Radio Interview of Badgers New GM (Part 2)
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Chris Myers, Director of Sports Programming at WQLR “The Fan”
Chris Myers: I would like to welcome back the General Manager of the Kalamazoo Badgers as our guest this morning. Say hello to Bob Baginski. I think it may be slightly warmer then when you were here a few weeks ago. I really appreciate your time today. How are you?
Bob Baginski: I’m doing well, Chris. I trust you are on top of your game today?
CM: Well, it’s another couple of weeks closer to Opening Day, and I am counting. I can’t wait!
BB: First off, let me apologize to you and your listeners for not being able to make it last week for this interview. There is quite a bit of activity in the front office since my last visit here two weeks ago.
CM: You are piquing my interest! Can you discuss any of this?
BB: Not at this time. All I can say is that there will be a significant announcement in the near future. And by the way, it is a good thing. I will leave it at that for now.
CM: Hmm… I can speculate, but I won’t. Let’s pick up where we left off from when you were here last. Tell us what you can about your pitching and catching situation. The Badgers faithful want to know.
BB: I am concerned with the Badgers’ catching situation. This position was a weakness during the 2012 campaign and it continues to be a problem as we prepare for 2013.
CM: So why did you let Bradley Loyd (free agent catcher from 2012) go?
BB: I am not sure that Loyd is the answer to this problem. I wish him well in free agency. I will be looking at all options to try to acquire some support for Doug Erickson, including the kid Holmes down in AAA. The bottom line is that I would like to get more offensive pop from the catching position; I think that defense and game-calling may be okay for where the club is now.
CM: My, my… not looking good behind the dish, but you know that. So let’s move on to the Badgers pitching assessment, shall we?
BB: Let me begin with the Badgers’ starting pitching. Although Dan Burhoe and Er Hang did not have winning records last season, I think they have what it takes to be competitive in this league and I am optimistic about their 2013 outlook. Let me explain some of the reasons for my optimism for these guys. Based on their 2012 WHIP – 1.34 and 1.32, respectively – they should still be able to keep runners off base, which is a big part of the game. I plan on having those two guys anchor the starting staff, but I would like to acquire at least one more durable starter whom I feel will allow less hits then innings pitched. In addition, I am hoping that Mike Brown has matured over the past two seasons and will have an improved season in 2013. At this point, he looks like my number four starter. I will assess who may be ready in the minors or see if I can make a deal or two to round out the Badgers’ starting staff.
CM: Interesting pitching overview. How would you characterize your general GM tendencies? In other words, do you lean more towards pitching or hitting when building a team?
BB: At this level of professional baseball, it really takes a balanced approach to constructing a competitive club. Deep down, though, I like teams with pitching strength. As any student of the game would tell you, good pitching tends to neutralize good hitting. It’s also interesting and encouraging to note that that the Badgers’ 2012 team WHIP of 1.42 was better than the league average of 1.44, and the club’s BABIP came in at .296, which again was better than the league average of .300. As I said, it is important to keep runners off base.
CM: I agree with needing to keep opponents off the base paths; if they don’t get on, they are not going to score. This, by the way, cuts both ways, which leads me to my follow-up on your comment regarding a balanced approach to team building. Please don’t take this disrespectfully; baseball is a business, a very lucrative business that needs lots of fans coming through the turnstiles. Many of those fans, and especially the casual baseball fans, want to see homeruns and lots of offense. So I suggest you don’t forget about acquiring some bats to help plate those runs. Based on some simple analysis of last year’s performance, your top two starting pitchers are still not going to consistently win without run support. So please try to keep their guys off the bases and do what you need to do to build a squad that will get on base for the Badgers.
BB: Duly noted! No arguments regarding your comments and concerns, Chris.
CM: Our time is just about up, but before you go, can you give us a quick overview of the Badgers’ bullpen?
BB: You know of my concerns regarding the starting pitching situation as it stands now and I have similar concerns about the Badgers’ bullpen situation. At this point in time, we only have Xiao-yan Chao under contract. He had a decent year in 2012, posting a BABIP of .227 and a WHIP of 1.33. These stats are fairly reliable indicators of Chao’s ability to keep runners off base. The bad news is I still need to build a relief staff around him. Here again, I will look for internal opportunities as well as see what trades may be possible.
CM: I am not sure where our time went but we need to conclude our interview with Kalamazoo Badgers GM Bob Baginski. We really appreciate your time this week. We know how busy your days are during this off-season as you work towards rebuilding a competitive club.
BB: My pleasure, Chris. See you next time.
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Chris Myers, Director of Sports Programming at WQLR “The Fan”
Chris Myers: I would like to welcome back the General Manager of the Kalamazoo Badgers as our guest this morning. Say hello to Bob Baginski. I think it may be slightly warmer then when you were here a few weeks ago. I really appreciate your time today. How are you?
Bob Baginski: I’m doing well, Chris. I trust you are on top of your game today?
CM: Well, it’s another couple of weeks closer to Opening Day, and I am counting. I can’t wait!
BB: First off, let me apologize to you and your listeners for not being able to make it last week for this interview. There is quite a bit of activity in the front office since my last visit here two weeks ago.
CM: You are piquing my interest! Can you discuss any of this?
BB: Not at this time. All I can say is that there will be a significant announcement in the near future. And by the way, it is a good thing. I will leave it at that for now.
CM: Hmm… I can speculate, but I won’t. Let’s pick up where we left off from when you were here last. Tell us what you can about your pitching and catching situation. The Badgers faithful want to know.
BB: I am concerned with the Badgers’ catching situation. This position was a weakness during the 2012 campaign and it continues to be a problem as we prepare for 2013.
CM: So why did you let Bradley Loyd (free agent catcher from 2012) go?
BB: I am not sure that Loyd is the answer to this problem. I wish him well in free agency. I will be looking at all options to try to acquire some support for Doug Erickson, including the kid Holmes down in AAA. The bottom line is that I would like to get more offensive pop from the catching position; I think that defense and game-calling may be okay for where the club is now.
CM: My, my… not looking good behind the dish, but you know that. So let’s move on to the Badgers pitching assessment, shall we?
BB: Let me begin with the Badgers’ starting pitching. Although Dan Burhoe and Er Hang did not have winning records last season, I think they have what it takes to be competitive in this league and I am optimistic about their 2013 outlook. Let me explain some of the reasons for my optimism for these guys. Based on their 2012 WHIP – 1.34 and 1.32, respectively – they should still be able to keep runners off base, which is a big part of the game. I plan on having those two guys anchor the starting staff, but I would like to acquire at least one more durable starter whom I feel will allow less hits then innings pitched. In addition, I am hoping that Mike Brown has matured over the past two seasons and will have an improved season in 2013. At this point, he looks like my number four starter. I will assess who may be ready in the minors or see if I can make a deal or two to round out the Badgers’ starting staff.
CM: Interesting pitching overview. How would you characterize your general GM tendencies? In other words, do you lean more towards pitching or hitting when building a team?
BB: At this level of professional baseball, it really takes a balanced approach to constructing a competitive club. Deep down, though, I like teams with pitching strength. As any student of the game would tell you, good pitching tends to neutralize good hitting. It’s also interesting and encouraging to note that that the Badgers’ 2012 team WHIP of 1.42 was better than the league average of 1.44, and the club’s BABIP came in at .296, which again was better than the league average of .300. As I said, it is important to keep runners off base.
CM: I agree with needing to keep opponents off the base paths; if they don’t get on, they are not going to score. This, by the way, cuts both ways, which leads me to my follow-up on your comment regarding a balanced approach to team building. Please don’t take this disrespectfully; baseball is a business, a very lucrative business that needs lots of fans coming through the turnstiles. Many of those fans, and especially the casual baseball fans, want to see homeruns and lots of offense. So I suggest you don’t forget about acquiring some bats to help plate those runs. Based on some simple analysis of last year’s performance, your top two starting pitchers are still not going to consistently win without run support. So please try to keep their guys off the bases and do what you need to do to build a squad that will get on base for the Badgers.
BB: Duly noted! No arguments regarding your comments and concerns, Chris.
CM: Our time is just about up, but before you go, can you give us a quick overview of the Badgers’ bullpen?
BB: You know of my concerns regarding the starting pitching situation as it stands now and I have similar concerns about the Badgers’ bullpen situation. At this point in time, we only have Xiao-yan Chao under contract. He had a decent year in 2012, posting a BABIP of .227 and a WHIP of 1.33. These stats are fairly reliable indicators of Chao’s ability to keep runners off base. The bad news is I still need to build a relief staff around him. Here again, I will look for internal opportunities as well as see what trades may be possible.
CM: I am not sure where our time went but we need to conclude our interview with Kalamazoo Badgers GM Bob Baginski. We really appreciate your time this week. We know how busy your days are during this off-season as you work towards rebuilding a competitive club.
BB: My pleasure, Chris. See you next time.