Bleacher Report - Baseball

Boston Red Sox to Play in Australia in 2010?

Adam Bernacchio — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 11:19:41 -0500

Sometimes professional sports leagues do things I really just don’t understand.

According to the Daily Telegraph in Australia, the Boston Red Sox will play a major league game in Australia in 2010. The newspaper sites that talks have been ongoing now for a couple of months between the Red Sox and Sydney officials.

The games would be played at the Sydney Cricket Ground .

I understand that baseball wants to expand their game outside of the United States, which is why we have the World Baseball Classic, but this is ridiculous.

This is like the NFL playing games in London, but worse.

Why do Commissioners feel the need to force their sport onto countries who don’t care? People in London don’t care about football and people in Australia don’t care about baseball.

Will the games sell out in Australia? Sure they will–any novelty will sell out in any country. But the World Cup sold out in the United States and still nobody cares about soccer in America.

This is worse than the NFL playing games in London because of the time travel. To travel 18 or so hours to Australia and then have to deal with a 16 hour ahead time difference is a lot to ask of a baseball team.

It took players from the New York Yankees, Chicago Cubs, New York Mets, and Red Sox weeks to recover from trips to Japan in recent years. And in Mike Mussina’s case, it took him a whole year to recover from playing in Japan.

At least when these teams go to Japan, baseball is Japan’s number one sport. The Japanese are extraordinarily passionate about baseball. That’s clearly not the case in Australia.

Let’s just call this what it really is: a way for Major League Baseball to generate revenue from a country that generates very little revenue for Major League Baseball.

No official announcement has been made yet by Major League Baseball and a potential opponent has not been determined.

You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @ theghostofmlg

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Marco Scutaro and Other Baseless Speculation on the Red Sox Offseason

GetOutofMyBallpark — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 11:19:10 -0500

This Column Originally Published At GetOutofMyBallpark.com

With only a few days left until the Winter Meetings (my favorite non-baseball season week of the year), nobody really has any idea what is going on with the Red Sox.

Last year we all knew that they were going to go hard after Mark Teixeira and that the Yanks were going to sign CC Sabathia.

In the weeks since the end of the season, there have been rumors of everything from the Sox getting Roy Halladay for Buchholz and Casey Kelly (who is both a shortstop and starting pitcher), to them signing Matt Holiday instead of Jason Bay so that they could net an extra draft pick, and finally to Theo giving up his first born, Mike Lowell and the souls of half the front office to get Hanley Ramirez back and end the curse of Nomar.

The most recent word with any certainty is that Marco Scutaro, a career utility player who managed to put in a career year last season in Toronto, wants to come to Boston. The team has sent Allard Baird to see him work out and requested his medical records.

Of course, this wouldn't have been necessary if the team hadn't crapped the bed when they had a chance to resign Alex Gonzalez, who has been the closest thing to an actual shortstop that the Sox have had since Cabrera and his "off-field issues" departed after 2004.

The most recent report is that Scutaro is signing a two year deal, with an option for a third, which should be just enough time to let Jose Iglesias, the Sox wiz kid shortstop of the future, to season in the minors. With the option of Gonzalez off the table, this is the best move possible.

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Winter Meetings Teaser

Ian Hunter — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 11:14:00 -0500

We're just two days away from baseball's winter meetings in Indianapolis, and already people are buzzing about what could transpire next week.

It all stemmed from a tweet from Will Carroll of Baseball Prospectus :

"I know of two HUGE announcements coming at the Winter Meetings. I expect both will be bigger than any player signing or news made during."

Immediately, the gears started turning in my mind about what these two huge announcements could possibly be. My first reaction was something to do with Bud Selig stepping down earlier than 2012, but Carroll denied that the announcement has anything to do with the commish.

After the stream of debacles in the playoffs, I thought it might be the announcement that instant replay would be used for calls other than home runs. Again, Carroll confirmed it was nothing to do with instant replay.

So what else could it be?

Other folks have speculated that it might be a more balanced schedule, retooling of interleague play, or the possibility of scrapping interleague play altogether. Another possibility might be a retooling of the All-Star game, but I highly doubt an announcement like that would overshadow Roy Halladay trade talk.

Obviously it will be something that affects every team and possibly every player in baseball, so it has to be of epic proportions. I will be listening closely to the Winter Meetings starting Monday thanks to a free 14 day trail of XM Radio online , so hopefully I can relay the news as soon as possible.

Until then, we can only speculate that this huge news is that Tiger Woods is going to buy the Texas Rangers and Los Angeles Dodgers and move them to Regina.

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Winter Meetings Preview: Who Will (and Won't) Move Next Week, and Where

Matt Trueblood — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 11:04:38 -0500

In the week prior to the annual Winter Meetings, which will commence Monday in Indianapolis, the Hot Stove began to boil. Chone Figgins, Placido Polanco, Marco Scutaro, Billy Wagner, and Takashi Saito signed news deals for 2010. The Rays, Phillies, Brewers, Mets, Orioles, and Mets (again) added new catchers, either in trade or vie free agency.

The trade market began a slow simmer, as Tampa traded for Cleveland's Kelly Shoppach, and the Chicago Cubs dealt two spare parts (including slugging reserve Jake Fox) to the Oakland A's for reliever Jeff Gray and a pair of prospects.

Aside from Figgins, however, the marquee free agents and trade bait remain primed to move, with just two days remaining before the start of the summit. Not all of those enigmas will be resolved by the time the organizations pack up and head out on Thursday. Some will, though. What follows is a preview of the week to come.

Free Agents

The top three free-agent talents of the winter are (in no definitive order) Jason Bay, Matt Holliday and John Lackey. All three remain unsigned, and there's a good chance that they will all leave Indianapolis the same way. If one has the best chance to sign soon, it could be Bay. No fewer than a half-dozen teams have shown interest (including, by one rather absurd report , the Cubs).

Among them, though, about three appear to be very real contenders: Boston (with whom Bay played the last season and a half), Seattle (the biggest projected spender in the market, and the recipients of an early Christmas present Friday in Figgins), and San Francisco. Bay fits in any of those places: In fact, save the North Side of Chicago, he fits nearly anywhere. Given that Seattle has a ton of money, a track record of aggressiveness, and the lure of proximity to Bay's native British Columbia, they look like the front-runners.

Second-tier guys close enough to potentially sign next week include outfielders Marlon Byrd and Jermaine Dye; third basemen Mark DeRosa and Adrian Beltre; and, apparently, all middle infielders and catchers.

DeRosa's best option is probably now St. Louis, with whom he played in the second half of 2009, after Philadelphia signed Polanco. Dye and Byrd have each drawn interest from Atlanta (who seek a power bat to play the outfield), while Beltre has been whispered about in places as disparate as San Francisco (where he'd fit nicely) and Boston (where he does not). If you want one most likely to sign, it may be DeRosa.

Trades

Obviously, much of the week's dialogue will be dominated by talk surrounding Toronto's ongoing attempt to trade ace starting pitcher Roy Halladay. Halladay says he won't approve any deals once he arrives for Spring Training, according to his agent, and so (although the Blue Jays insist otherwise) there is some sense of urgency here.

Still, it's hard to think Halladay will move soon, because there is such a dearth of evidence that any team is close to matching Toronto's sky-high demands.

Elsewhere, however, it could be a busy week of moves for a few high-profile players, and at least a pair of high-profile teams. The Cubs will work diligently to move outfielder Milton Bradley, along with as much of the $21 million owed him over the nest two seasons as they can get someone to accept.

Tampa is the most likely destination, though the Cubs decidedly do not want, and can not use the much-discussed Pat Burrell. Unless GM Jim Hendry knew in advance that Burrell could be moved somewhere else before Opening Day, such a deal would be folly.

Florida has made it clear they intend to move second baseman Dan Uggla, despite Uggla's historic power production at his position through his first four seasons. Whichever team pries him away (the Giants are the early favorites) will get a slugging soon-to-be 30 year-old who walked a career-high 92 times last season, in addition to clubbing 31 homers.

Uggla is not a good defensive second baseman but could be serviceable at third if his new team could talk him into a move.

Elsewhere in the NL East, the Braves continue to dangle their embarrassment of starting pitching resources, trying to leverage either Derek Lowe or Javier Vazquez into their aforementioned desired power. If a deal like that goes down, it could the underrated blockbuster of the week: Lowe and Vazquez are better than good, and could command an attractive return.

Finally, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim will keep trying to move the weighty contract of reserve outfielder Gary Matthews, Jr. It's hard to think there's much of a market for Matthews, despite his 2006 All-Star selection. His career .740 OPS is a serious deterrent, as is the $23 million he will make over the last two years of his current deal. In a pinch, the Cubs and Angels might turn to each other for help but it wouldn't happen this week.

Keep an eye on...

The Detroit Tigers. General Manager Dave Dombrowski will have to cut some big-time money this offseason and that could mean trading any or all of Miguel Cabrera , Curtis Granderson , and Edwin Jackson. It might not get done this week, but something will need to. Even if the direction is rebuilding, the Tigers need to start moving toward the future soon, as they have a lot of things to address.

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Koyie Hill Vs. Mike Redmond: Who Should Be The Cubs Backup Catcher?

TAB BAMFORD — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 11:03:40 -0500

This week, the arbitration deadline came and went with few surprises. One player that became an unprotected free agent intrigues me as an option for the Chicago Cubs.

The Minnesota Twins have decided to part ways with Joe Mauer's backup, Mike Redmond.

Redmond's name on the availability list made me wonder who would be the better option to back up Geovany Soto in Chicago this summer between Redmond and Koyie Hill. Let's examine how these two backstops compare.

Redmond, who will be 39 in May, is a career .289 hitter with no power. (His career high is four home runs.) However, he has a career .345 OBP.

Hill, on the other hand, will turn 31 in March and has a career .215 average with an equally powerless resume. Hill's career OBP is only .286, though.

According to FanGraphs, Redmond has significantly better plate discipline than Hill. Redmond swung at only 22.6 percent of pitches outside the strike zone in his career, while Hill is reaching at a 28.4 percent rate. On pitches outside the zone, Redmond makes contact 69.6 percent of the time, while Hill only touched the ball 47.5 percent of the time. Advantage: Redmond.

When you come inside the strike zone, the quality of Redmond's at bats is again superior. Redmond makes contact with 95.9 percent of pitches he swings at inside the strike zone, while Hill only puts wood on the ball 83.7 percent of the time. Again, substantial advantage to Redmond.

Both players are good defensive catchers, and made less than $1 million last year. Redmond, however, has a World Series ring from the 2003 Marlins. (Salt in the wound, right?)

So looking at the two next to each other, Redmond looks like an older, but better, option.

But why do I care about the Cubs' backup catcher? Because Soto was awful last year.

In 2009, Soto went through a rough sophomore slump. His post-World Baseball Classic admission of marijuana "experimentation", and subsequent poor physical condition when he got to Mesa with his teammates, was frustrating and his poor performance on the field made things worse.

All Cubs fans should hope Soto bounces back to his 2008 form next season; the Cubs have a significantly better chance of making noise in October if they have the Soto that hit .285 with 23 home runs, instead of the pudgy kid who gave the team .218 and 11 home runs the following season.

There is, however, no guarantee that Soto will bounce back. Just because a player had a big rookie season doesn't mean they'll be an All Star for the following decade; give Jerome Walton a call if you don't believe me.

If Soto doesn't bounce back, the Cubs need to have a better offensive option on the bench than what Hill provided last year. In 2009, the Cubs gave their opponents two outs every time through the order, in the 60 games Soto didn't appear. You cannot win a division if 37 percent of your games are played at that kind of a disadvantage.

Therefore, it is my opinion that the Cubs should strongly consider upgrading their backup catcher position by adding Redmond. His experience and superior abilities in the batters box at a marginal increase to the bottom line make sense. He would provide much better insurance against another bad season from Soto than Hill.

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Team 77: The 1905 Tigers

Blake VandeBunte — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 10:58:09 -0500

Year: 1905

Record: 79-74

Win %: .516

Win % Change: 108

Run Differential: -90

Pythagorean Record: 65-88

AL Finish: 3rd of 8

Manager: Bill Armour

Best Transaction

Purchased Ty Cobb. Do I really need to explain this one? Cobb was signed at a teenager by the Tigers in August and would go on to become, without debate, one of the ten greatest players of all-time.

Worst Transaction

Nig Clarke on loan. This one isn’t really a bad transaction, it’s just kind of funny. The Tigers received Clarke on August 1st from Cleveland and the transaction is listed as a “loan”.

Later, on the 11th of August, Clarke was simply returned to Cleveland. Can you imagine that today? “Uh, yeah, Gerald Laird is out for ten days and we don’t have a back up catcher. You’ve got an extra catcher, would you please just let us borrow Brad Ausmus for a week or so and we’ll return him as good as new?” This would never happen. Gotta love early 20th century baseball.

Upper

Ty Cobb comes to Detroit. Cobb blew through lower professional baseball in the South, but loved the South. His move to the North was not easy, but even in the early 1900s there were big-time prospects and Cobb certainly qualified.

His arrival in Detroit was a big deal and it only took a few months for them to get a serious return on their investment. Even if that investment was a bit crazy. Cobb got into only 41 games in 1905 and hit just .240, it would be the only time he hit below .300 in a season.

Downer

This was just a bad team that was disguised by a decent record.

They did exceptionally well in close games but were pounded for the bulk of the season. The offense sputtered aside from the legendary Sam Crawford. T

he pitching staff was roughly league average and maybe a bit below. They were led by George Mullin, Ed Killian and Wild Bill Donovan. However, they finished in the middle of the pack in ERA and no team in the American League walked more batters.

The Tigers offense ranked second to last in the AL in runs and home runs and ranked last in stolen bases. Cobb would eventually solve most of those issues.

Summary

This was a very unique season. While they finished above .500, they had the run differential of a team 20 games below that break-even mark. The Tigers were 32-16 in one-run games which is almost impossible to pull off and speaks to clutch performances and luck (my votes goes to luck).

In addition to a great season from Crawford, the Tigers got a decent performance from his outfield mate, Marty McIntyre. Aside from those two players, the offense really struggled in 1905. The Tigers would turn things around quickly with Cobb and Crawford and would eventually make three consecutive World Series later in the decade.

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History Unblurred: The 10 Best Starting Pitchers from the 1990s

Michael W — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 09:55:24 -0500

I recently wrote an article on the 10 best Starting Pitchers from the first decade of the 2000s. I thought it would be a good idea to write the same type of article on the 10 best from the last decade of the 1900s.

A minimum of 200 games is required to be considered for this list.

There were 84 starting pitchers from the 1990s that reached at least 200 games. That is more than any other decade in the history of Major League Baseball, other than the 1970s, 1980s and 2000s.

If a player does not appear on this list of 84, then they either didn’t reach 200 games or I consider them a starting pitcher from the 1980s or 2000s. The 1980s will be covered in a separate article and I just wrote my 2000s article, not long ago. Starting pitchers will only be in one decade. For example, Roger Clemens will appear in my 1990s article.

So, he did not appear in my 2000s article and he will NOT appear in my 1980s article, which I will write later.

An Explanation of the Stats

The statistics that I include will be Games Pitched, Games Started, Innings Pitched, ERA, ERA+, W%+, H/9 (OBA), WHIP (OOB%), SHO/40 (per 40 Games Started) and K/BB (ratio). I will also letter grade their length of career.

First, I will include their raw career numbers. These are simply their career numbers.

Second, I will include their adjusted career numbers, if they had a long career (which most have). Adjusted career is this: Let’s take Greg Maddux for example. Maddux had a long career. So in order to find his real numbers, I have to exclude some late seasons during his career to find the numbers that he really carried during his career, since he pitched past his prime.

With Maddux, I’d exclude his last six seasons. That is his adjusted career. Again, this can only be done with long career players. If I don’t list an adjusted career under a player’s raw career numbers, then it means they didn’t play long enough to adjust for their long career or it means they didn’t have any bad seasons.

Third, I will include peak career numbers. Many like short peaks; not me. I include the best seasons equaling at least 200 games for a peak. It takes away the possibility of a pitcher having one or two lucky seasons. The 200-game peak will let us how good the pitcher was at his best.

Note: W%+ is a statistic that I have invented. It takes the teams W% into account. It is very complicated as different weights go more or less on seasons depending on how many Games and Innings Pitched a Pitcher Pitched during a single season. Having said that, here’s the simple version.

If a starting pitcher has a career .500 W% during the 2000s and that pitcher pitched for the Yankees. Well, .500 is not good. But, if that pitcher pitched for the Royals, then .500 is good. This is the reasoning behind W%+. It is to W% what ERA is to ERA+. It’s not full proof, but either is ERA+, just another piece of the puzzle and far, far more important than raw W%. OK.

The 84 Starting Pitchers

Here are the 84 Starting Pitchers from the 1990s that reached at least 200 games (listed in alphabetical order): Jim Abbott, Wilson Alvarez, Brian Anderson, Kevin Appier, Andy Ashby, Pedro Astacio, Steve Avery, Tim Belcher, Andy Benes, Jason Bere, Mike Bielecki, Brian Bohanon, Chris Bosio, Shawn Boskie, Kevin Brown, Tom Browning, John Burkett, Tom Candiotti, Frank Castillo, Mark Clark, Roger Clemens, David Cone, Jim Deshaies, Kelly Downs, Doug Drabek, Cal Eldred, Scott Erickson, Alex Fernandez, Sid Fernandez, Chuck Finley, Mark Gardner, Tom Glavine, Doc Gooden, Mark Gubicza, Kevin Gross, Juan Guzman, Joey Hamilton, Erik Hanson, Pete Harnisch, Pat Hentgen, Orel Hershiser, Teddy Higuera, Ken Hill, Sterling Hitchcock, Danny Jackson, Bobby Jones, Scott Kamieniecki, Jimmy Key, Darryl Kile, Mark Langston, Al Leiter, Greg Maddux, Ramon Martinez, Kirk McCaskill, Ben McDonald, Jack McDowell, Dave Mlicki, Charles Nagy, Jamie Navarro, Denny Neagle, Omar Olivares, Melido Perez, Robert Person, Mark Portugal, Pat Rapp, Rick Reed, Shane Reynolds, Jose Rijo, Kenny Rogers, Kirk Rueter, Bret Saberhagen, Curt Schilling, Pete Schourek, John Smiley, Pete Smith, Zane Smith, Todd Stottlemyre, Bill Swift, Kevin Tapani, Bob Tewksbury, Allen Watson, Bill Wegman, David Wells and Bobby Witt.

The Honorable Mentions

Here are the 10 Starting Pitchers that just missed the top 10 for various reasons. I will list them in alphabetical order: Kevin Appier, Tom Candiotti, Doug Drabek, Sid Fernandez, Chuck Finley, Doc Gooden, Jimmy Key, Mark Langston, Al Leiter and David Wells.

The Top 10

10. Kenny Rogers (1989-2008) Career Length Grade: A

Raw Career: 762 G, 474 GS, 3,302.2 IP, 4.27 ERA, 108 ERA+, 114 W%+, 9.4 H/9, 1.40 WHIP, 0.8 SHO/40 and 1.7 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 681 G, 402 GS, 2,863.1 IP, 4.04 ERA, 114 ERA+, 118 W%+, 9.2 H/9, 1.37 WHIP, 0.9 SHO/40 and 1.8 K/BB (exclude his 1997, 2001 and 2008 seasons)

Peak Career: 237 G, 98 GS, 813.1 IP, 3.26 ERA, 138 ERA+, 130 W%+, 8.5 H/9, 1.29 WHIP, 1.2 SHO/40 and 1.8 K/BB (include his 1989, 1990, 1995, 1998 and 2005 seasons)

Rogers had a large arsenal of pitches. He threw three or four different types of fastballs which all had very good movement. Sinking fastballs, cutters, two seam fastballs, etc...his fastball arsenal was impressive by itself. But he also threw an extremely good curveball and change-up.

The 10th spot was tough to choose because there are some on the HM list that were really higher caliber pitchers than Rogers, but the difference is merely academic. Rogers gets the nod over these pitchers, in large part, because of his long career. He was extremely good and he pitched forever.

9. Jose Rijo (1984-2002) Career Length Grade: D

Raw Career: 376 G, 269 GS, 1,880 IP, 3.24 ERA, 121 ERA+, 112 W%+, 8.2 H/9, 1.26 WHIP, 0.6 SHO/40 and 2.4 K/BB

Peak Career: 216 G, 173 GS, 1,221 IP, 2.60 ERA, 150 ERA+, 125 W%+, 7.6 H/9, 1.15 WHIP, 0.7 SHO/40 and 2.9 K/BB (include his 1988, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994 and 2001 seasons)

Rijo has the shortest career of any pitcher in my top 10, as he’s a “D” in the length of career category. He was basically injured from the time he fell out of the nest and played injured until the end of his career. The injuries were the main reason his career was shorter than it should have been.

I can only begin to imagine the numbers he would have put up if he had been healthy. The fact is, he put up incredibly good numbers, hurt. Some don’t, but many forget, that Rijo was arguably the best starting pitcher in Major League Baseball during the first five seasons of the 1990s...period.

He started pitching in MLB as a high-school aged 18 year old in 1984. He pitched OK, but really learned how to pitch during his first three or four seasons in the league.

In 1988, he was traded to Cincinnati and pitched the rest of his career for the Reds. He was a dominant pitcher by the time he reached the Reds and really remained so for the rest of his career, injury plagued as it was.

His numbers are great, his peak career and raw career. It’s why he’s in the top 10, even with his “D” length of career.

8. Orel Hershiser (1983-2000) Career Length Grade: C+

Raw Career: 510 G, 466 GS, 3,130.1 IP, 3.48 ERA, 112 ERA+, 108 W%+, 8.4 H/9, 1.26 WHIP, 2.1 SHO/40 and 2.0 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 434 G, 394 GS, 2,724.2 IP, 3.25 ERA, 118 ERA+, 113 W%+, 8.3 H/9, 1.23 WHIP, 2.5 SHO/40 and 2.2 K/BB (exclude his last 3 seasons)

Peak Career: 214 G, 182 GS, 1,385 IP, 2.63 ERA, 140 ERA+, 118 W%+, 7.6 H/9, 1.13 WHIP, 5.0 SHO/40 and 2.5 K/BB (include his 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1989 and 1995 seasons)

Hershiser was a dominant pitcher during the first half of his career and a good pitcher during the second half of his career. Check out his peak, a 2.63 ERA and 5.0 SHO/40. Those are dominant numbers.

I enjoy watching Hershiser commentate games. He brings fun and intelligence to the booth, just like he brought those things to the pitching mound when he played. I’ve always thought there was a parallel to Hershiser and Buddy Holly, as Holly brought some intelligence and intellect to 1950s music. Hershiser was a thinking pitcher and made it a habit to outthink his opponents. He was the real deal.

He’s arguably one of the 20 best starting pitchers in the history of MLB that is not in the HOF.

7. Bret Saberhagen (1984-2001) Career Length Grade: C-

Raw Career: 399 G, 371 GS, 2,562.2 IP, 3.34 ERA, 126 ERA+, 116 W%+, 8.6 H/9, 1.14 WHIP, 1.7 SHO/40 and 3.6 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 396 G, 368 GS, 2,547.2 IP, 3.33 ERA, 126 ERA+, 117 W%+, 8.6 H/9, 1.14 WHIP, 1.7 SHO/40 and 3.6 K/BB (exclude his last season)

Peak Career: 225 G, 224 GS, 1,561.2 IP, 3.01 ERA, 143 ERA+, 132 W%+, 8.3 H/9, 1.08 WHIP, 2.1 SHO/40 and 4.3 K/BB (include his 1985, 1987, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1998 and 1999 seasons)

Saberhagen started pitching as a teenager for the Kansas City Royals in 1984, and he actually pitched well during his first season. He basically never let up, had a great career.

He was plagued by injuries during his career, but not before he won the Cy Young award two times. He was a Hall of Fame caliber pitcher with a “C-“ length of career, largely due to those injuries.

Even with his injury plagued short career, he’s arguably one of the 20 best starting pitchers in the history of MLB that is not in the HOF.

6. David Cone (1986-2003) Career Length Grade: C+

Raw Career: 450 G, 419 GS, 2,898.2 IP, 3.46 ERA, 120 ERA+, 110 W%+, 7.8 H/9, 1.26 WHIP, 2.1 SHO/40 and 2.4 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 390 G, 361 GS, 2,590 IP, 3.19 ERA, 129 ERA+, 115 W%+, 7.5 H/9, 1.21 WHIP, 2.4 SHO/40 and 2.5 K/BB (exclude his last 3 seasons)

Peak Career: 228 G, 220 GS, 1,596.1 IP, 3.01 ERA, 144 ERA+, 119 W%+, 7.2 H/9, 1.21 WHIP, 2.9 SHO/40 and 2.2 K/BB (include his 1988, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997 and 1999 seasons)

Cone had a great fastball, slider and splitter. His pitch arsenal and competitive will were unbelievable.

“David Cone had one of the best repertoires I’ve ever seen a pitcher possess. He had phenomenal natural stuff. He never looked like a classic power pitcher, he wasn’t a big guy, but he had a mid-90s fastball with about 8 different arm angles. He threw a Frisbee slider that started out behind right handed hitters, yet he could paint the outside corner with it.”---Tom Candiotti, Respected Starting Pitcher from the 1990s

Cone was finally eligible for the HOF last year. It’s amazing how few votes he got. He didn’t get the respect of the voters that he deserved. The fact is, he’s easily one of the 20 best starting pitchers in the history of MLB that is not in the HOF. This guy was really an Ace, really had Ace numbers, but didn’t get Ace respect by the voters.

5. Tom Glavine (1987-2008) Career Length Grade: A

Raw Career: 682 G, 682 GS, 4,413.1 IP, 3.54 ERA, 118 ERA+, 111 W%+, 8.8 H/9, 1.31 WHIP, 1.5 SHO/40 and 1.7 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 603 G, 603 GS, 3,965.4 IP, 3.51 ERA, 122 ERA+, 111 W%+, 8.6 H/9, 1.30 WHIP, 1.6 SHO/40 and 1.8 K/BB (exclude his 2003, 2007 and 2008 seasons)

Peak Career: 201 G, 201 GS, 1,374.2 IP, 2.83 ERA, 147 ERA+, 108 W%+, 7.9 H/9, 1.21 WHIP, 1.6 SHO/40 and 2.1 K/BB (include his 1991, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998 and 2002 seasons)

Glavine is easily one of the 20 best Left Handed starting pitchers in the history of MLB. With his long career, he’ll get into the HOF, probably first ballot. He won the Cy Young award two times.

He helped lead his Atlanta Braves to the playoffs in 11 of 12 seasons between 1991 to 2002. That’s incredible. What a rotation, he had Greg Maddux and John Smoltz as teammates for most of those seasons.

He always looked good, but not great. He often appeared that way because he wasn’t usually overpowering. He didn’t appear to be great, but he was. Didn’t appear to be great until the game was over...and you lost 4-1. That’s what Glavine did. What a pitcher.

4. Curt Schilling (1988-2007) Career Length Grade: B+

Raw Career: 569 G, 436 GS, 3,261 IP, 3.46 ERA, 127 ERA+, 118 W%+, 8.3 H/9, 1.14 WHIP, 1.8 SHO/40 and 4.4 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 537 G, 425 G, 3.167.2 IP, 3.39 ERA, 130 ERA+, 120 W%+, 8.2 H/9, 1.12 WHIP, 1.9 SHO/40 and 4.4 K/BB (exclude his 2005 season)

Peak Career: 203 G, 152 GS, 1,176.6 IP, 2.89 ERA, 151 ERA+, 129 W%+, 7.7 H/9, 1.05 WHIP, 2.4 SHO/40 and 5.4 K/BB (include his 1990, 1992, 1997, 2001, 2003 and 2004 seasons)

Schilling should get into the HOF when he’s eligible in 2013. They may make him wait until the second or third ballot. They would put Glavine in right now, if they could. I don’t have a problem with Glavine getting into the HOF.

That’s why Schilling should get into the HOF when he’s eligible, he was better than Glavine, even though Glavine had a longer career.

Schilling was a competitor who would make you beat him (which usually didn’t happen). He hardly ever walked anyone. In fact, his 4.4 K/BB is first all time in the history of MLB. You weren’t going to get on base against Schilling for free. Competitive wasn’t even the word for this guy, Smoltz is the only starting pitcher that is still pitching that has nearly the competitive will of Schilling.

3. Kevin Brown (1986-2005) Career Length Grade: B

Raw Career: 486 G, 476 GS, 3,256.1 IP, 3.28 ERA, 127 ERA+, 112 W%+, 8.5 H/9, 1.22 WHIP, 1.4 SHO/40 and 2.7 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 434 G, 431 GS, 2,987.1 IP, 3.13 ERA, 133 ERA+, 117 W%+, 8.4 H/9, 1.20 WHIP, 1.6 SHO/40 and 2.7 K/BB (exclude his 2002, 2004 and 2005 seasons)

Peak Career: 221 G, 219 GS, 1,536.1 IP, 2.51 ERA, 164 ERA+, 124 W%+, 7.6 H/9, 1.07 WHIP, 1.8 SHO/40 and 3.9 K/BB (include his 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2003 seasons)

Brown was an interesting phenomenon as a starting pitcher. He was a good starting pitcher during the first half of his career, but not necessarily great. But the second half of his career, he was dominant and certainly and arguably the best starting pitcher in the League during the second half of his career, as he aged.

You just don’t see that much, a starting pitcher that was better as he got older. That’s what we got with Brown. He was good during the first half of his career, from 1986-1994. But from 1995-2004, those 10 seasons, the second half of his career, dominant. All of his peak is during the second half of his career, hardly ever see that.

Brown will get into the HOF. He’ll quietly go in. He wasn’t as famous as some of the greats of the era, like Schilling and Glavine, but he was better than either of them, even with the slightly longer career’s they had.

He should be a first ballot HOFer, for sure, but they may make him wait until the second, third, or fourth ballot because of his lack of fame. But he’ll get in because of his dominant numbers.

Check out his peak, a 2.51 ERA, 164 ERA+, 124 W%+, 1.07 WHIP and 3.9 K/BB. That’s a heck of a peak and it’s, more or less, the entire second half of his career.

2. Greg Maddux (1986-2008) Career Length Grade: A+

Raw Career: 744 G, 740 GS, 5,008.1 IP, 3.16 ERA, 132 ERA+, 110 W%+, 8.5 H/9, 1.14 WHIP, 1.9 SHO/40 and 3.4 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 539 G, 535 GS, 3,750.1 IP, 2.83 ERA, 146 ERA+, 113 W%+, 8.2 H/9, 1.12 WHIP, 2.5 SHO/40 and 3.3 K/BB (exclude his last 6 seasons)

Peak Career: 226 G, 226 GS, 1,675.1 IP, 2.15 ERA, 191 ERA+, 117 W%+, 7.3 H/9, 0.97 WHIP, 3.3 SHO/40 and 4.8 K/BB (include his 1992-1998 seasons)

He’s easily 1 of the 20 best starting pitchers in the history of MLB...period.

He’s a four-time Cy Young award winner.

His adjusted career numbers look like most good pitchers peak numbers and his peak numbers are off the charts. Check out his peak, a 2.15 ERA, 191 ERA+, 0.97 WHIP and 4.8 K/BB. They don’t get much better than that, and he did it during a bad decade for starting pitcher numbers, the 1990s. That makes it even more impressive.

The 1990s is the fourth worst decade of the 14 decades in the history of MLB for starting pitcher numbers. The worst, other than the 1890s, 1920s, 1930s, and 2000s. Again, putting up these numbers in a bad decade is unbelievable.

He was with the Atlanta Braves for 11 seasons, from 1993-2003. He helped lead them to the playoffs during 10 of those 11 seasons. That’s incredible. He had both Glavine and Smoltz in the rotation with him for many of those seasons, what a pitching staff.

Maddux always reminded me of a starting pitcher from the 1970s, like Tom Seaver, because the game wasn’t all about overpowering you. It was also about outthinking you, like Seaver did. Well, Maddux was like that, too.

When Maddux was at his peak, he had seasons that he’d go 19-2, 19-4. Many would watch him pitch and wonder how he lost those two games. What an amazing pitcher. Obviously, he’ll be a first ballot HOFer.

1. Roger Clemens (1984-2007) Career Length Grade: A+

Raw Career: 709 G, 707 GS, 4,916.2 IP, 3.12 ERA, 143 ERA+, 122 W%+, 7.7 H/9, 1.17 WHIP, 2.6 SHO/40 and 3.0 K/BB

Adjusted Career: 566 G, 565 GS, 4,018 IP, 2.91 ERA, 153 ERA+, 125 W%+, 7.4 H/9, 1.14 WHIP, 3.1 SHO/40 and 3.0 K/BB (exclude his 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2007 seasons)

Peak Career: 205 G, 205 GS, 1,469 IP, 2.27 ERA, 195 ERA+, 135 W%+, 6.9 H/9, 1.07 WHIP, 3.1 SHO/40 and 3.3 K/BB (include his 1990, 1992, 1994, 1997, 1998, 2005 and 2006 seasons)

Clemens is the only seven-time Cy Young award winner in the history of MLB and his numbers are great and his peak is off the charts, even better than Maddux peak.

It’s why Clemens is one of the 10 best starting pitchers in the history of MLB and it’s why he’ll be in the HOF.

The fact that he was better than Maddux doesn’t really bother me.

But the possible reasons as to why he was better...that’s what bothers me.

There you go. The 10 best starting pitchers from the 1990s.

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MLB Fantasy Impact: Polanco, Scutaro, Fox and Zaun

Eric Stashin — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 07:40:38 -0500

There have been a few moves in recent days that have an impact on fantasy owners (not to mention the potentially major signing of Chone Figgins and the Mariners, which isn’t “official” yet, so I will wait for that before commenting).

Let’s take a look and see which players have seen their value increase, decrease or remain stagnant due to their new locale:

Placido Polanco signed with the Philadelphia Phillies - All fans of NL teams must be rejoicing. Instead of adding another potential bat to an already deep lineup, they chose to go defense. While Polanco may see a slight increase in power playing in Citizens Bank Ballpark (though his best HR/FB rate since 2005 is 5.2%), he likely won’t hit more than low double-digits. Couple that with little speed and a solid, though unspectacular, average and Polanco remains a low-end fantasy option. If he were going to hit near the top of the Phillies order, maybe things would be different, but I just don’t see him displacing Jimmy Rollins or Shane Victorino at this point.
Marco Scutaro signed with the Boston Red Sox - He translated a career season into a job with a perennial title contender. Good for him, but don’t overvalue him on draft day. It’s not like he was playing in a bad lineup in Toronto, where he led off, which led to his 100 runs scored. On the Red Sox, with Jacoby Ellsbury and Dustin Pedroia, it’s highly unlikely he’s anywhere near the top of the lineup. That means less runs scored to go with a potential 10/10 season. Not all that enticing.
Oakland acquired Jake Fox & Aaron Miles from the Chicago Cubs in exchange for Jeff Gray, Ronny Morla and Matt Spencer - The key player in this deal is Fox, as he finally should get a chance to play regularly. In part-time duty for the Cubs (216 AB), he hit 11 HR. That’s not to mention his .409 average with 17 HR in 164 Triple-A AB prior to his recall (though we all know expectations like that are unrealistic). At worst he’s the new Jack Cust, but he strikes out far less and has the potential to produce a usable average. His .259 average in the Majors came courtesy of a .285 BABIP, so there is plenty of room for improvement there. His FB% was 47.4% (his minor league career was 42.0%) and his HR/FB was a believable 13.3%. He instantly becomes a solid late-round power flyer in all formats, and one that we’ll look at even deeper in the near future.
Gregg Zaun signed with the Milwaukee Brewers - Zaun doesn’t offer much offensively for fantasy owners, though if he is given everyday at bats (as is rumored) he should reach double-digit home runs. As is the case with many catchers, that’s about all we can ask for, as he has a career average of .251. More importantly, his signing means that Angel Salome will at least begin the 2010 season back in the minor leagues. If you’re in a two-catcher format, I’d still keep my eye on him, but that’s about it for now.

What are your thoughts? Whose value saw the biggest improvement? Whose value gets hurt the most?

Previous Fantasy Impacts of Recent Transactions:

THIS ARTICLE IS ALSO FEATURED ON WWW.ROTOPROFESSOR.COM

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The Rotoprofessor's 2010 MLB Hall of Fame Ballot

Eric Stashin — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 07:05:23 -0500

With Major League Baseball recently revealing the players on the 2010 Hall of Fame ballot, I though I would weigh in on who I would vote for. Let’s take a look:

The Definites

Roberto Alomar - Everyone remembers him for the spitting incident and the latter years, which certainly has left a black eye on his career. It’s unfortunate, because he was one of the best offensive second baseman of all-time. He hit .300 or better in nine out of ten seasons from 1992-2001.

He was a 10-time Gold Glove Award winner (a record for second baseman) and a 12 time All-Star. No matter what happened, he belongs to be remembered for his accomplishments.

Andre Dawson - He was the 1977 NL Rookie of the Year. He was the 1987 NL MVP. He was an eight time All-Star. He was an eight-time Gold Glove Award winner.

For a time, he was one of the most feared and dominant hitters in the game, which is really the most telling statement.

He deserves to be inducted and after falling just 44 votes shy in 2009, this could be the year he finally gets recognized for his accomplishments.

Mark McGwire - Steroids or not, he was one of the people who helped to bring the game back after the strike cancelled the 1994 World Series. He should be regarded as one of the best sluggers in the game and, in theory, what he did was not against the rules of baseball when he was playing. He should get the recognition he deserves.

One The Fence, But Not This Year

Barry Larkin - He was one of the most well rounded short stops in baseball history. He won the Gold Glove three times, though that really is not telling since he was going against the best defensive player in baseball history, Ozzie Smith.

He was a 12-time All Star, won the 1995 MVP as well as getting a World Series Title in 1990. He was a star, all around, and really has me one the fence. He was a star, but was he really a superstar?

Edgar Martinez - He is going to bring about a lot of debate, since he is the first true DH who is worth considering. Does the fact that he only played half the game, not contributing on the defensive side, make his accomplishments any less impressive?

He was a career .312 hitter and sported a .418 OBP. The OBP places him 12th all time, an incredible mark when you think about it. Still, right now, I can’t give him my vote.

Lee Smith - The election of Goose Gossage and Bruce Sutter in recent seasons should have begun to open the door for some of the other great closers in league history. Talk about the position and the specialization all you want, but he was one of the most dominant in league history.

He was the all-time leader for a while, with 478 career saves. He was a seven time All-Star and at a position that generally sees much volatility, was one of the best for a long time.

The problem is, if you vote Smith in where does the closer line fall? Does someone like John Franco get voted in? What is the real difference between the two? For that reason, I can’t vote Smith in this season.

Other Players Who Will Garner Attention, but Not Mine:

Bert Blyleven - I know he won 287 games, but too me he was more of a compiler. He only had two seasons with more than 17 wins. Yes, he had 3,701 strikeouts, but his K/9 was a measly 6.70. I don’t know, while the numbers are there it is more telling of the length of his career.

Don Mattingly - This is the Hall of Fame, not the Hall of Very Good. I know, the back injury really short-changed him, but he just didn’t do enough.

Jack Morris - He was a big game pitcher, but is that really enough? Not in my eyes it’s not. A 3.90 ERA should not make you Hall of Fame worthy.

Ryan Lester of www.lesterslegends.com had already debated him, so for more on why I don’t think he belongs, click here .

Dale Murphy - Another player that I’ve already debated, so I’m not going to rehash the argument in full here (click here to view). His six very good seasons just aren’t enough to convince me since he wasn’t the big, dominant hitter of his generation and then quickly disappeared.

Dave Parker - He had some good seasons, but if he was an elite slugger how could he have just four seasons of over 100 RBI? How could he have just three seasons of at least 30 home runs? His numbers just aren’t impressive enough for me to ever consider voting him in.

Tim Raines - Yet another player that I’ve already debated (click here to view). He’s basically another player that I see as a compiler, getting a lot of his numbers due to sticking in the majors for 23 seasons. While his 808 stolen bases are impressive, 454 of them came from 1981-1986. It’s just not enough for me.

Definitely Never:
Kevin Appier, Harold Baines, Ellis Burks, Andres Galarraga, Pat Hentgen, Mike Jackson, Eric Karros, Ray Lankford, Fred McGriff, Shane Reynolds, David Segui, Alan Trammell, Robin Ventura, Todd Zeile

What are your thoughts on the 2010 Hall of Fame ballot? Who deserves to be in? Who are you on the fence for?

THIS ARTICLE IS ALSO FEATURED ON WWW.ROTOPROFESSOR.COM

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San Diego Padres Notes: Brad Ausmus, Noah Lowry, Kevin Kouzmanoff

Todd Kaufmann — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 02:57:52 -0500

With the Winter Meetings less than 48 hours away, the San Diego Padres will be looking to add a right handed bat as well as pitching depth.

Whether that comes by free agency or by trade is yet to be seen, but here are a few names that are being talked about.

First off, gotta give credit to the Padres for doing something they needed to do in adding legendary announcer and San Diego resident Dick Enberg to their television broadcast booth.

Enberg will join long-time Padres' color commentator Mark Grant to cover at least 130 Padre games this season, with the other 20-30 games being done by second-year man Mark Neely.

Now that that's out of the way, let's get to a few of the names being bantered about.

With Henry Blanco close to a deal with the Mets, the Padres will turn elsewhere to try and find a veteran catcher for the 2010 season. That man could be former Astros' catcher Brad Ausmus.

Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com mentioned also that the Giants and Dodgers, who Ausmus played for last season, are also interested in the 40-year-old catcher.

As mentioned before, the Padres will be looking for pitching depth to add to either their rotation or bullpen. An interesting name that the Padres' could look at is 29-year-old left-hander Noah Lowry.

The former Giants' pitcher is coming off of forearm surgery in March 2008, as well as surgery in May to remove a rib to help with his thoracic outlet syndrome. Despite the surgeries, Lowry's agent is telling teams that his client is completely healthy.

Not only are the Padres interested, but according to ESPN's Jerry Crasnick , the Pirates, Rockies, Dodgers, A's, Mariners, and Reds are also interested. It could be an interesting race to see who lands him.

MLB.com's Corey Block has an article out talking about the team's needs that they could possibly fill during the winter meetings.

In that article, Brock mentions the possibility that the team could trade third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff and slide Chase Headley into his natural position.

Doing that would allow the team to give more playing time to 6'6", 285 pound Kyle Blanks. Having him in the lineup at the same time with All-Star first baseman Adrian Gonzalez definitely gives this team more power.

As expected, the Padres did not offer outfielder Brian Giles arbitration— meaning his days as a Padre have officially come to a close. There's been no talk as to where the long- time Padre and Pirate will end up, but I doubt Giles' playing days are done.

There will be many more rumors flying as the Winter Meetings approach, this coming Monday Dec. 7.

We'll see if the Padres will be buyers or choose to not show their hand just yet, and wait until Spring training gets closer before they really start to make their moves.

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While Chone Figgins Heads North, Angels' Future Goes South

Johnathan Kroncke — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 02:28:19 -0500

The thrill is gone. At least in Anaheim.

Chone Figgins, the spark plug for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, has left sunny Southern California behind in favor of the soggy skies of Seattle.

Well, that, and a four-year contract reportedly worth $36 million.

Shocking as it may be to some—and it certainly is to me—Figgins has traded in his halo for the drab blue/green garb of the Seattle Mariners, a divisional rival of the Angels and one that looks to improve dramatically next season.

According to Mariners officials, the deal will not be finalized until Monday, but for all intents and purposes, the lightning bug that sparked the Angels' offense has jumped ship to sport a sailor's moniker.

Ironic, no?

Figgins' departure is unfortunate for a number of reasons.

First, and perhaps most obvious, the Angels will now have to attempt what so many teams failed to do over the last eight years: contain the little spitfire!

Figgins has proven himself to be one of the most dangerous lead-off men in all of baseball and in 2009, he only got better.

With age—Figgins is 31—has come a further understanding of the delicate art of setting the table.

Apart from a .298 batting average, the second highest of his career, Figgy finally learned to be patient at the plate, resulting in a team-high 101 walks.

He also led the Angels, and finished third in the league, in stolen bases with 42.

Guys like Kendry Morales, Bobby Abreu, and Torii Hunter had tremendous seasons offensively. But make no mistake, each was heavily influenced by the presence of Figgins in the lineup.

Merry Christmas, Ichiro.

Not mention, his sparkling defensive abilities and cannon throwing arm make Figgins as lethal in the field as he is at the plate.

However, facing their former friend is by far the least of the Angels' worries now. With their sterling third baseman and sparkling lead-off hitter gone, who will they get to replace him?

Brandon Wood figures to be the frontrunner for the job at the moment, but I'd sooner root for Figgy in Seattle than stand to see Wood in Anaheim on Opening Day.

The magic of his improved defense and power in the minors has proven to be nothing but smoke and mirrors in the pros.

Wood is a minor league star and a Major League bust.

His offensive prowess at Triple-A has never and will never translate to the bigs; the difference in pitching talent is simply too great and he does not have the discipline or the swing to compete.

Sadly, this is not a popular opinion among big league squads, most notably the Angels.

Wood's particular brand of offensive charm has endeared him to the brass in Anaheim, who seem dead set on making Wood a starter, as evidenced by their attitude toward re-signing Figgins.

If General Manager Tony Reagins really wanted him, he could have had him.

Figgins, like most of the Angels' free agents, expressed a clear desire to return to Anaheim, where his style of play fits perfectly with Manager Mike Scioscia's aggressive run-and-gun nature.

But no. We have Brandon Wood, the second coming of Dallas McPherson with twice as many strikeouts.

Truly, we are blessed.

Now, that's not to say Wood is entirely useless or that he'll never pan out. Many take a much more compassionate approach and feel that he just needs consistent at-bats in the Majors before he comes into his own.

But sometimes compassion can get you killed. Especially in sports.

Wood has a penchant for striking out, and that sorry trait will only be made worse with the added pressure of replacing Figgins as the starter.

Expect Rory Markus and Mark Gubicza to use the word "pressing"...a lot.

If this team wants to have any chance of competing in its own division, nevermind the American League, the first thing it has to do at the upcoming Winter Meetings is find a new third baseman.

The Angels could solve their third base problem in-house, of course, but they seem content using Maicer Izturis off the bench as a middle infielder.

Mark DeRosa, then, could be a viable replacement at the hot corner.

DeRosa has hit well and defended better with every team he's been on. Like Figgy, he's got the ability to play multiple positions, and unlike Wood, he's shown consistent power throughout his career.

If the choice is a swing-happy prospect who couldn't hit a Major League pitch if you paid him—and they do—or a solid veteran with some pop and previous experience in the AL West, I'll take the veteran any day.

Wood's value, now more than ever, lies in his worth as a trade piece.

The Angels' are not the only minds Wood has fooled. Indeed, teams across both leagues are enamored with the deceptively powerful righty and often include his name in trade talks.

With any luck, the Angels will wise up and deal Wood now, while he's still young (25 at the start of next season) and brimming with “potential.”

Losing Figgins was a terrible mistake, but relying on Wood to take his place would be worse.

The only potential the slender farmhand has is to help fill holes on the Angels' roster.

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Yankees Must Start 2010 Free Agency by Bringing Back Andy Pettitte

Doug Rush — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 01:51:25 -0500

Next week will begin the annual General Managers meetings in Indianapolis. Many expect the free agency period to really get into motion once those meetings take place.

Yankees' GM Brian Cashman has a lot of decisions to make as far as the 2010 roster, which will be looking to defend their World Series.

Everyone has been talking lately of the rumors of the Yankees making a trade to get Blue Jays' starting pitcher Roy Halladay to add to the staff that already includes CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett.

There is also talk of the Yankees getting Angels' starting pitcher John Lackey off the free agent market.

But before Cashman makes any of these moves, he has to take care of one of his own first.

The Yankees must bring back Andy Pettitte for 2010— if Pettitte puts off retirement once again.

In 2009, the rotation raised a lot of questions along with unfortunate injuries to its back end, so Pettitte's role increased after he was originally going to be the No. 4 or 5 pitcher on the staff.

Because of Chien-Ming Wang's multiple injuries, Joba Chamberlain's inconsistency, and Phil Hughes' move to the setup role, Pettitte was moved into the No. 3 role.

Before the season even started, Pettitte's return to the Yankees in 2009 was uncertain because Cashman wasn't sure if he wanted to bring Pettitte back for another season after a nagging shoulder injury, which caused Pettitte to struggle in the second half.

Pettitte didn't re-sign with the Yankees until Jan. 26, months after the Yankees had already made investments into Sabathia and Burnett for the front end of the rotation. And his contract went from $16 million in 2008 to just $5.5 million, with incentives, in 2009.

Thankfully, Cashman did re-sign Pettitte, because he stayed healthy all season, went 14-8 with a 4.16 ERA, and pitched 194 innings with 148 strikeouts.

More importantly, Pettitte went 4-0 in the 2009 playoffs, including 2-0 in the World Series, and won every clinch game for the Yankees.

His 30 innings in the playoffs were something money wasn't going to get in the free agent market; Pettitte's experience was so crucial to the Yankees championship run of 2009.

Now, Cashman will not be as hesitant to re-sign Pettitte, because he knows how valuable Pettitte is to the rotation.

Pettitte's not a dominant pitcher like Halladay or Lackey, but any Yankee fan would send Pettitte to the mound in a big playoff game, against any top pitcher in the league, and come out on top.

So before Cashman decides to go after another starter outside of the organization, he must bring Pettitte back first.

And with a raise, too. Pettitte's 14 wins in the regular season were very important, but not as important as the four playoff wins.

Pettitte is now the all-time most winning pitcher in the playoffs with 18 career wins, surpassing John Smoltz this past October.

Numbers like that should bump him up from his $5.5 million base salary. (Because of his incentives, Pettitte ended up with roughly $10.5 million in 2009.)

Now, I am all for bringing Halladay and/or Lackey to New York, because they would make fine additions to a Yankee rotation that could use another strong arm. But I am firmly behind bringing Pettitte back first.

He had one of the most important jobs in 2009, easily closing out the playoff series in pressure-packed games.

Pettitte should be Cashman's No. 1 priority when it comes to the rotation.

Take care of Pettitte first, because he has earned it. Then go after those other guys.

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Billy and Takashi: Reactions to a Gun-Slinging Braves' GM

Cameron Britt — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 22:44:25 -0500

Well, the last two days were exciting, weren't they?

Two legitimate end-of-the-'pen options coming in.

Sure, they're 38 and 39, but Billy Wagner and Takashi Saito's track records indicate that they know what they're doing.

Wagner is sitting just a few saves short of 400 with 1,092 career Ks.

Saito sports a career 2.05 ERA that he has accumulated since turning 36 in his first Major League season with the Dodgers.

Despite their injury 'issues' (and I use 'these' for a reason), these guys are solid pick-ups.

Wagner's coming back from a surgery that sports a success rate in the 90s, and Saito experienced no issues with his elbow with Boston last season.

Yes, this gives the Braves these two as major parts of their team (late-inning relief with no legit replacements if both were to go down; but when you weigh their 'fixed' risks versus Soriano and Gonzalez's 'nagging' risks for about $4-8MM less, you have to like the value.)

What I can say most about these moves, though, is this: it's nice.

It's nice to see an offseason progressing quickly.

It's nice to see the Braves' front office getting what they need.

And, more than anything, it's nice to see the Wren-bashers receding into their holes.

"Oh, he's an idiot."

"Oh, he doesn't respect this team."

"Oh, he doesn't get anything done...it's just talk, talk, talk and no action."

That's what we saw last year around the Braves' blogosphere.

Now, not so much.

You know why?

Because all of his moves, to an extent, have proved to be successful.

Edgar Renteria became Jair Jurrjens and Gorkys Hernandez (who became Nate McLouth).

Prospects became Javier Vazquez and Boone Logan.

Smoltz became Kawakami and Lowe (in a roundabout way).

Losing Glavine became gaining Hanson.

Casey Kotchman became Adam LaRoche's second half.

You see?

This guy's starting to get respect, and based on the above series of moves, I trust the Saito and Wagner signings.

Are they the lefty-righty dynamic duo that Soriano and Gonzo were?

No.

But should they be solid?

Yes.

Now let's just hope that someone like Marlon Byrd or Mike Cameron is boarding a plane to Atlanta...and we can rest even easier in Braves' Nation (but, I don't know if my heart can handle another press conference this week without exploding).

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New York Mets Hire Wayne Krivsky: Omar Minaya's Seat Just Got Hotter

Adam Bernacchio — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 18:42:13 -0500

According to current New York Mets beat writer and future Director of Player Development Adam Rubin, the Mets have officially announced the hiring of former Cincinnati Reds’ GM Wayne Krivsky as special assistant to GM Omar Minaya.

Despite having “assistant” in his title, trust me when I tell you, Krivsky will not be answering the phone for Minaya. And trust me when I tell you, Minaya had nothing to do with this hire.

The Mets are trying to bring in as many quality baseball people as possible, so not only can they try to right the ship for 2010, but when they eventually do get rid of Minaya, they have internal options.

In my opinion, Krivsky will be the next GM of the Mets.

At this point, Minaya is just a figurehead. He is the Bobby Bowden of the Mets, minus the success or credibility.

From what I have been hearing, Minaya has little or no power with the Mets anymore. Jeff Wilpon is the one calling the shots in Flushing.

The only reason the Mets have not fired Minaya after his disaster both on and off the field is because he signed a three-year extension that just kicks in next year and the Mets don’t want to pay his salary.

Are there two bigger lame ducks in baseball than Minaya and Jerry Manuel?

Last month the Mets hired Wally Backman, who is a good bet to replace Manuel–to manage the Brooklyn Cyclones–a move I have been saying the Mets should make for years. And now they have hired Minaya’s eventual replacement in Krivsky.

My guess is Minaya and Manuel won’t be around for the 2011 season.

This will be Krivsky’s second stint with the Mets. He held the same title in 2008 before leaving to take a similar position with the Baltimore Orioles in 2009.

The fact Krivsky would leave a team and an organization on the rise to come to a dysfunctional organization just strengthens my belief that he came to the Mets to eventually become the GM.

You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @ theghostofmlg

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The Time Is Now For The Minnesota Twins to Move on a Free Agent Infielder

Eric Johnson — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 17:01:47 -0500

With potential free agent infielders being snatched up faster than the testimonies of Tiger Woods’s mistresses by tabloids, I figured I had better relate some thoughts about the Twins infield situation before the market is completely dry (which, at this pace, could be any day now).

With the Marco Scutaro and Placido Polanco signings, and the apparently impending Chone Figgins signing, the, arguably, three biggest names are off the infield table.

These signings are actually a good thing for the Twins.

Once Figgins officially signs, his deal will essentially set the high end for the infield market. Couple Figgins's deal with Polanco and Scutaro getting fairly reasonable dollars-per-year (for the market at least—in reality, Scutaro is nothing more than a glorified utility guy. I can already hear Red Sox fans complaining, "Theo is really stahtin to lose it, that Scutahro signing was retahded") and you have the middle-to-upper class of the infield free agent pool making $5-$6 million per year.

What does this mean for the Twins?

Hopefully, it means they will swoop in on someone in the Adrian Beltre/Miguel Tejada/Felipe Lopez/Orland Hudson group; or, better yet, a smorgasbord thereof that includes both a 2B and a 3B.

The most realistic scenario, however, is that the Twins will sign/trade for one infielder (be it 3B or 2B) and we will have to put up with another year of daily Punto.

Having said that, why wait to make a deal? The middle infield market has basically been set, and if the Twins can get Felipe Lopez or Orlando Hudson in the $4-$6 million range, why not make the move now? Locking up a second baseman at a reasonable price would allow the Twins to let the third base market fully play out, and see what options are available later in the offseason.

When it comes to second base, the Twins should move quickly. The price is right, and the middle infield would be set for next year.

Sure, a better deal might come up later, but there are no guarantees. There are plenty of affordable options now, so why wait for the absolutely perfect opportunity that may never arise?

Why wait for the potential bargain basement Wal-Mart prices, when there is reasonably priced, higher quality merchandise available right now?

www.undomed.blogspot.com

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For L.A. Angels, Any Deal With Weaver Is a Bad Deal.

Steve Waverly — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 16:22:49 -0500

Okay Angels fans, we’ve got a "good news, bad news" situation on our hands.

The good news: Word on the street is the Angels are again in the hunt for the great Roy Halladay.

The bad news: Word on the street is their offer might include Jered Weaver.

And that is very bad news, indeed.

To include Weaver in any trade is a stinker deal. Jered Weaver is a couple of seasons, at most, away from No. 1 status in a rotation. He’s a solid No. 2 right now. To trade him away, along with other talent, for Halladay is horizontal thinking rather than vertical thinking.

It’s not going to move the Angels forward.

The answer: Give Toronto the Ervin Santana hard sell. He’s young, he’s talented, he’s a proven winner, etc., etc.

And he can be all theirs.

Throw in whomever else you want. (To an extent. We all know the untouchables.)

Of course, rather than going after Halladay, the first choice is keeping John Lackey. He’s a big-game pitcher, tough as they come, and still young. I’d hate to see him put together 20-win seasons for another club. He should be an Angel for years to come.

If keeping him is not possible, then go after Halladay with a vengeance. Just do not, I repeat DO NOT, include Weaver.

We all saw in the 2009 playoffs what Weaver can do in pressure situations. He rose to the challenge, as expected.

I say as expected because he’s been rising to the challenge ever since he showed up on everyone’s radar. From Long Beach State to the infamous holdout to the rapid rise through the minor league, Weaver has excelled despite, or because of, intense pressure and scrutiny.

Weaver and Joe Saunders are the backbone of the Angels' future rotation. They fly under the radar of the "experts" (i.e. robotic thinkers who have to keep talking to justify their salary and say nothing but obvious and worn-out analysis). To those of us who see them pitch every fifth day, however, they are young stars.

Don’t take one step backward to take one step forward. If Halladay comes to the Angels, make sure he’s at the top of a rotation that wasn’t gutted to get him.

And that means keeping Weaver.

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Diamondbacks Make Additional Roster Moves

Jeff Summers — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 16:14:53 -0500

Just under two weeks ago the Arizona Diamondbacks made a slew of roster changes setting their 40-man roster . I found the timing of that somewhat interesting since they entered the free agent period with no openings on the roster.

This leads you to believe that any changes that will occur will be the result of a trade rather than a free agent signing. Not only a trade; but one that would include a member of their 40-man roster.

Had the team waited until this week as expected you would safely assume that the Diamondbacks were filling slots to protect minor league players from being exposed to the Rule 5 Draft that occurs on the final day of the Winter Meetings.

So it was a little surprising to hear the Diamondbacks announce they had designated two players for assignment freeing up spots on the 40-man roster.

The Diamondbacks sent catcher Luke Carlin to the Triple-A Reno Aces. This was to be expected. Carlin was a late season call-up for the Diamondbacks and appeared in ten games. In that time he hit .167 with just 3 hits.

Carlin was signed to a minor league contract this past June after playing in the San Diego Padres organization. At age 29, he has been classified as a career minor leaguer. That may be an unfair label but no one ever said baseball was fair.

For the Reno Aces Carlin split time with Diamondbacks prospect John Hester. He had a good season by all accounts hitting .321 in 72 games with 7 home runs and 35 RBIs. With the Diamondbacks having two good catchers in starter Miguel Montero and former starter Chris Snyder plus an up-and-coming catcher in John Hester; Carlin was a victim of the numbers game.

The Diamondbacks are hoping that Carlin will accept the assignment to Reno and return to the Aces. If not he will become a minor league free agent.

The second roster move was a little more puzzling. The Diamondbacks designated right-handed pitcher Kyler Newby to Triple-A Reno. Newby was a 50th round selection by the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2004 and has been steadily progressing through the farm system.

For 2009 Newby played for the Mobile BayBears where he appeared in 42 games accumulating a 3.99 ERA for the year. The scouting report on Newby showed him to have strikeout stuff and was relatively efficient in his pitch selection.

The problem has been that Newby has been fairly erratic in his control as seen in his walk total of 24 in just 65 innings of work. At only 24 years old the Diamondbacks had high hopes for Newby so it is interesting to see them remove him from the 40-man roster.

If Newby accepts the assignment to Triple-A Reno it would be a step up from where he was last year. The question will be whether he will remain with the Diamondbacks or will he be selected in the Rule 5 Draft?

As of now the Diamondbacks have 38 slots filled in their 40-man roster, giving the team flexibility in next week’s Winter Meetings. This could mean they are close to a deal and needed the roster spot or more likely after the dust settled they have their eye on a player they are hoping to add through the Rule 5 Draft.

Either way the team is set up to make some deals this off-season and has given them some roster space latitude to play with. The stage has now been set, let the off-season dealing begin.

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Video Replay Into Major League Baseball: The How and Why

Patrick Hamblin — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 16:09:36 -0500

This past postseason's umpiring led to a renewed debate of whether major league baseball should implement video replay. Baseball is known for its tradition and resistance to change. So what does baseball do?

The issues involved are clear: umpires believe their authority would be threatened and do not like being second-guessed, MLB and the television networks want there to be a flow to the game, all the while teams, players, and fans want the right call to be made.

There is a simple solution to this problem that would appease all of the involved parties.

I would implement video replay and have it run by a fifth umpire. MLB will not go the way of the mysterious hockey replay guy or the retired official taking a day off from golf like college football uses.

The process is simple. Say a third base umpire were to miss two baserunners being clearly tagged out. (Hey. It could happen!) The umpires on the field do nothing to change the call. The fifth umpire, in the umpires room or press box, will see the missed call, buzz the crew chief, and change the call.

Where do we get this fifth umpire? Add one umpire to every crew. After working the plate, you get a day as the replay umpire, so everyone does it. The umpire's union will love it, because it adds an umpire to every major league crew and the second-guessing is coming from bona fide major league umpires, not some real estate salesman.

Now I know what you will say: Why would an umpire want to overrule a fellow umpire?

For one, since he is also a major league umpire, failing to do so would be part of his evaluation, which is used to determine postseason assignments. Two, the replay umpire knows the final blame will be placed on him, not the guy making the original incorrect call.

What about the other concerns? MLB and TV will love it because the calls would be quickly corrected instead of drawing out the game while the victim manager comes out to argue even though there is a ZERO chance of the call being overturned.

As for the teams, players, and fans? They may not like it if an original call for their team is changed, but an honest look at a replay will show the correct call was made.

Finally, this would only be used for obvious calls such as fair/foul balls, tag outs, catch/no catch. In situations where the call is still not obvious, you stay with the original call on the field, keeping the beloved "human element" desired by the baseball traditionalists.

Baseball needs to implement video replay and get it done now. Can Bud Selig or any other baseball traditionalist give us any reason(s) why not? Selig had no problem implementing the wild card and interleague play, so why not replay?

If your first reason is, "We haven't done that before." You need to give baseball fans a better reason.

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Fantasy Baseball Impact: Billy Wagner To Atlanta

Eric Stashin — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 16:03:59 -0500

The Braves’ signing of Billy Wagner appears to signal a change at the back end of the Atlanta bullpen. While it is still possible that Rafael Soriano or Mike Gonzalez is brought back to the mix (though even more unlikely with the addition of Takashi Saito), does anyone believe they would have guaranteed Wagner $7 million if he was not going to be the closer?

Wagner, who returned from Tommy John surgery in 2009, was impressive as a setup man for the Mets and Red Sox (1.72 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, 26 K in 15.2 IP) and instantly becomes a solid option in all formats.

He has always been a great source of strikeouts out of the bullpen with a career K/9 of 10.89, so he is likely to continue to be an asset there. There are obvious concerns, but his ability to excel after returning last season should go a long way in alleviating them. While he isn’t likely to be quite as good as last season, I’d pencil him in for at least a strikeout per inning.

When you couple that potential with the idea of him almost guaranteed to be closing games (again, who pays a setup man $7 million), how could you go wrong? Initially he was left off the Top 15 closers rankings (click here to view) due to the questions on if he would be closing somewhere or not.

With that question answered he potentially slips in there, but he certainly is a Top 20 option. If you look at the Tier 4 options, it is littered with names like Trevor Hoffman, Jose Valverde and Ryan Franklin. Would anyone be shocked to see Wagner outperform any of them?

That makes him a great selection late in your draft if you are one who gambles on closers. Don’t reach for him, but if he’s available the strikeouts and saves make him a good selection in all formats.

What are your thoughts? How good could Wagner be? Will he return to the type of closer he once was?

Previous Fantasy Impacts of Recent Transactions:

THIS ARTICLE IS ALSO FEATURED ON WWW.ROTOPROFESSOR.COM

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Angels' Trade Package for Roy Halladay (If I Was Tony Reagins for a Day)

Ian O'Brien — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 15:53:59 -0500

The L.A. Angels have been one of the many potential suitors seeking to make a trade to land Roy Halladay, the Toronto Blue Jays' ace. The Angels will need to trade a lot as Halladay will cost a pretty penny.

The Angels should trade players that are at their peak value, and who the team could easily lose in one more season.

The Blue Jays expect a team to hand over one of its young starting pitchers to get Halladay. Jered Weaver, Ervin Santana, and Joe Saunders are all options.

The Angels should not trade Saunders because he has proven to be very valuable to the rotation with 16 wins last year. He would have had an even better year without the shoulder injury. He did great in '08 as well.

Weaver appears to be improving a lot, so he should stay, too.

I think the Angels should include Santana in the trade package because he has flashed amazing potential, but this year he struggled quite a bit just like he did two years ago. You never know how he will do.

The Blue Jays will probably be willing to get Santana as they will need a starting pitcher. The Blue Jays wanted Erick Aybar last trade deadline, but Reagins refused to trade him, so Halladay stayed in Toronto.

The Blue Jays have a new G.M. now, though, so it's open season again.

The Angels should offer Howie Kendrick. His value is not at its peak anymore, but he still has a sleeper label on him, so the Angels should trade him while they can.

They should dangle Brandon Wood, too, because he had power numbers in the minors. He hit 43 home runs one season. He's a power-hitting third baseman, but he strikes out a lot, and he may be a bust, seeing as he hasn't done very well in the majors.

The Angels will probably need to offer a fourth player to seal the deal, so they should definitely put up Gary Matthews Jr., who isn't happy in his bench role with the Angels' deep outfield, but the Angels will have to eat the remaining $23 million off his contract. His five-year, $50 million deal was definitely a mistake on the Angels' part seeing as he was only a one-year wonder.

My trade package for Halladay would include Ervin Santana, Howie Kendrick, Brandon Wood, and Gary Matthews Jr.

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Tampa Bay Rays Offseason Report: Dec. 4, 2009

Thaddeus Walk — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 14:48:43 -0500

Welcome to another edition of Thaddeus' Tampa Bay Rays Offseason Report. Each and every Friday, we're going to recap the moves, trades, signings, and other nonsense of the previous week in the wonderful world of Tampa Bay baseball; keeping you, Dear Reader, up to date with the team until Opening Day in April 2010 against the Baltimore Orioles .

Well, it's time again to say goodbye November, and say hello to December. More importantly, say hello to the Winter Meetings; the three-and-a-half day free-for-all where GMs throw around names like confetti and the Hot Stove officially gets lit starts Dec. 8 in Indianapolis.

The Big Three, of course, are on everyone's lips and will continue to be next week. OF Matt Holliday, OF Jason Bay, and SP John Lackey are this year's top prizes in the free agent pool, and teams from both the Junior and Senior Circuits are butting heads for a chance to land a contract.

These three are only the top of the pile, however, with names like Toronto SP Roy Halladay, and free agents 3B Chone Figgins, and SP Randy Wolf also making some GM mouth's water.

While the Tampa Bay Rays aren't expected to be very active in the Winter Meetings, some rumors have sprung up, the loudest of them describing a trade between the Rays and the Cubbies swapping DH Pat Burrell for OF Milton Bradley. OF Carl Crawford also seems like ample bait to try and pull a slew of prospects away from one of the elite teams in the league.

In any case, conjecture is for ESPN; this column is about the past week in Rays baseball. Let's get to it.

Nov. 28, 2009: Re-signed RP Joe Bateman to a minor league contract.

This follows in the footsteps of Nov. 20's report that the Rays had re-signed RP R.J. Swindle after picking him up in August and releasing him shortly thereafter; Bateman had been signed by Tampa Bay after being released from the Milwaukee Brewers after Spring Training in 2009 and found himself sent directly to AAA Durham for the entirety of the season. The Rays must have liked what they saw, because he's back again, and probably with a Spring Training invitation.

He went 6-2 with a 3.02 ERA and no home runs over 44 games including two starts for the Bulls.

Dec. 1, 2009: Acquired C Kelly Shoppach from Cleveland for PTBNL.

This trade was covered by me here , so I won't go too heavily into detail here in the report, but this trade looks to be a strong move for the Rays. With incumbent starter C Dioner Navarro on a year-long slump and the weakest link of a strong lineup, a catcher was the Rays' biggest need in 2010.

Shop shows slightly lower defensive stats than Navi, but his walk rate in 2009 is almost triple Dioner's and his power of lefties is impressive, amassing a .999 OPS over a small sample size of 258 ABs.

This writer expects Navarro to be non-tendered by the Dec. 12 deadline and have Shop platoon behind the plate with someone who can hit high-profile right-handed starters, but who that hitter could be is still up in the air. In-house minor leaguers John Jaso and Jose Lobaton are most likely not major league-ready.

RP Jeff Bennett was designated for assignment to make room for Shoppach on the 40-man roster, and is expected to be picked up by another team.

As of today, no announcement has been made as to the identity of the player to be named later the Rays are sending to the Indians; the deadline for the deal being finalized is Dec. 20.

Dec. 1, 2009: C Gregg Zaun and RP Brian Shouse offered arbitration.

Zaun's offer doesn't come at much of a surprise, as it has been public knowledge that the front office would love to have his veteran presence, hits off right-handers, and rock solid defense behind the plate with Kelly Shoppach.

Shouse was used as a lefty specialist (or a LOOGY) over the course of 2009, but the arbitration offering is a bit surprising, and risky, due to the presence of RP Randy Choate.

Shouse was rumored to have been contemplating retirement, so the compensatory second-round draft pick that the Rays would pick up for the Type-B player would be a nice parting gift, but they run the risk of him accepting arbitration by Monday's acceptance deadline and keeping him on the team, perhaps unnecessarily.

Not offered arbitration was Type-B RP Russ Springer, picked up by the Rays from the A's late in the season. Arbitration was also not offered to non-ranked pitchers Troy Percival, Chad Bradford, and Jason Isringhausen.

Also notably not offered arbitration were C Navarro and C Shawn Riggans, and with the deadline for tendering contracts of team-controlled arbitration-eligible players coming up on Dec. 12, things don't look good for either players' future with the Rays.

EDIT: Zaun was signed by the Brewers on Dec. 4 as reported by Yahoo! Sports, so the Rays will receive a compensatory second-round draft pick in 2010.

Dec. 3, 2009: Released RP Ramon A. Ramirez.

Ramirez was signed from the Reds' organization on Nov. 9 (see the initial report here ) and was released into free agency less than a month later. The move came in order to open up a spot on the 40-man roster, but for who yet is still unknown. The big rumor was that the spot was being saved for Gregg Zaun, but when he signed with the Brewers on Dec. 4, that fell through.

That's it for this week. Next report comes on the tail end of the Winter Meetings, so expect some fun stuff to be revealed then. Until then, however, be good to each other, and enjoy whatever sports scandal peaks your interest the most.

77 days until pitchers and catchers report. Don't panic.

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Which MLB Teams Have The Best And Worst Farm Systems?

Adam Bernacchio — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 13:24:22 -0500

It’s that time of year again.

It’s the time of year when Baseball America reveals which teams have the best farm systems and the worst. Baseball America also does an update of their rankings around the spring time.

If there is one good thing (amongst many) about the end of the Steroid Era in Major League Baseball it’s that there has been a re-emphasis by teams on the development of young players and improving their minor league system.

Teams have gone from trading young players like hot cakes in the 90’s to holding on to them for dear life in the late-2000’s. With the economy in a rut and free agent spending down, teams are holding on to draft picks and their own talent more than ever.

Back in the 90’s, GM’s for the most part didn’t care about giving up a first-round pick in order to sign a Type A free agent. Now, that is not the case.

Here are the teams that Baseball America has ranked as having the done best job of developing and holding on to their prospects and the worst job of developing and holding on to their prospects.

Five Best Farm Systems

1. Rangers: Neftali Feliz has a special arm and could still be an impact starting pitcher, but if he’s not, he has already shown the ability to be a shutdown reliever. The Rangers’ pitching depth remains impressive, as lefty Martin Perez earned top prospect honors in the low Class A South Atlantic League in his first full season.

Texas’ top signed draft pick, right-hander Tanner Scheppers, showed premium stuff in the Arizona Fall League, and the system has power lefties in Kasey Kiker and Robbie Ross. Texas lacks depth in terms of hitters, but switch-hitting first baseman Justin Smoak isn’t far away from being able to help a lineup that needs it.

Davis leads the Rays farm system

2. Rays: Talk about top-heavy. Every system would love to have two big league-ready right-handers like Wade Davis and Jeremy Hellickson, who both have stuff, command and success at the upper levels. And neither of them is even the Rays’ top prospect — that honor goes to five-tool center fielder Desmond Jennings, whose only issue is durability.

In between Triple-A and low Class A, the Rays are a bit thin, but they have a bevy of power arms at the lower levels, led by left-hander Matt Moore.

3. Giants: San Francisco has two elite talents in catcher Buster Posey and left-hander Madison Bumgarner, both of whom should contribute to the major league club in 2010.

The Giants also have depth, despite the uncertain status of slugger Angel Villalona, who was stripped of his U.S. visa after an off-season murder charge in his native Dominican Republic. San Francisco has shortstop options, some solid bats (such as outfielder Thomas Neal) and solid depth, but it’s really about the stars.

4. Phillies: Philadelphia had the depth to trade for Cliff Lee and still have a top-flight farm system. Outfielder Michael Taylor has hit .333 over the last two seasons, rocketing to Triple-A, and fellow outfielder Dominic Brown has better tools, though he’s still a bit raw.

Righty Kyle Drabek, son of the former Cy Young Award winner Doug Drabek, has three above-average pitches to go with excellent athletic ability. Beyond their Big Three — all of whom have performed at Double-A or above — the Phillies are bursting with young power arms, toolsy Latin American infielders and athletic outfielders, such as Anthony Gose.

5. Indians: Cleveland has traded many of the key players from its 2007 playoff team. That’s cold comfort to Tribe fans, but many of the prospects acquired in those trades now give the Indians one of the game’s top farm systems.

The organization’s top arms, right-hander Jason Knapp and left-hander Nick Hagadone, both were trade pickups, with Knapp coming from the Phillies in the Cliff Lee deal and Hagadone from Boston as the key piece in the Victor Martinez trade.

Catcher Carlos Santana, acquired from the Dodgers for Casey Blake, is a switch-hitting offensive force who was the MVP of the Eastern League in 2009, and 2008 first-round pick Lonnie Chisenhall reached Double-A in his first full pro season.

Five Best Worst Systems

26. Nationals: They have the best prospect in the game in No. 1 draft pick Stephen Strasburg, plus solid talents in catcher Derek Norris, right-hander Drew Storen and shortstop Danny Espinosa. Beyond that, though, the Nats have very little help, especially at the upper levels, which is a pity considering the state of the big-league roster.

27. Diamondbacks: Years of conservative drafts have left Arizona painfully short on athletes, especially up the middle of the diamond. Plus top prospect Jarrod Parker, a right-hander drafted third overall in 2007, will miss next season after having Tommy John surgery.

28. Blue Jays: Toronto would be No. 30 if not for last summer’s Scott Rolen trade, which brought needed pitching talent from the Reds. Toronto’s top hitters, such as infielders Justin Jackson and Kevin Ahrens and catcher J.P. Arencibia, had poor seasons in 2009, and the Jays also failed to sign three of their first four draft picks this year.

29. Cardinals: Ranked eighth last spring, St. Louis traded away both star power and depth in 2009 in acquiring Matt Holliday and Mark DeRosa. What’s left is a bunch of role players and 2009 first-rounder Shelby Miller, a promising right-hander but a prep pitcher who has yet to play a full season.

30. Astros: Houston has added solid talent in its last two first-rounders, catcher Jason Castro (2008) and Jiovanni Mier (2009), as well as ‘08 supplemental pick Jordan Lyles, a promising right-hander. But the Astros’ system is full of holes — it hasn’t produced a team with a winning record since 2007.

If you look at the five worst farm systems, the one that really sticks out to me is the Nationals. When you are bad on the field and perhaps have just as bad farm system–then you have a major problem.

What this tells me is that it is imperative that Strasburg, Storen, and perhaps Bryce Harper pan out. If not, this team could start spinning their wheels like the Pittsburgh Pirates and Kansas City Royals.

Not surprised to see the Astros on this list. The Astros are one of the few teams in baseball, who still operate like it is 1998–bloated contracts at the major league level and very little emphasis on player development.

All team rankings and prospect information is courtesy of Baseball America , via SI.com .

You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @ theghostofmlg

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2010 National League All-Free Agent Team

Jeremiah Graves — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 12:59:06 -0500

This year 171 players filed for free agency. Of the 171 total free agents, 99 are from the National League and 72 are from the American League. Unlike last year’s class of free agents, only a select few in this crop figure to land blockbuster deals. In fact, an increasing number of teams are choosing to improve via trade or by promoting young talent from within the farm system. As such, many of these veterans can expect to sign short-term and/or incentive-laden deals for 2010 and potentially beyond. I’ve taken a look at all of the free agents left on the market and split them up into two 25-man rosters, one for the National League and one for the American League. League affiliation was determined by whichever team a player finished out the 2009 season. In an effort to keep things as realistic as possible, I’ve ensured that each team has a backup catcher, infielder, and outfielder. Additionally, both the NL and AL rosters have been given a 12-man pitching rotation. These teams certainly don’t reflect an All-Star mentality, but rather they give a good indication of how weak this year’s free agent class can be considered. It should be noted that some deserving players were left off of the roster due to position-eligibility concerns. As such, you’ll note some sketchy inclusions and unfortunate exclusions. Without any further ado, let’s take a look at the NL All-Free Agent Team. All stats are provided by Baseball-Reference.com and all salary information is provided by Cot’s Contracts.

Begin Slideshow

Top 13 Sporting Double-Entendres Of All Time

Willie Gannon — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 12:37:50 -0500

1. Ted Walsh, Horse Racing Commentator: "This is really a lovely horse. I once rode her mother."

2. New Zealand Rugby Commentator: "Andrew Mehrtens loves it when Daryl Gibson comes inside of him."

3. Pat Glenn, weightlifting commentator: "And this is Gregoriava from Bulgaria. I saw her snatch this morning and it was amazing!"

4. Harry Carpenter, at the Oxford-Cambridge boat race 1977: "Ah, isn't that nice. The wife of the Cambridge President is kissing the Cox of the Oxford crew."

5. US PGA Commentator: "One of the reasons Arnie ( Arnold Palmer) is playing so well is that, before each tee shot, his wife takes out his balls and kisses them. Oh my god!! What have I just said?"

6. Carenza Lewis, about finding food in the Middle Ages on Time Team Live : "You'd eat beaver if you could get it."

7. A female news anchor who, the day after it was supposed to have snowed and didn't, turned to the weatherman and asked, "So Bob, where's that eight inches you promised me last night?" Not only did he have to leave the set, but half the crew did too, because they were laughing so hard!

8. Steve Ryder, covering the US Masters: "Ballesteros felt much better today after a 69 yesterday."

9. Clair Frisby, talking about a jumbo hot dog on Look North : "There's nothing like a big hot sausage inside you on a cold night like this."

10. Mike Hallett, discussing missed snooker shots on Sky Sports : "Stephen Hendry jumps on Steve Davis's misses every chance he gets."

11. Michael Buerk, on watching Philippa Forrester cuddle up to a male astronomer for warmth during BBC1's UK eclipse coverage: "They seem cold out there. They're rubbing each other and he's only come in his shorts."

12. Ken Brown, commentating on golfer Nick Faldo and his caddie Fanny Sunneson lining-up shots at the Scottish Open: "Some weeks Nick likes to use Fanny; other weeks he prefers to do it by himself."

13. Brian Johnson's classic. "the batsman's Holding, the bowler's Willie..."

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Detroit Tigers Let Placido Polanco Go, But It Makes Good Business Sense

Greg Eno — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 11:52:36 -0500

Four-plus years ago, Placido Polanco got run out of Philadelphia—they do that a lot in that town—because the Phanatics wanted to see Chase Utley, and pronto, play second base. So quick to rid themselves of Polanco were the Phillies that they accepted a soon-to-be felon from the Tigers, pitcher Ugie Urbina, in a straight up heist.

It wasn't quite Lou Brock-for-Ernie Broglio but it wasn't Rocky Colavito-for-Harvey Kuenn, either. At least the Phillies had Utley as their ace in the hole.

Polanco is back in Philly, again nudged out of a job by a youngster who plays second base.

This time it's Scott Sizemore who has forced Polanco out, as the Tigers made their decision known loud and clear when they didn't offer Polanco salary arbitration by this week's deadline: We want Scott!

Scott's cheaper, you see. By far.

Polanco is back in Philly, and that's odd, because the only thing worse than playing in Philadelphia is playing there TWICE.

But it won't be at second base; the Phillies want Polanco to play third base. And they're going to pay him about $18 million over the next three years to do so. That was too rich for the Tigers' thinning blood.

It was a wise move for the Tigers. Polanco is 34 and Sizemore is going to be 25 next month and he'll work for peanuts compared to what the Tigers would have had to cough up for Poly's services.

Sizemore is rehabbing a snapped ankle but all indications are that he'll be good to go by the time spring training rolls around.

Does Polanco have the arm strength needed to be an everyday third sacker? The Phillies have 18 million George Washingtons that say yes, apparently.

Polanco was a good soldier in Detroit. Shortly after arriving in the summer of 2005, he signed a contract extension to remain a Tiger through the 2009 season. He wasn't a bandwagon guy. The Tigers weren't very good when he made the decision to sign on long-term. He put his faith—and the prime of his career—into the belief that the Tigers were on the road to contention. Or was it the Road to Redemption?

It worked. Polanco rolled a lucky seven. The Tigers made it to the World Series the next year (he was the MVP of the ALCS, too) and were strong contenders in 2007 until Gary Sheffield hurt his shoulder in July and the team went sideways.

Get ready for some errors at second base, folks. That's not a knock on Sizemore, it's a knock at a lack of perfection. While Polanco patrolled second in Detroit, E-4 was something you called out while playing "Battleship."

The Tigers need offense, and so letting Polanco and his career .300-plus batting average go away might seem self-defeating. But the Tigers need a more powerful, more intimidating brand of offense than what Poly provided. They need a thumper, not a pattycake hitter.

I wish Polanco well—and lotsa luck. They didn't even care much for Mike Schmidt at times at third base in Philadelphia. But to each his own.

This is one of those times when we're reminded harshly that it's business, it's not personal. In fact, often times it's damn impersonal. Placido Polanco is a Phillie not because the Tigers didn't want him—they just couldn't justify paying for him. It's a fine line, but a distinct one all the same.

There's always the memories. Those are free, and priceless at the same time. Remember Polanco, ski cap and all, jumping around wildly as he rounded the bases after Magglio Ordonez's pennant-clinching home run? He looked like Billy Barty trying to reach some cookies on the kitchen counter. But it was an indelible moment.

Polanco might go down as one of the most reliable players to ever jitterbug around a baseball diamond wearing the Old English D. He rolled out of bed every winter, put in his time at spring training, then hit his .300 and played flawless second base and struck out once a week, just about.

But it's not $6 million-per-year stuff anymore, at ages 35 thru 37. Again, business.

Poly's a small guy, but he wore big shoes. Now we'll see if this kid Sizemore is up to filling them.

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Kicking Tires: Would Signing Jermaine Dye Really Be a Giant Improvement?

Danny Penza — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 11:49:01 -0500

The arbitration deadline has come and gone and now is the time for the rumors to start to fly even more than they were before.

For some teams, adding a veteran pitcher to the rotation or bullpen is priority No. 1. For others, adding some offense to go with a quality pitching staff will take up most of the front office's time.

The San Francisco Giants have only one thing to upgrade—it's terrible offense. General manager Brian Sabean will be searching the market, minus Jason Bay and Matt Holliday, for the "second- tier" bats his is trying to find.

One of the names the Giants are rumored to be interested in, is outfielder and Bay Area native Jermaine Dye, who is now available via free agency after the Chicago White Sox declined to offer him arbitration. Dye, who will be 36 by the time the 2010 season starts, was also linked to the Giants around the trade deadline in July and again in August, before the Giants decided not to add him due to his big salary.

But would Dye actually improve the Giants? That's pretty debatable.

There is no doubting he fits the billing of what Sabean goes after,a veteran with playoff experience, and a good clubhouse presence. This isn't the first time that a player like Dye has been linked to and/or signed by the Giants and as long as Sabean is at the helm, it won't be the last.

Dye's numbers weren't terrible last season—27 HR, 81 RBI, .340 OBP in 141 games with the White Sox. The 27 bombs ranked him sixth among outfielders in the American League and the 81 RBI had him just outside the top 10.

Even though his offensive production is on a downward trend, he is still a decent threat at the plate. However, other than those three numbers, the résumé Dye is rolling out there this winter, isn't all that impressive.

For one, Dye has the age factor working against him. He does profile as the prototypical Sabean signing because of what year is printed on the birth certificate, doesn’t mean that’s a good thing. Playing in the National League, he won't have the chance to just DH when he wants a day off. If he is brought in, he will be asked to play a lot and be a major part in the Giants' lineup.

Then there are the numbers other than homers and RBIs that are just not very good at all.

At the plate, his second half slide was one of monumental proportions. In 24 at-bats, Dye hit a depressing .179 and recorded an even more depressing .293 slugging percentage with just seven homers and 26 RBI.

Throw out the Gold Glove he won with the Kansas City Royals, because Dye's defense has become increasingly awful as his career goes on. In fact, it has become absolutely dreadful the past couple of seasons.

While he did record nine assists this past season, Dye ranked dead last amongst AL outfielders with a UZR figure of -20.0. With that kind of number, it's like he is sitting out there on a lawn chair and letting the center fielder do all the work.

To make matters worse, fangraphs.com put together a list of the five-worst defensive players over the past three seasons. There is no way he could play his usual right field at AT&T Park if he signed with the Giants. He doesn't have the range or the speed at his age cover the Bermuda Triangle in right-center.

Does that sound like something that will benefit a team that has to rely on pitching and defense to make up for its lackluster hitting?

Any kind of value that Dye has with the bat is cancelled out and then some, with how incredibly poor his defense is. His WAR (wins above replacement) in 2009 was -0.3; the past three seasons it is all of 0.7.

Dye is not even worth one win over the course of three years? No thanks.

That’s why he should stay in the American League as a designated hitter where he can utilize his one true valuable asset left. No outfield adventures, no experiments at first base in the NL, none of that.

Do your due diligence on this one, Sabean. The negatives outnumber the positives.

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Braves Love Those Old Relievers, Sign Saito

Adam Bernacchio — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 10:04:21 -0500

A day after signing 38-year-old Billy Wagner to close games in 2010, the Atlanta Braves signed another veteran reliever from the Boston Red Sox.

Yesterday, the Braves signed 39-year-old Takashi Saito to a one-year, $3.2 million contract. Saito can earn an additional $2.3 million in incentives in 2010.

Saito is expected to be the primary set-up man to Wagner in 2010.

Saito has been pretty solid since coming to the United States in 2006. In four years–two with the Los Angeles Dodgers and one with the Red Sox, he has never had an ERA above 2.49.

Saito will set up Wagner in 2010

Is Saito the dominant pitcher now that he was four years ago? No, he is not. This is evident by the fact that his K/9 has gone down the last two years (11.5 to 8.4) and his BB/9 have gone up the last two years (3.1 to 4.0).

Having watching Saito all last year with the Red Sox, I would say he is “wild within the strikezone.” He gets the job done, but I think Braves fans are going to get impatient with how many three ball oounts Saito gets himself into.

It seemed like every batter Saito faced last year had the count 3-1 or 3-2.

Unlike Wagner, Saito will not cost the Braves any compensation as the Red Sox did not offer arbitration to Saito. The Saito signing also probably means there is zero chance of Mike Gonzalez or Rafael Soriano returning to the Braves in 2010.

You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @ theghostofmlg.

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Seattle Mariners Leading the Chone Figgins Derby

Hayato Uwai — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 09:41:37 -0500

According to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports, the Seattle Mariners are "clear front-runners" to sign free agent third baseman Chone Figgins . The Mariners did offer Adrian Beltre , their starting third baseman for last several years, arbitration but he will likely sign elsewhere as he is only a Type-B free agent and his Gold Glove defence should be enough for him to get a contract he wants.

Figgins, who will turn 32 in January, posted line of .298 BA/.395 OBP/.394 SLG/.789 OPS in 2009, along with five homers and 54 RBI. He also swapped 42 bases this year.

Figgins is a guy who can draw walks, a type of player the Mariners don't have. He can also run, as 42 stolen bases shows that. He and Ichiro Suzuki can team up to create strong one-two punch in the lineup.

Figgins is a versatile player so even if Beltre accepts arbitration, Figgins can move over to second or outfield. In that case, Jose Lopez will likely move to second or Michael Saunders becoming their fourth outfielder. Figgins posted 16.7 UZR this year at third, so he is better at third defensively.

In any case, adding a player like Figgins is a great move for the Mariners. They need a guy who can consistently get on base and can play solid defence at third to fill a hole made by Beltre's departure. Do you think adding Figgins will help the Mariners get closer to winning AL West?

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Marco Scutaro, Boston Red Sox Agree to Two-Year Contract: So, What's Next?

Jeffrey Brown — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 09:19:54 -0500

The Red Sox shortstop saga appears to be at an end. According to reports, the club and free agent shortstop Marco Scutaro have reached agreement on a two-year contract, pending a physical.

Alas, the Sox no longer have to contemplate shifting Dustin Pedroia to shortstop!

Truth be told, I thought the whole "Pedroia to shortstop" thing may have been floated as posturing by the Red Sox in the hope Toronto would think twice about offering Scutaro arbitration.

The thinking being that if the Blue Jays feared the market for their former shortstop might not be as hot without the Red Sox, then Scutaro might have accepted arbitration and the Jays could have been stuck with two shortstops, something Toronto ownership definitely would not have wanted. Thus, the possibility they might not have offered arbitration in the first place—a la Los Angeles and Orlando Hudson.

A couple of the impediments to bringing Scutaro on board fell by the wayside earlier this week. First, the Atlanta Braves signed Type-A free agent Billy Wagner, providing the Red Sox with two draft picks (likely including a first-rounder that will essentially replace the one they will forfeit for signing Scutaro, also a Type-A free agent).

Second, Scutaro worked out for Red Sox executive Allard Baird in Miami earlier this week. According to reports, the workout went well—alleviating some concerns the Red Sox had over the plantar fasciitis issue that afflicted Scutaro in the final two weeks of the 2009 season.

After the workout, the Red Sox requested and reviewed Scutaro's medical records, and now the contract is dependent upon the Sox being satisfied with his physical condition after a team-administered physical.

A couple of weeks ago, I conjectured it is very possible that the Sox might let both Jason Bay and Billy Wagner sign elsewhere through free agency—thereby recouping four draft picks (which would be as high as two firsts, plus the two compensatory round picks).

I also suggested that would free the club up to sign a group of free agents (such as John Lackey, Matt Holliday, and Marco Scutaro) without leaving the organization without draft picks in the first two rounds of the 2010 entry draft.

This is an organization trying to strike a delicate balance between building its on-field ballclub through the draft and trades and supplementing those efforts with free agents; thus, my speculation is based on my belief that Sox GM Theo Epstein would find it unacceptable to be without first- and second-round picks.

Bay and Wagner could resolve that quandary.

But even if the team decides to re-sign Bay, it could still sign Lackey and a reliever to replace Wagner (like, let's say, Rafael Soriano)—both Type-A free agents—and still improve its draft position for 2010.

The Sox would lose only their first- and second-round picks for signing the three free agents, while having acquired a first- and supplemental-round pick for Wagner. Their first-round pick would be the 20th overall selection (a higher pick than the one they have forfeited since the Braves had a worse record) and the supplemental-round pick would be higher than the second-round pick they might yet forfeit.

A real win-win for the club...an improved roster and an improved position in the draft. That is one of the reasons Epstein is running the ballclub.

Well, the first shoe dropped when Wagner signed, and the second shoe has now fallen with the acquisition of Scutaro.

On deck: Lackey?

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2010 Fantasy Baseball Projection: B.J. Upton

Eric Stashin — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 08:04:56 -0500

It was just two seasons ago that B.J. Upton posted a 24 HR, 22 SB season sending fantasy owners into a frenzy, thinking the next great outfielder had emerged.

Since then, while the speed has proven to be real (86 SB the past two seasons), the power is nowhere to be found with just 20 home runs total. Is there any hope that he can get reasonably close to his 2007 campaign?

First, let’s take a look at the numbers he did post in 2009:

560 At Bats
.241 Batting Average (135 Hits)
11 Home Runs
55 RBI
79 Runs
42 Stolen Bases
.313 On Base Percentage
.373 Slugging Percentage
.312 Batting Average on Balls in Play

We’ll get to the power in a minute, but it is far from the only question surrounding Upton.

The average is terrible, but it comes courtesy of a realistic BABIP. The problem is the strikeouts, whiffing 27.1 percent last season. That’s not a new problem, however, just look at his marks the two previous seasons:

2007 - 32.5 percent
2008 - 25.2 percent

While he did hit .300 in 2007, it came thanks to a BABIP of .399, something that is nearly impossible to replicate. While he has the speed to support a mark that is above average, that is just too much to ask for from anyone (you can almost say the same thing about his 2008 mark of .351).

It is possible to see him hit to a better average in 2010, but given the strikeout problems he’s consistently shown the past few seasons it is hard to imagine. A best-case scenario seems to put him at usable, but that’s about it.

Now, onto the biggest question, his power potential. His 2007 power surge came courtesy of a 37.6 percent flyball rate and 19.8 percent HR/FB. The latter is a number that he hasn’t even come close to the last two seasons:

2008 - 7.4 percent
2009 - 6.8 percent

While he exploded for seven home runs in the 2008 playoffs, again giving people hope, you have to look at what he’s done the past two seasons and realize that repeating 24 HR may be a long shot. He did get his flyball percentage back up last season, at 40.3 percent (it fell to 30.6 percent in 2008), so there is hope that he can consistently reach double-digits.

Of course, there is a double-edged sword there, as with his speed you would almost rather him drive the ball into the ground and try to beat them out. When the ball is in the air, the likelihood of it falling in diminishes.

He has more power than Ichiro Suzuki, but look at his career 23.9 percent flyball rate as a marker. If Upton were consistently posting marks like that, maybe I would believe in him maintaining an above average BABIP.

With all that said, let’s now take a look at my preliminary projection for 2010:

.262 (144-550), 14 HR, 50 RBI, 85 R, 40 SB, .331 BABIP, .351 OBP, .416 SLG

Basically, I’m expecting him to drop the flyball rate slightly, which will allow him to use his speed more and provide an average that is much more palatable.

I’m also expecting his power to improve slightly, at age 25 (he’ll turn 26 in August), which is where the extra home runs come from.

While I’d love to place him with more runs scored, he’s posted totals of 86, 85 and 79 the past three seasons. It’s tough to project him for much more, especially given his OBP.

What are your thoughts on Upton? Do you see him outperforming these projections? Under performing them?

Make sure to check out some more of our early 2010 projections, including:

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