Category: MLB (Page 286 of 448)

      Yankees get older in the outfield by trading Cabrera to Brewers for Cameron

      December 11, 2008 /

      After signing CC Sabathia to a mega deal worth an estimated $161 million earlier in the day, the New York Yankees weren’t done on Wednesday as they traded youngster Melky Cabrera to the Milwaukee Brewers for 35-year old Mike Cameron.

      Melky CabreraThe Yankees have been saying that Cabrera and Brett Gardner would compete for the center field job, but the acquisition of Cameron gives them a veteran presence at the position.

      Many believed Cabrera would be the center fielder of the future entering the 2008 campaign, but a disappointing season, in which he hit .249 with eight homeruns and 37 RBIs in 129 games, led many to believe he was destined for a future as a utility outfielder. Yankees blue-chip prospect Austin Jackson is not expected to be ready for big league action until at least 2010, making Cameron the ideal one-year stopgap in center field.

      Cameron, a former Met, hit .243 with 25 HRs and 70 RBIs in 120 games last season. He will earn $10 million in 2009.

      Cameron has always been a fine ball player and it never hurts to add leadership to the clubhouse. But Cabrera is only 24, which means he still has roughly three years before he hits his prime so one would have thought that the Yankees would take their time to develop his talents.

      This was a nice trade for Brewers as they cut salary and get a solid young player, but one that will need time to develop.

      Fantasy Baseball, MLB

      Mets Solidify Bullpen Further With Putz; Yanks and Braves Chasing Burnett

      December 11, 2008 /

      Well, it turns out Mets’ GM Omar Minaya wasn’t messing around when it came to fixing his team’s biggest problem–the bullpen. A day after agreeing to terms with record breaking closer Francisco “K-Rod” Rodriguez, Minaya pulled the trigger on a blockbuster trade involving two other teams, Seattle and Cleveland. The Mets acquired Mariners’ closer JJ Putz and RHP Sean Green from Seattle and OF Jeremy Reed from Cleveland; they sent OF Endy Chavez, RHP Aaron Heilman, and minor leaguers Maikel Cleto, Ezequiel Carrera, Jason Vargas, and Mike Carp to Seattle and RHP Joe Smith to Cleveland; Cleveland sent IF Franklin Gutierrez to Seattle; and Seattle sent Luis Valbuena to Cleveland.

      Essentially what this means for the Mets is that they traded Heilman and Smith for Putz, while swapping marginal outfielders. The move is good for Seattle, who received a ton of young players, and for Cleveland, who now have a reliable sinker ball pitcher to put in front of new closer Kerry Wood. But it’s huge for the Mets, who will put Putz in the set-up role in front of K-Rod. Putz will earn just $5.5 million in 2009 and has a team option in 2010 for $9.1 million, and K-Rod’s contract also features a lot of money on the back end of his contract. That means Minaya and the Mets will have decisions to make in 2010 and beyond, but for 2009 in shiny new Citi Field, they have given themselves possibly the best one-two bullpen punch in the majors, and any lead after the seventh inning will almost certainly result in a win. Things still have to play out on the field, but that’s already a far cry from the two epic collapses of 2006 and 2007.

      Meanwhile, the Braves and Yankees appear to be in a bidding war for RHP A.J. Burnett. The Yankees were not satisfied with just C.C. Sabathia, and are looking to fortify their rotation with Burnett, and/or Ben Sheets, Andy Pettitte or Derek Lowe. The Braves offered four years with a fifth year option, all totaling $80 million, to Burnett; and since then, reports surfaced that the Yanks upped their offer to $91 million, but that was incorrect, and it’s said to be more in the same $80 to $85 million range the Braves are offering, but with five years guaranteed. It’s unclear if the Braves can win a real bidding war with New York, but with the numbers close, this one will surely be more a matter of where Burnett wants to live and work for the next few years.

      Bullz-Eye Sports Channel, Fantasy Baseball, MLB

      Francisco Rodriguez signs with the only team that really wanted him: The New York Mets

      December 10, 2008 /

      K-RodAfter a record-setting 62-save season in 2008 with the Angels, Francisco Rodriguez has signed a three-year deal with the New York Mets. The $45 million contract, which includes an option for a fourth year, was reportedly the only offer from an organization other than the Angels.

      Owner Arte Moreno said the Angels made as many as six contract offers to Rodriguez over the years, the last one for three years and $34 million in November 2007.

      Rodriguez, believing his value was more in line with the three-year, $45-million deal Yankees closer Mariano Rivera signed that month, rejected the offer.

      Rodriguez was hoping to parlay his record-setting season into a five-year, $75-million deal, but with a glut of closers available and only one big-market team in the hunt for one, Rodriguez’s market was severely depressed this winter.

      Scioscia said the Angels wouldn’t necessarily enter 2009 with a set closer. Veteran setup man Scot Shields probably will be given the first crack at the job, and right-hander Jose Arredondo, coming off an impressive rookie season, will be considered.

      Veteran left-hander Darren Oliver could pitch later in games, and hard-throwing youngster Kevin Jepsen will probably play a more prominent role. The Angels are also talking to the agent for free-agent left-hander Brian Fuentes, who could close.

      Too bad K-Rod couldn’t just swallow his pride and stay with Angels, a team that will consistently have a shot at making the World Series. It seems like in the days of the modern bulky pitching contract (a la CC Sabathia), Rodriguez felt it with was about time he was given some monetary respect.

      The Angels still made the right move. Scot Shields is an effective set-up man and if they can land Brian Fuentes as a closer, they should be in good shape. But pitching was never the Angels’ problem. As seen in the last fall’s ALDS, the only person who drove some runs in was Mark Texiera, and it appears that he’s who they’re going after.

      And they should. Aside from Albert Pujols, Texiera is the best all-around first baseman in the game. He has a good attitude, a solid bat, and is a wall at first base. If I were Arte Moreno, the owner of the Angels, I’d sign this guy before Brian Cashman of the Yankees looks under his chair and finds $200 million that he had forgotten about after closing in on Sabathia earlier this morning.

      MLB

      Nobody wants Manny Ramirez?

      December 10, 2008 /

      Now that CC Sabathia is set to become a Yankee, the attention will start to turn to finding Manny Ramirez a home. According to YAHOO! Sports, there’s no market for Manny at this point.

      Manny RamirezThe Dodger offer, the only known offer, is for $45 million over two years.

      “Was for $45 million over two years,” one Dodgers executive corrected.

      It’s off the table, along with the third-year option that, if exercised, would have brought the contract’s worth to $60 million.

      The Dodgers are still in on Ramirez. Their offer could be reheated and reserved. But, they could in the coming days or weeks re-sign Furcal and find themselves up to their credit lines in Sabathia, and quickly turn away. So, what of the others out there?

      The Angels? Teixeira comes first, Sabathia second. Manny?

      “It’s not a likely scenario,” Angels GM Tony Reagins said. “We think there are opportunities we see that are more important at this time.”

      The Red Sox? Please.

      The Yankees? Sabathia first, then Burnett and Lowe, then more pitching, then Teixeira, then Manny. GM Brian Cashman believes nearly all the problems of recent seasons can be fixed on the mound. They could eventually turn to Manny, but it sounds like a distant priority.

      The Mets? GM Omar Minaya loves Manny. But he’s just added Francisco Rodriguez and he needs at least one starting pitcher and his owner is cutting payroll, not adding, say, $75 million over three years.

      I thought for sure that the Yankees would lose out on Sabathia and turn their attention to Manny, but obviously it’s a long shot that Ramirez winds up in the Bronx now. A potential sleeper candidate could be the San Francisco Giants. They’ve got plenty of pitching both at the big league level and in the minors, yet absolutely nothing in terms of bats. (Unless you consider Randy Winn, Bengie Molina and Aaron Rowand has heavy hitters.)

      Buuuuuuuuuut, I don’t know if the Giants will come up with the money. And compared to their needs in the infield, the Giants need another outfielder like Barry Bonds needs another federal charge filed against him. But if no market is established for Manny in the upcoming weeks, maybe the G-Men will make a move and finally get a true cleanup hitter back in the lineup.

      Fantasy Baseball, MLB

      Yankees ready to sign CC Sabathia

      December 10, 2008 /

      There was talk about wanting the opportunity to hit, to play for his home state and the desire to be a Dodger. But in the end, it was all about the money.

      CC Sabathia is on the verge of signing a seven-year contract with the New York Yankees worth at least $160 million according to ESPN.

      CC SabathiaAfter three straight days of face-to-face meetings between GM Brian Cashman and Sabathia, the big lefty decided he wants to spend the next six years of his career as a Yankee. The decision came late last night after Cashman flew to see Sabathia at his home in San Francisco. By the time the meeting was concluded, Sabathia had informed the Yankees that he had made his decision to call New York his baseball home, the Post has learned.

      There are still minor hurdles to finalize, notably that Sabathia must pass a physical. But after so much belief that Sabathia was stalling because he wanted to avoid New York, he agreed to the largest pitching contract in major league history, at least $140 million.

      It means that the Yankees have lassoed the player they were building their offseason around: An ace in his prime. Sabathia is just 28, and last year between the Indians and Brewers he went 17-10 with a 2.70 ERA. The previous season he won the AL Cy Young. Now he is the first major new piece to be put into the new Yankee Stadium.

      Should we be surprised? No. Money talks and the Yankees have a lot of it. Maybe he had other reasons to sign with the Bronx Bombers that aren’t being reported yet, but it really appears that the cash trumped all.

      You have to hand it to the Yankees. They had to get pitching this offseason and they landed the biggest fish in the free agency pond. But it’ll be interesting to see if CC goes the way of Mike Hampton, Barry Zito and all of the other pitchers who got massive free agency deals and then effectively became dog crap. Either way, the Yankees got their guy.

      Fantasy Baseball, MLB

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