Famed baseball writer, historian, and statistician Bill James, who works for the Red Sox as a Senior Advisor on Baseball Operations, did a lengthy interview a few days ago with my friend C. Trent Rosecrans who covers the Cincinnati Reds for cnati.com.

The interview was split into two parts.  You can read them here:

Part 1:  http://cnati.com/spring-training-2010/talking-with-bill-james-part-1-001559/

Part 2:  http://cnati.com/spring-training-2010/talking-with-bill-james-part-2-001571/

Most of the interview concerns the Cincinnati Reds, but one of Bill James' answers in Part 2 will be of interest to Red Sox fans.  Here's the exchange:

Rosecrans: What about (Reds minor league prospect) Juan Francisco? Here's a guy who strikes out a ton, doesn't walk, but hits for a decent average. That doesn't seem to be a recipe for success, or at least so far in the history of the game.

Bill James: There are always those odd cases of guys who can do that, I'm not saying he has to be Vladimir Guerrero, but Vladimir and Roberto Clemente could do that.

Rosecrans: Funny you bring that up, that's who I was thinking about today when Dusty Baker talked about the worst part of Francisco may be that he has some success on those pitches out of the zone.

Bill James: There's a special problem with teaching those guys. Sometimes there's no point in sending those guys down because they just go to AAA and hit .350 and don't learn a damn thing from it. I shouldn't name names, but we have one of those in the Red Sox system, too. We can never figure out what to do with him because he's not ready to help the Major League team until he gets a little plate discipline but there's no real point in keeping him in the minors.

So Red Sox nation, who do you suppose Mr. James is talking about?

I'm guessing that it's Josh Reddick.

The 23-year-old outfielder is having a tremendous spring for Boston, batting .438 with 5 doubles, 1 triple, and 1 HR in 12 games.  His OBP is .455 and his slugging percentage is .750.

But he's only walked once.

Yea, I know - considering Reddick's 1.205 OPS in the Grapefruit League, that's like studying the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue and pointing out that Brooklyn Decker has pointy elbows.  But drawing more walks and being more disciplined at the plate is the key to Josh's future. 

Last year Reddick began the season at Double-A Portland and displayed good - not great - plate discipline as he batted .277 with 30 walks for a .352 OBP in 63 games.  But his numbers plummeted above Double-A as he batted .127 with a .190 OBP in 18 games with Pawtucket, and .169 with a .210 OBP in 27 games with Boston.

"I think the biggest thing we noticed last year is he's such a free swinger and aggressive kid, and he started swinging at more strikes," Red Sox manager Terry Francona told reporters in this story on MLB.com.  "That's what was noticeable. If he swings at strikes, he's got so much good natural ability and some strength in that swing, he's going to be pretty successful. Now that's easier said than done.

"We don't want clones, but we want guys to swing at strikes. If you swing at strikes, and you take nice, healthy swings at strikes, it leads to guys getting on base, hitting for extra-base hits. I think they all tie together. I don't think you go up looking for a walk. You do that, you're going to be just hitting down in the count a lot."

That sure sounds like the player that Bill James was referring to.

Baring an injury to somebody in the Red Sox outfield, Josh appears almost certain to begin the season in Pawtucket. 

The Red Sox front office - including Bill James - will be watching to see if Reddick displays an improved "eye" at the plate.

Opening night at McCoy Stadium is 20 days away.  Unless the weather is absolutely brutal (and it won't be . . . last year it was 65 degrees at game time!), the stands will be jam-packed.  Last year's opening night crowd of 11,982 was the largest for any game in McCoy's 64-year history.

But even the most rabid PawSox fan will admit that this year's season opener will not be the only sporting event they are interested in on April 8^th.

That's the day that Tiger Woods is scheduled to return to professional golf in the opening round of The Masters.

(Fortunately, we can watch Tiger on TV in the afternoon before settling into our seats for the first pitch at McCoy at 7:05.  We'll also have TV coverage that night throughout Rhode Island on Cox Sports.)

I'm not a Tiger Woods fan, but it has nothing to do with his epic misbehavior.  I'm anti-Tiger because Jack Nicklaus was one of my biggest childhood heroes and I don't want to see his records broken.

But I will be glued to the TV when Woods makes his return.  In fact, I'm guessing that the PawSox players and coaches will be gathered around the big screen in the clubhouse watching coverage of The Masters instead of playing the usual card or video games.

I had the good fortune to attend The Masters once in 2005, and it happened to be the last time that Tiger won.

In the final round that year, Woods made what might be the most famous stroke of his phenomenal career:  A devilish chip shot on the 16^th hole that slowly curled downhill and paused on the lip of the cup - with the Nike logo perfectly framed for TV - before tumbling in for a crucial birdie.

I was standing a few feet away.

I was in Augusta with two pals and one of them was obsessed with the idea that we could cue up the highlight on video and show our friends and family exactly where we were standing when Tiger made that shot.

Unfortunately, after reviewing every televised angle frame-by-frame as if it were surveillance tape from a crime scene, we were nowhere to be found.

Or so we thought.

Several months later, I got an excited call from one of my buddies who said, "Go buy the 2006 PGA Tour Annual and turn to page 21!"  Sure enough, there we were - Zelig-like - at one of the greatest moments in golf history.

Here's the photo.  If you look into the crowd directly above Tiger you'll see where we were standing circled in red.

Here's a zoom-in.  I'm right in the middle with a creepy-looking grin on my face.  I think I was the only one smiling because I was convinced that there was no way that Tiger could possibly chip it in.  Either that or I knew that many years later I would still be obnoxiously bragging about being in attendance.

More recently, I was on a plane from Boston to Cincinnati on February 19^th when Tiger made his 14-minute public apology.  Immediately after landing, I turned on my smart phone and read what Tiger said online.

I thought it was just about perfect - until I saw the video.

In my opinion, Tiger's wooden performance on camera dulled the impact of his words.  He looked like a politician looking into the camera as he delivered his closing comments at the end of a televised debate.

But if you ignore the stilted delivery and read the text, Tiger apologized for his behavior, defended his wife, vowed to be a better person, and asked for our forgiveness.  What else was he supposed to do?

He's said enough for me - I'm eager to see his return to golf in the opening round of The Masters.

It's the first of two sporting events I can't wait to watch on April 8^th.

Last year, the most dominant rookie starting pitcher in major league baseball was Tommy Hanson of the Atlanta Braves.  The 23-year-old righty was 11-4 with a 2.89 ERA in 21 starts, posting a 1.18 WHIP while striking out 8.2 batters per 9 innings.

That came as no surprise to any of the 5,863 people who watched him pitch on April 30^th at McCoy Stadium as a member of the Gwinnett Braves.  Hanson was spectacular in his one start against Pawtucket, pitching 6 shutout innings while allowing 3 hits (none after the 2^nd inning).  He walked 2 and struck out 9 in a 5-0 win over the PawSox.

That's one of the great things about attending a game at McCoy Stadium.  Not only do you get to see future stars of the Boston Red Sox in action, but you get to see the top prospects from the other 13 International League affiliates.

The opposing player I'm most hopeful of seeing in person in 2010 is Washington Nationals pitching prospect Stephen Strasburg.  The #1 overall pick is last year's draft is expected to open the season in the minor leagues according to this article in today's Washington Post.

However, Strasburg has pitched 5 scoreless innings in his first 2 spring training starts, and it's not out of the question that he could skip the minors and begin the season in Washington.  The Nationals need help . . . in case you haven't noticed, Washington is 0-10 so far in Grapefruit League play. 

Washington's Triple-A affiliate is Syracuse, and the Chiefs make their first visit to McCoy Stadium from May 14^th to 17^th.  Since it's a 4-game series, if Strasburg is in the Chiefs' rotation at that point, it's highly likely that he would take the mound at McCoy.

Strasburg is ranked #2 on Baseball America's annual list of the Top 100 prospects.  Here are the players that are ranked in the Top 100 who play for teams with International League affiliates and the dates that they could visit Pawtucket this year (there is obviously no guarantee that they will be playing at the Triple-A level on these dates)

#1.  Jason Heyward, OF Gwinnett Braves, May 10-13.

#2.  Stephen Strasburg, P Syracuse Chiefs, May 14-17, July 10-11, Sept. 5-6.

#4.  Jesus Montero, C Scranton/WB Yankees, June 29-July 2, Aug. 5-8.

#5.  Brian Matusz, P Norfolk Tides, May 27-30.

#6.  Desmond Jennings, OF Durham Bulls, July 31-August 3.

#8.  Pedro Alvarez, 3B Indianapolis Indians, April 27-30.

#10.  Carlos Santana, C Columbus Clippers, June 17-20.

#15.  Domonic Brown, OF Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs, April 12-13, July 3, Aug. 18-20, Sept. 1-2.

#18.  Jeremy Hellickson, P Durham Bulls, July 31-August 3.

#19.  Aaron Hicks, OF Rochester Red Wings, April 8-11, July 8-9, Aug. 30-31.

#22.  Aroldis Chapman, P Louisville Bats, June 12-15.

#26.  Jacob Turner, P Toledo Mud Hens, July 19-22.

#31.  Lonnie Chisenhall, 3B Columbus Clippers, June 17-20.

#32.  Freddie Freeman, 1B Gwinnett Braves, May 10-13.

#34.  Wade Davis, P Durham Bulls, July 31-August 3.

#35.  Matt Moore, P Durham Bulls, July 31-August 3.

#37.  Josh Bell, 3B Norfolk Tides, May 27-30.

#38.  Derek Norris, C Syracuse Chiefs, May 14-17, July 10-11, Sept. 5-6.

#43.  Todd Frazier, INF-OF Louisville Bats, June 12-15.

#44.  Nick Hagadone, P Columbus Clippers, June 17-20.

#45.  Yonder Alonso, 1B Louisville Bats, June 12-15.

#47.  Casey Crosby, P Toledo Mud Hens, July 19-22.

#51.  Julio Teheran, P Gwinnett Braves, May 10-13.

#54.  Reid Brignac, SS Durham Bulls, July 31-August 3.

#55.  Jared Mitchell, OF Charlotte Knights, May 31-June 3.

#56.  Jennry Mejia, P Buffalo Bisons, April 23-26, August 13-16.

#58.  Wilson Ramos, C Rochester Red Wings, April 8-11, July 8-9, Aug. 30-31.

#60.  Tyler Flowers, C Charlotte Knights, May 31-June 3.

#61.  Kyle Gibson, P Rochester Red Wings, April 8-11, July 8-9, Aug. 30-31.

#62.  Ike Davis, 1B Buffalo Bisons, April 23-26, August 13-16.

#63.  Zach Britton, P Norfolk Tides, May 27-30.

#64.  Jason Knapp, P Columbus Clippers, June 17-20.

#65.  Alex White, P Columbus Clippers, June 17-20.

#66.  Dan Hudson, P Charlotte Knights, May 31-June 3.

#67.  Tim Beckham, SS Charlotte Knights, May 31-June 3.

#68.  Alex Colome, P Durham Bulls, July 31-August 3.

#69.  Arodys Vizcaino, P Gwinnett Braves, May 10-13.

#72.  Mike Leake, P Louisville Bats, June 12-15.

#76.  Austin Jackson, OF Toledo Mud Hens, July 19-22.

#77.  Fernando Martinez, OF Buffalo Bisons, April 23-26, August 13-16.

#79.  Tony Sanchez, C Indianapolis Indians, April 27-30.

#86.  Austin Romine, C Scranton/WB Yankees, June 29-July 2, Aug. 5-8.

#88.  Wilmer Flores, SS Buffalo Bisons, April 23-26, August 13-16.

#92.  Drew Storen, P Syracuse Chiefs, May 14-17, July 10-11, Sept. 5-6.

#93.  Phillippe Aumont, P Lehigh Valley IronPigs, April 12-13, July 3, Aug. 18-20, Sept. 1-2.

#94.  Miguel Sano, INF Rochester Red Wings, April 8-11, July 8-9, Aug. 30-31.

#99.  Jake Arrieta, P Norfolk Tides, May 27-30.

Last year I attended a taping of the Late Show With David Letterman and learned that Dave comes out and takes a question or two from the audience before the show begins.

Well, I returned this week and was picked to ask a question before tonight's (Friday's) show, so I asked Dave if he would like to join me as a guest color commentator on 700-WLW radio during the Big East basketball tournament.  When Dave started laughing, I told him that I was serious because my broadcast partner Chuck Machock was kicked out of a game once for yelling at the refs and I might need Dave's help if it happened again in New York.

Here's a photo of Chuck being escorted off the court by a cop in the 2003 NCAA Tournament game between Cincinnati and Gonzaga.

And here's a photo of CBS using a telestrator to point out where my color analyst was supposed to be sitting.

Letterman was amused to learn about Chuck's infamous moment and turned it into a running gag on tonight's show. 

You'll recognize a certain bald man laughing hysterically in the front row.

Enjoy!

UPDATE:  Here's a link to Dave's opening monologue:  http://tiny.cc/QaRio

I ran into Kevin Youkilis on an airplane a few days before Christmas and barely recognized him because he was clean-shaven.  The bushy goatee that inspired its own website - Beard of Truth Dot-Com - was nowhere to be found.

(photo courtesy of Kelly O'Connor)

I didn't ask Boston's two-time All-Star first baseman and 2007 Gold Glove Award winner why the chia pet on his chin was gone, but my guess is that he shaves it in the off-season to be a little less recognizable.  Having achieved rock star status in Red Sox Nation, I'm sure that Youk has a hard time going anywhere in public (especially in New England) without being engulfed by autograph seekers and cell-phone camera picture takers.

Perhaps a winter without whiskers was the inspiration for his latest charitable endeavor called "Facial Hair Frenzy."  Here are the details, courtesy of the Red Sox media relations staff:

FACIAL HAIR FRENZY: Kevin Youkilis' Hits for Kids charity began the "Facial Hair Frenzy" on Thursday, March 4^th...For every dollar given to Hits for Kids, donors will get a chance to vote on how Kevin's facial hair will look on Opening Day...The "look" that receives the most votes (and donations) is how Youk will take the field on April 4...Voters choices are goatee, mustache, clean shaven or Fu Manchu...For more information visit youkskids.org or call (781) 444-9685.

If you go to the website, you'll see this box labeled "Mirror Mirror On The Wall" that shows what Youk would look like with each of the four choices.

(image courtesy of youkskids.org)

I'm planning on voting for the Fu Manchu.  It costs $1 to vote.  You can vote as many times as you want if you're willing to spend $1 for each vote.  All of the money goes to Youk's charitable organization Hits for Kids.

Hits for Kids teams up with children's charities and medical research programs in New England and in Kevin's home town of Cincinnati, to help them raise money and awareness.

In this case, Youk is putting your money with his mug is.

There are more than 200 players and coaches in the Red Sox spring training camp and I have a pretty good guess as to which one of them had the shortest off-season.

That would be PawSox pitching coach Rich Sauveur.

(photo courtesy of Tom Perreira)

After the PawSox played their final game on September 7^th, Sauveur went home for a couple of weeks before heading to South America to serve as the pitching coach for the Leones del Caracas (Caracas Lions) of the Venezuelan Winter League.

His stay there was extended when the Lions advanced to the league championship series to face the archrival Navegantes del Magallanes.

"It's just like the Red Sox/Yankees rivalry," Sauveur told me from Ft. Myers.  "It's just something that you can't imagine unless you've been there.  I tell everybody to look on YouTube and pull up 'Leones of Caracas'.  The atmosphere is absolutely incredible - I can't even explain it.  There were 25,000 people at our games in Venezuela, and I've had people tell me that those 25,000 were louder than a full house at the Metrodome."

The championship series lasted seven games with Sauveur's Lions winning the final two to capture the Venezuelan title.

That meant advancing to the Caribbean World Series.

By the time that week-long event ended on February 7^th (the Dominican Republic won); Sauveur's "off-season" was basically over.

"I got back home on February 10^th and I came down to Ft. Myers on the 12^th to watch a couple of pitchers throw," Sauveur said.  "And then I officially reported to camp on the 16^th.  I did get three days off during Christmas though - that was nice.  That was 72 hours that I got to spend at home."

This will be the third year that Sauveur has spent his summer in Pawtucket and he's the only returning member of the 2009 coaching staff.  Former manager Ron Johnson is Boston's new first base coach and hitting coach Russ Morman has joined the San Francisco Giants minor league staff.  They have been replaced by new manager Torey Lovullo and hitting coach Gerald Perry who previously coached in Pawtucket in 1998.

"Torey has asked a lot of questions about Pawtucket and I've filled him in," Sauveur said.  "He's going to be a good manager.  He's as nice as RJ is - just not as flamboyant.  And RJ has been fantastic down here - he's been like a kid in a candy store and it's well-deserved.  He's doing a great job down here and the players love him.  I think it's a great fit."

While it's too soon to say who will make up the PawSox opening night pitching staff, the likely candidates include highly-touted prospects Michael Bowden, Junichi Tazawa, and Dustin Richardson along with last season's All-Star closer Fernando Cabrera.

"I'm very excited," Sauveur told me.  "We don't know exactly who we are going to have and I don't want to speculate because these guys are trying to make the major league team, but from what I've seen, we're going to have a nice staff."

Perhaps the pitching will be strong enough to extend the season and lead the PawSox back to the playoffs.

Who needs an off-season anyway?

Before moving to New England and working for the PawSox, I spent several years co-hosting the Cincinnati Reds pre-game show on Fox Sports Ohio (similar to a Tom Caron role on NESN). 

One of my favorite experiences during that time was meeting Eddie Vedder, the lead singer for Pearl Jam.

Vedder was born in the Chicago suburb of Evanston, IL and is a huge Cubs fan.  His favorite player as a kid was Jose Cardenal.

In 2003, Cardenal was on the Reds' coaching staff and one afternoon when Pearl Jam was in town for a concert, Vedder showed up at the ballpark to see his childhood hero.  He wound up hanging out with the team and even sang a song in the clubhouse after the game.

Sean Casey was a member of the Reds at the time, and told mlb.com that it was one of the highlights of his 12-year major league career.

"Ten of us were lingering around, getting ready to leave, and Vedder was going to the bathroom," Casey said in this 2007 story. "Jason LaRue walks into the bathroom... He says, 'Hey, Juan Castro's got a guitar in his locker ... you think you could sing a song for us before you leave?'"

Minutes later, Vedder obliged, pulling off a stirring, memorable acoustic rendition of The Beatles' "You've Got To Hide Your Love Away" that had the players speechless.

"Honestly, in my years in the big leagues, it's one of the top five things that's ever happened to me," Casey said. "There's no doubt that baseball players all want to be rock stars and rock stars want to be baseball players or pro athletes."

So why am I writing about this nearly six years later?  As it turns out, one of the Reds' video guys taped the performance and it turned up a few weeks ago on YouTube (thanks to my pal Ron "Rufus" Millennor for the heads-up).

You can watch it here.  Enjoy!

I'd love to hear from you.  The address is dhoard@pawsox.com.

And if you Twitter, you can follow my tweets at http://twitter.com/Dan_Hoard

ESPN play-by-play announcer Jon "Boog" Sciambi wrote an interesting article for Baseball Prospectus recently entitled "Building a Better Broadcast."  In it, Sciambi discusses the challenge of using sabermetrics in baseball broadcasts (you can read the article here.)

It's an issue I think about often while broadcasting PawSox games.  What stats should I be sharing with the audience, and how often do I need to explain what the various letters (OPS, WHIP, etc . . .) stand for?

Like a bunch of baseball fans, I'll never forget the first time I read Bill James Baseball Abstract.  It was sometime in the late 1980's and it completely changed my view of the game.  Suddenly I realized that walks were underrated, sacrifice bunts were overrated, and fielding percentage was a fairly worthless way of determining the best defensive players.

Twenty years later, I'm amazed by how much we continue to learn from the latest sabermetrics. 

As a broadcaster, I try to be more of a storyteller than a statistician.  I think if you bombard the audience with a bunch of numbers -- especially on radio -- the stats become monotonous and lose their impact.

But the goal of any baseball announcer is to entertain and inform the audience, and using advanced statistics is one of the best ways to inform.

Typically, when a batter steps to the plate, the announcer lists his batting average, home runs, and RBI.  Occasionally, the broadcaster might mention OBP or slugging percentage.  This year, I'm planning to give those numbers in every at-bat.  Those stats are a better indication of productivity and are widely understood by fans -- why stop at the triple crown stats?

Additionally, I plan to selectively introduce other advanced stats to the audience when they can be used to make interesting points about the PawSox and their top prospects. 

Vin Scully famously said that, "Statistics are used much like a drunk uses a lamppost: for support, not illumination."   

I'm hoping to illuminate.  If there are stats that you would like to hear on a regular basis, you can e-mail me at dhoard@pawsox.com.

It's no secret that the 2009 Pawtucket Red Sox were not exactly an offensive juggernaut.

After scoring 753 runs the year before, the '09 PawSox managed to cross the plate a mere 486 times - the fewest runs scored in the International League.

Despite playing half of their games in the home run friendly confines of McCoy Stadium, the PawSox HR total dropped from 176 in 2008 to just 87 in 2009.

It didn't exactly attract big headlines on Monday, but the Red Sox signed a slugger to a minor league contract who could help fill the power void in the middle of the Pawtucket lineup this summer.

His name is Brett Harper and the 28-year-old first baseman/DH spent last year in the Pacific Coast League where he batted .292/.333/.508 with 19 HR between Las Vegas and Albuquerque.

Harper was originally drafted by the Mets and had his best season in 2005 when he belted 36 HR between Single-A St. Lucie and Double-A Binghamton.  Following that season, he was rated the 14^th-best prospect in the Mets organization.

In 9 pro seasons, the son of former major league catcher Brian Harper has solid stats, batting .298/.354/.498.

Pacific Coast League sluggers don't always put up comparable numbers in the International League -- does the name Paul McAnulty ring a bell? (happy to see that Paul signed with the Angels recently . . . great guy who just didn't hit up to his normal standards with Pawtucket).

We'll see if Harper can put some sock in the PawSox in 2010.

The news broke at 3:40pm on Tuesday afternoon:

Wilkerson accepts minor-league deal with Phillies (Fox Sports).

Yep.  That would be 32-year-old Brad Wilkerson who battled for the final spot on the Red Sox roster in last year's spring training camp before opening the season with Pawtucket.

(photo courtesy of the Providence Journal)

Wilkerson had a brutal spring for Boston, going 5-for-42 (.196), and the veteran outfielder got off to a slow start for the PawSox going 1-for-9 in the first two regular season games with four strikeouts.

That's when Brad decided it was time to call it quits.

After Pawtucket's second game he went to manager Ron Johnson's hotel room in Buffalo and told him that his heart wasn't in it anymore.  Having made more than $15 million dollars in the big leagues with Montreal, Washington, Texas, and Seattle, Brad decided that it was time to go home to his wife and kids.

I'm not surprised that he's changed his mind.  If you were good enough to play pro baseball and were financially secure, wouldn't you keep playing for as long as possible?

"He's like a kid in candy store right now, chomping at the bit for an opportunity," a friend of Wilkerson's told Fox Sports. "He feels he can be as good if not better than what he has been at the major-league level."

Wilkerson, who hit 32 HR for the Expos in 2004, is so eager to play again that he accepted a minor league contract that does not include an invitation to major league training camp.  Brad's deal includes an escape clause if he is not promoted to the big leagues by June 15^th.

His 10-month retirement was lengthy compared to another former Pawtucket outfielder.

(photo courtesy of Kelly O'Connor)

On July 12, 2009, I chatted with Bobby Kielty for several minutes as he took batting practice before a game in Norfolk.  The switch-hitter, who homered for the Red Sox in Game 4 of the 2007 World Series, gave no indication that anything unusual was going on.

Minutes after our conversation, he walked into Ron Johnson's office and said he was finished and going home to California.

His "retirement" lasted for a month as Bobby joined the Rochester Red Wings on August 14^th.

Last year, Bobby got off to an injury-plagued start with Triple-A Buffalo and didn't play after April 17^th.  The 33-year-old outfielder was released by the Mets organization in June and got to spend the rest of the summer with his family.

Three weeks ago, mlbtraderumors.com reported that Kielty is attempting to make a comeback as a pitcher.

It beats mowing the lawn right?