DG139 - Part 1

There currently are only a handful of players with dreads in MLB; but it sure was a blast watching them perform in 2012.
If you've been following this blog over the years, you already know that I like to ring in the start of another baseball season with a look at the previous season. Yes, I'm aware that the season begins in the first week of April, not May. But due to a lack of time, I didn't have this DG ready in the first week of April. But it's ready to go now, so without further delay, here's dread gallery 139 - a look at MLB 2012.
For your enhancement I'll be including links to some videos from MLB.com  I recommend you click on them; but if you do, be prepared to sit through a 15-second commercial.

We'll start Part 1 with a new member of the house in 2012. Prince Fielder dabbled with starter dreads a couple of times during his 6 seasons with the Brewers. Finally, in his first season with the Tigers after signing as a free agent, he decided to take the plunge.

1. Prince Fielder connects for his 2nd solo HR of the game, giving Tigers a 7-0 lead over Red Sox during 5th inning on Apr. 7. He also homered in the 4th. They were his first two HR of the season as the Tigers won 10-0.

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2. Prince Fielder fixes his skull cap, which came loose after he slid into 2nd with a stolen base during 4th inning at Kansas City on Apr. 18. It was his only SB of the season. Fielder didn't score after the SB but later hit an RBI single in 7th to drive in the winning run of a 4-3 victory over Royals.
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3. It's not even a close play at 1st base, but the umpire still managed to blow it, calling Fielder out on what should have been an infield single during 2nd inning on June 29 at St. Petersburg. Tigers went on to lose 4-2, their only loss to the Rays in the 4-game series.
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4. Everybody got a good look at Prince's dreads after he got beaned by a pickoff throw by P Aaron Cook during 4th inning on Aug. 1 at Boston .....
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5. ..... The trainer came out to check him out, but Prince was OK. He scored moments later on an RBI single by Brennan Boesch and his next time up hit his 17th HR of the season as Tigers won 7-5.
Here's the video of the play: http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=23538061&c_id=mlb
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6. I bet Rangers P Martin Perez didn't expect his 1st game in the majors to go like this. Covering 1st base on an infield grounder during 8th inning on June 27, the 165-pound Perez ends up in the path of the 275-pound Fielder .....
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7. ..... Prince tackles Perez as gently as possible as they go to the ground. Both players were OK, although Perez, having already allowed 1 run in the inning, was relieved with the bases loaded. Rangers held on for a 13-9 victory.
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8. Fielder lets his dreads hang loose, going without a helmet or cap as he competes in the HR Derby on July 9 at Kansas City, one night before the All-Star Game. After a slow start in the 1st round, Prince put on quite a show in the final two rounds .....
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9. Prince and his two sons, Jaden (on left) and Haven, celebrate after he won the competition, swatting a total of 28 HR. Here's a look at his final round: http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=22977031&c_id=mlb&topic_id=vtp_asg_sponsor
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10. How many Tigers does it take to catch a foul ball? More than three apparently, as Fielder, C Gerald Laird, and P Rick Porcello fail to catch a bunt that was popped up by Twins 2B Jamey Carroll during 4th inning at Detroit on July 5. Porcello was charged with the error, but it was Fielder, roaming all the way from his position at 1B toward home plate, who caused the collision. No harm was done though, as Carroll was retired on the next pitch. Trailing 3-2 in the 8th, Tigers scored 5 runs, including a 3-run HR by Fielder to break a 3-3 tie, to win 7-3.  
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11. Prince Fielder and CF Austin Jackson, last seen at the end of DG124 Part 2 practicing handshakes in the dugout before a spring training game, show that practice makes perfect after an 8-6 home win over Angels on July 16. 





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12. P Max Scherzer is one happy man after Fielder scored the tying run against Pittsburgh during bottom of 7th inning on May 20. A few minutes later, a 2-run single by Alex Avila gave Tigers the lead, making Scherzer, who had 15 strikeouts in 7 IP, the winning pitcher as Tigers held on for a 4-3 victory.
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13. In 2nd inning of Game 2 of the World Series, Fielder tries to score from 1st on a double by LF Delmon Young but is tagged (barely) by C Buster Posey before crossing home plate .....
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14. ..... Prince is incredulous as he is called out by umpire Dan Iassonga for the first out in the top of the 2nd. It turned out to be a huge turning point in the game and maybe even the series. With no outs, Fielder should have stayed at 3rd, from where he likely would have scored later in the inning. But he gambled and lost, and Tigers ended up being shut out 2-0 as Giants took a 2-0 lead in the series. Here is the play: http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=25451829&c_id=mlb&topic_id=vtp_manager_postgame 
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15. Prince Fielder walks away from home plate after striking out to end bottom of 1st in Game 4 of the World Series on Oct. 28. It was a tough Series for Prince. He went 1 for 14 with 0 RBI in the Giants' 4-game sweep. And he was just 9 for 52 (.173) with 3 RBI in the Tigers' 13 postseason games. Before that he had another solid regular season (although not his best), finishing with 100+ RBI for the 4th time in his career and with 30+ HR for the 6th straight season. He batted a career best .313 (including .338 with runners in scoring position), 83 runs, 33 doubles, 1 triple, 30 HR and 108 RBI in 162 games. That was good enough for him to finish in 9th place in the voting for AL MVP. His presence in the cleanup spot in the lineup provided excellent protection for 3B Miguel Cabrera, who did so well batting 3rd that he won the AL triple crown. Even better, Prince decided to keep his dreads for another season. He's off to a fine start in 2013, so hopefully the dreads are here to stay. 
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Playing his 3rd season with dreads, Darnell McDonald's dreads were finally starting to get to a decent length; then, all of a sudden, they were gone. But before being forced to the ex-dread list, Darnell had some interesting moments with the Red Sox in 2012.

16. Pinch running for David Ortiz in top of the 9th, Darnell McDonald dives home safely with the winning run, ahead of the tag by Blue Jays C J.P. Arencibia, on a 2-out single by RF Ryan Sweeney on Apr. 9. Red Sox scored 3 in the 9th to win 4-2 and pick up their 1st victory of the season after starting 0-3.
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17. Darnell McDonald follows through as he hits a sacrifice fly for his 1st RBI of the season, giving Red Sox a 6-0 lead over Yankees during 3rd inning on Apr. 21 ......
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18. ...... But later in the game, the scoreboard behind McDonald tells the story as Yankees bat in top of the 8th, having wiped out their 9-0 deficit. 7 runs in both the 7th and 8th innings (how often do you see that?) send Red Sox to a 15-9 defeat, dropping their record to 4-10.
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19. With Red Sox out of pitchers, McDonald takes the mound for the top of 17th inning against Orioles in a 6-6 tie on May 6. It didn't stay tied for long .....
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20. Darnell waits for CF Adam Jones to finish rounding the bases after his 3-run HR puts Orioles in front 9-6. Adding insult to insult, in bottom of 17th, with Rangers (also out of pitchers) DH Chris Davis on the mound, McDonald grounded into a double play (on a hard-hit grounder) with 2 on to end the game. It was the first time in 87 years that position players were the winning and losing pitchers in a MLB game. Here's a look at Darnell's lack of success on the mound: http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=21222095&c_id=mlb ...... And a quick story from the Boston Globe: http://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2012/05/07/mound-woes-for-mcdonald/P1qak2cxeDNbtGXeN7R9NI/story.html
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21. Worried about being rear-ended by McDonald, 2B Dustin Pedroia drops a pop fly to shallow RF off the bat of Cubs SS Starlin Castro that goes for an RBI double during 3rd inning at Wrigley Field on June 17. Here's the video: http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=22386177&c_id=mlb ..... McDonald did better later in the game, hitting a double to begin a 3-run rally in 7th as Red Sox won 7-3.
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22. At Fenway Park 9 days later, Darnell gets there in time this time, calling off SS Mike Aviles to catch a ball by Blue Jays 2B Kelly Johnson that was not deep enough to score the runner from 3rd base in 1st inning of Red Sox' 5-1 victory.
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23. The next day McDonald retires Johnson again, but it's a lot more difficult as Darnell lands on the RF wall after making the catch to rob Johnson of a HR in top of the 9th: http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=22635727&c_id=mlb
Red Sox won 10-4, but that would be the last Red Sox Nation would see of McDonald's dreads. He was designated for assignment three days later on June 30, put on waivers, and claimed by ..... the Yankees.As we all know, the Yankees are one of the few teams in MLB that doesn't allow you to have dreads. And said McDonald after being told he had to cut his off, "I wanted to cry." So did I. What really ticked me off was that the Yankees really had no intention of keeping him for long. In fact, he was with them for less than two weeks before being sent to the minors. Here's the sad story from the WEEI website: http://fullcount.weei.com/sports/baseball/red-sox/2012/07/06/derek-jeter-welcomes-darnell-mcdonald-to-the-yankees-by-making-him-cut-his-hair/ .... Two and a half years' worth of dreads for 11 days (4 games) with the Yankees. It just ain't fair.
McDonald is still in the minors as 2013 begins, now in the Cubs organization playing at Iowa. I presume he's growing his hair back, but I haven't really checked yet. Darnell's numbers for 2012: .205 BA (18 for 88), .309 OBA, 17 runs, 7 doubles, 2 HR, 9 RBI, and 2 errors in 38 games.
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Prince Fielder wasn't the only new member of the house in 2012. We also welcomed infielder Emmanuel Burriss, a reserve utilityman with the Giants until he was sent to the minors in late July. Of course, if you were at the ball park, it was nearly impossible to know that Burriss had dreads because they were brand new.

24. Here Burriss congratulates P Santiago Casilla after Casilla gets the save in a 2-0 victory over the Dodgers on June 26.
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25. Indeed the only way to have seen Emmanuel Burriss' dreads last season was when he had his hat off, as he does here in the dugout on May 12, during a 5-2 victory at Arizona.
Burriss started a lot of games at 2B in the first two months of the season but didn't hit well enough to keep the job. He ended up batting .213 (29 for 136) with an on-base average of .270, 15 runs, 1 double, 7 RBI, and 5 SB in 60 games. He signed with the Reds during the offseason ......
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26. ..... And here he is during a spring training game on Mar. 1, being tagged out by Royals SS Alcides Escobar while trying to steal 2nd. Burriss didn't make the team and is back in the minors, playing at Louisville at the start of 2013.
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2012 was not a good season at all for the Weeks brothers. No doubt it was very cool to see their dreads; but man, it was tough watching them both struggle so badly. Slowed by the ankle injury he suffered in 2011 that still hadn't fully healed when the season began, Rickie was downright horrible the first two months before finishing kind of strong. Younger brother Jemile had no such excuse. He was just plain bad, unable to regain the success he had as a rookie in 2011, and eventually had to be sent to the minors in August.
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27. Umpire Rob Drake makes sure Rickie Weeks heads to 1st base, and not the mound, after being hit by the first pitch thrown by Astros P Bud Norris during bottom of 1st at Milwaukee on Apr. 18. With the 13 times he was HBP in 2012, Rickie went over the 100 mark for his career, ending the season with 108 HBP .....
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28. ..... Rickie gets his revenge a little later, rounding the bases after belting a 3-run HR off Norris to give Brewers a 7-2 lead in 6th inning. Brewers went on to win 9-6. After getting just 3 RBI in the first 17 games, Weeks got 3 on this one swing of the bat; but it would be another 3 weeks before he got another .....
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29. ..... The next RBI came on May 15, as Rickie follows through on a 411-foot drive into the seats at Citi Field in top of the 7th, finishing the scoring in an 8-0 win over the Mets. The HR was his first hit since May 6, breaking an 0 for 21 skid:  http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=21466457&c_id=mlb  
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30. 2B Rickie Weeks makes the tag too late, and CF Jordan Schafer is safe at 2nd with a double during 3rd inning of Astros' 4-0 home victory on May 17. Rickie's dreads were only visible from the back in 2012, as it was the first season they were long enough for him to have to band them together.
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31. Again Weeks is late with the tag, as ex-dread SS Jose Reyes steals 2nd during 1st inning of Marlins' 7-3 home win on Sept. 3.
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32. Rickie has an up-close view as 1B Mat Gamel injures himself, crashing into the wall while trying to catch a foul ball by C Nick Hundley during 1st inning of Padres' 2-0 victory on May 1. Gamel suffered a torn ACL.
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33. Rickie Weeks has a slight collision with 2B Elian Herrera after throwing to 1st to turn a double play, ending the Dodgers' threat in bottom of 7th on May 30. Brewers held on to win 6-3, the 3rd victory in their improbable 4-game sweep at Dodger Stadium. Brewers entered the series 19-28 and Dodgers were 32-15. It was the first time in 19 years Dodgers had been swept at home in a 4-game series. Weeks' batting average had hit a rock bottom .152 before the start of the series. He went 3 for 13 in the series, raising it to .158 and beginning his long climb back to respectability. 








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34. Brewers also had success against Dodgers in an April series, winning 2 out of 3 at Milwaukee. Here Weeks slides into 2nd base safely past the tag of 2B Mark Ellis for a double in bottom of the 3rd of Brewers' 3-2 win on Apr. 18. Rickie also walked twice in the game, making it one of only two games in April where he reached base 3 times.





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35. Weeks crashes into 2B Omar Infante as he dives safely into 2nd with a double with 1 out in bottom of 10th on July 4. But he was stranded at 2nd as Marlins held on for the victory 7-6. Rickie finished the season with 29 doubles.
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36. After making a diving stop of a ground ball, Rickie Weeks throws from his knees to retire Royals 1B Eric Hosmer during bottom of 1st at Kansas City on June 14. Weeks made the play here. but .....
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37. ..... With the game on the line in bottom of the 9th, he can't catch the throw that came to him from SS Edwin Maysonet after a game-tying RBI single by PH Brayan Pena. By the time he got a handle on the ball and threw home, it was too late as CF Jarrod Dyson sped home with the winning run: http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=22293787&c_id=mlb&topic_id=vtp_budweiser ..... You can blame Rickie for that poor throw home; but for real, wtf was Maysonet throwing the ball to 2nd base for? With the running run at 3rd, there's no reason to throw it to 2nd; and then it's a bad throw to 2nd to boot. Anyway, it was one of several games during the season the Brewers lost after leading in the 9th inning.
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38. After hitting a triple with 1 out in top of 2nd on June 17, Weeks loses his helmet but not his skull cap as Twins C Joe Mauer tags him out trying to score on a ground ball by SS Cody Ransom. Rickie had his first 3-hit game of the season, going 3 for 6, but Brewers lost 5-4 in 15 innings.






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39. It was a bittersweet moment for me on June 22, as Weeks follows through on an RBI single in top of 10th, driving in the only run of the game in a 1-0 win over White Sox. Rickie went 2 for 4, raising his BA to .186.
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40. Wearing a Negro League Milwaukee Bears uniform on July 28, Rickie Weeks follows through after connecting for an RBI single in bottom of 4th, driving in Brewers' only run in their 4-1 loss to Washington. Weeks went 2 for 3, raising his BA to .209 - the highest it had been since Apr. 18.
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41. Bothered by the sliding Darwin Barney, Weeks can't get the throw to 1st in time for a double play during 3rd inning of Brewers' 3-2 win over Cubs at Milwaukee on Aug. 22. Though not successful here, Rickie was involved in 78 of the 133 DPs the Brewers turned in 2012.
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42. After reaching 1st on a HBP during 2nd inning at Minneapolis on June 14, Rickie gets his 5th stolen base of the season, as 2B Alexi Casilla catches the late throw. Weeks finished the season with 16 SB, while being caught stealing only 3 times.
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43. Weeks is guilty of a baserunning blunder at Cincinnati on Sept. 25, getting picked off 1st base by P Johnny Cueto on a 3-2 count during top of 1st: http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=25072375&c_id=mlb ..... Sorry, Rickie, I got to agree with the announcers. When the count is 3-2, it's not your job to try to get a good jump and steal the base. You have to make sure the pitcher throws home, and it's the batter's job to make contact so that you don't get thrown out.
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44. Anyway, let's conclude the Rickie Weeks portion of DG139 on a happy note. Here Rickie follows through after blasting a 2-run HR to get Brewers on the board during top of 3rd at Miami on Sept. 5. It was the first of 2 homers in the game for Weeks, as his season high 4 RBI helped lead Brewers to an 8-5 win: http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=24535735&c_id=mlb&topic_id=vtp_star_of_the_game

Weeks made a nice comeback after spending most of May in the .150's. But still he finished with a career worst .230 BA (.328 OBA), including a very poor .201 with runners in scoring position. He also had 85 runs, 4 triples, 21 HR, and 63 RBI. Defensively he fielded .974 and committed 16 errors, which is not good for a 2B but is a normal year for him.
After a year like that, I'd like to say there's nowhere to go but up; but that's not true, of course. Let's just hope we don't see another season as bad as that one in the seasons ahead.

2012 went even worse for Rickie's brother, Jemile. It's not like everything went wrong for Jemile. He did, in fact, contribute to several victories for the Athletics. But he just didn't contribute enough. While Rickie's batting average went way down and then steadily climbed, Jemile's was consistent - hovering between .215 and .225 for most of the season. The team patiently waited for him to get going; but when they (unexpectedly) found themselves in the middle of the pennant race, that patience came to an end in the middle of August. I thought they would just take him out of the starting lineup; but they got rid of him altogether, demoting him to the minors. Not coincidentally, the A's went 29-12 after he was demoted and ended up winning the AL West by 1 game.

As for his dreads, nobody else's made a better showing in 2012. Jemile's dreads were not quite long enough for him to need to band them together, so pretty much at some point in every game you'd see his hat or helmet come flying off.
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45. Playing 2B on defense is no piece of cake, as Jemile finds out here, being upended by Angels C Chris Ianetta while trying to turn a double play during 6th inning of Athletics' 4-2 road win on Apr. 19.
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46. The next night at Oakland, it's Indians PR Aaron Cunningham going after Weeks instead of sliding into the base, but Jemile gets the throw to 1st in time for the double play to help A's get out of a jam in top of the 8th. Weeks went 2 for 5 with 1 run in the game, but Indians won 4-3.
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47. After finishing April with a total of only 3 RBI, Jemile Weeks gets 2 on this one swing in the first game in May, connecting for a 2-out, 2-run single, increasing Athletics lead to 4-0 in top of 4th of what ended up a 5-3 win over Red Sox. In only one other game all season did Jemile have as many a 2 RBI.
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48. Jemile's best asset as a player is his excellent speed; but this wasn't one of his better moments on Apr. 27. After battling through a 10-pitch at bat to draw a leadoff walk, he's caught stealing 2nd by a mile a couple of pitches later, as Orioles SS J.J. Hardy just waits for him to slide into the tag for the 1st out in top of 3rd. But Athletics won the game 5-2.
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49. This time Jemile is caught stealing 3rd base, after breaking too early and being thrown out by the pitcher, with Royals 3B Mike Moustakas applying the tag to end top of 3rd on June 1. Normally it's a no-no to get caught stealing 3rd with 2 out; but since this would have been a double steal (there was a runner on 1st too), I'll excuse him (a bit). A's ended up not scoring at all as Royals won 2-0. Jemile finished the season being caught stealing 5 times.
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50. As you might have noticed, Weeks prefers the head-first dive instead of sliding feet first into a base. Here he steals 3rd base on the front end of a double steal during bottom of 1st for his 7th SB of the season. Both runners were stranded, however, and A's went on to lose to Blue Jays 5-2.






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51. Here's Jemile Weeks on his belly yet again, diving into 3rd with a triple to lead off top of the 4th against Texas on June 29. He scored shortly thereafter on a Yoenis Cespedes RBI single to put Oakland ahead 1-0. But Rangers came back to win 4-3. Jemile was among the AL leaders in triples in 2012, finishing the season tied for 3rd place with 8.





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52. In a cloud of chalk dust, Weeks slides home feet first for a change, scoring on a wild pitch by Yu Darvish to give A's a 2-1 lead in 6th inning on July 1. Athletics went on to defeat Rangers 3-1 to avoid a 4-game sweep and begin their long climb back from a 13-game deficit behind Texas.
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53. In an earlier series vs. Rangers, Jemile's dreads fly as he is tagged out by SS Elvis Andrus for the 1st out of the game on May 17. Trying to steal 2nd with a lefthanded pitcher on the mound, Jemile broke too soon and was picked off.
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54. Jemile Weeks loses his helmet (again) and collides with SS Erick Aybar as he successfully steals 2nd in 6th inning at Anaheim on May 15. But A's lost to Angels 4-0. Jemile finished the season with 16 SB.
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55. SS Cliff Pennington gets the worst of this collision as Weeks catches a pop fly by Giants C Buster Posey to end bottom of 7th in a 6-2 Oakland victory on May 20.
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56. The next night at Oakland Jemile avoids the collision this time, but neither he nor 1B Daric Barton can catch the pop fly by that ended up being an RBI double for Angels LF Mike Trout during 5th inning. It was the Angels' only run of the game in a 2-1 Oakland victory: http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=21648909& c_id=mlb
 Weeks improved slightly defensively over his rookie season in 2011, fielding at a .977 percentage with 11 errors in 113 games.
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57. It was not a happy Father's Day (notice the sky blue wristbands) for Athletics fans. Jemile Weeks retreats to the dugout after striking out with runners at 1st and 3rd in bottom of 9th to end the game. The strikeout capped an 0 for 5 day for Jemile in a 2-1 loss to Padres that ended Oakland's 5-game winning streak.
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58. Wearing a throwback Oakland Oaks uniform on July 8, Weeks makes it safely from 2nd to 3rd on an infield single to SS by Yoenis Cespedes, eluding the tag by Mariners 3B Kyle Seager in bottom of 1st. He did not score then .....
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59. ..... But after leading off 13th inning with a single, Jemile races home with the winning run on an RBI double by DH Josh Reddick, giving Oakland a 2-1 victory that capped a 5-1 homestand. July 8 was a successful day for all the MLB players with dreads, including Jemile, who reached base on 2 singles and 2 walks .....
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60. ..... As Reddick is interviewed after the game, Weeks and C Kurt Suzuki are on target with a pair of shaving cream pies to his face.
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61. On July 30 it's Jemile's turn to get the treatment from his teammates after his sacrifice fly in bottom of 15th inning gives the A's a 4-3 victory over Rays in a game that lasted 5 hours 9 minutes: http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=23492561&c_id=mlb
It was Athletics' 12th walkoff victory of the season and it improved their record to 19-4 in July. After the game Jemile, who was 0 for 7 in the game before getting the game winning RBI, got the extra special treatment from his teammates. Reddick got him back for that pie in the face three weeks earlier, and he ended up with drenched dreads: http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=23492857&c_id=mlb ..... Ah yes, nothing like a nice cold shower, right Jemile?
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After their great July, the A's spent the first three weeks of August treading water, remaining between 4 and 6 games behind in the AL West. And on Aug. 21 they decided they needed a more productive 2nd baseman. Just before the Athletics' official 2012 team picture was to be taken prior to their game against Minnesota, Jemile was informed he would not be part of that team picture and that his services were no longer needed. Here's how he took the news: http://blog.sfgate.com/athletics/2012/08/21/jemile-weeks-reaction-to-being-optioned-by-the-as/
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62. On Sept. 6 Jemile Weeks is congratulated by 3rd base coach (and manager) Darren Bush after hitting a HR to lead off bottom of 3rd, giving River Cats a 1-0 lead in Game 2 of their best-of-5 playoff series against Reno. Sacramento won the game 1-0 but ended up losing the series 3-2. Weeks batted .333 with 10 RBI in 10 games for the River Cats. He rejoined the A's on Sept. 10 but appeared in just 5 games the rest of the season, spending most of the last three weeks as a cheerleader as the A's finished the season with a thrilling 3-game sweep of Texas to steal the AL West from the Rangers, who had been in 1st place since Apr. 9. Since he was added to the roster after Sept. 1, Jemile was ineligible to be on the postseason roster.
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63. His curiosity no doubt piqued by all the football yard lines painted over on the field (with the Marlins' new stadium opening in 2012, Oakland is now the last remaining city in MLB where the baseball and football teams play on the same field), rookie OF Yoenis Cespedes from Cuba gets a lesson in Football 101 from Jemile Weeks before the Athletics' game vs. Mariners on Sept. 30: How to throw to Football .....
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64. ...... Uh, it looks like he's gonna need some more lessons. Actually though, at 5-foot-10, 210 pounds, he'd probably be a RB instead of a QB. Cespedes won't need to worry about playing football anytime soon. He did so well for the A's that he finished 2nd in the voting for AL rookie of the year.
As for Jemile, he finished 2012 batting .221 (98 for 444), with a .305 OBA, 54 runs, 15 doubles, 2 HR, 20 RBI, 50 walks, and 70 strikeouts. I know he's not a big RBI guy; but 20 RBI in 444 at bats is an embarrassingly low total for anybody.
Weeks didn't really get a shot at winning back the starting 2B job with the A's in spring training this year; and there's some speculation that he's already played his final game with the A's. He's back in Sacramento to start 2013 and currently batting over .300. We know he can hit in the minors, so it's really a waste of time for him to be there. I just hope if the A's decide to trade him, please at least send him to a team that lets him keep his dreads. 
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That's all for Part 1. In Part 2, we'll look at some players who did very well in 2012.