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Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Braves, Lohse, Pedro, Bay

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On this date 72 years ago, Lou Gehrig signed a one-year deal for $38K and a $750 signing bonus. This contract came on the heels of a season in which Gehrig hit .354-49-152 with a strikeout to walk ratio of 130-to-46 and a 190 OPS+. The following season, Gehrig would hit .351-37-159 (177 OPS+) in what would turn out to be his last full healthy season. With only a few weeks left until the ’09 regular season begins, let’s take a look at what is being written in the Blogosphere…

Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com. If you have a suggestion for this feature, Cork can be reached here.

Milton Bradley Comments

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Milton Bradley’s comments to Gil Lebreton of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram are causing a mini-stir.  He spoke about how the Rangers wouldn’t commit to him:

"My agent was saying that Jon Daniels was telling him, ’There are days when he doesn’t want to play because of his health.’  Well, you can get a healthy guy to go out there and play 162 games, but he won’t do what I did in 120."

As Lebreton said, the comment was "crudely self-serving" but "mostly right" given his production last year.  Worse, though, Bradley seemed to admit to prioritizing his stats:

"If I’m being paid, and I’ve got the commitment to me that I give to them, you make more of an effort to be out there every day.  When you’re on one-year deals constantly, you’ve got to put up as good numbers as you can. When you have days where you’re not feeling like you can contribute, you’re not going to go out there, because you’re not going to want your numbers to suck.  So, if you’re in a situation like I am now, if they want me to go out there when I’m feeling a little banged up, I’ve got no problem doing that because they’ve made the commitment to me."

Odds & Ends: Crosby, Vizcaino, Andruw

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Links for Tuesday…

Heyman On Bradley, A-Rod, Manny

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New info from SI.com’s Jon Heyman…

  • Milton Bradley’s two-year, $20MM deal becomes a three-year, $30MM deal only if he plays at least 75 games in 2009.  Bradley’s games played totals over the past four years: 126 (mostly DHing), 61, 96, 75.  The structure of the deal seems dangerous – does it give Bradley incentive to play hurt?
  • Heyman talks about the A-Rod injury situation, running through the various replacement names we’ve discussed.
  • Heyman believes the Giants would’ve gotten to the low-$40MM range over two years for Manny Ramirez, and they had not agreed to an opt-out.

Rosenthal On Manny, Anderson, Kasten

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The latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports…

  • Rosenthal wonders if Manny Ramirez could get a multiyear deal following a big/well-behaved ’09, in the vein of other Boras clients such as Kevin Millwood and Kyle Lohse (Ivan Rodriguez, too).  Of course, Manny is a lot older than those guys were.
  • Rather than money, Garret Anderson wants the 632 hits he needs to reach 3,000.  If he gets there, he’ll make for some interesting Hall of Fame debates.
  • Rosenthal spoke to an executive who knows Stan Kasten.  This exec expects Kasten to surprise with his GM choice, and doesn’t see him hiring a "young up-and-comer" or Chuck LaMar.
  • The Cubs are said to be "content with their bench players."  Cubs manager Lou Piniella has talked a bit about wanting an "extra infielder who can play first and third."  Rosenthal adds that the team’s new ownership "might not be willing to assume the remaining $63 million on Jake Peavy’s contract in a reeling economy."

Cubs Bobby Crosby Rumor

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According to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle:

Shortstop Bobby Crosby becomes the A’s backup middle infielder with the Orlando Cabrera acquisition, but there could be some interest in him before the spring is over – including from the Cubs, according to one source. One of Chicago’s top scouts was watching Tuesday’s game and is known to have been a fan of Crosby in the past.

The biggest hurdle for a Crosby trade, of course, is the $5.25MM owed to him in 2009.  I spoke to a source familiar with the Cubs’ thinking, and he said there’s "nothing to it."  He said the Cubs scout was watching the A’s as part of general coverage of all teams.

Aramis Ramirez Hopes To Finish With Cubs

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Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune talked to Cubs third baseman Aramis Ramirez, who hopes to finish his career with the team.  He already displayed loyalty by leaving significant money on the table to re-sign in November of 2006.

It should be noted, though, that Ramirez became a free agent in ’06 because he opted out of a contract that had three years and $33.5MM left on it (assuming 270 games played in 2007-08).

Ramirez’s current contract could potentially run through 2012, but the new deal has an opt-out clause as well.  Ramirez can void his contract after 2010, if he thinks he can beat $14.6MM in 2011 and a $16MM club option/$2MM buyout for 2012.  He’s probably going to opt out or renegotiate if he thinks he’s worth more than a one-year, $16.6MM deal after 2010.  He’ll be 32 at that time.

Cubs Rumors: Schilling, Peavy

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Let’s talk about the Cubs’ connection to starters Curt Schilling and Jake Peavy.

Schilling Would Pitch For Cubs, Rays

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SUNDAY, 2:05pm: Schilling clarifies his thoughts about the Cubs on his blog. He reminds us that he hasn’t decided whether to return, but if he does he says he’d consider pitching for the Cubs. Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune heard from a Cubs official who wasn’t surprised to hear Schilling’s interested. Sullivan thinks the Cubs would take a flier on Schilling at the right price.

8:25pm: The St. Petersburg Times’ Joe Smith recalls Schilling’s comments about the Rays from 2007:

"It’s one of those situations you’d certainly have to look at," said the 42-year-old right-hander.  "Knowing that I’m probably going to spend one more year playing, if circumstances happen and things happen and they made some moves that were positive, I’d love nothing more than to finish my career working on a pitching staff where I know that there are young guys that are going to be positively impacted by me being around (after) I was gone. I enjoy that. I love working and talking and being around young pitchers."

SATURDAY, 1:34pm: David Whitley of the Orlando Sentinel reports that Curt Schilling would be interested in coming back to baseball to pitch for either the Chicago Cubs or the Tampa Bay Rays. Writes Whitley:

Schilling, who has a career mark of 216-146, said money would not be a major issue. He’s looking for a team that has championship potential and has never won a title. "The challenge would be in a place like Tampa Bay or Chicago," he said.

Schilling is not aiming to be on an Opening Day roster, and furthermore has yet to decide whether to come back next season at all. "I’m hemming and hawing right now," Schilling said; "I’ll make a decision in the next couple of weeks."

Miles On Koskie, Schilling

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After speaking with Jim Hendry, Bruce Miles has more on a couple of today’s Cubs rumors: the Cubs’ signing of Corey Koskie, and their possible connection to Curt Schilling.

According to Miles, Hendry "seems excited" about adding Koskie. The Cubs could use Koskie as a backup third baseman, Miles writes, despite Hendry’s assertion that the team is "very happy with [Mike] Fontenot and [Aaron] Miles and what they’re doing in getting looks at third base."

As for the Schilling rumor, Miles says the Cubs have not heard directly from the pitcher, but are open to the idea of potentially adding him. Says Miles’ source within the Cubs’ organization: "Why not?"

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