Orioles Face Hayden Penn Decision
According to Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun, 24 year-old Hayden Penn is one of five candidates for three open rotation spots on the Orioles (Adam Eaton and Mark Hendrickson may secure two of those). The O's may also consider putting Penn in the bullpen. The problem is that Penn is out of options and has had a lousy spring. Zrebiec notes that the Padres have expressed interest in Penn in the past, so the Orioles probably can't slip him through waivers.
On Baseball America's Top 100 prospects list, Penn ranked 94th in '05 and 81st in '06. Back in '06 BA said Penn threw three plus pitches for strikes and touched 96 with his fastball.
Eric Gagne Hopes To Throw For Scouts
According to MLB.com's Ken Gurnick, free agent reliever Eric Gagne is rehabbing a slight rotator cuff tear and plans to throw for scouts once he's healthy. He hopes to begin throwing within the next two weeks. Gagne was released by the Brewers earlier this month. Gurnick says Gagne made an appearance today at the Dodgers' Arizona camp, but he only came to check out the new complex.
A’s Acquire Curtis Thigpen
According to a press release, the A's acquired catcher Curtis Thigpen from the Blue Jays today for a player to be named later or cash considerations. They also signed catcher Eric Munson to a minor league deal.
Thigpen, 26 in April, hit .222/.267/.310 at Triple A last year. Baseball America describes him as adequate defensively. The Jays designated Thigpen for assignment on February 4th to make room for Brian Burres. Thigpen was the Jays' heir apparent at catcher three years ago, according to John Lott of the National Post. Thigpen took the place of Guillermo Quiroz, the previous "catcher of the future."
Munson, 31, spent time with the Brewers' Triple A club last year but dealt with hip and shoulder injuries. He's shown good pop in the past and was a can't-miss prospect himself a decade ago, when the Tigers picked him third overall and gave him a four-year, $6.75MM deal. Munson can also play a little bit at the infield corners.
Offseason In Review: Chicago White Sox
Next up in our Offseason In Review series, the White Sox. Here's what we wrote about them on October 9th. Changes for 2009:
Additions: Bartolo Colon, Dayan Viciedo, Brent Lillibridge, Jeff Marquez, Wilson Betemit, Jayson Nix, Kelvin Jimenez, Ryan Braun, Franklyn German, John Van Benschoten, Tyler Flowers, Ben Broussard, Bryan Myrow, Josh Kroeger, Michael Restovich
Subtractions: Nick Swisher, Javier Vazquez, Boone Logan, Orlando Cabrera, Joe Crede, Juan Uribe, Ken Griffey Jr., Toby Hall, Pablo Ozuna. Midseason: Nick Masset, Danny Richar
The '09 squad will be appreciably different, especially the offense. How will they compare to the 4.98 runs per game scored last year? CHONE projections and the Baseball Musings lineup analysis tool suggest 5.07 runs per game, which would again rank 5th in the AL. This simulation has Chris Getz leading off and DeWayne Wise splitting time evenly with Brian Anderson. Gone are the 2,075 ABs given to Cabrera, Swisher, Crede, Uribe, Griffey, and Hall.
If the White Sox score 820 runs and hold steady at last year's 729 allowed, they'll be projected to win 90 games. Is that level of run prevention (7th in the AL) possible again?
Last year's rotation posted a 4.09 ERA in 998.3 innings, 4th in the league. Vazquez contributed 21% of those innings, but at a 4.67 ERA. Once again, the White Sox will have to prove projection systems wrong. CHONE sees a Buehrle/Danks/Floyd/Contreras/Colon/Richard/Marquez rotation posting a 4.91 ERA in 934 innings. There is a good case to be made that projection systems are selling the newly-locked up Floyd short by calling for a 5.00+ ERA. And based on gut feel it's hard to believe no one gets under Buehrle's projected 4.57 mark. Still, it would've been nice to see the Sox add more starting depth or hang on to Vazquez.
Logan's 5.95 ERA is gone from the bullpen; the core group returns. Projections suggest that as a whole, the pen is capable of repeating its 4.13 ERA.
Defensively, the White Sox ranked 12th of 14 AL teams according to The Fielding Bible II. The book says the poor fielding was spread across the diamond, with above-average work only at shortstop, third base, and left field. Fields can't match Crede at third, and the Getz/Ramirez middle infield is an unknown. Not having Swisher and Griffey in center should help.
GM Ken Williams took a gamble dealing Vazquez, as the '09 rotation is not necessarily a strength. As presently constructed, even with a quality offense, this team seems destined to win 84 games at best. The standard disclaimer: the Ken Williams' White Sox have never been predictable.
Bottom line: The White Sox will again need multiple unexpected performances to repeat their 89 wins of '08.
Odds & Ends: Strasburg, Cabrera, Waivers
Links for Friday…
- RotoAuthority asks: who is the next Carlos Quentin?
- The Cubs may trade or lose whoever doesn't win their backup catcher job, Paul Bako or Koyie Hill (according to Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times). By the way, Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker says the Cubs signed a Korean high school outfielder named Don-Yeop Kim.
- Hanley Ramirez was upset about the Marlins' new hair and jewelry policies, but cooled down after meeting with the team's brass.
- Excellent Stephen Strasburg profile by Lee Jenkins of Sports Illustrated (hat tip to Rob Neyer).
- Rays Index talked to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.
- Murray Chass believes suggestions of hostility between the players union and owners are misguided.
- A's shortstop Orlando Cabrera talked to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle about how his reputation unfairly took a hit last year.
- Bart Given explains the four types of waivers.
Moorad Takes Over Padres
The sale of the Padres to a group led by Jeff Moorad may take several years to complete, but Moorad is now running the team according to Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune. Moorad's group owns 35% of the team currently.
Moorad plans to invest in the draft, but he wouldn't commit to anything regarding the team's payroll. Tom Krasovic of the Union-Tribune sums up the contracts Moorad will inherit in the front office:
GM Kevin Towers, whose salary is well within the Top 10 among GMs, is under contract through 2010. Executive vice president Paul DePodesta, who had reported to Sandy Alderson, is guaranteed an average well above $500,000 per year through 2011. Director of player development and scouting Grady Fuson, who was hired by Towers in early 2005, is under contract through 2010. As for manager Bud Black, he is in the final year of his contract.
What about Jake Peavy? Moorad told Center:
"It would be premature for me to say what is going to happen. The goal is to build this for the long term. I don't know how that impacts the Peavy situation. But we're going to do whatever we can to improve the team."
Holden Kushner of XM Radio snagged more Moorad comments on Peavy:
"Peavy has been a terrific performer for the club at the same time I don't think any player is untouchable. I think at some point I am sure Kevin Towers and I will visit about the issue and Kevin will have a point of view and frankly I'll defer to it. I certainly want to be kept informed but I think Kevin will have a perspective on the Peavy situation and I really looking forward hearing it."
Gammons On Pitching Shortages
The theme of Peter Gammons' latest blog post: almost every team needs pitching. One GM told Gammons, "Other than the Yankees, Rays, Red Sox, Reds, Marlins and Twins, everyone is looking for pitching, at least affordable pitching." Most of the clubs with possible surpluses are thought to be hoarding arms.
Gammons talked to an NL GM who commented on the Red Sox:
"There are a lot of teams sniffing around on guys like Manny Delcarmen and Ramon Ramirez. But they want a premium young catcher or bat in return. When they're ready to bring Clay Buchholz and John Smoltz into the equation, they may be dealing from a position of strength because of their pitching depth and the fact that they are so far under budget."
My opinion – a pitching surplus often turns into a deficit in the course of a month or two.
White Sox Likely To Stay In-House For Center Field
On Wednesday Ken Rosenthal said available Yankees center fielder Melky Cabrera "would be a perfect fit for the White Sox." Rosenthal originally had the Sox interested in Gary Matthews Jr., but updated his column saying that a source refuted the item.
Manager Ozzie Guillen wants to stay in-house for center field, according to Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune:
"No, we're not going (outside the organization). I don't want that to happen. I don't like that to happen. If we have to go outside the organization right now, gosh, I'm not going to say we're in trouble. But as a ballclub, we have enough guys here to resolve that problem."
Currently the contenders are Jerry Owens, Brian Anderson, and DeWayne Wise.
Pirates Ramp Up Interest In Ohman
According to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Pirates have ramped up their interest in free agent lefty Will Ohman. The Bucs made an offer Saturday for one year plus an option, and Ohman's agent countered yesterday. Ohman's still looking for a $2MM salary. Dialogue is ongoing with the Pirates.
Kovacevic names a slew of other teams in on Ohman: the Giants, Dodgers, Marlins, Nationals, and Indians. He says the Nats and Indians are new to the mix.
My opinion – it'd be odd to see the Nationals sign Ohman after Joe Beimel, but they could be trying to build up a trade surplus. The Pirates would have one given the presence of John Grabow.
Lackey Talks On Life Support
According to Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times, talks between John Lackey and the Angels for a contract extension "appear to be on life support." Lackey wants five years and $80-90MM, and doesn't want to negotiate during the season. Complicating matters, Lackey was just shut down with elbow tightness.
Lackey figures to be the best available free agent starter, assuming he doesn't sign and recovers quickly from the injury. Kelvim Escobar's contract will also be up, while Joe Saunders and Jered Weaver will be arbitration-eligible for the first time. The Halos may need to sign a free agent starter or two; here's a look at the possible market.