With word coming down yesterday that the Braves and Tim Hudson have come to terms on a contract extension, the Braves officially have a surplus of starting pitching. In addition to Hudson, the Braves have Jair Jurrjens, Tommy Hanson, Derek Lowe, Kenshin Kawakami, and Javier Vazquez. Six starters for five rotation spots.
As I watched Cliff Lee dominate the Yankees last night, two things came to my mind:
According to Larry Stone, the Mariners have some serious interest in the Cuban fireballer:"The Mariners have stepped up their pursuit of free agent Cuban left-hander Aroldis Chapman and are asking to meet with him and his agent, Edwin Mejia,, in the coming week, according to a source.No surprise there. The Mariners have to be looking for a starting pitching this offseason and Chapman might be the best long term investment on the market. But here comes the real important question: can the Mariners compete for the Yankees and Red Sox for Chapman's services?
There are no details yet on a date or location of a potential meeting by Chapman with Seattle officials. Chapman is being pursued by numerous teams, the Yankees and Red Sox most fervently, according to reports. The Yankees hosted him for Game 6 of the American League Championship Series, while Chapman is scheduled to throw a bullpen session today at Fenway Park."
If there are any Cubs fans out there dreaming about a the Cubs making a big splash this offseason, dream on:Except for one thing. Anyone expecting a dramatic shift in philosophy will be in for a huge letdown. The Cubs might be getting a new owner, but they figure to keep doing business the same old way. At least for the next year or two. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it could be a blind-side blow to frustrated Cubs fans craving instant change.According to Cot's Baseball Contracts, the Cubs already have $120 million committed in player salaries before arbitration. The Cubs payroll is sure to increase once arbitration raises are given out to Ryan Theriot, Carlos Marmol, Sean Marshall, and others.
In fact, this might be the most dormant offseason for the Cubs during Jim Hendry's eight winters as general manager. The message you can expect Ricketts to deliver Friday will be simple: There is no magic formula or giant check that will instantly turn the Cubs into champions. He won't start throwing money around to right 101 years, worth of wrongs.
It's enough of a shock to leave Ronnie Woo Woo speechless. Ricketts has a sound baseball philosophy, but that won't soothe the masses. If you want a glimpse at how the Ricketts era will begin, study the final two years of the Tribune Company's tenure under president Crane Kenney, who remarkably retains his title even without the security blanket he enjoyed in The Tower.
When team executives meet in Arizona next month to map the future, Hendry can expect a payroll in the $143 million range—a tick above what he had last season. With so many contracts ballooning in 2010, there won't be any room for a big deal. And don't expect Ricketts to cave in at the last minute to get that big name."
In 2009, the Padres' payroll ranked 29th in all of baseball with only the frugal Marlins behind them. However, there seemed to be hope on the horizon for a increased payroll when Jeff Moorad became the principal owner of the ballclub:"Next season will now have to be re-evaluated given the Peavy deal," Moorad said. "I'm ultimately comfortable with a payroll in the $70-80 million [range], but it's likely that it will take us a couple years to get back to that level.A $70-$80 million dollar payroll seemed realistic enough. Right now, it's virtually impossible to compete with a payroll of less than $60-$65 million and even then the odds are not in your favor. But adding $30 million or so to the payroll over time seemed to be a logical way for the Padres to potentially keep some of their young talent long term. Namely, Adrian Gonzalez. The slugging first baseman will be a free agent after the 2011 season and has put up remarkable offensive numbers despite playing half his games in PETCO Park and having limited offensive talent surrounding him.
"The good news is we now have an opportunity to reconstruct the payroll in a careful, strategic way that allows for a continued focus and emphasis on scouting and player development."
In addition, nobody knows how much it's costing new owner Jeff Moorad to complete his buyout of John Moores. "They're going to have a $40 million payroll for the foreseeable future," said recently fired Padres GM Kevin Towers, "and there's just no way they can devote half of that to one player. It's just a matter of when they decide to trade (Gonzalez)."I don't care how much the Padres love Gonzalez because there is no way they could commit at least $15 million to Gonzalez with a $40 million dollar payroll (38%).
As new Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos begins his first offseason with the Blue Jays as GM, there are plenty of questions surfacing about the direction of the team.
As the Dodgers enter free agency, it's apparent that they have a glaring need for a top flight starting pitcher. However, it looks as though GM Ned Colletti is setting the bar low for himself:The Dodgers lacked an ace on their pitching staff, with youngsters Clayton Kershaw and All-Star Chad Billingsley showing fleeting stretches of wanting to claim that title.That statement does have some level of truth to it. On the free agent market, the only true "ace" out there is John Lackey, but he is going to require a handsome long term contract and a hefty annual salary.
"Clayton Kershaw has not been lobbying for it, but just the way he's pitched, he's certainly the favorite," Torre said. "Billingsley, even though he had a rough second half, he certainly showed us the personality and the ability to be a No. 1-type guy."
Veteran Randy Wolf proved to be the most dependable and durable starter, although the left-hander is a free agent.
Colletti said the Dodgers are considering adding one or two more starters and perhaps a couple of relievers to the bullpen, which he expects to remain mostly intact.
"You'd like to find an ace, but you got one hanging around?" he said. "It's not like you have a choice of five or six (free agents) that you can pick from."
After John Lackey, there is no other top flight starter available on the free agent market. Randy Wolf is good, but he is not an ace. Joel Pineiro had a solid 2009, but no one knows if he can repeat that. No one knows exactly how Aroldis Chapman will fare in the majors. Erik Bedard and Justin Duchscherer are very good pitchers when healthy, but the problem has been keeping them healthy."Assuming Sheets, a four-time National League All-Star, is healthy, he could be highly-coveted player on what appears to be a thin free-agent pitching market. Sheets nearly signed with the Rangers last winter before concerns about his elbow scuttled the deal, and is now open to offers from all 30 teams including the Brewers, despite his somewhat complicated exit from Milwaukee.I have no doubt that Sheets will be an attractive commodity on the free agent market. Will he get a one year deal loaded with incentives? And if he can prove he's healthy, then is it out of the realm of possibility to think that Sheets could get a multi year contract?
Sheets, who debuted with the Brewers in 2001 and by 2008 was the player with the longest tenure with the club, worked much of the second half of the 2008 season with elbow pain and only revealed the torn flexor tendon in October, when he was left off Milwaukee's postseason roster.
At the time, the medical prognosis was that with rest and exercise and rehab Sheets would recover. The team was so comfortable with that diagnosis that it extended a Dec. 2 offer of arbitration to Sheets, who was free agent-eligible for the first time in his career.
Had Sheets accepted that offer, he would have been considered a signed player for 2009 at a salary to be determined, almost certainly higher than the $11 million he earned in 2008 when he finished 13-9 with a 3.09 ERA in 31 starts and started the All-Star Game for the National League."
The weak crop of free agent catchers might become slightly more interesting:The $8.5 club option ($1M buyout) must be exercised or declined on catcher Ramon Hernandez. That doesn't have to be decided until soon after the World Series. My take: the Reds won't pick up the option but will try to re-negotiate for a lower-priced deal.As I see it, there are two sides to this story.
Should the Royals trade one of their best pieces to acquire more pieces? You decide:"Aside from a barstool, there may be no more emotional position in baseball than closer. This is certainly true for Jonathan Papelbon and K-Rod, but more, it's true for the people watching.Jeez, this a tough one. There's so much to like about Soria if you're a Royals fan. Soria is one of the best closers in baseball. Soria is only 25 years old. Soria is signed through 2014 to a very team friendly deal.
So long as it doesn't get watered down from blowouts, the best moment at Kauffman Stadium is when the video boards set fire and Slash starts playing "Welcome to the Jungle" and Joakim Soria comes out from the bullpen to throw fastballs at the knees and 67-mph curveballs through bats.
Beyond his success -- Soria is, what, one of the four best closers in baseball? -- he is the shining example of what the Royals' current scouting department is capable of. They got him in the Rule 5 draft, for $50,000, which is the equivalent of you getting a two-week Hawaiian vacation for 50 cents.
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There's something that's been discussed in certain circles of Royals fans, and this offseason it should be out in the open.
Soria is among the Royals' very best trading chips, and they should look long and hard about using it."
FIRST INVESTIGATION: MACHU PICCHU, PERUThe ancient City of Machu Picchu is Peru's most recognizable tourist attraction and one of the most familiar symbols of the Inca Empire.
This creature, the Thunderbird, is massive, dark brown in color, enormous beak, sharp claws, and a wing span of nearly 30 feet. The journey begins north to the frigid weather of Anchorage, Alaska. While waiting for their connecting flight, some locals were telling their stories of the Thunderbird. They tell them that the temperature has been 20 degrees to below 35 at night. They then boarded their flight from Anchorage to Dillingham, an isolated town that can not be reached by road. It was whiteout conditions when they arrived there. Josh talk to a local pilot, who told them that what he saw was no ordinary bird, it was much different. In order for them to get a sweep of the area, they took an airplane up to check it out. They chartered a 1961 classic plane, and scouted out the area where they spotted the tiny town of Manokotak. This was the town where most of the sightings have been reported. Back on the ground in Dillingham, they geared up for the long trek to Manokotak. Josh wants to look for eyewitness to help them target the best investigation sight. Using a fleet of snowmobiles and local guides, they head off in the below freezing weather to Manokotak, a.k.a. Thunderbird country. On the way, Bicha flips his snowmobile but is ok. The yuk’ip natives fed the crew some local cuisine, and moose fat. Then they hooked up with Timmy Evon, an Alaskan pilot who spotted the Thunderbird very close to where they were. He directed them to the exact location where he saw the creature. They found the area and set up base camp.
As the last out was recorded in last night's game and the Phillies sprinted out on the field to celebrate. I couldn't help but think how impressive it was that the Phillies made it back to the World Series. No one should be surprised by the Phillies' success because just last year, the Phillies won the World Series.
Should the Angels now look to retain John Lackey? Maybe:The consensus of most baseball people I've talked to is that Game 5 of the ALCS could be John Lackey's last as an Angel, barring an unlikely three-win comeback against the Yankees, of course.I'm torn on this one. The Angels need a true ace in the worst way if they are going to compete with the Red Sox and Yankees next year. Scott Kazmir and Ervin Santana have ace like stuff, but neither guy is an ace. Joe Saunders and Jered Weaver are nice pitchers to have on a staff, but neither of them is an ace. Outside of Lackey, Weaver is probably the closest thing the Angels have right now to an ace.
As the most appealing pitcher in the free-agent market, Lackey will be heavily pursued by a number of teams, and although the Angels would like to keep him, the feeling is they won't pay the expected $75 million to $100 million over five years that his agent is likely to ask.
After what has happened in the postseason, however, you wonder if Arte Moreno should reconsider his stance.
The acquisition of Scott Kazmir was supposed to give Moreno the leverage to let Lackey go. But considering the disappointing way Kazmir has pitched in his two playoff appearances, you can't help but question if that's still the case.
One writer described the Angels' staff heading into the postseason as four No. 2 starters. I don't agree with that. When he's sound, Lackey, who was brilliant in Game 1 of he ALDS, is a No. 1 starter. It's just that he's not quite at the same elite level as the CC Sabathias, Cliff Lees and Roy Halladays.
