Links for Saturday…
- SI.com's Jon Heyman reports (via Twitter) that the Orioles and Vladimir Guerrero haven't talked in two weeks. Team president Andy MacPhail shot down a report indicating that the two sides were close to a deal earlier today.
- White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf told Bruce Levine of ESPN Chicago that it was a tough decision to add payroll this offseason. "Last year we weren't as good as we thought we could be," said Reinsdorf. "Our attendance was down … I just decided two days before the Adam Dunn signing, 'Let's go for it.' If we spend the money, the attendance will pick up."
- Steve Foster of Inside the Rockies notes that the Rockies now have four of their five starting pitchers under contract for 2012 following Jason Hammel's two-year pact, so he looks at possible candidates for that fifth spot.
- The Cincinnati Enquirer lists the ten most lopsided trades in Reds' history with a little twist: it's the trades that did not work out for Cincy.
- SI.com's Melissa Segura tweets that the Astros have signed Jose Carlos Thompson for approximately $250K. The second baseman hit .440/.484/.729 at Western Oklahoma State, and is said to be a close friend of Aroldis Chapman's. I'm not sure if that last part has any tangible benefit though.
- Steve Dilbeck of The Los Angeles Times estimates that the Dodgers are on the hook for almost $94.5MM in payroll next season, plus another $16.3MM in deferred payments.
- Alex Speier of WEEI.com explains why the Vernon Wells' trade makes the Carl Crawford signing look even better for the Red Sox.
- Josh Shea of The San Francisco Chronicle says the moves the Athletics' made this offseason make them a serious contender for the AL West crown.
- The AP (via The Boston Herald) provides a comprehensive list of each team's free agent signings this winter. Of course, you could always use our Transaction Tracker for that and a whole lot more.
Not to rain on the party or anything Alex, but the Wells trade makes just about any signing look much much better.
I was thinking the same thing.
Wells contract is the fat girl that skinny ugly girls compare themselves to in order to help their self-esteem.
Nice analogy. Haha!
almost any signing . Wells has talent and he had a good yr last year. The Mets have signed two years ago Oliver Perez . who would you rather have Wells or Perez.
I’d rather be tied to Ollie for one more year than Wells for four.
kinky.
Perez. The only contract I can think of off the top of my head that is even close might be Barry Zito’s.
And one day, A-rod’s.
Al Soriano might be up there also
Im thinking Matt Halliday will be too.
As will Werth. And I’m a fan, too!
Actually, check ARod’s contract when you get a chance. He makes closer to 20m a year in the latter stages. Still a lot, but not as hard to stomach even if his offensive production drops.
Beat me to it.
I’m still waiting for someone (not from the Angels front office) to point out in what way this was a good deal, maybe we’re all missing some angle.
hendry and soriano would argue with that
I think the A’s have made all the right moves and they will win the west. Ranger’s pitching will not hold up.
And this coming from an Angel fan who just wants to hide in a hole after yesterday….
yeah everyone makes such a big deal about losing out on lee..but cliff was about medicore for them during the regular season..the rest of their staff was pretty good..and that offense…dont forget they have the best offense in the west and a very VERY good defense now..i would not crown the A’s just yet,….at least not untill billy beans movies comes out…
Maybe Chapman will only throw 98 against the Astros now.
After Tommy John, he’ll be lucky to hit 98.
actually most pitchers who have had TJ actually come back throwing harder…and im not pulling that out of my ass…Chris Carpenter is just one case where he came back throwing harder…
John Smoltz as well, but he was made a closer so that probably had a little to do with it too.
lirano can be added to that list, johan
Liriano has lost about 3 or 4 mph on his fastball(97-93) and Johan never had the surgery.
This is from The Nats Blog article, “Will Tommy Help Steven Strasburg?” October 2010.
“Of the 19 pitchers in the study, only six experienced an increase in velocity after Tommy John, with Jake Westbrook (2.6 MPH) and Carl Pavano (2.25 MPH) seeing the greatest increases (Billy Wagner, often cited as proof of the faster-after-Tommy-John argument, only experienced a 0.77 MPH increase). Of these pitchers there was a median gain of 1.24 MPH on their fastball. The rest of the pitchers suffered a loss of velocity, with a median decrease of 0.45 MPH (B.J. Ryan suffered the most-a 2.6 MPH loss).”
I could be wrong, but Shaun Marcum had a minimal increase in velocity too. At least, it appeared that way.
…..
I’ve decided to look at this trade as positively as possible. Rivera/Napoli for Wells contract aside is not a bad deal. Bottom line, we the fans are not paying Wells, and as long as Moreno signed off on it it’s his problem.
You can ignore the contract all you want. The problem is the Angels are not the Yankees. They won’t easily patch their mistakes with extra FA acquisitions.
Its true how the Yankees can afford to overpay and still have enough money to go out and sign other FA to make up for that mistake(Burnett). Anyway, the ONLY bright side that I see with the Angels adding Wells is that opt out clause after the 2011 season. If Wells decides to opt out(hopefully the Angels convince him) and re-sign for 3yrs/15-20M(30M MAX if that is what it takes to get him to opt out) then it wouldnt be that bad of a deal.
Why would Wells opt out? That would be like if I made $30 per hour, but took $15 just to be nice.
If you think for a second Wells leaves around 15 million on the table you’re crazy.
It’s alot more than that. The option is after 2011.
I was referring to the difference between what he would make the option year had he declined and taken the numbers he suggested.
Ah gothca, you mean over the life of the contract.
Gil Meche
Opting out to play for and get paid by different team and retiring because you can’t stay healthy anymore is quite different.
Arte Moreno still has a net worth of 970 million and a team that continually attracts 3 million through the gates. Our farm system has some nice pieces and we have about 30 million coming off the books after the 2011 season. I don’t think we’ll compete anytime soon, but I really don’t mind this deal as much as others.
actually yes yes you are…every time you go to the games a portion of your ticket goes to the players contracts. same with all the merch you buy, parking, food sales etc
Angel tickets are among the lowest in baseball. I understand we pay player contracts, but I am not paying millions to attend games either.
This is true. Organizations often designate a pre-determined percentage of revenue to player salaries. For example the Twins president Dave St. Peter has made it known that an average of 49-51% of revenue will be spent on payroll. That would project the Twins 2011 payroll at $125. Meaning they have $11M left to spent on arbitration bumps and extensions.
I’ve been saying it all of the off season. The A’s have been making good smart moves. It’s going to be a good race, and I believe the A’s will prevail.
It amazes me how many people think the A’s are not contenders.
Lack of star power. A lot of people who take on a cursory at the potential playoff race tend to think mostly about a team’s stars. Meanwhile it tends to be forgotten that Oakland’s pitching staff was the best in the AL last year and it was comprised of mostly improving rookies who would have gotten less playing time on most contending teams.
A’s made a lot of great quiet additions to their offense this year, but no one considers guys like DeJesus and Willingham stars despite the fact they’re pretty good players. I’d be shocked if they didn’t challenge for the AL West.
It amazes me as well. They have great pitching and a even better bullpen than last year with Devine, outman coming back plus what they already acquired this offseason. Of course its not in the bag yet, but I would say teams should take them more seriously in 2011. They’re solid!
The trade was better for the J’s. It would have been perfect if Toronto would have given the Angels a reliever or an infield prospect.
does all the details(even the little one’s) of a trade or signing HAVE to be announced to the public? For instance think about this; If the Angels got Vernon Wells + $10 million and AA asked Tony Reagins, “hey Tony you know I’m the new GM in Toronto and you’d really make me look good here if we could tell the reporters and public that you being the Angels will take on all of the rest of Wells’s contract. I have a hunch the Angels are getting money from Toronto and that it’s a possibility this conversation went down.
1) I’m pretty sure they don’t have to tell us the whole story
2) To me,the money in this deal is the biggest part b/c I say if the Angels did get Vernon Wells + $10 mil. then it was a good deal, but if they surely are taking on all of the contract for the next four years then it was a bad deal.
I believe if more than $1M exchanges hands the commissioner’s office has to sign off on the deal. In other words there would have been plenty of documents and even if they weren’t public, someone would have leaked the details.
Sorry, Angels stepped into something warm and brown on this one.
Minnesota Twins will win the American League Central Division 2011.
why is that exactly? they lost half their pen, have an entirely new middle infield and morneau coming back from a bad back injury and a very very serious neck injury…while the whitesox, fixed their pen, added one of if not the best most consistent power threats(im pretty sure no one has hit more home runs since coming into the league since dunn came up) and alexi was in the top 3 of SS both with the bat and glove last season..no more teahan starting at 3rd gordon was lights out after the break and the position changed hurt him a lot and yeah konerko might not do what he did last season again but he will likely be the #5 hitter and his career avgs at the #5 is amazing…the sox got a ton better and the tigers got a lot better a healthy mags and adding vmart they have legit protection in the line up for miggy..and their rotation is very good and very strong the twins may not have gotten worse but they basically stood pat…as long as the sox dont stumble out the gates the sox have a better chance of winnin the central..i think the twins will be in it but not a single twins fan i have talked to likes casilla in the starting rotation…cuddyer is over rated and many twins fans agree he should have been moved after 09…and you are all hoping it does not take time for the new SS asian dude to adjust but you have to figre it will take him time to adjust if he ever does, the asian game vs the american is very very different
Tell us how you really feel …
just learn the “new asian dude’s” name already
….
While I don’t agree with Brian’s blanket troll statement, I don’t really agree with yours either. At least you know you’re biased, so I give you credit for admitting it.
Some corrections:
• Morneau’s fracture in his back ended the 2009 season for him, but that didn’t stop him from going on an MVP caliber tear for the 1st half of last season, until he got the concussion in TOR. Concussions are a huge question mark, granted.
• I don’t agree that the Sox fixed their pen. The lost Putz and Jenks and replaced them with a vastly overpaid Crainwreck. I’ve never been a fan. Nor will you be.
• The Dunn acquisition was a winner, but it is literally THE ONLY good thing the Sox have done this offseason. No way the “Sox got a ton better.”
This is not an easy race to call, other than the top three teams will be the Twins, Sox, and Tigers. The order that they finish will be up to them. I wouldn’t be surprised to see any of these teams finish 1st or 3rd. I think the top two teams will only be separated by a game or two.
lol only in your dreams
agreed sox fan biased a side ..this is for sure at worst a 3 team race with the sox tigers and twins(sox fan biased, in that order too)
I feel a little bad for Mr. Reinsdorf when the White Sox are chasing the Twins with another season of trying to catch the moving target.
why seriously why are the twins the favs? yes they won it last year but only because the sox had a horrible start to the season and stumbled at the wrong time. yes the twins won it last year so technically the division is their to lose I just feel the tigers and sox got a ton better while the twins basically stood pat, maybe even lost a step with their new middle infield they are putting a ton of eggs into one basket with the new guy from over seas
Notice how defiant the Twins fans are in their commentary? That is because they know that had a crap offseason and they know their days are numbered.
Why will the Twins be the class of division again? They pitch, field, situational hit better than any central foe. Also, they have great depth.
BTW, buying FA you pay for what they did, not what they are gonna do. The Twins make relivers, the Sox buy them. What turns out better?
it gets you 2-19 in the playoffs …congrats
You are kidding yourself if you think the Twins are in great position going into this season
the twins didnt buy relievers last season? caps and feuentes ring a bell? trading your top prospect..yes he was a catcher so blocked and blocked by justin at 1st but they could have tried to move him to right to replace cuddyer but nope they traded him for a reliever…
and yes when you buy a FA you do put money into what you think they might do…just like what your twins did with pavano they HOPE that he will repeat his 2010…conventional wisdom states with him getting older and his HUGE injury history he wont but your giving him the money in hopes of what he will do
im assuming JA your a twins fan…can you answer this…why is it every single time i post about the twins and mention how no one like cassilla at all let alone thinks its a good idea from him to start, and no twins fine like cuddyer after 08, and i mention how you have to expect adjustment time for the SS from over season, and mention how no one knows how morneau will come back after a potentiallu career ending injury……..no twins fan ever fights these facts they simply bring something else up like the bullpen…which might i ad the sox bullpen got a ton better this off season with the additions and with sale in there as the potnetial closer who your demi god mauer even said he was scared to bat against.
I can answer that question about Casilla with an old colloquial expression, “Time to poop or get off the pot.”This is Casilla’s last chance as a starter for the MN Twins. If he fails, he burns his last bridge within the organization, the Twins will move in another direction.It’s not like the Twins haven’t won divisions before with mediocre middle infielders though. Casilla brings some speed to the team, which they were seriously lacking last season.
I think the Twins are the ones that need to worry. What improvements have they made this winter? Nishioka, who is an unknown of sort? They’ve lost Hudson, Rauch and Fuentes. Meanwhile, the Sox added Adam Dunn and the Tigers Vic Martinez, Penny and Benoit.
I would say the Twins have more to worry about that you think.
The problem is, u can never count out twins no matter how bad they are. I’m still scared
I agree, of the top 3 teams in the ALC, the Twins have the most question marks, although it’s close, I’m not too high on the Tigers either. A 3rd place finish for the Twins wouldn’t surprise me, nor would another 1st place finish. The Twins have an uncanny ability to correct issues during the season, and make the most of questionable situations.
Let alone that link to transactions, on the first team, the Orioles, leaves out Jeremy Accardo. Didn’t read any further, assuming there would be more errors. I’ll stick to the tracker on here.
So Jerry Reinsdorf only splurged this year to get the attendence up? Most teams “go for it” because they want to win championships!!!
no not at all he said if we spend people will come to the games…he wants to win it all…as stated by him after 05 by saying something along the lines of this one world series means more to him then the 6 with the bulls and the best basketball player ever….getting people in the seats is a perk from fielding this team
The White Sox aren’t fortunate to sell out their stadium during the season like the Red Sox or Yankees, regardless of the economy. Attendance has been slipping each year and that isn’t a good trend. If you want to win a championship, your team needs the support of its fans. There were far too many Twins fans for instance at the White Sox games down the pennant stretch and guess who’s stadium was packed full during this time? Minnesota’s. Fan support isn’t the only factor in winning a championship, but it is important and I pity Tampa Bay fans especially for this reason.
As far as Jerry goes, he’s showing initiative in my opinion. If he’s willing to spend millions more dollars than he has to to win a championship, then the fans should be willing to spend an additional twenty dollars each to buy a ticket to a game. The Sox are “All In” this year. How is that not going for a championship?
I know the “old school” baseball mentality is still prominent, but did Reinsdorf REALLY think the White Sox were better than the Twins when you had Kotsay as your primary DH?
I don’t think he said that Kotsay was better. But in his defense, Kotsay hit a ton of line drives right at players and ran into terrible luck. Sox made an attempt by upgrading to Manny Ramirez, but he decided to play with injury and was a colossal waste of money apart from his few inside-out bloop singles and the walks in RBI situations he provided. Thome had a fantastic year, but he also didn’t play the whole year. If he had, he’d have gone down with his usual back injury by July. Since he waited to play everyday until Morneau went down, his injury didn’t start until September. Don’t expect Thome to put up the same numbers this year. He’s great when he gets rest, and if he’s played properly then he’ll do great. But you can say that about a lot of different players. I’ll root for Thome to reach 600 homers, but I really hope it’s with a different team next year.
As for Kotsay, he’s a great Clubhouse guy, but I don’t regret parting ways with him. Is suppose to bring this full circle back to your comment; no, Reinsdorf didn’t think he was really better than the Twins with Kotsay at DH. But he does think so with Dunn at DH. 🙂
that was not reinsdorf that was ozzie and kenny fighting kenny wanted thome back ozzie wanted a different direction(BAD YES) but then kenny said fine here are the players you get..
im sorry if this is rude but 90% of the twins fans on this site are all sounding like cubs fans recentl…”the central is the twins” when they didnt relaly do much but sign a asian SS who not many teams were bidding for and the bid was less than 10 mill(which says what most teams feel about him) trade away a good SS who was coming back from injury and let a gold glvoe secondbasemen who had a solid year at the plate go so they could play a guy the manager has a man crush on oh and resign an average to above average pitcher who has a huge injury history and an awesome stache.. while two other teams in the division got a lot better both by FA and getting guys back healthy and not worrying about position changes…at least sox fans can admit its at the very worst a 3 team race.
Absolutely. The White Sox had an absolutely horrendous April and May and still made things interesting in the end. The Tigers were a legitimate threat until the All Star break and then suffered a swarm of injuries. The Twins have the mentality to reach the playoffs, but not to succeed within them when they play against non AL Central teams. I don’t see why Twins fans are so cocky when all three teams have shown they can compete for the division in the past many years. If anything, at least the Sox and Tigers have shown they can reach the World Series, even if they are 5-6 years removed.
Some teams raise players internally, some trade them as they reach a point where they either have to go for it or fold. Oakland ball hasn’t proven to be ultimately successful, though not a failure. But it’d be terrible to know that your GM signs big name players just to trade them for value for more prospects. To watch those prospects become big name players just to trade them again for more prospects. My point? The Twins may have depth that the Sox haven’t possessed in a long time, but it’s because they reached the point where they are making their final run at a title. They brought up Beckham, Morel, Sale, and Santos. Should they send them down just to claim depth??
you’ll still be in the bottom five as far as farm systems go
I don’t disagree with that at all because I thought I read somewhere that the Sox are in the bottom two. My only point is that the White Sox could either fold and not contend this year in an effort to save for the future. Reinsdorf could invest his money in his young players instead of Dunn and Konerko, Kenny Williams could have gained some draft picks instead of losing them, and he could have traded other veterans like Jackson, Rios (with cash of course), Pierre, and probably the most valuable come mid-season, Thornton, all for young prospects. In baseball, it’s either you do or die. The White Sox are in a position to now go for it. The price you pay is a depleted farm system. Just look at the Brewers, they depleted theirs recently in their trades with the Jays and Royals. For what? A chance to win. Same concept in my opinion.
JW.. you’re such a whiner.. “…but the Sox got better because…”.. waaahhh waahh Wahhhhhhhhh!!!…
The Twins are the class of the division until someone doesn’t get off to a horrible April / May start and proves it on the field or whatever the next southsider silliloquoy is about why the CWSox sucked again… The Twins lost Morneau for most of the season.. He’s back noiw, fully recovered, so, that’s like getting a HUGELY better defensive Dunn in the middle of the lineup for the Twins.. The Twins are a solid, fundamentally sound, well coached team.. there is no reason to doubt that the Twins aren’t the force in the AL Central.. The CWSox have some of the WORST OF defense in MLB. Two kids so green behind the ears at 3B vying for a starting spot.. The starting pitching staff is now a collection of soon to be geriatrics (Peavy & his arthritic/cranky pitching arm, Chief is about 100 years old, and Buehrle needs a hoveround to get to and from the mound). And worst of all…they’re are being led by that CLOWN, Ozzie.. It’s no wonder Jerry Reinsdorf spends.. what he has had is a joke… it’s surprising he isn’t drinking more…
Personal attacks just make the world go round, eh?
Morneau comes back, yea, we all know that. But you don’t know that he’ll be completely up to form. Ryan Church, whereas a lesser player, was never the same after his concussion injuries. If you’re going to aim your fire at Peavy not returning properly then I’ll aim my fire at him. The point with Peavy is that no one ever suffered an ijury such as his so it’s hard to compare it to. However, he is already throwing off a mound before Spring Training has even begun and can be back by the end of April baring no significant setbacks. He’s said that he feels more comfortable throwing and that it isn’t tight anymore. All signs point to that he’ll be even better this year. Not that it won’t be easy to top his last season, though. But I can be honest and admit that at least. Hopefully he doesn’t change his mechanics this year as sporadically as he did last year to avoid pain. One small change equals a whole lotta mess.
The outfield isn’t pretty, but so what? Outfielders aren’t as known for their defense nowadays. You put your best outfielder in center and Rios is that man for sure. You put your power hitter in the corner and Quentin is in right for that reason. He can be a whole lot better, but at least he has Rios shading over near him to balance it a bit more. Pierre in left was MUCH better than expected last season. He used his speed effectively and made a lot of really great catches. Enough that Rios can focus near right field and not worry about left as much.
Buehrle is 31 going on 32, is a gold glove inner, and hasn’t gone on the DL. Definitely a liability….
What are you talking about? The article that you added shows lopsided deals that worked OUT for the Reds, not against them
as an angel fan i cant show my face anymore since the wells trade, i think the A’s are gonna win the division this year. rangers wont be the same as last year, sure they got beltre,but they also didnt get vlad back, and they lost lee. A’s have a young pitching staff that will win them games and they have added some power like matsui.