Bobby Abreu

[nymr83]

not offerred arbitration by the Yankees. Anyone interested?
his defense is getting worse and he's always had that "afraid of the wall" reputation, but he stays healthy (perhaps by avoiding walls) and posts very nice OBPs.

[Guest Edgy DC]

We've had worse outfielders, and we have a defensive replacement on the roster waiting for somebody to replace.

[willpie]

Edgy's not wrong. I'd still rather have that defensive replacement replacing Adam Dunn, but I suppose that's a pipe dream.

[nymr83]

Dunn would be a perfect fit as he could slide over to 1st base once Delgado is gone, it should be easier to replace Delgado in left than at first following 2009.

[Frayed Knot]

Abreu always seemed to be one of those guys who winds up being less than the sum of his parts for whatever reason and thus would look better if you could get him for a shorter stint. Not sure if you can.
He's also another LHB.

The market for corner OFers is still a bit up in the air.
The Angels did re-up Juan Rivera (for 3 years!) yesterday but, other than that, the Philly signing of Ibanez is about it so far and I'm guessing that they'll be seen to have overpaid eventually if not sooner.

Will Carroll had a short piece in BP a week or so back talking about how teams are paying an increased amount of attention to OF defense these days and balancing that against how much bat it'll take to overcome those deficiencies. Nothing too detailed since he was essentially sworn to secrecy but he said he was given access to one team's data and claimed the level of detail would blow most fans minds.
The piece wasn't making a specific point as to how good or bad this info was (or even if the clubs always used it). It was more like a shot across the bow of stat-nerds (IOW, most of the BP readership) that their assumptions that any semi-Sabre-knowledgable fan knows more than the teams themselves is way off base.

Anyway, I only bring this all up now on account of the remaining FA's among corner OFers - not exactly a group known for their defense to begin with - seems particularly bad, led as it is by the likes of Manny, Dunn & Burrell. So if an epidemic of tin-glove-a-phobia is indeed sweeping front offices these days maybe the market for these guys starts to cave. Hell, if we're just talking defense, Abreu is the best of that bunch by a long shot.


P.S. Rocco Baldelli (also a compensation-less FA) has received a new diagnosis on the condition that has zapped parts of his last few seasons. It's apparently NOT the mitochondrial condition as previously thought but a much more treatable something else. So maybe he could be part of the mix as well. And he's a RH batter.

[smg58]

A lot of effort has gone into quantifying defensive value over the last few years. Teams may be treating the newer defensive metrics like a kid treats a new toy, and some teams might even be overreacting (i.e., Ty Wigginton's glove at third is well below average, but does that really justify non-tendering a guy who hit 26 home runs?). But when you're comparing even corner outfielders, the difference in defensive value between the good extreme (where Ryan Church is) and the bad extreme (where most of the big names on the market and trading block are) can't be ignored.

I'd be looking for value in a righthanded outfielder. I was shocked that Rivera got three years, though, so I'm not hopeful that somebody like Wigginton or Baldelli could be had for two. But I see no point in making a big commitment to a bigger name guy who may or may not be better than what the Mets already have.

[Guest Edgy DC]

I'd enjoy a less mysteriously afflicted Baldelli. I'd enjoy him a lot.

[Frayed Knot]

According to a report by WLNE-TV in Rocco Baldelli's native Rhode Island, Baldelli went to the Cleveland Clinic last week and received news that the doctors had misdiagnosed his illness.
Doctors thought he had a mitochondrial disorder, but his condition has now been diagnosed as channelopathy, a non-progressive, highly treatable disease.

"Knowing this is a treatable condition, I feel this is a very positive thing for me and my baseball career. With this less-severe diagnosis, I hope to be on the field on a much more regular basis."

Baldelli also mised all of the 2005 season due to two major injuries. He tore the ACL in his left knee in October 2004 and he tore the ulner collateral ligament in his right elbow while rehabbing from the knee injury in June 2005.


I have no idea what 'channelopathy' is (it sounds like the inability to change to a better TV program) but apparently it's better than screwed-up Mitochondria. Seeing as mitochondria are essentially the power-sources within each cell of your body a condition affecting them is definitely a wrench in the works of an athletic career. A similar condition is what ended Greg LeMond's cycling career.

[Valadius]

I'd grab Baldelli now with this news.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Channelopathy: A disease involving dysfunction of an ion channel. Channelopathies are known that involve the ion channels for potassium, sodium, chloride and calcium. There are also channelopathies involving the acetylcholine receptor, the glycine receptor, and other receptors. Each channelopathy can play a role in a number of different diseases. For example, the calcium channelopathies include familial hemiplegic migraine, malignant hyperthermia (a rare but often fatal genetic condition during anesthesia), episodic ataxia type 2, spinocerebellar ataxia type 6, hypokalemic periodic paralysis type I, central core disease (a cause of the floppy baby syndrome), congenital night blindness and stationary night blindness. See also: Ion channel.

http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=24591

[Guest OlerudOwned]

Floppy baby syndrome?

[willpie]

Wow, that's great news about Baldelli. He's always been a likable player. I'd definitely be on board with adding him to the Mets' outfield.

[Willets Point]

I love the name Rocco Baldelli. It's a name made for New York.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Looking at the other side here: this may be agent-generated spin.