First off, congratulations to the Philadelphia Phillies and the Tampa Bay Rays as well on great seasons! I always hate to see the season end, but it always leads to a very exciting MLB offseason. With the 2008 season in the books, let’s look back at the latest week here on MLBTR:
- The Royals and Marlins wasted no time in getting the offseason trades going, when Florida shipped first baseman Mike Jacobs to Kansas City for reliever Leo Nunez. I really don’t get this move, as the Royals had a stockpile of 1B/DH players, and it’s been well-documented that they have OBP woes, finishing 26th out of 30 MLB teams. Despite clubbing 32 HR in 2008, Jacobs posted just a .299 OBP, and is only at a mark of .318 for his career. Also, given that the 32 HR was a jump from his previous career high of 20, it seems a bit unrealistic to expect 30+ HR again (though 22-25 is a good bet). Nunez posted pretty good numbers across the board, and good bullpen help is always hard to find. I like this deal for the Marlins. Feel free to voice your own takes on the deal.
- Speaking of Kansas City, we heard last Sunday that the Royals and Indians were exploring a trade involving Mark Teahen. The next day, Royals’ GM Dayton Moore emphatically denied that rumor, calling it an "absolute lie."
- Couple of notes on two of the biggest free agent pitchers on the market: The Brewers are considering offering C.C. Sabathia four years, $100MM. Elsewhere, A.J. Burnett has said that he will see if the Yankees are interested if he opts out of his deal in Toronto. Personally, I think it’s just a matter of when he opts out, not if.
- We saw a glimpse into some offseason targets and plans for several teams, including the White Sox, Cubs, and Orioles. Tim also did his Offseason Outlook for the Tampa Bay Rays.
- If you’re curious to see who’s available for those teams, as well as your own, here’s a list of 65 players who had filed for free agency as of this Friday.
- Lots of news about possible trade scenarios this week: The Mets may look to the trade market for a closer. Names like Huston Street and Kevin Gregg would make sense. Given their payroll concerns, the Tigers might have to look at moving Magglio Ordonez. Milwaukee’s Prince Fielder is another big name who could be on the move. And if you’re in the market for starting pitching, the White Sox might have a match for you in Javier Vazquez.
- Lots of options exercised and declined this week. The Angels exercised their options on Vladimir Guerrero and John Lackey, while declining Garret Anderson’s. Anderson could be back for less. The Tigers declined Edgar Renteria’s 2009 option; he’ll enter a very weak shortstop market. The White Sox cut ties with Ken Griffey Jr. and Toby Hall. Junior is open to returning to Chicago as well as returning to Seattle. The Mets picked up Carlos Delgado’s option, the Blue Jays did the same with Rod Barajas, and Tim Wakefield will be back in Boston in 2009. Henry Blanco’s option was not exercised by the Cubs. So Taguchi, Jason Michaels, Alan Embree, Craig Counsell, and Tom Gordon all had their options declined as well.
- Two signings this week: Fernando Tatis inked a one-year, $1.7MM contract with the Mets. Jason LaRue will be back with the Cardinals, making $950K.
- Keith Law offers his take on the possible list of Type A/B Free Agents.
- Don’t always have time to sit down at your computer? Try checking out MLBTR Mobile!