Stray Thoughts

The Angels and Phillies are fighting over free agent Fernando Rodney, with the Phillies reportedly offering Rodney 2 years and $12 million dollars.  That’s too much, at least given Rodney’s actual performance last year.

Rodney recorded 37 saves, good for sixth in the AL, but his 4.40 ERA was the worst out of the sixteen AL pitchers who recorded at least 10 saves in ‘09.  More importantly, perhaps, his ratios weren’t particularly good either.

Rodney, at age 29 in 2010, remains a guy with great stuff and not enough control.  His career ERA is 4.28 and in 33o career innings pitched, he has 170 walks and 314 strikeouts.

Rodney may find his control in 2010, but then again, he may not.  I don’t think it’s worth $12 million over two years to find out.  I will acknowledge, however, that the Angels and Phillies are two teams with the resources to give Rodney this kind of contract.

Matt Capps is apparently deciding whether to accept the Cubs’ offer to be a set-up man or the National’s offer to be their closer.  It will probably come down to which team makes him the bigger offer, but Capps would do well to consider going to Washington if the money is close.

Capps had mostly good ratios last year, but the one thing that contributed a great deal to his ugly 5.80 ERA was the ten homeruns he gave up in only 54.1 innings pitched.  Capps also gave up 12 HRs in 80.2 IP in 2006.

Wrigley is not a kind park to pitchers who give up a lot of long flies.  Capps is only 26 in 2010, and if he can establish himself as a successful closer for the Nationals, he will be a great position to get a big contract when the contract he signs this off-season expires.  Capps could earn his way to a closer role in Chicago, but it’s obviously a lot easier when you are already the prime candidate for the job going into the season.

Finally, I was pleased to hear that Roy Halladay bought a full-page ad in the Toronto Sun to thank Blue Jays’ fans for their support over the years.  Jays fans loved Doc Halladay, and he became a huge and highly compensated star for them.

Halladay can certainly afford to pay for such a token of his esteem, but I still appreciate the fact that he did it.  It’s a class act.