Tony Clark Makes All the Difference in the World

Posted on July 17, 2008 by Hef

The Arizona Diamondbacks bolstered their anemic offense today by trading for former Dback, current Padre, and solution to all problems, Tony Clark.  Yes, Tony Clark who this season has amassed a line of .239/.374/.307 in a whopping 88 at bats.  Now considering that TC played at Petco Park where the grass is huge and nothing leaves the yard, his slugging should come up a bit at the friendly confines of Chase Field and also with increased oppostunities.  Having said all that, this is the guy the Snakes thought would be the answer to all of their woes?  Another corner infielder?

As noted in the article, Clark waived his $500,000 trade clause that the Padres would have had to pay him in order for the trade to go through meaning he either a) hated playing for the Padres because he was underused and wanted to get the hell out of San Diego, b) was told that he would get more playing time in AZ, or c) some combination of the two.

Consider, the Diamondbacks already have two first basemen that should be starting everyday, Conor Jackson and Chad Tracy.  Now the stress of this has been alleviated somewhat since The Panda has been out for so long and Jackson has been manning left field but that’s not a great option to have late in the game as his defense is suspect (it’s been much, much better than expected for a converted infielder).

The problem now lies in the fact that Tony Clark’s main purpose is going to be…what exactly?  Is he going to be platooning with Chad Tracy at first base?  Tony Clark is a switch hitter so he could handle all the lefties which would still insure more at bats for Tracy.  The problem there is that this season, Tracy is actually better against lefties than against righties (.875 vs .812 OPS) though his career numbers are far worse against lefties.

Will there be an entire platoon system in place when righties pitch where Clark covers first, Tracy covers third (Mark Reynold’s defense has gone so far south that Tracy won’t be much, if any, of a step down)?  Does this make Conor Jackson the permanent replacement in left field?

I will say this, if the Diamondbacks can use this acquisition to prevent Chris Burke from getting any playing time (is he out of options?  can he be sent down to Tucson?) then this will be a decent pickup.  If it forces someone like Alex Romero down to Tucson then I’m not so sure.  Will this prevent the Snakes from going after a good outfielder like Jason Bay?  I know he has two years left on his contract, but Eric Byrnes is not the answer in left field this year (or next year?) but he is under contract for $20 million more dollars after this year so the team is kind of stuck.

Bad contracts and hopes of developing young players prevent the Snakes from acquiring another long term outfielder and I doubt the front office is willing to trade a lot of young talent on a rental player.  So why not Barry Bonds.  He’s supposedly not going to cost the team much money and fans love him* so why not take the chance?  It’s a low risk high reward scenario.

*Half of this sentence is true.  Guess which half.

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92 Responses to “Tony Clark Makes All the Difference in the World”

  1. onterriosmith, on July 17th, 2008 at 4:45 pm Said:

    I think he was brought in to pinch hit, not play in the field… EVER

  2. Hef, on July 17th, 2008 at 4:46 pm Said:

    His defense isn’t awful. I imagine he’s going to want more ABs than the Pads gave him. Why else would he have agreed to waive his trade clause/fee?

  3. RexKramerDangerSeeker, on July 17th, 2008 at 4:47 pm Said:

    Tony Clark who this season has amassed a line of .239/.374/.307

    is one of those numbers the baseballer guy’s batting for a hit avg? i find your game confusing.

    /Farrah Fawcett

  4. clown, on July 17th, 2008 at 4:49 pm Said:

    Who the hell does Tony Clark think he is, to have a no trade clause? Some nerve.

  5. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 5:08 pm Said:

    so is this being followed up with the equally earth shattering signing of Richie Sexson?

  6. Hef, on July 17th, 2008 at 5:33 pm Said:

    Nick’s covering Sexson. I think tomorrow after he’s done making fun of the Jewish Athlete’s Hall of Fame.

    /not joking at all. surprised?

  7. sportsgal116, on July 17th, 2008 at 5:57 pm Said:

    Is it going to get ugly in here tonight like it did in the roundup comments today on TBL?

  8. hawkeye19, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:01 pm Said:

    Well, there is no irish on here so I’d bet it’ll only be half as snarky today.

    Any bets on when he finally gets thrown off teh board?

  9. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:04 pm Said:

    fuck you hawkeye.

  10. sportsgal116, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:04 pm Said:

    He has the thinnest skin ever. I’m a girl and I’m not even half as sensitive as him!

  11. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:06 pm Said:

    i don’t think i have ever been called a bitch until today.

  12. NickP, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:06 pm Said:

    @sparty: you mfer

    /irish

  13. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:08 pm Said:

    SG-what is interesting, is that i think we have been much harder on you at times. poor mags, does anyone have his email. he was a-ok for a michigan fan.

  14. NickP, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:09 pm Said:

    Tracy is actually better against lefties than against righties (.875 vs .812 OPS)

    Nooooooooooo. He only has 16 ABs against lefties. You’re better than this, Hef.

    Blogdom demands more.

    Irish demands more.

  15. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:09 pm Said:

    that i am nick p. just ask my wife.

  16. sportsgal116, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:11 pm Said:

    Back in the day, I jokingly linked my screen name to my myspace page (which was private). He went on TBL and said I was an ugly bitch that looked like a stroke victim. I’ve also been called a dumb slut by 412. I think both those things are way worse than anything anyone’s ever said about him.

  17. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:12 pm Said:

    that was so wrong, you are not dumb.

  18. NickP, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:13 pm Said:

    @sparty: +jew star

  19. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:14 pm Said:

    @nick p- hef is too busy fabricating his chronicles. he does not have time for accuracy anymore.

  20. sportsgal116, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:15 pm Said:

    Ha ha ha! +jew star from me too

  21. Hef, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:25 pm Said:

    Nooooooooooo. He only has 16 ABs against lefties. You’re better than this, Hef.

    Gee, if only I had said that his career OPS was far lower against lefties in the exact same sentence. Ah well, I’ll get ‘em next time.

  22. Hef, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:26 pm Said:

    And the Hef Chronicles was not my idea for a name. I was not consulted.

  23. Hef, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:27 pm Said:

    CRM is trying to throw Rexy off teh board for the borat pic.

  24. RexKramerDangerSeeker, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:29 pm Said:

    Me being banned only increases my street cred.

  25. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:29 pm Said:

    actually Hef, i really did enjoy that piece. excellent work.

  26. NickP, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:32 pm Said:

    @Hef: The latter half of that sentence didn’t make up for the former. It’s science.

  27. Hef, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:40 pm Said:

    I am science. That’s science.

  28. August West, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:47 pm Said:

    “CRM is trying to throw Rexy off teh board for the borat pic.”

    Seriously, or am I missing a joke?

  29. Hef, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:51 pm Said:

    It’s a joke. But he still wants Rexy to use his power for good.

  30. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:53 pm Said:

    “It’s a joke. But he still wants Rexy to use his power for good.”

    that was the greater good. CRM is much better looking.

  31. hawkeye19, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:56 pm Said:

    Fuck you too, sparty!!!

  32. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:56 pm Said:

    geeeeez. took you long enough.

  33. stigs, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:57 pm Said:

    can someone keep track of jew stars tonight? just list of names and a tally. then email it to me. it doesn’t have to be a perfect count. thanks.

  34. August West, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:57 pm Said:

    I was about to say; I thought it was kinda ho… funny.

    Yeah funny! That’s the ticket.

    /Watched the ‘SNL: Best of John Lovitz’ a few nights ago

  35. Hef, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:58 pm Said:

    Yeah, stigs we’ll get right on that.

    /sincere

  36. hawkeye19, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:59 pm Said:

    had to eat dinner and do dishes. Damned family obligations ;)

    And currently my son is doing prat-falls. Gentlemen: The next Chevy Chase!

  37. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 6:59 pm Said:

    “can someone keep track of jew stars tonight? just list of names and a tally. then email it to me. it doesn’t have to be a perfect count. thanks.”

    we can get mikey, he’ll do it. he will do anything. does this mean we see the list tomorrow morning?

  38. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:01 pm Said:

    my son just asked me if the yankees were on. told him no, then ran into his room crying. i love that kid more now than ever before.

  39. stigs, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:02 pm Said:

    sometime tomorrow. it’ll be up.

  40. hawkeye19, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:03 pm Said:

    Mine has had that reaction with hockey games.

  41. clown, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:04 pm Said:

    sparty, are you sure he wasn’t crying because of you yelling, “Shut the hell up, boy - Daddy’s typing!”

  42. NickP, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:05 pm Said:

    /Watched the ‘SNL: Best of John Lovitz’ a few nights ago

    Was that like a 15 minute show?

  43. hawkeye19, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:06 pm Said:

    And the first JS of the night goes to clown.

  44. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:06 pm Said:

    @clown, are you wire tapping me?

  45. clown, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:07 pm Said:

    Watched the ‘SNL: Best of John Lovitz’ a few nights ago

    You still have laserdisc!?!? Awesome!

  46. August West, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:19 pm Said:

    +1 jew star, Clown…. I gotta have something for my BETA machine to sit on!

  47. RexKramerDangerSeeker, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:22 pm Said:

    I can’t imagine what 1 solid of hour of “Yeeeeah, that’s the ticket.” would do to my soul.

  48. RexKramerDangerSeeker, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:24 pm Said:

    Yeah, CRM has officially banned me. Dickhole…

    Start the petitioning, Jerkers.

  49. Hef, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:25 pm Said:

    +2 stars of david for Rexy

  50. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:27 pm Said:

    RWH, whenever you show. 1,000 for the upper bowl. my brother and I are gonna have to fork up somewhere between 4000 and 10K per seat for the mezzanine.

  51. hawkeye19, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:28 pm Said:

    sweet Christ. I don’t know if football is worth _that_ much.

  52. RexKramerDangerSeeker, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:30 pm Said:

    fuck. that’s like, uhhhm… 350 jstars, hef. thanks.

  53. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:30 pm Said:

    hawkeye, move closer to the screen so i can smack you.

  54. NickP, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:30 pm Said:

    @rex: I’m sure you’ve seen the “History of TV Catch Phrases” TV Funhouse on SNL?

    If not, it describes that situation to a T.

  55. brianbridgepro, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:31 pm Said:

    The Hef Chronicles > Chronicles of Narnia > Spiderwick Chronicles

  56. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:31 pm Said:

    @rex, did you ever decide on + or - JS for my Poison moment?

  57. RexKramerDangerSeeker, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:32 pm Said:

    brian, your dyslexia is shining brightly tonight.

  58. NickP, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:33 pm Said:

    The Life of a Catchphrase

  59. RexKramerDangerSeeker, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:35 pm Said:

    -3 jstars because the song was stuck in my head until i cleansed my aural palate with Ozzy and Lita Ford singing “Close My Eyes Forever”.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zy3fJ8Nmzyw

  60. sportsgal116, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:37 pm Said:

    Sparty, did your letter from the Giants look something like this?

    Dear Giants fans,
    Congratulations! As a season ticket holder, you’re entitled to an ass fucking from the Giants Organization! The best part? It’s only going to cost you $4000 a seat for us to sodomize you!

    Thank you,
    Rusty Hawley

  61. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:38 pm Said:

    @rex-damn it, and i was like butter to that point!

    @sg-i didn’t get mine yet, but just read the article in the post.

  62. romanwarhelmet, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:40 pm Said:

    Sparty…mine are 5000 like predicted…they have the breakdown by section on http://www.nyg2010.com

  63. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:42 pm Said:

    4 Grand. sigh. do we get a t-shirt?

  64. RexKramerDangerSeeker, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:43 pm Said:

    Much, much, much DNA was spilled to all two of Lita Ford’s videos.

    I’m just glad that I didn’t know what stranglebating was back then. I’d have died a very early death.

  65. romanwarhelmet, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:45 pm Said:

    sparty..I heard if you are luck John Mara himself will fuck you in the ass…not just another Mara brother..or a Tisch…

  66. hawkeye19, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:45 pm Said:

    Sounds like you don’t even get the sanctity of a reach around.

  67. RexKramerDangerSeeker, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:47 pm Said:

    My family had 16 amazing seats for the Browns. Had them since the first game they played at Municipal. After getting mugged with PSL fees, they’re down to 8 seats. Bull fucking shit are the PSLs.

  68. sportsgal116, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:47 pm Said:

    I bet having John Mara fuck your ass is worth $4K a seat! He may even use lube!

  69. romanwarhelmet, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:48 pm Said:

    SG..only for 20K do we get the Lube

  70. fetch, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:48 pm Said:

    stuff like that make me glad that the closest to a pro franchise in my town is an NBDL team.

  71. romanwarhelmet, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:49 pm Said:

    Rexy..are you really banished?

  72. RexKramerDangerSeeker, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:50 pm Said:

    fetch, i would think you, of all people, would know it’s spelled NAMBLA.

  73. RexKramerDangerSeeker, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:50 pm Said:

    yes, roman. send me beer money for legal bills.

  74. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:51 pm Said:

    @RWH-shut your face.

  75. RexKramerDangerSeeker, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:52 pm Said:

    roman, it was for this link: http://majorleaguejerk.com/2008/07/17/theres-nothing-to-click-here-sorry-folks-parks-were-closed/#comment-11337

    Yeah, CRM… I posted it AGAIN!

  76. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:52 pm Said:

    and cuddle with me again!

  77. romanwarhelmet, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:52 pm Said:

    sparty..you need to read this..we are better http://thebiglead.com/?p=6731#comment-215072

  78. romanwarhelmet, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:52 pm Said:

    rex incredible

  79. RexKramerDangerSeeker, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:53 pm Said:

    Hef has CRM and I enrolled in couples counseling.

  80. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:54 pm Said:

    now i feel all warm and fuzzy again. we can watch the last episode of Access Blue I DVR’d.

  81. hawkeye19, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:55 pm Said:

    Hell, they’re doing it for college too. New Gophers football stadium will have $100-$500 extra per seat. This is for a team than went 1-11 last year.

  82. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:56 pm Said:

    and these kids want to be paid to play college football. the friggin nerve of them.

  83. RexKramerDangerSeeker, on July 17th, 2008 at 7:58 pm Said:

    Our RV spots at OSU just went up like 500%. Our PSU RV spot is like 170 a season, 4 rows from the stadium. Greatest bargain in sports.

  84. hawkeye19, on July 17th, 2008 at 8:00 pm Said:

    That is a hell of a deal, Rex. That’s what, $30 a game?

  85. clown, on July 17th, 2008 at 8:02 pm Said:

    hawkeye, it’s $1 for every year JoePa has been alive.

  86. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 8:02 pm Said:

    So TNT decided to capitalize on the release of the Dark Night. You would think that means they are showing maybe Batman Begins,or going old school with the 1st Batman with Michael Keaton. nah, they go all gay and show the worst of the franchise. Batman and Robin.

  87. hawkeye19, on July 17th, 2008 at 8:09 pm Said:

    They should be showing the Adam West Batman.

  88. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 8:11 pm Said:

    @hawkeye- he is too busy running quahog.

  89. NickP, on July 17th, 2008 at 8:11 pm Said:

    BAM!

    KAPLOW!!!

  90. hawkeye19, on July 17th, 2008 at 8:13 pm Said:

    “Hey, how’d you like some Adam West penis?”

  91. sparty, on July 17th, 2008 at 8:16 pm Said:

    delgado hit that far.

  92. romanwarhelmet, on July 17th, 2008 at 8:17 pm Said:

    everyone over to Under the Lights

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