MLB Off-season Thread

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

I don't understand the fascination with Torii Hunter at all. He's got a good glove, but the defensive repuation outweighs the current performance and it's only going to get worse in the next few years. He has a little pop, but is light on OBP and a really average hitter overall. He seems like a 4/$40 type player, but he turned down 5/$75 to stay with Minnesota and wants close to $100 million. Torii Hunter is NOT worth that, even in this crazy upside down free agent world.

[Craig Th 0]

When do the awards get announced?

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

According to Peter Gammons, the Florida Marlins will shop Miguel Cabrera in the offseason. Forget your Alex Rodriguez or Johan Santana, this is the true prize of the offseason.

 

I want the Sox to pursue Cabrera, but I know any package will start with Buchholz and Ellsbury and I still don't think that will be enough with the Yankees, Dodgers and Angels ready and able to offer more.

 

So the question is, what would you give up to acquire Miggy? What sort of extension does he warrant?

[Brett Favre 0]

If the Yankees trade for him, I hope it's to move him to first base.

[Smartly Pretty 0]

Just get him the hell out of the NL East and I'm a happy camper.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

If the Yankees trade for him, I hope it's to move him to first base.

 

I would think any team that trades for him would move him to first or left. There is no reason to continue that adventure at the hot corner.

[Guest]

I would like to have Cabrera, but I can't see us giving up Kershaw and Kemp. That's the only way to make such a deal viable, so...let's stick to the A-Rod plan.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

I would like to have Cabrera, but I can't see us giving up Kershaw and Kemp. That's the only way to make such a deal viable, so...let's stick to the A-Rod plan.

 

In the article, Gammons said that he'd expect the Dodgers to part with Kershaw, Elbert, Meloan and LaRoche to acquire Cabrera.

 

I though Kemp was as good as gone this offseason anyways? Hasn't Coletti said that they'd like to deal him for some veteran help?

[Guest]

If they trade Kemp for veteran help not named Johan Santana, I'm done. That would be the stupidest fucking thing this team has done since the Dreifort extension. Prospects like Kemp don't come around often. I heard about the rumor, but I don't believe it. We have enough veteran help. Then again, we are talking about the Dodgers, here.

 

I'd think about giving those 4 for Cabrera. Kershaw and Elbert in the same deal is hard to swallow, but for Cabrera, I'd do it.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

Maybe things are different now that Joe Torre is in the fold, but I know that Matt Kemp clashed with the manager and the other veterans on the team and that Coletti had decided to use him as a chip to acquire a veteran guy who was a strong clubhouse presence. It almost sounded like it was turning into a Scott Kazmir situation where the talent is obviously there, but the veterans complain so much that the front office starts to get worried.

[Guest]

I always took it as, Kemp has problems because Grady Douchebag is playing all of these veterans that aren't contributing ahead of him. The team caters to the Nomar's and Juan Pierre's of the world way too much.

 

When a guy is playing like Kemp, it's hard to take only playing every other day in stride.

[JaMarcus Russell's #1 Caucasian Fan 0]

I always took it as, Kemp has problems because Grady Douchebag is playing all of these veterans that aren't contributing ahead of him. The team caters to the Nomar's and Juan Pierre's of the world way too much.

 

When a guy is playing like Kemp, it's hard to take only playing every other day in stride.

 

I agree. I always thought that getting rid of Grady Little would keep Matt Kemp a Dodger. I really have to blame the Dogders collaspe this season on Little and the vets like Jeff Kent and Luis Gonzalez. I really want to see Kemp stay a Dogder ( of course the Dodgers have a track record of trading up and coming propects. Pedro Martinez come to mind), but if getting rid of Kemp means that Johan Santana puts on Dogder Blue than I would glady accept that.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

The Fielding Bible announced their awards today. Unlike the Rawlings Gold Gloves, these awards actually honor the best defensive players in the league. They are voted on by heavy hitters like Bill James, Rob Neyer and John Dewan.

 

C- Yadier Molina, STL

1B- Albert Pujols, STL

2B- Aaron Hill, TOR

3B- Pedro Feliz, SF

SS- Troy Tulowitzki, COL

LF- Eric Byrnes, ARI

CF- Andruw Jones, ATL

RF- Alex Rios, TOR

P- Johan Santana, MIN

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

Oh, and Joel Zumaya injured himself moving stuff out of his house during the SD fires (was he moving the Guitar Hero?). Team says he's out until mid-season, but Will Carroll from Baseball Prospectus says that there are no comps for this kind of injury and it could end up being a lot longer.

[Mik 0]

For someone who doesn't live in Florida - I have to ask myself; when is it time to just give up on the Marlins?

 

It's getting there.

[TheDevilAndGodAreRagingInsideMe 0]

Giradi will be wearing #27 as manager of the Yankees.

 

And there's your update for today.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

Giradi will be wearing #27 as manager of the Yankees.

 

And there's your update for today.

 

We all care.

[Guest Pizza Hut's Game Face]

CHICAGO -- Win or lose, in good times or bad, White Sox fans can count on pure entertainment and raw honesty coming from Ken "Hawk" Harrelson in the television broadcast booth.

 

This particular set of skills, including the creation of catchphrases such as "You can put it on the board, Yes!" and "Grab some bench," along with the development of colorful player nicknames like the Big Hurt and One Dog, has made Harrelson an iconic figure in White Sox lore as he gets set to begin his 32nd year in broadcasting. Harrelson's baseball acumen expressed over the airwaves also has earned him a nomination for the 2008 Ford C. Frick Award.

 

Ed Farmer, who just finished his second year as the White Sox radio play-by-play man and his 17th year overall with the White Sox, also is on the ballot.

I was gonna say "I think you just have to show up to work to get on the ballot," but Hawk doesn't even do that.

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

CHICAGO -- Win or lose, in good times or bad, White Sox fans can count on pure entertainment and raw honesty coming from Ken "Hawk" Harrelson in the television broadcast booth.

 

This particular set of skills, including the creation of catchphrases such as "You can put it on the board, Yes!" and "Grab some bench," along with the development of colorful player nicknames like the Big Hurt and One Dog, has made Harrelson an iconic figure in White Sox lore as he gets set to begin his 32nd year in broadcasting. Harrelson's baseball acumen expressed over the airwaves also has earned him a nomination for the 2008 Ford C. Frick Award.

 

Ed Farmer, who just finished his second year as the White Sox radio play-by-play man and his 17th year overall with the White Sox, also is on the ballot.

I was gonna say "I think you just have to show up to work to get on the ballot," but Hawk doesn't even do that.

There are some downright embarassing names on that ballot. Chip Carey, Mike Shannon, Chris Wheeler, Michael Kay, John Sterling?

 

Quality names that get my endorsement: Bill King, Tom Cheek, Jon Miller, Dan Shulman.

[Broward83 0]

Eh don't know if its been mentioned, but apparently its official that the Dodgers have locked up Torre as their manager.

 

Oh, and another year of Ausmus? Fuck.

[Broward83 0]

Oh, and Joel Zumaya injured himself moving stuff out of his house during the SD fires (was he moving the Guitar Hero?). Team says he's out until mid-season, but Will Carroll from Baseball Prospectus says that there are no comps for this kind of injury and it could end up being a lot longer.

 

I'm just glad that Joel could make it thru the fire and the flames...

[CanadianChris 0]

CHICAGO -- Win or lose, in good times or bad, White Sox fans can count on pure entertainment and raw honesty coming from Ken "Hawk" Harrelson in the television broadcast booth.

 

This particular set of skills, including the creation of catchphrases such as "You can put it on the board, Yes!" and "Grab some bench," along with the development of colorful player nicknames like the Big Hurt and One Dog, has made Harrelson an iconic figure in White Sox lore as he gets set to begin his 32nd year in broadcasting. Harrelson's baseball acumen expressed over the airwaves also has earned him a nomination for the 2008 Ford C. Frick Award.

 

Ed Farmer, who just finished his second year as the White Sox radio play-by-play man and his 17th year overall with the White Sox, also is on the ballot.

I was gonna say "I think you just have to show up to work to get on the ballot," but Hawk doesn't even do that.

It's his second straight year, too. Which makes me think he's actually going to win one of these years, at which point the award turns into a nice doorstop or paperweight.

 

The only thing I count on from Hawk is making me immediately change the channel.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

By the way, to expand on the earlier posting of Fielding Bible Awards, he are the Plus/Minus Leaders for the entire league, broken down by position. If you are not familiar with the Plus/Minus system, it is a stat developed by John Dewan and Bill James. A plus is gained for every play that a typical player would not make, a minus for any play they should have made (this is an extremely simplified explanation). Although all defensive metrics have problems, Dewan's is generally considered the best. The results seem to jive with the eyes in most cases.

 

Infielders

 

 

Outfielders

 

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

One thing I noticed from the charts, Florida had to have one of the worst defenses of all time. Cabrera, Hanley and Uggla are three of the worst in the league and Mike Jacobs isn't far behind.

 

Ryan Braun was the worst everyday defender in baseball and he only played 3/4 of the season. Imagine what he'd be like with a full year of results

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

Those leaderboards pass the smell test at least. I believe that information is in the 2008 Bill James Handbook.

 

CanadianChris, check out the actual Ford Frick ballot on mlb.com. Practically EVERY announcer is eligible for nomination by the fans. It doesn't make him close to the award.

[Guest Smues]

Ha, I need to show that chart to my friend who claimed that the Gary Matthews Jr. contract was a deal because of his awesome defense.

[treble 0]

Troy Glaus is a pretty good 3rd baseman for someone who can barely walk.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

Ha, I need to show that chart to my friend who claimed that the Gary Matthews Jr. contract was a deal because of his awesome defense.

 

 

That's the problem with evaluating defense. Most people assume that the flashy catches shown on Sportscenter equate to a good defender. In most cases the opposite is true. A good defender makes the hard play look routine.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

Troy Glaus is a pretty good 3rd baseman for someone who can barely walk.

 

Glaus may not be the most athletic guy out there, but he's a converted shortstop who plays the ball well. He's one of the best at getting to balls outside of his zone and converting them to outs.

[treble 0]

Yeah, I've noticed that. When they first traded for him, everyone was saying he was awful but I never really saw it once I started watching him play everday. I knew he was never going to be a Gold Glover, but he never really seemed to be hurting the team with his defence.