Baseball Musings

January 06, 2009

Pavano Gets a Job
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The Cleveland Indians sign Carl Pavano to a one-year contract:

Financial terms were not disclosed. Sources told ESPN.com that the deal was worth $1.5 million plus incentives. Pavano can earn an additional $5.3 million based on starts and innings pitched.
"Carl was very impressed with everything when he visited Cleveland,'' agent Tom O'Connell said. "He's excited to be there and he feels like this is a tremendous opportunity.''

Pavano, 32, is looking to rehabilitate his career after suffering numerous injuries in four seasons with the Yankees. He posted a 9-8 record in 26 starts after signing a four-year, $39.95 million contract with New York in December 2004.

I'm surprised the Indians were willing to guarantee that much money given Carl's recent history. It's Pavano's rehabilitation deal. If he pitches well, he can cash in on the free agent market next season. If not, at least he gave it a try.

If Pavano pitches great and Sabathia ends up injured for most of the season, I suspect a lot of Yankees fans will be sore from banging their heads against a wall. :-)

Hat tip, Lone Star Ball.

Making His Mark
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Kat O'Brien attended Mark Teixeira's news conference and liked what she saw:

Mark's extremely well-spoken. I knew that from Texas, but seeing it at a big press conference is reassuring that he can continue that in a larger media market. He's not going to embarrass anybody. Brought much of his family, including wife Leigh, parents John and Margie, and sister Liz and her husband (who live in Hoboken). I think it's going to be a good fit. Mark wanted to be here, is an excellent offensive player and a superb defensive player, a positive force in the clubhouse and will turn 29 in April. As for how he comes across to the media and through the media to the fans, I'd say it's some combination of Derek Jeter, David Wright and Andy Pettitte. Not controversial, available to talk, rational and articulate thoughts, and very clean-cut.

Rays Writings
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Tampa Bay Rays Fan is a new blog about the Rays. Stop by and say hi.

The Right Touch
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We've Got Heart continues their series on Women in Baseball with a profile of Tatiana Tchamouroff, massage therapist for the Washington Nationals. The players love her work:

Tatiana arrived to meet us a few minutes after the game started, just after her baseball duties were completed for the evening. Her twelve hour days start at 8:00 am in her Bethesda office, where she sees clients until noon before heading to the park. The players fight for spots on her schedule, especially after long road trips. They will bargain with each other for those open slots; others will just schedule a morning appointment at Tatiana's Bethesda practice. "It's pretty funny the arguments that take place outside the door with guys trying to get on the list. I mean, I do everything I can to see everybody." They are fighting to see her because she's one of the best.
She was widely credited for relieving Dmitri Young's debilitating back pain in the early part of the '08 season. She was an integral part of Cal Ripken Jr.'s rehab team, and the trusted personal massage therapist to Brady Anderson. Despite having dozens of professional athlete clients, it wasn't until 2008 that Tatiana had her first real opportunity to work for a professional team, something she's been dreaming about for a long time.

She's led a very interesting life in addition to her work with athletes.

Supplemental Suspension
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Sergio Mitre and J.C. Romero each were handed 50-day suspensions for a positive drug test. Mitre is upset:

Romero earned two wins in Philadelphia's World Series victory over Tampa Bay last season. He has called the penalty unfair, ESPN.com reported Monday night. He contends the supplement he took during the season was legal because he bought it over the counter at a nutrition store in the United States. An arbitrator decided against Romero in November.
Mitre is with the New York Yankees' Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Triple A team.
The arbitrator ruled Romero was guilty of negligence. The penalty will cost the left-hander $1.25 million in salary, ESPN.com said.

"I still cannot see where I did something wrong,'' Romero told the Web site. "There is nothing that should take away from the rings of my teammates. I didn't cheat. I tried to follow the rules.''

I wonder if other players took this supplement? If so, why is he the only one testing positive. It was my understanding that players knew OTC supplements are risky.

Scioscia Extended
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Mike Scioscia received a long term contract extension from the Angels. He'll be under contract through 2014. No word if there is a no-squeeze clause in the document. :-)

This is a good move by the Angels. I like teams that reward success, and Mike certainly helped turn LAnaheim into perennial contenders. He gets the most out of his pitchers, and "put the ball in play" philosophy on offense works for this group of players.

January 05, 2009

Enough Range?
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Nico at Athletics Nation wonders if Oakland signs Giambi if they'll use a shift of infielders to make up for Jason's lack of range. Chase Utley appeared to shade toward first base to help out Ryan Howard this year, so it just might work.

HOF Predictions
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Chris Jaffe predicts Rickey Henderson and Jim Rice make the Hall of Fame.

Faster Guillen
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South Side Sox looks at how and why Ozzie Guillen developed a fast hook for his starting pitchers in 2008.

Pohlad Passes
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Carl Pohlad died today, Monday:

When Pohlad paid Calvin Griffith $38 million for the Twins in 1984, he was widely credited for saving baseball in Minnesota. With the purchase, he inherited a promising group of young players including Gary Gaetti, Kent Hrbek and future Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett.
"I live and die by every pitch," Pohlad once told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. "I want so badly for them to win. ... If it isn't competitive and you don't have a team with character, it won't be any fun."

Minnesota won World Series championships in 1987 and 1991, triumphing in tense seven-game showdowns against the St. Louis Cardinals and the Atlanta Braves. Fans filled the Metrodome, waving Homer Hankies, but the ballpark, built inexpensively to open in 1982, quickly became shunned by many for its stuffy, artificial atmosphere.

Revenue streams were also limited, which hurt the Twins' ability to keep up with bigger-spending teams in bigger media markets.

Pohlad never went out of his way to help the team with his own money, however. Injections of cash could have helped keep some stars in town. Having paid $38 million for the team, Forbes valued the Twins at $328 million last year. Pohlad could have used some of that equity to keep Santana around, for example, rather than just the yearly revenue the Twins produced.

Still, Carl does get credit for hiring good baseball people who brought two World Championships to the Twin Cities and have kept the team highly competitive in this decade.

My thoughts go out to his family and friends.

Very Verducci
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Beyond the Boxscore examines a very good year for the Verducci effect and looks at which pitchers may experience the decline in 2009. Tim Lincecum and Cole Hamels are the biggest names on the list.

If Lincecum comes through 2009 unscatched, I wonder if youngsters will start imitating his mechanics? If he can pitch that much without injury, it's work a go.

Cubs Get a Gamer
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There are reports that Milton Bradley is close to a three-year, $30 million deal with the Cubs. Bradley, in a short season in 2008 was a legitimate MVP candidate, posting a .436 OBA and a .563 slugging percentage. For his career, he's not quite as good a hitter as Pat Burrell, but he can still play the outfield. Since Jim Edmonds was unlikely to repeat his 2008 batting stats, the Cubs now have a very solid outfield with Soriano, Bradley and Fukudome for frankly a very good price. It looks like teams are starting to grab the bargains.

Hat tip to River Ave. Blues, who makes the case the Yankees were right not to offer arbitration to Abreu, because if he accepted he would have been overpaid.

Going Down
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Thinks keep getting worse for Andruw Jones as he's asked to leave winter ball. Hat tip, Sabernomics, who thinks Andruw may have something left.

Pat the Bat Sashays to Rays
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Fox reports Pat Burrell agreed to a two-year contract with the Tampa Bay Rays:

The Rays, filling their need for a power hitter, are close to signing free-agent Pat Burrell to a two-year, $16 million contract, according to major-league sources.
Burrell, 32, will serve as the team's designated hitter. The Rays, nearing their payroll limit, could use some combination of Ben Zobrist, Gabe Gross and Fernando Perez in right field.

It's a great signing for the Rays. Burrell is taking a pay cut here (his former deal was six years, $50 million), yet his OPS+ was consistently in the 120s for the last four years. He brings another great on-base average to the Rays, who keep moving away from the hacker model they used for so many years. Pat's big draw back in Philly was his defense, and that won't be a problem at designated hitter. I'm very surprised they got him for so little money, if indeed that number is correct. That's not good news for Abreu, Dunn and Manny Ramirez.

Hat tip, BallHype.

Arbitration Time
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Players with three years of service can file for arbitration starting today. The Phillies have quite a few who are likely to get big raises this season:

Players can file for arbitration starting today, and seven Phillies are eligible to make more in 2009 through this process (Eric Bruntlett and Clay Condrey have already agreed to extensions). The heavy seven are Ryan Howard, Cole Hamels, Shane Victorino, Jayson Werth, Ryan Madson, Greg Dobbs, Joe Blanton and Chad Durbin. And each of the seven can write his case on why he deserves the money he seeks.

Luckily, the Phillies are now a successful team, putting plenty of fans in the ballpark. Now's the time to control their costs by buying out arbitration and a year of free agency as much as they can.

The Free Agent Team
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Tyler Kepner puts together a pretty good team from the remaining free agents:

The number of prominent unsigned free agents is staggering. You could make an impressive team from the list: Jason Giambi (1B), Orlando Hudson (2B), Orlando Cabrera (SS), Joe Crede (3B), Manny Ramírez (LF), Ken Griffey Jr. (CF), Bobby Abreu (RF), Jason Varitek (C), with names like Garret Anderson, Rocco Baldelli, Pat Burrell and Adam Dunn left over. And the free-agent rotation would be at least six strong: Derek Lowe, Oliver Perez, Jon Garland, Andy Pettitte, Braden Looper and Randy Wolf, with Juan Cruz and Brandon Lyon in the bullpen. This could be the busiest January in years as frustrated agents deal with the economic downturn.

I'm not sure that's a playoff team, but it would finish over .500. The infield defense would be okay, but lots of balls would drop in the outfield.

Representing MLB
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ShysterBall comments on the law firm used by Major League Baseball:

That aside, this reads like a sales brochure for Foley. Or for any other large firm, really. My experience working for such places tells me, however, that whenever lawyers talk to you about how they'll "think proactively" for you and serve as "facilitators" it really means that they'll continue billing you at a healthy clip when there aren't any deals on the table and there isn't much pending litigation. Personally speaking? I'd rather hire smart salaried people in-house to, in Braza's words, "think about the next thing I have coming down the road" and have my expensive, outside, hourly lawyers on stand-by for bigger problems.
It's always a buyer's market for legal services as long as you at least try to approach it as such. The days where you can just hire the biggest firm in town and delegate all of your thinking to them like Major League Baseball seems to have done with Foley is a thing of the past.

Update: He also catches Selig using a Yogi Berra quote that doesn't appear to have come from Yogi.

Update: It appears they found the quote!

Test
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Testing phone.

Posted by David Pinto at 12:28 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0) | The Bill James Gold Mine 2008| Buy Roto Authority Projections

January 04, 2009

Breaking up the Perfect Game
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The Evil Jon Weisman ruins his daughter's near perfect Chutes and Ladders game. At least she kicked his butt in Candyland. :-)

Seattle Tango
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Tom Tango will be consulting for the Mariners this year. Excellent news for Seattle fans. Congratulations to Tom!

Financing the Draft
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Tom Krasovic cites evidence that Jeff Moorad will be more likely to spend money on drafted players to bring young talent to the Padres than the current ownership.

Kremlinology
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Tim Wakefield seems to have disappeared.

Posted by David Pinto at 08:35 AM | Pitchers |