 93 walks against just 139 strikeouts.

Dontrelle Willis – Grade: F

Not much was expected from Willis this season, but even so, he performed horribly. Made 24 starts after Orlando Hernandez went to the bullpen but won just 3 games and lost 11. Led the team in run support with 5.24 runs per 9 innings, but squandered it by posting a hideous 7.39 ERA. Batters feasted off his pitches to the tune of a .323 average. Walked 91 and struck out 95.

Barry Zito – Grade: F

Zito’s season was historic and not in a good way. To lose 23 games and not win even once requires not only incompetence on an incomprehensible scale, it also requires a huge dollop of bad luck. Even given his brutal 8.46 ERA, should have won at least once. His numbers were actually not much worse than Willis’ (.325 average against, 94 walks, 107 strikeouts) and were even better in some categories. Nevertheless, you are what your record says you are, and Zito’s record speaks for itself. It may never be duplicated.

Rafael Perez – Grade: Inc.

Perez came over in the trade that sent Takashi Saito to Georgia. Never threw a pitch for the Knights in 2008 because of overusage considerations. Has a good arm and figures to play a large role in 2009, barring a trade.

Josh Wilson – Grade: Inc.

Wilson, a utility player, was largely forgotten after the start of the season. Spent most of the year with the Knights’ AAA minor league team, the Cedarhurst Cedars. Appeared in 10 games in Block 4 and batted 5 times without a hit.

The Knights’ 2009 outlook is actually better than you would believe. The Knights will likely have the overall #1 pick, the starting rotation will be overhauled and you figure that players like Sizemore will go back to form. Besides, its almost impossible to be as bad as the Knights were two seasons straight – right?