Welcome back to a winter edition of the "The Buzz Around The Bullpen." I've always wondered how I could honor the Kenny Rogers' cover "Just Dropped In" in one of my posts and I thought to myself, what better time than now. After all, it's about that time of the year to check back on what teams have done in the off-season. Also, I figured with the BCS Championship Game on tap tonight and the second round of the NFL playoffs scheduled this weekend, there was not a more appropriate time to talk about...Baseball.
After an extremely slow start to the off-season transactions, this past month has been a whirlwind of trades and free-agent signings. While I could analyze each and every move, I figured it may be more useful to simply talk about some of the "winners" and "losers" of this off-season.
Let's start by talking about some "Winners":
1. New York Baseball fans: Whether you are a Yankees or a Mets fan, this has been a particularly exciting off-season for you. The Mets seemed to strike first and fast with the signing of K-Rod and then the acquisition of J.J. Putz. It will be interesting to see how Putz fills that 8th inning role but I do have some advice for you. If your hometown team is taking on the Mets and your team is down after the 7th, do yourself a favor and take an early exit to beat the traffic. I promise, you won't miss a thing. Some have noted that it may take time for K-Rod and Putz to "get the book" on National League hitters. If anything, it will be the NL hitters that will need at least 3/4 of the season to figure out how K-Rod's slider and Putz's splitter can even be fouled off. I predict a run by the Mets this year that will have them at least contending for the NLCS.
The Yankees used their 2008-09 off-season campaign to begin their gradual taking over of the world. When it seemed they couldn't spend anymore, they dropped millions on A.J. Burnett. Then, when you finally thought they were done, they signed Mark Teixeira the most coveted offensive free-agent prize. Unfortunately, I have bad news for you Yankee fans. You will not win a World Championship this year. While your ability to spend money is second to none, simply assembling a group of talented guys in a clubhouse does not make you a team. This spending was a "knee jerk" reaction to the gradual transformation of the AL East. If you've ever been unsure of what the team concept can do for your win-loss record, look no further than the 2008 Tampa Bay Rays.
2. The San Francisco Giants Starting Rotation: I know that signing Randy Johnson isn't going to catapult the Giants into the series this year but I can't help but think that the Big Unit can add some stability to a young rotation. With the 2008 Cy Young winner atop the rotation and young guns Matt Cain and Jonathan Sanchez also in the mix, Randy Johnson is a veteran presence that could really help these guys take their game to the next level. Unfortunately, I'm not sure that Barry Zito will ever be the same but sitting next to a future hall of famer in the bullpen certainly won't hurt. This signing got pushed under the rug somewhat but I believe it gives the San Francisco Giants one of the top rotations in the National League.
3. Washington Nationals: This actually isn't a misprint. I really like some of the moves the Nationals made this off-season. Similar to the Giants, I don't believe this makes them any better than around .500 but at least they are moving in the right direction. The best part of the moves the Nationals made was that they paid and gave up very little to get some legitimate major league talent. If they can somehow land Manny Ramirez, I look for the Nationals to rise out of the cellar and put together an above .500 season. This would be a nice step for a franchise that has struggled since their move to the nation's Capital.
And now the "losers":
1. The Chicago Cubs and Milton Bradley: If you remembered any of my articles last year, you're probably now assuming that my "bromance" with Milton Bradley has ended. Well, you've hit that one right on the head. Last year, I was a huge fan of Milton early on and he definitely did not disappoint. He finished the year with a staggering .436 OBP and an average of .321 with 22 HRs and 77 RBIs. Most importantly, outside of a siege into the announcer's booth to "choke someone out", Milton stayed out of trouble. For Milton, this was an accomplishment maybe bigger than any of his statistics. However, Milton was a product of the hitter friendly Ballpark in Arlington. While I think he can still be productive at Wrigley, I look for a drop-off in his numbers.
2. The Pittsburgh Pirates: Of course I need to vent about my hometown team. On one hand, I'm glad the Pirates didn't bring in a Jeremy Burnitz type talent (or should I say lack of talent). However, the Pirates have failed to lock up outfielder Nate McLouth to a long-term deal. McLouth managed to be one of the very few bright spots on last years squad and showed he was a major league caliber everyday player. As I'm writing this, I can only imagine what you are thinking about if you're not a Buccos fan. But yes, I'm actually upset we didn't lock up a guy you might have never even heard of until late last year. Only making matters worse, the word around Pittsburgh is that the Pirates haven't even presented an offer to McLouth's agent that has been worth discussing. He'll be back next year regardless but I look for a contender to make a move for him at some point this season. ... As a side note, if you're wondering what life is like as a Pirates fan, look no further than the future of our franchise. I really wish I was joking about this but please take the time to look....it's worth it.
3. Manny Ramirez: I believe the quote from Manny was "gas is up and so am I." Well guess what Manny, "gas is down and so are you." Manny came into this off-season asking for nothing short of millions of dollars and a seat in President-elect Obama's cabinet. Well, things aren't looking good for Manny right now. At one point, it was believed he and his agent Scott Boras were asking for upwards of $150 million over six years. Although Manny is a superstar and one of the games' greats, I've always viewed him as someone I wish I could buy for what he's worth and sell him for what he thought he's worth. There is no arguing how good he was in L.A. last summer; but at the same time, he showed how bad he could be when he threw in the towel in Boston. Chances are someone will still overpay for Manny but buyer beware because Manny is like a box of chocolates, you never know what your gonna get.
That concludes my review of "winners" and "losers" of this year's off-season. I'm sure there will be some more moves to write about in the coming weeks so check back to see what the "Buzz Around The Bullpen" has to say. Also, beginning in late January/early February, I will begin a position by position fantasy analysis that will lead you right into your fantasy baseball draft.
As with any SportsJudge articles, please feel free to post any questions or comments. Until next time, keep your ears open for the Buzz Around the Bullpen.
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7 comments:
It really is sad for the Giants that you had to specify that only their starting rotation is a winner. The offense on that team is still awful. Just look at their infield. Yes, the entire infield, outside of Renteria, is young. But it's not Tampa Bay young (read: good young).
This team is on the verge of having Conor Gillaspie start at third base (either him or Ryan Rohlinger, who jumped from Single A to the Majors last year). Yeah Gillaspie was the Cape League MVP two summers ago, but he has less than 100 pro at bats under his belt. I think he can be a decent everyday Major Leaguer, but they should definitely take the approach the Rays took with Evan Longoria (trying to push back his arbitration year aside, which wasn't actually true) and take their time getting him up to the Majors. Meanwhile they have Pablo Sandoval at first, who really should be a catcher. He has a Yonder Alonso body but seemingly without the same Yonder Alonso projected skill.
The team does have a few prospects waiting in the wings with ETAs of about late 2010-11 (like Buster Posey). For now I really just feel bad for Lincecum and the rest of that rotation.
In my view, the San Francisco Giants deserve to be bad. According to Barry Bonds's agent, Bonds agreed to return to Baseball midway through last season for the league minimum salary. The fans in San Francisco love Bonds. However, for some reason, the team decided to give up on their superstar (I will discuss the collusion issue at a later date).
It is amazing the club is paying more in salary to Renteria than they would probably need to pay to bring back Bonds.
I'd say a loser would be the Boston Red Sox. Where have they improved this year? They have lost the best player in baseball (See: Manny Ramirez) and have not replaced that production in any way.
Losing CoCo and possibly Tek? Replacing with an iffy Rocco and Josh Bard?
The addition of Brad Penny is laughable, and Smoltz is a 6th starter/long reliever.
On top of all of this, Tampa and New York got better. Way to go Boston
I am not sure that Tampa Bay got any better with their off-season moves. However, I agree Tampa got better because their young players will have another year of experience under their belt, and because Carl Crawford and B.J. Upton will not enter 2009 with nagging injuries.
As for Boston's signing of Rocco Baldelli, I was glad to see this. Rocco is a New England native and after everything he has been through I am sure he will be excited to play closer to home.
Chris,
Manny Ramirez as the best player in baseball? What year is this? I know we were both...steamed at how Manny left town but come on. And how has Jason Bay not replaced Manny's production in any way? It's not like they're marching Felix Pie out there to bat in the heart of the order.
I would rate the Red Sox in the middle, in some sort of offseason purgatory.
How would you feel about the Sox somehow acquiring Jarrod Saltalamachia? He played in the Dominican Winter League and did pretty well offensively. Defensively, I only saw him play live once. He played first and he muffed the tail end of a double play ball, which is a little funny since he's a catcher.
Chris,
I have to agree with both Brian and Marc. While Boston didn't make any big off-season "splashes", a healthy Big Papi and a healthy Mike Lowell is like picking up two above average free-agents. In my opinion, neither of these guys ever recovers back to where they were but an 90% Big Papi is still pretty good in the heart of your lineup. Also, take a look at Boston's starting rotation with the addition of Brad Penny and John Smoltz. It's literally 8-9 men deep and quite strong top to bottom. I personally love the John Smoltz addition because nobody pitches like Smoltz in October. I don't see it happening but he's the kind of guy that could be mediocre all year and as soon as the playoffs come, he takes his game to the next level...you simply can't put a price on guys like that.
Also, don't be surprised to see Boston trade one of their starters in the back end of their rotation for some offensive help....and don't be too upset about Tek. I understand he is the "captain" of the team but he is clearly on the downswing on his career.
Salty might not have been a bad option had the Sox not signed Josh Bard. It will be interesting to see how Bard will handle the staff if this is the route the Sox decide to take. I wouldn't have minded seeing Varitek come back for one more year and then go after a guy like Salty to be "waiting in the wings" as he learns from one of the great field generals.
I agree that getting Mike Lowell back is a big plus for this team, without a doubt. The Sox needed someone behind Ortiz to better help his numbers, regardless if he is healthy or not.
I don't buy for one second that Jason Bay is a threat at the plate. Might be a good 30 & 100 guy, but he has batted 30-40 points lower in his career than Manny.
I don't really care about Tek coming back or not. Aside from maybe Martin/Mauer/Martinez all other catchers are in the same bunch. Bard could come out and have 15 hrs and 80 rbis while batting .260 and people would happily take that. Same with Salty.
The rotation is deep, but so isn't Tampa and New York. Penny is no better than a 4/5 and Smoltz is going to be 42 coming off his first injury year. It doesn't get easier as you get older.
I put them as losers just because I feel that they didn't improve themselves while the Yanks did and Tampa getting older with experience and adding Pat the Bat will definitely be noticable.
Can the Sox hit with the rest of the league? Will Lowell return to form from 2 years ago? Will Youk stay hot? Or Dustin Pedrioa? Who plays shortstop? How about Orlando Cabrera? Is JD Drew going to be healthy? Is Rocco going to be healthy? Is Mark Kotsay coming back to be the 4th OF?
Too many questions for the team
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