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« Jones Doesn't Fit In Cincinnati | Main | Lowe Rejected Offer, Wants $16MM Per Year »
More On Aaron Miles
Some interesting facts are mentioned in Derrick Goold's article about Aaron Miles' departure from St. Louis.
Apparently, the Cardinals were prepared to offer $4.3MM themselves - only $600,000 less than the Cubs. What drew Miles to Chicago, however, was a more sincere interest demonstrated by Cub management. As reported previously, the Cardinals waited until the last minute to give Miles their offer. Goold suggests that offer was delayed by dealings with Adam Kennedy.
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TLR lives on.
Posted by: melonis rex | January 03, 2009 at 04:11 PM
ZZzZzZzZzzz this is getting so boring. i dont care about this guy, he's not going to do anything this year except lose his job to mike fontenot. and when are the rest of the big named free agent going to sign already???
Posted by: mikelovesbaseball94 | January 03, 2009 at 04:30 PM
Miles is not worth the 4.3mil they offered, let the Cubs overpay him.
Posted by: CardinalFaninIL | January 03, 2009 at 04:43 PM
Yeah, terrible signing and I'll be shocked if he has more than a minor bench role by midseason. He is the 4th best MI on the team.
Posted by: Ender | January 03, 2009 at 04:57 PM
cards offered him a contract to for 500k less.he will be a key component this year for the cubs.he hits like theriot,has lil speed,can bunt.sorry to say,his defense is right on par with a mark derosa.i like dero,but im not sad hes gone.this is a buisness.and we are trying to win a world series.and if we have to sacrifice one righty bat for a lefty bat to even things out,so be it.we are being sold.its beautiful just to be able to make moves with something like that going on.
Posted by: cubbie75 | January 03, 2009 at 04:57 PM
well....welcome to the cubbies mr. miles
Posted by: apaks | January 03, 2009 at 04:59 PM
Cards have nothing else going on so them making late offer unacceptable.
Posted by: whitesox4life | January 03, 2009 at 05:11 PM
"Miles is not worth the 4.3mil they offered, let the Cubs overpay him."
Ha...thats what you said about the DeRosa signing at the time. Adam Kennedy just wasn't what you thought he would be...and you let him get in the way of signing your BEST middle infielder last year?
Posted by: Aduncaroo | January 03, 2009 at 05:36 PM
OT:
Heyman just said during The Hot Stove show on the MLBN that Boras wants $16MM a year for Lowe.
Mets GM will be interviewed later in the show.
Posted by: kdub | January 03, 2009 at 06:11 PM
Aaron Miles doesn't warrant a blog post! He's Aaron Miles.
Posted by: Efram Birkelstein | January 03, 2009 at 06:15 PM
yea i agree efraim,but he will produce with the cubs. and he was cards best infielder.i agree with whitesox4life,its unacceptable to cards fans.i mean they tried to sign fuentes,and whiffed.and nothing going on with them.just wondering whats next for hendry.i like his moves so far,we are being sold.
Posted by: cubbie75 | January 03, 2009 at 06:30 PM
cubbie75...you know albert pujols is an "infielder" right?
As far as not signing miles, there are some kids in the system like brendan ryan and tyler greene that are able to fill miles role for much less than 5mil.
Posted by: Redbirdfan | January 03, 2009 at 06:39 PM
"yea i agree efraim,but he will produce with the cubs. and he was cards best infielder"
LOLZ.
You know there's an infielder on the Cardinals staff who is heads and shoulders better than any of the Cubs infielders are.
Posted by: melonis rex | January 03, 2009 at 06:48 PM
".i agree with whitesox4life,its unacceptable to cards fans.i mean they tried to sign fuentes,and whiffed.and nothing going on with them"
The. Cardinals. Don't. Need. Fuentes. TLR needs to STFU and hand the closer's job to Motte/Perez. Get another lefty to shore up the pen and call the pen a day. If they struggle, fix the closer issue at the deadline.
The Cards' problem is the starting rotation, not the pen. Joel Pineiro is not an acceptable MLB starter.
Posted by: melonis rex | January 03, 2009 at 06:53 PM
yea,pujols.lol forgot about him.and the cards have a horrible rotation.they are no threat in 2009.it will come down to the cubs and astros.and the astros rotation after oswalt is horrible.but they do have a closer,and big bats.still not enough to come within 5-7 games of the division.
Posted by: cubbie75 | January 03, 2009 at 07:06 PM
"yea i agree efraim,but he will produce with the cubs. and he was cards best infielder."
You forgot about arguably the best first baseman in baseball Albert Pujols...
Posted by: Rolling{Night}Hawk{09} | January 03, 2009 at 07:07 PM
Juan Uribe is still available for the Cards, depending on whether they are willing to pay him in food.
Posted by: OmegaMan | January 03, 2009 at 07:15 PM
uribe,lol.one of the fattest middle infielders that are not 1st baseman.he fricken stinks.
Posted by: cubbie75 | January 03, 2009 at 07:17 PM
Most middle infielders are not first baseman. 100%, really.
I still think the Miles signing was simply a precursor to something else. At best, I see him as the right-handed part of a platoon with Fontenot at 2B. Even if the DeRosa trade really was nothing more than a salary dump to get Bradley, you'd have to think Cedeno could have filled a very similar role to Miles for much cheaper. He's primarily a MIF, but he's also had some work in the outfield and 3B as well.
This move essentially sends Cedeno packing in the same way that Gathright and a RF (probably Bradley) sends Pie packing. Neither have options, and neither would go unclaimed if we tried to outright them. So why pay more to sign Miles instead of keeping Cedeno unless you think you're going to get something?
Maybe it's big, maybe it's just a flip for low-level prospects, but you're going to see trades involving both of those players before Opening Day.
Posted by: Jon B. | January 03, 2009 at 07:34 PM
Letting DeRo might be a good thing in the long run. The #s
(HR/RBI/BA) posted are based on 162 games unless noted. Miles 4/43/289 doesnt have the power as DeRo (13/64/279) but is a switch hitter, and a heavy righty lineup was a problem. The questions remain who will play 2nd??, Will Fontenot (12/69/290)be the starter or will the Cubs bring up a rookie from AAA???
Bobby Scales (batsR/L)played 2nd for the Iowa Cubs and in 121 games he posted 15/59.320. The moves the Cubs have made seem like they want more lefties on the roster. Last year they had Edmonds,Ward,Haufpauir,Fukudome,Pie and Fontenot. Now going into the season they will have Miles,Fontenot,Pie,Haufpauir,Fukudomeand hopefully Bradley. With Fuld,Gaithright and Snyder battling for a spot. This has made the Cubs a more balanced team and younger. And if nothing works out,in 2010 Roberts,Anderson,Polanco,and DeRosa will all be available possibly for free agency.
Posted by: ryno23 | January 03, 2009 at 07:54 PM
The Cardinals rotation is not horrible. They have Wainwright, Wellemeyer and Lohse and maybe Chris Carpenter. I guarantee the Cardinals front office is looking at players like Randy Wolf and Oliver Perez to be a Lohse type bargin this year. I would argue that the Cardinals lineup with Pujols/Ludwick/Glaus/Ankiel is better than the Astros Berkman/Lee(whos coming off a leg injury)/Tejada. Do the astros even have a third baseman?
Posted by: Redbirdfan | January 03, 2009 at 07:58 PM
The Cubs won 97 games, being a heavy right handed team was not their problem at all. Choking/slumping in the playoffs was the problem.
Miles hits lefties better than righties btw and DeRosa hits righties better than Miles does, this downgraded the lineup against righties not improved it.
Posted by: Ender | January 03, 2009 at 08:31 PM
cubbie75, it's interesting you talk that way considering 5 of the 8 Cardinals players were worth more than their Cubs counterparts last season, according to fangraphs.
And one of those wins for the Cubs was Soto over Molina, which is really could go to Molina considering fangraphs doesn't have a defensive model for value for catchers, something Molina surely would win by a large margin.
Posted by: gnick55 | January 03, 2009 at 08:35 PM
melonis rex, if fixing the closer job was easy to do at the All Star Break, they would have done so last year. They blew 31 saves in 2008, so to say they don't need Fuentes is a stretch. That alone cost them a playoff berth. As for Perez and Motte, just because a guy throws hard, doesn't make him a worthwhile closer. And if a manager of Larussa's caliber (clearly with the backing of Dave Duncan) doesn't feel that Perez or Motte are ready, I'd listen.
Posted by: Devlsh | January 03, 2009 at 09:33 PM
Quoting Todd Wellemeyer as being a reason you have a strong rotation is pretty bad dude...
"And one of those wins for the Cubs was Soto over Molina, which is really could go to Molina considering fangraphs doesn't have a defensive model for value for catchers, something Molina surely would win by a large margin."
No. Defense or not, Soto is the better catcher, and was far more valuable last year. The difference in value was:
Soto: 21.8mm
Molina: 10.8
If you think Molina's defense over Soto, who is above average himself, is worth 11 mil, you are crazy. I'll give you 3...but that's about it.
"The. Cardinals. Don't. Need. Fuentes. TLR needs to STFU and hand the closer's job to Motte/Perez. Get another lefty to shore up the pen and call the pen a day. If they struggle, fix the closer issue at the deadline."
Exactly.
Posted by: Aduncaroo | January 03, 2009 at 09:39 PM
The Cards need a starter, a lefty for the pen, and a middle infielder. They have the money to address at least 2 of these needs, but continue to sit on it. It makes no sense to me.
Posted by: Aduncaroo | January 03, 2009 at 09:41 PM
I agree with Jon B. 100%. What has been downplayed about Miles vs. DeRosa is that Miles can play SS, allowing Cedeno to be traded. Without a doubt, the DeRosa trade and Miles signing were made with an eye toward future deals, be they big or small.
Posted by: icantbelieveitsnotbittner | January 03, 2009 at 09:43 PM
I agree as well, people comparing DeRosa to Miles are missing Fontenot in the equation, who actually projects to be the more valuable player next year when 3 of the 4 major systems see him being at least as good with the bat, and defensive metrics show him as the much better 2nd basemen defensively. I'm not sure its quite fact, but Fontenot isn't getting the credit he deserves. There is a good chance that if he didn't play the way he did last year, DeRosa would still be a Cub.
Posted by: Aduncaroo | January 03, 2009 at 09:54 PM
"
You forgot about arguably the best first baseman in baseball Albert Pujols..."
Arguably?
Posted by: nrmax88 | January 03, 2009 at 09:57 PM
"Arguably?"
Yeah, he is arguably the best all around player in baseball, but I don't think first base is a question. I guess Tex would be the next best thing...most people forget how albert can actually play like 5 positions...he is sick. Best player in the game right now, and will probably end up being top 5 ever.
Posted by: Aduncaroo | January 03, 2009 at 09:59 PM
Right. Wasn't he a 3B/Corner outfielder when he came up until elbow problems forced him to first? The guy is just a freak.
Posted by: nrmax88 | January 03, 2009 at 10:04 PM
Berkman is probably the 2nd best.
Posted by: gnick55 | January 03, 2009 at 10:12 PM
Yeah.. we'll see if Soto can repeat what he did last year.. i dont think its fair to ompare him with yadi quite yet. and we'll also see if miles can pull another season like last year out of his ass. There is one guy named Adam wainwright thats in that rotation, and if were gonna compare 1 season wonder stories here wellemeyer is pretty damn good. so we'll see, we'll see.
Posted by: AndrewBeavs | January 03, 2009 at 10:18 PM
Ive seen albert play shortstop in spring training too, and make 2 awesome plays. he was just born for this sport.. what else can you say?
Posted by: AndrewBeavs | January 03, 2009 at 10:22 PM
"Right. Wasn't he a 3B/Corner outfielder when he came up until elbow problems forced him to first? The guy is just a freak."
I don't even think it was elbow problems as much as it was them wanting to protect him...but probably a little of both.
"Yeah.. we'll see if Soto can repeat what he did last year.. i dont think its fair to ompare him with yadi quite yet."
I hate to break it to you, but I don't think its fair to compare Yadi to Geovanny...he isn't in the same class.
Fangraphs has Soto's value last year being worth more than what Yadier's value has been worth for his entire career! I understand that Yadi is great defensively...but Geo is no slouch either. Yes, Geo has only done it for 1.3ish years...but man, has he done it. Again, Yadi is good, but he isn't in the same class.
Posted by: Aduncaroo | January 03, 2009 at 10:59 PM
The thing between Yadi and Geo is Geo was a rookie and there is ussually a softmore slump. Last year, he did not really had to worry about a slump. Yadi got hurt some each year and I can not wait tell the first time, someone slide right in the right knee of Soto. Catching is a physical sport in baseball. Those leg pads are not soft enough to prevent legs to brake legs.
Miles is not smart leaving a team that he play 120 games all ove the place for a place that he could be bench after 2 months. Pinalla will not deal with 2 months of slumping like LaRussa did.
The Cardinals pitching is better then you think. They have not only who you know about, but watch a rookie in the minors name Mark McCormick. One who the Cubs could've drafted, but past on a few years ago. The Cardinals might also sign Oliver Perez or Randy Wolfe.
Middle infield is like this. Tyler Greene and Breden Ryan make 3 times less then what Miles is going to make for the Cubs. Free agents include Davd Eckstein, which STL might be able to sign.
All the Cardinals need is a LOOGY in the pen. They are thinking of doing the John Smoltz thing with Carp. Putting Carp in the pen. It will make the most sense.
Posted by: Knuffy | January 04, 2009 at 03:31 AM
If Adam Kennedy doesn't hit this year, get rid of his ass, if he wanted to be traded, why didn't the Cards trade him? I guess because we couldn't get anything of value. While we're sitting on our hands, all these pitchers are signing with other teams, I know a lot of them are overpaid though, we've been eating Carpenter's contract for 2 years while he's tried to make a comeback, I hope he has a good year.
Posted by: kevinj | January 04, 2009 at 04:01 AM
"Berkman is probably the 2nd best"
Berkman is a hack in the field, Teix is pretty comfortably the 2nd best now that D. Lee forgot how to hit.
Posted by: Ender | January 04, 2009 at 11:32 AM
How did D. Lee forgot how to hit? almost a .300 average, 40+ doubles, 180+ hits. Forgot how to hit? Come on gimme a break.
Posted by: uww1 | January 04, 2009 at 11:57 AM
I agree with uww1... D. Lee certainly did not forget how to hit!! There could be several different factors that could be attributed to his less than average season last year, but I think that he will be back for the Cubs... looking for a contract extension!
Posted by: Corey Kelch | January 04, 2009 at 12:50 PM
Pujols ending up as a top 5 ever?!?!? Not a chance Let's be honest Pujols is hitting in his prime right now... we have to see how he hits when he is feeling the soreness of an old man!
Posted by: Corey Kelch | January 04, 2009 at 12:53 PM
3 thinigs:
1. Please stop comparing Yadi to Soto. Soto, as of right now, is in a different class than Yadi, and its not even that close. I'm not sure what you meant by saying catching is a physical "sport" in baseball, and "Those leg pads are not soft enough to prevent legs to brake legs"...but it doesn't matter, Yadi isn't as good, period.
2. Lee didn't forget how to hit, he forgot how to hit homeruns. He isn't in the class of Berkman and Tex though, and certianly not Pujols. He is probably in the class right after that...and Howard is real good although is also bad in the field. Oh, and we are forgetting Adrian Gonzolez, who is also an absolute stud.
I'd go:
1. Pujols
2. Tex
3. Adrian
4. Berkman
5. Howard
6. Lee
Off the top of my head...hope I didn't miss anyone.
3. You don't think Pujols has a good chance of being in the top 5 ever? Really?
He AVERAGES a 170 OPS+. Averages! His worst season he had a 151! Most people never sniff that!
His AVERAGE season has been 334./.425/.624/1.049!
He is gold glove on defense, and could play at least 5 positions if his manager asked him to. This is a guy that has walked more than he has struck out EVERY year since his rookie campaign.
Baseball reference has his most similar batter by age as Joe freakin Dimaggio.
Similar batters through age 28? Take a look at this list.
1. Jimmie Foxx (870) *
2. Hank Aaron (862) *
3. Frank Robinson (857) *
4. Lou Gehrig (855) *
5. Ken Griffey (853)
6. Vladimir Guerrero (847)
7. Mickey Mantle (831) *
8. Joe DiMaggio (818) *
9. Juan Gonzalez (805)
10. Mel Ott (805) *
Dude, I'm a Cubs fan, and I can recognize greatness when I see it. As long as he doesn't have a career ending injury, this guy will end up in the top 5 ever.
Posted by: Aduncaroo | January 04, 2009 at 05:16 PM
I'd go:
1. Pujols
2. Tex
3. Adrian
4. Berkman
5. Howard
6. Lee
I do not understand why you rate Derrick Lee so low. With the glove, he is the best first baseman in MLB. His homeruns are down, but I think that has to do with Gerald Perry's philosophy. He wants more contact and OBP from the team. This area has improved, since Perry came to the Cubs, and as a result, they score more runs. I think Jeff Pendleton ruined some Cubs hitters like Corey Patterson with his “try to hit a home run every at bat” philosophy. As a result Cubs hitters struck out most of the time. I also think Derrick is still having problems with the wrist he broke in 2006.Derrick had an off season in 2008, but he will be back in 2009
Posted by: Van | January 04, 2009 at 06:59 PM
"With the glove, he is the best first baseman in MLB."
No, this is myth. He is better than average, and his height helps some too, but Pujols, Tex, and Adrian are better on most days. Derrick Lee's defense is good, but a lot of it is reputation.
"Derrick had an off season in 2008, but he will be back in 2009"
I hope you are right! Thing is, his 2008 pretty much mirrors his career averages. Listen, I love Lee, I just think you have to look around a bit because there are some better ones out there.
Posted by: Aduncaroo | January 04, 2009 at 09:39 PM
I hate to disagree with you, but there is usually a reason for reputations. His height does help him be better. Height is usually the reason good rebounders in the NBA are good. It is ludicrous to say he is not as good because he is taller than the others. There is no myth. Derrick Lee is the best defensively.
Posted by: Van | January 05, 2009 at 11:50 AM
Van, i do like the big guy derrick lee, but Albert pujols can play short stop.. and Ive seen him do it in spring training!! No one compares to Albert, no where no how.. He's pure baseball, and he's only a first baseman so he can prolong his Career as a cardinal.
Posted by: AndrewBeavs | January 08, 2009 at 12:56 PM