2015-2016 Hot Stove League

[Scott Dolan]

Where did you hear that? 

[Brad]

It might have been on MLB or Bleacher Report.

Mets have just acquired Walker for Niese from the Bucs to fill their 2B need.  Obviously, no intention to try to sign Murphy.

[Scott Dolan]

That's cool, Brad. I just asked because even though I'm pretty sure we won't get him back, there's been no word around here as to where he may potentially end up. 

Congrats on the Walker acquisition. I'll admit I know little about him, but it's always nice to know you've got your middle infielders shored up. 

[Brad]

Thanks Scott. I think he's a definite upgrade at the position.  I don't know if they plan to try to keep him after next year.  They also signed Asdubral Cabrera (hope I've not massacred his surname) for two years at $9 M which I was excited about at first but on MLB Radio yesterday, Steve Phillips said that he has no range and that the Mets already had guys with no range at a cheaper price. Moreover, what was the hurry in signing him as he'd probably be around in January.  

[Scott Dolan]

Yeah, well…"experts" said last year that we jumped the gun, and paid too much, when we signed Kendrys Morales. 

Seems that worked out pretty goddamn nicely for us. 

So take what any of them say with a grain of salt, then wait and see for yourself. 

Edited December 11, 2015 by Scott Dolan

[Tim McG]

On 12/9/2015, 8:51:59, Brad said:

I've heard that Gordon is likely for the Giants. 

That's what we've been hearing, too.

I'm still bummed about Aoki, though. He was a good fit in Giants-land.

Edited December 11, 2015 by Tim McG

[Scott Dolan]

You'd be getting yourself a HELL of a player if it happens. He might be the hardest working, and most humble man in the game. 

Highly touted coming out of college as a star third baseman. He struggled in his early years, and then had a monster hip injury. He rehabbed like a beast to get back in the field, but the injury had taken away his ability to play third. So he went back to AAA to learn how to play left field as a last ditch attempt to save his career. 

The rest is history. 

We'll miss him around here, but we understand the reality of being a small market team. And we can't afford to get caught up in long-term, high dollar contracts. 

Edited December 11, 2015 by Scott Dolan

[Brad]

Well, another crazy signing by the Cubs for a guy whose stats are not that overwhelming.  Just imagine what Harper will command if he comes onto the free agent market. 

[Scott Dolan]

The contracts so far this offseason are just off the charts absurd. 

You have to wonder when MLB will reach a breaking point. 

[Dan Gould]

2 hours ago, Brad said:

Well, another crazy signing by the Cubs for a guy whose stats are not that overwhelming.  Just imagine what Harper will command if he comes onto the free agent market. 

Traditional stats, no. But Heywood is only 26, his defense is tremendous, great OBP skills, steals bases with a high success rate and when you consider the lineup he is joining, he does not need to be big bopper in order for the team to have success.  He could easily slot in behind Zobrist and bat 2nd, two table-setters in front of Rizzo and all the rest.

The Cubs would be in fantastic shape if they'd gotten David Price but this is a pretty great off-season for a team that won 97 games and eliminated the two teams that won more and ended up in LCS.  World Champions or Bust, and I bet they do it in the next 2-3 years.

[Brad]

His OPS is ordinary and he's a nice player but nothing more than that.  So they spent $184 M for a nice player and $56 M for a utility player.  Well, it's nice to have money to waste.

I'm also puzzled by his passing up a superior offer from the Cardinals  

I think they needed to improve in starting pitching and they only made a slight dent there.  Hitting was not their problem. 

Edited December 12, 2015 by Brad

[Scott Dolan]

????

What did the Cardinals offer him? I never saw a definitive number.

Oh, and Heyward had 3 errors on 303 chances last year. That rather amazing. And while his power may not be All Star, his OBP is. 

 

Here, found this:

"Two sources confirmed for The Post-Dispatch that the Cardinals’ offer was greater in guaranteed value while the Cubs’ had the higher annual average value, at $23 million a year."

So it was really an either/or. 

[Dan Gould]

1 hour ago, Brad said:

His OPS is ordinary and he's a nice player but nothing more than that.  So they spent $184 M for a nice player and $56 M for a utility player.  Well, it's nice to have money to waste.

I'm also puzzled by his passing up a superior offer from the Cardinals  

I think they needed to improve in starting pitching and they only made a slight dent there.  Hitting was not their problem. 

1. Zobrist is not a utility player  - he's a starter who happens to play all around the field. Aside from 2015 he played in a minimum of 146 games a year for 6 straight seasons.

2.  Heywood is a "nice player" only if you're hung up on standard counting stats.  Advanced metrics say he's quite a bit more than that and again, at 26 he can be expected to be entering his prime. If he was nothing more than "nice" why would such a smart front office like the Cards offer him even more than the Cubs did?  Alex Gordon isn't the worse back up plan but he's still their number two target behind Heywood.

And, for all the money they committed, Heywood has not one but two years when he will be able to opt out.  If the market looks huge and he puts up power numbers close to his single season high of 27, he can opt out and someone else can take on the risk of him on the wrong side of 30. So long as the Cubs cash in in those first four years I don't think anyone will care that much.  As you say, he's just a nice player.

[Brad]

I didn't say Heyward wasn't a good player -- although I did use the word "nice" -- I just don't think he's worth that kind of money.  Ive seen him play over the years and yes he was good but a player like Freeman impressed me more.  As far as why he was paid what he was, when you get into an auction like this, sometimes logic goes out the window, particularly when your rival might get him.

To me, Zobrist is a utility player but even going with your definition to pay that kind of money to a 35 year old is insanity.  I was not at all disappointed the Mets didn't land him.   I'm quite pleased with Walker. 

Edited December 12, 2015 by Brad

[JSngry]

[Dave Garrett]

Edit: never mind, can't seem to embed YouTube videos anymore, they just show up as links. It was a lame joke anyway.

Edited December 13, 2015 by Dave Garrett

[JSngry]

Paste the link, press the enter.

[Scott Dolan]

17 hours ago, Brad said:

I didn't say Heyward wasn't a good player -- although I did use the word "nice" -- I just don't think he's worth that kind of money.  Ive seen him play over the years and yes he was good but a player like Freeman impressed me more.  As far as why he was paid what he was, when you get into an auction like this, sometimes logic goes out the window, particularly when your rival might get him.

To me, Zobrist is a utility player but even going with your definition to pay that kind of money to a 35 year old is insanity.  I was not at all disappointed the Mets didn't land him.   I'm quite pleased with Walker. 

While I do agree that the contract Zobrist got was on the silly side, he is most definitely NOT a utility player. He is a player that can start everywhere but catcher (and I don't think I'd trot him out to center at this point in his career), and the Cubs will likely move him around a lot to give players days off. But he is indeed a starter. 

[Scott Dolan]

Tim, looks like Cueto is your man...

Great signing!

He ended up being a roller coaster ride for us, but he's still one of the best in the game. 

[Tim McG]

6 minutes ago, Scott Dolan said:

Tim, looks like Cueto is your man...

Great signing!

He ended up being a roller coaster ride for us, but he's still one of the best in the game. 

I hope he works out for my guys.

Since the Giants let Petit go we needed another man in the rotation. Jake Peavy is just too spotty to be a full-time starter, IMHO.

Edited December 14, 2015 by Tim McG

[Scott Dolan]

I wouldn't worry about it.

His inconsistency with the Royals was an anomaly when you look at what he's done throughout his career. 

And he still impressed when we slid all the chips in. That's what matters the most. 

Now let's see your boys back in the postseason where they belong! 

Edited December 14, 2015 by Scott Dolan

[Tim McG]

Thanks for the info, Scott. I feel better now. 

Maybe a return to the NL will spark him back to form.

Now all we need is a solid LFer.

[Scott Dolan]

Still got Alex Gordon in play...

[Brad]

I was thinking that Cueto may be better off in the NL.

The Dodgers have been eerily quiet.  May be that $80 million plus salary cap hit they took was a bit hard to swallow.

Edited December 15, 2015 by Brad

[Scott Dolan]

I don't think pitching in the A.L. effected  Cueto. You have to keep in mind that Kauffman Stadium is one of the biggest outfields in MLB, and the Royals one of the best defensive units. 

I think he just hit a glitch in his career. Plus, he never really gelled with many of his teammates there. Perez and Hosmer, in particular, found Cueto to be quite a source of frustration. And when you can't get on the same page as your catcher, things won't end well. 

Those factors combined with the mid season move likely conspired.