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« Cubs Aggressively Pursuing Brian Roberts | Main | Rockies Rumors: Iguchi, Grudzielanek, Rusch, Fukumori »
UPDATE, 12-5-07 at 11:02pm: According to Nats GM Jim Bowden, they've talked with Pena about an extension but no agreement has been reached.
FROM 12-5-07 at 8:35pm:
ESPN's Enrique Rojas reports that the Nationals have signed Wily Mo Pena to a two-year extension worth $7MM. He'll get $2MM in '08 and $5MM in '09. The deal buys out one year of free agency.
Is Wily Mo worth it? Hard to say, as his development has stalled a bit after spending a few years as Boston's extra outfielder.
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Perfectly capable of putting up 25-30 HR's in each of those 2 years. Not a bad idea. Worst case scenario, its 7 mil down the drain.
Posted by: Reywtf | December 05, 2007 at 08:40 PM
Exactly. It's not a terrible contract either way, and he has that whole "upside" thing. Problem is he has to realize it. Oh, and learn to hit a curve.
Posted by: hawkeyenation | December 05, 2007 at 08:43 PM
25-30 HRs mean nothing when your OBP is a measly .320
Posted by: JerseyMetFan | December 05, 2007 at 08:44 PM
absolutley, he could easily be the next Carlos Pena surprise.
Posted by: Ellis | December 05, 2007 at 08:44 PM
Wily Mo is about to blow up. They'll be trying to re-extend him at this point next season.
Posted by: Blue | December 05, 2007 at 08:47 PM
I remember when Bronson Arroyo was traded to the Reds for Wily Mo. I think it was the first week when Arroyo hit a home run in Cincinnati and Wily Mo fumbled a catch in Fenway that ended up going over the fence.
Arroyo +1 HR
Wily Mo -1 HR
Boston was furious!
Posted by: el clash combo | December 05, 2007 at 08:48 PM
"25-30 HRs mean nothing when your OBP is a measly .320"
Add about a dozen points to the OBP and it gets you $90MM in beautiful California.
Posted by: Not Joe Morgan | December 05, 2007 at 09:10 PM
Wily Mo is capable of 40 HR Power. He hit 26 in 110 games (364 PAs) in 2004. He will never be an OBP machine, but he'll be a solid contributor and a cheap one at that. I think this is a great deal for the Nats. Now just let Wily Mo play everyday.
Posted by: andy | December 05, 2007 at 09:10 PM
He's a good bet to hit 30 HR's and probably not a great batting avg or OPB, and if the Nats are happy with that then it's a good deal.
Posted by: WHITESOX | December 05, 2007 at 09:20 PM
""25-30 HRs mean nothing when your OBP is a measly .320"
Add about a dozen points to the OBP and it gets you $90MM in beautiful California."
I believe Not Joe Morgan just won that argument.
And Wily Mo Pena has great potential to break out. He never really got a decent shot in Boston, but he's gonna start in right field this year. I can't think of a guy more likely to pull a Carlos Pena and essentially do nothing the season before and then hit 40 HR
Posted by: scribbletone | December 05, 2007 at 09:20 PM
Well said NotJoeMorgan.
OBP is very nice, but it is very expensive these days.
Posted by: andy | December 05, 2007 at 09:20 PM
I wish Boston had really given Pena a chance. He never looked comfortable coming off the bench.
Posted by: GMcK | December 05, 2007 at 09:26 PM
With Wily, it's not an issue of power. He's a behemoth and he could hit the damn moon on a good swing. He is either going to get comfortable, learn to take a few pitches and especially learn to hit breaking pitches... or he'll just be what he always has been, the bumbling giant.
Posted by: the Impossible Dream | December 05, 2007 at 09:30 PM
At what point are people going to realize that he won't live up to the hype. How many teams has been on now? 3 teams in 5 years.
Not like he was traded for much either.
I chalk him up as a guy that fans think can do really well. However, the talent evaluators obviously have noticed enough flaws to keep shuffling him from one team to another.
I think he could be decent with a consistent starting role. 30+ homers with a passable average may be asking too much though.
It's funny how Pena gets soooooo much love but people HATE Pedro Feliz. Career lines so far:
259/316/472
252/288/433
The difference is about 10 extra walks a few HR's over the course of a season. Add to it that Feliz is GG at a skilled infield position. If Pena was starting and put up his career line people would gripe about him just like they gripe about Feliz.
Posted by: bjsguess | December 05, 2007 at 10:45 PM
I've always liked Pena, and I'm one of the fans that's still waiting for his break out year.
Kind of off topic, but batting wise, I think Matt Kemp is at a crossroad in his career where he will either be the next Wily Mo(both can't hit that breaking ball), or Manny Ramirez. Yeah I said it, MANNY RAMIREZ!
Posted by: Chillin | December 05, 2007 at 11:41 PM
Getting praised for making a Wily "catch the ball?" Mo Pena comparison to Torii Hunter based off obp & hrs? Call me crazy I think a few of those mil in California are related to skills Pena is never going to posses.
Even better is the person who thinks you are suggesting it costs a lot to get a player with an obp over .320.
Posted by: walkoffblast | December 06, 2007 at 12:43 AM
Not to be a homer (which I am) and understanding it's a small sample set, in the time that WMP spent with the Nats as the everyday (kind of) left fielder, he hit .293/.352 and 8 bombs in 133 ABs. Project that over a full season of ABs, and you got your 30 HRs. And that was hitting in RFK half the time.
Posted by: DCGeeWood | December 06, 2007 at 09:26 AM
DCGeeWood: Exactly.
walkoffblast: you're right too, WMP's fielding abilities don't compare at all with Hunter's, but they're certainly not as bad as people think. He improved a LOT in just half a season of regular playing time.
bjsguess: WMP isn't over-hyped. He's got tons of potential, and he's been working loads with Lenny Harris on trying to stop pulling the ball, and go the other way with it instead, and that was a huge improvement for him. He's continued working with Harris over this offseason, and I think he's going to shock a lot of people.
Oh, and on another note, I can't think of ANYONE who would be scarrier runnign the basebaths. The man's a beast.
Posted by: bignatsfan | December 06, 2007 at 09:43 AM
I would be thrilled if the Nats played Wily Mo every day. I was shocked when the Red Sox traded Arroyo away. Even worse was when they signed Drew. I figured they'd give WMP a chance to do his 35 hr thing behind the on base giants of Big Papi and Manny, but stupidly they signed a #3 hitter in Drew for 13 mil/yr to do the job far worse the WMP would have.
Every player has a role and WMP's role is to knock people in. Free Wily Mo (from the bench)!
Posted by: toshiro | December 06, 2007 at 12:35 PM
btw NatsFan, I totally agree with you regarding Pena on the basepads. He's actually pretty fast. With his speed, he's almost as much a threat to score with hit .320 onbase as Nick Johnson with his .400 onbase.
Posted by: toshiro | December 06, 2007 at 12:38 PM