Lew Ford to Tigers

Good enough to hold down the outfield until Lin comes back. Sakurai will probably be fighting it out with him for that opening day spot in right field. It'll really depend on which one shows a consistent bat. I think it's in Hanshin's best interest to give Sakurai those at bats. Kanemoto will have to retire some day and Akahoshi isn't getting 60 stolen bases per season anymore.

To be honest, I don't like this signing. I wish they would've made an effort to go after Alex Ramirez. They need some power to make up for the uncertainty regarding their starting pitchers.

I went over Ford over in this topic. I said it there, and I'll say it here; I don't like this move. Ford has an abysmal OBP (on-base percentage) and hasn't displayed any power.

Hope he's better than our last ルー.

LOL - yes I can't even remember what Lou Pote looked like. Oh well, the Hanshin front office must know what they're doing (they're not Orix after all). And the new Lew is younger than Andy Sheets, so that may make some on this board happy.

Pote? If my memory is correct he won a WS ring with the Angels in 2002, the year before he came over. Despite ordinary numbers the local press here were raving about how he was coming from the World Champion Angels like that was enough.

In fairness, he got hurt didn't he?

That's the one cheese, came back the year after with my Injuns and stunk. Made a few starts and never played in the bigs again.

Yes, Lewwwww has definitely slipped in the last couple years, but when he played every day he did OK. 2004 was actually a stellar year for any outfielder. He's still fast. And he is goofy.

SEASON  TEAM          G   AB  R  H  2B 3B HR RBI  TB BB SO SB CS  OBP  SLG  AVG
2004 Minnesota Twins 154 569 89 170 31  4 15  72 254 67 75 20  2 .381 .446 .299
2005 Minnesota Twins 147 522 70 138 30  4 7   53 197 45 85 13  6 .338 .377 .264

I live in Minnesota, and am a MN Twins Fan. Lew Ford is a worthless pile, at least as a MLB player. Maybe he'll do better overseas, but I highly doubt it.

Now if your in need of a good Dungeons and Dragons player, then he's your guy.

Well, it looks like your entire team in Minnesota is going to a pile. So as far as I'm concerned he made the right move and actually will help this team.

Right now, I'm not so sure that Hanshin is still even looking at Ford. I've heard that Hanshin couldn't reach an agreement with him and that the Swallows are now talking to him? Anyone care to elaborate on what's going on with Ford? The longer this pans out, the less certain I am of Ford going to Hanshin. Though that wouldn't be a bad thing for Hanshin to pass on Ford.

He has definitely signed. Officials from the team were heading to America to sign his, Williams', and Vogelsong's new deals.

Lew Ford signed to Tigers yesterday. He is expected to hit 20 or so home runs according to Hanshin's president Minami-san.

Yeah right! He'll be lucky to hit half that. He's a wash up.

I realize that this is an old thread, but I just need to add this.

2004 MIN 154, 569, 89, 170, 31, 4, 15, 72, 254, 67, 75, 20, 2, .381, .446, .299

When given the opportunity to produce, this is what he can do for you. I know that the titles of the numbers are not there, but .381 is OBP and .299 is avg. Note also that 154 is games played and 569 is at bats. 15 home runs. 17 RBI. those are pretty good numbers. That is the only year he got to show what he can do.

- When given the opportunity to produce, this is what he can do for you

Or you can take his 2005 season, where he played in 147 games and batted 522 times (which is plenty of opportunities) and see what he can do for you.

Look, I'm sure Ford is a nice guy and class act, but based on the career numbers, I'm on caution on what Ford can do.

- Look, I'm sure Ford is a nice guy and class act, but based on the career numbers, I'm on caution on what Ford can do.

I don't think you can look at a player's MLB stats and determine what he will do in NPB, it doesn't always translate well. Here are some career stats of players making the jump from MLB to NPB.
.224, 13HR in 590 AB. Not very good. Those numbers were put up by Tuffy Rhodes. Then there's .212,9 HR in 325 AB from Randy Bass. Andy Sheets hit .212 with 19 HR in 960 times at bat while Pacific League HR king Nigel Wilson hit .086 with 2 HR in a whopping 35 ABs; so MLB staff didn't even think enough of him to give him more at bats.

You can find case after case of "weak" MLB hitters doing well in Japan. Ford may do OK, or he may not, we'll see.

As in all of the cases you mentioned above, that's a poor evaluation, too, by basing it on major league numbers alone. All of them showed enough in the minors to justify a NPB team taking a chance on them.

Bass was a power hitter all throughout his journey in the minor leagues, Rhodes' power matured as he spent time in the minors, the same with Nigel Wilson. About the only minor league numbers that didn't suggest the breakout they had was Sheets. Though by looking at his 2002 season, the potential for a breakthrough season was there.

Look, Ford may or may not breakout in NPB, but until he does I'll bet against it. None of the Ford fanatics will change my mind until Ford breaks out.

Lew is a class act. He gave 100% in Minnesota. Solid professional ballplayer. Fan favorite here in Minnesota. Hope he does well in Japan.

Went to the open-sen game against Lotte today. Despite the Tigers' dreadful performance, Ford seems to be endearing himself to the Tigers faithful already. He didn't get any hits (almost no Tigers did), but drew a walk and had a couple of nice running catches. The fans were very supportive of him.

Japanese baseball fans love the kind of hustle Lew shows all the time. They're also very used to big mean sluggers who will swing at your head if you just throw high and inside on them. I think Lew Ford is a nice change of pace. I hope he does well this season.

Lew is an underrated player who didn't get much break from the Twins' coaching staff, who insisted on changing his style that got him to the big leagues. These are the same coaches that tried to change David Ortiz's hitting style. I am not saying Lew is Big Papa, but he proved he can hit in 2004 when he hit .300 (well .299) but then these clowns intervened and said he is too pull-happy.

Also he is a fantastic center fielder. In 2006 when Torii Hunter broke his ankle at Fenway Park, Lew played the rest of the season and made numerous sparkling catches. He also possesses a strong and accurate arm.

He is a bit goofy, which makes him a great baseball character, something we sorely miss in Minnesota. I think a change in scenery is good for him. Japanese fans will love him and I expect him to have a banner year and be back in the Majors next year.

Ford seems like he will be helpful for the Tigers. A good runner and a very good fielder and a disciplined batter. All the best to him.

So far it's not looking good for Ford. Average does not seem to be holding up. Only Imaoka is a bigger disappointment to this point. Both were benched last night from what I can tell.

Why didn't the Tigers go after Alex last year? Huge numbers that are holding up this season as well for the Carp.