Offseason roster thread 2014

[BigBounceyBlueBalls]

lol hahahahahahahahhaahaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

 

AA and Beaston should be demoted to Rogers Telephone customer esrvice reps

 

That way they can scout India for the next million dollar arm too!

 

Do they make Greek food there? Lol

[dannyboy]

That rotation would likley be one of the worst in baseball. Not that Buehrle really helps much, but that is not a good group.

 

At least trading Buehrle frees up some payroll to pick up another piece, either via trade or FA. Maybe Philly picks him up to add to their aging core of veterans? Kidding. Seriously though, we might be able to send him to Kansas City (retaining some salary) to replace James Shields? A playoff tested veteran-particularly one who has won it all-would certainly help that team, even if it's just for one year. Same goes for the Braves, as their rotation looks good, but doesn't have a lot of postseason experience to speak of.

[RealAccountant]

At least trading Buehrle frees up some payroll to pick up another piece, either via trade or FA. Maybe Philly picks him up to add to their aging core of veterans? Kidding. Seriously though, we might be able to send him to Kansas City (retaining some salary) to replace James Shields? A playoff tested veteran-particularly one who has won it all-would certainly help that team, even if it's just for one year. Same goes for the Braves, as their rotation looks good, but doesn't have a lot of postseason experience to speak of.

 

Rogers would rather add the $16M to their bottom line

[G-Snarls]

MLBTR:

 

The Most Improved Free Agents

 

By Brad Johnson [september 20, 2014 at 10:41pm CDT]

 

Behind the scenes at MLBTR, we’re busy discussing and polishing our Top 50 Free Agents list for the 2015 offseason. While we’ll wait until the appropriate time to officially release the list, it’s not too soon to talk about a few of the players who have done the best to improve their free agent stock. In general, I’m looking at players who weren’t even on the radar when Steve Adams kicked off our 2015 Free Agent Power Rankings series on April 15. Today, we’ll take a look at a pure hitter, a starting pitcher, and an elite reliever.

 

1. Victor Martinez. I’m sure Martinez’s appearance on this list is of no surprise. When we compiled our initial power rankings post, 25 players were named. Martinez was not one of them. The 35-year-old designated hitter is limited in defensive versatility, but his bat is clearly elite. He is enjoying a fantastic offensive season with a .335/.404/.566 line and 31 home runs. All are career bests. He’s even stolen three bases (also a career best). The exceptional performance comes with a 10.5% walk rate and 6.6% strikeout rate, making him one of just two players with more walks than strikeouts (Jose Bautista is the other).

 

Martinez, who earned $12MM this season, will receive a qualifying offer, according to Buster Olney of ESPN. It’s difficult to handicap how the slugger will perform on the free agent market. The only recent comparable player is David Ortiz, although the short contracts he signed with the Red Sox do not appear to be directly applicable to Martinez’s situation.

 

The Tigers will have some leverage in retaining Martinez, where he can continue to hit with Miguel Cabrera. The White Sox are also said to be interested, per Bruce Levine of 670TheScore.com. Chicago appears to be an ideal fit with its extremely hitter friendly stadium (Detroit’s Comerica Park is a neutral stadium), and he would make a good tandem with Jose Abreu. We seem to have the basic ingredients for a bidding war, and other teams will likely enter the fray.

 

2. Brandon McCarthy. What a fascinating season it’s been for McCarthy. His fastball gained two mph over previous seasons, and he’s posted the highest ground ball rate of his career at 52.7%. While his 3.93 ERA is merely decent, advanced ERA estimators like xFIP (2.90) and SIERA (3.03) expect better things to come. He’s also buffed his strikeout rate to 7.72 K/9 while maintaining an elite walk rate of 1.53 BB/9.

 

McCarthy was easy to overlook entering the season. His command and control profile made him a steady but uninspired rotation option. His first 18 starts came with the Diamondbacks, where he flashed excellent peripherals with an unseemly 5.01 ERA. He was dealt to the Yankees prior to the July trade deadline. In 13 starts, he’s pitched to a 2.54 ERA that is supported by his peripherals. Many pundits (including this one) worried about the influence of Yankee Stadium on the homer prone starter, but his HR/FB ratio has regressed to league average in New York.

 

Prior to this season, he never managed more than 170 and two-thirds major league innings in a single season. That came in 2011. He’s frequently dealt with injuries including recurring “stress reactions” in his pitching shoulder. His most recent shoulder injury occurred in 2012. This season, he’s managed a career high 194 and two-thirds innings with a chance to eclipse the 200 inning threshold.

 

A sabermetrically inclined front office – especially one with a large ballpark – could justifiably view McCarthy as the fourth best free agent starter, after the triumvirate of Max Scherzer, Jon Lester, and James Shields. McCarthy’s history of shoulder problems will likely temper enthusiasm for a large contract offer. That might serve to increase demand by making him an affordable, second-tier option. McCarthy, who is entering his age 31 season, could top the four-year, $49 million contract signed by Ricky Nolasco last offseason. However, a smart club would include language to mitigate risk from future shoulder flare-ups.

 

3. Andrew Miller. If Miller was on anybody’s radar entering the season, it was as a moderately interesting LOOGY. By halving his walk rate and proving he’s no platoon pitcher, Miller will enter the offseason as an untested but possibly elite closing option. Due to his inexperience recording saves, clubs may still look at him as a setup reliever.

 

Split between the Red Sox and Orioles, the 30-year-old southpaw has posted a 1.93 ERA in 60 and two-thirds innings. His 14.84 K/9 is impressive, especially in light of his 2.37 BB/9. He’s allowed just 32 hits on the season and is one of three relievers to cross the 100 strikeout threshold – four others appear poised to do so by the end of the season.

 

No recent left-handed reliever has entered free agency coming off of such a strong season, which puts Miller in uncharted waters. Jeremy Affeldt, who signed a three-year, $18MM contract with the Giants following the 2012 season is a distant comparable. Joaquin Benoit is probably the best example among recent right-handed pitchers. He signed a two-year, $15.5MM contract with an option after emerging as the Tigers closer. However, he was also entering his age 36 season, so he was considerably older than Miller. Per the MLBTR Transaction Tracker, no non-closing reliever has signed a contract with over a $20MM guarantee. Miller has a chance to be the first. Prior to the 2007 season, Justin Speier signed a four-year, $18MM contract that could serve as a barometer of sorts once inflation is included.

[G-Snarls]

No way V Mart comes anywhere near that again, is there?? What a season!

 

McCarthy seems like a worthwhile gamble for someone, but I can't see AA going in

[jays4life19]

No way V Mart comes anywhere near that again, is there?? What a season!

 

McCarthy seems like a worthwhile gamble for someone, but I can't see AA going in

 

My FA Wish List.

1. Russell Martin

2. Brandon McCarthy

3. Norichika Aoki

 

I could see them all being under valued on the FA market for their actual worth. Obviously you would need to make trades to free up $ ( Buehrle + Navarro)

[RealAccountant]

No way V Mart comes anywhere near that again, is there?? What a season!

 

McCarthy seems like a worthwhile gamble for someone, but I can't see AA going in

 

AA won't do anything. No money

[baubau]

My FA Wish List.

1. Russell Martin

2. Brandon McCarthy

3. Norichika Aoki

4. JJ Hardy

 

I could see them all being under valued on the FA market for their actual worth. Obviously you would need to make trades to free up $ ( Buehrle + Navarro + Reyes)

 

Fixed that for you.

[Brenner]

Stephen Drew will likely be looking for a 1 year deal to rebuild his value. Could be an affordable veteran to add into the SS/2B mix.

 

Drew/Goins at 2b could work, or could shift Reyes to 2b with Drew at SS.

[KingKat]

Stephen Drew will likely be looking for a 1 year deal to rebuild his value. Could be an affordable veteran to add into the SS/2B mix.

 

Could happen if he fires Boras. Otherwise, I'd consider it a long shot. It's a shame because it's a fit. The guy can field and the Rogers Centre is a good place to rebuild offensive value.

[Mikeleelop]

another Cuban defector. this time a 2B Hector Olivera. He is turning 30 and has good power

 

another wish list addition.

 

Sign Melkey and add Olivera. you have your lineup set!

 

1. Reyes SS

2. Melkey LF

3. Bautista RF

4. Lind DH

5. EE 1B

6. Navarro C

7. Lawrie 3b

8. Olivera 2B

9. Pillar/Gose CF (Pompey by midseason)

 

Bench Goins IF, Mayberry OF/1b/DH, Valencia 3b/1b, one of pillar/gose OF

[RealAccountant]

^ he wont come here. They can get american citizenship easily, but our lazy government will do anything to give refugees citizenship, but with cuban defectors and such not so much. All they would really have to do is promise to give their whole family canadian citizenship, why not he is going to making lots of money.

[Mikeleelop]

The big benefit of signing the Cuban FA is that there is no draft pick compensation attached. I think this will be a big deal to AA

 

I also like the idea of signing the other Cuban FA Thomas to play RF. Although, ive read that he may get $100million to sign somewhere. That likely prevents Toronto from being a legitimate player

[Abomination]

^ he wont come here. They can get american citizenship easily, but our lazy government will do anything to give refugees citizenship, but with cuban defectors and such not so much. All they would really have to do is promise to give their whole family canadian citizenship, why not he is going to making lots of money.

 

I don't think most of them get American citizenship, but citizenships from other countries. It's the work permits that could be more of a problem, but sports teams don't seem to have issues with that.

[GD]

Olivera isn't defecting I don't think

[BTS]

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2014/09/pirates-willing-to-stretch-payroll-to-retain-martin.html

 

Pirates willing to stretch payroll to retain Martin.

 

They know what's up.

[TDotttt2005]

Jeff Blair is talking about trading Buerhle + Money + Prospect (Norris) for a younger stud position player. I think Buehrle will be traded, possibly just for the salary relief with very little coming back, and that would be fine if we used that money to re-sign Melky and another mid-tier free agent or two. I wouldn't mind the Blair scenario, but my worst case scenario here is that they do not re-sign Melky because they say "we didn't match up on term" or whatever AA/Beestons excuse is, and then use Buerhle + Norris to replace him in LF, which would be a huge waste of assets.

[wardhenke1]

My expectations for the off-season are lower if anything than what happened this year. According to Cott's our payroll is dropping to $96.2m and I would expect management to either stick to this or see it cut even further.

 

Truthfully I would support this however; the current core has shown no signs whatsoever of being a consistent contender for the playoffs and we would have to go 5-0 in our remaining games just to match AA's best year (his first) at 85-77. We managed that on $78.9m.

Edited September 26, 2014 by wardhenke1

[TDotttt2005]

My expectations for the off-season are lower if anything that what happened this year. According to Cott's our payroll is dropping to $96.2m and I would expect management to either stick to this or see it cut even further.

 

Truthfully I would support this however; the current core has shown no signs whatsoever of being a consistent contender for the playoffs and we would have to go 5-0 in our remaining games just to match AA's best year (his first) at 85-77. We managed that on $78.9m.

 

If this is the case, and payroll will go down, then Melky isn't coming back for sure. I'd rather just trade Bautista and EE, get prospects back, and line up the position player prospects with the pitching prospects, in terms of ages and primes, and start over. Theres no point in having a 105million dollar payroll, and winning 80 games for the next few years.

[Chappy]

Payroll isn't going down.

[Mikeleelop]

Olivera isn't defecting I don't think

 

he has according to MLBRumours and Ben Badler at Baseball America

[TDotttt2005]

Payroll isn't going down.

 

Says Beeston. Take from that what you may.

[guylaroche5]

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2014/09/pirates-willing-to-stretch-payroll-to-retain-martin.html

 

Pirates willing to stretch payroll to retain Martin.

 

They know what's up.

 

if kratz is worth 19 mil/year martin would surely cost around....

 

http://techcitement.com/admin/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/dr-evil.jpg

[G-Snarls]

We have just been informed that Mark Buerhle is awesome

 

We should provably keep him

[Frenchsoup]

if kratz is worth 19 mil/year martin would surely cost around....

 

http://techcitement.com/admin/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/dr-evil.jpg

 

Even if he's not worth 19 million it was still a dumb trade. You get a platoon 3rd baseman who can play once every 4 days and is heading into arbitration, whereas Kratz was making league min and satisfied our needs as a guy who could catch the knuckleballer and could play everyday if he had to.

[GD]

he has according to MLBRumours and Ben Badler at Baseball America

 

I would be all over signing this guy and still kind of am but he's injury prone isn't he? Or it might just have been 1-2 big ones.

 

If we're not at least interested though I give up. He's pretty close to exactly what we need.

[ElNik2013]

I don't think most of them get American citizenship, but citizenships from other countries. It's the work permits that could be more of a problem, but sports teams don't seem to have issues with that.

 

 

I'm pretty sure Cubans who set foot on US territory are treated differently than other immigrants by the US govt., probably because of the embargo. On the other hand, ball players probably get working visas and then end up applying for permanent residence and then citizenship.

 

However, I've been wrong before.

[G-Snarls]

Jeff Blair is talking about trading Buerhle + Money + Prospect (Norris) for a younger stud position player. I think Buehrle will be traded, possibly just for the salary relief with very little coming back, and that would be fine if we used that money to re-sign Melky and another mid-tier free agent or two. I wouldn't mind the Blair scenario, but my worst case scenario here is that they do not re-sign Melky because they say "we didn't match up on term" or whatever AA/Beestons excuse is, and then use Buerhle + Norris to replace him in LF, which would be a huge waste of assets.

 

We don't need (or at least shouldn't need) to move salary in order to keep Melky. He's at 8M going to 13-15. Rasmus and his 7M are gone. Likely replaced by 2 guys making 1M combined (2/3 of Gose Pompey Pillar)

 

Any money saved should be for a legit controllable 2B.

[Abomination]

We don't need (or at least shouldn't need) to move salary in order to keep Melky. He's at 8M going to 13-15. Rasmus and his 7M are gone. Likely replaced by 2 guys making 1M combined (2/3 of Gose Pompey Pillar)

 

Any money saved should be for a legit controllable 2B.

 

Money saved goes into the 6M raise Reyes gets next year, among others.

[G-Snarls]

Money saved goes into the 6M raise Reyes gets next year, among others.

 

Sigh...

 

Thanks for reminding us. He'll be 6 million dollars better next year, right? Right???