Yardbarker: Jeremy Affeldt

Those Wacky, Crafty, Crappy Lefties

Sun, 30 Nov 2008 02:35:19 -0500

Rumor has it the Rockies are looking for some left-handed relief. Rumor also has it that every team in Major League Baseball is looking for left-handed relief. With the loss of Brian Fuentes nearly official, all the Rockies have left in terms of lefty relief is the recently acquired Greg Smith.A And it's possible Smith will be [...]

Think Low budget on the pen....

Fri, 28 Nov 2008 14:01:50 -0500

After two years of extremely inconsistent pitching from the corps of relievers in the bullpen, it appears Omar isn't willing to spend big money to solve the problem. Most of us are hoping to see the Mets sign Joe Beimel, Juan Cruz or Brandon Lyon but just as some of us were disappointed to see ...

LOOGY f/x

Thu, 27 Nov 2008 00:34:05 -0500

Here's a dump of PITCHf/x data on a gaggle of free agent and minor league free agent relief pitchers. This is what the Cubs have left to pick from.

Missing a LOOGY? Leave a comment and I'll add them, if there's data.

For more LOOGY material (including already signed guys), see R.J. Swindle, Tre... ...

Cardinals in LOOGY Mode; Cubs Not So Much

Fri, 21 Nov 2008 20:25:41 -0500

The Cubs might as well stay right-handed if the Cardinals keep this up. From mlb.com:

On Oct. 15, the Cardinals signed left-hander Charlie Manning, who was 1-3 with a 5.14 ERA in 57 games for the Washington Nationals.

The Cardinals also have lefties Randy Flores, Tyler Johnson and Jaime Garcia on ...

Giants hope to shore up weakness, invest in bullpen

Fri, 21 Nov 2008 02:09:46 -0500

The Tyler Walker project version 2.0 was a disaster and the easy to root for Wisconsin native Jack Taschner was anything but consistent during his season long audition to be a key player in the bullpen rotation.

Affeldt to Giants

Thu, 20 Nov 2008 21:38:54 -0500

I'm going to try to throw up a short post for each notable free agent signing signing this winter. And yes, most of them will probably be just as timely as this one.

Giants sign Jeremy Affeldt for two years, $8MM.
Analysis: Szymborski, Law, Me.

The consensus on this one is that it's a nice move for San Francisco, which is strange, since that's not really their style. They're starting to put together a pretty nice pitching staff; now if they could just get one position player over that 110 OPS+ barrier they'd be set.

When I first saw that it was two years, I figured between $10MM and $12MM; seems like Affeldt gave the Giants a nice discount here at $4MM/year, especially considering the length. I read somewhere (can't remember where) that Affeldt felt like he overplayed his hand before signing with the Reds last January; maybe that experience played into him making such a quick decision this time.

Now for the fun part:

CC Won't Make Decision 'Till After Thanksgiving

Thu, 20 Nov 2008 01:12:55 -0500

From Newsday:

The Yankees are content to let CC Sabathia take his time on his big decision, and Sabathia will do just that. As first reported by ESPN's Peter Gammons, Sabathia doesn't intend to decide on his next team until after the Thanksgiving weekend.

There was also this from Dan Graziano, who ...

Jeremy Affeldt, the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Thu, 20 Nov 2008 00:38:41 -0500

The Good:

- 29 years old, still sort of young
- 7 year Major League veteran
- More strikeouts than innings pitched (3:1 K:BB ratio)
- Decent ERA last year (3.33)
- Can pitch more than 1 inning
- Could be the guy Jack Taschner wasn't

The Bad:

- $8 million for 2 years, like he just won VH1's "I Love Money"
... ...

Whats Left for the Cards?

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 19:21:06 -0500

The St. Louis Cardinals have been actively searching for a left handed pitcher to bolster their bullpen. Their main target was Jeremy Affeldt, whom recently signed a contract a two-year contract with the San Francisco Giants on Monday. With their top option off the market, who else is there for the team to [...]

Affeldt gone, who's left?

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 19:05:27 -0500

"Giants add LHP Affeldt to bullpen."

There goes that idea. The Giants were able to sign Jeremy Affeldt to a pretty affordable deal too, locking him up for 2 years and $8m. It's hard to tell if that number is inflated or right in line with the rest of the market given the nation-wide economic ...

Giants Scoop Up Affeldt

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 12:29:58 -0500

In an effort to beef up their bullpen, the San Francisco Giants signed Jeremy Affeldt to a 2-year, $8 million deal. When asked about the deal Affeldt said, "[The Giants] came in with an offer, and it was really close to what we were looking for. The negotiation was pretty quick. They were definitely on an A-list for me. They were really wanting to get me and bring me in to help out." A former Cincinnati Red, Affeldt went 1-1 with a 3.33 ERA in 74 appearances. He struck out 80 and walked 25 batters in 78 1/3 innings. In his final 34 games of the 2008 season, Affeldt recorded a 2.23 ERA. "It's a very good place to play and I know that division is up for grabs," Affeldt said. "I look forward to helping this team fight for a playoff spot." This is good news for the Giants' organization, seeing as their relievers had a combined 4.45 ERA and tied for 14th place in the MLB last season. They gave up the third-most home runs at 62. Affeldt will get a $1 million signing bonus with $3 million next season and $4 million in 2010.

Setting the Market

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 03:01:39 -0500

In case you missed it, the Giants signed Jeremy Affeldt to a 2 year/$8 million dollar contract today in an attempt to shore up their horrific middle relief. Affeldt is the first domino to fall this offseason, and this contract will ultimately set the bar for the other free agent middle relievers ...

MacDougal, Cruz & Affledt......

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 00:44:01 -0500

In discussing the make up of the Mets bullpen this year, Omar will be looking for strike out pitchers. The Mets have identified that last years pen had too many contact/finesse pitchers in the pen. It seems that Brian Stokes, Bobby Parnell and Eddie Kunz will get long looks in spring training ...

Daily Farm Report 11/17/08

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 00:15:34 -0500

This isn't prospect related, but where was Mo on Jeremy Affeldt?

AFL

Shane Robinson hit another walk off single for his only hit in 5 AB.

Brett Wallace doubled and walked. From a slow start, Wallace is now up to .310/.368/.575.

Tyler Norrick pitched a perfect inning with one K.

Dominican

Amaury went ...

Setting the Market

Mon, 17 Nov 2008 23:17:27 -0500