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Cheech Tremendous

The 2008 MLB Offseason Thread

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I'll continue to laugh histerically when Youk and Teixeira put up similar numbers over those next 4 years. Especially with the fack that Youk can also play 3B very well. Great deal. Right side of the infield is set for the next 5 years now.

 

Now I just need Varitek to swallow his pride and realize Boras raped him, and come back for another year or two.

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Now see if they can get Bay Lester to do the same and I'll call this offseason a major success.

Fixed.

I'm okay with letting Lester go year to year for right now. Last year was his first full season at the major league level. Let him do it a couple of more times and then start talking extension. No reason to go full out for a young pitcher given their propensity to get injured or flame out early. Same reason that I am glad the front office is showing restraint with Papelbon. The Sox have the money to minimize the risk and go year to year with these guys if need be.

 

I'll continue to laugh histerically when Youk and Teixeira put up similar numbers over those next 4 years. Especially with the fack that Youk can also play 3B very well. Great deal. Right side of the infield is set for the next 5 years now.

 

Now I just need Varitek to swallow his pride and realize Boras raped him, and come back for another year or two.

 

I love Youks, but he's just not on the same level with Teixeira. Teixeira's a switch hitter who is younger, gets on base more, hits for more power and plays superior defense. Last year was the first time that Youks put up an OPS+ even close to Teixeira's career average. That season looks like something of a fluke, given the crazy slugging percentage out of line with what he's done the rest of his career. Youkilis is a fabulous player who deserves his big deal, but there is no need to stand him up against an obviously superior player.

 

As for Tek, he's probably only worth $4 or $5 million, depending on what you think his intangibles are worth. Bard's already signed for $1.6 million and he projects as the better player going forward. Given that Tek turned down $10 million earlier this offseason, I don't think he'd take such a low amount and I don't think the Sox would offer something so low for fear of insulting him. He might come back because no one else wants him, but it's time to start the realization that we've seen the last of him as an everyday catcher in this league. That skillset isn't there anymore.

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My apologies...I should have said IF not WHEN. Last season Tex and Youk were pretty comparable stat wise and their defense isn't that much different. Tex has switch hitting, Youk has positional versatility. Tex will most likely outperform Youkilis but it sure as hell won't be as far apart as their contracts indicate.

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I'm actually pretty satisfied with Boston's offseason so far. The talent they had last year, even with the injuries, got them to the edge of another World Series, so it wasn't like they needed to completely revamp like New York and thus toss out giant contracts like candy. They're doing what I think they should: lock up the young nucleus of the team while picking their spots with low risk contracts to fill whatever holes they do have. If Ortiz and/or Lowell don't bounce back next season, they still have the prospects to swing some sort of deal at the deadline.

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I love the fact that they added John Smoltz, Brad Penny, Takashi Saito, Rocco Baldelli, Mark Kotsay and Josh Bard to an already-solid core and the whole thing cost them less than one year of AJ Burnett. In all likelihood those guys offer very little next year, but if even one of them succeeds it'll make the whole investment worthwhile.

 

I don't see the fit with a guy like Adam Dunn, but if the price tag is as low as some people are saying, I'm glad they're checking in and doing their due diligence. He won't sign to be a back-up, but maybe Theo sees some sort of time share that gets all the corner guys 500 or so ABs. If nothing else, it gives them insight as to what they might offer Jason Bay to lock him up for the next few seasons.

 

That contract is a steal for Boston. How many recent MVP candidates sign deals like that?

1. Dustin Pedroia

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Nobody is debating that, although their OF is still questionable. Catcher and 2B aren't locks either. Who knows if Posada can play behind the plate everyday anymore? Their bullpen is still suspect outside of Rivera. AJ Burnett has yet to pitch good or be healthy in non-contract years...

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Same reason that I am glad the front office is showing restraint with Papelbon. The Sox have the money to minimize the risk and go year to year with these guys if need be.

 

Plus, with how the free agency period has unfolded so far, it seems like teams are being cautious with their spending and are reticent to dole out the big money (the Yankees are the only exception) so guys like Papelbon who are waiting for a big score probably wouldn't find as many offers as he would have 2 or 3 years ago. That's why I think Manny hasn't been signed; his demands that would have been acceptable in 2004 aren't in 2009.

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Ecsktein signs with Padres

 

Our long national nightmare is over. At least he's going to play second base instead of continuing to pretend that he can actually throw the ball to first from short.

 

Other news: Michael Young has rescinded his trade demand from the Rangers and has agreed to move to third base next season. This will allow Elvis Andrus to take over the starting job and shift Blalock to full time DH. That should be an upgrade for the team, at least defensively.

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i hate the sox but i like what they're doing. they're either going to do really really really well, or have a significant drop off.

 

OR be average like they probably will be ...

 

2009 AL East standings imo

 

01 Yanks

02 Rays

03 Sox

04 O's

05 Jays

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i hate the sox but i like what they're doing. they're either going to do really really really well, or have a significant drop off.

 

OR be average like they probably will be ...

 

2009 AL East standings imo

 

01 Yanks

02 Rays

03 Sox

04 O's

05 Jays

The team that won 95 games last year with a hurt Ortiz, Beckett and Lowell, who returned their entire squad and added two former aces and a top-tier closer to the mix, are going to be average this year? What, exactly, is this based on? You may be correct that they end up in third place, but even under that scenario I'd wager that they'd be the third best team in the American League. Average would denote a team in the middle of the pack. Save for the disastrous '06 campaign (when they still won 86 games) the Sox haven't sniffed average since Theo took over.

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I've got it shaped up like this, after much deliberation.

 

1. Red Sox

2. Yankees

3. Rays

4. Blue Jays

5. Orioles

 

The Red Sox have an advantage because they have the most depth. And want some fun Sox fans? Next time your fanbase questions Jason Bay, point out that he has a better career OPS+ than Jim Rice. The Yankees added some big name talent but if guys get hurt, there's a cliff before they hit their second line talent. The Rays finished ninth in runs scored. Even with their talent acquisitions, I think they regress.

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The Rays may regress, but they got Burrell, Longoria will play a full season and guys like BJ Upton should be healthy, so I don't think their offensive production will take that big a hit. I don't think it'll improve to better than middle of the pack, but it won't drop. Their pitching is still there and David Price should have a bigger role, possibly as the new closer. It'll be another dogfight in the East this year.

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The Rays, Red Sox and Yankees all got better in the offseason. What does that mean going foward? I don't know, but let's take a look:

 

Rays - The Rays were the best team in the division last year and made two critical offseason moves that will go a long way to improving the team. First, they traded Edwin Jackson for Matt Joyce. This is important for a couple reasons. Joyce is a great defender and a nice power bat to platoon in right. Second, it opens a spot in the rotation for David Price. Top to bottom, they have the best rotation in the division (I think).

 

Then they added Burrell, who is not only their best hitter, but upgrades their DH spot, which was one of the few weaknesses they had last year. Even with some regression, I have them as an elite team heading into the season.

 

Sox - Looking at Pythagorean numbers, they were the best team in the division in the last year and all things considered, it was something of a down year. Lester, Pedroia and Youks will regress, but that should be offset by improvements from Beckett, Ortiz and Lowell. The pitching, from the starters to the bullpen, is absolutely deadly (on paper). However, they have a lot of health question marks going into the season. They still look like a 95-win team, which may or may not be good enough.

 

Yankees - Money aside, they made all the right moves in the offseason. But let us not forget that this team was at least 10 wins worse the Sox and Rays last year. That's a lot of ground to make up. Sabathia, Burnett, Teixeira and Swisher come in to replace Mussina, Pettitte, Giambi and Abreu. Now, the former group is definitely superior to the latter going forward. However, those four were major contributors last year. My back of the envelope math doesn't show the new group contributing much more in '09. They are going to have pick up the slack somewhere else, which they can do given the money and resources. However, they still might be the weakest of the three teams.

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Cheech, I'm not sure why you think that Lester and Pedroia, two young budding stars, will regress and also think that Ortiz and Lowell, two fragile aging stars, will improve. I think it's probably a wash and you're right in your assessments anyway, but the way you worded that was...odd.

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Cheech, I'm not sure why you think that Lester and Pedroia, two young budding stars, will regress and also think that Ortiz and Lowell, two fragile aging stars, will improve. I think it's probably a wash and you're right in your assessments anyway, but the way you worded that was...odd.

It's just regression to the mean. Jon Lester is emerging, but he threw 210 innings last season (not including playoffs). That's roughly 60 innings more than he has ever pitched at any level. Although he is past the injury nexus that sort of innings jump has red flags all over it. I'd expect some sort of injury this season, minor or even major, that will either cause him to miss some time or negatively impact his on-the-field performance.

 

Pedroia will be good, but not MVP-level good. That .331 BABIP might be tough to match again, even though he might have the skillset to pull it off. It's not so much that I think anything happens to his overall quality of play, it just seems unrealistic to expect something approaching his magnificent 2008 campaign.

 

Lowell and Ortiz are older, but probably have some production left in them. Just by showing up in better health they'll outproduce their 2008 numbers. They aren't getting better per se, but merely being active contributors to the squad should offset whatever minor setbacks Youk and Pedroia suffer.

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I don't think the Yankees really added too-too much if you look at what they lost

 

Mussina had a great season so adding Sabathia negates the loss of Mussina to retirement

Burnett will probably give them along the lines of what they got out of Pettite

Texiera and Swisher together are probably going to equal what they got out of Giambi and Abreu offensively

 

The outfield defense is still going to be very suspect and as long as they have pipe dreams of keeping Joba in the rotation that bridge to Mo is still weak...and although I will admit he may be the greatest closer ever even Mo is gonna hit the wall sooner rather than later given his age.

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MLB Network showed Nine Innings from Ground Zero. Watching it knowing the Yankees lose just makes it so hilarious.

 

dumb ass

 

How does that make me a dumbass? Why do you think I bought the 2001 World Series DVD?

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I agree with a lot of what Failed Bridge said, except for the bullpen. Bullpen arms are one thing the Yankees' farm system has cranked out and now they have Edwar Ramirez, David Robertson, Phil Coke, Jose Veras, Jonathan Albaladejo and Brian Bruney providing depth there.

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They've replaced what they had with someone better. While Mussina had a great year, Sabathia gets them deeper into games. AJ Burnett will do much better than Pettitte. Pettitte had a terrible second half. Teixeira is an upgrade over Giambi both offensively and defensively. Swisher is an upgrade over Abreu defensively and can approximate what he did offensively in the 5th, 6th, or 7th hole. I'd say they improved some.

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MLB Network showed Nine Innings from Ground Zero. Watching it knowing the Yankees lose just makes it so hilarious.

 

dumb ass

 

How does that make me a dumbass? Why do you think I bought the 2001 World Series DVD?

 

because you're a fag ?

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They've replaced what they had with someone better. While Mussina had a great year, Sabathia gets them deeper into games. AJ Burnett will do much better than Pettitte. Pettitte had a terrible second half. Teixeira is an upgrade over Giambi both offensively and defensively. Swisher is an upgrade over Abreu defensively and can approximate what he did offensively in the 5th, 6th, or 7th hole. I'd say they improved some.

 

Swisher is an upgrade on defense? Really? Even with his paralysis inducing fear of the right field wall, I think you're underrating Abreu's glovework.

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Guest Smues
MLB Network showed Nine Innings from Ground Zero. Watching it knowing the Yankees lose just makes it so hilarious.

 

dumb ass

 

How does that make me a dumbass? Why do you think I bought the 2001 World Series DVD?

 

because you're a fag ?

 

Knock it off.

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