2009/2010 MLB Offseason Thread

IATA · Nov 16, 2009

Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports believes it's a three-horse race for Matt Holliday: the Red Sox, Yankees, and Angels.

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/10369008/With-Boras-at-his-side,-look-for-Holliday-to-go-to-AL

Only a handful of teams have the resources and desire to sign Matt Holliday.

In that sense, the market for the left fielder's services is quite small.
But it's plenty big enough for Scott Boras to exploit. And you can bet that Holliday will end up with the contender who offers the most money.

The big-money AL teams will have their sights set on Matt Holliday. (Jeff Gross / Getty Images)

The Yankees, who need a left fielder, are interested.

The Red Sox, who need a left fielder, are interested.

The Angels, who need a power bat, are interested.

So, I fully expect Holliday to play in the American League next season. The highest bidder will determine where. He won't be back in St. Louis, where he finished this season and seemed so comfortable in the process.

Surprised? You shouldn't be. Boras clients — along with most ballplayers and most people in this country — affix their signatures to the biggest offer they can find. It's very hard to find fault with that.

The prelude to the Holliday bidding reminds me so much of Mark Teixeira's voyage into free agency one year ago. I'm not talking about the eight-year, $180 million contract he signed, although Boras would love a repeat of that.

Instead, it's the exclusivity and financial means of the group that has a real chance to sign Boras' latest franchise slugger.

The Mets are this year's Nationals, a team that will make an offer because it must. They don't look like certain contenders in 2010, so they won't win the prize. But thanks for checking.

The Giants and Mariners? They are coming off improved 2009 seasons and would benefit greatly from Holliday's power. But I can't envision either of them outbidding the three AL powers, particularly when faraway left field fences would be tacit in both offers.

The Cardinals, meanwhile, have yet to make a formal contract offer. Once their exclusive window passes without a deal — and it will — they will merely become one of 30 teams with a chance to bid on Holliday. No more. No less.

On Friday, I spoke with someone who has knowledge of the developing Boras/Holliday plan. I asked if he believed the Cardinals would be given any special preference, based on Holliday's time in St. Louis this year.

Nope.

"He was there two months," the person said. "St. Louis is a good place to play — a great city with a good fan base. But do I think it holds any special significance to him? No."

Translation: If the Cardinals want Holliday to protect Albert Pujols again in 2010, they will need to cut the biggest check. And the folks in St. Louis simply don't spend like the Red Sox and Yankees.

Last winter, the old rivals were the final two teams in on Teixeira. Boston's bid stopped at eight years and $170 million. New York's went $10 million higher. On such a large scale, that's not a huge difference: around $1 million per year when spread over the lifetime of the deal.

But the gap was big enough to matter. And in truth, the Yankees needed Teixeira worse than the Red Sox or Angels did. So, they got him.

If history is about to repeat itself, then Holliday will be en route to Boston — provided, of course, that Jason Bay signs elsewhere.

The Red Sox have a greater need for a Holliday in 2010 than either the Yankees or Angels. Their core is about to turn over, and they have an obvious opening for a right-handed slugger (provided Bay doesn't return).

Brian Cashman of the Yankees and Tony Reagins of the Angels have more flexibility (right now) than Theo Epstein, who must work around David Ortiz as a full-time designated hitter.

All three GMs can tell Boras that they are also shopping in a trade market that suddenly includes Detroit's Curtis Granderson, who has played left field in the past and would probably be willing to do so again.

A robust trade market could harm Boras' leverage, but he will be in command again if Bay, represented by Joe Urbon, signs before Holliday.

Boras' dream scenario would probably involve Bay hooking onto a West Coast team — perhaps the Mariners or Giants — by the middle of December. That would leave Boras plenty of time to pit the AL heavyweights against one another.

Still, a number of executives and scouts told me Friday they believe St. Louis is the best overall fit for Holliday. I can't dispute that. It's a one-newspaper town with a devoted, forgiving fan base that is close to where Holliday grew up (Oklahoma).

If Holliday struggles in April while playing in Boston or New York — like he did this year with the A's — there will be boos and second-guessing. Life would probably be less complicated in St. Louis.

The Angels could represent a happy midpoint — big enough to garner plenty of attention, relaxed enough to let him breathe, an organization that wins routinely and should be back in the playoffs again next October.

"Matt is not a big city, flashy guy," said one executive who knows Holliday. "He loves his family and baseball and does not seek the limelight. He is better suited for cities like Seattle, St. Louis and Los Angeles than in the media pressure cookers of Boston and New York."

One scout pointed out that Holliday knows the pitchers, cities and ballparks in the National League much better than he does in the American League. Very true.

But this isn't like picking a college. Comfort and geography are very important, right up until you consider all that money and the near promise of postseason baseball. Ask CC Sabathia.

For reasons understandable and justifiable, we should expect Holliday to sign the biggest contract he's offered. And I'm almost certain that means he will be playing left field for the Red Sox, Yankees or Angels.
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Fluff piece, but a good read none-the-less.

Poeman · Nov 16, 2009

Holliday is nice, but hes so expensive.

IATA · Nov 16, 2009

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4660425

NEW YORK -- Florida Marlins outfielder Chris Coghlan is the National League Rookie of the Year, and Oakland Athletics closer Andrew Bailey is the AL winner.

Coghlan edged Philadelphia Phillies pitcher J.A. Happ in a close race, receiving 17 first-place votes and 105 points Monday in balloting by the Baseball Writers' Association of America. Happ, the only player picked on all 32 ballots, had 10 first-place votes and 94 points.

Bailey, an All-Star in his first major league season, was selected first on 13 of 28 ballots and finished with 88 points. His 26 saves and 1.84 ERA were the best among AL rookie pitchers, and he struck out 91 in 83 1/3 innings. Opponents batted .167 against Bailey.

Texas Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus was the runner-up with 65 points, one more than Detroit Tigers pitcher Rick Porcello.
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I'm surprised Coughlin took it in the NL. I figured Happ was a shoe in.

Poeman · Nov 16, 2009

IATA said: ↑

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4660425

I'm surprised Coughlin took it in the NL. I figured Happ was a shoe in.
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No there was alot of competition in the NL.

Also Mcutchen is there

Bailey was the right pick though

IATA · Nov 17, 2009

Grienke takes the AL Cy Young

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4663979

NEW YORK -- Zack Greinke won the American League Cy Young Award on Tuesday, beating out Felix Hernandez after a spectacular season short on wins but long on domination.

Greinke went 16-8 with a 2.16 ERA for the Kansas City Royals. Hernandez went 19-5 with a 2.49 ERA for the Seattle Mariners.

AL Cy Young Voting
Royals ace Zack Greinke won the American League Cy Young Award overwhelmingly Tuesday. A breakdown of the voting:

Player, team 1st-place votes Total
Zack Greinke, Royals 25 134
Felix Hernandez, Mariners 2 80
Justin Verlander, Tigers 1 14
Others receiving votes: CC Sabathia, Yankees, 13, Roy Halladay, Blue Jays, 11.

Greinke received 25 first-place votes and three seconds for 134 points in balloting by the Baseball Writers' Association of America. Hernandez drew two firsts, 23 seconds and one third for 80 points.

The Detroit Tigers' Justin Verlander was third with the remaining first-place vote and nine thirds for 14 points. He was followed by the New York Yankees' CC Sabathia with 13 points and Toronto Blue Jays' Roy Halladay with 11 points.

The NL winner will be announced Thursday.

Greinke's ERA was the lowest in the AL since Pedro Martinez's 1.74 ERA in 2000 and his 242 strikeouts were second in the league behind Verlander.

It was quite a turnaround for the 26-year-old right-hander, who was the sixth overall pick in the 2002 amateur draft but led the AL in losses in 2005 when he went 5-17.

He left spring training in February 2006 and went home to Florida with what later was diagnosed as a social anxiety disorder. He started working out in the minors about six weeks later and returned to the majors in late September.

Greinke was 7-7 the following year and 13-10 in 2008 before his breakout season.

His victory total matched that of the Arizona Diamondbacks' Brandon Webb three years ago for the fewest by a starting pitcher to win a Cy Young Award in a non-shortened season and was the fewest by an AL starter to win in a full-length season.

Kansas City, which tied for last place in the AL Central at 65-97, scored just 13 runs in his eight losses and 21 runs in his nine no-decisions. He failed to get a victory in six starts in which he allowed one run or none.

He was particularly sharp at the start and finish, going 5-0 with a 0.50 ERA in April and 5-0 with a 1.29 ERA in his last eight starts. He didn't allow any runs in his first three starts and any earned runs in his first four, and his 0.84 ERA through 10 starts was the first below 1.00 in the major leagues since Juan Marichal's 0.55 in 1966.

He struck out 15 over eight innings against the Cleveland Indians on Aug. 25 and followed five days later by pitching a one-hitter at Seattle. After Kenji Johjima's soft second-inning single, Greinke retired his final 22 batters.

Greinke, who agreed to a $38 million, four-year contract last winter, receives a $100,000 bonus for winning.

The first-place votes for Hernandez came from Chris Assenheimer of The Chronicle-Telegram in Elyria, Ohio, and Mark Feinsand of the Daily News In New York. Verlander's first-place vote was cast by Steve Kornacki of Booth Newspapers in Michigan.
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Yisman · Nov 17, 2009

Happ, Hunter, and Hanson were the best rookies.

Poor choices by the writers, IMO.

dugan · Nov 19, 2009

Mccutchen wasn't bad. He had a chance to win it too

Poeman · Nov 19, 2009

Yisman said: ↑

Happ, Hunter, and Hanson were the best rookies.

Poor choices by the writers, IMO.
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Coghlan finished with like a .372 batting average the second half of the season.

That pretty impressive

17a_tailgater · Nov 19, 2009

Jason Bay Was Offered A Deal By The Boston Red Sox

But He Declined The Offer As Per 1050 Espn Radio

17a_tailgater · Nov 19, 2009

60 Milion 4 Year Deal

IATA · Nov 19, 2009

Bay is obviously shooting for bigger bucks, probly in the 70-75 million over 4 range...$17-18 million per.

IATA · Nov 19, 2009

Tim Lincecum win NL Cy Young

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4671110

NEW YORK -- Talk about a freak -- Tim Lincecum needed just 15 wins to bag another NL Cy Young Award.

Yup, throw out those old baseball cards. Wins and losses don't mean much anymore when it comes time for voters to pick baseball's best pitchers. It's all about WHIP, FIP, BABIP and other lines of alphabet soup.

"It's turned into a game of complete numbers and statistics and what people do with that," Lincecum said.

Lincecum won the Cy Young Award on Thursday for the second straight year, emerging from one of the tightest votes in the history of the honor to become the first repeat winner since Randy Johnson.

NL Cy Young Voting
Giants ace Tim Lincecum had enough support across the voting board to win his second straight NL Cy Young Award. A breakdown of the voting:

Player, team 1st-place votes Total
Tim Lincecum, Giants 11 100
Chris Carpenter, Cardinals 9 94
Adam Wainwright, Cardinals 12 90
Others receiving votes: Javier Vazquez, Braves; Dan Haren, Diamondbacks.

Only 10 points separated the top three vote-getters. Chris Carpenter was second and St. Louis teammate Adam Wainwright finished third despite getting the most first-place votes.

Lincecum, nicknamed "The Freak" for his giant stride, led the NL with 261 strikeouts and tied for the league lead with four complete games and two shutouts.

The wiry right-hander attracts plenty of attention on the mound with his shoulder-length brown hair and twisting delivery. But it was his 15 victories -- the fewest for a Cy Young starter over a non-shortened season -- that were really noticeable for the award winner.

The 2009 honors for Lincecum and Kansas City Royals ace Zack Greinke reflect a recent shift in how pitchers are evaluated. The focus has changed to more developed statistics, including some that even take into account team defense.

Greinke equaled the previous low of 16 wins for a non-shortened season when he won the AL award on Tuesday. Afterward, he talked all about FIP, a mathematician's dream that stands for Fielding Independent Pitching.

Lincecum has his own favorite indicator.

"To say which one I look to the most, I would just say WHIP," he said, referring to walks plus hits allowed per inning, "just because you just limit the amount of baserunners that can hurt you."

Lincecum is facing misdemeanor marijuana charges stemming from a traffic stop in his home state of Washington on Oct. 30. No questions were allowed about the incident in his conference call, but he acknowledged making a mistake and apologized in a prepared statement.

"I know that as a professional athlete I have a responsibility to conduct myself appropriately both on and off the field," he said. "I certainly have learned a valuable lesson through all of this and I promise to do better in the future.

"I hope and expect that the matter will be resolved soon. In the meantime I am focused on preparing for the 2010 season."

Lincecum received 11 first-place votes, 12 seconds and nine thirds for 100 points in balloting released by the Baseball Writers' Association of America. Carpenter had nine firsts, 14 seconds and seven thirds to take second with 94.

Wainwright, who led the NL with 19 wins and 233 innings, had 12 first-place votes, five seconds and 15 thirds for 90 points. Trevor Hoffman, who finished behind Tom Glavine in 1998, is the only other player to get the most firsts and not win the award.

"The guys I was going up against, Wainwright and Carpenter, had tremendous seasons," the 25-year-old Lincecum said. "It was a lucky one for me. I'll take them as I come I guess."

Two voters, Will Carroll of Baseball Prospectus and Keith Law of ESPN.com, did not include Carpenter on their ballots. Carroll had Wainwright in the top spot, Lincecum second and Arizona's Dan Haren third. Law voted for Lincecum, Atlanta's Javier Vazquez and Wainwright in third. Those were the only votes for Haren and Vazquez.

The six-point gap between Lincecum and Carpenter is tied for the third-closest in the NL since the ballot expanded to three pitchers in 1970. The 10-point margin from first to third is the second-closest for the NL ballot.

Lincecum, who had a $650,000 salary and is headed for a big raise now that he's eligible for arbitration, did not have any bonus provision for winning the award. Carpenter receives $100,000 for finishing second, Wainwright $100,000 for winding up third and Vazquez $70,000 for being voted fourth.

Lincecum teamed with Matt Cain to give the Giants a strong 1-2 punch at the top of their rotation, helping them stay in contention all year in one of baseball's biggest surprises. He went 15-7 with a 2.48 ERA in 32 starts and 225 1-3 innings.

Johnson, Lincecum's teammate this year in San Francisco, and Sandy Koufax are the only other pitchers to win consecutive NL Cy Young Awards. Johnson won four straight from 1999-2002 with the Arizona Diamondbacks and Koufax was honored in 1965 and 1966 for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The 5-foot-11, 170-pound Lincecum made his major league debut in 2007 and is 40-17 with a 2.90 ERA in three seasons.
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Yisman · Nov 24, 2009

Pujols and Mauer got the MVPs. Well deserved.

wildthing202 · Nov 25, 2009

http://sports.espn.go.com/boston/mlb/news/story?id=4687981

Sox pursue Halladay

xjets2002x · Dec 4, 2009

Nice, under the radar move by the A's acquiring Jake Fox from the Cubs. Yeah, he's 27, but his game lends itself to longevity.

-X-

MBGreen · Dec 4, 2009

looks like the Red Sox have found their SS in Marco Scutaro....he signed a 2 year deal with them yesterday.

Cappy · Dec 4, 2009

Looks like Theo decided to buy high on Scutaro.

IATA · Dec 4, 2009

Scutaro is a better option than Lugo, I'll take it.

MBGreen · Dec 4, 2009

IATA said: ↑

Scutaro is a better option than Lugo, I'll take it.
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he draws walks like a turd attracts flies.

Great signing for you guys.....it sucks to see him go...but we're in a total rebuild stage.

nyjcanada · Dec 4, 2009

great signing by theo. i wanted him since i was forced to watch many jays games year after year. he's an OBP guy, fits right into our system. we'll probably play him near the bottom of the order, where we've had almost zero production for the last couple years. draw walks like mad and can play great defense. perfect addition theo.

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