A 'Skee' trip into the A's future

SEATTLE, Oct. 1, 2009 -- At the suggestion of a reader who wants to hear more of the coaching staff's thoughts on the development of the team's young players, I had a chat with A's hitting coach Jim Skaalen (a k a "Skee") today.

Solid cat. Straight shooter. After we talked, I wrote a fairly long story on the progress some of the young players have made, and you can find it at oaklandathletics.com. But I didn't want it to get so long that the scroll bar looked like a sawed-off Pong paddle -- scares off readers, studies show -- so I decided to dispense some of Skee's thoughts here.

Specifically, I asked him about the power potential of several players.

Ryan Sweeney, he thinks, will be a "legitimate 15 to 20 homers guy with a boatload of doubles." Says he's very strong and adds, "I absolutely love his swing. He's been awesome. He could be a pretty special player."

Kurt Suzuki already has 15 homers, and Skaalen suspects there's more in store down the road. "He improves every year in just about every way, and he's another guy with really good gap power who's going to hit a ton of doubles."

Might Suzuki be a 25-homer guy at some point? "That's a lot of home runs for a catcher," Skaalen said. "But Kurt's not someone I'd put any limits in what he's capable of."

What about Landon Powell's production -- seven homers and 30 RBIs in less than 150 at-bats? "Unreal," said Skaalen, who didn't rule out Powell developing into a 30-homer guy if he (a) learns to better handle off-speed pitches and (b) finds a regular role on the team.

"There isn't a fastball out there that he can't hit," Skee said. "He's got a very good strike zone, and when he gets a fastball he likes, he's going to square it up."

 And now, time for a few wind sprints around Safeco Field ...

... I used to get a lot of e-mail suggesting that the A's should re-sign Kennedy to start at third base next season. They've died down to a trickle of late. Needless to say, fans have cooled on the idea based on his defense at the hot corner. Going into tonight's game he'd made 12 errors over there for a .943 fielding percentage, and he's been looking awfully tentative with his throws these days. Tonight he made error No. 13, giving him six E's in his past 10 games.

... Daric Barton doubled in the tying run in the fourth inning tonight, and he's been on fire for a while now. The big question: Is this just another hot September, or has he turned the corner toward becoming the hitter he was long-hyped to be? He was a monster in September 2007, and we all know how 2008 turned out. He had a decent September last season, too, but got off to another slow start in 2009. Skaalen thinks he's a keeper, as noted in the aforementioned story. Your thoughts?

... Was dismayed to learn of the recent passing of Cheryl Polakowski, a Minor League administrative assistant who made every day I've spent at the team's Papago Park complex in Phoenix a little brighter -- with her sweet, easy smile -- and sweeter, with her always-full jar of hard candy. Cheryl, at the heartbreaking age of just 47, died Sept. 19 of pancreatic cancer. Her husband, Ted, is the team's head of Minor League ops, and here's more heartbreak: he's left to care for their four children: two daughters, ages 20 and 10, and two sons, ages 11 and 7. I know times are tough, but if you happen to have a little "cause money" stashed away, you could do a lot worse than this cause: The Polakowski Children's Trust Fund, c/o Somerset Savings Bank, Attn: A. Cuzzolino, Branch Manager, PO Box 220, Bound Brook, NJ 08805.

... Diggin' me some Cliff Pennington these days, and I think the A's would be fine heading into next Spring Training with him atop the depth chart at shortstop, but remember this: The A's were talking to the Braves about Yunel Escobar earlier this year, and if Atlanta is in the market for pitching, Oakland has quite a bit of it -- starters and relievers. Escobar is batting .303 with 14 homers, 76 RBIs, a .381 on-base percentage and an .824 OPS; that's pretty sick. His .976 career fielding percentage is no great shakes, but he's 26 and won't be a free agent for four years.

... Quite a few A's fans up here. Talked with a couple behind the dugout during batting practice, and one said something I've heard a lot via e-mail: "You need to blog more!" Trust me, I'd love to. But a typical day on the job for MLB.com includes writing two stories before the game, a preview for the next day's game, regular Tweeting during the game, a "running" game story that has to be filed upon the final out, and a "write-through" of the running gamer after coming back up from the clubhouses. In short, we're the busiest beat writers in the business by a mile, and it's not always easy to find the time to blog. Not complainin'. Just sayin'.

That's all for now, folks. Peace, fish and chips from Ivar's, and Nirvana's "Come as You Are" unplugged to all ...
            
--Mychael Urban