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Archive for category free agency

Park signing solidifies Yankees bullpen

Feb 22

Posted by Jerry Milani in New York Yankees, free agency | No Comments

The Yankees made a nice under-the-radar move today, reportedly signing Chan Ho Park to a one-year contract.

Park has had an interesting career.  He is the first — and to date most successful — South Korea native to play in the majors, and was a solid starter for the Dodgers before cashing in on a huge free-agent contract with the Rangers, for whom he was just awful (5.46 was his lowest ERA in three-plus years there).  His career looked to be over in 2007, when he made just one start for the Mets, struggled at AAA New Orleans and, after the Astros took a flier on him, at AAA Round Rock.

The resurrection came in 2008, when he returned to the Dodgers, this time in relief, a role he hadn’t been in since his rookie 1996 campaign.  He continued his success with the Phillies last year, and now will be with his sixth team in six years (seven if you count his half-season in the minors for Houston).

The biggest thing that Park gives the Yankees roster is a veteran presence in the bullpen.  Assuming they go with seven relievers, the staff will look like this:

  • Rivera - closer
  • Hughes or Chamberlain – setup/8th
  • Marte - lefthanded specialist/setup
  • Robertson - 6th or 7th inning setup
  • Park - 6th or 7th inning setup
  • Aceves - long relief/6th or 7th inning
  • Gaudin - long relief/spot start

Ramirez

I like how Park gives them added flexibility to move guys around.  That’s a much deeper bullpen than they started the season with last year, and with Jonathan Albaladejo, Mark Melancon, Boone Logan and Edwar Ramirez likely heading for AAA, there’s additional insurance if needed.

Sometimes these middle-relief deals have worked out for the Yankees (Mike Stanton, Tom Gordon), a lot of times they haven’t (LaTroy Hawkins, Kyle Farnsworth, Chris Hammond, Paul Quantrill, Steve Karsay, et al).  But this one is low-risk and, I think, high reward, especially since today’s teams regularly go through 10-12 relievers.

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Reds, Twins Score with Dual Orlando Signings

Feb 5

Posted by Jerry Milani in Cincinnati Reds, Minnesota Twins, free agency | 6 Comments

Two underappreciated Gold Glove middle infielders named Orlando signed with new teams this past week, Cabrera with Cincinnati and Hudson with Minnesota.  They are the kind of signings (Cabrera, 1 year, $3.02 million; Hudson, 1 year, $5 million) that can fit into the middle-market plans of teams like the Reds and the Twins, and give exceptional value.

I think these are two of the best signings of the off-season, filling needs for both teams.

I’ve been a Cabrera fan for a few years; I know he’s been on seven teams since 2004, but I don’t think that it’s a coincidence that four of the previous six have made the playoffs (every year except 2006) with him as starting shortstop.  Cabrera’s stats don’t look so gaudy, with just a career OPS+ of 86, and some of his defensive numbers from last year seem to show that he’s slowed a step at short at age 35, but I think he solidifies the Reds defense, gives them a veteran presence with a knack for clutch hits.  And at $3 million, I really like the deal for the Reds.  It looks like the Twins will instead go with former Brewer J.J. Hardy at short, who I like, but I think Cabrera would have been a better choice for one more year.

Hudson, 32, has been known as a top fielding second baseman for the past few years, but he’s now on his fourth team since ‘05.  But he’s won Gold Gloves with each of them, and represents a nice upgrade for the Twins over Nick Punto, who looks like he’ll move to third base, though his best role may be in utility across the infield.  Last off-season, some were advocating that the Yankees dump Robinson Cano in favor of “O-Dog,” a sentiment that I did not agree with, but he should be a great fit for the Twins, especially between budding star Denard Span and reigning MVP Joe Mauer in the lineup.  With a new ballpark and a payroll at more than $90 million for 2010, Minnesota is starting to shed its “little engine that could” feel and looking more like the clear favorite in the AL Central.

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Loss of Matsui Unprecedented on Yankee Championship Teams

Jan 22

Posted by Jerry Milani in History, New York Yankees, free agency, trades | No Comments

I decided to take a look back at the Yankees World Series championship teams of the past 50 years and see who were the prominent players (i.e., starters or key reserves) who the Yanks didn’t bring back the following year.  I couldn’t remember a more important position player than Hideki Matsui – and, as of this writing, Johnny Damon as well – who wasn’t with the team the following year.

That’s because there isn’t one.  And unless Damon does an about face, there will be two in 2010.  You could say three if you include Melky Cabrera, but as he was the centerpiece in a trade for Javier Vazquez, it’s not like the Yankees gave up on Cabrera (much in the same way they traded David Wells for Roger Clemens after the 1998 title and Moose Skowron for Stan Williams after 1962).

Now, that hasn’t always translated to returns to the World Series, although only once in the last half-century (1979) has a Yankees team coming off a World Series win failed to advance to the postseason.

Here are the top players the Yankees didn’t bring back from a championship squad, since 1960:

  • 2009 – Matsui (FA, to Angels); Damon (current FA); Cabrera (traded, to Braves for Vazquez)
  • 2000 – David Cone (FA, to Red Sox); Jason Grimsley (released); Jeff Nelson (FA, to Mariners)
  • 1999 – Chili Davis (released); Chad Curtis (traded, to Rangers for Brandon Knight and Sam Marsonek)
  • 1998 – Tim Raines (released); Wells (trade, to Blue Jays for Clemens)
  • 1996 – Jim Leyritz (traded, to Angels for two minor leaguers); Jimmy Key (FA, to Orioles); John Wetteland (FA, to Rangers)
  • 1978 – Sparky Lyle (traded, to Rangers for Dave Righetti and Juan Beniquez as part of 10-player deal)
  • 1977 – Mike Torrez (FA, to Red Sox)
  • 1962 – Skowron (traded, to Dodgers for Williams)
  • 1961 – none

There are two ways to look at this. One, anyone the Yankees “gave up” on in this period was basically done.  Key had one more good year with the Orioles, Wetteland went on to pitch decently for four years with Texas and Torrez won 32 games the next two years for Boston and pitched in the bigs through 1984, though with less success.

The natural tendency is to want to keep as much of a team together as possible, with the reasoning that one year shouldn’t make that much difference in players’ abilities, and the formula and combination have proven to be a winner. In the pre-free agent days, prominent players would rarely move, and unless they were at the very end of careers, players on champions almost always returned.

Since free agency, though, there have been more opportunities for player movement. The Yankees have elected to keep their champions as intact as possible, with no major offensive pieces, and only a few important pitchers, not retained.  And the results have mostly been good – the encores have mostly produced World Series participants or winners.

But more than ever, teams are put together one year at a time, with an eye to a bigger picture but with general managers preferring to get rid of a guy one year early rather than one year too late.  If Damon, as seems likely, signs elsewhere, it will mean that the two most prominent players to leave a Yankee champion will have come in the same off-season.

While on paper, even without Matsui and potentially Damon, the 2010 Yankees look as strong, it will be in two key areas a different team.  More different than any Yankees champion before.

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Winters of Yanks’ Content (and Discontent) (Part 2 of 4 – the 80’s)

Dec 23

Posted by Jerry Milani in History, New York Yankees, free agency, trades | 3 Comments

WhitsonEdHere’s the second in a four-part series on the Yanks’ best and worst off-season moves (trades/free agents).  For part one, the 70’s, click here

The 1980’s were considerably less successful for the Yankees in player evaluation, particularly among the pitchers.

The 1980’s

Best moves:
1. Dave Winfield – splashy move with a 10-year contract, and Winnie had some of his best years in Pinstripes despite being unable to deliver a World Series title.
2. Rickey Henderson – maybe the best all-around player of the last 20 years of the 20th century, Rickey wore out his welcome in his fifth year with the Yanks but he was in his prime, scoring 146 runs one year, 130 in another and topping 80 steals three times.
3. Don Baylor – I think it says a lot that Baylor, solid but not spectacular with the Yanks, was the third best acquisition of the decade
4. Phil Niekro – Knucksie won 16 games in each of his two years with the Yanks at age 45 and 46
5. Steve Sax? John Candelaria? Bob Watson? Slim pickings…

Worst moves:
1. Ed Whitson – poster boy for the bright lights of N.Y. taking a good player down. Career ERA in 2000+innings not with the Yankees: 3.64; in around 200 Yankee frames: 5.38.
2. Dave LaPoint - coming off two pretty good years (though having played on seven teams in the past five seasons), his two-speed repertoire (slow and stop) was a big bust in the Bronx.
3. Jack Clark – this should have worked out better. Clark was coming off a monster season in St. Louis, and they even moved the Death Valley LF fence in for him, but an injury running out a home run was the beginning of the end, and although he wasn’t awful in his one year in N.Y., it wasn’t a good fit
4. Steve Kemp – he’d run through a wall for the team but didn’t hit enough to justify the big expectations and contract
5. Dave Collins – was supposed to be the catalyst for the new “Go-Go” Yanks in 1982 but couldn’t steal first and was out of position playing first base
Dishonorable mention: Shane Rawley, Rich Dotson, Andy Hawkins, Britt Burns, Mel Hall, Lance McCullers, do I have to go on????

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The Week In Moves: 12/13-12/20/09

Dec 20

Posted by Tom Biro in free agency, trades | 1 Comment

Lots of movement on the roster front this past week, with the most notable move being the four-team deal that nets out with a paid of Cy Young winners getting shipped out – for each other. Cliff Lee is heading from the NL Champion Phillies over to the Seattle Mariners and Roy Halladay moves from Toronto down to the city of brotherly love. The Oakland A’s and Jays ended up with a number of high-quality prospects from the assortment of teams involved as well. Halladay moving was no surprise, but Lee’s quick exit from Philadelphia just months after he arrived there from Cleveland was a bit out of left field.

Check out ESPN’s Buster Olney breakdown on the transactions:

Cliff Lee was just as surprised by the move from Philly as the rest of us, telling the AP that he’d thought he would “be spending the rest of [his] career there.” Well, I think Phillies fans won’t be crying about this anytime soon, if Halladay handles the transition to the NL as well as Lee did.

As for Seattleites, they’re having a head-scratcher of a week, with the club bringing in one stellar starter in Lee while parting with a headache in Carlos Silva – for Chicago’s own headache, Milton Bradley. Bradley, who was suspended for the final two weeks of the season by the Cubs, is hoping to turn a corner in his new city.

Other moves of note:

  • The New York Yankees signed Nick Johnson, who had started his career with the team.
  • The Boston Red Sox have apparently waved bye-bye to Jason Bay, but have powered up by bringing in OF Mike Cameron and P John Lackey, who leaves the Angels in a lurch.
  • Those same Angels look to add a solid bat to their lineup, taking on World Series MVP Hideki Matsui with a one-year deal. As a Yankee fan, I’m definitely sad to see Matsui leave, and agree with some of the critics, who think Matsui could have stayed instead of the signing of Nick Johnson. Unfortunately, I’m not signing the checks.

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