Arbitration Eligibles: Philadelphia Phillies
The Phillies are next in our arbitration eligibles series…
- First time: Kyle Kendrick, Ben Francisco
- Second time: None
- Third time: Greg Dobbs
The Phillies have locked up their regulars in the name of cost certainty, leaving only three arbitration-eligible role players. Kendrick did enough as a back-end guy to be tendered a contract. Francisco will stay as well, as he's still a solid fourth outfielder. Dobbs will certainly be cut loose, as he was designated for assignment twice during the season.
Antonetti Officially Named Indians’ GM
The Indians officially completed the transition of Mark Shapiro to club president and Chris Antonetti to GM, according to a press release. The plan had been announced in February. Mike Chernoff was named assistant GM, among other front office promotions. Back in April, MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince profiled Antonetti, a 35-year-old who had been in the organization for 12 years.
Rakuten Golden Eagles Post Hisashi Iwakuma
The Rakuten Golden Eagles have officially committed to posting pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma, relays NPB Tracker's Patrick Newman on Twitter from multiple Japanese media reports. Rakuten can file with the commissioner's office starting November 1st, after which point teams can bid for the exclusive right to negotiate with Iwakuma. Iwakuma will be represented by Don Nomura, who previously served as the agent for Hideo Nomo and Hideki Irabu, among others.
Iwakuma, 30 in April, posted a 2.82 ERA, 6.9 K/9, 1.6 BB/9, and 0.49 HR/9 in 201 innings this year. In August, Newman rated him as "the second best MLB pitching prospect currently active in NPB" in a FanGraphs article. He described Iwakuma as "a fairly standard fastball/slider/forkball righty."
Japanese pitchers coming to MLB have been all over the place in recent years, even focusing on the more expensive ones. Perhaps Iwakuma can emulate Hiroki Kuroda, who gave the Dodgers three years and 497 innings of 3.60 ball for $35.3MM. Unlike Iwakuma, Daisuke Matsuzaka, and Kei Igawa, Kuroda did not require a posting fee. I would not expect an excessive posting fee for Iwakuma, since the winner will also have to negotiate his contract on top.
White Sox Notes: Pierzynski, Manny, Vizquel
Though they fell short of the playoffs, the White Sox won 88 games this year. Notes from yesterday:
- GM Kenny Williams told Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune he seeks "balance from the left side" of the lineup. Williams said A.J. Pierzynski could provide that balance, or he could find someone on the trade or free agent market. Luke Scott, Adam Dunn, Prince Fielder, Carl Crawford, Hideki Matsui, Adam LaRoche, and Bobby Abreu are a few of the available left-handed bats.
- Pierzynski told CSN Chicago that he wants to return, but he has to do what's best for him and his family and isn't going to come crawling back.
- Williams told MLB.com's Scott Merkin Manny Ramirez helped others in the lineup and brought life to the team, even if his .319 slugging percentage fell short of expectations.
- Manager Ozzie Guillen told Merkin he'd love to have Omar Vizquel back, suggesting the infielder could play another two years. The interest is known to be mutual.
Boras Well-Positioned For Offseason
Back in February, the Scott Boras Corporation was in the midst of a rough patch. They'd brokered some big deals, sure, but arguably failed clients Johnny Damon, Jarrod Washburn, and Felipe Lopez. Lopez went so far as to fire Boras that month. Since then, things have been looking up for the company. Consider:
- Kendry Morales switched to Boras in February. Morales made the switch with one season to go before arbitration, though his campaign was cut short by a May leg fracture. Still, it's a big addition.
- Boras added another young star that month in Shin-Soo Choo. Choo had another strong year and is heading to arbitration for the first time.
- Tommy Hanson joined the fold in July; he could be arbitration-eligible after the 2011 season depending on what happens with the Super Two concept. Top prospect Desmond Jennings also hired Boras.
- Alex Rodriguez jumped ship in September, though he's signed through 2017.
- Boras recently signed two clients coming off massive walk years: Jayson Werth and Rafael Soriano. Suddenly Boras has the second-best position player and best reliever this winter. He also has Adrian Beltre positioned for another big contract at the perfect time. Carlos Gonzalez broke out; he'll be arbitration-eligible after 2012.
- It's not all roses for Boras, though. He doesn't represent any top pitchers from the upcoming free agent class. And clients Prince Fielder, Jacoby Ellsbury, Stephen Strasburg, Carlos Pena, Manny Ramirez, Carlos Beltran, Jair Jurrjens all faced adversity this year. Click here for our full list of Boras clients.
Odds & Ends: Iwakuma, Ichiro, Red Sox, Barmes
Links for Sunday evening, with the regular season behind us and the playoff picture defined…
- Angels GM Tony Reagins tells Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times he's "confident we'll be able to add an important piece."
- As passed along by NPB Tracker's Patrick Newman on Twitter, Sanspo reports that a posting announcement will come soon regarding Japanese pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma. The righty, 30 in April, posted a 2.82 ERA, 6.9 K/9, 1.6 BB/9, and 0.49 HR/9 in 201 innings this year for Rakuten.
- Ichiro Suzuki's 10-and-5 rights kicked in today after the Mariners' game, tweets Larry Stone of the Seattle Times.
- In his end-of-the-season press conference, Red Sox GM Theo Epstein indicated fixing the bullpen and retaining important free agents are his offseason priorities (WEEI's Alex Speier reporting). Epstein fielded all kinds of questions and was noncommittal in most cases, but the transcript is still worth a read.
- Clint Barmes would like to return to the Rockies if he can't find an everyday role elsewhere, he explained to Jim Armstrong of the Denver Post. We discussed Barmes' non-tender candidacy in August, and 79% of MLBTR readers predicted he'll be cut loose.
- The Dodgers officially announced Brad Ausmus' retirement with a press release. Ausmus revealed his decision to reporters in July.
Arbitration Eligibles: New York Mets
The Mets are next in our arbitration eligibles series…
- First time: Mike Pelfrey
- Second time: Sean Green
- Third time: John Maine, Angel Pagan, R.A. Dickey
Pelfrey will be tendered a contract after his strong 2010, unless the Boras client signs an extension. He owns a 4.34 career ERA with 43 wins, which should be enough to get him more than $3MM. Pagan and Dickey were a couple of bright spots in the Mets' season, and both will be back next year. In Dickey's case, interest in a multiyear deal appears mutual.
Green missed most of the season with a torn rib cage muscle and a stress fracture in a rib, so he could be retained for a modest raise on top of this year's $975K salary. Maine is operating from a $3.3MM base, and made only nine starts for the Mets before succumbing to a shoulder injury that eventually required surgery. Even at no raise, he's a likely non-tender. Maine would hit the free agent market before his 30th birthday.
Jack Of All Trades: Jose Guillen
Jose Guillen's career has been one of many teams, many moods, and many different levels of play. As a result, Guillen holds this rare double: four teams have released him, while four other teams have traded for him. Fascinatingly, the return on a Jose Guillen trade has usually been far better than you'd think.
With Guillen's Giants headed to the playoffs, now seems like a perfect time to bask in the memories of Jose Guillen, and all the Topps Series Two baseball cards his career has created.
Like most players who succeed elsewhere, Jose Guillen began his career with the Pittsburgh Pirates, signing as an amateur free agent out of the Dominican Republic back in 1992. The Pirates allowed Guillen to jump directly from A-ball to the majors, then seemed surprised when his performance failed to live up to their expectations. Finally, on July 23, 1999, the Pirates sent the 23-year-old Guillen and Jeff Sparks to Tampa Bay for catchers Humberto Cota and Joe Oliver.
The trade wasn't as one-sided as it should have been to punish Pittsburgh for trading a talented young outfielder for Joe Oliver and a younger version of Joe Oliver. Guillen never figured it out in Tampa Bay, hitting .255/.317/.394 over three seasons and earning his first release following the 2001 season.
His releases by Arizona, Colorado, and even Cincinnati quickly followed. But the Reds brought him back in 2003, and the hitter who'd posted a career line of .260/.305/.398 through age 26 had a mostrous age-27 season: .311/.359/.569. He also got traded in the process, amazingly enough, going to Oakland on July 30, 2003 for Jeff Bruksch, Aaron Harang and Joe Valentine.
Cincinnati won that deal, and won it big. Guillen hit just .265/.311/.459 for Oakland over the remainder of the 2003 season. Meanwhile, Harang posted full seasons as a starter with ERA+ marks of 112, 124 and 124 from 2005-2007, along with some success (and some injuries) in a tenure that has lasted to the present day.
The Athletics didn't even bring Guillen back in 2004, letting him sign with the division-rival Angels instead. Guillen's age-28 season was strong for Los Angeles of Anaheim: a .294/.352/.497 batting line. However, a late September outburst was the last straw for the Halos, who felt they were better off without him for the rest of the regular season and playoffs. Guillen was dealt to the Washington Nationals on November 19, 2004, with the Angels receiving Maicer Izturis and Juan Rivera in return.
Again, the team dealing Guillen did not regret doing so. Izturis has been a valuable utility infielder for the Angels, and Juan Rivera is a .277/.325/.462 hitter with the Angels over six seasons. Both contributed significantly to four postseason runs.
As for Guillen, he had one good season in Washington, one horrific one, then signed with Seattle for the 2007 season. With a good year for the Mariners, he earned a three-year, $36MM contract from the Kansas City Royals. Guillen proved instrumental in taking Kansas City from a 69-93 record in 2007 to a 75-87 record in 2008. I guess that was the plan.
Guillen then slumped badly through an injury-ravaged 2009, and while he recovered to post a decent-enough .255/.314/.429 in 106 games with the Royals in 2010, it was still a surprise when the Giants traded cash and a player to be named later for Guillen. But San Francisco needed offense, and Guillen does, at times, provide it.
Guillen's .279/.331/.393 line for the Giants down the stretch actually wasn't a disappointment by comparison. The primary right fielder for San Francisco this year, Nate Schierholtz, hit .246/.315/.371. Still, if you are betting in a futures market, grab whoever turns out to be the player to be named later. There's something almost mystical about getting traded for Jose Guillen.
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Free Agent Stock Watch: Aaron Harang
Aaron Harang may have made his last start as a member of the Reds today, writes MLB.com's Mark Sheldon. The big righty had his outing cut short by a blister, and probably will not make the postseason roster. The Reds are certain to choose Harang's $2MM buyout over his $12.75MM club option for 2011. His best years were 2005-07, when the workhorse tossed 677.6 innings of 3.77 ball. Let's assess his situation.
The Pros
- Even as he started to slip in recent years, Harang's peripherals remained respectable. He's prone to hits and homers, but at least he gets strikeouts and limits walks typically.
- He's highly likely to sign a one-year deal.
- Harang will not cost a draft pick to sign. In fact, he's below a Type B.
The Cons
- He's always been a flyball pitcher. He's also so hittable that many of his frequent home runs allowed will come with runners on base.
- This year Harang's strikeout rate was his lowest since '03, while his walk rate was his highest since '04.
- Harang hasn't reached 200 innings since '07, as he's dealt with forearm and back injuries as well as an appendectomy.
The Verdict
Harang needs a big ballpark, and could join the long list of free agents hoping to rebuild value in San Diego. He could be looking at a base salary in the $3-4MM range for 2011.