Dec
11
Afternoon updates: Winding down the meetings
ByAs I study for my contracts final and Joe and Mike get ready to come back to rainy New York, the winter meetings are officially winding down. While it’s unlikely that any major deals will get done before the GMs make it back home tonight, we’ve got rumors galore to share.
- Forget Nick Punto. MLB Trade Rumors notes that the Twins have resigned Punto to a two-year, $8.5-million deal with an option for 2011. Punto has a career OPS+ of 74 and is going to make $4 million a year. I’m in the wrong line of work.
- Tyler Kepner sums up the Cameron stituation. The Yanks and Brewers are haggling over money and extra players. Kepner notes that perhaps Kei Igawa could be shipped off to Milwaukee. He’d be the perfect replacement for CC Sabathia. Not.
- Dan Graziano says the Cameron deal might not happen because the Yankees hurt the Brewers’ feelings. By asking for money a day after giving CC Sabathia the largest pitching contract ever, the Yanks have supposedly insulted the Brewers. Somewhere, the world’s smallest violin player is playing for Doug Melvin.
113 Comments»
RAB Info
The Founders
Mike Axisa, Ben Kabak, Joe Pawlikowski
Editor-In-Chief
Mike Axisa Archives | Email
Managing Editors
Ben Kabak Archives | E-mail
Joe Pawlikowski Archives | E-mail
Contributing Editors
Larry Koestler (Archives)
Moshe Mandel (Archives)
Stephen Rhoads (Archives)
Weekend Writers
Hannah Ehrlich (Archives)
Matthew Warden (Archives)
Special Contributor
J.R. O'Grady (Archives)
Technical Consultant
Jay Gordon
Subscribe to RAB by RSS and Twitter
Follow @RiverAveBlues Search RAB
Banner Design By
The Mason Williams Watch
By asking for money a day after giving CC Sabathia the largest pitching contract ever, the Yanks have supposedly insulted the Brewers.
This can’t be real… if you’re the Brewers just fire back with its MELKY CABERERA
what a joke… i really love shoving it right up the asses of the welfare teams
Of course Kei Igawa could replace CC! They do both throw baseballs lefthanded. That’s the most important criterion, isn’t it?
Except CC throws strikes too.
Igawa throws strikes. It’s just that his strikes end up traveling a lot farther.
And, ironically, faster as well.
there’s a riddle in there somewhere
if the Brewers don’t want to make the deal, don’t make it. but don’t do it out of spite. that’s how you wind up trading Curt Schilling for Casey Fossum.
make the deal that makes sense for your team.
I’m glad someone remembers that ridiculousness
How was spite involved?
This is ringing some bells, but refresh my memory please.
Dbacks GM (Garangiola?) hated Steinbrenner’s guts, and so refused to trade Schilling to the Yanks. I’m not sure what was the offered package, though.
I don’t know what the Yankees offered, but supposedly Arizona would only trade us Schilling if we gave up Soriano & Nick Johnson.
So either there was spite in there, or the DBacks just totally blew it.
Shame on Doug Melvin. Like my good ol’ boy Tom Hanks said…”There’s no crying in baseball.”
“By asking for money a day after giving CC Sabathia the largest pitching contract ever, the Yanks have supposedly insulted the Brewers.”
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA, AMAZING
WOW Marlin’s president just bashed the yankees and cashman. spend like drunken sailors, irresponsible
he did the same thing last year after the Mariners extended Ichiro.
if there is one guy i don’t want to hear it from, it’s him.
ZOMMMGGG PAYING PLAYERS OTHER THAN THEIR ARB NUMBER WHAT IS THIS CAPITALISM!!!!1!
….This just in Marlins are moving to Cuba, where free agents are not of concern.
this also just in. jerhanley ramirez and anibel sanchez have bought blow up rafts and appear to be landing in miami around the start of spring training
Hmmm… If the Marlins move to Cuba and HanRam defects, does that make him a free agent that we can buy, like El Duque and Contreras?
I’m VERY aroused…
open excel, that’ll finish you off
isnt he the guy that thought ichiros contract was like the end of civilization as we know it??? i dont remember his quote but it seemed like he thought that contract was equivolent to a presidential assassination, 9/11, and the anthrax scandal all rolled into one giant catastrophe… dude needs to get a life
Hey… Do you have a link? People keep mentioning this but I don’t see it anywhere.
Same.
WOW Marlin’s president just bashed the yankees and cashman. spend like drunken sailors, irresponsible
His payroll in 2008 was $21,836,500. http://blog.sportscolumn.com/s.....B_Payrolls I couldn’t find his 2008 revenue sharing (welfare) payment, but based on what I found for 2006 and 2007, it probably exceeded payroll. So it’s a little hypocritical of him to bite the hand that feeds him.
Is it any surprise someone who is basically the right hand man of Jeffrey Loria would be an ass?
the brewers being upset about the money thing is hilarious…. like all deals that happen at the meetings are somehow intertwined… its a completely separate transaction
the yanks have more money, fame, fans, media coverage, season ticket holders, and national relevance than the brewers… their perceived “bulliness” is simply running their team in a way thats responsible and necessary based on the reasons i just mentioned… GET OVER IT MILWAUKEE
The thing is Milwaukee likely would never have gotten CC, even if the Yanks weren’t interested, likely SF, Dodgers, or Anaheim could have equaled what Milwaukee was paying.
Furthermore I don’t get why Milwaukee is all whiny, he was a hired gun, picked up mid-season… Cleveland could at least have a case at whining since they developed him
All this is nothing but PR spin by Melvin. Railing against the Yankees ruining everything and keeping your team down is like Castro or Ahmedinejad saying USA is the Great Satan… it helps keep you in power.
In order to be a hero, you need a good villain.
What about cash flying to see andy?
hopefully that deal gets done.
if not stop by sheets before coming home
Screw that, stop off in Maryland and bring Burnett back with him
Boo that.
Andy Pettitte OR Ben Sheets OR virtually every other option >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> A.J. Burnett on a 5 year deal
seconded
thirded… unless “virtually every other option” includes oliver perez
fourthed
what is this?
http://yankees.lhblogs.com/200.....-pettitte/
thank you
Please take Kei Igawa away from us.
Has anyone else seen these Kruk and Ravech chats – http://proxy.espn.go.com/chat/.....t_id=24106? They’re comically atrocious.
Given the FJM has been discontinued someone should come up with a fire the Krukster
I wonder what ESPN intern is typing on John Kruk’s behalf.
Kruk probably knows less about baseball than anyone who has ever played. His commentary on baseball tonight last night was embarrasing.
Thats what he is there for
Cameron has .242 BA and a .330 OBP the past 2 years ; avg 151 SO in 135 games over past 2 years. His defense is slipping and is not championship caliber. Gardner will exceed these stats but not 20 HR. Melky and a Gardner platoon will at a minimum do as well. Spend an extra 10M/year and get manny. Cameron needs the friendship of CC more than CC needs Cameron. I suppose you could ask CC if he would rather have an extra 10-15 Put outs for his 32 starts and a serious playoff run or a guy he knows 3 mos from Milwaukee.
Cameron has .242 BA and a .330 OBP the past 2 years ; avg 151 SO in 135 games over past 2 years.
He also had 121 walks and 112 extra base hits over the past two years.
His defense is slipping and is not championship caliber.
He was the third best defensive centerfielder in all of baseball last year. Only Carlos Gomez and Grady Sizemore were better.
Gardner will exceed these stats but not 20 HR. Melky and a Gardner platoon will at a minimum do as well.
No, not remotely, it won’t. Not even close. Melky and Gardner would both have to do massive amounts of PED’s in order to approximate Cameron’s bat. This statement is batshit crazy.
Cameron needs the friendship of CC more than CC needs Cameron. I suppose you could ask CC if he would rather have an extra 10-15 Put outs for his 32 starts and a serious playoff run or a guy he knows 3 mos from Milwaukee.
What CC would really like is a guy who can both play good defense in CF and not be a massive black hole in the lineup. Between Cameron, Gardner, and Melky, the only person with a modicum of a chance to do that is Mike Cameron.
Just out of curiosity, is there a difference between batshit insane and batshit crazy? Is one worse than the other? I wouldn’t want to commit a faux pas by using one in the wrong context.
Tomato, tomahto.
your commenting on these guys friendships is ridiculous… just saying something like “cameron needs cc more than cc needs cameron” is hilarious considering 1. you have no inside knowledge of this and 2. it isnt relevant
I bet Gardiner doesn’t come close to Cameron on strikeouts
if CC sabathia needs a friend to keep him company, he should print out his 170 MILLION DOLLARS and talk to it instead of cameron.
i’m actually in favor of bringing cameron, but not for the reason that “cc needs a friend”
he actually goes to white castle and gets cragve cases and once he is done eating all the sliders inside he fills the cases with his money and then re-enacts the scene from pulp fiction where they open marsellas’s briefcase. but when he opens the crave case full of $100 bills he giggles.
his kids have tired of thsi game quickly.
if CC sabathia needs a friend to keep him company, he should print out his 170 MILLION DOLLARS and talk to it instead of cameron.
Wait, where did CC get the extra $9M from? The deal was $161M. Are you trying to make it seem like we spent even more money than we did?
Doug Melvin, is that you?
Not everyone understands the rounding concept.
most people round to the nearest ten’s place though, not the further…
Random but any thought on signing Nomar as utility guy?
no
Will he play for free?
if he 1. plays for free 2. divorces mia hamm 3. somehow doesnt take up a 40man spot 4. gets a nosejob i MIGHT consider giving him wilson betemits spot… but thats still only if cody ransom shoots himself in the leg at a nightclub
5. stops hsi stupid little dance in between pitches. there’s a reason games take 4 fucking hours.
Let’s sign him and then trade him to the Red Sox for Alex Cora and Sean Casey.
Speaking of which, Mo Vaughn is available… and we DO have an opening at first… eh? eh?
shut uip steve philips
Clemens for a 5th starter?
Looks like the talks with the Rays might not have gone well:
http://yankees.lhblogs.com/200.....-to-yanks/
i think the giambi train has left the station… i wish him all the best though, ill still pull for the guy when hes not playin the yanks
i think his time here is up
http://www.metstoday.com/wp-co.....ograph.jpg
Damnit, how’d you get that picture?! My friend swore up and down it was in a safe place!
Ben,
With the 40 man roster filled, who do you see being released to fit all the new signings? Barring any trades of course.
Britton.
Shelley’s days are numbered as well.
Noooo, not Shelly Duncan, come on, is this a shock, and is anyone going to miss him? No…
Maybe a little.
Remember when that little kid Red Sox fan asked him for an autograph and he wrote “Red Sox Suck”?
hahah good times
Is this a joke or did he really do this? I know I sound like a complete moronic idiot.
He actually did it, but he later apologized for it and said that he just got caught up in the rivalry
http://www.bostonherald.com/ne.....id=1031894
Most of the media is criticizing the Yankees for offering Burnett 5 yrs. Is Brian Cashman making this call or is it Hank? Over the last few years Cashman has done a horrible job with free agent pitchers. Is this going to be another case?
Over the last few years Cashman has done a horrible job with free agent pitchers.
What good free agent pitcher did Cash whiff on recently? Granted, pavano and Wright didn’t work out, but A) everyone was bidding on Pavano, and B) he took a flier on Wright, didn’t sign him to be a #1 or #2.
22 mil for one great and one crappy year of Moose? That’s not horrible.
32 mil for 420 innings of 4.25 ERA ball from Andy? Not horrible. And in neither case is he still on the hook. Who else has he signed in free agency the last three years?
Why would you think Hank is calling the shots? Hal controls the purse and officially runs the organization so if they’re offering him 5 years/85 million then it’s got to get his approval.
looks like i am getting exactly what i didnt want: burnett and petitte
just read that the red sox may deal lugo for byrnes..thats a good deal for them – he is a gritty player
doubt that happen now, D’Back signed Lopez to play 2B… which is what they were going to acquire Lopez for… unless they just want to dump Byrnes, who is owed more money than Lopez
He also costs a lot of money and doesn’t play baseball that well — and tends to be injured.
It’s a bad-contract-swap to get them a deal that also sucks, but ends earlier than Lugo’s.
Chicago and Boston are going to have to change nicknames soon. The White Sox signing every Communist under the sun, and Boston, well you know…..lessening the cumulative hue.
i know everyone will disagree with me but i actually really like michael kay. he just went on a rant against the marlins president and defended the yankees. he may be obnoxious at time, but the guy has always defended yankee spending – would rather listen to him than someone on the side of the nation
http://www.firejoemorgan.com/2.....rfect.html
one of the all time classic meltdowns… nazis, slavery, and atheists… all in 3 minutes time
I respect Michael Kay’s honesty. I also believe he has become a more friendly person lately.
Fuck, send Melky and Igawa to the Brew Crew and pay the full 10M and have Cam patrol CF in the new Yankee Stadium, end of conversation.
Maybe send a fruit basket to the Brewers Org because we made them cry.
Just read over at MLBTR that Giambi would be willing to come back to the Yanks at a discount…. Is this true? I’d do it, depending on what the discount is.
free. and he siots the bench til someone gets injured
Looks like Cash is flying down to see Pettitte as well. Hopefully they can come together.
cash is probably gonna tell him – take this offer today or have a good life
I just read that Reegie Corona was picked up from the rule 5.
I live in Staten Island and I remember seeing Reegie Corona play for the Staten Island Yankees, I always liked him.
and Zack Kroenke, Jason Jones, Ivan Nova, Andres Santos, Josue Salinas (via BA).
beginning to look like the 2009 plan for the rotation is taking shape. Looks as though (ideally) cashman wants burnett and petitte. personally i disagree and would much rather see them sign the other two guys – sheets and lowe, but burnett is still a big improvement over rasner and ponson
cant help but be excited
next up has gotta be manny, but i would love to see them at least stick their noses into the texiera thing to at the very least up the price a bit for theo
how the hel do the yankees lose 6 guys and boston loses nobody? i thought boston had the superior minor league system. is it that the yanks just have a gluttony of AAAA players?
Exactly. Our system spits out AAAA players while Redsox produce MVP’s
That shit bums me out and the situation isn’t getting any better.
From Rotoworld:
“The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel believes the hurdle has been cleared in the proposed Mike Cameron-for-Melky Cabrera deal.
Brewers general manager Doug Melvin just said there was “a strong possibility it could still happen.” The financial issues have apparently been taken care of. The matter at hand now is the second player coming over from the Yankees. Perhaps it will be one of the relievers passed over in the Rule 5 draft, like Kevin Whelan or J. Brent Cox.”
Id give em Whelan
Sheets>Pettite. We all agree on that right?
but pettitte requires 1 year… while sheets requires 2 at least, possibly 3
Yeah but Hes sheets. I’d take that risk because in 3 years we will have a better handle on what kind of Minor league pitching we have.
im just saying, there are reasons to like andy over sheets… namely, durability and contract length… and probably annual salary too
Wrong comparison in my opinion.
Sheets > Burnett
and
Pettite > Lowe
Comparing the two high risk/high reward options and the two “sure things”, I would very much like to have one of each, and I would very much prefer Sheets and Pettite over Burnett and Lowe.
I think Sheets and Burnett will put up the same type of numbers. If you consider Sheets has been in the nl and had his low 3 era’s and burnett has had high 3 era’s in the al.. I really think when healthy they would put up same type of numbers..
I think Sheets probably puts up better numbers but fine, lets assume its equal.
This would still give Sheets an ENORMOUS advantage because he will be signed for a much more reasonable contract.
But what about him having “red flags” ? If he is going to be hurt throughout the whole 2 or 3 years thats just wasted money.. But again they both come with injury risks
The question that we don’t know the answer to is the damage in Sheets’s elbow. There may be something there that scares the Yankees. Then you are looking at serious definite problems with Sheets and the possibility that he will pitch barely at all during three years of the contract (a la Pavano) against Burnett’s history and the possibility that he has turned a corner and will be very valuable for at least 3-4 of those 5 years in the contract. I just don’t like that the Yanks were scared off by his medicals.
Christmas wishes:
Why the Yanks want Cameron is beyond me, he’s 36 years at the beginning of the year! Teams with this much age don’t win, the Yanks can go with Gardner and Melky in center.
The one exception to the age rule is the offensive player who could turn the Yankee line up around, Manny. Go get him
Stay away from AJ he’s another Pavano.
Why the Yanks would consider paying $66 million for Lowe is a total mystrey. I’d rather have Andy.
Sheets on a two year deal is worth the risk (about 28 million).
how are the royals giving farnsworth 4.5 million a year for 2 years. you have to laugh at that when there are so many better options out there in a market flooded with relief pitchers