Oct
29

A free agent rundown

By Benjamin Kabak

Tim Dierkes at MLB Trade Rumors has, using the rankings from Detroit Tigers Thoughts, compiled a list of all Type A and B free agents. The Yankees have five potential Type A free agents — Bobby Abreu, Damaso Marte, Mike Mussina, Andy Pettitte, Ivan Rodriguez — and no Type B players. It’s hard to believe that Jason Giambi didn’t make the cut, but that appears to be the way the cookie crumbles. What that means for their draft picks will depend on which players the Yankees sign this winter.

Posted on Wednesday, October 29th, 2008 at 4:13 pm in Asides, Hot Stove League.

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78 Comments »

Tom says:

Can someone confirm whether or not veterans such as Pettitte, Giambi, Pudge, etc. have to make a specific percentage of their last salary in an arbitration case?

Ben K. says:

I’m fairly sure but not 100 percent certain that a team cannot offer a player less than 80 percent of their previous year’s salary.

 
Mike A. says:

From the CBA:

If the Player accepts the offer to arbitrate, he shall be a signed player for the next season and the parties will conduct a salary arbitration proceeding under Article VI; provided, however, that the rules concerning maximum salary reduction set forth in Article VI shall be inapplicable and the parties shall be required to exchange figures on the last day established for the exchange of salary arbitration figures under Article VI.

So for free agents, the 80% rule does not apply. It only applies to guys with 3-5 yrs of service time. However, no one has ever had their salary reduced in arbitration.

However, no one has ever had their salary reduced in arbitration.

Ah, that’s the rub. In principle, yes, we could offer Giambi 7 bucks to play for us in 2009. But no arbitrator has ever cut a players salary.

Here’s the followup: has any team ever offered a reduced salary as their low arb figure? Or would that be a first as well?

Mike A. says:

I would imagine someone’s offered a reduced salary, and I’m sure players have agreed to a reduced salary before the arb hearing.

 
 
 
 
 
steve (different one) says:

well, that’s a shame about Giambi. would have been nice to have that pick. but it’s not the end of the world. Pudge making it to Type A kindof makes up for it.

if Abreu and Pudge leave and the Yankees sign 2 Type A FA’s, they’d be looking at 3 picks in the first round, 2 sandwich picks, and 1 second round pick.

that’s not bad at all.

Mike A. says:

As long as Abreu and Pudge don’t go to a team with a top 15 pick. I doubt they will though.

27 this year says:

I think Pudge might, you never know. After all, didn’t he go to a horrible Tigers team and if I am not mistaken, helped the marlins. Sometimes he goes to a sucky team and they get good.

 
Andy In Sunny Daytona says:

You still get a sandwich pick and the teams 2nd round pick, no?

Mike A. says:
27 this year says:
 
 
27 this year says:

yea, but not as good as a first rounder especially in a not deep draft class.

Andy In Sunny Daytona says:

No one really knows how deep a draft is until high schoolers play their senior year. You can speculate, but that’s all it is.

Mike A. says:

There’s always talent to be had, just gotta look hard enough. The 2000 draft was the worst class of the last 15 years, but it produced three of the best players in the game today, one each from the first, third and eighth rounds.

Jamal G. says:

Also included Cliff Lee (4th), James Shields (16th) and Rich Harden (17th).

Speaking of “[you] just gotta look hard enough”, the Pirates did their homework for the 2000 draft:

Chris Young (3rd RD.)
Nate McClouth (25th RD.)
Ian Snell (26th RD.)

——-

Heh, the Mets:

[Jul 31,2002] – Traded by Mets with Josh Reynolds and Bobby Jones to Padres for Jason Middlebrook and Steve Reed</blockquote cite”

Who was “Traded” you ask? None other than 23-year-old Jason Bay, who had a vital line of .290/.383/.477 in Double-A Binghamton at the time of the Mets-Padres deal.

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Emac2 says:

No team is going to give up a 1st round pick for pudge.

 
 
 
 
radnom says:

Question.

Ok so when you sign a type A free agent you give up your first round pick. But picks gained from such a signing are protected.

So lets say we sign C.C. in December and then, for example, sign Tex in January.

Milwaukee would get our 09 first round pick and the Angels would get a first round pick but where would it be? Also would there be any penalty for signing a type A at that point….we don’t have a first rounder to give, would we just lose our second round pick out of spite?

Mike A. says:

It doesn’t matter when they sign the players. If they sign both CC and Tex, the team that lost the higher ranked FA according to Elias will get the first round pick, regardless of when they actually signed. The other team will get the Yanks second round pick instead.

So assuming Tex is the higher ranked free agent (likely), Anaheim would get the Yanks’ first rounder and sandwich pick that pops out of the air. Milwaukee would get the Yanks’ second round pick and a sandwich pick.

The pick the Yanks have for Gerrit Cole is protected, they can’t lose that pick no matter what.

27 this year says:

thanks mike you beat me to it.

 
radnom says:

Aha I thought that would be how it worked. So theoretically we may not get any first round picks back from free agency (unlikely but possible).
Everyone is counting on getting back a first round pick from Irod but if he signs with the same team as say, Manny, then that pick would only be a second rounder, no?

AndrewYF says:

This is true. The Mets could sign both Abreu and Pudge, and would give Yankee fans (and Mets fans, come to think of it) just one more reason to despise them.

 
 
 
27 this year says:

Tex is rated higher than CC I think or vice versa. The player with a higher rating’s team will get our first round, the other team would get our second round with both teams receiving sandwich picks. Basically, we only have one first round pick to lose and hopefully two more to gain. The sandwich picks are created out of midair so yea.

Another question: anyone know how they decide the order in the sandwich round?

steve (different one) says:

Another question: anyone know how they decide the order in the sandwich round?

i’d guess the same way, by Elias rankings.

27 this year says:

Probably, because I don’t think it goes by record or maybe by who signs first?

 
Mike A. says:

No, it’s the reverse order of last year’s standings, with Type-A picks coming before Type-B’s. It also has to cycle through each team before someone can pick twice.

The rules are unnecessarily complicated.

The order of picks in the sandwich round is calculated by the team’s distance in nautical miles from the Sandwich Isles, alternating between high and low proximity in odd and even calendar years, respectively.

Why do you think they call them Sandwich picks?

UWS says:

Why do you think they call them Sandwich picks?

You know, I’ve wondered the same thing myself. Thanks for quenching my burning thirst for knowledge!

 
Andy In Sunny Daytona says:

So San Die(a)go first this year or Boston?

San Diago is first. Boston never gets the first pick, since they’re so awesome at everything that allowing them to have the first pick would be an unfair advantage; all the guys they pick at the bottom of the first round are instant Hall of Famers anyway.

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AndrewYF says:

I’m fairly certain Mark Teixeira is the highest-rated player in baseball.

That should give someone a kind of “AA” class, where the signing team not only gives their first round pick, but the losing team automatically gains the first supplemental round pick, in addition to their normal supplemental round pick.

Draft picks ahoy!

 
 
 
Steve S says:

Did Pete Abe really suggest that the Yankees could acquire Joey Votto? Really, is there any basis to that or is that some beat writer in Westchester throwing names around irresponsibly?

http://yankees.lhblogs.com/200.....raft-pick/

LOL says:

Ol Pete Abe is notorious for throwing names around. Along with his weight.

Thats why he is Lohud, and not NYT, News or Post. Or even Newsday for that matter…

Shamus says:

Classless.

Aside from Mike Lupica (and he’s a columnist), I always see such hate toward P-Abe.

What, did he make fun of you when you emailed him asking if Ransom, Melky, and Kennedy would net Peavy, or at least Holliday?

Foolish JiveAss Yankees fans.

Shamus, I’ll never disagree with you if you think we’re classless. Doesn’t change the fact that Abe is a crappy “journalist” with an agenda who makes shit up like Jayson Blair.

 
 
 
Mike A. says:

Ah the classic rookie trade rumor from the MSM. The general formula is:

young player + position of need + good stats + bad team – reality = the yanks should trade for him

Steve S says:

yeah maybe theyll throw in jay Bruce for the hell of it.

 
Jamal G. says:

Speaking of which, where are they going to put Joey Votto once Yonder Alonso arrives? Left/Right Field?

Move Alonso to 2B. Cano will have been traded about 7 times already, the hole will be there.

Mike A. says:

No, move Votto the bullpen. All they need is a setup man.

I’m assuming Joba, and possibly Wang, will have already been moved to the pen.

 
 
 
 

Mike, you left some parts out of your equation.

young player + position of need + good stats + bad team – reality + irrelevant references to the 1996-2000 yankees in a disingenuous, conflated revisionist bullshitty way – any spelled out strategy to acquire said player = the yanks should trade for him = since the yanks didn’t/couldn’t trade for him, the front office is full of morons + the Red Sox are awesome + i need to write another 1500 words on this

 
 
E-ROC says:

Screw Joey Votto. Get Jay Bruce and Homer Bailey!

Steve S says:

And Edison Volzquez

Throw in the rights to Chris Sabo, and we’ll talk.

GG says:

I think Pete was just thinking outside the box and throwing some names out there.

Whats wrong with that? Hes not allowed to talk baseball and Hot Stove??

We’re not allowed to pick apart his absurd smorgasbord of bullshit innuendo? What’s wrong with that?

It’s called Hot Stove, not Hot Industrial Strength Restaurant Grade Grill Burner Apparatus. There’s only four burners on that metaphorical stovetop; not every wacko pipedream in Pete’s head need be recorded and disseminated for posterity.

steve (different one) says:

how is just naming a random player “thinking outside the box”?

thinking outside the box would be to:

1. name the player
2. say WHY his team would want to trade him – this is key
3. say who you think would be traded for said player

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Ben K. says:

Here’s my issue with it and I know I’m late to the party. PA will write a post criticizing his readers for being so melodramatic and then turn around and suggest something like this. It’s just as absurd as the fans who think the Yanks should sign every free agent under the sun.

 
 
 
 
 
 
Shamus says:

All kinds of Jeter to 1B speculation today.

Sweet, a 36 year old 1B who hits 10 HR a year….

Troy says:
GG says:

Jeter in LF. Mark it down.

Troy says:

That’s more like it. I’m sure the Yankees will come to their senses and make a serious run at Teixeira. After 2009, when Damon and Matsui leave, Jeter can move to LF, Posada to DH. And still have Teixeira at 1B. Perfect solution to everything

Jeter at 1B would be a nightmare. He’d automatically be the worst offensive 1B in baseball

 
 
 
 
steve (different one) says:

Sweet, a 36 year old 1B who hits 10 HR a year….

wait, your buddy Pete Abe just said the same thing as us “Foolish Jiveass Yankee fans”

5. Cobble it together for a year knowing that eventually Derek Jeter will play there.

 
 
mike pop says:

how is varitek a type a and giambi doesn’t even get type b

Mike A. says:

Giambi’s time on the DL in 2007 is what’s doing him in.

2007 Jason Giambi not playing >>>>> 2008 Jason Varitek actually playing

Emac2 says:

How bad do you have to play before you can stop calling it playing?

 
 
 
 
Mike A. says:

Damn yo, now Joe Jurevicius has a staph infection. WTF is going on in Cleveland?

Andy In Sunny Daytona says:

I blame Purell Hand Sanitizer.

 
UWS says:

Just goes to confirm that Cleveland is a cesspool of crapitude.

Nick says:

Hey now, I love Cleveland. Went to college there. The fans are insane and have a huge chip on their shoulder, but I still liked the place.

 
 
E-ROC says:

It’s A-Rod’s fault.

Seriously though, the Browns should scrub all their facilities with anti-bacterial solution because it’s getting ridiculous. If I’m a player on that team, I’m freaking out and asking questions.

Andy In Sunny Daytona says:

I feel bad for Kenny George, the 7′7″ college player. He had to have part of his foot amputated because it got infected with MRSA at Pete Newell’s Big Man Camp.

 
 
Jamal G. says:

This from an ESPN article on the news:

Winslow was the sixth known Browns player to develop staph in the past few years.

http://tinyurl.com/5jn239

Wow.

The Browns are horrendously, horrendously fucked. What free agent would want to sign there?

Scrub their facilities? They may have to burn them to the ground and start over.

GG says:

And they fine and suspend their TE who complained about the situation.

Where is their Union on this?

They “rescinded” the suspension. Whatever that shit means.

 
 
 
 
 
George says:

Its A-Rod plus Madonna fault

 
Shamus says:

Careful George, Madonna will whoop yo ass.

Seen the guns on here? Wow, for a 78 year old woman, she has some Popeye Muscles!

Ron Burgundy: 1001, 1002, 1003…
Veronica Corningstone: Uh, Mr. Burgundy? Helen said that you needed to see me.
Ron Burgundy: Oh, Miss Corningstone. I wasn’t expecting company. Just doing my workout. Tuesday’s arms and back.
Veronica Corningstone: Well, you asked me to come by, sir.
Ron Burgundy: Oh, did I?
Veronica Corningstone: Yes.
Ron Burgundy: Ohh, it’s the deep burn! OH, IT’S SO DEEP! Oh, I can barely lift my right arm ’cause I did so many. I don’t know if you heard me counting. I did over a thousand.

Mike A. says:

Please, stop calling your arms guns, Mr. Burgundy.

Oh, this is awkward. I’m gonna walk…

I’m gonna walk this situation off and I will see you later. Nothing to look at. Go back to work, everyone. Don’t act like you’re not impressed.

 
 
 
 
leftylarry says:

I could live with arbiration for Marte and losing him for 2 draft picks would be fine with me.
He was far from brilliant late last season, is getting older and I’d rather spend the money elsewhere and assume Coke is the lefty specialist in the pen.
The pen is solid and Joba may end up back there too and with Melancon pretty much ready and Adam Dunn & Wilkens DeLARosa probable Lefthanded hard throwing Bullpen types in the wings, Marte is a luxry item we could do without if his 6 million can be used elsewhere.

 
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