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December 27, 2005
Glaus Flies to the Blue Jays

The Blue Jays and Diamondbacks completed the deal for Troy Glaus today.

The Arizona Diamondbacks traded power-hitting Troy Glaus and top minor league shortstop prospect Sergio Santos to the Toronto Blue Jays on Tuesday for gold glove second baseman Orlando Hudson and pitcher Miguel Batista.

The Blue Jays were not exactly weak at third base. Toronto third basemen posted a .361 OBA with 52 extra-base hits in 2005. With Overbay at first, Koskie may move to DH or be packaged to another team.

Glaus is one of my favorites, especially before injuries took their toll on his playing time. His resurgence at the end of the 2002 season helped the Angels to their only World Championship. He'll bring some needed power to the Blue Jays lineup.

The Diamondbacks are getting a fine defensive second baseman in Orlando Hudson. He led American League second sackers in fielding win shares in 2005. He's no offensive threat, however. Batista became expendable with the acquistion of B.J. Ryan. Batista came to closing late in his career and did a decent job. He doesn't blow people away; his 6.5 K per 9 in 2005 doesn't inspire a lot of confidence in the 9th inning. It looks to me like a pretty good trade for Toronto.

Correction: Arizona is getting Hudson.

The Battle for Second

Jose Vidro joins Alfonso Soriano in not wanting to move from second base.

Soriano has said he won't change positions, and Vidro said he won't either.

Soriano "is a tremendous plus for the team. But I'm a bit confused about what can happen if he doesn't want to play left field," Vidro told the local daily, El Nuevo Dia for Tuesday's editions.

Maybe the Nationals can think outside the box to satisfy both players. Instead of the shortstop moving for a shift on a left-handed batter, just bring in Soriano from left. The team doesn't expect a lefty to go the other way if there's a shift on, and this will give Alfonso a chance to play the infield, especially against Barry Bonds. Of course, the winner of a Celebrity Death Match works too.

Red Sox Summation

Talking Baseball sums up the Red Sox off season.

Back to the Pen

Former closer Jeff Reardon is closed in right now after being arrested for robbing a jewelry store:

A four-time all-star who earned more than $2 million a season at the height of his 16-year career, Reardon walked into a jewelry store on Monday and "handed an employee a note stating that they were being robbed and that he had a gun," Palm Beach Gardens Police said in a news release.

Reardon was arrested at a nearby restaurant and the stolen money was recovered, police said.

Since Johnny Damon signed with the Yankees, I've had a number of discussions with family and friends about the money earned by ballplayers. At some point, the question is asked, "When they're earning that much money, what difference does a few million dollars make?"

Any ballplayer who lasts long enough to become arbitration eligable should be set for life. What we tend to forget, however, is that large earnings tend to lead to large spending habits. Bobby Grich, who made good money in his era, retired broke. Ron Guidry went bankrupt while he was still pitching. Jack Clark made bad investments. It's amazing how many of these stars never plan for their future, as if they're going to be making big money forever.

Reardon's case is an especially sad one. If the story is true, he'll be spending time in entirely different kind of pen.

Update: According to this article in the Star Tribune, Reardon is not having financial difficulty. Jeff is blaming drugs he's taking:

He said Reardon had a 20-year-old son who died of a drug overdose in February 2004, which "has been very difficult for him and his family,'' and has been on medication for depression. Reardon, who is married and has two other children, also underwent a heart angioplasty last week and has been taking medication for that.

"He asked me to apologize to his fans and friends,'' Beers said. "This bizarre incident is completely uncharacteristic of Jeff Reardon.''

We'll wait and see how this one turns out.

What do the Indians See in Jason Johnson?

The Cleveland Indians signed former Oriole and Tiger Jason Johnson to a one-year, $4 million contract. He'll take the spot in the rotation occupied by Kevin Millwood. Johnson has a 4.88 ERA. Why did Cleveland agree to put such a pitcher in their rotation? Let's look at his walk and strikeout rates over his career:

Jason Johnson, career.
SeasonSeasonal AgeKper9BBper9
1997234.51.5
1998245.44.05
1999255.544.292
2000266.6045.099
2001275.2353.536
2002286.6472.81
2003295.5993.796
2004305.722.746
2005313.9862.1

Johnson's improved his walk numbers greatly over the last few seasons. Unfortunately, his strikeout numbers sank to a new low in 2005, not reaching four per 9. So batters put a lot of balls in play against Johnson. The Indians, however, play excellent defense, posting the 2nd best DER in 2005 in the American League. That means they can cover up Johnson's weakness in strikeouts, while taking advantage of his strength in walks. He's a cheap fifth starter who should give the Indians 200 innings, and he won't kill the team because of the defense behind him.

Millwood Parks a Contract

The Texas Rangers land a big name free agent pitcher, signing Kevin Millwood to a quasi five-year deal:

Millwood is the first pitcher to get a five-year deal from Texas since Chan Ho Park. The Rangers had said repeatedly that they wouldn't give out five-year contracts for pitchers again after the club's ill-fated signing of Park for $65 million before the 2002 season.

But they made an exception for Millwood, a front-line starter who should lead a rotation that has been reshaped this off-season.

The fifth year depends on Millwood reaching a certain level, so I guess the Rangers will argue it's not really a five year deal. Are they getting another Chan Ho Park, however?

The thing that struck me about Park at the time of the Texas deal was Chan Ho's home/road breakdown. Park's ERA in his time with the Dodgers was almost two runs worse away from Los Angeles. It's not clear why, however. Park walked a few more people on the road, but struck out more and his home runs allowed were nearly the same. What's clear is that many more balls in play were falling for hits away from Chavez Ravine. There was something about Dodger Stadium that greatly benefited Park, and that benefit did not exist on the road.

Millwood's been pretty even home and road (having called a few different parks home over the years). What should be encouraging to the Rangers are his splits at Citizens Bank Park, a park with a high home run index. According to The Bill James Handbook 2006, Texas has a home run index of 119, second highest in the AL. Philadelphia has an index of 121, second in the NL. Millwood allowed just eight home runs in Philadelphia in 2004 vs. six on the road. Part of it may be that Millwood was willing to intimidate batters, as he hit six at CBP but just one on the road that year.

So the home/road problem isn't there for Millwood. The evidence is that ball parks don't effect him very much. My big question is, do the Rangers believe they are getting the AL ERA leader? Millwood's league leading ERA in 2005 was due to a combination of luck and good defense. His DIPS ERA (3.88) was a run higher than his actual ERA (2.86). Millwood pitched extremely well with runners in scoring position last season, something that is out of character with previous seasons.

What the Rangers have is a pitcher that's capable of posting an ERA in the low fours. Given the level of offense Texas produces every year, Millwood can win a lot of games with that level of pitching. That makes him worth a lot of money to the Rangers. We'll know just how much when the contract is finalized.

December 26, 2005
What Did a Win Cost?

Via the USA Today Salary Database, I calculate the total salary paid in 2005 was $2.135 billion. With that number in hand, we can calculate how much a win cost in 2005. Since there are 15 *162 games, there are 15*162 wins. That makes the cost per win about $880,000 dollars.

We can calculate win shares for each player. Each win share is worth 1/3 of a win, or approximately $293,000 per win share.

I bring this up because I wonder just how much the Yankees are overpaying for Johnny Damon. Damon posted 25 win shares in 2005. That was worth 7.3 million (the Red Sox paid 8.2 million). Damon would need to post 44 win shares in 2006 for his contract to be worth the money in terms of win shares.

Of course, everything balances. Damon is getting over paid now for above average past performances. Jason Bay put up 30 win shares last year, worth 8.8 million but only received $660,000. At some point, he'll be over payed for this season, too.

Boring Retirement

Jack McKeon already wants to get back into baseball. He's bored by retirement:

''I'm a turnaround specialist,'' said McKeon, the most successful manager in Marlins history. ``I would probably like evaluating talent or being on the field. I wouldn't mind being a bench coach. Something I can do where I don't have to sit around and make a lot of reports out.

``So if someone calls, I'll listen. I'll go back.''

Maybe he should start a blog. :-)

Rock Bottom Payroll

Tracy Ringolsby points out that in addition to having one of the lowest payrolls in the majors, the Rockies are shedding a good deal of money owed to former players:

The Rockies will have only minimal demands on their payroll the next couple of years for players no longer on their roster.

They owe Florida $2 million in 2006 and 2007 and $2.5 million in 2008 to offset the Mike Hampton contract, and then, from 2009-2012 they owe Hampton $1.5 million annually for his buyout.

If and when their current crop of players develop, Colorado should have the money to keep the good ones around.

Colletti Assessment

Bob Keisser of the Press Telegram in Long Beach tells us why he likes Ned Colletti:

There are two reasons why so many members of the local media approved the hiring of Ned Colletti as the Dodgers' General Manager, despite his having spent so many years among the pinot lovers in 'Frisco.

1. He's a regular guy because he's a former sportswriter.

2. He's a smart guy because he got out of the sports writing business.

If nothing else, the move to hire Colletti was a great public relations move after having DePodesta ripped for two years in the press. Keisser likes Colletti's moves so far because Bob believes Ned's improved the team without sacrificing the farm system:

He didn't have to trade a single prospect to restock the lineup for 2006, and in fact got one back from Oakland in the Bradley and Antonio Perez deal.

How is this different from what Keisser believes DePodesta would have done?

If McCourt hadn't made the change, DePo probably would have hired Terry Collins as manager, and would have stuck Sergio Robles at shortstop until Cesar Izturis was healthy, and asked that Antonio Perez, Willy Aybar and Norihiro Nakamura compete for the third-base job, and that Choi and Saenz split playing time at first-base, and McCourt find it in his heart to keep Bradley.

There probably isn't a single player Colletti signed that DePo would have pursued certainly not Furcal, Nomar or Lofton.

The DePo Dodgers of 2006 would have looked a lot like the 2005 Dodgers, and also been cost-efficient. Colletti's signings gives the team better brand name parts and he got McCourt to open his wallet in the process.

And it didn't cost the Dodgers their future. Baseball America, the ultimate arbiter of prospects and minor league player depth, says the Dodgers system is flush with talent that is due to arrive between 2006 and 2008.

To sum up, according to Keisser, DePodesta wanted to wait for the minor league talent to develop, keeping money in the owners' pocket while that happened. Colletti's hired stop gaps until that happens. Bascially, both are working toward a good, young team in 2008.

But Colletti's a regular guy, so his plan is better. :-)

December 25, 2005
Merry Christmas!

I hope you all have a happy and safe holiday!

December 24, 2005
Casey Takes an Ad

The Dayton Daily News reports on a nice gesture by Sean Casey toward the fans of Cincinnati:

How many professional athletes would take the time (and money) to say, "Dear Reds fans," as Casey did in the ad. "In the middle of this holiday season, my family and I wanted to thank the baseball fans of Cincinnati, the friends we made and the charities and children we worked with over the last eight years. We will cherish those memories for the rest of our lives. ... A piece of my heart will always be in Cincinnati. Bless you all."

Although I've never met Sean, we have a mutual friend who is a priest. It doesn't surprise me that a friend of Father Paul would send a message like this to his fans.

Prying Damon from the Fans

The other day I wondered how much more the Yankees had to pay to get Johnny Damon away from Boston. Cashman answered that at the press conference yesterday:

Cashman phoned Damon over the weekend.

''At that point," Cashman said, ''he was disgruntled with how the process had gone with the Red Sox negotiation for whatever reason, but he was also honest in the fact that he had a very strong bond with that fan base. Separating himself from that Red Sox Nation -- and I thought this from the very beginning -- was going to be more difficult than getting him away from the Red Sox team. That was the biggest hurdle.

''He gave me some honest answers. All things being equal, he would stay there. I knew we had to pay a separation."

So what was the premium for separation?

Through reading the papers and doing his homework, Cashman said, ''I was estimating they were probably at $11.5 million for four years." Thus, if the Yankees were to offer $12 million a year for four seasons, Cashman felt ''we were going to lose him, because he was going to stay where he was comfortable." So, Cashman went to $13 million per year.

''I wasn't going to go higher," he said.

Cashman probably over-estimated the Red Sox offer, but I bet if Boras had gotten the Red Sox in a back and forth with the Yankees, they would have gone that high. Cashman thwarted that as well:

''I felt we had to . . . make him make a decision now," Cashman said. ''Over time, he was just going to wind up staying [in Boston], I thought, because they would maybe increase their offer."

The Yankee GM called Boras Tuesday and said, ''If it doesn't work out, we're pulling out and we'll announce [we're out of the running for Damon]."

And that, of course, would put the Red Sox in the drivers seat with Boras. Scott knows a good deal when he sees it, and Damon's a member of the Yankees.


Poor Negotiations

The Cubs and Orioles are reportedly in discussions over Miguel Tejada. It's sounds like a discussion between two bad fantasy GMs so far:

According to team and industry sources, the most serious discussions the Orioles are having about Tejada appear to be with the Chicago Cubs, who are dangling a package that includes standout right-handed pitcher Mark Prior.

According to industry sources, however, the Cubs want Orioles left-hander Erik Bedard included in the deal and don't want to trade top outfield prospect Felix Pie, whom the Orioles covet. The Orioles also are slightly wary of Prior's recent history of elbow troubles and would prefer obtaining Carlos Zambrano, but the Cubs reportedly have no interest in trading him.

It seems to me the Cubs could really use Tejada. With the Cardinals doing a poor job of rebuilding and Clemens out of action, the NL Central is wide open. Landing Tejada makes the Cubs a different team (remember, the alternative right now is Neifi Perez). The Cubs shoud decide who is untouchable, then offer the Orioles their pick of two or three players from the rest. The Cubs have gone 40 years more than any other team without winning the World Series. Getting Tejada should be a no-brainer.

As for the Orioles, I can't blame them for wanting Zambrano over Prior, but Prior isn't exactly nothing. His injury last year was an accident. He's young, and has less service time than Carlos, so he'll be cheaper to keep for a few years. If the Cubs won't budge on Zambrano, Prior is more than worth the risk.

Royal Reggie

The Kansas City Royals picked up another free agent from the other side of Missouri as they showed Reggie Sanders the money.

“They had a game plan,” Sanders said. “Kansas City wined and dined me at the beginning. We sat down for a good three hours talking about where they’re going and what they’re trying to do. I needed to be the last piece of the puzzle. If I sign early, I’m left out to dry, no matter how much money I’m making. Now I see they got (Mark Grudzielanek), they got all these guys.”

Indeed, the Royals have spent generously in an effort to restock a team that lost 106 games last season. Emboldened by owner David Glass earmarking at least $22 million to upgrade the team, the Royals have added Sanders, Grudzielanek at second base, starting pitchers Scott Elarton and Mark Redman, first baseman Doug Mientkiewicz, reliever Elmer Dessens and catcher Paul Bako for $21.75 million.

Sanders was on his way to the best season of his career last year with St. Louis before a broken bone in his leg sidelined him for almost two months. In 93 games, he batted .271 with 21 home runs, 54 RBIs and 14 stolen bases.

The game plan, as far as I can see is to put a better on team on the field this year with aging free agents and hope that in a couple of seasons the farm system produces. The Royals didn't turn themselves into a good team by any stretch of the imagination, but they hope they won't be the embarrassment of 2005.

December 23, 2005
Encarnacion a Cardinal

Juan Encarnacion certainly had his career year at the right time as he parlayed his 2005 season into a 3-year, $15 million dollar contract with the Cardinals. He'll replace Larry Walker. It's quite a step down for the right field slot for the Cardinals. Juan has a .316 career OBA, Walker was an even .400 over his lifetime in the majors.

Sabermetrically Johnny

Over at Fire Brand of the American League, Andrew Lipsett tries to convince us that the perception of Johnny Damon's value is greater than his actual value.

Take all of this together, and here’s what we can see about Johnny Damon; as a hitter, his 2005 season was overwhelmingly misleading as judged only by top-level stats. So much of his value was taken up by singles - in BA, in OBP, in OPS, even in SLG - that the true predictable skills he had as a hitter were masked. Johnny Damon was a below-average Major League hitter in 2005. Below Average. He fared somewhat better among center fielders and leadoff men, but not by enough to make his loss a real crime. For $13 million dollars a year, along with the promise of lost speed and plunging production, I want way more for my money than a singles hitter who failed, catastrophically, to do much else.

To sum up the argument, Damon's a singles hitter, and singles have a lot to do with luck, while extra-base hits are a skill.

I'm sorry, I don't buy it. It seems to me that Andrew is looking for stats to make himself feel better about losing Damon. Take a look at win shares. Remember, win shares count everything; they count all hits, walks stolen bases. They count how well you hit in certain situations. They count the effects of the ball park. They count defense, including throwing arm. Take a look at the rank of Damon in win shares among outfielders last year. He's tied for fourth with Matsui, who received a similar contract. He's sixth in offensive win shares among outfielders, and fourth in defense. Only one outfielder had more putout than Johnny Damon in 2005! He catches the ball, which is what the Yankees need.

What about his age and declining? Let's say he declines 10% each year. His win shares would look like:


  • 2006 - 23

  • 2007 - 20

  • 2008 - 18

  • 2009 - 16

Bernine Williams was 36 (seasonal age) in 2005, a year older than Damon will be when he finishes his contract. Over the same age, Bernie posted 83 win shares (54 came in the first two seasons). A 10 percent decline per year gives Damon 77. Bernie was earning about $12.3 million per season over that time. Damon is earning $13 million.

To put it simply, Damon is one of the top outfielders in the game. For about the same money they were paying, the Yankees upgraded the position with a better hitter and a much better fielder. Damon catches the ball, and does a decent job of getting on base, even if he does reach by a lot of singles. Selectively pointing out weaknesses in his game doesn't change his over stature.

December 22, 2005
Shrinking Stadium

The Oakland Athletics are covering the third deck of the Coliseum, reducing the capacity of the stadium of around 34,000.

Taking the third deck out of play will make planning much easier. In addition, making tickets more scarce will encourage fans to purchase seats earlier and could increase the season-ticket-holder base, which is currently less than 10,000, one of the smallest in baseball.

More important, perhaps, is that the new baseball capacity will be 34,179 -- which is just about the size the A's would like to have if and when they get a new stadium. So, essentially, a smaller Coliseum will be a test run for a new ballpark.

This is a case where less appears to be more (Unix joke).

Cuba and Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico wants the US to allow Cuba to play in the World Baseball Classic:

Puerto Rican athletic officials said Thursday that the island should not host next year's World Baseball Classic unless the U.S. government reverses its decision to deny Cuba permission to play in the United States.

I'm sure MLB is quaking in their boots over this. It's not like they can move the site to Atlanta or Miami or Houston!

I also keep reading that keeping Cuba out of this tournament hurts the US chances of landing an Olympics in the future. I don't quite understand that. This is a private tournament. As far as I know, Cubans are not banned from competing in the Olympics in this country. If MLB were not offering prize money (operating like the Olympics) there would not be a problem. In fact, isn't that the best solution to this whole thing? Just withdraw the prize money.

Lawton Confesses

Matt Lawton admitted he used steroids:

Lawton told Sports Weekly's Bob Nightengale that he was playing poorly and was hurting, so he turned to steroids.

"I wasn't playing well enough to be on a Little League roster, let alone be on the roster of the New York Yankees," Lawton told Sports Weekly in its current issue. "I just wasn't physically able to do the job. I had never been in the playoff hunt before. So I did something that will always haunt me."

Lawton said that he's never taken amphetamines, but injected the steroid on Sept. 20. The next day, he started in center field and hit a home run in his first at-bat. He said he didn't feel any pain.

He was tested the next day.

I wonder if someone tipped off MLB on this. Lawton goes on to say he was "talking to some guys," and I wonder if someone else heard the conversation and made a phone call.

It also makes me wonder if why we shouldn't use steroids for pain medication. I'm not an expert, but is there a dose that helps with pain while not doing much for building muscle? If Lawton weren't a baseball player, but someone who had a physical job, would a doctor treat him with steroids in such a case? Any comments by doctors would be appreciated.

Update: Lawton signed with the Seattle Mariners for a bit above the major league minimum. He'll miss the first ten days of the 2006 season.

White Christmas for the Twins

The Minnesota Twins tap Rondell White to replace Jacque Jones in the outfield:

The Minnesota Twins agreed Thursday to a contract with Rondell White that guarantees the designated hitter $3.25 million for one year and could be worth up to $8.5 million over two seasons if he plays regularly.

Playing regularly is the tough part. If Rondell can stay healthy, he'll hit better than Jones. But he's only played 130 games or more four times in a 13 season career. The Twins are not risking a lot of money here, however.

Williams Still a Yankee

Bernie Williams agreed to a $1.5 million dollar contract with the Yankees. I think this is good for Bernine and the team. It doesn't make the team better, but so many people complain about player and team loyalty, it's good to see a pillar of the franchise get a chance to finish his career with the only team he's known.

Maybe the Red Sox can trade for Bubba Crosby.

Elrod Hendricks Passes

Elrod Hendricks passed away yesterday, and John Eisenberg of the Baltimore Sun remembers the longtime Orioles catcher and coach:

Six years ago, I undertook a massive assignment, publishing an oral history of the Orioles, the first of its kind. I interviewed dozens of former players, coaches and managers, gathering hundreds of hours of tape. My session with Elrod was the longest. I lost track of time.

He was a unique figure in the history of the franchise. He knew almost everyone and had seen almost everything, and wise as he was, he could comment, analyze, interject, further the story. I came away from our session understanding that, in a sense, he was the conscience of the franchise.

I started watching baseball in 1969, and the Orioles had a catching platoon of Elrod Hendricks and Andy Etchebarren. I thought those were both great names. Both were Earl Weaver type players. Neither hit for a high batting average, but both drew a decent number of walks. Looking at that 1969 team now, they've been very successful since leaving the playing field. An extraordinary group of players.

My thought go out to Elrods family and friends.

Front Office Strategy

Tony Massarotti continues to be the leading voice on the Red Sox front office:

For Red Sox ownership and upper management, in particular, there are some bad trends being established, particularly during the last two offseasons. Pedro Martinez left. So did Derek Lowe. Now Damon is gone, too, his departure coming after negotiations with Theo Epstein also resulted in an ugly divorce between the Sox and their young general manager. When it comes to negotiating with their high-profile personalities — Jason Varitek is the exception — the Sox generally seem inclined to let the market dictate the price, then decide they do not want to pay it.

The rule of thumb is that anyone who wins an auction over pays, since the winning bid is beyond what anyone else is willing to pay. And that's a perfectly good way to run a ballclub. Cleveland is doing that right now, but they've been developing young players for a few years. As Massarotti points out later in the article:

Of course, while all of this has been going on, the Sox have been throwing away money in other areas. Last winter, even when Epstein was the GM, the Sox overpaid for Matt Clement. They forked over $40 million for Edgar Renteria, then decided he wasn’t worth it (after one year) and shipped him to the Atlanta Braves. They ate $11 million of Renteria’s remaining contract and took on the $18 million due Lowell. In the same trade that brought the Marlins third baseman, they shipped away Hanley Ramirez, a highly regarded prospect who seemed part of their long-term plan.

The Sox plan appears to be "win now and rebuild." Maybe you can't do both.

Finley for Alfonzo

The Angels and Giants agreed to a deal last night, sending Steve Finley north and Edgardo Alfonzo south.

The Giants continue their love affair with aging outfielders:

In joining Bonds -- for whom he'll likely fill in quite a bit -- Finley exacerbates the Giants' trend of aged outfielders. Last year's Opening Day trio of Bonds (40), Marquis Grissom (38) and Moises Alou (38), the AARP outfield, will seem almost young next season when Finley is on the field. He turns 41 in March, and Bonds is now 41 and Alou 39. Randy Winn is the kid of the group, at 31. (This is nothing new. In 2001, the Giants had an outfield that at times included Bonds, then 36; Shawon Dunston, 38; and Eric Davis, 39.)

"I still don't view myself as a 40-year-old," Finley said. "I see my age next to my name, but I don't feel like that. It's a testament to all of us (Bonds, Alou and Finley) that we're still able to play at that level.''

Are the Giants incapable of developing a young outfielder? Do they ever draft any? There's got to be a 22-year-old in their system who can play as well as Finley for 1/20th of the price.

I also take it this mean the Angels won't be trading Figgins to the Red Sox for Manny Ramirez.

But the Giants needed a fourth outfielder to spell aging Barry Bonds and Moises Alou, and the Angels needed some insurance in case young third baseman Dallas McPherson doesn't fully recover from hip surgery and/or struggles at the plate.

The Giants had no need for Alfonzo, having declared Pedro Feliz their third baseman, and the Angels had no need for Finley, having all but handed his job this winter to Chone Figgins or Darin Erstad, though Stoneman said Wednesday's trade "makes it more likely that Figgins will play more center field than he has in the past."

It's a good trade for LAnaheim. And Finley's in the right role as defensive replacement, but that's still a lot of money for a part-time player.

My Favorite Things

John Smoltz discusses his favorite pitch (emphasis added):

"My favorite pitch is the one that's in the dirt that they can't hit but they swing at; I still can't figure out why they do it but I'm not going to try," Smoltz said.

I've always wondered that myself.


Quoting Sox Fans

Was Watching rounds up Red Sox Nation thoughts on the Yankees signing Johnny Damon.

December 21, 2005
Why Are They Sad and Glad and Bad?

Chad Finn gives five reasons he's glad and sad to see Johnny Damon go.

Some are sad.
And some are glad.
And some are very, very bad.
Why are they sad and glad and bad?
I do not know.
Go ask your dad.
Murray the Sage

Alex Belth at Bronx Banter quotes a friend on the possibility of signing Johnny Damon.

While you're there, check out Alex's latest, as he responds to comments about the deal.

Doug Dascenzo Lives!

Disciples of Doug Dascenzo is a new Cubs blog. Stop by and say hi. You can get his take on the Jacque Jones signing here.

More on Damon

Boston fans are not happy with Damon moving to New York:

It was an ugly start to the day for Laura Cipriano. She awoke at 6 a.m. Wednesday to a call from a New York Yankees-loving friend breaking the news that Johnny Damon had defected to New York.

"She was taunting me," said Cipriano, 30, of South Boston. "She was laughing. She was saying, 'Your favorite Red Sox player is leaving.'"

Both my wife and a colleague at work had the same reaction to the news, "That Bastard!"

What's not clear to me is what kind of premium the Yankees paid to lure Damon from Boston. The last reported offer from the Red Sox was for $40 million for four years. I assume that if the difference between the Yankees offer and the Red Sox offer was relatively small, then Damon would stay in Boston. So my question is, how high were the Red Sox willing to go? If it was only $40 million, then that's a pretty big markup the Yankees are paying to get Johnny to move cities. I'm guessing the Red Sox would go to $48 million. Of course, that means $1 million a year was all it took to sway Damon's loyalty.

Red Reporter Awards

The nominations are in. You have until January 2nd to vote for your favorite sports blogs at Red Reporter.

Jail Bird a Cardinal

The St. Louis Cardinals are ready to sign Sir Sidney Ponson to a one-year deal.

The one-year contract represents minimal financial risk but a significant leap of faith by a Cardinals organization acutely sensitive to controversy. Ponson was arrested twice last year for DWI and submitted to a 30-day treatment program for alcoholism after his release by the Orioles. He also spent 11 days in an Aruban jail following an incident in which he punched a judge on a beach.

Maybe Dave Duncan can work a miracle. Or maybe the incentives will work. Losing $10 million a year might be enough of a wakeup call for Ponson.

Filling the Gap

Joe Christensen looks at how the Twins outfield might shape up after losing Jacque Jones.

Brewers Winter Ball

Here's a nice story about Nelson Cruz of the Brewers playing winter ball in the Dominican Republic. He's leading the league in home runs. It also sounds like a fun place to watch a game:

Ticket prices are more than fair, even on a Dominican's budget. $150 pesos (about $5) buys a good seat, and the stadiums are well-kept up, even for U.S. standards.

And as much as fans enjoy the action, the level of competition is high enough that scouts can get an accurate picture of a player's potential. With most teams in the league retaining more than a handful of active Major Leaguers, players agree that the quality of play surpasses AAA baseball in the states. In fact, it's more like "4A" ball.

Damon in New York

Johnny Damon will shed the cave man/Jesus look after agreeing to a four year contract with the Yankees for $13 million a year.

So how did it happen so quickly?

Despite Boras' rhetoric, there was never a market for Damon at seven years, and apparently he decided to get serious about making a deal this week. The only other teams to show interest besides the Yankees and Red Sox were the Orioles and Dodgers; Damon wasn't interested in playing for the Orioles, and when the Dodgers signed Kenny Lofton yesterday, it left the Sox and Yanks.

According to sources, Boras told the Yankees on Monday that he was ready to talk about a four-year deal. The Yankees were careful not to make an offer that Boras could take back to the Red Sox. They talked "parameters," meaning they said, "We're prepared to offer $52 million if you're ready to sign."

Indications are that Boras then let the Red Sox know the kind of money it would take to keep Damon, and they told him they weren't willing to go anywhere near $50 million.

Basically, Damon received the same money as Matsui. Over the last three years, Matsui posted 71 wins shares, Damon 69. They're the same seasonal age. This means the Yankees will carry six players who produced at least 25 win shares last year. The offense will be potent, to say the least.

The Yankees, however, don't make themselves any younger. And with Matsui, Damon, Jeter, A-Rod and Giambi under long term contracts, we won't see that happening soon.

Overall, however, this is a positive for the Yankees, if for no other reason than the Red Sox need to find a new center fielder, in addition to trying to trade Manny.

Damon’s departure leaves the Red Sox with a glaring hole in their leadoff spot, a vacancy of more concern than center field. They have already inquired about Cleveland’s Coco Crisp, San Diego’s Dave Roberts and Seattle’s Jeremy Reed this offseason. Count on those talks to intensify.

This signing also gives the Red Sox more of a reason to try to keep Manny Ramirez in the fold:

In addition to continuing to pursue a trade of Ramirez, Red Sox co-general manager Ben Cherington said on a conference call yesterday that “we also continue to talk to Manny and his representatives and continue to work on flushing out issues related to Ramirez’ desire to be traded. “We’re trying to appease some of his concerns,” Cherington went on. “At this point, we just want to listen. We’re not going to get into the reasons why he wants out.”