As we’ve expected basically from the beginning of camp, Ned Colletti has informed Jamey Wright that he’ll be heading north (well, slightly just above due west, actually) with the team. That’s fantastically interesting to those who put a great deal of stock into Wright’s 3.16 ERA last year (as opposed to his 4.30 FIP), and quite a bit less so to anyone hoping to see Josh Lindblom or John Grabow (who opted out of his deal today) make the club. With Matt Guerrier & Ted Lilly each at least somewhat questionable for Opening Day, that at least opens the door for Lindblom to break camp as well.
This is the point where you’d usually want to delve into Wright’s attributes, figure out how he might fit into the bullpen, etc. But you know what? It’s not really worth it. Been there, done that, seen Jeff Weaver, lived through Lance Cormier, etc. Wright is what he is, which is an extremely experienced (read: old) righty bullpen arm who is neither great nor atrocious, and someone who probably shouldn’t get too comfortable in Los Angeles considering that Ronald Belisario and Blake Hawksworth are each due back within the first month of the season.
So in lieu of spending time trying to analyze Wright, let’s get to know him with some fun, mildly interesting facts:
* He’s tied for 24th on the all-time list of hit batters, with 142.
* He’s been released or DFA’d in camp or the middle of a season seven times – by the Mariners, Brewers, & Rangers in 2003, the Cubs & Royals in 2004, and by the Indians & Athletics in 2010.
* When Wright was selected by the Rockies with the final pick of the first round in 1993, the Colorado franchise had all of 53 games all-time under their belt. They were 15-38 at the time.
* Wright’s debut came on July 3, 1996. At least four of the other participants in that game – Eric Young, Bruce Ruffin, Dante Bichette, and Shawon Dunston – have sons who are currently playing professional baseball.
* Wright has had 596 teammates over the years. By comparison, Clayton Kershaw has had 113.
* Over the last ten seasons combined, Wright has been worth 1.3 rWAR.
* While a member of the Mariners, Wright allowed four earned runs to Toronto on August 21 of last season. It was the only game from July 29 on in which he allowed an earned run; over his final 19 games of the season, including the Toronto game, he held opponents to a .216/.330/.273 line.
* Before his debut, there had never been a major leaguer with the name “Jamey”. The only other player with that name, Jamey Carroll, played for the Dodgers as well.
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Totally unrelated, this from Ken Gurnick:
The Dodgers, missing in action on the international bonus scene in recent years, have agreed to sign 16-year-old right-handed pitcher Bryan Munoz from the Dominican Republic for a reported $300,000 bonus, pending a physical exam.
The signing will mark a re-entry by the Dodgers into a Dominican market they once owned. They ranked last in Major League Baseball last year in money spent on international signings. The Dodgers outbid the Rangers, Twins, Tigers and D-backs for Munoz.
I hadn’t heard of Munoz before today, and neither had you. That’s not the point, because even if he’s successful, he’s not someone you’d see in a big-league uniform until something like 2017 at the earliest. It’s just that after years of watching the McCourt regime neglect the international scouting arena, seeing them make any kind of splash there (even if it’s a relatively small one) is a nice sign. As Gurnick notes, it’s the largest bonus given to a Dominican player by the Dodgers since Joel Guzman back in 2001.
