2009 MLB Free Agents Rumors

Discussion: Rich Harden

Rich Harden carries a lot of upside for a Type B free agent. His well-documented injury history will prevent any club from risking offering the right-hander a long-term contract, but a one or two-year deal (perhaps with the second year as a club option, that could become guaranteed if Harden reaches certain performance levels) in the high seven-figure range per season could prove to be a relative bargain. Harden might be amenable to such a deal since it would allow him to cash in on an even bigger contract after the 2011 season when he's just 29 years old. Harden...   Continue Reading

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Heyman's Latest: Best & Worst Free Agent Signings

Sports Illustrated's Jon Heyman has compiled a list of the best and worst free agent signings. Here are the lists, in descending order: The Best: Raul Ibanez, Trevor Hoffman, Francisco Rodriguez, Orlando Hudson, Mark Teixeira, Brad Penny, CC Sabathia, Ivan Rodriguez, Brian Fuentes, Randy Johnson, Adam Everett, Randy Wolf, David Eckstein, Adam Dunn, and Felipe Lopez. The Worst: Milton Bradley, Oliver Perez, Pat Burrell, Manny Ramirez, Kerry Wood, Kyle Farnsworth, Orlando Cabrera, Jason Giambi, Ken Griffey Jr., and Edgar Renteria. What do you think? Anyone missing from these lists? Any surprises? Heyman has a few more bullet points: With Matt...   Continue Reading

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Why Are So Many Pitchers Still Unsigned?

We are nearing Memorial Day, and many pitchers whose resumes would normally have landed them at least a minor-league deal by now remain unsigned. Pedro Martinez is still homeless. While the complication may be in part due to Pedro's salary demands, it is surprising that nobody has signed him. Yes, his ERA was an unsightly 5.61 in 2008, but his 2007 stint was far better-2.57 ERA in 28 innings. His 87 strikeouts against 44 walks in 109 innings also suggests a pitcher who can help a team on the back end of a rotation. Given that it is Pedro Martinez,...   Continue Reading

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How The Top Free Agents Are Faring

It is still very early in spring training, but let's take a look back at Tim's top 15 free agents and see how they are performing for their new clubs... 1. C.C. Sabathia (Yankees; 7 yrs/$161MM). Sabathia has made one appearance for his new club going 2 innings, giving up 1 unearned run on 2 hits. He struck out 2 and walked none. 2. Mark Teixeira (Yankees; 8 yrs/$180MM). In 5 games, Teixeira is 7-14 with 2 doubles. 3. Manny Ramirez (Dodgers; 2 yrs/$45MM). Manny will make his spring debut on Thursday. 4. Francisco Rodriguez (Mets; 3 yrs/$37MM). Rodriguez is...   Continue Reading

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Down the Rabbit Hole: Looking at 2009 Free Agency

A guest article by Maury Brown With Spring Training arriving, we can start to peel back the layers of the onion we call free agency and look at some trends. To begin with, I started by taking a look at total spending in the FA market this season. I created a table with total club spending and the percentage of spending by each club against that total. As the linked article points out, you could take just what the Yankees lavished on Mark Teixeira and cover what the Braves, Mets, D-Backs, Padres, and White Sox have spent on free agents...   Continue Reading

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2009 Top 50 Free Agents

It's time for the third annual MLB Trade Rumors Top 50 Free Agents list! The entire list of available free agents can be found here. A note before we begin - this is a complicated puzzle, and I'll be satisfied if I'm correct on a quarter of these guesses. If your favorite team seems under-represented, keep in mind that the list doesn't account for trades or every single free agent. 1. C.C. Sabathia - Yankees. The guess here is that the Yankees will make C.C. an offer he can't refuse, and he'll sign a seven-year deal. Sabathia is the key...   Continue Reading

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65 Players File For Free Agency

Yesterday was the first day to file for free agency, and 65 players did. Here's the list from the AP. Many more will file. Here's our full list, which is updated regularly.   Continue Reading

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Free Agent Quotas

Readers often ask whether teams will face quotas if they want to sign multiple Type A or B free agents. So tonight I busted out the Basic Agreement and tried to translate it into English. The relevant section: Quota (a) Clubs shall be limited in the number of Type A and B Players, as defined below, they may subsequently sign to contracts. The number of signings permitted shall be related to the number of Players electing free agency under this Section B. If there are 14 or less such Players, no Club may sign more than one Type A or...   Continue Reading

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Odds and Ends: Gillick, Cashman, Burnett

Links for Tuesday... Tim's chat will be moved to Wednesday at 2pm CST. J.C. Bradbury thinks A.J. Burnett would be wise to accept Toronto's two-year, $30MM extension offer. Ken Rosenthal examines the Caucasian-ness of the Red Sox roster, and what it could mean to their free agent targets. The AL free agent catchers list is done at Detroit Tigers Thoughts. Eddie has Ivan Rodriguez as the last Type A, though that's not concrete. Sox Machine tries to determine the trade value of the White Sox roster. They consider John Danks, Carlos Quentin, Gordon Beckham, and Aaron Poreda basically untouchable. The...   Continue Reading

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Free Agent Home Run Leaders

12 free agents had 20+ home runs in 2008. Here's the leaderboard: 1. Adam Dunn - 40 2. Manny Ramirez - 37 3. Pat Burrell - 33 3. Mark Teixeira - 33 5. Jason Giambi - 32 6. Raul Ibanez - 23 7. Milton Bradley - 22 8. Casey Blake - 21 9. Jim Edmonds - 20 9. Bobby Abreu - 20 9. Kevin Millar - 20 9. Eric Hinske - 20 Honorable mentions: Jerry Hairston Jr. (.487 SLG), Fernando Tatis (.484), Joe Crede (.460), and Orlando Hudson (.450). The trade market features twelve 20 home run bats in my...   Continue Reading

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