jacksonianmarch

Theo is really doing things backwards this yr. After playing poorboy for the past 2 yrs, he is going in with his guns blazing. The Matsuzaka signing could be the boost that they need to have a top 3 of Matsu, Beckett, and Papelbon for a very long time. That is the good part. The bad part is the pen. Thing is, he STILL has done nothing to address the pen. Theo put together a prolific offense in the past. He put together an amazing rotation in the past. But, he has yet to create a great pen in his tenure. The only serviceable pen was in 2004, when the sox pen was anchored by 2 guys who were red sox prior to theo's tenure and the landing of a stud closer. The loss of papelbon in the pen will kill this team if they dont get creative. Adding another starter and demoting Wakefield to the pen is not the answer. Wake is an innings eater who belongs starting. He is the kind of guy who could take a win for the sox and turn it into a loss. At least when he starts, he wont squander opportunities that are handed to him. Instead he will be his own demon, he wont haunt the rest of the rotation by blowing late leads. This is the wrong direction, if he wants to land a starter. He got what he needed, move on to the biggest area to address.

Aam Eaton will land a starting job in the major leagues. The guy was a solid #2 in SD and had a torn tendon in his finger last yr, which cost him significant time. He is a guy with good stuff and when healthy, he is an innings eater. He is getting up there in age (32 I believe), so he will be looking for a longer term deal and will look to be in a rotation. He would be best served to return to the NL. Trust me on this one, Eaton will NOT accept a demotion to the pen, and the sox would be stupid to spend the 5-7mil a yr it will cost to sign him, if they want to toss him into long relief.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2661869 3 yrs 13 mil.

Reported on XM radio. 3 yr deal.

I wonder how thrilled you were about having Jon Lester come up to the team (prior to his leukemia, good luck kid). Or with having Anibal in your system. Or with having Papelbon come up to the bigs. This kid is on their level of prospects.

I find it interesting that so many people talk about this opening up a Japanese market for red sox baseball. For one, TV revenues are shared with the revenue sharing plan. 100% of all merchandise is shared. And, Fenway is packed to capacity at every single seat for years to come. Where will the extra revenue be coming from? If it is for future prospects down the line, that is another dumb idea, because the posting process makes it a blind bid rather than a FA's choice. This doesnt do much on the business end. On the field, who knows.

Someone is in a pissy mood today. ORS, are you incapable to give your enemies credit when they do something well? Here is the reason why I am "buffing nutsack" over these deals. How many people on here thought that the yankees would have to "dump" Gary Sheffield while eating some salary? This was mostly due to his perception as a grumpy old slugger coming off a major injury. How is it then, that the yankees were able to deal Sheff without eating any money while adding 3 quality arms to their farm system, one of which is a top tier prospect with ace potential. Pretty good for a guy who was supposed to be dumped with cash going his direction eh? Jaret Wright was going to be bought out for 4 mil. Instead, they got a young, fireballing pitcher who had a solid rookie season in the major league for Jaret Wright and the 4 mil the yankees were going to use to buyout Jaret Wright anyway. In all, the board was expecting the total transaction to be Leaving NY Sheffield + 5-6mil Jaret Wright + 4mil Coming to NY s***** prospect #1 for Sheff and nothing for Wright Instead, the yankees dealt sheffield, wright, and 4 mil for 4 fireballing 23 or under pitchers, one with MLB experience and one at AAA with #1 potential. It is not just about helping both teams ORS. It is about perceived value and getting more than the value that you are giving up. The yankees got a lot more than anyone would give then credit for, for 2 players who would not have had a role had they stayed.

can you two ladies take this fight into the fights thread please? It is ruining what was a good thread.

I dont know what to think about that issue. Thing is, the yankees will have 4 spots in their rotation filled with players under contract. 1. RJ - done after 07 2. Mussina- done after 08 3. Wang- controlled for another 4 yrs 4. Pavano- done after 08 5. ??? The one hole that will open up after this season will be filled by Hughes barring injury setback. That big hole in the rotation needs to be filled by a big name starter, I agree. Zito is the only guy I'd throw $$ at though. Young, left handed in yankee stadium is a good thing. But if you get 2 starters, that leaves 6 guys under big contract for 07. Pavano has no market yet, so you have to hope that he starts the season in the rotation and proves he is worth a flier by another team if you want him gone. I also could see the logic that says a pitcher who proves his worth could always be dealt for more prospects, but you cannot clog the holes for these young guys, at least not long term. We'll see, but I would be skeptical fo getting 2, but I definitely agree on 1.

I disagree on the top quote. Aging players these days care more about length than they do about money as long as the money is close. As a player gets past the 33-35 mark which this contract takes Damon, they want stability, not to be moved around as a nomad until they unceremoniously retire. On the other point, I find it ludicrous that Theo was "duped" by Boras's demands. He has dealt with Boras before, he knows his game, and being duped by him is a sign that he might not be that great of a GM after all.

That would also come along with a .310OBP and a problem in the lineup. He may need to be the 5 hitter, and those #s dont do it.

I think it depends. If the Yankees got Matsuzaka then they wont need to do anything. If the yankees like Zito and can go balls to the wall for him, then they wont need to do anything. If Zito is wearing those hideous Mets colors next yr, then the yankees may need to consider something. Schmidt is an ace, but an aging one with injury trouble. Pettitte looks like his heart isnt in it. Clemens is Jaret Wright nowadays in terms of durability. Other than that, there are a few Clement-esque guys out there with potential over production and that's it. If the yankees resign Mussina, that gives them RJ, Mussina, and Wang. RJ is coming off back surgery and may not be ready for 07 right out of the gate. Mussina has had his share of arm and groin trouble. That is just the top 3. The 4 and 5 slots are wide open as of right now. Pavano is a wild card. If he can eat innings like he did in the past and post a sub 5 era, then he could be a solid 4. If he cannot, then that leaves the last 2 spots wide open. I think regardless, they need to land a good starter. If they dont get Zito, and are as low on Schmidt and Pettitte as I am, then they may make a deal for a power pitcher that fits their mould. There are players out there who have been bandied about. Guys like Peavy, Oswalt (not likely), Sheets, etc who may be available at a price. Or, they could decide to fill their holes with a second tier guy and wait for Sanchez and Hughes to develop. That is what I would do, as I think both Hughes and Sanchez could team with Wang and be a top 3 for the next 10 yrs that wont be rivalled, but we know the old MO and this may be wishful thinking.

I can bet something is cooking.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/cs-061112cubssignings,0,107292.story cubs are reinking their s***** team.

saw this in the opts out of his contract thread, but rotoworld just posted it. Here is the link. 5yrs 70mil. http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/6163558

Right now, getting a 23 yr old power arm with a solid rookie season is a nice thing to get for free.

use your formulas all you want. I determine my considerations on where they are depended upon. An ace should have all the nice peripherals, a horse with low era, potentially a very high K rate, but a low WHIP. A #5 guy to me is someone who can post a mid 4's era and give you 6-7 innings per night. These are usually pitchers who have fringe stuff. You cannot get by on fringe stuff while giving away free passes.

it was reported in the post a few weeks back I believe. It seems to have been common knowledge. Check rotoworld. They say that the yankees would have had control over him for one more day, hence they would have bought him out.