Hot Stove Fungos

By Gary Armida

With the 2008 season finally over, all true baseball fans are thinking about 2009. Now that teams can announce moves and trades, the annual Hot Stove season is finally upon us. With names like Ramirez, Teixeira, Sabathia, Sheets, Peavy, Griffey, Holliday, Atkins, and Perez (Oliver, that is), the offseason is sure to be filled with plenty of rumors, signings, trades, and contract squabbles. Remember, it was just a year ago that Alex Rodriguez and Johan Santana filled the daily headlines with their contract/trade talks. This Hot Stove season already started with a trade as the Royals and Marlins swapped reliever Leo Nunez (to the Royals) in return for Mike Jacobs. We even have a new manager in Milwaukee. This is the time of year where it gets exciting. A team has three choices: do nothing and say you’re going with a youth movement, do something just to do something even if it’s just a smokescreen, or do something that actually makes a difference. On this last day of October, let’s get to our first session of Hot Stove Fungos.

• As stated above the Royals and Marlins swapped Leo Nunez and Mike Jacobs. On the surface, this looks like a decent deal for the Royals as Jacobs did hit 32 homeruns with 92 RBI in 2008. For a team who finished 13^th in the AL in homeruns, this seems like a great addition. Well, here’s a dose of reality. The Royals finished 12^th in on base percentage and they just acquired a player who just posted a .299 on base percentage in 2008 which ranked him last among starting first basemen (and I mean last…the next worst was Kevin Millar at .323). Couple the poor on base skills with poor defense and this move makes even less sense. Could he be the designated hitter? Well, the answer is a plain “no” as Billy Butler is truly entrenched there. So, Jacobs plays at first while Ryan Sheely and prospect Kila Ka’aihue fight for a bench job at best when they could be just as productive as Jacobs. On the Marlins side, they get a potential closer in Nunez. The 24 year old has an ERA of 3.24 over his last 90+ innings and will be an asset for the Marlins’ pen. The Marlins get the better end of the deal as Kansas City seems to be starting another offseason of doing something for the sake of doing something.
• The Brewers named Ken Macha, former manager of the Oakland A’s, as their skipper late yesterday. Macha gets the nod over Willie Randolph and Bob Brenly. While Macha has a good major league record (368-280), he hardly exuded managerial strategy during his tenure in Oakland. Perhaps that was him or perhaps it was the result of working under Billy Beane and the strict “Moneyball” approach. One will have to see if Macha is the second coming of Art Howe or he is indeed a talented manager who was limited by the A’s. The Brewers, with their young, promising team, are taking a risk here as Macha does not have anything but that Oakland experience on his managerial resume. At 58 years old, Macha gets a second go-around with the Brewers, where he was once a finalist before getting promoted to lead the A’s.
• Staying with the Brewers, there is great speculation that the Brewers will offer CC Sabathia a 4 year deal valued at $100 million dollars. The approach is sound as Sabathia gets great money, but shorter years. He will have a decision to make as the Yankees have let it be known that they will not be outbid. Expect to see Sabathia’s name here quite a bit this off season as he will be this year’s Johan Santana.
• The Mets signed NL comeback player of the year, Fernando Tatis, to a one year deal totaling $1.17 million dollars. It is an excellent idea for the Mets to bring Tatis back who hit .297/.369/.484 in his 263 at bats. But, anyone who thinks that Tatis should be a regular fixture in the lineup is kidding themselves. Listen, he’s a great story in perseverance, but he is not an everyday player. Perhaps he does well in a platoon, but if the Mets want to truly overtake the World Champion Phillies, they are going to have to aim higher in left field (Manny Ramirez).
• In the Baltimore papers, there is a report of Orioles’ team president Andy MacPhail stating the desire to sign Nick Markakis and Brian Roberts to long term deals. It seems that the Orioles are finally moving in the right direction, choosing the correct players to invest in. Roberts is an underrated second baseman and is just 30 years old. If the Orioles can give him a four year deal that would be appropriate. Markakis, on the other hand, is the one player the Orioles’ need to lock up for the long term. As the proverbial five tool player, Markakis is just the type of player who is a key piece to a winning team. The 24 year old looks like a younger version of Paul O’Neil.
• To no surprise, the Tigers declined the $12 million dollar option on Edgar Renteria. Renteria will enter the free agent market and the Tigers are slowly cutting payroll. The Tigers were an ill-conceived team in 2008 (told you so) and are in the weird process of picking up the pieces. There is speculation that Magglio Ordonez is on the trading block as well. It seems that Detroit is in reverse right now, dumping their high priced contracts that they just recently signed. If it is indeed just a salary dump, Detroit is in for a long couple of years, especially with the barren farm system. One cannot judge the organization right now as there is much work to be done.
• FCP All-time favorite, Ken Griffey Jr., is a free agent after having his option declined by the White Sox. There isn’t a frontrunner as of yet, but Junior should have no problem finding a team. The best thing he could do is sign with an American League team to DH and play outfield on a part-time basis. If he’s not worried about a ring, Seattle would be a tremendous destination as it would bookend his Hall of Fame career as well as be an excellent PR move for the Mariners. He’s a perfect fit with the Angels, Rays, Blue Jays, and Twins.
• In the Cincinnati papers, Reds’ GM Walt Jocketty brought up the subject of taking a flier on Mark Mulder. While Mulder’s name has been bandied about by many teams, this rumor could have legs. Jocketty was the GM who brought Mulder to St. Louis so there is an obvious relationship. The Reds have as good a shot as any team to land Mulder, but he is an extreme risk coming off multiple surgeries.
• Japanese right handed pitcher Junichi Tazawa will be eligible to come to be a free agent because he was not drafted by the Japanese League. Tazawa made it clear that he wanted to come to America so he went undrafted. The 22 year old throws in the mid-90’s and will likely be an attractive free agent this off season. Interestingly, Tazawa will face a three year ban if he ever wants to return to Japan.
• The New York Post reports that the Yankees will make a “serious push” to sign Manny Ramirez as their right fielder. If the Yankees sign Ramirez, all of the talk of team chemistry will have been nothing but a lie. It will also be a sign that the mid-80’s approach is back. Most likely, this is just a pure rumor by a newspaper famous for those rumors. Brian Cashman would not have re-signed if he was forced to pay money for a malcontent, albeit a talented malcontent.
• Want to know the best bargain in baseball? The answer is John Lackey who just had his option picked up for a whopping $9 million dollars for 2009. Lackey is easily one of the top 5 pitchers in the American League yet he makes less than the likes of Gil Meche and Carlos Silva. Lackey will be in for a big payday as he will be a free agent after the season.
• File this one in the rumor bin as there is speculation in Chicago that if Mark Teixeira leaves LA, the Angels and White Sox will swap Chone Figgins for Paul Konerko. First off, Konerko has a full no-trade clause. Secondly, why would LA trade the valuable Figgins for an aging first baseman coming off one of his worst seasons as a pro?
• Various reports state that AJ Burnett will decide if he wants to opt out of his contract by Monday. There are strong rumblings that he will indeed opt out of his contract. It would be shocking if Burnett didn’t opt out as he would be hitting the market off of one of his most consistent seasons. He’s an injury risk, but he’s a talented injury risk.

That’s it for today. Have a great weekend and, as always, thanks for reading FCP.