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Archives for January 2009

O’s Not In On Sheets

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While the Ben Sheets market continues to be quiet, this evening we can more forcefully eliminate another team from the list of potential suitors. It appears the Baltimore Orioles are not interested.

In a post that looks at the Orioles’ young staff, Steve Melewski ends with a comment about Baltimore’s lack of interest in the potential staff ace. Melewski estimates that signing Sheets may require a two-year offer at $8MM per; he also mentions Sheets’ six DL stints. Considering these two factors, Melewski writes, "unless the club has a radical change of heart, they are just not going to take that chance."

Wolf Makes Sense For Dodgers

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Yesterday, we did a write-up on a Gammons post that said Randy Wolf, Jon Garland and Braden Looper were all receiving similar offers in the $5MM-a-year range. A report this evening conflicts with that notion.

Tony Jackson of the L.A. Daily News says Garland does not fit the Dodgers’ budget, but Wolf does. In reference to Wolf, Jackson writes: "Sounds to me like this is the guy the Dodgers are going to end up with."

Red Sox To Be Done After Solving Catcher?

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Daniel Barbarisi weighs in on the Red Sox, saying that following whatever their solution to the hole at catcher is (Barbarisi figures it to be Jason Varitek), they should call it quits for the offseason.

Barbarisi notes that one potential bargain could be Orlando Cabrera, but points out that Cabrera’s projections for 2009 don’t figure to be any better than Jed Lowrie’s.

He also points out that while Ben Sheets is the exact type of low-risk/high-reward player the Red Sox like to gamble on, they’ve signed enough of those already this offseason.

What does everyone else think? Do the Red Sox need another piece?

Week in Review: 1/18 – 1/24

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It’s been a bit of a slow week in terms of Hot Stove news, but we saw several extensions for players, as expected after the reports from the previous week. Let’s take a look at the past seven days:

  • Couple of notable moves for the Orioles. Firstly, they traded lefty Garrett Olson to the Cubs for Felix Pie. Pie’s stock may have fallen, but I still like this move for the Orioles. Pie can provide a great glove in left field, and has considerably more upside than Olson. I find it strange how quickly the Cubs shipped off Pie and Jose Ceda, after the two were such sticking points in the previous offseason.
  • The bigger move for the Orioles is that they finalized a six-year, $66MM extension for Nick Markakis this week. Markakis has proven himself to be a legitimate five-tool player, and should serve as a great cornerstone for this franchise as they work to rebuild. Between Markakis, Pie, and Adam Jones, the O’s have a shot at having one of the best young outfields we’ve seen in quite some time.
  • Brewers’ GM Doug Melvin gave a very simple one-word answer of "Yeah," when asked if Prince Fielder would stay put for the 2009 season. A few days later, we learned he’d be staying put for the 2010 season as well, it seems, as he signed a two-year, $18MM extension. Prince will get $6.5MM this season and $11.5MM in 2010. While that’s a great value for an offensive threat of his caliber, I imagine that Brewers fans would’ve liked to see him locked up for longer than two years.
  • The Phillies locked up a couple of their important pieces this week as well. Ryan Madson agreed to a three-year, $12MM extension. Madson was terrific – particularly in the postseason – in bridging the gap to Brad Lidge. The Phillies were untouchable when leading going into the late innings in 2008, and Madson was a big part of that. Nice signing by Philadelphia.
  • The Phils also signed Jayson Werth to a two-year, $10MM extension. Werth will receive $3MM in 2009 and $7MM in 2010. Nice value here; Werth was an underrated part of the Phils success if you ask me.
  • Another Jason received a two-year extension this week as well, when the Twins bought out Jason Kubel’s last two arbitration years. No details yet, but this should be a good move for the Twins. Kubel can be a solid source of power as he continues to improve, and quietly posted a nice 2008 campaign. Kubel’s deal has an option for a third year.
  • We heard the Twins linked to Eric Gagne and Joe Crede all week, but now it appears talks have stalled with both Boras clients. I imagine they’re waiting to see Crede work out in Arizona this week. The Giants will be in on that too, but I’d personally expect Crede to end up in Minnesota.
  • One person the Twins won’t be signing is Brandon Lyon; he signed with the Tigers this week for one year, $4.25MM. Not the initial two years, $9MM he was seeking, but that seems like a good deal for Lyon to me.
  • The Mets made some progress on the starting pitching front, as they offered a revised contract to Oliver Perez and are set to sign Freddy Garcia. The Mets apparently improved upon their three-year, $30MM offer to Perez, which I think is a mistake. Perez is as inconsistent as they come on the mound – is investing four years there particularly wise?
  • Could Adam Dunn’s price really end up as low as one-year, $5MM? I sure don’t think so, but if it’s even a figure close to that, every GM should be lining up to get him.
  • We saw two players retire this week: Jeff Kent and Sean Casey. Kent will go down as one of the best offensive second basemen ever, and should be in the Hall of Fame if you ask me. Casey is surprising, he can still be a productive hitter, but wasn’t drawing interest as an everday option at first. He’ll be an analyst for the MLB Network. Should be great to listen to. Best wishes to both of them in life after baseball.

Astros Pulled Offer To Wolf

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Many people have felt that Randy Wolf grossly misread the market this offseason, by rejecting a three-year, $28.5MM offer from the Astros early on. According to Ken Rosenthal, however, Wolf didn’t even have time to reject that offer before Houston pulled it off the table, citing the economy as a reason:

"Wolf told me Saturday night that he was close to re-signing with the Astros in late November when the team abruptly pulled its offer, citing a changing economic climate.

Astros general manager Ed Wade confirmed Wolf’s account, saying the team was ’fully engaged in negotiations and had to stop. It had nothing to do with a lack of interest on our part or Randy’s part.’"

Rosenthal reiterates that the Dodgers are currently the leading suitor for Wolf’s services, but they’re still talking with Jon Garland and Braden Looper as well. The Mets could be another fit, but are focused on Oliver Perez.

Wolf may have to settle for a one-year deal, and if he does, it will almost certainly be at a lower rate than the $9.5MM the Astros initially offered. Rosenthal points out that would mean the downturn in the economy could cost Wolf upwards of $20MM. That could be ok for Wolf, though, who explicitly states that signing for him isn’t about who offers the most money – his goal is to pitch in October.

Stephen Strasburg & Alex Meyer Interviewed

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Stephen Strasburg and Alex Meyer were interviewed by Eric SanInocencio on his live radio talk show, Baseball Digest Daily Live. Head over there and click the play button.

For those unfamiliar with Strasburg, he is a power-righty from San Diego State and the odds on favorite to go first overall in next years draft. He was the only collegiate player to play in the Beijing Olympic games where he allowed only 1 hit and struck out 11 in his first 7 innings against professional hitters. He describes himself as a fastball-slider pitcher with an added sinker. He is working on a changeup and is a big fan of Josh Beckett’s approach to hitters.

On the show, Strasburg discusses the upcoming draft. While the Washington Nationals are expected to pick him first overall, he isn’t concerned with being the first player off the board. His head coach, Tony Gwynn, has fed him advice on how to handle the pressure of being a top draft pick during the season. Stras seems to have a very level head and gives all the right answers.

Right handed pitcher Alex Meyer, ranked the #5 prospect in all of high school baseball by Baseball America, was drafted by the Red Sox last year but had his mind set on going to the University of Kentucky. On the show, he discussed his experience with the Sox as they tried to sign him.

Meyer heard first from his advisors that he had been selected.  Three weeks before the signing deadline, Theo Epstein and others flew out to talk to Meyer.  On signing deadline day, Sox Assistant GM Jed Hoyer and Vice President of Player Personnel Ben Cherington showed up unannounced on his front porch. Hoping to sit down and convince him to sign with the team, they were turned away by Meyer and his dad. They returned twenty minutes later for another attempt only to be told that Meyer wanted to go to Kentucky.

Jays Fire Assistant GM

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The Associated Press is reporting the Blue Jays have dismissed Assistant GM Bart Given. This was briefly reported yesterday on MLBTR. Given served also as vice president of baseball operations and has been with the club since 2004. His duties will be managed by Tony LaCava and Alex Anthopoulos, front-office staffers.

No reason for the firing was provided. As Bob Elliot wrote yesterday, "Making a change on Jan. 23 is an odd time on the baseball calendar since most contracts expire at the end of October or December."

Cafardo’s Latest: Crede, Gagne, Rangers, Brewers

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Some quick notes from Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe:

  • The Twins and Giants will be monitoring Joe Crede’s workouts in Arizona next week. Both teams have had ongoing interest this month.
  • The Twins and Rangers are continuing to seriously consider Eric Gagne.
  • Cafardo notes the growing sentiment among middle-market teams that patience could land an all star caliber player for a "low-risk one-year deal."
  • Milwaukee would prefer to save and make a "Sabathia-like" deadline deal rather than spend now.
  • Adam Melhuse signing with Texas could be a signal that Taylor Teagarden or Jarrod Saltalamacchia are en route to the Red Sox. Cafardo cautions that’s probably not the case since the Rangers have not come down on their asking price of Clay Buchholz.
  • Watch for the Cubs to reengage the Padres and Jake Peavy now that they have found an owner in billionaire Tom Ricketts.

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