Quick Note

In case you haven't seen it, former Twin Jacque Jones was designated for assignment (a.k.a. released) by the Detroit Tigers today after hitting just .165 in 79 AB's. The move allows Gary Sheffield to be shifted into left field, which he requested. Sheffield feels that his problems at the plate (.265 a year ago, .185 this year) are due to his being used as a DH. "Once I started DHing and saw what it was all about, it's not me. It just don't fit my personality."

Now, here's the thing -- I don't completely discount this explanation. We've all heard players complain about DH duty before, and I'm sure that for some people just sitting around waiting to hit really doesn't mesh with what they need to perform effectively. Maybe Gary Sheffield is one of those people. Nonetheless, I tend to think that Sheffield's diminishing performance is due more to his age (he's 39) than to his shift to being a DH. I haven't seen any specific numbers measuring his bat speed, but I guess it's beginning to fall off -- and that's always been the key to his success. Maybe he'll prove me wrong by starting to perform while playing in left field (and honestly, he has nowhere to go but up right now, so some improvement should be expected). I just don't expect him to be all that much better playing in the field than he was as a DH.