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MLB Hot Stove Thread 07

xsedrinam said:
Looks like he's earning the title of being called "the real commissioner of baseball" or "baseball's most hated man".
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More like "commissar." The Dodgers toyed with the idea of calling for an investigation of Drew's departure. Some think Boras might have talked to the Red Sox about him while he was still under contract with LA. Not that such a thing could ever be proved. Gagne and Maddux are also represented by Boras. Both professed to want to stay in LA, both were made good offers. Both went elsewhere.
 
Marcus Giles' days in a Braves uniform have come to an end. And we didn't get anything for him...

After their attempts to trade Marcus Giles proved unsuccessful, the Braves were forced to say goodbye to the former All-Star second baseman without the benefit of compensation.
Early Tuesday evening, the Braves announced that they wouldn't be tendering contracts to Giles and former closer Chris Reitsma. The two are now free agents and immediately have the right to negotiate with any Major League team.

"We have to make some financial decisions every year," Braves general manager John Schuerholz said of Giles. "This was one of those tough ones."

All Major League teams have until midnight ET on Tuesday to decide whether they'll tender contracts to their arbitration-eligible players. Adam LaRoche and Oscar Villarreal, the only other Braves who fall within this category, will both be tendered a contract.

Giles, whose offensive production has slipped over the past three seasons, would have likely received a contract in the $6 million neighborhood for the upcoming season. With an $80 million payroll and the desire to put their emphasis on rebuilding their pitching staff, the Braves determined him to be expendable.

It's believed the Braves were very close to completing a deal last week at the Winter Meetings that would have sent Giles and LaRoche to the Orioles for second baseman Brian Roberts and right-handed pitcher Hayden Penn.

But there was very little other interest on the trade market for Giles, and that may have been because teams knew the Braves were going to be forced to non-tender him. These teams now can sign him to a cheaper contract and are able to acquire his services without having to trade any of their players.
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This is make or break for the Red Sox.
BOSTON -- The $51.11 million the Red Sox offered to pay for the rights to Daisuke Matsuzaka was enough to get the Japanese ace across the Pacific Ocean.

Bridging the economic gap in the most expensive cultural exchange in baseball history, the Red Sox reached a preliminary agreement Wednesday with Matsuzaka on a $52 million, six-year contract. With $103.11 million on the table, the two sides flew back to Boston on Red Sox owner John Henry's private plane.

"We came out of it with what I felt was the right decision for the player," Matsuzaka's agent, Scott Boras, told ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick. "It's an economic package that is reasonable and could end up being good. For his country, for him and the interests of baseball, I think this is really the right decision for everybody."

Matsuzaka completed a physical exam Wednesday night, Boras confirmed to ESPN.com, and the final agreement is expected to be announced Thursday at a 5 p.m. ET news conference.

Henry declined comment late Wednesday night.

"Tomorrow at Fenway," he said in an e-mail to The Associated Press.

Matsuzaka gets a $2 million signing bonus, $6 million next year, $8 million in each of the following three seasons and $10 million in each of the final two years. The agreement will include $8 million in escalators based on awards that would bring the total to $60 million over six years.

Boras told ESPN.com the contract includes a "litany of personal comforts." Matsuzaka will get a massage therapist, physical therapist, interpreter and personal assistant, and the Red Sox agreed to provide the pitcher with 80-90 flights over the course of the deal, along with special housing and transportation arrangements and accomodations for his wife.
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No more complaining by Red Sox fans about how much the Yankees spend since the Red Sox are starting to get just as bad.
 
MacNut said:
This is make or break for the Red Sox.No more complaining by Red Sox fans about how much the Yankees spend since the Red Sox are starting to get just as bad.
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What would Red Sox fans do with their time if they weren't complaining about something? ;)
 
MacNut said:
This is make or break for the Red Sox.No more complaining by Red Sox fans about how much the Yankees spend since the Red Sox are starting to get just as bad.
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This has been true for years. If the red sox were in another division, they'd be the yankees of that division with the money they spend. The only reason you don't hear so much about them is the fact that they stand in someone else's shadow.
 
Kwyjibo said:
This has been true for years. If the red sox were in another division, they'd be the yankees of that division with the money they spend. The only reason you don't hear so much about them is the fact that they stand in someone else's shadow.
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Well, not quite. The Red Sox spent $120 million on player salaries last year -- which was the second-highest in baseball. But the number one free-spending Yankees spent $170 million. Just the difference alone could support the entire payroll for some of the small-market teams.
 
IJ Reilly said:
Well, not quite. The Red Sox spent $120 million on player salaries last year -- which was the second-highest in baseball. But the number one free-spending Yankees spent $170 million. Just the difference alone could support the entire payroll for some of the small-market teams.
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2006
1. Yanks 194
2. BoSox 120
3. Angels 103

2005
1. Yanks 208
2. Bosox 123
3. Mets 101

2004
1. Yanks 184
2. Bosox 127
3. Angels 100

Thats the data for the past three season from USA Today (http://asp.usatoday.com/sports/baseball/salaries/default.aspx).

My point is that both the Yankees and the Bosox are in the AL East. Everyone complains about the Yanks spending too much. The Bosox out pace the next competitor by (27, 22, 17) to their next closest competitor. So if we transplanted the Bosox to any other division, they would be "that" team who spent more than anyone else in the division. That was my only point, that relative to the yankees the bosox aren't big spenders, but relative to the rest of the league they're head and shoulders above.
 
As a Red Sox fan, I'm thrilled with the signings of Brendan Donnely and J.C. Romero. Helps to beef up an otherwise unbeefed bullpen.

But, we get hung up on our own teams a lot. So -- two general questions for the community:

1. How interesting is this Freddy Garcia to the Phillies deal? If they keep Lieber, they have a surprisingly deep rotation. If they deal Lieber, they may be able to concretize (?) their bullpen or lineup. All that for just Gavin Floyd and Gio Gonzalez.

2. How about the Indians this offseason? Signing Aaron Fultz, Roberto Hernandez and Joe Borowski, it looks like Fausto Carmona will move into the rotation (maybe full time, maybe by June). Carmona is the real deal, so he'll be a real fantasy steal whenever he gets called up.

Oh. And I 'spose the Indians'll be better for it, too ...
 
thedude110 said:
1. How interesting is this Freddy Garcia to the Phillies deal? If they keep Lieber, they have a surprisingly deep rotation. If they deal Lieber, they may be able to concretize (?) their bullpen or lineup. All that for just Gavin Floyd and Gio Gonzalez.
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I wonder if that's as big a move as it would have been a few years ago. With that new homer-happy stadium in Philly, a deep rotation might not automatically make them contenders.
 
Official: D-Backs, Yanks talking Unit trade

espn
In the past week the Arizona Diamondbacks have offered a package of players to the New York Yankees in exchange for Randy Johnson, a baseball official said.

In need of starting pitching -- and a marquee name that will draw more fans -- the Diamondbacks have offered a package of at least three players, including a major-leaguer. They would also want a 72-hour window to negotiate an extension with Johnson, who is owed $16 million in the final year of his contract. The Yankees, according to the official, don't want to pick up any of Johnson's salary.

Johnson, 43, spent six seasons with Arizona and won four Cy Young Awards before being traded to New York in January 2005. At the time, Arizona was looking to shed payroll and bring in more youth.

Johnson had a full no-trade clause back then, as he does now. And it's believed that if the Yankees were to move him, Johnson would prefer to be closer to his Arizona home.

According to Johnson's agent, Alan Nero, the left-hander has not requested a trade.

"Randy would listen if the Yankees brought something to him," Nero said. "But that has not happened. I don't know what they're doing. It's still speculation as far as we're concerned."

The official said the San Diego Padres are also involved in trade discussions. It's believed that right-handed reliever Scott Linebrink could be the centerpiece of a deal.

If he returns to Arizona, Johnson, with 280 career wins, could get No. 300 as a Diamondback. If he goes to San Diego, he'd join 333-game winner Greg Maddux in the rotation. That is, if he stays healthy. Johnson had back surgery this offseason and it's unknown whether he'll be ready for Opening Day.
 
NEW YORK -- Less than two weeks after the Boston Red Sox brought in Daisuke Matsuzaka, the New York Yankees unveiled their own Japanese import.

The Yankees on Wednesday announced the signing of left-hander Kei Igawa to a five-year contract.

Financial terms were not disclosed, but the Yomiuri Shimbun reported two weeks ago that the deal is worth $20 million.

The move comes on the heels of the Red Sox signing Matsuzaka, who inked a six-year, $52 million deal Dec. 14.

Igawa became the fifth Japanese player to come to the majors this offseason, joining Matsuzaka, Red Sox left-hander Hideki Okajima, Tampa Bay Devil Rays infielder Akinori Iwamura and Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander Masumi Kuwata.

The Yankees earned exclusive negotiation rights with Igawa after a winning bid of $26 million Nov. 28. They had until midnight Thursday to reach a contract agreement with Igawa, who otherwise would have returned to his Japanese club, the Hanshin Tigers.

Igawa, 27, figures to join a starting rotation which already includes Mike Mussina, Andy Pettitte, Chien-Ming Wang and Carl Pavano. The Yankees reportedly are looking to trade 43-year-old left-hander Randy Johnson, who has underachieved in his two seasons in New York.

Igawa went 14-9 with a 2.97 ERA for the Tigers last season. He recorded 197 strikeouts to lead the Central League in strikeouts for the third time in eight seasons.
 
and he hijacked a baseball too.:p wait no that was another washed up red sox.
 
IJ Reilly said:
How's that? (I feel like I should understand this reference, but I don't!)
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my mistake Doug Mientkavich was the one that stole the baseball.

Hillenbrand was actually kicked off the team for fighting with the manager.
 
Yes things are gonna get mighty interesting once those names are released.
 
7 years $126 million for Zito from the Giants!

WOW looks like the Giants are more serious than I thought.

I hope he performs at that Cy Young level across the bay ...
 
Kwyjibo said:
7 years $126 million for Zito from the Giants!

WOW looks like the Giants are more serious than I thought.

I hope he performs at that Cy Young level across the bay ...
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That's huge money and a lot of years, especially for a pitcher. Obviously a good counter to losing Schmidt, and I wish he'd gone somewhere out of the NL West, but I'm going to stick to my guns on the principle that long-term contracts are usually a bad deal for ball clubs.
 
MacNut said:
He is now the highest paid pitcher ever in baseball history.
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Thats going to be shortlived I think. Carlos Zambrano and Johan Santana are both eligible to become free agents next year I believe. Those are two guys I would easily take before Mr. Zito
 
Its going to be interesting to see what the Yankees do with Randy Johnson now, they would of traded him with the hopes of going after Zito.
 
MacNut said:
He is now the highest paid pitcher ever in baseball history.
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I thought it was kind of a laugher when he said in some article I read that he wants to go to team which he can lead to multiple titles. He likened himself to Sandy Koufax. Okay, Mr. Zito.
 
I've long felt a special attachment to Zito. When we went to adopt our last cat from the SPCA four and a half years ago, we found three neutered male kittens from a litter...they had been named, Zito, Mulder, and Hudson. After a bit of indecision, we settled on Zito. We renamed him Fuzzbutt (we couldn't ignore his featherduster-like tail), but we still occasionally call him Zito. Glad to have Barry joining us on this end of the Bay Bridge. :)
 
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