EVIL~! alkeiper

Why the urge to trade A-Rod? He's the best shortstop in baseball. Contrary to popular opinion, he's not ruining the Rangers. If the Rangers trade him, they won't get equal value back, and they'll just end up with another bad contract.

Won't be the Mets. They have three guys already who can catch, and they'll look for an outfielder first. Frankly, there aren't many big market teams in need of a catcher. Yanks have Posada. Red Sox have Varitek. Dodgers have Loduca. Giants have Pierzynski. Only team I see making a big offer is the Orioles, and that's only if they lose out on Vlad. The only people those two are cancers too are their clients, who get big promises and little in return.

'98 was a unique scenario, and I don't think the comparison is apt. I DO think they'll win around 80 games, and people will be surprised at the drop off.

Well, can't really complain as a minor league deal is inconsequential in terms of cash. Palmer's only played 87 games the last three years COMBINED, so I wouldn't count on him for much at this point.

You could really draw a comparison from a strictly economic standpoint between the advent of free agency of baseball, and the extinction of slavery in the South. Both events caused their owners to face a harsh economic reality of paying market value for labor.

The ship on five year contracts sailed away three years ago. No one's going to offer a catcher five years. What amuses me is that Pudge and Boras did the same thing last year, with similar results.

I'd also mention they pissed away money for a bad catcher......again.

I think that's a little ambitious. Besides, then they need a second baseman.

So who DH's for the Yankees now? Fernando Seguignol looks like a good choice. He could always mash in the big leagues, and he hit .341 with 28 home runs for AAA Columbus. Plus he could play first, allowing Giambi to DH.

The Yankees/Expos trade is NOT a problem of economics in baseball. The Yankees gave up a hitter with a .422 OBP, and two other good players. The Expos certainly didn't get screwed in this deal. That said, the Yankees are in serious danger at morgaging their future at this point.

One side-benefit of the trade is that the Twins have freed up $9 million in salary, which they could use on the free agency market.

They were highly competitive for a number of years, and better overall than all but 2 teams (Braves and Yankees) over that period.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/compare.cgi A nifty little tool for comparing players.

Yes, David Nied was the Rockies first pick in the expansion draft. He pitched well for two years before falling off the map.

That was Bill Pulsipher, Jason Isringhausen, and Paul Wilson.

That's an object lesson not to sign high school pitchers, like Todd Van Poppel. As long as Cashman's in charge, they'll avoid that particular vise.

Do I look like a football fan? Interesting fact: The Yankees had the BEST record in baseball for the entire decade of the 80s. They really only truly sucked for a year or two.

As long as that team is the Columbus Clippers.

Join the club. Seriously, the Indians will win the division again within 2-3 years. Mark my words on that one.

Re: The Yankees The model here is the Cleveland Indians. Their dynasty came to an end, and they dismantled and picked up prospects. They've had a couple down years, but they're in a great position in the future, and will likely rule the Central again.

Why should Milton rank below Brett Myers? It really doesn't matter anyway. Randy Wolf would likely kick off the season, and then starter's rankings don't effect anything until the playoffs.

I like this deal as well. Milton looks fairly good, and is a breakout candidate.

Holy CRAP that came out of left field.

The Red Sox non-tendered Jeremy Giambi, making him a free agent. I'd like to see the Phillies pick him up again. After last season, he can be aquired cheaply. He's got potential, terrific plate disipline, and he reminds people of John Kruk. He can cover LF if Burrell doesn't pan out, and he's a good bat to have on the bench.

I'm not gonna go on another tangent again, but I'd like to say there's no reason to call these "one and only" threads. Just call it a general discussion of said sport.