Corey Koskie Retires
According to Joe Christensen of the Minneapolis Star Tribune Corey Koskie is retiring. Koskie has struggled with concussion-related problems over the last few years and he felt light-headed this week after diving for a ball at third base.
Koskie says he's reitiring because he no longer wants to worry about getting another concussion. He still sounds confident in his abilities.
Stephen Strasburg Price Tag
ESPN.com's Peter Gammons heard from some club officials that top amateur pitcher Stephen Strasburg and his agent, Scott Boras, could demand $50MM over six years if he's selected first overall by the Nationals in the June draft. If the Nationals pick Strasburg and seem unwilling to pay him as much as he wants, Boras could threaten to send the prospect to pitch in Japan for a year. If the Nats are scared off, the Mariners and Padres are next in line for Strasburg.
Odds And Ends: Gonzalez, Hill, Koskie
Links for Saturday…
- According to MLB.com's Bryan Hoch, the Yankees demoted righty Phil Hughes. He had a nice spring and figures to be the first in line when the team needs another starter.
- Tracy Ringolsby of Inside the Rockies reports that Diamondbacks CEO Derrick Hall spoke with Luis Gonzalez about re-joining the D'Backs once he retires as a player.
- Dave Perkin of Baseball America highlights some amateur players worth keeping an eye on.
- Check out Tim's Interview over at 6 Pound 8 Ounce Baby Joba.
- Cameron Smith of the Washington Post thinks Shawn Hill and the Blue Jays should work out a deal because it would benefit both sides.
- Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune reports that Corey Koskie's baseball future could be in jeopardy. Koskie felt light-headed after diving for a ball yesterday in Spring Training.
- ESPN.com's Peter Gammons spoke with Matt Holliday about his home-road splits and his new Oakland teammates. Like Buster Olney, Gammons suggests the Red Sox, Yankees and Angels are possible fits for Holliday after the season.
Possible Bidders For Holliday
ESPN.com's Buster Olney previews the Matt Holliday derby that's likely to take place once the left fielder becomes a free agent at the end of the season. He's poised to become the biggest name available and has Scott Boras representing him:
- Olney starts off by saying "Oakland will not re-sign him," bringing up Mark Mulder, Barry Zito,Tim Hudson and Miguel Tejada to make his point.
- The Cardinals may not have the money to become involved and the Mets aren't spending quite as freely these days. The Cubs have already made commitments to Milton Bradley and Alfonso Soriano and the Dodgers won't have much flexibility if Manny Ramirez is still around.
- The Angels could pursue Holliday as a replacement for Vladimir Guerrero, whose contract also expires this year.
- The Red Sox have some aging offensive players, but Olney writes that their front office was "livid" with Boras over the Mark Teixeira negotiations.
- The Yankees could pursue Holliday to replace Johnny Damon or Hideki Matsui. At least one scout thinks Holliday's swing is perfect for (the new) Yankee Stadium.
- Olney writes that Holliday could work for the White Sox, but says it's no accident they don't sign many Boras clients.
Padres Looking For Relievers
According to ESPN.com's Buster Olney the Padres are aggressively looking for relief help. They could fill as many as four bullpen spots with pitchers they pick up through trades or waivers.
Pudge Passes Physical
According to Jose de Jesus Ortiz of the Houston Chronicle Ivan Rodriguez passed his physical for the Astros to finalize his one year deal. Pudge says all the right things about joining his new team.
Giants Release Keiichi Yabu
Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker passes along a Nikkan Sports report: the Giants released pitcher Keiichi Yabu. The Giants could re-sign him to a minor league deal. GM Brian Sabean cited Yabu's age, 40, when demoting him earlier this month. Sabean mentioned at the time that he'd attempt to trade Yabu. The righty posted a 3.57 ERA, 6.35 K/9, and 4.2 BB/9 in 68 innings last year.
Lackey Not Impressed With Angels’ Extension Efforts
MLB.com's Lyle Spencer talked to Angels starter John Lackey about the pitcher's ongoing extension talks. Lackey said, "They're not trying very hard." Lackey's agent submitted a proposal earlier this week, presumably above A.J. Burnett's $82.5MM over five years.
If Lackey and the Halos don't hammer something out, he'll presumably be the top free agent starter on the free agent market after the season.
Offseason In Review: Toronto Blue Jays
Next up in our Offseason In Review series, the Blue Jays. Here's what we wrote about the team on October 3rd. Changes for 2009:
Additions: Matt Clement, Mike Maroth, Ken Takahashi, Michael Barrett, Raul Chavez, Brandon Fahey, Kevin Millar, Jason Lane, Dirk Hayhurst, Adam Loewen, Rod Barajas (option exercised). Midseason: Jose Bautista
Subtractions: A.J. Burnett, Gregg Zaun, Brad Wilkerson. Midseason: Matt Stairs, David Eckstein, Shannon Stewart, Kevin Mench, Frank Thomas
It was a quiet offseason for the Blue Jays, a team that won 86 games last year and might've had the talent to win 93. Can the in-house talent push them into contention in 2009?
Let's start with the offense. The Jays ranked 11th in the AL last year with 4.41 runs per game. Better health should lead to some changes for '09; this year's offense projects to score 4.63 runs per game. That, unfortunately, still would've ranked 11th in the AL. I upgraded Snider's projection by using his PECOTA numbers and that brought us to 4.76 runs per game.
Did you know the Blue Jays led the AL last year with 610 runs allowed? If they could score 770 runs and duplicate last year's run prevention, they'd project as a 98 win team! I don't know how to statistically account for the Jays' high quality of competition, however.
How did Toronto manage to allow only 610 runs in 2008? The league's best pitching and second-best defense blended to produce this result. The defense was particularly stellar at third base and right field, and Scott Rolen and Alex Rios haven't gone anywhere. More Marco Scutaro and less Eckstein shouldn't hurt. And Hill seems healthy. So maybe the Jays can repeat on defense.
The rotation is once again fronted by Roy Halladay. But after that Burnett is gone, Jesse Litsch will regress, Dustin McGowan may not contribute, and Shaun Marcum is out for the season. Non-Halladay Blue Jays starters had a 4.00 ERA in 2008. It's hard to see David Purcey, Casey Janssen, Scott Richmond, Brad Mills, and Clement pulling that off, even if there is some promise in the group. The bullpen returns the same key players, so that should be a strength again. Had Scott Downs' elbow not started barking it might've made sense to try him in the rotation.
It would've been perfect to sign Jason Giambi to DH, as he would've been an improvement over Lind and wouldn't have upset the team's excellent defense. Instead the Blue Jays' hopes rest on excellent performances in the rotation behind Halladay. Even at a still-solid 715 runs allowed this club would win 86 games and miss the playoffs.
Bottom line: The Blue Jays could have been a sleeper with the addition of a decent starter and a bat, but they chose to stand pat this winter.
Beimel Contract Details
Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post has details on Joe Beimel's new contract with the Nationals. Renck says it's a one-year, $2MM deal with up to $250K in incentives. The incentives kick in at 60 games and max out at 80. Renck says the Rockies balked at Beimel's asking price. Tracy Ringolsby of Inside The Rockies has more:
Beimel signed with Washington, a one-year $2 million deal in the last week. He showed no interest in the Rockies' overtures. He was seeking more than $3 million, and I have seen some reports that he was actually asking for a two-year deal at $4 million a year, but I have not had anyone confirm that.
Does Beimel make sense for the Nationals? Unless they can flip him for something good in July, it seems to be $2MM better spent on the draft.
We have a few other Nationals notes from MLB.com's Bill Ladson. Ladson talked to an opposing scout who says the Nats are trying to trade Nick Johnson and Austin Kearns but does not expect them to find a match. Additionally, minor league signee Jorge Sosa hasn't been able to get a work visa in the U.S.