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Floyd, of course, is the former Phillies No. 1 draft choice (fourth overall in 2001) who was disappointing in pinstripes and gladly traded to Chicago for Freddy Garcia before the 2007 season.
He's still just 25 years old and he's off to a 3-1 start with a 2.50 earned run average and he keeps popping up in national headlines. Making matters worse, Garcia was a disaster. He showed up with no zip on his fastball and took home $10 million for a single win before having shoulder surgery and then departing as a free agent.
So some second-guessing is inevitable and deserved. But let's try to take a deep breath and review what went down.
Clearly, the Phillies made mistakes. Whether they misjudged his readiness or saw what they wanted to see or reacted to fill an immediate need at the big-league level, with the benefit of hindsight it's obvious that Floyd was rushed and that he was unable to handle the struggles that resulted.
"I had my tail between my legs 3 years ago," he told reporters after his last win.
He also had a 6.96 ERA and was running out of options. The feeling around the organization was that, while he still might turn it around, it wouldn't be with the Phillies. And they were probably right in that assessment.
"I've been finding myself the last year or 2. I've been trying to find it ever since I lost it. But piece by piece it has come together. I made it very complicated [in Philadelphia]," he said.
Observed White Sox pitching coach Don Cooper, who said he made no major changes and simply told Floyd to trust his stuff: "Sometimes things don't go right where they're at. Sometimes people just need a change of scenery."
That seems particularly true for young arms. Of the 49 pitchers who were in the top five in their league in wins, strikeouts per nine innings, earned run average, games or saves last season only 19 - just 38.8 percent - are still with the organization they originally signed with.
That probably doesn't make the Phillies feel much better. And maybe it shouldn't. But that's baseball.
* The Rangers followed a 4-2 homestand by winning four of their first six games on a road trip that ended last night in Seattle. That's quieted rampant speculation that manager Ron Washington could be fired any day, although the talk is likely to heat up again the next time the team has a losing streak.
* One big problem for the slumping Orioles has been poor baserunning. Baltimore had five runners picked off in the first 28 games and had 13 runners thrown out trying to steal.
* Mets manager Willie Randolph said he's standing behind pitching coach Rick Peterson, who has been under fire for his handling of the staff in the early going. "He's done a fine job," Randolph told reporters.
* Frank Thomas knows Oakland picked him up to add power to the lineup, and admits that he's getting a little frustrated. He hit a long fly Monday that was caught on the warning track. "It looked good," he said afterward. "I try not to show emotion, but I wanted to cry."
* Greg Norton, picked up by Atlanta after being released by Seattle, has no illusions about his strengths and weaknesses. "I wouldn't say I play any [position] well. I'm in the big leagues because I can hit," he said.
* The Twins are pretty happy with 22-year-old outfielder Carlos Gomez, one of the players they got from the Mets in the Johan Santana trade. He hit for the cycle Wednesday night. "He's special," third-base coach Scott Ullger said. "Don't blink, he's that fast. I mean, total package. And he's just learning the game, too."
CHEERS: For Indians lefthander Cliff Lee. How ridiculous is this? He went into his start against the Yankees on Wednesday night with an earned run average for the season of 0.96 ... and actually lowered it to 0.81 by pitching seven shutout innings. In 44 2/3 innings this season he's struck out 39 ... and walked just two. And this is a guy who had to win a spot in the rotation in spring training. "You never expect anyone at this level to do what he's doing," Tribe manager Eric Wedge said.
JEERS: For White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen. Most of the time, you have to love the guy. But he knew better than to allow inflatable dolls in suggestive poses in the clubhouse in Toronto last weekend and then couldn't understand what all the fuss was about. "I'm not going to apologize. I don't think it was a big deal," he said. "It's our house. It used to be whatever was in the clubhouse stayed in the clubhouse, and then all that changed." The key phrases here, Ozzie, are "used to be" and "all that changed."
BY THE NUMBERS:
4: Blown saves for Cardinals closer Jason Isringhausen, who grew up in and still lives outside St. Louis. That can make things a little more difficult. "Every once in a while, Dad will say, 'Don't make me look back at the coffee shop,' " he told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch
5: Blown saves for Brewers closer Eric Gagne. General manager Doug Melvin, who signed Gagne to a 1-year, $10 million contract, defended the pitcher. "It's a tough job, one of the toughest in the game," he said. "Houston ran Brad Lidge out of town and he hasn't given up [an earned] run in Philadelphia."
51: Pitches needed by Dodgers righthander Derek Lowe to get through the first inning against the Rockies on Sunday.
435: Career homers for Mets first baseman Carlos Delgado after going deep off Arizona's Brandon Webb last Saturday. That moved him ahead of Juan Gonzalez and into first place among Puerto Rican-born players.
UP NEXT: Interleague play begins next Friday. And that's not good news for the Phillies. According to research by veteran seamhead Gerry Fraley, the Fightins' have the worst winning percentage against the opposite league of any team: .467 (86-98). And of all active players with at least 200 interleague at- bats, two of the three lowest batting averages belong to Phils: Pat Burrell (.199) and Pedro Feliz (.219).
QUOTE OF THE WEEK: Clint Hurdle, manager of the fourth-place Rockies, on rallying in the bottom of the eighth for a 4-3 win over the Cardinals on Wednesday night: "We needed a win worse than a hog needs slop."
FORMER PHILLIE OF THE WEEK: Rangers righthander Vicente Padilla has allowed one earned run in 21 2/3 innings during his last three starts. Apparently, he's healthy enough to throw his fastball again, although Ron Washington would like to see him throw it more often. "He's got a great fastball," the manager said. "I just wish he'd fall in love with it."
SOCIAL PAGE NOTE OF THE WEEK: Maxim magazine will release its annual Hot 100 list in its May 20 editions and, according to a report on the Web site "amNewYork," six of the women on the list have dated Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter. That includes two of the Top 10, Scarlett Johansson and Jessica Biel.
VOTE OF CONFIDENCE OF THE WEEK: The Mariners went into last night with the worst record in the American League and Tuesday night's crowd of 15,818 was the smallest in the 9-year history of Safeco Field. But club president Chuck Armstrong doesn't blame manager John McLaren. "It's been said that there are two things every male in North America can do better than any other male," he said. "One is charcoal a steak, and the other is manage a baseball team."
Once again, some hitters will use pink bats and wear pink wristbands on Sunday. It's all part of major league baseball's annual Mother's Day campaign to raise money and awareness for breast-cancer research.
Four members of the White Sox - Nick Swisher, Bobby Jenks, Toby Hall and John Danks - have taken the idea a step further. They have shown their support by dying their facial hair pink, according to the Chicago Tribune.
Now, that takes being secure about your masculinity to a whole new level. *
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