2009-2010 Hot Stove Thread

[Tim McG]

The Giants are in the same boat as the Mariners: They both need a strong power bat in the line up if they want to go anywhere. Halladay would be a perfect fit with the Giants, after the black hole that was left field last year. Bay would be okay, but he really tailed off toward the end of last year. You can't keep living off Panda and Lincecum forever.

That's a fact, too. Fred Lewis was a walking, talking disaster on two legs in LF.

Panda will get better once he learns that every pitch coming to him isn't a HR ball. He needs to settle down and wait on the pitch.

Lincecum will only improve with age. Pitching isn't the issue in SF.

Hitting is.

[ghost of miles]

This has been on YouTube before:

...man, I'd forgotten how many pitches Mookie fouled off during that final at-bat.

[ghost of miles]

Just as long as he doesn't end up w/ either NY team I'll be happy.

J.H., any rumblings about Philadelphia in the market? Or what they're looking at in general for their pitching rotation next year?

No rumors. They did just sign Juan Castro as a back up middle infielder. They need a 3rd baseman since they declined to pick up the option on Feliz.

According to this hot-stove report, they're pursuing Adrian Beltre for 3B.

[Matthew]

Hall Of Fame Eligible Players:

Roberto Alomar

Kevin Appier

Harold Baines

Bert Blyleven

Ellis Burks

Andre Dawson

Andres Galarraga

Pat Hentgen

Mike Jackson

Eric Karros

Ray Lankford

Barry Larkin

Edgar Martinez

Don Mattingly

Fred McGriff

Mark McGwire

Jack Morris

Dale Murphy

Dave Parker

Tim Raines

Shane Reynolds

David Segui

Lee Smith

Alan Trammell

Robin Ventura

Todd Zeile

Actually, there are some really quality players in this group. Right off the bat, I'd vote for Tim Raines, Lee Smith, and maybe Roberto Alomar. That's the problem with this group -- very good players, but most, I feel, don't cross the line to Hall of Fame level.

Edited November 27, 2009 by Matthew

[ghost of miles]

How cool is this? Strat-O-Mat Baseball now has a Negro League edition.

I was a Strat-O-Mat fanatic when I was a kid--back in the pre-computer-version days, playing with the paper cards and dice (the board game is still available, it appears).

Edited November 28, 2009 by ghost of miles

[Dave James]

How cool is this? Strat-O-Mat Baseball now has a Negro League edition.

I was a Strat-O-Mat fanatic when I was a kid--back in the pre-computer-version days, playing with the paper cards and dice (the board game is still available, it appears).

Good. That will balance out the RBI Baseball 1986 video game where everyone was white regardless of their actual color.

[ghost of miles]

Dave, hot-stove reading on the way for me--I think you'll approve:

[Matthew]

25 Best Ricky Henderson Stories Of All Time.

[ghost of miles]

25 Best Ricky Henderson Stories Of All Time.

Loved those, thanks for posting 'em, Matthew.

[ghost of miles]

According to this NY Daily News article, the Yankees are more likely to bring Johnny Damon back than they are Matsui.

[Dave James]

According to this NY Daily News article, the Yankees are more likely to bring Johnny Damon back than they are Matsui.

As much as appreciate the stoic professionalism of Hadeki Matsui, I think this is the right call. I'm hearing that the Mariners might be interested in signing him if New York does pass. He'd make for a nice combination with Ichiro. I might even watch some M's games if that happens. If the Yanks don't sign him, I certainly wish him the best wherever he goes. He's a class act.

Ghost, that book looks interesting. I have not read it. Halberstam is as good as it gets whether he's writing about sports or politics. I think I mentioned to you how much I enjoyed his book about the Yankee Red Sox pennant race in 1949, Summer of '49. The Breaks of the Game, the book he wrote about the Portland Trailblazers post-championship travails, is a classic.

[Matthew]

I think the Mariners will pass on Matsui, they have Griffey for DH already, and they can always pick up another player who can DH and play the field, and doesn't bat lefty. If the Mariners had both Griffey and Matsui, that's two players who can only DH, so that would be a big roster hit in terms of player maneuverability. If there is a Japanese player the Mariners want, I would say Dice K is the one on their minds.

[Brad]

The conventional wisdom at the end of last season was that Damon would be the choice over Matsui because Matsui is basically a DH and they want to use that position to rest several players. The biggest mistake you can make is to let emotion rule your decision; better to get rid of a player a year too soon than a year too late.

[ghost of miles]

Ghost, that book looks interesting. I have not read it. Halberstam is as good as it gets whether he's writing about sports or politics. I think I mentioned to you how much I enjoyed his book about the Yankee Red Sox pennant race in 1949, Summer of '49. The Breaks of the Game, the book he wrote about the Portland Trailblazers post-championship travails, is a classic.

I love SUMMER OF '49--not sure I still have my old mass-market paperback, may have lost it in the course of a move a few years ago. OCTOBER 1964 evidently delves into the epic Yankees-Cardinals WS that year and ties it into the larger societal changes that were going on...chronicling the last year of the 40-year Yankee dynasty and the rise of the Cards, who had several good, young African-American players (Bob Gibson, Lou Brock, Curt Flood). Here's the Amazon write-up:

Heroes have a habit of growing larger over time, as do the arenas in which they excelled. The 1964 World Series between the Yankees and Cardinals was coated in myth from the get-go. The Yankees represented the establishment: white, powerful, and seemingly invincible. The victorious Cards, on the other hand, were baseball's rebellious future: angry and defiant, black, and challenging. Their seven-game barnburner, played out against a backdrop of an America emerging from the Kennedy assassination, escalating the war in Vietnam, and struggling with civil rights, marked a turning point--neither the nation, nor baseball, would ever be quite so innocent again. Halberstam, one of the great reporters of the '60s, looks back in this marvelous and spirited elegy to the era, the game, and players such as Mantle, Maris, Ford, Gibson, Brock, and Flood with a clear eye in search of the truth that time has blurred into legend. His confident prose, diligent reporting, and deft analysis make it clear how much more interesting--and forceful--the truth can be.

Good reading in advance of the next MAD MEN season too, since (unless Weiner's executing another two-year leap) should cover 1964.

I've long wanted to read that book about the '96 Yanks--but this year's team, which was so magical in its own right, has finally inspired me to get it.

[Dave James]

ESPN is reporting that the Yankees have not offered salary arbitration to Matsui, Damon or Pettitte. What that means in terms of the CBA is that if any of the three sign with another team, they will not receive any compensatory draft picks. I should know more about this than I do, but I don't think I understand why this is in the Yankee's best interests. Any ideas?

[ghost of miles]

ESPN is reporting that the Yankees have not offered salary arbitration to Matsui, Damon or Pettitte. What that means in terms of the CBA is that if any of the three sign with another team, they will not receive any compensatory draft picks. I should know more about this than I do, but I don't think I understand why this is in the Yankee's best interests. Any ideas?

Does salary arbitration commit the Yankees to anything? Sounds like it does--this is from an article about arbitration from last year's offseason:

The upside for the team (that does offer arbitration) is the additional draft pick or two, but they are also on the hook for at least a one-year contract at market value, which will likely be a bump from what the player earned the previous season, if an offer is accepted.

Players have a deadline of 11:59 p.m. ET on Sunday to accept arbitration, but can still negotiate with their former teams, even if they decline the offer. If the player accepts arbitration, the two sides can negotiate a deal, but will go before an arbitrator if no agreement is reached.

It was a bit of a surprise move by the Yankees, who were expected to offer arbitration to either Abreu or Pettitte. The club remains open to the idea of bringing the players back for 2009, and Abreu and Pettitte, both Type A, would like to return.

...and Pettitte did end up returning for this season. Sounds like NY would rather risk losing the draft pick compensation than locking themselves into some sort of one-year deal with Matsui, Damon, or Pettitte.

[PHILLYQ]

ESPN is reporting that the Yankees have not offered salary arbitration to Matsui, Damon or Pettitte. What that means in terms of the CBA is that if any of the three sign with another team, they will not receive any compensatory draft picks. I should know more about this than I do, but I don't think I understand why this is in the Yankee's best interests. Any ideas?

If the Yanks offer arbitration to them and they accept and there are no free agent offers accepted by the players, then the Yanks are bound to a one year contract at either at what the Yanks offer or what the player requests. In such a case the Yanks would almost surely have to pay Matsui or Damon much more than they want to pay. With Pettite he's either playing for the Yanks or not at all.

[Brad]

Offering arbitration is akin to a binding contract, a situation they don't want to be in with the outfielders.

[Chalupa]

Wagner gets a one deal from Atlanta for $7 million; BoSox get a draft pick.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4705811

Good move for the Braves but they are going to need some more bats if they are going to stop the Phils from winning their 4th NL East title in a row.

[Quincy]

I enjoyed October 1964 but skipped Summer of '49 as Bill James skewered it in his Baseball Book 1991. You can find a list of some of the errors on the Amazon review page. The title of Bill's 4 page critical article from The Baseball Book 1991 goes like this:

Summer of '49

Or Was that '50

Wait a minute, I'm almost sure that was '37

And I think maybe that was Vince DiMaggio

Edited December 3, 2009 by Quincy

[Brad]

Summer of 1949 was a wonderful book, a good read (as just about anything Halberstam did). Bill James is not one of my favorites so I wouldn't give much credence to what a statistic obsessed person like him had to say about one of our great journalists.

[Chalupa]

Phils sign Polanco for 3rd base at 3 years, $18.

http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/phillie...ater_today.html

I like it. I would love it if Polanco was 3 years younger. Would have loved Chone Figgins but the Phillies were not going to pay the kind of money he wants.

Now that arbitration deadline has passed the hot stove is going to heat up very quickly.....

[blind-blake]

Phils sign Polanco for 3rd base at 3 years, $18.

http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/phillie...ater_today.html

I like it. I would love it if Polanco was 3 years younger. Would have loved Chone Figgins but the Phillies were not going to pay the kind of money he wants.

Now that arbitration deadline has passed the hot stove is going to heat up very quickly.....

I like it, too. Now some pitching!!!

[Chalupa]

Phils sign Polanco for 3rd base at 3 years, $18.

http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/phillie...ater_today.html

I like it. I would love it if Polanco was 3 years younger. Would have loved Chone Figgins but the Phillies were not going to pay the kind of money he wants.

Now that arbitration deadline has passed the hot stove is going to heat up very quickly.....

I like it, too. Now some pitching!!!

Something else to consider is that Beltre and Figgins were offered arbitration by their teams which means if we had signed either of them we would have forfeited a first round draft pick. Polanco, even though he was a Type A free agent was not offered arbitration by Detroit so the Phillies do not have to surrender a draft pick. Sweet!

Edited December 3, 2009 by J.H. Deeley

[Quincy]

Summer of 1949 was a wonderful book, a good read (as just about anything Halberstam did). Bill James is not one of my favorites so I wouldn't give much credence to what a statistic obsessed person like him had to say about one of our great journalists.

A "good read" is fine, but if you have glaring errors (and not just minor "stat" things) then you run into the problem of what's true & what's not. That can be a problem with bios & histories. It's one thing to get a number or date wrong, but the criticisms go beyond that. Rather than stats obsessed I'd call him "facts obsessed" in this case.