As noted, Chris Young was sent to the six and 1/2th circle of hell lovely Reno, Nevada to work out some kinks in his swing, or get over his headache, or do whatever one does in AAA when you completely fall apart as a hitter.
Last night, Louie and I observed first-hand the coming out party for Pipp Young’s possible replacement, Aussie superman Trent Oeltjen.
In addition to a dazzling smile and dreamy eyes, the “Youngster from Down Undster” ™ went four for four, with a double, triple and single, just missing the cycle by throwing in another single in the ninth inning. He also drew a walk in his first at-bat and had a nifty diving catch in left field. So, yes, I am prepared to anoint Oeltjen as the next coming of the Iron Horse (nothing to do with Tony Stark, you ignorant masses). I look forward to his long, dominant career, creepy too-close relationship to his mother, bitter private rivalry with a gregarious, much-loved, booze-hound, skirt-chaser, curse-causing, power-hitting teammate, crippling illness, and heart-wrenching all-time-great retirement speech (70 years ago this year! This was big news when I was in high school). Cheers!
Oeltjen’s dreaminess was confirmed to this reporter by a local self-described “cougar,” so I’m confident that his cross-gender appeal will be strong enough to replace Eric Byrnes, may he rest in peace. On a rare note of optimism in this space (ignoring Mr. Howard’s increasingly bitter pro-Suns diatribes), the current Diamondbacks’ outfield of Oeltjen, Parra, and Romero point to increasing organizational depth in the outfield. If the GM can build a bullpen intelligently, that is, without spending a ton of money or giving up prospects (see the 2009 Seattle Mariners for a positive example, the train wreck Mets as a negative), the team should expect a much brighter 2010.
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