By Tim Dierkes | at
Sammy Sosa has begun working out in the Dominican Republic with hope of returning to the Majors. He’s had a year off, but is quick to compare himself to Ted Williams. Um, right.
Sounds like he’d go to Washington for $500K if they’d offer it again. Sammy really just wants 12 more home runs so he can reach 600. The question is, if he really can help a Major League team, why didn’t he play winter ball to prove it?
By Tim Dierkes | at
For some reason, I can’t get enough of Sammy Sosa wanting to come back. Every time a quote pops up about how he’s rested, feeling good, and ready to get those last 12 home runs, I smile. Sosa is just a carnival, an entertaining player even when he’s going bad. Especially when he’s going bad. Sometimes Sammy gets fooled so badly that he misses a curveball by three feet. It’s awesome.
Sosa claims several teams have shown interest already. Looking through the archives, the Mets, Pirates, Nationals, and maybe even the Yankees thought about signing Sammy last offseason. I can’t wait to see how this turns out.
By Tim Dierkes | at
Let’s see what we’ve got churning in the rumor mill this morning.
Shea Hillenbrand, a player well-liked by his teammates, was designated for assignment last night. Kind of reminds me of the Jose Guillen situation a couple of years ago. Despite the unpleasantness, Bill Stoneman still managed to turn Guillen into Juan Rivera and Maicer Izturis. Let’s see how J.P Ricciardi does now that manager John Gibbons has forced him into this situation. As we told you a couple of days ago, Gibbons may follow Hillenbrand out the door. More on this situation in a bit.
A Reds message board rumor has Ian Kinsler going to Cincy and Todd Coffey heading to Texas, among some other components. I don’t know if this has any credence to it, just throwing it out there. Doesn’t seem logical to me.
The Jeff Keppinger for Ruben Gotay deal is official. Score one for Omar Minaya. In other Royals news, the Royals Authority advises fans not to panic about Luke Hochevar.
We saw what the Tigers would have to give up for Alfonso Soriano. Apparently, to get Bobby Abreu they’d have to surrender Marcus Thames, Zach Miner, and a lot of money. I’ll take option A.
Looking for an aging slugger who can maybe still hit lefties? Sammy Sosa is again making noise about playing again. This is not good for baseball.
Halos Heaven, a blog I know to have good sources, reports that the Orioles want the Angels to have Miguel Tejada. Orlando Cabrera and J.C. Romero could be part of a package.
Word on the street is that Baseball Prospectus injury analyst Will Carroll is in talks with ESPN about a possible job.
A TV program encouraging fans to come and boo Dusty Baker? C’mon, don’t kick a man when he’s down.
RotoAuthority looks for the game’s true .300 hitters.
By Tim Dierkes | at
A reader emailed me with an interesting trade rumor nugget that I hadn’t noticed before. He directed me to the sidebar of a recent ESPN Deportes article by Enrique Rojas:
"Sammy Sosa, who has been mulling retiring from baseball after receiving only a non-guaranteed contract offer from the Washington Nationals, received an unexpected visitor Sunday at his home in Miami: Alex Rodriguez. The New York Yankees third baseman called on Sosa in order to find out from the slugger himself how the "Caribbean Bambino" is doing, according to Tuesday’s edition of the Hoy newspaper in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
A source close to Sosa told Hoy that Rodriguez was not there as a "messenger" for the Yankees, but that he just wanted to find out what was going on with the 1998 National League MVP, and what his plans are for 2006. In the past, the Yankees have used star players as "advance scouts" in some key trade and free agent negotiations."
Alright, so this looks like a non-rumor based on Hoy’s information. But for the sake of my own amusement, let’s take a look at the Yankees’ depth chart.
First off, you’ve got the 37 year-old Gary Sheffield without much backup in right field. Admittedly, he’s been very healthy for the past three seasons. But how much do the Yanks want to push their luck that he plays 154 games again?
Second, Bernie Williams is listed as the primary DH. I’m not sure if Sosa could outdo Williams’s .249/.321/.367 line. But this is a ballclub that gave 170 ABs to Ruben Sierra last year. Sosa can probably still hit lefties reasonably well (.841 OPS in 2005 though just 104 ABs), and he might swallow his pride for a team with the Yankees’ stature. I’m just saying is all.
UPDATE: Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune thinks Sosa should use the WBC as an audition, assuming he can pass the steroid test.
By Tim Dierkes | at
The genius of Jim Bowden strikes again. He’s offered Sammy Sosa a guaranteed Major League contract with incentives.
It seems like Washington was the only club considering such an offer. Sosa earned $17MM in 2005, and had negative offensive value. He was outhit by many pitchers, including Elmer Dessens, Hector Carrasco, and Josh Fogg. He just barely edged out Braves pitcher Jorge Sosa offensively.
However, Sosa was far from the worst hitter in baseball. That honor goes to Miguel Olivo’s Seattle stint, where he hit .151/.172/.276 in 157 plate appearances. Nipping at Olivo’s heels was Corey Patterson, who hit .215/.251/.348 in 483 plate appearances.
Should we expect another laughably bad season from the former idol? Tough to say. Let’s take a look at the field of forecasters, using the AVG-HR-RBI-runs format and pro-rating to my projected total of 486 ABs.
RotoAuthority: .245-19-60-51
PECOTA: .242-21-76-53
ZiPS: .227-23-74-39
Outlook: not so good. Sosa looks to serve as the backup for Jose Guillen, who is in no hurry to get back after November labrum surgery. Guillen should miss at least a month of the season. Why can’t Ryan Church get some love?
Mark your calendars for Tuesday, May 16th at 7:05. That would presumably mark Sosa’s return to Wrigley Field if he accepts the Nats’ offer and stays healthy that long. It’s not entirely out of the question that Sosa could be pursuing his 600th home run during the Wrigley Series if he has a great April. He has faced Greg Maddux more than any other Cubs starter, and has three home runs in 56 at-bats against him.
By Tim Dierkes | at
Emailer Joe tipped me off to a blog referencing an article from a Dominican news service. The article discusses Pittsburgh’s interest in Sammy Sosa.
Despite my pathetic grasp on the Spanish language, here’s what I’ve pieced together from Rob Rossi’s article.
With Joe Randa in tow as the Pirates’ third baseman, they’d like to make one more free agent acquisition this winter. Now that first choice Eric Byrnes has a tentative agreement with the Diamondbacks, Sammy Sosa is the primary target for right field. Apparently several teams desire Sosa’s services (I must’ve translated that part wrong.)
The Pirates plan to bat Randa sixth, and they’d like Sosa to hit fourth or fifth in the lineup. Pirates’ management has the money available to sign Sosa. As far as I can tell, Rossi thinks the Pirates will be an improved team under the management of Jim Tracy. The reunion of Sean Casey and Joe Randa and improved defense are key components.
If there are any Spanish-speaking readers who’d like to offer corrections to my translation, I welcome it.
In case the Pirates missed it, Sosa hit a woeful .221/.295/.376 in 380 at-bats for the Orioles in 2005. It was his worst year since 1991, when he had a wispy mustache and hit .203/.240/.335 in 316 at-bats for the White Sox. Since I like to point out the hidden positives occasionally, Sosa did manage a .288/.370/.471 line in 104 at-bats against lefties in ’05. Honestly I think he would’ve made an entertaining platoonmate for Jacque Jones. Now that would’ve been humbling.
Anyway, signing Sosa would seem to make Craig Wilson the odd man out in Pittsburgh. The 29 year-old doesn’t deserve this fate, as he boasts a career line of .268/.363/.488 in 1593 at-bats and can play catcher, first base, left field, and right field. Expect some team far more intelligent than the Cubs or Pirates to make a deal for Wilson this winter.
By Tim Dierkes | at
Today’s hot stove happenings:
Ken Rosenthal reports on the Cubs’ interest in A.J. Burnett. This confirms our assertion from November 18th:
"It’s sounding more and more like the Cubs will come up with another starter to add to the stable. Then they’ll deal from that depth to acquire an outfielder. GM Jim Hendry may be more inclined to make a big splash with A.J. Burnett than give a lot of money to Washburn. Unlike last season when he had to get Sammy Sosa off the books, Hendry will act early and often. The Cardinals’ interest in Burnett may motivate Hendry to make a better offer to the starter."
Speaking of Sosa, the Mets are mentioned as a suitor for the outfielder. The opinion here is that Sosa has nothing left, and is three years older than his listed age of 37. Only a foolish team desperate to allocate its free agent budget somewhere, anywhere, would take a chance on Sosa. I’m predicting the Kansas City Royals sign him as a PR move.
In yet another Rosenthal scoop, the Indians nabbed Paul Byrd for two years and $14.25MM. There’s a club option for the third year. We first reported the Tribe’s interest on November 29th. Byrd should provide decent value at what’s become the going rate for a middle-of-the-rotation starter. The fallout: the Angels will have to bring in a name pitcher if Jarrod Washburn also leaves town. I think he will, and the Angels kicking the tires on Erik Bedard, Livan Hernandez, and Jason Marquis.
The Mets moved quickly on Paul LoDuca, giving up one of their best remaining pitching prospects. Juan Pierre remains the last man standing, and the Marlins haven’t been waiting around to ditch their expensive players. Pierre should be gone as soon as the Fish find a team desperate enough to part with a top-notch prospect. The feeling here is that that team will not be the Yankees.
Thanks to Jerry and Alex
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