Archives for February 2011

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Moyer, Cabrera, O’s, Maholm

By Mike Axisa | February 18, 2011 at 12:00pm CDT

Two years ago today, the final piece of Shea Stadium was demolished. The Mets called the ballpark home from 1964, the team's third year of existence, through 2008. Shea housed the World Champion Mets in 1969 and 1986, and at one time or another was inhabited by the Yankees (1974-1975), the New York Jets (1967-1983), and Pope John Paul II (Oct. 1979).

Here is the best the blogosphere had to offer over the last week…

Bugs and Cranks interviewed Jamie Moyer.
Phoul Ballz spoke to Nick Hernandez, the Brewers first round pick in 1978, about his son Nick, a Phillies prospect.
Beyond The Box Score interviewed Baseball America's Conor Glassey about this summer's amateur draft.
Bless You Boys posted an honest reaction to Miguel Cabrera's poor decisions.
River Ave. Blues remembers the Gary Sheffield era in the Bronx.
Royals Review explores the success and failure rates of Baseball America's top 100 prospects through the years.
Camden Crazies looks at how much the AL East hurts the Orioles.
South Side Sox wonders if Paul Konerko can do it again.
Pirates Prospects tries to figure out what Paul Maholm is worth.
Nick's Twins Blog explores Minnesota's backup plan for Justin Morneau, who is coming back from a concussion.
The Friarhood breaks down the Padres' rebuilt bullpen.
The Baseball Opinion looks back at the trade that sent Tim Hudson to the Braves.
Mariner Log does the same with the deal that sent Cliff Lee to the Rangers.
The Process Report wonders if Brandon Allen is of interest to the Rays.
Rays The Roof grades Tampa Bay's offseason.
Cracked Bell Sports ranks the ten best moves the Phillies never made.
D'Backs Central muses about Arizona's reported interest in Michael Young.
Cubs Billy Goat Blog sifts through the Spring Training noise.
Yankeeist provides a 110-year retrospective on Yankees Spring Training.
Mike Scioscia's Tragic Illness needs some help figuring out what kind of games are being played in the Dodgers bullpen.
Wahoo Blues has some fun and compares current Indians players to characters from Major League.
Midwest Sports Fans shows you a recent conversation between Albert Pujols and Alex Rodriguez.
Last, but certainly not least, DRays Bay lets you choose your own adventure on Joe Maddon's big night.

If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here. Only one email per week, please.

Epstein On Crawford, Papelbon, Gonzalez

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 18, 2011 at 11:30am CDT

Red Sox GM Theo Epstein told Dennis & Callahan on WEEI that the Red Sox are vulnerable in certain areas, even after a successful offseason. Here's the latest from Epstein, including details on the team's pursuit of its new left fielder…

Epstein prefers to integrate young players onto the Major League roster with minimal fanfare. Clay Buchholz and Jon Lester, for example, came up through Boston’s system and are now top starters.
Epstein identified starting pitching depth as a possible area of weakness for the Red Sox. Boston has Tim Wakefield, Felix Doubront and Alfredo Aceves plus its starting five, but doesn’t necessarily have MLB-ready starters in the minors.
Catching depth is another one of the team’s “areas of vulnerability,” Epstein says.
The Red Sox didn’t expect Carl Crawford to want to sign with them, but soon realized that he wanted to stay in the AL East. It took lots of research on Boston’s part to determine its level of interest in the left fielder. “We covered him as if we were privately investigating him,” Epstein said. “We had a scout on him literally the last three, four months of the season at the ballpark, away from the ballpark.”
The Red Sox never expected to sign Crawford as swiftly as they did, despite their strong interest in him.
Epstein explained Boston’s approach to extensions for arbitration eligible players: “Our philosophy, which is actually a policy in writing, is if we’re going to sign arbitration-eligible players long term, we have to get one free agent year and we have to get an option for the club. Because we’re giving the player certainty. We need to be able get some of those prime years back in exchange. That makes it a fair bargain."
It's a near-certainty that Jonathan Papelbon, who never signed an extension with Boston, will reach free agency after the season.
Epstein says there’s “no real timetable” for an Adrian Gonzalez extension.

21 Extensions For Arbitration Eligible Players

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 18, 2011 at 11:00am CDT

When a panel of arbitrators decides between Hunter Pence's $6.9MM asking price and the Astros' $5.15MM offer today or Monday, all of the 160-plus arbitration eligible players in baseball will have contracts for 2011. About one eighth of them – 21 – have agreed to multiyear extensions, as MLBTR's Arb Tracker shows.

The diverse group of extension recipients included both reigning MVPs (Josh Hamilton and Joey Votto) and the 2010 MLB home run champion (Jose Bautista). Only six of the 21 extensions came from the American League and the Blue Jays were the lone AL team to extend two arbitration eligible players (Bautista and Rajai Davis).

The Cubs (Sean Marshall and Carlos Marmol), Rockies (Jason Hammel and Matt Lindstrom) and Reds (Votto, Jay Bruce and Johnny Cueto) all extended multiple players in the Senior Circuit*.

Bautista ($64MM) signed for the most guaranteed money, followed by Dan Uggla ($62MM) and Jay Bruce ($51MM). Bruce (six years) signed for the most years, followed by Uggla and Bautista, who both signed for five.

No arbitration eligible catchers signed extensions (Geovany Soto was one potential candidate), but the other positions were well-represented. Five starting pitchers, four relief pitchers, four outfielders, three second basemen, two shortstops, two first basemen and Bautista, a third baseman/outfielder, composed the group of 21 recipients.

Extension season is far from over, though. Nine players signed extensions between this date in 2010 and Opening Day, so we could still see a number of deals in Spring Training. Pre-arbitration eligible pitchers such as Clay Buchholz and Trevor Cahill will be among the names to watch once Pence signs and all of the year's arbitration eligibles are under contract.

*Carlos Gonzalez and Troy Tulowitzki were not arbitration eligible this offseason, though they signed extensions.

Jim Edmonds Retires

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 18, 2011 at 10:08am CDT

Jim Edmonds has retired, the Cardinals have announced (on Twitter). The 40-year-old, who agreed to a minor league deal with St. Louis earlier in the month, is still bothered by his right Achilles, so his playing days are over.

Edmonds retires with a .284/.376/.527 line and 393 career homers. The eight-time Gold Glover and four-time All-Star played for the Cardinals, Angels, Padres, Reds, Cubs and Brewers over the course of a career that began in 1993. An elite hitter in his prime, Edmonds was also a standout defender who became known for highlight reel catches in center field.

The 17-year veteran spent eight seasons with the Cardinals from 2000-07. He hit .285/.393/.555 for the Cards and was a member of the 2006 World Champions. After missing the 2009 season, Edmonds returned last year and posted a .276/.342/.504 line for the Reds and Brewers, adding 11 homers and 23 doubles.

Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch first reported Edmonds' decision.

Orioles Sign Vladimir Guerrero

By Zachary Links | February 18, 2011 at 7:50am CDT

The Orioles signed Vladimir Guerrero to a one-year, the team announced. The SFX client will earn $8MM in total: $5MM this year and $3MM in deferred payments, according to Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter links). Zrebiec reports that Guerrero will get the $3MM several years from now.

It had been reported that the slugger was seeking a deal in the $8MM range while the O's were offering just $4.5MM for 2011. President of baseball operations Andy MacPhail appeared to be willing to let Guerrero go elsewhere, but it seems that the front office had a change of heart. Guerrero is the latest move for the O's, who signed Derrek Lee, Kevin Gregg, and Justin Duchscherer and traded for Mark Reynolds this offseason.

In 2010, the veteran belted 29 homers while hitting .300/.345/.496 in 152 games for the Rangers. Texas had some interest in retaining Guerrero last month but with Michael Young and Mike Napoli in the fold there wasn't a need for the nine-time All-Star.

Enrique Rojas of ESPNDeportes.com first reported the agreement.

West Notes: Padilla, Teagarden, Owings, Moseley

By Dan Mennella | February 17, 2011 at 10:55pm CDT

Here are some items of note from clubs out on the West Coast …

The Dodgers don't yet have a plan for right-hander Vicente Padilla, writes Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times. Padilla, last year's Opening Day starter, could (again) start, close or be a long-reliever, depending on injuries. Padilla's base salary reflects that, Hernandez writes. His base salary is for $2MM, but he can earn an additional $8MM in incentives for starting or $6.8MM for relieving.
The Rangers once again are well-stocked with catchers, writes T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com, but this year, as opposed to previous years, they have a clear-cut starter in Yorvit Torrealba. Still, they have three other useful backstops in Matt Treanor, Mike Napoli and Taylor Teagarden, but because Treanor has a Major League deal and Napoli is a strong hitter and versatile defender, Teagarden, who still has minor league options, appears to be the odd man out.
The Diamondbacks are experimenting with finding some more at-bats this spring for roster hopeful Micah Owings, writes Steve Gilbert of MLB.com. Owings, a right-handed pitcher, is in camp on a minor league deal and is vying for the long-relief job out of the bullpen, but he could improve his chances of breaking camp with the club because he can be used as a pinch-hitter and perhaps even as a first baseman, on occasion.
Padres right-hander Dustin Moseley, who signed a Major League deal with San Diego in December, will pitch out of the bullpen if he doesn't crack the starting rotation, writes Corey Brock of MLB.com. Generally regarded as a swing man, Moseley chose the Friars over a handful of other suitors for the chance to win a starting job.

Make Or Break Year: Aramis Ramirez

By Dan Mennella | February 17, 2011 at 8:56pm CDT

Despite posting outstanding numbers at the hot corner for one of baseball's best-known franchises, Cubs third baseman Aramis Ramirez always seemed to fly a little bit under the radar. Indeed, in a six-year span from 2004-09, Ramirez posted a studly triple-slash line of .303/.368/.551, but he never finished inside the top 10 of NL MVP voting. Durability was a bit of a concern during that time, as he averaged 131 games per season, but his injuries were typically of the nagging variety rather than debilitating.

In 2009, though, Ramirez suffered a dislocated shoulder midseason, missing most of May and all of June that year, but he returned in the second half and posted his usually solid offensive numbers. It all pointed toward Ramirez being his usual self in 2010, but it didn't happen that way.

A-Ram got off to a positively miserable start in April and May 2010, posting a .162/.227/.269 through those two months, and though he rebounded from there — going white-hot during July, in particular — his numbers at season's end still weren't pretty at .241/.294/.452, let alone up to his usually excellent career averages of .282/.340/.499.

Was it age catching up to the 32-year-old slugger? Injuries? A combination?

On the plus side for A-Ram, he bounced back markedly from his horrid April and May in 2010. On the down side, though, he is another year older, and he doesn't necessarily look like the most limber of athletes.

How Ramirez will contine to age is anyone's guess, but 2011 could go a long way toward projecting how he'll finish out his career. It's the last year of a five-year extension he signed with the Cubs prior to 2007, and it includes a $16MM club option for 2012 with a $2MM buyout.

Ramirez probably doesn't have much room for decline this season with respect to the chances of the Cubs picking up that pricey option, as it'd be hard to justify paying a third baseman that much money after two down years as he heads into his age-34 campaign. On the flip side, if he returns to his old form in 2011, the option could very well be exercised, and he'll again be facing a Make or Break Year in 2012.

Photo courtesy of Icon SMI.

Quick Hits: Vlad, Pujols, Cabrera

By Dan Mennella | February 17, 2011 at 7:26pm CDT

Here are a few items of note for Feb. 17, the day on which Wally Pipp was born 118 years ago.

The Orioles will hold a press conference for Vladimir Guerrero on Friday, tweets Enrique Rojas of ESPNDeportes.com, so it's safe to assume that he passed his physical earlier this week and that his one-year deal is now official.
The Cardinals at some point offered Albert Pujols a nine-year contract extension worth more than $200MM, tweets Jon Heyman of SI.com. To this point, the value of St. Louis' offer has been consistently around the $200MM range, but the length has been less clear.
Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera, arrested in Florida late Wednesday night and charged with DUI and resisting arrest, will not likely face jail time, writes Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com, who spoke to a "leading criminal defense attorney." Whether Cabrera will enter a treatment program at this time remains unclear, Morosi notes.

New York Notes: Wilpon, Sabathia, Torrealba

By Dan Mennella | February 17, 2011 at 6:01pm CDT

There seems to be no shortage of on- and off-field baseball news coming out of the Big Apple these days. Here's some of the latest out of New York …

High-ranking baseball people are concerned about whether the Wilpons will be able to keep the Mets in the wake of the ongoing Madoff fallout, writes Jon Heyman of SI.com. MLB Commissioner Bud Selig, a "friend and ally" of Wilpon's, according to Heyman, will give Wilpon a long leash in sorting through the mess, but some are doubting whether the Wilpons can withstand a loss worth half or even a quarter of the $1 billion that Madoff trustee Irving Picard is seeking.
The Yankees may actually benefit if CC Sabathia opts out of his contract after 2011, writes Joe Sheehan of SI.com. Typically, opt-out clauses are considered player-friendly, but because of Sabathia's injury risk due to his body type and age between 2012-15, the Yanks might do well to let Sabathia walk and spend the money elsewhere, according to Sheehan, especially with some promising pitching prospects on the way up. One interesting hypothetical posed by Sheehan: Let Sabathia walk, move Mark Teixeira to full-time DH duties and sign potential free agent Albert Pujols.
The Mets won their grievance case with catcher Yorvit Torrealba, writes Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com. An arbitrator ruled that the Mets were within their rights to call off a three-year, $14.4MM agreement they had reached with Torrealba following the 2007 season upon conducting a physical which caused them "concerns" about the condition of Torrealba's throwing shoulder.

Contract Notes: Cabrera, Feliz, Branyan

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 17, 2011 at 4:53pm CDT

Some thoughts and details on contracts around the game…

Some executives in baseball wonder if the Tigers will try to make Miguel Cabrera's contract non-guaranteed, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (Twitter links). The first baseman, who was arrested and charged with driving under the influence last night, has five years and $106MM remaining on his long-term deal with the Tigers. The Mets unsuccessfully attempted to convert Francisco Rodriguez's contract into a non-guaranteed deal after his legal trouble in 2010.
Pedro Feliz can opt out of his deal and become a free agent if he isn't on the Royals' Opening Day roster, according to Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star. Alternatively, he can go to the minors for $75K.
Russell Branyan has a similar clause in his deal with the Diamondbacks, according to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic (Twitter link).

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