Here’s an example of why the U.S. isn’t the most beloved country on the planet. Some Americans think they are responsible for all that is good in the world. For instance, this writer is labouring (note the extra “u” in that word – I bet many think I just made a spelling error…I didn’t, but that’s another story, for another day) under the impression that the game of basketball is as American as apple pie. Thankfully, one of his readers set him straight. Beyond that, it’s good to see some chatter on the upcoming WBC – much of which will be held in – gasp – Toronto!

Evan Longoria completed his sweep of the freshman awards when he was named 2008 Rookie of the Year as part of MLB.com’s annual fan-voted This Year in Baseball Awards. One of the smartest things the Rays did all year was pull the trigger early on Longoria, calling him up after a the season was a mere 10 games old. The dude led all rooks in dingers and slugging and paced AL freshmen in ribbies, extra-base hits and total bases. His three-dinger game in September made him the first rookie third baseman to do so since Eddie Matthews did it 56 years ago. Longoria is also pretty slick with the leather, finishing sixth among AL third basemen in fielding percentage. I guess there’s a reason he’s going as high as 15th in mock drafts we’ve witnessed this offseason. (For more on mock drafts, stay tuned for Tim McLeod’s latest mock report, coming soon.)

So, Cliff Lee won the Comeback Player of the Year Award in the AL. Um, what exactly was he coming back from? It’s not like he was the shit before. Okay, he had a pretty good year in 2005, I’ll give him that. But considering Lee also took home the Cy, I would have preferred to see Mike Mussina win Comeback Player of the Year honours in what proved to be his final year. It would have been an especially nice touch considering Moose never took home a Cy Young, but something tells me when all is said and done, Lee’s career won’t be able to hold a candle to what Mussina accomplished. Just a hunch.

The latest word on the street has the Boston Red Sox pulling out of the Mark Teixeira sweepstakes, saying they can’t compete with the other offers he has on the table. Could the BoSox be calling Scott Boras’s bluff here? Time will tell. If the switch hitter is really done being chased by the BoSox, that leaves the Yanks, Orioles, Angels and Nationals as the most likely contenders. If you’re in a keeper league, pray that the BoSox get back into this and nothing stupid happens like Tex winds up as the Nats’ cleanup hitter.

The Yanks set their sites on C.C. Sabathia and A.J. Burnett and got them both. Should they have been careful what they wished for? The Bronx Bombers have on occasional shelled out serious bucks or dealt for an “ace” only to see them flop (see Brown, Kevin and Pavano, Carl for a couple examples of recent vintage). Two aces? $243.5 million. Watching the Yanks fall flat on their faces and miss the playoffs again in 2009? Priceless.

Amazing factoid: the only other time in the last 105 years that a team added a pair of 17-game winners or better in the same offseason was when Houston lured both Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte from the Yankees in 2004.

How bad do you think the BoSox would like a do-over on the Julio Lugo signing? Four years for $36 million? Yikes! And after a horrible first year in Beantown he played just 82 games last year thanks to injuries. In the meantime, he’s been passed by Jed Lowrie on the depth chart and now Boston has a $10 million man sitting on the bench that it would love to deal this offseason.

Can someone please explain after all the upheaval in Toronto how J.P. Ricciardi has yet to be shown the door? Ted Rogers must be turning in his freshly dug grave right about now. How many reasons do you need to jettison J.P.? I’ll give you 126 million of them, as in the number of bucks he convinced Rogers to invest in Vernon Wells for one extremely down year and one injury-shortened campaign.

So Kerry Wood will close in Cleveland and get over $20 million over the next two years to do it. Well, I’m so glad that the Indians have solved their bullpen woes. Uh, yeah.

Look at the Royals! Breaking out their wallets for the likes of Mike Jacobs and Coco Crisp. Well, Jacobs doesn’t earn big bucks yet, but he’s eligible for arbitration this winter, so he is due for a kickass raise.

Texas is trying to grab Ben Sheets. What do you think the chances are it will be successful considering how high the money will go for this auction item? And if the Rangers do somehow lure him to Arlington, will he (a) be a major flop; (b) suffer injury after injury; or (c) both (a) and (b)?

If Boston is indeed out of the Teixeira contest, that means Mike Lowell will be sticking around in Beantown and Kevin Youkilis will stay at first base. That could have an impact on Youk’s ability to qualify at the hot corner in 2010.

I’m glad that Rafael Furcal is likely headed back to the Dodgers; if the A’s had landed him, something would have seemed off. Oakland spending big bucks? It’s not working for me, sorry.

Bobby Abreu, a two-time All-Star among his 13 big league seasons, wants $30 to $48 million for two or three years. And I want a scantily-clad 18-year-old woman to hand-feed me Twinkies. Only one of us is going to get what we want (him), and only one of us is going to deserve it (me). Life can sure suck, sometimes.

December 19th, 2008
Categories: BASEBALL, Fantasy Notes, RotoRob . Author: RotoRob . Comments: 2 Comments

A.J. Burnett, lured out of the Great White North by the overpaying Yankees, is seen here with his bodyguard. No, I’m not kidding.

This is it — the final installment of our Free Agency Report on the American League. Today, we check in on the situation in Toronto, and then we’ll launch into the National League in the coming days. You can find the previous sections of this tome here: Part I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII and IX.

Toronto Blue Jays

The Toronto Blue Jays improved by three games in 2008 en route to a third straight winning season. Great news, right?

Uh, not so fast.

Despite the improvements, mostly led by the AL’s top pitching staff, this team finished a disappointing fourth in the AL East behind perennial contenders Boston and New York and the AL’s newest superpower – Tampa Bay. Toronto’s stretch of meaningless Octobers has now been in effect since its last World Series title in 1993.

How the hell is Toronto ever supposed to compete with three teams that are sure to be dominant for years to come? This challenge seems especially insurmountable now with the Canadian dollar currently suffering, meaning the Jays will be watching their loonies closely this winter. A.J. Burnett is already gone; could Roy Halladay be next? Don’t scoff – the idea that Toronto may deal its ace isn’t so far fetched. B.J. Ryan could also be out the door, perhaps headed to Detroit to help solve the Tiger bullpen woes.

Stripping the club of its pitching depth will hurt considering this is what led the team to another winning season with Toronto pacing the AL in ERA, BAA, OPS against and WHIP. Scott Downs enjoyed a career year in a set-up role, while Jesse Carlson excelled in a similar role. Halladay turned in another Cy Young type of year, while Shaun Marcum enjoyed a breakout year (but will unfortunately miss the 2009 season after Tommy John surgery).

Offense was the Achilles’ Heel of this squad, as the Jays ranked a woeful 11th in the AL in runs, slugging percentage and OPS. Matt Stairs couldn’t come close to duplicating his fine 2007 season and then was dealt to eventual World Champion Philadelphia; Marcos Scutaro wasn’t bad considering how low the expectations were, but giving over 500 at bats to a sub-700 OPS dude with no power? Uh, yeah…; and Rod Barajas proved once and for all that he is not a legitimate starting big league catcher (of course his lack of offense wouldn’t stick out nearly as much in a lineup that was capable of scoring more runs).

Toronto will have to be very creative this offseason if it hopes to improve its squad, especially given that the team can’t add any more payroll. Unfortunately, the Jays have four free agents to deal with, and while only one made a huge contribution in 2008 – this team will need to do some retooling this winter. The club seems further away from its glory years than ever, somewhat ironic given that the team it beat in the ’93 Series finally made it back this year and won it all.

A.J. Burnett, RHP: Burnett finally stayed healthy, setting career highs in games, innings, strikeouts and wins. And although his peripherals were actually somewhat stronger in 2007, Burnett picked a perfect time to win 18 games and then opt out of his contract and trigger free agency; he’s agreed to a preliminary deal with the Yanks for five years and $82.5 million. Ka-ching! The Braves were also very interested in Burnett, although many believe the Yanks spent way too much on an overrated arm. It will be very interesting to see how he does pitching for the first time in a pressure-packed situation. Sure, he’s got post-season experience from his Marlin days, but pitching in the Bronx Zoo is a whole different kettle of fish. Does Burnett have the right makeup to succeed there?

John Parrish, LHP: Parrish pitched extremely well in Triple-A, earning some time in both the rotation and the bullpen for the Jays. He surrendered too many homers, but offset that with his improved control, thereby managing to revitalize his career somewhat. The Tigers, hoping to shape up the black hole that was their bullpen in 2008, have been showing interest in the veteran southpaw.

Brad Wilkerson, OF: Hmm, let’s see….now he’s a bad hitter as well as a poor fielder. Yikes. Patience – once one of Wilkerson’s strengths – disappeared last season, taking his BA even further into the abyss. I’m sorry, I’m just not seeing a recovery any more. Wilkerson will probably have to sign a minor league deal and earn his way back to the majors.

Gregg Zaun, C: An elbow injury helped expedite a diminished role for Zaun in 2008, and with his gap power shrinking for the past couple of years, he’s just not a productive bat any longer. His decent on-base skills have also been in decline. Still, there are teams making inquiries about the vet backstop, including the Tigers, the ‘Stros and the Orioles, who would love a veteran presence to help usher in the Matt Wieters era in B-More.

Next: We’ll head over to the Senior Circuit and start making the rounds.

December 14th, 2008
Categories: BASEBALL, Free agents, RotoRob, Rumours . Author: RotoRob . Comments: 2 Comments

Well, after a freaking month of hammering away at it, we’re just about finished the American League portion of our annual Free Agency Report. If you’ve missed the first sections of this now-legendary tome, check them out: Part I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII and VIII.

Texas Rangers

In 2008, the Rangers appeared to be making plenty of progress after a disappointing 2007 season saw them win just 75 games, but a second-half slump left the team with just 79 wins for a fourth straight losing campaign.

Even with that less than inspiring record, Texas managed to finish second in the AL West, for its highest placing since last winning the division in 1999.

Rarely will you see a club in which its strengths and weaknesses are so clearly defined as was the case with the 2008 Texas Rangers. This team led the American League in batting average, runs, slugging and OPS, but was dead last in ERA, batting average against, OPS against, WHIP and quality starts.

The O shined, led by the probably soon-to-be-departed Milton Bradley, and holdovers like Ian Kinsler, who took another big step forward, Chris Davis, who emerged as a serious power threat in a half season, and Josh Hamilton, who enjoyed a major breakthrough.

The pitching staff, however, was stuck together by snot and tape, and far too many innings were sucked up by mediocre and undeserving arms. Swingman Luis Mendoza took a major step backward this season after showing such promise in 2007; Dustin Nippert, also used in a swingman role, pitched well at Triple-A, but apparently still can’t get big leaguers out; closer C.J. Wilson had horribly shaky command before an injury ended his season and cost him his job for 2009; Kason Gabbard was hurt for a good chunk of the season, but was too hittable when he did pitch; and youngster Matt Harrison showed promise, but given his hit rates, might have been better served spending more time at Triple-A before getting thrown to the wolves.

Gee, I wonder where they’ll concentrate their efforts this offseason?

It’s actually already started, as Texas helped alleviate its crowded catching situation by dispatching Gerald Laird to the Tigers for a couple of young pitching prospects. This adds to an already impressive arsenal of young arms in the system who will soon arrive in Arlington to turn the Rangers’ fortunes around.

And it can’t happen soon enough.

In the short-term, however, the pitching staff isn’t likely to be vastly better in 2009; also of concern is the fact that the Rangers have four free agents to deal with – three of which were important parts of the 2008 club.

That’s the bad news; the good news is that with even a slight improvement in pitching, this team should erase its streak of losing seasons in 2009.

Milton Bradley, DH: Bradley stayed healthier than usual (which isn’t saying much), but he enjoyed a career year, setting a personal best in walks along the way. He was offered arbitration by the Rangers, who would like to keep him, but Bradley rejected it, opting to test the market instead. Plenty of teams are biting. KC is showing interest, Tampa Bay is looking at him, the Cubs could use a corner outfielder and may kick his tires, and the Jays are hell bent on adding Bradley because things are apparently too boring in Canada and they’re hoping he’ll spice things up, which he is wont to do from time to time.

Jason Jennings, RHP: Jennings just keeps getting shelled harder and harder and the fact that he can’t stay healthy either doesn’t exactly make him attractive from any perspective. Regardless, Texas is talking about bringing him back, but at least just on a minor league deal this time around. Boy, how happy do you think the Rockies were to deal him to Houston a couple of years ago? Jennings has been simply rancid since leaving the mountains.

Ramon Vazquez, 3B: Vazquez has played a key role off the Ranger bench the past two seasons, and after a very productive campaign in which he put up a career-best line of .290/.362/.430, could he vie for a full-time gig? Uh, maybe not. He hit .310 against righties, but just .188 against lefties. Arizona needs to replace Orlando Hudson at second base and would love to have Vazquez as the strong part of a platoon. The D-Backs have already offered him a one-year deal with a club option for a second season, but that was a while ago, and Vazquez is holding out for a two-year offer. Arizona has made an offer to Mark Loretta to be the right-handed hitting side of that platoon, and is also considering Damion Easley or perhaps Adam Kennedy, who would need to be pried out of St. Louis via trade.

Jamey Wright, RHP: Pitching out of the bullpen exclusively for the first time in his career, Wright was actually rather effective – far more so than his bloated ERA would indicate. He did a good job of limiting the long ball, improved his control and upped his strikeout rate. He won eight games and earned 17 holds, to boot. Considering his peripherals were much better than in 2007, when his ERA was a run and a half lower, I think we’re talking about some bad luck here. Texas, however, doesn’t want him back, failing to offer Wright arbitration, so it looks like we’ll find out if this workhorse reliever can bounce back elsewhere.

Next: We head north of the border (home of the good bacon…speaking of bacon, check this recipe out! Disgusting, eh? Tell me you don’t want one immediately, though) and wrap up the American League free agency outlook with a visit to Toronto.

December 8th, 2008
Categories: BASEBALL, Free agents, RotoRob, Rumours . Author: RotoRob . Comments: No Comments

While Ichiro’s offseason was partially to blame for the demise of the Mariners’ offense in 2008, Jose Vidro (right) was absolutely pathetic, finally getting ditched by the team in August. (Reuters)

We continue our tour around the bigs, examining the free agents for each club, with another segment today. Previous parts can be found here: Part I, II, III, IV, V, VI and VII.

Seattle Mariners

After winning 88 games in 2007, expectations were high that the Mariners could compete for the AL West title and get back to the postseason for the first time since 2000. Instead, the offense completely tanked, and this team hit rock bottom, winning a mere 61 games — its worst showing since 1983.

If you’re looking for a bright spot in Seattle’s 2008 season, the club did finish sixth in the AL in stolen bases thanks to a nice comeback year (running wise, at least) from Ichiro Suzuki.

However, with just one AL team scoring less runs and having a worse on-base percentage, slugging percentage and OPS, it was pretty clear where the Mariners’ problems lay. There were culprits aplenty, but to pick on a few, I’d target Jose Vidro, who was so unproductive that the team finally DFAed him in August; Kenji Johjima, who’s extra base power last showed up on a milk carton; Yuniesky Betancourt, who simply doesn’t get on base enough to be a legitimate fantasy option; hell, even Ichiro struggled, relatively speaking, especially as far as his extra-base pop went.

With four last place finishes in the past five seasons, the Mariners really need to do some serious retooling. On the plus side, they have just three free agents to deal with, and just one of those was an integral part of the team.

Willie Bloomquist, OF: Bloomquist’s role has been on decline for the past couple of seasons, and the fact the he managed just one extra-base hit all year long negated his improved patience and decent SB numbers. The Mariners have plenty of prospects on the way, so there’s no need for them to re-sign this veteran utility man, hence they did not offer him arbitration.

Miguel Cairo, IF: Believe it not, Cairo is 34, not 44. He actually enjoyed a decent year off the Mariner bench, recording his highest hit total since 2005. However, Cairo’s speed has deteriorated and he never had much pop to lose. The Mariners have not offered him salary arbitration, and like Bloomquist, he’ll be replaceable. The fact that Seattle signed Russell Branyan probably is the final nail in the coffin on Cairo’s chances of returning to Em City.

Raul Ibanez, OF: Ibanez enjoyed another strong season, setting a new personal high in at bats, scoring a surprising amount of runs considering how crappy this offense was and pacing the team in OPS for a third straight year. The fact that he was as productive as he was on this team, despite a slight uptick in his strikeout rate, is a testament to Ibanez turning into a legitimate fantasy stud in recent years. Put this bat in a better lineup, and how many runs would he drive in? We may find out, as Ibanez is expected to decline the Mariners’ arbitration offer. Tampa Bay is seeking a left-handed DH, and Ibanez could fit the bill. Or Philly might target him as a replacement for Pat Burrell in left field. The Mariners will also be players here, hoping to re-sign the veteran. Apparently, the Jays are also looking at Ibanez, and the Cubs and Mets are possibilities, too.

Tampa Bay Rays

The Rays were the story of the year in 2008, finally breaking through in Season 11 of their existence and not only busting their playoff cherry, but coming within three wins of a World Series title.

While they had showed some modest improvements in 2007, the team absolutely exploded last season, winning 97 games (they had never topped 70 victories before) to take home the AL East crown.

Speed was the calling card of this club, as it paced the AL in thefts in no small part thanks to B.J. Upton doubling his career high with 44 swipes. Where this team could use a boost is in hitting, however. Only one AL team had a worst batting average than the club’s .260 mark. A good place to start working on that would be finding an upgrade over Gabe Gross in right field; at the very least, he can’t be allowed to have a single at bat against a lefty.

The Rays will probably also be seeking some bullpen insurance, especially with closer Troy Percival undergoing back surgery this offseason and one of their relievers having already bolted from town.

Any way you look at it, though, the Rays have arrived and aren’t going anywhere except up for the foreseeable future. With four free agents to deal with (a couple of which were key cogs of the team) and some tweaking necessary in others areas, they do have some work to do this offseason as they take aim at the ultimate prize in 2009.

Rocco Baldelli, OF: Injuries continues to decimate Baldelli’s career, limiting him to 80 at bats in 2008. However, once he returned, he showed some nice gap power. I don’t like the fact that he’s striking out more and that his speed seems to have gone AWOL. He probably fits in nicely as a platoon partner for Gross in RF, considering Baldelli hits lefties very well, while he struggles (just .219) against righties. However, that would leave him on the weak side of a platoon, rendering him useless from a fantasy perspective. So if someone offers him a larger role (Philly, seeking a cheaper option to replace Burrell, or Boston, hoping to bring in a local boy?), I’d guess Baldelli would jump at the chance. However, given his condition (mitochondrial disorder), I’m not sure anyone is going to hand him a full-time gig – at least not without have a serious insurance policy on the bench. At this stage, Baldelli is most likely a role player until he proves he can handle more.

Cliff Floyd, DH: Injuries – the story of his career – reared their ugly head once again, relagating Floyd to strictly DH duty in 2008. His speed has long since been decimated, but he remains an impressive power bat off the bench. There’s a real possibility that Floyd racks ‘em up this offseason, and if Tampa Bay decides he no longer fits on the team as it’s constructed, I wouldn’t be surprised if this is the end of the line for him.

Eric Hinske, OF: Despite his second-half woes, Hinske was a very pleasant surprise for the Rays in 2008, rediscovering his power and reaching 20 homers for the first time since he was a rookie. He was quite productive in his role, and even flashed some speed for the first time in many years. The Rays may bring him back if it makes sense based on their other moves, or he could wind up a DH somewhere, such as with the Yankees.

Trever Miller, LHP: Miller improved his control somewhat, and that helped him bounce back after an off year in 2007. He’s a situational lefty who will need to be replaced in Tampa Bay, as he’s already gone, having signed with the Cardinals for one year.

Next: we’ll head west again, checking in on the Texas Rangers.

December 7th, 2008
Categories: BASEBALL, Free agents, RotoRob, Rumours . Author: RotoRob . Comments: 4 Comments

And we’re back, with Part VII of our look at the free agency front this MLB offseason. Our first six parts? I’m glad you asked! Find them here: Part I, II, III, IV, V, and VI.

Oakland A’s

The A’s suffered their second straight losing season, but the fact that they only slipped one game from 2007 was quite a surprise; in fact, if not for a mid-season swoon (12-35 between July 11 and September 5 before righting the ship with a 10-9 finish), this team would have been one of the bigger stories in baseball. Of course, you can’t exactly ignore a near two-month stretch of .255 ball, can you?

The pitching staff, helped along by the emergence of relievers Joey Devine and Brad Ziegler (the latter of which was a true revelation) and the excellent conversion to starting by Justin Duscherer (until he got hurt, that is), more than held its own, ranking fourth in the AL in both batting average and OPS against.

Where this team fell flat on its face was its wet noodle attack. The A’s ranked dead last in the AL in batting average, runs, on-base percentage (Gasp! Billy Beane must have been sticking his head in the oven) and slugging percentage.

With Eric Chavez again out most of the season (another disturbing trend altogether), the team was forced to employ Jack Hannahan for most of the year at third, and he’s clearly a borderline major leaguer at best. Daric Barton did not deliver on his ROY potential, but I do expect him to be better now that he’s had his hip fixed. Emil Brown was given way too many at bats; Bobby Crosby finally stayed healthy, but still hasn’t come close to duplicating his first two seasons; and Carlos Gonzalez, brimming with potential, was unable to provide a boost when brought up.

Of course, Gonzalez may not have been part of the solution last season, but he’ll definitely help in 2009 – indirectly, at any rate. He was packaged up with starter Greg Smith and former closer Huston Street (made expendable with Devine and Ziegler developing so rapidly) to the Rockies for a man who will in essence provide the Cialis the A’s lineup so desperately needs – Matt Holliday.

If the A’s land free agent Rafael Furcal, that will deliver another huge boost to the offense.

And with a mere four free agents of their own to deal with – none of whom are major losses, and one at least that’s likely a case of addition by subtraction – the A’s are in an excellent position to retool this offseason and end this mini streak of losing seasons in 2009.

Emil Brown, OF: The fact that Brown was given over 400 at bats last season underscores how anemic the A’s offense was. Scarier still, Brown cut his strikeout rates and put up better numbers overall than he had in 2007, yet he was still a steaming pile of crap, barely useful in an AL-only league, and a deep one at that. Of the 53 corner outfielders who had at least 400 plate appearances last season, just three had an OPS worse than Brown. ‘Nuff said. Baltimore is looking for a right-handed outfielder to platoon with Luke Scott, and given that Brown hit .295 against lefties (.211 vs. righties), this may be his future – as the weak side of a platoon. If Pat Burrell leaves Philadelphia, the Phils may opt to let Geoff Jenkins take over and bring in someone like Brown to play against lefties. At this point, no major league team is going to give Brown anywhere near the number of at bats Oakland gave him in 2008, and that’s a wise decision. For the A’s, this is clearly addition by subtraction.

Alan Embree, LHP: As he gets on his years, Embree is morphing more and more in a left-handed specialist, even though his platoon splits actually got a bit closer together last season. Even so, with left-handed relief pitching being the sacred golden cow of free agency this offseason, someone will throw more money at this vet than he’s worth. With Embree’s control faltering – he issued a career-high 30 walks last season – I’m not bullish on his chances of experiencing yet another comeback season as he last did in 2006 with the Padres.

Keith Foulke, RHP: He had a tough time staying healthy, but for the most part, Foulke’s decision to unretire worked out well as he enjoyed a solid season out of the A’s pen. He wasn’t offered arbitration, so is most likely headed elsewhere, as the A’s commit to developing their youngsters. A team like the Rays may want to add a veteran arm in the pen should fragile closer Troy Percival not be ready for Opening Day.

Frank Thomas, DH: The Jays finally realized they had shelled out too much money for an aging, one-dimensional player and cut bait early in the season after Thomas struggled badly out of the gate. He headed back to Oakland, a team desperate for another bat despite its glut of DH types, and he was certainly better than he had been in Toronto, but that’s not saying much. The Big Hurt wasn’t so much laying a beating on AL pitchers as opposed to himself, as a quad injury cost him most of the season. Not surprisingly, the A’s also did not offer arbitration to Thomas; he’s a Type B free agent, but the A’s obviously didn’t want to take the chance he’d accept the offer, and instead are willing to forgo the compensation they would have received had another team signed him. It makes sense – the acquisition of Holliday will push Jack Cust to where he should be – a full-time DH, leaving nowhere for Thomas to play. Could this be the end of the line for Thomas?

Next: We’ll head up the coast and check in on the free agent situation in Seattle.

December 2nd, 2008
Categories: BASEBALL, RotoRob, Rumours . Author: RotoRob . Comments: 4 Comments