The Stros beat the Cards 10-3 at the Juice Box on Monday night behind Roy O‘s solid pitching and a 14 hit attack that included five doubles, a Beltran triple and a Jason Lane pinch hit yak.
Unfortunately, the Cubs won, too. Stros hold serve. Backe starts the Tuesday night game.
I had a hearing on Monday afternoon in federal court, so I went a bit early and sat in on the ongoing trial of the first Enron-related criminal case to go to trial — the Nigerian Barge case. Today was a big day during the trial because one of Andy Fastow‘s most trusted lieutenants — Michael Kopper — took the stand as the Government’s main witness.
The first four days of the trial that took place last week were remarkable only because the testimony of the initial Government witnesses confirmed that there is not all that much dispute between the prosecution and the defense about the salient facts of the case. The big difference is in the interpretation of the facts, and that’s why Kopper is an important witness for the Government.
In effect, Kopper is standing in for Fastow, who the Enron Task Force prosecutors do not want to call in this trial of two low-level Enron executives and four Merrill Lynch executives over a relatively small deal. Kopper is testifying under a plea bargain deal in which the Government has agreed not to prosecute Kopper’s gay lover for profiting off of Enron’s off-balance sheet partnerships and to recommend a minimum prison sentence for Kopper if he testifies in accordance with the government’s theory of the case in this trial and others.
Kopper makes a good impression as a witness — young, handsome, courteous, articulate, bright, and soft-spoken. And apparently, he testified this morning in support of the government’s theory of the case — i.e., Enron induced Merrill Lynch to buy the barges at the end of 1999 by orally guaranteeing through Fastow that Enron would arrange a sale of the barges for Merrill by the end of June 2000 at a pre-arranged profit. If such an Enron guaranty existed, then the Government contends that Enron’s booking of the profit from the deal was improper and the Defendants engaged in a fraud on Enron’s investors.
But if the morning went according to the Government’s form, the afternoon was a different story. Kopper was ravaged during cross-examination, first by Lawrence Zweifach, who represents Merrill Defendant James Brown, and then by David Spears, who represents Merrill Defendant William Fuhs.
Kopper readily admitted to Mr. Zweifach that the barge transaction was such a risky deal that he would not approve it originally as an asset purchase for one of Fastow’s now infamous off balance sheet partnerships that Enron used liberally to buy assets from Enron. Inasmuch as the Government’s theory of the case is based largely on the allegation that Merrill’s purchase of the barges was not a risky deal because of Enron’s guaranty, this line of cross-examination of the Government’s primary witness did not go over well with the prosecution lawyers. They objected often and ineffectively throughout the cross-examination as U.S. District Judge Ewing Werlein overruled almost every Government objection.
Then, Mr. Spears took over and Kopper admitted the truth of a mid-2000 memo written by an Enron analyst that openly stated that Enron faced a dilemma with regard to the barges and Merrill — either Enron needed to broker a sale of the barges to an investor to preserve Enron’s client relationship with Merrill or Enron should simply buy the barges back and restate its financial statements to account for the deal as a loan rather than a sale. There was no mention whatsoever in the memo of any Enron “guaranty” to Merrill or that restatement of earnings was all that big of a deal for Enron. Again, you could almost hear the air leaking from the Government’s balloon as Kopper’s cross-examination proceeded.
However, no one really knows how all of this plays out with the jury, which is the only reason that this case is being prosecuted in the first place. The Government figures that it can get convictions on such a flimsy case because most jurors will be biased against anything having to do with the cultural pariah Enron.
Based on what I know about this case and what I witnessed today, if the Government gets convictions in as weak a case as this one, then the Government will have little disincentive to bring equally dubious cases against business executives. Accordingly, if you represent business clients, stay tuned to developments in this trial.
THis long NY Times article about end-of-life decision making provides an excellent overview of the issues that confront families and health care professionals in making those decisions. Check it out.
My sense is that the upcoming Presidential election is going to be a much closer race than many Bush Administration supporters currently think, so this NY Sunday Times article on John Kerry’s management style is timely in that it provides some insight into how a President Kerry would go about making decisions.
Mr. Kerry, who is a former prosecutor, is a four term senator without any meaningful management experience in terms of running a business, so his management style is primarily reflected on how he runs his campaign:
Mr. Kerry is a meticulous, deliberative decision maker, always demanding more information, calling around for advice, reading another document ? acting, in short, as if he were still the Massachusetts prosecutor boning up for a case.
He stayed up late last Sunday night with aides at his home in Beacon Hill, rewriting ? and rearguing ? major passages of his latest Iraq speech, a ritual that aides say occurs even with routine remarks.
In interviews, associates repeatedly described Mr. Kerry as uncommonly bright, informed and curious.
But Mr. Kerry’s curiousity brings with it an indecisiveness borne of a tendency to become deluged in what I refer to as “data dumps:”
But the downside to his deliberative executive style, they said, is a campaign that has often moved slowly against a swift opponent, and a candidate who has struggled to synthesize the information he sweeps up into a clear, concise case against Mr. Bush.
Even his aides concede that Mr. Kerry can be slow in taking action, bogged down in the very details he is so intent on collecting, as suggested by the fact that he never even used the Medicare information he sent his staff chasing.
His attention to detail can serve him well on big projects, as it did when he sent aides scurrying across the country to find long-lost fellow Vietnam veterans who could vouch for his war record. But sometimes, his aides say, it is a distraction, as it was in early 2003, when they say he spent four weeks mulling the design of his campaign logo, consulting associates about what font it should use and whether it should include an American flag. (It does.)
His habit of soliciting one more point of view prompted one close adviser to say he had learned to wait until the last minute before weighing in: Mr. Kerry, he said, is apt to be most influenced by the last person who has his ear.
And whereas President Bush rarely makes management changes in his top circle of advisors, Kerry often does:
Mr. Kerry has also, in this campaign and earlier ones, repeatedly upended his staff, edging longtime advisers aside or dismissing aides outright when things threatened to run off the tracks. As a result, while some stalwarts from Mr. Kerry’s first campaign have stuck with him since 1972, the senior staff of his campaign includes few people who call themselves his friends or are personally loyal to him.
And there is a hint of the Jimmy Carter micromanager management style in Kerry’s approach:
Mr. Kerry’s circle is as wide and changing as Mr. Bush’s is constricted and consistent. He is always calling one more friend, and the campaign lineup has shifted so often that rumors of staff changes have become part of the daily gallows humor at Kerry headquarters on McPherson Square in downtown Washington.
Instead of delegating authority to a single adviser, Mr. Kerry relies on different people for different advice. And, he made a point of saying in the interview, none of them have too much authority. “I am always in charge,” he said.
And though he is constantly seeking out advice, Kerry does not always follow it:
For all his eagerness to seek advice, Mr. Kerry does not always take it.
After he delivered a 35-minute speech at the University of Pittsburgh last spring, Gov. Edward G. Rendell of Pennsylvania gently tried to reinforce a message Mr. Kerry’s aides had been struggling to impart.
“I said I thought it was a little long for an outdoor speech,” Mr. Rendell recalled. “My rule of thumb for an outdoor speech is 15 to 20 minutes.”
That night at the Philadelphia Convention Center, Mr. Rendell prepped Mr. Kerry by saying the crowd was full of party veterans and urging him to keep his speech short. He talked for 32 minutes.
When Mr. Kerry arrived in Allentown early this month for a rally at the fairgrounds, Mr. Rendell did not even mention his 20-minute outdoor rule. “I’ve given up,” Mr. Rendell said. “He listens sometimes, and he doesn’t listen sometimes.”
Mr. Kerry spoke for 38 minutes.
Texans 24 Chiefs 21. In the biggest upset of the young NFL season, the Texans took advantage of a Trent Green blunder that resulted in Marcus Coleman‘s 102 interception return for a touchdown to edge the Chiefs at Arrowhead on Kris Brown’s 49 yard field goal with 2 seconds to play. The Chiefs really should have won this game, as they were about to go up 21-6 when Coleman picked off Green. But David Carr overcame another mediocre performance for three quarters and played well down the stretch along with receivers Johnson, Gaffney, and newcomer Derick Armstrong to pull out in impressive victory. The Texans have the Raiders and Vikings the next two weeks at home, and the Texans have a shot in both games if they can slow the offenses of the opposition as they did in the Chiefs game.
The Cowboys play the Redskins on Monday Night Football this week.
Texas 35 Rice 13. The Horns pounded the gritty Owls in what amounted to a scrimmage as Texas continues to prepare for their October 9th showdown in Dallas with OU. As of now, I don’t think Texas can throw well enough to move the ball consistently on OU and the Horns do not seem strong enough defensively to keep OU’s offense in a low scoring game. But Texas does have serious offensive talent in Young and Benson, so a surprise in Dallas is possible. However, at this point, I just don’t see how the Horns win that game. OU plays their first tough game of the season this coming Saturday against Texas Tech, while the Horns tune up against Baylor. Rice goes to San Jose State this Saturday, which is a very winnable game for the Owls.
Miami 38 Houston 13. THe Coogs improbably made a game of it with the Hurricanes into the third quarter, but the Miami defense ultimately proved too strong for the Coogs to score enough points to really worry the Canes, although the Coogs beat the spread comfortably. As usual, Miami’s defense is big-time good, but the Canes’ offense is not National Championship caliber this season. The Coogs go to Memphis this Saturday, which is definitely no picnic. Expect the Coogs to be 1-4 after this Saturday.
The Texas Aggies were idle as they prepare for their Big 12 opener against Kansas State in College Station next Saturday.
Raul Chavez improbably drove in a career-high five runs, Jason Lane went 3-for-4 with and scored twice, and Morgan Ensberg went 4-for-5 with two runs scored as the Stros hung on to their slim playoff hopes with an 11-7 win over the Brewers on Sunday afternoon at Miller Park in Milwaukee. I also think that the fact that my nephew Richard — a huge Stros fan — attended the game gave the Stros some good karma that contributed to the victory.
Jeff Kent and Lance Berkman also homered for the Stros to keep the heat on the Cubs and the Giants, who both lost on Sunday. The Stros are 1 1/2 games behind the Cubs and one game behind the Giants with six games to go at the Juice Box against the Cards and the Rockies this week.
Tim Redding (5-7), the third of eight Stros pitchers, was credited with the win after throwing a scoreless fourth inning in relief of Carlos Hernandez, who lasted only 2 1/3rd innings and appears to be fading as the season closes. Brad Lidge once again slammed the door with a 1-2-3 ninth to secure the win.
It’s been three weeks since my last periodic review of the Stros hitters’ runs created against average (“RCAA”) and the Stros pitchers’ runs saved against average (“RSAA” and RCAA explained here), and the updated statistics reflect why the Stros have not been able to overtake the Cubs and the Giants in the NL Wild Card playoff race. Here were the Stros hitters’ RCAA numbers, courtesy of Lee Sinins, through Saturday, September 25:
Lance Berkman 65
Carlos Beltran 26
Jeff Bagwell 13
Mike Lamb 11
Craig Biggio 4
Jeff Kent 1
Eric Bruntlett 0
Willy Taveras 0
Chris Tremie 0
Jason Alfaro -2
Jason Lane -2
Chris Burke -3
Orlando Palmeiro -3
Richard Hidalgo -9
Adam Everett -12
Morgan Ensberg -13
Jose Vizcaino -14
Raul Chavez -19
Brad Ausmus -26
Berkman and Beltran continue to be among the league leaders (Beltran’s RCAA would be 41 if his Royals number is included), and Lamb has really had a remarkable season overall, but the rest of the Stros hitters are now lagging. After a brief surge that pumped his RCAA to 16 at one one point, Bags has cooled off to a 13, ensuring that this will be his sixth straight season of declining production and that he will officially become the most overpaid player in terms of current production in the National League.
Similarly, after being the club’s third best hitter for much of the season, Bidg has faded badly down the stretch (he is in the midst of an 0-22 trough) as his RCAA has declined to 4. None of the other Stros regular hitters are even average National League hitters, and Ensberg, Viz, Chavez and Ausmus are among the worst hitters among regular National League hitters. The lack of run production during the just concluded road trip reflects this lack of punch in the Stros lineup.
After topping out at 6th during their late August-early September surge, the Stros have fallen back to 9th in RCAA among the 16 National League teams. The Stros (17) are comparable to the Cubs (18) in RCAA, but are way behind the Giants (85), who are riding the crest of another incredible season by Bonds (a remarkable 152 RCAA!).
However, the Stros fading hitting has been picked up by the Stros’ pitching staff, which has improved its RSAA signficantly over the past three weeks. The following are the pitchers individual RSAA:
Roger Clemens 35
Brad Lidge 23
Roy Oswalt 20
Wade Miller 10
Dan Miceli 6
Octavio Dotel 5
Andy Pettitte 5
Dan Wheeler 4
Chad Qualls 2
Darren Oliver 1
Russ Springer 1
Brandon Backe -1
David Weathers -1
Mike Gallo -3
Jeremy Griffiths -3
Chad Harville -3
Ricky Stone -3
Kirk Bullinger -6
Jared Fernandez -6
Carlos Hernandez -7
Pete Munro -9
Brandon Duckworth -10
Tim Redding -15
Clemens, Lidge and Oswalt all continue to be among the top pitchers in the National League, and Miceli has had a nice bump up since returning from the his bout with pink eye. Wheeler and Qualls have been unexpectedly solid contributors, and even Backe‘s -1 is remarkable given that he had never started a MLB game until a few weeks ago. Hernandez and Munro have faded, but that’s to be expected of two pitchers that the Stros were really not counting on this season.
The Stros (45) remain in fourth among the 16 National League teams in RSAA,
but the Cubs (117) remain far ahead of the Stros in runs saved against average. Given the difference between the Stros and the Giants in RCAA, and between the Stros and the Cubs in RSAA, it really is remarkable and a testament to the Stros’ resilience that they have remained in the Wild Card race all the way to the final week of the season. Based on the numbers, both the Cubs and the Giants should be well ahead of the Stros in the race.
Oh, and by the way, before you think about criticizing Gerry Hunsicker or Drayton McLane for the trades of Hidalgo and Dotel earlier this season. Please note that Hidalgo is currently sporting a negative 20 RCAA. That’s worse than Chavez for goodness sakes and puts him among the ten worst hitters among regular players in the National League. I liked Hidalgo as much as the next fellow, but he’s on the brink of playing himself out the league at this level of production.
And Dotel? His RSAA for the season is 7, which is about as good as Miceli, nowhere near Lidge’s RSAA, and a significant drop in Dotel’s production from the past three seasons. Inasmuch as it is always better to trade a pitcher before they bottom out so that you can get some real value for him (in this case, Beltran), Hunsicker and Drayton should be applauded for this move, too.
Roy O opens the Cardinal series on Monday night and Brandon Backe is scheduled to pitch the Tuesday game before the Rocket steps up on Wednesday. If the Stros can win the first two against the Cards, then this week could get interesting.
This Washington Post story reports on Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff and public relations consultant Michael Scanlon‘s efforts in 2002 working with conservative religious activist Ralph Reed to help the state of Texas shut down an Indian tribe’s El Paso casino, and then Messrs. Abramoff and Scanlon’s incredible activities in persuading the tribe to pay $4.2 million to try to get Congress to reopen it once it had been closed. In the end, Messrs. Abramoff and Scanlon failed to get the casino reopened. Here is an earlier post from Charles Kuffner on the early stages of the investigation into the matter.
H’mm, let’s see now. Work the political process to get a casino closed so that you can then work the political process to get the casino reopened. Not bad work if you can get it.
The Brewers’ Wes Obermueller pitched a six-hitter for his first career shutout and the Brewers for all practical purposes finished the Stros’ fragile playoff chances with an 8-0 victory over the Stros on Saturday at Miller Park in Milwaukee. The Stros are now 2.5 games behind the Cubs and 1.5 games behind the Giants in the Wild Card playoff race with seven games to go. Folks, it’s over.
It is fitting that this type of game was the one that sealed the Stros’ fate. Except for the first month of the season and then the late August-mid September streak that got the Stros back in the playoff race, the Stros — with the exception of Berkman and Beltran — have struggled hitting generally and with power in particular. Five singles and a double off of Wes Obermueller is simply not going to win many games during a race for a playoff spot.
Pete Munro (4-7) gave up three runs — two earned — and five hits in four innings, and then Tim Redding came in and showed why he was demoted to AAA ball for much of this season.
Carlos Hernandez gets the start in the Stros’ last road game of the season on Sunday afternoon against the Brewers. Then the Stros return to the Juice Box for three games series against the Cards and then the Rockies to finish the season that could have been.
In a surprise move, Plano, Texas-based Perot Systems Corp. announced Friday that Ross Perot Jr. had dropped CEO from his title at the Plano, Texas computer services firm and given up the founding family’s operational control of the company.
Peter Altabef, 45, the company’s general counsel, succeeds Mr. Perot as president and chief executive. Mr. Altabef has been a Perot Systems executive for 11 years, since joining the company from the Dallas office of law firm Hughes & Luce LLP, which has long been the Perot family’s law firm. Del Williams, a longtime Perot family friend, succeeds Mr. Altabef as general counsel.
Mr. Perot, 45, will become chairman of the company, succeeding his father, Ross Perot, Sr., 74, who becomes chairman emeritus. The changes in top management allow the Perots to maintain input into the strategic direction of the company while leaving day-to-day management decisions to others.
Mr. Perot Sr. founded Perot Systems in 1988 after leaving his first company, Plano-based Electronic Data Systems Corp, which he sold to General Motors in 1984 in a $2.5 billion deal. Mr. Perot is generally credited with inventing the computer services industry.
Mr. Perot, Jr. is also chairman of the real estate investment company he founded, Hillwood Development Corp. He took the Perot Systems reins from his father in 2000 and earned generally positive performance reviews from on Wall Street.
Roger Clemens pitched 7 plus innings of five hit, shutout ball and the Stros finally scratched out a run in the top of the 10th to beat the Brew Crew 1-0 on Friday night at Miller Park in Milwaukee.
The win allowed the Stros to keep pace with the Wild Card playoff race leading Cubs, who beat the Mets. Things are looking increasingly bleak for the Stros as they remain 2 1/2 games behind the Cubs with 8 games to go. The Stros would have to win at least 7 of those final 8 games to win a playoff berth if either the Giants or the Cubs just split their final 8 games. Although the Stros have won 7 of their last 10 games, the 8-2 Cubs have gained ground on them and the 7-3 Giants have also kept pace with them.
Nevertheless, Clemens was magnificent again as he dominated the Brewers for the second time in a week. The Rocket struck out 12 while walking three before giving way to Lidge and Miceli, who closed the game without giving up a hit. The Stros finally broke through with the winning run in the 10th as pinch-runner Willie Taveras went from first to third on Carlos Beltran‘s bloop single and then scored on Bidg‘s sac fly.
After a lull of over a week now, the Stros need to start hitting the ball and scoring runs quickly as Pete Munro takes the mound in the Saturday afternoon game against the Brewers’ Wes Obermueller(5-8/6.35). The Stros have penciled in Carlos Hernandez to start the Sunday afternoon game.