The Cubs acquired Anthony Rizzo from the Padres today, but they weren’t the only team with interest in the first base prospect. The Indians, Blue Jays and Rays also had some interest in Rizzo, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. Here are more notes from Heyman (they all go to Twitter):
- The Rangers would like to lock Mike Napoli, Josh Hamilton, Mike Adams and Colby Lewis to extensions if possible, according to Heyman. Ian Kinsler and Derek Holland are among the Rangers’ other extension candidates.
- Brandon Webb started throwing again in late December and his arm is “strong and loose,” according to his agent. Webb signed with the Rangers last offseason, but didn't pitch at the Major League level and underwent right shoulder surgery in the summer. He hasn't appeared in an MLB game since April of 2009.
- The Orioles have interest in Edwin Jackson, according to Heyman. Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun explained in December that Jackson's upside intrigues the Orioles.
Honestly doubt the Jays had any sort of interest in Rizzo… (only if it was part of a 3 way trade).
Lind is a quality 1B and Encarnacion can play a decent 1B as well. Not to mention David Cooper won the PCL Batting Title last year.
Lind has two years of sub .300 obp, EE was terribly for the first few months, and Cooper’s widely seen as not a major league starting first baseman.
I think AA was probably quite interested in Rizzo.
EE was bad at 3B… he’s definitely not bad at 1B
He was pretty bad defensively at first too…and his bat was bad until he started DHing only. I’d be alright with EE at first in a pinch, but I’d try to avoid it.
its my own opinion but i really don’t see any reason for people to believe their is a correlation between what position your playing at that time and your offensive output. It just seems too farfetched, its not like your gonna try any harder or any less..your always gonna do your best at the plate.
Normally I’d agree, but I think this might be an exception. There was a ton of criticism on him in Toronto for his fielding that I think it might have affected him. My point really was, though, that his bat was terrible for the first twoish months before he picked it up. Seems to be a pretty streaky player offensively.
I disagree. Making 2 errors a game and getting booed by your fans at every at bat has to mess with your psyche.
its hard to prove, but there are mental aspects of the game that are hard to explain and prove statistically.
playing sports my whole life, i’ve learned that confidence is key, professionals are no different. EE often made silly, costly errors at crucial times for the jays. that definitely alters someones mental state, both defensively and offensively.
trying to do too much after making an error is a prime example. .
So while i somewhat agree with your claim, it really depends on the type of fielder that the person is. Scott Rolen probably would be the same batter as a DH vs a 3B because defensively he probably never suffered serious blows to his confidence affecting his mental state.
Can I be your agent?
shredded my shoulder, and hung up my cleats.
Now its beer league hockey and softball and armchair gm’ing.
I would like a new beer league contract though, see what you can do.
Okay, so I couldn’t get you a new contract… but I did get you on next season’s Dancing with the Stars!
sweet..
can you get stacey kiebler to be my partner?
For dancing? Or for…
I agree, the Jays don’t have a Rizzo in their system, and Lind needs to stay consistent if he wants to be a 1b in the Al East
I don’t know, Drabek is completely over-hyped because he was traded for an All-Star like Rizzo.
I don’t understand why Cooper can’t be a viable starting 1B in the future. I can see why people believe that Cooper’s .374 BA in the PCL was inflated, but if Cooper develops into a consistent .300 hitter, then I would be pleased.
As a comparison, John Olerud never had much power, but consistently posted a high BA and OBP. Furthermore, Olerud had an excellent K/BB ratio, sometimes posting more walks than strikeouts!
In this sense, if Cooper’s development mimics that of Olerud, then I think he is definately worthy of being a starting first baseman. It’s not a guarantee, but I think it is a real possibility.
because before last season cooper didn’t post a + .800 OPS.
it wasn’t just his average that was inflated, it was his power as well, he hit nearly twice as many doubles last year as he’s ever hit in a season. Thank you vegas.
He may be capable of hitting .300/.350 obp but with limited power, its just not enough from a 1B.
too bad he doesn’t play second base
David Segui might be a better comp than John Olerud.
i share your skepticism of cooper, but just one point…
vegas inflated his slugging% for sure, but i think that has more to do with his incredibly high BA than any kind of vegas power boost. in fact, his ISO was actually lower at vegas than it was at new hampshire the previous year, most likely on account of his drop in HR’s (20 in ’10 to 9 in ’11).
he had a strange year to say the least.
i could definitely see it. no way AA is naive enough to think that adam lind is locked in at 1B moving forward.
If the Rangers signed all of those guys to extension this off-season (which won’t happen) they’ll be committing probably $300MM or more in a single spending spree. Just doesn’t seem feasible.
If the Rangers signed all of those guys to extension this off-season (which won’t happen) they’ll be committing probably $300MM or more in a single spending spree. Just doesn’t seem feasible.
Napoli, Hamilton, Kinsler, Holland, Lewis, and Adams…Orrrrrrrr…Pujols?
Napoli – 5/60
Hamilton – 5/90
Adams – 3/18
Lewis – 3/21
Holland – 5/80
Kinsler – 6/100
Yeah that’s a lot of coin. Note that those numbers were just off the top of my head.
I’d imagine Kinsler’s injury history keeps him under $100M, but that’s just my speculation. He’s certainly worth it when he’s healthy.
Rangers seem like a smart organization that don’t let sentimentality get the best of them, I doubt they pay Hamilton that kind of money…they probably let him walk. No way Kinsler gets that kind of money either
Texas won’t let a power hitting LF who hits 3rd in their order walk unless they’re sure they have a replacement (which we currently don’t). Also, Kinsler or Andrus will be shipped once Profar is ready (whichever one brings back the biggest package hopefully) and Young comes off the books soon which will add a ton of money to extend song of these guys.
those are some pretty reasonable guesses. I think nap and kinsler are a year too long, and i think that’s a big salary considering what holland has done. that may look more reasonable next year. i don’t like the idea of locking up hamilton, but that’s a figure i think the rangers would be comfortable with. just not sure it gets it done.
No way holland gets 5/80 simply because of his service time I would start with 5/50 no more than 5/65 it buts out arb and 2 maybe 3 fa years. But no way he can get 80 yet. Lewis probably gets 4/21 just because of his inconsistent history. Kindler I would say 6/85-90 and Hamilton gets 3-4/60-80 anything more than that let him walk. Still a ton of money but with their huge tv deal they have cash to burn.
way too much for holland. He’s still pre arb and wont be an FA until 2016.
If they want cost certainty for him and if he wanted security, it would probably be more like a 4/30
Yeah that was too high for Holland.
Here is my best take on the possible extensions. Im probably even being too generous considering how the Rangers have been pretty tough on their negotiations.
Derek Holland
5yrs/$35 mil
Note: The goal is to buy his out arbitration years that will ultimately save the team money if he performs well. If he went underwent arbitration today he could see a jump from his $430K salary to up to $3 mil.
Josh Hamilton
5yrs/$85 mil
Note: Injuries should play a heavy role in the discussions. As hard as he plays and he is getting hurt now then it only stands to reason that he will be more susceptible to injuries as he ages.
Ian Kinsler
5yrs/$48 mil
Note: He has suffered a few injury riddled years recently as well but he is going to be measured up against R. Weeks 4yr/$38.5 deal and Ugglas 5yr/$62.
Mike Napoli
4yrs/$36 mil
Note: Staying ahead of arbitration numbers and possible FA bid fest by offering him something fair based on performances related to comparable players. He hasn’t proven with any consistency to be a top tier hitting catcher…at least not yet. Arb boosted him from $3.8 mil to $5.6 this past year which is why he signed for $5.8 mil. Also VMart signed for 4yrs/$50 mil
Colby Lewis
3yrs/$18 mil
Note: I think he might draw more attention and better offers in FA than anything the Rangers slide across the table. Don’t think the Rangers will “need” him as much as some other teams will.
Mike Adams
3yrs/$15 mil
Note: He should see a boost from his $2.54 mil and if underwent arbitration he might jump up to close to $4.5 mil anyways.
you won’t be getting Kinsler for 5yr/48 million. Not a chance. Kinsler is better than both Weeks and Uggla.
Make it official..throw your hat in the discussion. If you were the GM what would you offer? Kinsler is a very talented and I would like to see how much Brandon Philips gets too.
I see Kinsler at 5 for 60-65 and Hamilton at 3 for 50-55. I don’t think Lewis gets resigned assuming just one of Perez, Ramirez, Ross or Feldman (god I hope not) can step in to his spot. Other than that, I agree.
How did Texas Rangers get all this cash? Weren’t their owner close to Bankruptcy a few years back or they were strapped for cash?
Ignorance is bliss
Wow.
yea that was why he sold the team now there is 2 owners who hit it big with oil who own the team
no O’s. dont do it. if you’re going to spend on a pitcher, spend on a good one.
Edwin Jackson is good.
Brandon Webb is just the type of pitcher I’d gamble on if I were the Red Sox. Incentive based minor/major league deal. I think his stuff even would play well in the Al east if healthy.
The problem isn’t the stuff, it’s wether he can even make it back into a game.
I don’t know Jon, I just don’t know.
The Cubs acquired Anthony Rizzo from the Padres today, but they weren’t the only team with interest in the first base prospect. The Indians, Blue Jays and Rays also had some interest in Rizzo, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports. Here are more notes from Heyman
I find it hard to believe that those other teams couldn’t have come up with more than the Cubs did for Rizzo!
Brandon Webb started throwing again in late December and his arm is “strong and loose,” according to his agent.
Oic, this is very interesting, did you have happen to see time stamped video of this . I remember Mitch Williams from MLB Network commenting in May of 2011. ThatWebb was “NOT” Throwing Free and Easy at all! So is this some sort of Christmas Miracle that his arm is Magic again?
Lastly, The Orioles have interest in Edwin Jackson. I don’t know why this would be the case! Our pitching coach is unproven, E Jack is unpredictable, it’s not a good match. Plus, I don’t see Uncle Scrooge coughing up the coin to sign him and the fact that Duquette has no idea as to what he is doing!
Jon you can do better than this! I believe in you!
Yeah, Rays are stacked with talent in the farm system, they must not of tried hard or have better leads elsewhere.
Brandon webbs arm is Strong and loose,sounds like my bowel movement. But seriously they said that the last few years and had not pitched well at all
Sox should take a chance on Webb.