Links for Friday, before Dan Haren celebrates his 30th birthday by taking on one of baseball's most potent offenses…
- MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan lists ten decisions that have been critical to the Rangers' success this season.
- The Pirates have released lefty Neal Cotts according to Matt Eddy of Baseball America and this week's edition of minor league transaction.
- Padres' first base coach Rick Renteria is on the Marlins radar with regards to their managerial opening, says MLB.com's Joe Frisaro. He adds that Yankees bench coach Tony Pena is a candidate as well.
- Chipper Jones told Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports that it would be hard to stop playing before his body prevents him from doing so, partly because “you can make absurd amounts of money” as a baseball player.
- Former Orioles manager Dave Trembley told ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick that he’d like to coach in the major leagues next year (Twitter link).
- The Pirates' minor league success has been a major positive this year, but Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette questions how the Pirates also allowed for "near-total destruction of the major-league product." The team is 50 games below .500 with the worst record in baseball.
- Carl Crawford told Rob Bradford of WEEI.com that his impending free agency hasn't been hard to handle, since the Rays are winning. Click here for Bradford's analysis of how Crawford would fit in Fenway.
- Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald breaks down Boston's options behind the plate for 2011, from free agents Victor Martinez and Jason Varitek to new acquisition Jarrod Saltalamacchia.
- John Dewan of the Fielding Bible explained to Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post that Adam Dunn's poor defense wouldn't necessarily prevent the Nationals from building a better defensive team.
Solution: The Pirates could play the AAA or AA team in Pittsburgh and let the Pirates play in Indy. That way, the fans will see some wins and draw more people to the park.
I hope it becomes Salty, so they Yankees can walk-off on a throw over the pitchers head in 2011.
the pirates have ruined baseball for a whole generation of pirate fans. the city doesnt care anymore unless they have a fireworks night. im 30 years old and i was twelve the last time we had a winning record. atleast field a competative team and get some actual major leaguers on the team. how can major league baseball let this happen. there is no comparison in sports to the pirates. even the clippers or the lions have some legit talent
bob nutting needs to go
please please sell the team
I understand your sentiment and agree that it should never take this long to get back to respectability. That said, the future isn’t as bleak as it’s always been the last two decades. They finally spending on amateurs, which is exactly what they should have been doing all along considering their inability to spend on the free agent market. I’m not sure Bob Nutting needs to go yet, or Hungtington. I almost hate to say it but give them a chance, or a longer chance. Maybe it took them awhile to catch on but it looks like they’re finally doing things right.
Agreed. Being frustrated with ownership is understandable but I think Hungtington has done very well in his short time, especially considering his financial limitations and the team he was given to work with. He deserves a chance to see his plan through.
Alvarez, Tabata, Walker, Bowker, Lincoln, etc. They already kind of are.
What if the red sox traded for russel martin or mike napoli? they would come pretty cheap in prospects.
They may not even have to trade for Martin, I’d say he’s a pretty serious non-tender candidate.
Of the big three FAs this winter, Victor is going to be the toughest decision. There’s nobody in free agency who can replace him, so unless A) you’re feeling lucky about Saltamacchia or B) you find a decent hitting, good defense catcher available via trade, you probably have to re-sign him for too much money and too many years. Nobody in the minors is ready yet.
As for the other FAs:
Beltre – Where can you find that kind of production and defense in the off-season? They HAVE to re-sign him. Yeah, he’ll be expensive and will want one more year than they’re comfortable with, but they have his salary and Lowell’s to play with. Just do it.
Ortiz – Don’t renew the option. Offer two years at a lower (market value) salary. If he walks, go in another direction.
Vartek – Depends entirely on what happens with Martinez. Quality backup catcher. Worth bringing back for low money if there is room for him.
Gotta beleive that if they pass on V-mart they will trade for Napoli or sign Buck. Just wondering though – would cubs consider giving up Soto if Sox ate a bad contract or two? Personally I would sign Soto longterm now but if cubs could dump off Soriano and Aram wouldn’t the savings outweight the loss of soto? ellsbury, Anderson, Lowrie for soriano, Aram, and Soto. I dare anyone to top that for totally nonsensical trade lol
I could imagine the Sox taking ARam, but not Soriano. Nobody is taking Soriano. Nobody.
They *might* even be talked into taking Zambrano as part of it for a cheaper pitcher – Beckett, Lackey, or Dice-K (if he would waive the no-trade).
What are you smoking and which country is it legal in?
Who says it has to be legal to smoke it?
Who says it has to be legal to smoke it?
MLBTR needs an “ignore list”. If you can’t disagree in a civil manner and back up your reasoning, then just go away.
MLBTR needs an “ignore list”. If you can’t disagree in a civil manner and back up your reasoning, then just go away.
Dice-K or Beckett for Zambrano would be a steal for the Cubs. Lackey is up in the air but I’d imagine he would do better in the NL. Go back to la-la-land please.
Straight up, of course it would be dumb. But as part of a deal for Soto (which is what this thread is about), it makes sense.
Alright my fault in misunderstanding then.
Dice-K or Beckett for Zambrano would be a steal for the Cubs. Lackey is up in the air but I’d imagine he would do better in the NL. Go back to la-la-land please.
Unfortunately that’s not going to happen anytime soon. The Pirates are being run as a profitable business rather than a profitable BB team. Nutting cares more about turning a buck than winning. He’s pocketed profits and revenue money and sold off or traded good players for less talented players, who make little money in return for cash on numerous occasions. All under the guise of being ‘a small market team’ that can’t complete with the larger markets. Recently, when the news about the Pirates’ finances were revealed, it showed that they paid off debt and only cleared 5MM in profit. That’s nonsense, no one will deny an owner a profit, but that was just disingenuis. What they did not reveal was that the loan he’s paying off was most likely to himself, which is what many owners do in order to double dip the proceeds and not have it show up as profit. You would know better than most, that the Pirates keeping telling their fans, that improvement is just around the corner, that their minor leaguers are just a year or two away, and then they trade them. That applies to established players making decent money or when approaching Arbitration or free agency.
Maybe with the news about their finances in the papers, Huntington will actually run the team towards the direction of respectability. Hopefully they WILL keep some of the young talent and compete in the next few years. But don’t wait on the Pirates being sold soon.
You are 100% incorrect on them trading players. It isn’t like they are trading top prospects like Andrew McCutchen or Pedro Alverez, they are trading guys who aren’t doing anything for their team at their time. Do you think the Pirates would rather have Marte and Nady over Tabata? Or would Nady, Bay, and McClouth in the Pirates OF really be the difference between them being under .500 this year and a playoff team. They weren’t going anywhere with those guys so the smart thing was to trade them while their value was high.
I’m thinking Napoli might be on top of Theo’s to do list this offseason. It makes sense, he’s made a run at him a couple of times before, he’s cheaper than Martinez with still good production, and he’d give the Sox time to evaluate their other catching prospects. The big question comes down to whether or not the Angels will insist on Kelly. If that fails, then they have 2 options… sign Martinez for whatever he’s asking and plan on moving him to DH in 2012 or pair Salty and Tek together and hope Tek’s mentoring pays off.
I see problems with Napoli. First I think the Angels will command a lot for him (as we saw at the waiver deadline) and I’m not a big fan of him. There also has to be questions about how well he can catch over a full season. The most games he has ever caught was 96 (84 starts) from last season. I realize this was because the Angels dislike him but it needs to be a real question. And I have a feeling Sox fans won’t like him. They complain a lot about Vmart with his 21.7% CS% so I doubt they will be ecstatic over 26.7.
Crawford’s a Terrific LF and will be a good value if he remains healthy as you’re getting his prime –28yo.–years. But I he’s not worth 7/140 mil. Of course they are going to try and get the RS involved but it looks like LAA to me.
I’m not sure how many teams will be involved but it will take A LOT of teams to get the price up to 7/140. Those contracts just aren’t being thrown around nowadays (outside the yankees).
No way he gets that much. 6 yrs/100MM is way more realistic. That’s Matt Holliday money right there.
His stock is rising though. He’s putting together a career year.
I’m pretty sure Victor is gone, they don’t want to give him the years he’ll get somewhere else, I think the catching rotation, for good or bad is gonna be Salty and Varitek. Beltre signing is gonna be tricky, the Sox have 2 decent prospects at first base and you’d like to have the flexibility to put Youk on the hot corner. I think they let both walk and sign Crawford.
Carl Crawford in Minnesota or LA of Aneheim would make me a happy camper.
I think the Yankees regret their Granderson-Jackson trade. I’m thinking they trade Curtis somewhere and get bull-pen/bench help in return (maybe Chicago? His hometown.) move Gardner to centerfield and sign Crawford. I’m starting to get the feeling that the Yankees are tired of Granderson’s .250 BA and horrid numbers against lefties. I’m not convinced his “new and improved mechanics” will make him more productive. A Crawford-Gardner-Swisher outfield sounds beast.
Also Minnesota should focus on a FA starting pitcher (Cliff Lee!). The Angels would be a perfect fit for Crawford but something tells me he’s going for whoever gives him the juiciest contract (Yankees).
I think Lee will go to the Yankees and they will be happy with their team. I’m not sure about the Yankees but I think they will see problems with having 5+ players making 20mil a year with contracts over 4 years. At some point they will virtually untradeable contracts with aging guys whose skills have diminished.
You knew exactly what you were getting in the Granderson trade. Had he not hit the DL, he would have nearly identical numbers as last year
You knew exactly what you were getting in the Granderson trade. Had he not hit the DL, he would have nearly identical numbers as last year
I think Lee will go to the Yankees and they will be happy with their team. I’m not sure about the Yankees but I think they will see problems with having 5+ players making 20mil a year with contracts over 4 years. At some point they will virtually untradeable contracts with aging guys whose skills have diminished.
Uhh, I hope you notcied this has been an injury plagued season for him. He actually started the season with a .312 Batting average, 7 Home Runs, and playing sterling defense like always. He’s bound to have a bounceback season next year with improved mechanics that actually has made a difference, and if he can stay healthy. A 20/20 man is something that the Yanks had not had since A-Rod and Derek Jeter. And his numbers aren’t all that horrible. He missed a month of the season, but he still has 18 HR. If he hadn’t been injured it would have been more along the lines of 21-23 HR, 20 SB, and with improved stance, a BA of .280+
I understand he improved his stance and is hitting well now but I don’t think he would be a .280 average guy had he not gotten hurt. He K’s simply too much and doesn’t hit lefties well.
I understand he improved his stance and is hitting well now but I don’t think he would be a .280 average guy had he not gotten hurt. He K’s simply too much and doesn’t hit lefties well.
Injury or no, he still can’t hit LHP. He is best used as a platoon player even when healthy. I love Granderson as a human being but even when he hit 30 home runs last year, he was offensively a league-average hitter. Exploring his trade value is not a bad idea, especially if they end up with Carl Crawford.
Uhh, I hope you notcied this has been an injury plagued season for him. He actually started the season with a .312 Batting average, 7 Home Runs, and playing sterling defense like always. He’s bound to have a bounceback season next year with improved mechanics that actually has made a difference, and if he can stay healthy. A 20/20 man is something that the Yanks had not had since A-Rod and Derek Jeter. And his numbers aren’t all that horrible. He missed a month of the season, but he still has 18 HR. If he hadn’t been injured it would have been more along the lines of 21-23 HR, 20 SB, and with improved stance, a BA of .280+
I think the Yankees regret their Granderson-Jackson trade. I’m thinking they trade Curtis somewhere and get bull-pen/bench help in return (maybe Chicago? His hometown.) move Gardner to centerfield and sign Crawford. I’m starting to get the feeling that the Yankees are tired of Granderson’s .250 BA and horrid numbers against lefties. I’m not convinced his “new and improved mechanics” will make him more productive. A Crawford-Gardner-Swisher outfield sounds beast.
Also Minnesota should focus on a FA starting pitcher (Cliff Lee!). The Angels would be a perfect fit for Crawford but something tells me he’s going for whoever gives him the juiciest contract (Yankees).
you dont have to kill your major league team to start drafting well and get in the international market
look at the reds
Right, but the Pirates didn’t have any valuable pieces like Brandon Phillips or Bronson Arroyo that would help them contend when that time would come. The guys they got rid of were overrated, expensive and, at best, average major leaguers. Blowing up and starting over was the best thing they could do. If they had kept them, they would still suck but have a crappy farm system and spent way too much money on player salaries for proven mediocrity.
Right, but the Pirates didn’t have any valuable pieces like Brandon Phillips or Bronson Arroyo that would help them contend when that time would come. The guys they got rid of were overrated, expensive and, at best, average major leaguers. Blowing up and starting over was the best thing they could do. If they had kept them, they would still suck but have a crappy farm system and spent way too much money on player salaries for proven mediocrity.
you dont have to kill your major league team to start drafting well and get in the international market
look at the reds
You gotta admire Chipper’s honesty.
Not so much when after his injury he said that he wouldn’t hesitate to retire if his knee couldn’t go because he has made so much money already in his career.
Not so much when after his injury he said that he wouldn’t hesitate to retire if his knee couldn’t go because he has made so much money already in his career.
You gotta admire Chipper’s honesty.
Why am I afraid that this is going to mean Chipper sticking around through the life of his contract and getting paid for his name rather than his value?
Why am I afraid that this is going to mean Chipper sticking around through the life of his contract and getting paid for his name rather than his value?
Since when are the Rays a potent offense? Their team batting average is .250. They’re a pitching/defense team. They score 3 or 4 runs and protect a lead with good starting/bullpen pitching. Potent offenses would be Rangers, Twins, Blue Jays, Red Sox and Yankees.
This. They have an offense that leads the league in Ks too I believe. Their offense is capable of scoring a lot of runs and being anemic the next night. They live off their pitching staff
The Rays are 3rd in baseball in runs, 1 behind Boston. Pretty shocking that they have scored so much without a good offense.
They lead the league in BB and OBP last I looked which would lead to that.
The Rays are 3rd in baseball in runs, 1 behind Boston. Pretty shocking that they have scored so much without a good offense.
They also are on the wrong end of a lot of no hitters, or near no hitters.. They do get a lot of walks, but their offense is definitely not their driving factor.
My thoughts exactly.
All teams have different ways of beating you. For the Rays it’s their pitching/defense/speed, definitely not offense.
They out-manage you, too. Maddon has proven himself to be a masterful in-game strategist.
That guy is an arrogant, spiteful SOB. But he’s a descent manager, nothing special. It’s not like the Rays aren’t talented without him (Longoria, Price, Crawford, Soriano). I think everyone gives him too much credit. He’s no Buck Showalter. Now what Showalter is doing with the Orioles, that’s amazing.
I agree. Maddon has a tendency to micro-manage a game and throw out 3 RPs on 3 guys in an inning. This later comes back to haunt him in tight games. He is overrated imo.
nah, maddon has the players to pull off moves.. if he went to a team with out such great athletes he would get run out of town.
My thoughts exactly.
All teams have different ways of beating you. For the Rays it’s their pitching/defense/speed, definitely not offense.
They also are on the wrong end of a lot of no hitters, or near no hitters.. They do get a lot of walks, but their offense is definitely not their driving factor.
This. They have an offense that leads the league in Ks too I believe. Their offense is capable of scoring a lot of runs and being anemic the next night. They live off their pitching staff
Since when are the Rays a potent offense? Their team batting average is .250. They’re a pitching/defense team. They score 3 or 4 runs and protect a lead with good starting/bullpen pitching. Potent offenses would be Rangers, Twins, Blue Jays, Red Sox and Yankees.
oh chipper, you money whore.
You must be related to someone in the Pirate FO, spouting the Pirates mantra to their fans. Of course the Pirates would rather have Alavrez or McCutchen over Nady, Bay,McClouth or Marte, they’re making league minimum and will not be eligible for arbitration for a number of years. Nady, Marte and McClouth were traded for mediocre players that were making peanuts. Pittsburgh got them along with cash, that’s why they were traded not for any other reason, so the high value you talk about is just that-talk. They may not have propelled the team to the playoffs or even past .500 but they would have been more respectable in a weak NL Central. As a matter of fact, in the years Marte, McClouth, Nady and Bay played for the Pirates, they never finished at 50 games below .500 as the current team with the new set of prospects will most likely finish. Don’t be surprised if these current players get traded in a few years when they’re close to making decent a salary for different prospects in order to make money for the owner.
Sounds like the method of another team….. idk the Marlins? It is a thin line. When you trade off your players you need to get talent back for the perfect storm where they all have big years and take you to the playoffs. The Pirates have been unlucky with this. But they have a decent set of prospects coming up and if they are willing to spend money on some players, they can have a good team. And I doubt if they had kept Bay, Nady, ect. they would be over .500. I’d rather see a team trade players to stockpile prospects to have a 2-3 year run than hold onto players up until they walk in the off chance an amazing year happens and you win.
I think getting a 19 year old Tabata for Xavier Nady was a good deal for the Pirates…
This goes to jwredsox
I’m starting to think the Sox need to do everything they can to retain V-Mart. Switch-hitting catchers with power just don’t grow on trees. They won’t (and shouldn’t) offer him starting catcher money for 4 years..but if Victor would be willing to take something in between DH money and catcher money for 3 or 4 years then we should sign him..
TR Sullivan left the most important thing off of his list of why Texas is having a good year. He forgot to mention that the Angels decided to sit this year out.
Rich Rodriguez is the football coach at Michigan. The Padres first base coach is Rick Renteria.
i think crawford is possible for boston i actually hope he goes there over the tigers angels twins ect sign beltre and ortiz and have salty/tex or sign buck trade for martin napoli doumit ect.dont see the nyy getting him with gardner a solid bat. obviously they messed up in giving up kennedy and jackson but there of is set so no crawford.the rays are gonna have to rely on there pitching in the future they do have some decisons to make regarding garza or shields but until a few of there good bats come up there gonna have to rely on there rotation to challenge in the east.one more thing why are some so biased for there teams its just a game and your not a part in any way you just sit there and watch dont take it personal but really no one cares what team you like your not playing for them
Yep, a 30 year-old SP with four straight QS’s is “washed up”. Uh how so?
And no, your really didn’t know for a “fact” that Beltre + Lackey = no playoffs.
Actually, now that I’m reading the rest of your post, I now see that you’re joking about most of everything you said, as no one can really be this dumb.
The posting was not about trades as much as the methods the Pirates use to run their team and the lousy manner of how they treat their fans. It’s easy to cherry pick one example to make a point, which is what you did here. I’ll remind you that the other pieces of that one trade were two pitchers that have not panned out. The same can be said of the other trades dealing with Bay and McClouth.Also, while it looks as the Tabata trade was a good one, it’s a bit premature to call it a success after 80 somewhat games.