Poll: The 2011 Rays
The Rays won baseball's toughest division last year, putting up 96 wins in the AL East to beat the Yankees (95 wins), Red Sox (89 wins) and Blue Jays (85 wins) for the title. The Yankees retained their prominent free agents this offseason and the Red Sox added Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford, among others.
Meanwhile, the Rays lost Crawford and Rafael Soriano to their biggest rivals and saw Carlos Pena and most of their bullpen depart via free agency, too. But executive VP Andrew Friedman rebuilt the team's bullpen and added some bats. The team is set to introduce Johnny Damon and Manny Ramirez at a press conference today, so the Rays will have some veteran sluggers in the mix this year.
Red Sox GM Theo Epstein told ESPNBoston's Gordon Edes that he thinks "the demise of the Rays is greatly exaggerated," but we want to know what you think…
How many games will the Rays win in 2011?
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85-89 games 46% (7,970)
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75-84 games 29% (5,091)
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90-94 games 17% (2,969)
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Fewer than 75 games 5% (912)
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95 games or more 3% (524)
Total votes: 17,466
What To Expect In February
The biggest trades and free agent signings of the offseason have already taken place, but if last year is any indication, we're in for a busy February filled with minor league deals and extensions. Here's what happened a year ago:
Signings
The Twins signed Jim Thome and Orlando Hudson; the Rockies signed Melvin Mora; the Orioles signed Mark Hendrickson and Will Ohman; the Padres signed Yorvit Torrealba; the Mariners re-signed Mike Sweeney and Erik Bedard; the Rays signed Joaquin Benoit; the Nationals signed Chien-Ming Wang, Adam Kennedy and Willy Taveras; the Blue Jays signed Jose Molina and Kevin Gregg; the Dodgers signed Eric Gagne, Reed Johnson and Brian Giles; the Tigers signed Johnny Damon; the Reds re-signed Jonny Gomes and signed Orlando Cabrera; the Mets signed Rod Barajas; the Indians signed Russell Branyan; the Cardinals signed Felipe Lopez and the Yankees signed Chan Ho Park and Dustin Moseley after signing Randy Winn and Marcus Thames.
Extensions
The Giants agreed to a two-year deal with Tim Lincecum; the Tigers extended Justin Verlander and the Twins made progress on an extension with Joe Mauer.
Front Office Changes
The Astros extended GM Ed Wade and the Indians announced that Chris Antonetti would replace Mark Shapiro as GM.
Arbitration
Corey Hart won his hearing with the Brewers; the Rays won their hearing with B.J. Upton; Cody Ross won his hearing with the Marlins; the Nationals won their hearings with Sean Burnett and Brian Bruney; the Cubs won their hearing with Ryan Theriot and Jeff Mathis won his hearing with the Angels.
Trades
The Blue Jays acquired Dana Eveland from the A's and the Reds and A's completed a multi-player trade that sent Willy Taveras and Adam Rosales to Oakland for Aaron Miles.
This Year
It's pretty clear that more top free agents remained on the market at this time last year, but some difference makers (Andy Pettitte and Vladimir Guerrero) are currently free agents. And even though there aren't many big-name free agents out there, players could sign this month and emerge as bargains over the course of the season, just as Joaquin Benoit did a year ago.
There are 15 unresolved arbitration cases, all of which will come to some sort of resolution this month. Some of the unsigned arbitration eligible players could agree to multiyear deals, as Lincecum and Verlander did last year. But it's Albert Pujols' possible extension that will dominate headlines in 2011 – at least until his Spring Training deadline for a deal.
We could also see front office changes – Rangers GM Jon Daniels is an extension candidate – and a few waiver claims this month. Just don't expect many trades. If last year is any indication, February is not much of a month for deal-making.
Mets, Pagan Avoid Arbitration
The Mets announced that they agreed to a one-year, $3.5MM deal with Angel Pagan, avoiding arbitration (Twitter link). Pagan filed for $4.2MM, while the Mets offered $3.06MM, so the sides agreed to a figure that's closer to the team's submission.
Pagan responded to his first everyday job with a breakout season in 2010. The 29-year-old hit .290/.340/.425 with 37 steals in 633 plate appearances, filling in admirably for Carlos Beltran. Though Pagan spent most of his time in center field last year, he also played left and right.
Now that the Mets have agreed to terms with Pagan, R.A. Dickey and Mike Pelfrey, none of the team's arbitration eligible players remain unsigned, as MLBTR's Arb Tracker shows.
Braves Sign Rodrigo Lopez
The Braves announced that they signed Rodrigo Lopez to a minor league contract with an invitation to Spring Training, according to Ed Price of AOL FanHouse (Twitter link).
The Braves' rotation is already deep; Tim Hudson, Derek Lowe, Tommy Hanson and Jair Jurrjens provide manager Fredi Gonzalez with four solid starters. Lopez will presumably battle with Mike Minor for a rotation spot and Kenshin Kawakami and Brandon Beachy provide Atlanta with even more options.
Lopez logged 200 innings for the Diamondbacks last year, posting a 5.00 ERA with 5.2 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9. The 35-year-old induced more fly balls than ground balls last year, posting a 37.6% ground ball rate. Lopez underwent Tommy John surgery in 2007 and missed time with shoulder inflammation in 2009 before recovering to start 33 games last year, the second-highest total of his career.
Brewers, Kotsay Close To Deal
The Brewers are close to a deal with Mark Kotsay, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). The 35-year-old Legacy Sports client would provide the Brewers with another option in the outfield.
Kotsay hit .239/.306/.376 in 359 plate appearances for the White Sox last year. The left-handed hitter clubbed eight homers while playing first base and right field.
The Brewers already have a number of outfield options. They recently signed Jeremy Reed to a minor league deal and outfielders Chris Dickerson, Brandon Boggs, Caleb Gindl and Logan Schafer will also be in Brewers camp this spring. Gomez, Ryan Braun and Corey Hart are the team's starting outfielders.
This post was originally published February 1st, 2011.
Minor Deals: Banks, Fiorentino
Mark Hendrickson and Greg Dobbs already agreed to minor league deals today. We'll keep track of some lower-profile agreements right here:
- The Giants signed Josh Banks to a minor league deal, according to MLB.com's Chris Haft. Banks, a former second round pick of the Blue Jays, has played in the majors every year since 2007, but his only extended taste of the big leagues came in 2008, when he posted a 4.75 ERA in 85 1/3 innings. The 28-year-old right-hander has a 5.66 ERA with 4.1 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9 in 119 1/3 career innings.
- Jeff Fiorentino is returning to the Orioles on a minor league deal after a year in Japan, according to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun. Fiorentino, 27, has appeared in parts of four big league seasons with the Orioles and A's. He made the majors the year after the Orioles selected him the third round of the '04 draft and has since compiled a .270/.341/.324 line in 173 career plate appearances. He has played all three outfield positions, but most of his big league experience has come in center.
New York Notes: Pettitte, Mets, Collins, Crawford
The Yankees would like a certain left-handed starter and the Mets are looking for the right minority owner. Here's the latest on baseball's two New York teams:
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports wonders if Andy Pettitte will demand more than Hiroki Kuroda money ($12MM) from the Yankees. The Bronx Bombers are reportedly set to offer the left-hander $12MM to play another season.
- Martin Luther King III told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he has interest in advancing "the vision of a more diverse ownership group in professional sports."
- Mets owner Fred Wilpon "is expected" to meet with commissioner Bud Selig in New York tomorrow, according to Peter Botte of the New York Daily News.
- A number of baseball officials tell Joel Sherman of the New York Post that the Wilpons are "delusional" if they expect to sell just part of the franchise without losing operating power.
- Sherman suggests the success of the upcoming Mets season depends on how well their expensive players produce or how much they bring in July trades.
- Sherman writes that Mets manager Terry Collins does not appear to have the same 'gravitas' as Bobby Cox, or even Joe Girardi.
- Carl Crawford's deal does not prevent a team from acquiring the left fielder and flipping him to the Yankees, according to Alex Speier of WEEI.com. Crawford can block trades to two teams thanks to the no-trade protection in his contract.
The Nationals’ Search For Pitching
Justin Duchscherer is the latest pitcher to decline the Nationals' overtures and sign elsewhere, but he's certainly not the only one. The Nationals showed interest in Zack Greinke, Cliff Lee, Carl Pavano, Jorge de la Rosa, Chris Young, Javier Vazquez, Brandon Webb and Jeff Francis this offseason, without landing any of those pitchers.
It's not unusual for teams to check in on a number of free agents and potential trade targets and it's not like GM Mike Rizzo wanted to sign all of the starters he expressed interest in. The Nationals aren't necessarily surprised or disappointed to have missed out on free agents in whom they had just passing interest.
But the Nationals did have trouble attracting elite pitchers like Lee and Greinke to Washington this winter. Earlier in the month, Rizzo told Thomas Boswell of the Washington Post that luring free agents to D.C. isn’t easy.
"It shows the difficulty of trying to build something," Rizzo said. "The only thing that convinces players to come is winning. It's the chicken and the egg. Which comes first? Do you win and then the players come, or do the players come and then you win?"
The Nationals sidestepped free agency and acquired Tom Gorzelanny in a trade with the Cubs, but only after missing out on another offseason trade target, Matt Garza. The Nationals were willing to spend in free agency, but did not surrender the trade chips required to acquire a pitcher of Garza's caliber.
Gorzelanny joins Livan Hernandez, Jason Marquis, John Lannan and Jordan Zimmermann in a rotation that will include Stephen Strasburg once he recovers from Tommy John surgery. It's a passable rotation, but the Nationals had hoped for more. If and when they start winning, luring free agent arms to D.C. will likely be easier, but Rizzo has a challenge before him until then.
Orioles To Sign Mark Hendrickson
The Orioles have agreed to sign Mark Hendrickson to a minor league deal with an invitation to Spring Training, according to Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter links). Hendrickson had an offer from the Rockies, but chose to return to Baltimore, where he'll compete to be a situational left-hander and long reliever. Dan Connolly of the Sun reports that the deal is worth about $900K if Hendrickson makes the team (Twitter link).
The 36-year-old logged 75 1/3 innings for the Orioles last year, posting a 5.26 ERA with 6.6 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9. He has started at least one game in every season since 2002, but he's primarily a reliever at this point. Hendrickson has held left-handed hitters to a .702 OPS in his career.
The Rays and Orioles also expressed interest in Hendrickson earlier in the offseason. Hendrickson, who played for four NBA teams before focusing on baseball, is now with his fifth MLB club.
Marlins Sign Greg Dobbs
The Marlins signed Greg Dobbs to a minor league deal with an invitation to Spring Training, according to MLB.com's Joe Frisaro (on Twitter). The team also officially announced the signing of Shawn Hill.
Dobbs hit just .196/.251/.331 last year and the Phillies designated him for assignment twice during the season. The 32-year-old hit .284/.331/.467 in 598 plate appearances from 2007-08 and he set the franchise record for pinch hits in a season with 22 in 2008.
Most of Dobbs' big league experience comes at third base, but he has experience at all of the corner infield and outfield positions. Dobbs' managers have always shielded him from left-handed pitching, since he struggles against southpaws.