11:38am: MLBTR's Tim Dierkes reports (via Twitter) that there's "no way" Santana signs today. Dierkes' source says that there are three to four teams with serious interest.
10:59am: Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca hears from a source that Santana did indeed move closer to striking a deal this weekend. However, the Blue Jays "aren't the ones driving the sudden turn in his market," according to Davidi.
7:58am: The Orioles aren't close to a deal with Santana at this time, a source tells Jim Bowden of ESPN and MLB Network Radio (Twitter link).
MONDAY, 7:12am: Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN tweets that there's no interest in Santana from the Twins, but he hears that the Orioles, Mariners, Dodgers, Yankees and Indians have all inquired on Santana within the past few days. Of course, the Dodgers signed Paul Maholm over the weekend, so they may no longer be in the market for another starter.
SUNDAY: Free agent starting pitcher Ervin Santana seems to finally be heading toward a deal, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports writes. The Blue Jays and the Orioles have both been in touch with Santana. Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish, meanwhile, tweets that the Orioles will strongly pursue Santana or Ubaldo Jimenez this week.
Santana, of course, is coming off a strong 2013 season in which he posted a 3.24 ERA, 6.9 K/9 and 2.2 BB/9 in 211 innings with the Royals. His path to a new team has been blocked, however, first by the uncertainty regarding Masahiro Tanaka's destination, and now by the fact that the team that signs him will have to forfeit a draft pick. As Rosenthal points out, the Jays' No. 9 and No. 11 picks are protected, which means they would only have to forfeit their No. 49 overall pick. The Orioles would lose their top draft choice, at No. 17.
Rosenthal notes that the Orioles are unlikely to be able to sign A.J. Burnett, as reports earlier this weekend indicated. They were among the finalists for Bronson Arroyo, but Arroyo recently agreed to terms with the Diamondbacks.
Come on Jimenez!
Anyway, I am thinking Santana will either sign with the Jays or back to the Royals.
Although, the Royals signed Chen and Vargas so maybe they are resigned to it to go without Santana. Don’t know for sure.
The other reason, I don’t think it’s the O’s and this is just my opinion, we could have traded for him a few years ago Tejada to then Angels and a whole bunch of players in return including Santana. Angelos said no way man! Besides, I want Jimenez! =P
Jimenez seems to be getting no love. I thought he was the best FA pitcher available. Would love to see him on the Os
Outside of Tanaka, I’ll add, in disussing Jimenez as te best FA pitcher
Santana really wouldn’t fit in Camden Yards. He could set a record of most HR given up by a pitcher pitching half his games there as well as pitching in Yankee Stadium, Fenway Park, and the Rogers Centre which are all hitters ballparks. It could get ugly…
Are we finally going to get some Jays news?!
Don’t be greedy… during the 2013 season the Jays were designating a player for assignment seemingly every 3 hours, so you had lots of headlines then. 😉
I think whoever signs him will get a bargain. He doesn’t have much leverage to drive up the asking price. He’ll give you mostly good years and will eat innings in all of them.
Jays reporter Mike Wilner, who doesn’t report often but always has accurate info, says the Jays aren’t close to a deal with him.
Darn.
Wilner is usually pretty reliable. He’s been a homer for so long that he’s got plenty of connections.
Wilner did say with supreme confidence that Farrel wasn’t going anywhere last year though.
Fair enough. Everone’s wrong once in a while.
Fair enough. Everone’s wrong once in a while.
Wilner gets stuff wrong all the time. Last week he said Jeff Baker was a bad clubhouse presence only to have beat reporters shoot that scurrilous rumor down.
When it comes to Jays stuff, I trust Wilner more than any of the national writers simply because he is closer to the Jays. It is possible that the Jays are not close to a deal because they are waiting until Santana is ready to sign, then swoop in and beat it at the last second.
I’m picturing that scene in Moneyball where Beane gets played in a similar manner in his kitchen. Man, I love that movie.
Book was way better
I love baseball and the inner workings of the game, but that movie was dull as week-old dishwater.
But the Jays don’t trust Wilner with anything they don’t want known. He often claims absolute certainty only to have the opposite happen within 24 hours. That said, it’s unlikely anyone will tip their hand from any team which feels they have a chance. There’s some chess under way. The Blue Jays — I anticipate, don’t know — may even sign two pitchers, then bundle some of their players without options and a surplus pitcher (e.g. Romero) or two for other pieces (for depth, back-up or just adding to the Bisons). Signing free agents adds depth and costs only money. AA knows how risky it’s been to wait late and what his shopping list really looks like — I suspect that’s info no one is privy to beyond a tight inner circle — and I suspect he’s less nervous than we are.
As for Wilner, with Morris and Hayhurst out the door, is a promotion coming? One frets that, but at least he has a grasp on team history. I’d prefer Sportsnet add gravitas with a Jeff Blair or similar quality credential to handle the booth work. Sam Cosentino would work for me. But if not a journalist, bring in another ex-Jay to work alongside and spell legendary Jerry Howarth.
you prefer cosentino to Wilner? I’d much rather have Mike’s brand of snark and evidence based analysis than Cosentino’s feelings.
Oh my
I have never once heard someone say they think Sam Cosentino is okay for baseball reporting. He brings all Blue Jays broadcasts down significantly, in every medium he touches.
That’s not actual news. If he says something about a transaction or a developing transaction, he is nearly always right.
Example? I can’t think of an occasion when he broke news. Maybe I’m wrong but since the Jays front office is so tight lipped it seems that almost all the breaking news comes from agents leaking stuff to national media.
Honestly, you don’t listen to the radio enough. Which i can totally agree with, being a child of the modern tech era.
Mike Wilner breaks Blue Jays news on almost a daily basis in season.
Other reporters shooting it down does not make him wrong – why would they be any more reliable than he is? He sounded very convinced and apparently heard it from multiple sources. And look where Baker signed, there wasn’t a contender that could have used a versatile lefty-masher?
Wilner is pretty awful – When it comes to transaction news regarding the Jays, Bob Elliott is (usually) far and away the best.
Yeah I agree with that. Elliot seems to have contacts beyond Jays staff/roster. Wilner is a smarter analyst than Elliot, but Elliot is a good reporter. I don’t really consider Wilner a reporter either… He’s a commentator.
What? Elliott is easily the worst. So many half-baked “anonymous NL scout” things. You believe it when you hear it from Davidi and Nicholson-Smith. Otherwise, it’s murky.
Tired of trolling the comments of your own blog?
Agreed. Elliott is terrible.
Jays FO doesn’t leak and unless it is official via the two you mentioned (edit: davidi and nicholson-smith), it probably hasn’t happened or is in the process of being leaked by Riccardi in NY.
Doesn’t matter who is a better reporter – that doesn’t get your team to the playoffs, which is the only thing that does matter. Just give up the 49th pick and sign Santana. What is AA waiting for ? He already has the worst farm system in the AL East, with four former Jays prospects on the MLB top 100 prospects list vs. only three actual Jays prospects there. A 49th pick isn’t going to change that. Now he’s going to let The O’s sign Santana from under his nose ?
Did you mean to respond to me? Your reply has nothing to do with my comment…..
Orioles just bluffing to fool their fans into thinking they are trying. I see Santana with the Blue Jays
There is no bluffing. We know their not.
Jays will get him, I think. Giving up ur 46th overall pick isn’t that big of a deal.
My guess is the Orioles
I certainly hope not.
I think it would be best for everyone if he signs elsewhere. I think the Mariners are a good fit, him and Cruz would make them a contender. Santana has a homer problem, adding him into the NL East where almost every time he score 10 runs a game on bad pitching is a baddd idea for the Orioles.
Get that contract signed Erv… you can be in Surprise by Friday when pitchers and catchers report!!
My guess is White Sox but I hope I’m wrong
Please no
They are rebuilding, doubt its them. Jays, Orioles and Angels seem reasonable. Angels less likely then the others.
They were actually a team that was in contact with Santana’s agent….the probability is low…but still..
It just doesn’t make sense for them to trade Santiago and Reed then go after a top FA. Not like Reed and Santiago were payroll commitments..
I absolutely agree…along with surrendering a draft pick.
I’ve seen them connected in the past couple days thats why I threw it out there but that doesn’t mean I want him
Gotta be the Orioles, that fanbase is dying for a big move.
I’ll be happy as long as its not the Yankees.
In related news, the Orioles dropped their pursuit of Santana after hearing he stubbed his toe.
these jokes are really old
Ok here’s a new one: The Baltimore Orioles
who is your team
I like how you dont deny it.
I mean they have been more relevant than a lot of teams the last 2 years. especially your jays
Orioles didn’t get any better than they were last year even if they sign ubaldo or santana
2012 their Pythagorean record was 82-80, it was a fluke they made the playoffs, in 2013 they showed they had a solid core, but instead of taking advantage of that the Orioles have stood by and did nothing this whole offseason, even after getting rid of their closer.
I always hated the Pythagorean method in high school
And last year in March, your fan base called your team a playoff team and WS contenders.
It wasn’t the fanbase that did so first. They followed the international media on that assessment. You can look it up. It was obviously premature — the games have to be played. Then injuries took out pitchers, SS, 3B, LF, RF, CF, etc. So right now the team is far better than they averaged in 2013 just by removing JJ and JP and getting healthy. Having healthy Lawrie, Reyes and Melky to start year will make April better.
It wasn’t the fanbase that did so first. They followed the international media on that assessment. You can look it up. It was obviously premature — the games have to be played. Then injuries took out pitchers, SS, 3B, LF, RF, CF, etc. So right now the team is far better than they averaged in 2013 just by removing JJ and JP and getting healthy. Having healthy Lawrie, Reyes and Melky to start year will make April better.
Ha… “relevant”
They wont be old until next year at the latest.
Lets Go O’s!!
Ubaldo to Jays, Santana to O’ s. This has seemed inevitable for a while.
I hope it’s the other way around, although I wouldn’t mind Toronto being good. I think Ubaldo is the far better pitcher of the two.
Honestly, I hope the Orioles don’t sign either of them. Neither is worth a mid-first round draft pick and a big money multi-year deal.
At this point, giving up the first round pick might be worth it just to settle down the fans. I can’t imagine the ticket sales are looking great since they rose prices and have done nothing this offseason, but signing somebody can give the fans confidence to come to the park.
Well-run organizations shouldn’t squander first round picks in good draft years on so-so players that come loaded with question marks. If FO people around baseball really believed that either guy was an impact talent worth the pick and the money, they wouldn’t be scrounging for jobs a few days before pitchers and catchers report.
Draft picks are overrated. Theres only a 50% chance that a guy drafted in the 2nd half of the first round ever even makes the majors… while the alternative is getting a legit #2-3 pitcher that the team desperately needs. I’ll take the risk to sign Santana over hoping that the player we draft actually becomes something of value.
3 bad years 6 good years. I take the risk because you dont have time on your side with losing wieters and davis soon
Santana pitched to a 5.16 ERA while leading the world in HRs allowed the year before last, and he’s posted ERAs over 5.00 in 3 of the last 7 years. He seems to a roughly 50/50 shot as well.
Santana had an incredibly flukish HR/FB rate of 18.9% in 2012. I think the HR issue is not nearly as bad as you make it sound. He has become much better at getting ground balls than earlier in his career and the last three years he has had a GB% above 43% each season. Last year his HR/FB rate was still above his career norm at 12.4%, but his HR/9 were a much more manageable 1.11.
Santana ranks 37th in ERA and 51st in xFIP over the last 3 years. He might not be an ace, but he is a very solid MOR arm that has averaged 206 IP the last 3 years.
You can’t fill every position with trades and free agents. You need help from the farm system.
I dont think pleasing the fan base is ever a good reason to sign a player but I do believe if we get the 2013 santana he could be a real difference maker for the orioles.
But which Santana will show up- the excellent 2013 version or the abysmal 2012 version with the 5.16 ERA that led the majors in HRs allowed?
I think you have to roll the dice with only having 2 years left of davis and wieters
Not me. Not for a guy that’s posted ERAs over 5.00 in 3 of the last 7 years. I’ll keep my draft pick, and fortunately, I expect DD to do the same.
What is with the arbitrary cut-off point of “the last 7 years”? Santana has been pitching for the last 9 years….
switch out “Santana” with Ubaldo.. and the same sympathy (?) applies…
C’mon, they’ve signed Jack Cust and Matt LaPorta. What more do you want?
Agreed to a point. My team, ATL, would do far better with the draft pick because of the advanced scouting than most other teams. And when considering how bad the FA signings for the team have been recently, I’ll side with not giving up a pick for a FA – though it’ll undoubtedly take longer for anything to come to fruition, if ever.
In all honesty, a 3.24 ERA is not too bad, although if Ervin can get into the 2’s for an ERA, that would be very nice for any team he’ll receive a deal with. I would agree to pick him up because with that type of performance and only letting up an average of three runs per game, most teams can make up three runs in game and more. This article would suit those who love baseball and want to keep up with the times of baseball. My question the writer Charlie Wilmoth is what is Ervin’s demeanor like? An athlete can have exceptional performance, but if he lets his temper loose and is not a team player, it doesn’t matter what their performance is; they won’t last long.
Can he stay healthy.
Cause of the draft pick and the $? Because they certainly need rotation improvement.
The draft pick and the fact that he’s a HR machine. OPACY is not a great home park for the guy at all.
Good points, though if he’s asking for a contract similar to or slightly more than Arroyo (AAV wise that is), I think it’s a risk the O’s should take.
It’s certainly a tough call if we’re only talking about $10-12 million per, but I *think* I’d rather keep the pick and sign a guy like Capuano. The Orioles’ inability to draft and develop anything at all for so long was a large part of why the team wallowed in muck for 14 years, and I have a great deal of faith in the work Duquette’s done to overhaul the drafting and development departments since arriving in Baltimore. The early results look pretty darn good at least.
Capuano would get killed in the AL East, and I like Cappy!
Good points, though if he’s asking for a contract similar to or slightly more than Arroyo (AAV wise that is), I think it’s a risk the O’s should take.
I’d rather keep building towards the future than sign a guy that completely forgets how to pitch every year or two.
I think last years version of santana makes them a serious contender though and at some point you have to pull the trigger and make the final push
If he shows up. If 2012’s version shows up, you might as well be throwing Zach Britton or Steve Johnson out there. I’d rather have Capuano to be perfectly honest. The rotation could use a second solid lefty.
What someone else joining the Capuano bandwagon?
Stunning!
never pitched in the AL let alone the AL east
Santana has spent his career giving up tons of HRs in pitcher-friendly parks. In OPACY, he may challenge for records.
Capuano’s got good stuff. It’ll translate.
We need a pitcher who can give us a sub 3.75 era and pitch 200+ innings Capuano wouldnt be a bad pick up but he doesnt fit that. It is quite possible santana doesnt give us that either but he is more capable
We do need that. Unfortunately, none of the remaining pitchers on the market can be reliably counted on for that. If we’re going to go with a “take a shot” kind of guy, I’d much rather go with the one that doesn’t cost a first round pick.
Harrison is right about Santana….his fastball has a habit of leaving the park quite often.
We need a pitcher who can give us a sub 3.75 era and pitch 200+ innings Capuano wouldnt be a bad pick up but he doesnt fit that. It is quite possible santana doesnt give us that either but he is more capable
I’ve wanted Capuano for several years. Dude’s solid.
Capuano is the reverse of santana 6 bad years to 3 good years.
ill take 2012 version of Capuano not 2013
The O’s window is these next 2 years. After that, we most likely lose both Davis and Wieters… we need to try to win now, not put it off until later.
Squandering draft picks was a large part of the reason the O’s were so bad for so long, and wasting one for a guy that posts ERAs over 5.00 almost 50% of the time isn’t my idea of a smart move. I’d much rather sign a solid veteran guy like Capuano.
As a jays fan i would love it if the O’s signed capuano. He will get nailed hard in the AL East…
ERAs over 5.00 in 3 of the last 7 years, and he’s given up a ton of homers in parks that are generally considered pitcher-friendly in LA and KC. I wouldn’t expect great results in a top 5 HR park like OPACY.
So the burden is on others to disprove Jeff Baker is not what an anonymously sourced tweet from the blue jays radio scoreboard guy says?
Wilner isn’t a reporter. He’s wrong all the time on this stuff. He should leave the reporting to davidi, Lott and Elliott.
Wilner is very much so is a reporter. He has a blog, does the Jays talk, does interviews, does play by play for 3-6 innings per game, is on at least an hour a day on the radio elsewhere…. don’t know how much more of a reporter one can get.
having a blog doesn’t make you a reporter, nor does doing fluffy postgame interviews and hosting a call-in show. sports reporters like Rosenthal or this kid Chris Cotillo have contacts beyond the traditional PR song and dance.
Looking at Cotts I see 40% of MLB teams have a lower payroll than they did last year despite new TV money, so you would think some of these teams could afford to upgrade at SP’er, SS or a bat like Morales and Cruz.
Morales cant find a job because hes tied to a draft pick. Cruz can’t because hes demanding too much money. Ubaldo just isn’t worth the risk. Santana is on and off with his pitching.
Yup. There are plenty of good reasons why those 4 guys are unemployed a few days before pitchers and catchers report. I wouldn’t be shocked if one or more of them(Morales would be my guess) ends up waiting until after the draft in June to sign.
I bet after this year if you are 30 years+ you see a lot more of them accepting the qualifying offer
Hard to imagine that 40% includes the Yankees after they spent about $500 million in the offseason. $228 mil in 2013. Right now it looks like it stands at $194 mil or $203 mil (2 seperate sections for 2014 are shown, one says $194 mil, one says $203 mil). Still, it’s less than last year’s payroll
I think the same situation happened in 2009 when they spent almost $500 million on Sabathia, Burnett and Tex. They had a lot of $ coming off the books that year. In 2008 it was $209 million and in 2009 it was $201 million. Surprisingly of all the years they had a $200 million payroll (8 as of now, 9 if it reaches that in 2014), 2009 was the 2nd lowest ever.
Their highest payroll ever was apparently last year at $228 million.
Cots numbers don’t include 11mil for insurance and pension benefits, plus 5 mil for minor league call-ups (Both estimates). Plus teams make lots of moves between now and October. Numbers from ’13 include everything, ’14 numbers just contracts to date.
Not to mention they saved A-Rod’s money which goes back on for 2015.
i have had a strong feeling for a while now toronto gets santana and the orioles will get jimenez for some reason
So Santana is progressing towards a deal but sources from the main two teams he’s been linked to say they’re not close or not in on him? That’s not confusing at all.
Agent trying to move things along. A story like this is evidence of the player (and his reps) giving up that they’re getting freaked out.
Would like to see the M’s get in on him for a 2 yr/ mutual 3rd year option type deal. A legit #3 behind Felix and Iwakuma would strengthen the rotation as the young guys adjust to MLB.
God no!
Please Seattle NOOOO E Santana! I can’t bare to watch his inconsistencies! Plus I’m tired of Seattle landing these LAA rejects, and watching them not even being able to pitch in a pitchers park @ Safeco (Washburn, Saunders, am I missing any?!)
I see where you stand on this, but if he is slotted for 2 years at #3, I think that could be successful. Long term contract? No. But I would rather pay him a fair contract for two years to be the #3, as opposed to the Scott Baker/ Joe Saunders/ Jeremy Bonderman/ Aaron Harang types they keep bringing in for that slot in an attempt to catch lightning in a bottle. I would argue Santana is a better and somewhat more dependable option for two years, while Walker, Paxton, and the others develop.
It better not be the Yankees….
If the Indians get him the rotation would look like Masterson, Santana, Salazar, Kluber, and Mcallister. That rotation would be really good.
Out of all the teams listed, the O’s and Jays arent close (though i highly doubt that’s 100% true), Dodgers signed Malhom so they’re out. So its the M’s (who look like pitching is the last thing they need),Indians and Yanks. I fear since its so below his original 100 million plus, that maybe the yankees actually make sense. Well, they could afford him and since Cle got out of Kazmir early, and they can’t extend masterson, i don’t see them being a major player. Come on M’s, u need this guy, no need for the Yankees to waste another 40-50 million on him!
That list was just spitballing. Literally anyone could be interested, as everyone has money in this MLB and only a few teams are deep enough to be completely uninterested if his price drops enough. Not the Red Sox, not the Cards or Tigers. But beyond that who knows.
With the loss of a first-round draft pick, not as many teams are high on Santana. I can’t foresee the Blue Jays giving up their #11 pick, especially since they also have a #9. The Indians probably aren’t, either… I wouldn’t be the least bit shocked if you see Santana in the Bronx (as they don’t seem to care about their drafts, ever) or Seattle.
I didn’t realize until just now that the Blue Jays #11 pick was also protected…. ok, commence Blue Jays signing Santana, as they seem to sign all the other washed-up or inconsistent pitchers.
Santana gets a lot of grief but he’s in essence a league average to slightly better SP who’s only 31. Since focusing on his sinker he’s gotten quite a lot better. If his AAV dips down into the $8-12 million range I can see sorts of teams calling. I can think of only 5 or 6 teams he wouldn’t make better.
I think he’d certainly do better in a larger ballpark (as he did in KC) than he would in NY.
I didn’t realize until just now that the Blue Jays #11 pick was also protected…. ok, commence Blue Jays signing Santana, as they seem to sign all the other washed-up or inconsistent pitchers.
With the uncertainty of AJ coming back to Pittsburgh. And this being the last year of Liriano’s two year deal and Wandy’s two year deal. And the fact that the Pirates tried to sign E Jax when he was a free agent. Wonder with the market climbing for starting pitchers, if the Pirates could be making a play on a multi year deal for some cost certainty in their rotation? That gives you Cole, Taillon, Morton, Santana, and Kingham until Glasnow is ready in a couple years.
I like the thought and would much rather burn the pick on him as opposed to Morales. A 2014 rotation of Cole, Liriano, Santana, Morton, and Volquez would be pretty solid. It would remove a few question marks (Locke and Wandy). If Wandy regains form, maybe he is the #5. A rotation down the road that includes Morton, Santana, Cole, and Taillon would have to be pretty special. And you are correct, Santana would bridge the gap to the news guys (since we are currently slated to lose Liriano, Wandy, and Volquez at season’s end).
All that being said, I don’t see them adding a FA tied to a pick.
I know! It’s those Rakuten Golden Eagles again!!
I have a feeling that the team is the Mariners, since they were/are interested in him and may have a problem with signing Cruz due to the yrs .
I’d be surprised if this were not the case.
I think ultimately a deal with Nelson Cruz will get done.
All depends on what they can get for Franklin. If a starter, they sign Cruz. If an outfielder (much more likely) they try and sign Santana or Jimenez or Capuano or Bedard.
I think that they will still sign Cruz and or Santana or Jimenez or a trade. Don’t forget they need a RH bat to protect Cano
Cano: Dominican Republic. Rodney: DR. Cruz: DR. Santana: DR and reportedly beat writer for the M’s Shannon Drayer says Cano is possibly being a “recruiting” influence on those players going (possibly coming) to Seattle.
I wonder how much GM’s take into account the fact that he’s going to fall flat on his face next year no matter where he signs.. Honestly, I don’t think a player has ever been so consistently inconsistent year to year.
-0.3 WAR over 9 seasons… yeesh.
Yeah Santana is in a league of his own. I’ve been going to Angel games for years and Santana was always very frustrating due to his inconsistency year to year.
AJ Burnett……Just finding one as inconsistent….
Burnett is no where near as inconsistent at Santana… not by a long shot.
Watch out for the Yanks here, they are already over 189 and could use another starter.
The fact that they ARE over 189 is a reason NOT to do it for the Yanks since they have to pay an extra 50% of every dollar they spend over the luxury tax. My bet is on the Jays.
No, the Yankees even said they’d stay under, or if they go over they’d go WAYY over
Every report I’ve read said the Yankees were done signing anymore top free agents. Trust me, Yanks will not sign him or ubaldo.
While they did say they were done making any more big moves, I feel like if they could get someone like Drew at a discount due to his limited market ; they would get him.
In my opinion they aren’t signing anymore major league contracts with the money they’ve already committed. Drew won’t bring in any more fans than they would have without him, and I doubt the Yankees would want to pay those taxes when they are already putting a product on the field that will draw PLENTY of fans to the stadium.
We must not forget the Yankees are the most corporate minded baseball team in the MLB, and they are smart enough to know that they don’t need to invest any more money for their stadium to be full for every home game.
Actually the New York media said that. I used to think they had that mindset as well.
Actually the New York media said that. I used to think they had that mindset as well.
Makes sense for the Jays with their 1st 2 picks protected. O’s giving up the 17th Pick, not the kind of thing Duquette did in the past. He built a great team nobody knows about years ago with the Expos, with kids.
Yeah, if the price drops on Santana to 3 yrs and around the qualifying offer amount ($14 mill/yr), then I think Santana makes sense for the Jays.
Santana’s inconsistency is definitely a risk, but on a 3 yr deal, it would be worth the risk for the Jays.
Have a feeling the Yankees are in on this. The addition of an arm like Ervin Santana would be scary because he allows Homeruns but I’d certainly take him over others based on talent. CC, Tanaka, Kuroda, Santana, Nova, Pineda, Phelps… Now that’s deep starting pitching.
Santana had one of the worst HR/FB ratios in the league last season with a 12.4. Putting him in Yankee Stadium would be border-line nightmarish.
Santana was moved as salary dump after the 2012 season, CC had the worst season of his career in 2013, Phelps and Nova were good but nothing special, Kuroda was very good but is now 39, Pineda hasn’t thrown an MLB pitch since 2011 and Tanaka has never thrown an MLB pitch. That rotation has potential but it is far from deep.
CC came back from surgery at the start of last season and barely had any time to do his offseason stregthening exercises. He is working on them now and should be a solid pitcher, maybe not the ace he once was but definitely not as bad as 2013. Nova was spectacular in the second half and had a 3.10 era for the season. Kuroda has been as consistent as it gets. Yeah, sure he faded down the stretch but it was because he was overworked during the season. He was even in CY young conversations around the All star break. Tanaka has never thrown an MLB pitch yeah, but he has been training with a major league baseball since 2012 he probably wont be an ace in his first year but no one is expecting him to. That leaves Pineda, Warren, Nuno, Phelps for the fifth spot. And Warren proved he deserved it in 2013
Kuroda’s ERA in August 5.12, September 5.70. Definition of inconsistent and being almost 40. Maybe he can do a consistent 5+ all year this year.
I mentioned that, ‘Yeah, sure he faded down the stretch but it was because he was overworked during the season.’ Ever since he’s been in MLB his season era’s have ranged from 3.07-3.76
Of course Dodger Stadium is the 3rd easiest park to pitch in by Run Factor making the 3.07 – 3.76 range while he was there an adjusted 3.53 – 4.34 which isn’t nearly as impressive. Furthermore 201 1/3 innings last year (32nd in MLB, 18th in the AL) is hardly overworked with just 32 starts at 6.25 innings per start unless you mean for an old pitcher which he is and thus likely to fade even earlier this year.
You don’t know for sure what his era would have been if it wasn’t in Dodger stadium. For all you know, it could have been the same. Yea he could fade even earlier this season OR, the Yankees can skip a few of his starts every now and then and keep him fresh for later in the year which they most likely will do.
Folks, the Indians have not bagged one significant FA all Winter. To any rational way of thinking, wouldn’t this be the time?
But obviously, with UB, no draft choice yielded.
I assume they want their 1st Round pick.
Tribe will have two Santanas in Wahoo uni’s come Opening Day.
Tribe will have two Santanas in Wahoo uni’s come Opening Day.
M’s need to get ubaldo. 1st pick is protected and the other went to cano. If they get ubaldo then they give up a comp pick. Sounds like a good deal to me