LATEST STORIES FROM BASEBALL MUSINGS
Carmona Restricted
MLB placed the player formerly known as Fausto Carmona on the restricted list:
With him on the restricted list, the Indians don’t have to count him toward their 25- or 40-man rosters and he won’t be paid until he reports.
That should save the Indians a little money, but it also puts them down a pitcher. At this point, the rotation looks like Ubaldo Jimenez, Justin...
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17 days ago
Discuss
Hurting for a Drink
Landon Evanson reviews Frank Thomas‘s new brew, Big Hurt Beer.
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17 days ago
Mariners Shakeup
Dave Cameron looks at the upcoming shakeup of the Mariners lineup.
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18 days ago
Fielder’s Contract
Prince Fielder‘s contract is not back loaded. He earns $23 million each of the first two years, then $24 million a year after that. There is no opt-out clause.
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18 days ago
The Better League
MGL tries to quantify why the AL is a better league than the NL in terms of talent at The Book Blog.
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18 days ago
Need a Sideline Reporter?
My good friend Debbie Taylor saw her job disappear with MASN as the Nationals sideline reporter. The Nats Enquirer thinks the elimination of the position is part of a battle between Peter Angelos and the Nationals over TV rights. Debbi and I worked together at ESPN, and I wish her best of luck in finding a new job!
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18 days ago
Pulling the Ball
South Side Sox notes that Brent Morel improved late in the 2011 because he pulled the ball more. I have a friend who believes that any ball hit the opposite way should be an automatic out. If you can’t pull the ball, you’re too wimpy to play. I understand his point of view, but there are certainly situations in which it is better to place a hit than pull a ball into...
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18 days ago
Return to the Golden Age
A commenter on Cleveland.com prompted me to write a about a thought that ran through my head today. The comment is on the Indians spending in the wake of the Prince Fielder signing:
“The Tribe once complained about the Yankees and Red Sox when talking about competitive imbalance. But now, 3 of the 4 teams in their division are seriously outspending Cleveland. Only the Royals...
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18 days ago
Testing With Cause
It appears that Jose Bautista was tested for PEDs quite a bit since he started hitting home runs.
Bautista spoke at a banquet the other night and noted that in the past two years — the two years which coincided with his tremendous uptick in homers — he has been given sixteen drug tests. In the two years before that he had three total.
Good. This is exactly what MLB should be...
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18 days ago
Cespedes Available
Here’s a scene from a baseball front office:
Owner: Prince Fielder was our last hope.
GM: No, there is another.
Yoenis Cespedes, the Cuban defector, established residency in the Dominican Republic and can now become a free agent. Detroit was one of the clubs interested in the slugger. He likely would have been a much cheaper option than Fielder, although having never played...
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19 days ago
The Fielder Worry
Looking at Prince Fielder‘s career, the thing that worries me about his contract is his inconsistency season to season. Take a look at his year-to-year WAR:
Prince Fielder WAR by Season
These are not small movements. In his best seasons, Prince is well worth the contract he signed. His off years would cost the Tigers millions. He’s a bit like Mark Teixeira in this...
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19 days ago
Back to Third
Miguel Cabrera says he is indeed moving back to third base:
Detroit Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera told a Spanish-language website that he will move to third base to make room for new first baseman Prince Fielder.
“I will come back to the third base, which is my natural position,” Cabrera told liderendeportes.com in a story translated into English. “The arrival...
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19 days ago
Cecil on Prince
Cecil Fielder reacts to his son signing with the Tigers:
“That just shocked me,” Cecil Fielder told MLB Radio on SiriusXM. “I just landed in New York … and I got that call — that’s crazy! He’s going to come full circle. You know, he’s been there in Detroit most of his young life, so I think he’ll be comfortable in that place. …
“I know...
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19 days ago
Moving Cabrera to Third
The Tigers moved Miguel Cabrera off third base after 14 games in 2008. Miguel’s play was horrible in those 14 games, and the Tigers happened to have a great defensive third baseman in Brandon Inge. The move made sense. Those 14 games, however, were too short a period to judge Cabrera. The 2008 season was a down year in general for him, and it’s tough to know how...
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19 days ago
Cordero Changes Colors
Former Reds closer Francisco Cordero agrees to be the setup man for the Blue Jays:
The deal is for just one year– no option, apparently– and $4.5-million. It’s the same amount they could have paid Jon Rauch, had they picked up his option, only in Cordero it nets them a pitcher who still throws in the mid-90s (OK, he averaged 93 on his four-seamer in 2011), and...
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19 days ago
Timmy!
On a day for big contracts, Tim Lincecum signs a two-year, $40.5 million deal with the Giants:
The right-hander, a four-time All-Star who helped lead San Francisco to the 2010 World Series title, had asked for a one-year contract worth $21.5 million, a record for a player with fewer than six years of major league experience.
The Giants had countered with $17 million, the highest...
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19 days ago
Prince Finds a Home
The Tigers reached an agreement with Prince Fielder on a nine-year contract:
Now more tweets are coming in confirming Brown’s scoop. Jon Heyman of CBS Sports says the deal is for nine years, $214 million. Wow! Heyman also says that Fielder will play first base and Cabrera, the incumbent first baseman, will take a new role. The average annual value of the deal is $23.78 million...
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19 days ago
Fast and Formulaic
The Astros continue to build an impressive data analysis team:
The Astros added to their statistical strength in the front office, hiring Mike Fast, formerly of Baseball Prospectus to serve in the baseball operations department.
Fast, one of the foremost experts on pitch trajectory data, has also written on HITf/x data for BP. Some of his latest writings have been on hit-and-run...
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19 days ago
A Cut Above
Jeremy Hellickson is ready to add a cutter to his repertoire. Hellickson pitched worse than his ERA in 2011. Some pitchers might post a sub-3.00 ERA and think everything is fine, so it’s good to see Jeremy is not resting on his laurels, but developing a pitch that when thrown correctly is devastating to hitters. This is something to watch as the 2012 season unfolds.
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19 days ago
No Room for Error
MetsBlog.com notes that if everything goes right for the Mets, they can make the playoffs. They don’t have a lot of leeway, however. That’s what makes the Yankees so tough. They have enough good players that if two have off years, two might have career years and even things out. The Mets need career years from everyone, and that’s tough to do.
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19 days ago
Posada Retires
Jorge Posada officially calls it quits:
With Rivera and CC Sabathia looking on, Posada began by quoting Joe DiMaggio: “I want to thank the good Lord for making me a Yankee.”
“I could never wear another uniform,” he said. “I will forever be a Yankee.”
Posada’s voice broke up, especially when he spoke in Spanish. He thanked his teammates...
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19 days ago
Paying for Potential
Brandon Morrow signed a three-year, $20 million deal with the Blue Jays that could turn into $30 million over four years. This buys out his last two years of arbitration and at least his first year of free agency. Given that FanGraphs rates him as being worth $30 million over the last two seasons, it looks like a good deal for the Blue Jays.
Note that Baseball Reference and...
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20 days ago
Quote of the Day
A commenter at The Soxaholix writes in reference to the Cody Ross deal:
He had one hell of a half of a season in 2007. But don’t worry, Bobby V has a way of discovering hidden talent. Coincidentally, most of the talent on the 2012 roster is well hidden.
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20 days ago
Ross Replaced Drew
The Red Sox are about to sign Cody Ross:
Cody Ross agreed to sign with the Boston Red Sox, giving them an experienced hitter with postseason success on his resume to help replace J.D. Drew in right field.
Foxsports.com and ESPN.com reported the contract is for one year and $3 million. Ross told The Associated Press in a text message late Monday that the deal won’t be finalized...
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20 days ago
Coach A-Rod
Alex Rodriguez got Jesus Montero to improve his hitting:
When Jesus Montero, the Mariners’ new hard-hitting catcher, was asked what he did to turn around his batting last season, he gave a surprising answer.
He hadn’t been practicing enough in the batting cage, he said. So his Yankees teammate Alex Rodriguez said he’d fine Montero $100 every day he didn’t practice in the...
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20 days ago
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