Hot Stove 2009-2010

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: Edgy DC wrote: Pedro Feliz to the Astros. One year. They also tossed a Schoeneweisian $15M/3 years at Brandon Lyon... after supposedly losing out on Latroy Hawkins because of their reluctance to give HIM a third year. Ladies and Gentles... Ed Wade!

Gotta be one of the two teams without a stathead on board. In fact I asked Drayton McLane about his feelings on that once, and he said something about loyalty to Jeff Bagwell or something. Greg would remember better.

[metirish]

Which would be funny because the ultimate Bill James player played there for so many years......Biggio

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Non-tender deadline tomorrow. Likely candidates include:

Kevin Correia, SP, Padres
Garrett Atkins, 1B/3B, Rockies
D.J. Carrasco, RP, WSox
John Buck, C, Royals
Jack Cust, DH/OF, A's
Ryan Garko, 1B, Giants
Chad Gaudin, SP/RP, MFYs
Kelly Johnson, 2B, Braves
Dioner Navarro, C, Rays
Brian Tallet, SP/RP, BlueJays
Chien-Ming Wang, SP, MFYs ($5M last year)
Jonny Gomes, OF, Reds

Assuming this is so... Garko as a RH first base playmate for Murphy, anyone? Add Navarro to our catching Dim Sum platter instead of FatBengie? Or on the mound... do you roll the dice on Wang? Correia?

[Guest Edgy DC]

Navarro was pretty, um, struggly, last year. He struggled. I may prefer Buck --- specially if he wears the fluffy seventies moustache to go with his porny name.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

If he signs, and he pulls up in the CitiField parking lot in this...



... I may just have to buy a personalized jersey.

[smg58]

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: Assuming this is so... Garko as a RH first base playmate for Murphy, anyone? Add Navarro to our catching Dim Sum platter instead of FatBengie? Or on the mound... do you roll the dice on Wang? Correia?

I'd still like to see what Garko can do behind the plate. If it doesn't work out, he can always platoon at first, and we're not short of other options at catcher.

I'd be willing to offer Wang the league minimum plus lots of incentives. I liked him when he was healthy, but his ETA is May at the earliest. If somebody wants to guarantee him over a million, they're welcome to him.

If you work under the assumption that Marquis and Piniero will both regress to their means, Correia would offer comparable quality at a much cheaper price.

[smg58]

PS Elmer Dessens returns with a minor league deal.

[metirish]

Jason Kendall gets a two year deal from the Royals....$6 million total....he's their new everyday catcher as they didn't offer Miguel Olivo a contract and he's a FA....why would you not bring back a catcher who had 23 HR and 65rbi last season?

EDIT - The Royals had a $3.3 million mutual option with Olivo that they, not Olivo, declined.

Edited December 11, 2009 by Guest

[MFS62]

smg58 wrote: PS Elmer Dessens returns with a minor league deal.

Thereby saving an open spot on the major league roster.

Later

[Guest Edgy DC]

metirish wrote: Jason Kendall gets a two year deal from the Royals....$6 million total....he's there new everyday catcher as they didn't offer Miguel Olivo a contract and he's a FA....why would you not bring back a catcher who had 23 HR and 65rbi last season? EDIT - The Royals had a $3.3 million mutual option with Olivo that they, not Olivo, declined.

Um, maybe they didn't think they could find the likes of Jason Kendall and his cost effective excellence next winter?

Really, I have no idea.

[smg58]

I do my fair share of complaining about Minaya, but I look at what the Royals, Astros, and Diamondbacks have done so far this offseason and think, "there but for the grace of God..."

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

smg58 wrote: LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: Assuming this is so... Garko as a RH first base playmate for Murphy, anyone? Add Navarro to our catching Dim Sum platter instead of FatBengie? Or on the mound... do you roll the dice on Wang? Correia? I'd still like to see what Garko can do behind the plate. If it doesn't work out, he can always platoon at first, and we're not short of other options at catcher.

Not a bad idea. Problem is, this organization has a bit of a blind spot as far as the importance of catcher defense* goes, even in the face of various and sundry bits of proof that "pitcher handling" isn't any sort of impactful, repeatable skill. I'm not sure if another organization would give him a shot behind the plate, but I'm damn sure this team, as presently run, wouldn't dare do so.

*And yet, the decision-making creamy center of the FO seems to GROSSLY underestimate the effect of infield/outfield defense on pitcher stats when handing out contracts.

If you work under the assumption that Marquis and Piniero will both regress to their means, Correia would offer comparable quality at a much cheaper price.

Exactly the point I was nudging toward. And agreed on Wang.

[metirish]

Notes & quotes: Alex Cora, who recently signed a one-year, $2-million contract, reportedly left Thursday's game in Puerto Rico with back pain.

Newsday

[Benjamin Grimm]

And so it begins...

[ashie62]

Rosenthal of FOX has Lackey taking his physical with the Red Sox and signing something like 5 years for 82.5

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

See... ordinarily, the panic move for Omar would be to overbid for, say, Lackey. However, that's not an option.

So who gets the "splash" move overbid in his stead? Pineiro? 20mil/yr for Bay?

[metirish]

Heyman

The White Sox have acquired Juan Pierre plus cash from the Dodgers for two players to be named, according to sources.

The White Sox will pay Pierre $3 million in 2010 and $5 million in 2011. meaning the Dodgers will pay a little more than half of what's remaining on his five-year, $44 million contract that runs through the 2011 season.

[HahnSolo]

I guess FA Scott Podsednik needs to find a new place of employment.

(I'd advocate the Mets signing him for no reason other than to make Wifey Watch 2010 thread more interesting)

[Guest attgig]

HahnSolo wrote: I guess FA Scott Podsednik needs to find a new place of employment. (I'd advocate the Mets signing him for no reason other than to make Wifey Watch 2010 thread more interesting)

how interesting would that be?
in otherwords... got pic?

[batmagadanleadoff]

Mets interested in right-hander Wang

NEW YORK -- For years, the Yankees have brought aboard high profile players who have been discarded by the Mets or who have merely left the Mets on their own. See Dwight Gooden, Darryl Strawberry, Todd Zeile, Robin Ventura, Armando Benitez, Jose Vizcaino, Lee Mazzili, Kevin Elster, Lance Johnson, David Cone, Daryl Boston and John Olerud, to name a dozen. The moves have gone the other way as well, but the train does seem to run from Queens to the Bronx more often than visa versa. Now, a chance exists that the Mets will bring in a pitcher who has made his mark -- and what a mark it was -- with the Yankees. The Mets have interest in Chien-Ming Wang who, until last season, was an integral component of the Yankees' rotation. Wang was among the 39 players who were not tendered contracts by their incumbent clubs who became free agents at midnight Saturday. And he is one of several the Mets intend to contact.

read the rest ...

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20091214&content_id=7810630&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

attgig wrote: HahnSolo wrote: I guess FA Scott Podsednik needs to find a new place of employment. (I'd advocate the Mets signing him for no reason other than to make Wifey Watch 2010 thread more interesting) how interesting would that be? in otherwords... got pic?

After two pages of Google image search, I was beginning to doubt that this woman's ever taken a SFW shot in her adult lifetime.

[Guest attgig]

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: After two pages of Google image search, I was beginning to doubt that this woman's ever taken a SFW shot in her adult lifetime.

thanks... i was afraid of that, and didn't want to be searching here.

[Frayed Knot]

John Peter (Juan Pierre) to the ChiSox for dos/duex PtbNL

For the sake of the Sox I hope those two players are either real low priority or that they got the Dodgers to stick a large suitcase full of money in the crate when they boxed up Pierre (or both).
JP had a nice (partial) year last year while Manny was "on vacation" but he's still grossly overpaid and a lot closer to the end than the beginning.

Kenny Williams is an odd GM. Not afraid to make a move - just doesn't always make good ones.

[Guest Rockin' Doc]

She's even been the St. Pauli Girl... (2003)

Get Posednik now!

[metirish]

Means little but Frenchie has spoken to " his guys" about coming to the Mets.....Marquis and DeRosa

[MFS62]

metirish wrote: Means little but Frenchie has spoken to " his guys" about coming to the Mets.....Marquis and DeRosa

I like DeRosa. He is a versatile player with some pop in his bat.
Later

[Centerfield]

batmagadanleadoff wrote: Mets interested in right-hander Wang NEW YORK -- For years, the Yankees have brought aboard high profile players who have been discarded by the Mets or who have merely left the Mets on their own. See Dwight Gooden, Darryl Strawberry, Todd Zeile, Robin Ventura, Armando Benitez, Jose Vizcaino, Lee Mazzili, Kevin Elster, Lance Johnson, David Cone, Daryl Boston and John Olerud, to name a dozen. The moves have gone the other way as well, but the train does seem to run from Queens to the Bronx more often than visa versa. Now, a chance exists that the Mets will bring in a pitcher who has made his mark -- and what a mark it was -- with the Yankees. The Mets have interest in Chien-Ming Wang who, until last season, was an integral component of the Yankees' rotation. Wang was among the 39 players who were not tendered contracts by their incumbent clubs who became free agents at midnight Saturday. And he is one of several the Mets intend to contact. read the rest ... http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20091214&content_id=7810630&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb

This just in: Kevin Elster = high profile player

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Multiple team executives tell wannabe Gammons/former MFY shill Buster Olney and Philagandist Jayson Stark that Joel Pineiro must be buying from the same dealer as FatBengie Molina, as he is pointedly looking for four years at a higher annual salary than Randy Wolf (just under $10M).

If we do five $16M+ years for Bay, four $10M+ years for Pineiro, and three $5M+ years for Molina, I will cut myself with two turtledoves and a partridge.

[Fman99]

Sheesh, Scotty Pods' wife is HAWT.

The guy's known for his speed, and you can't blame him -- it'd only take me 5-7 seconds to "round the bases" on her also.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

What, no head-first slide into third base?