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Archives for February 2007

Nats Not Interested In Trachsel

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Apparently Steve Trachsel has priced himself out of the Nationals’ range ($3 million is too much I guess).  Washington is not one of the three teams in the running for him, according to Bill Ladson.

A few days ago, Ken Rosenthal reported that the Astros were talking to Trax but that Tim Purpura did not consider it hot and heavy.  The Twins are out now too.  So who are these two other teams?

Trachsel was born in Oxnard, CA, so maybe he’d like to play on the west coast.  The Dodgers and Angels would be closest to his hometown, but those teams have fully booked rotations.  The Padres, Giants, and A’s are further away.  I wouldn’t put it past the Giants to sign Trachsel to use instead of Jonathan Sanchez.  Or maybe Trachsel could help as the veteran presence in Tampa Bay’s rotation?  Perhaps some Kyle Davies insurance for the Braves? 

Honestly, I have no idea who the other teams would be.

Nats Not Interested In Trachsel

By | at

Apparently Steve Trachsel has priced himself out of the Nationals’ range ($3 million is too much I guess).  Washington is not one of the three teams in the running for him, according to Bill Ladson.

A few days ago, Ken Rosenthal reported that the Astros were talking to Trax but that Tim Purpura did not consider it hot and heavy.  The Twins are out now too.  So who are these two other teams?

Trachsel was born in Oxnard, CA, so maybe he’d like to play on the west coast.  The Dodgers and Angels would be closest to his hometown, but those teams have fully booked rotations.  The Padres, Giants, and A’s are further away.  I wouldn’t put it past the Giants to sign Trachsel to use instead of Jonathan Sanchez.  Or maybe Trachsel could help as the veteran presence in Tampa Bay’s rotation?  Perhaps some Kyle Davies insurance for the Braves? 

Honestly, I have no idea who the other teams would be.

Nats Blogs Gaining Exposure

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This is awesome!  Kudos to the Washington Post’s Barry Svrluga for acknowledging the "Natosphere" and writing an entire column about it.  I too had noticed that the Nationals seem to have a disproportionate number of blogs.  Twins, too.  That says a lot about their fanbases.  And props to Nats executives for embracing the diehards.  More teams should follow suit.

Blogs mentioned in Svrluga’s article:

Capitol Punishment

The Curly W

District of Baseball

Banks of the Anacostia

Nationals Farm Authority

Just a Nats Fan

Nats320

Nats Blogs Gaining Exposure

By | at

This is awesome!  Kudos to the Washington Post’s Barry Svrluga for acknowledging the "Natosphere" and writing an entire column about it.  I too had noticed that the Nationals seem to have a disproportionate number of blogs.  Twins, too.  That says a lot about their fanbases.  And props to Nats executives for embracing the diehards.  More teams should follow suit.

Blogs mentioned in Svrluga’s article:

Capitol Punishment

The Curly W

District of Baseball

Banks of the Anacostia

Nationals Farm Authority

Just a Nats Fan

Nats320

Posada Not Concerned

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Jorge Posada won’t be bothered by his impending free agency as he enters his age 36 season.  Last year’s resurgence was surprising given his age and position. 

It’s hard to picture the longtime Yankee backstop with any other team.  If PECOTA were to re-sign Posada for 2007-09, it would offer $25 million or so.  Apparently Posada’s skills will age pretty well.  I think the Yankees will get something done for three years and $30 million.

If the Yankees decide to go another route, free agent catchers may include Michael Barrett, Paul LoDuca, and Ivan Rodriguez.   

Posada Not Concerned

By | at

Jorge Posada won’t be bothered by his impending free agency as he enters his age 36 season.  Last year’s resurgence was surprising given his age and position. 

It’s hard to picture the longtime Yankee backstop with any other team.  If PECOTA were to re-sign Posada for 2007-09, it would offer $25 million or so.  Apparently Posada’s skills will age pretty well.  I think the Yankees will get something done for three years and $30 million.

If the Yankees decide to go another route, free agent catchers may include Michael Barrett, Paul LoDuca, and Ivan Rodriguez.   

Juan Gonzalez Wants Back In

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It was bound to happen sooner or later – Igor, aka Juan Gonzalez, is attempting another return to the Majors.  Published reports in Puerto Rico named the Angels, Tigers, and Orioles as interested parties.  Update: the Orioles aren’t interested after all.  And the Tigers denying interest as well.  Ah, there we go – the Angels are not pursuing him.  That was awesome – each team systematically denied any interest in Gonzalez within a few days of the rumor surfacing.

The slimmed-down Gonzalez spent last year in the Atlantic League and he’s currently playing in the Caribbean Series.  Baseball Prospectus’s Derek Jacques reports:

"Juan Gonzalez makes the Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz look nimble and flexible. Watching him run the bases, I constantly expected to hear a loud snapping sound followed by a trail of body parts. Igor still has the long looping swing, but his bat speed isn’t where he can really turn on Dessens’ heat in the third. He’s trying to cheat, and it just isn’t working."

Last year, Gonzalez was said to be in the best condition of his life and supposedly drew interest from the Cubs, White Sox, Red Sox, Athletics, and Rockies.

Juan Gonzalez Wants Back In

By | at

It was bound to happen sooner or later – Igor, aka Juan Gonzalez, is attempting another return to the Majors.  Published reports in Puerto Rico named the Angels, Tigers, and Orioles as interested parties.  Update: the Orioles aren’t interested after all.  And the Tigers denying interest as well.  Ah, there we go – the Angels are not pursuing him.  That was awesome – each team systematically denied any interest in Gonzalez within a few days of the rumor surfacing.

The slimmed-down Gonzalez spent last year in the Atlantic League and he’s currently playing in the Caribbean Series.  Baseball Prospectus’s Derek Jacques reports:

"Juan Gonzalez makes the Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz look nimble and flexible. Watching him run the bases, I constantly expected to hear a loud snapping sound followed by a trail of body parts. Igor still has the long looping swing, but his bat speed isn’t where he can really turn on Dessens’ heat in the third. He’s trying to cheat, and it just isn’t working."

Last year, Gonzalez was said to be in the best condition of his life and supposedly drew interest from the Cubs, White Sox, Red Sox, Athletics, and Rockies.

Rangers Sign Bruce Chen

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The Rangers hope to add some competition to the fifth starter slot – they signed Bruce Chen today to a minor league non-roster deal.

I like the idea of signing Chen, but not for the Rangers.  He’s healthy, left-handed, and not quite 30.  He posted a fine 3.83 ERA in the AL East as recently as 2005.  However, the marriage of an extreme flyball pitcher and a ballpark that inflates homers by 12% doesn’t seem logical at first glance. 

Digging deeper, I found that Ameriquest only inflates right-handed HRs by 2%.  However, Chen is much better against righties despite his handedness.  Teams can stack their lineups with left-handed sluggers against him.  I still don’t get the signing.

Rangers Sign Bruce Chen

By | at

The Rangers hope to add some competition to the fifth starter slot – they signed Bruce Chen today to a minor league non-roster deal.

I like the idea of signing Chen, but not for the Rangers.  He’s healthy, left-handed, and not quite 30.  He posted a fine 3.83 ERA in the AL East as recently as 2005.  However, the marriage of an extreme flyball pitcher and a ballpark that inflates homers by 12% doesn’t seem logical at first glance. 

Digging deeper, I found that Ameriquest only inflates right-handed HRs by 2%.  However, Chen is much better against righties despite his handedness.  Teams can stack their lineups with left-handed sluggers against him.  I still don’t get the signing.

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