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For me, Thanksgiving is the best holiday of the year. It’s one of the few times of the year when all bets are off when it comes to food. Turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, and pumpkin pie.

It doesn’t get any better than that.

Thanksgiving is also the time of year where we give thanks to what we have in life. It’s no different for all 30 teams of Major League Baseball. Each team has something they can be thankful for.

NL East

Philadelphia Phillies: The Phillies should be thankful that they have one of the best GM’s in the game in Ruben Amaro Jr. A GM who doesn’t get nearly the credit he deserves.

Atlanta Braves: The Braves should be thankful the Minor League Player of the Year, Jason Heyward is on his way. The kid looks like a star.

Florida Marlins: The Marlins should be thankful they are getting a new stadium in 2012. Maybe then they can keep their young stars like Josh Johnson

New York Mets: The Mets should be thankful that 2009 is finally coming to an end. 2010 can’t be much worse.

Washington Nationals: The Nationals should be thankful that new GM Mike Rizzo has more of a clue than former GM Jim Bowden

NL Central

St. Louis Cardinals: The Cardinals should be thankful for the fact that they get to watch the best player in the game on a day in and day out basis.

Chicago Cubs: The Cubs should be thankful that after so many years of being labeled “lovable losers,” they are finally dedicated to winning. Whether or not they are making the right moves to win is another story.

Milwaukee Brewers: The Brewers should be thankful that they have an owner in Mark Attanasio, who runs a small market team, but has a big market mentality.

Cincinnati Reds: The Reds should be thankful that Jay Bruce, Drew Stubbs, and Joey Votto are young stars, who should provide a solid foundation for the future.

Houston Astros: The Astros should be thankful that Wandy Rodriguez established himself as a solid No. 2 starter in 2009.

Pittsburgh Pirates: The Pirates should be thankful for the fact that GM Neal Huntington has the team moving in the right direction. The Pirates are making the right moves to compete in the future.

NL West

Los Angeles Dodgers: The Dodgers should be thankful for Andre Ethier and Matt Kemp, who appear to be the foundation of the Dodgers’ offense for years to come.

Colorado Rockies: The Rockies should be thankful that they have one of the best and exciting young teams in baseball. The Rockies have finally figured out how to win in Colorado.

San Francisco Giants: The Giants should be thankful for being able to watch Tim Lincecum every five days. His unique delivery continues to amaze fans and baffle hitters.

San Diego Padres: The Padres should be thankful that it appears that they will not be trading star first baseman Adrian Gonzalez.

Arizona Diamondbacks: The Diamondbacks should be thankful that Brandon Webb is making progress and looks to be healthy in 2010.

AL East

New York Yankees: The Yankees should be thankful that they are the Yankees. No other team in professional sports has the advantage they have.

Boston Red Sox: The Red Sox should be thankful for their minor-league system, which allows them to trade for players like Victor Martinez and potentially Roy Halladay or Miguel Cabrera.

Tampa Bay Rays: The Rays should be thankful that they have the most athletic team in baseball and after so many years of losing, they have a winner in Tampa.

Toronto Blue Jays: The Blue Jays should be thankful for the fact they got to watch Roy Halladay pitch in a Blue Jays’ uniform for the last 12 years. He will go down as the best player in franchise history.

Baltimore Orioles: The Orioles should be thankful for that after so many years of not having a clue, they are moving in the right direction. Matt Wieters, Adam Jones, Brian Matusz, and Nick Markakis provide a solid foundation for the future.

AL Central

Minnesota Twins: The Twins should be thankful for Joe Mauer. When it is all said and done, I believe he will go down as the greatest catcher of all time.

Detroit Tigers: The Tigers should be thankful for Mike Ilitch. Despite a ravaged economy in Detroit, Ilitch does his best to put a winner on the field in the Motor City.

Chicago White Sox: The White Sox should be thankful for employing Ozzie Guillen. His press conferences have provided baseball fans with hours of comedy. Oh yeah, the guy is a pretty good manager.

Kansas City Royals: The Royals should be thankful that there is only more year left in the Jose Guillen era in Kansas City.

Cleveland Indians: The Indians should be thankful that Grady Sizemore, Carlos Martinez, Azdrubal Cabrera, Matt LaPorta, and Shin-Soo Choo provide hope for the future.

AL West

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim: The Angles should be thankful for that they have one of the best run organizations in baseball. The job Arte Moreno and Mike Scioscia have done in Anaheim has been impressive.

Seattle Mariners: The Mariners should be thankful for the fact that if they make a couple of solid moves this offseason, they could win the AL West in 2010.

Texas Rangers: The Rangers should be thankful for GM Jon Daniels. His trades and drafting over the last four years have the Rangers poised to make a run at the AL West crown in 2010.

Oakland A’s: The A’s should be thankful for Andrew Bailey. The 2009 AL Rookie of the Year and a great year and should anchor the backend of the A’s bullpen for years to come–or at least until Billy Beane trades him.

I would like to give thanks to all my readers for taking the time out of their days to read my blog. For that, I am truly grateful.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO EVERYONE AND THEIR FAMILIES!!!

No surprise there.  Mauer was the obvious choice, given that the Twins made the post-season, and he led the league in hitting while playing more than 100 games at catcher.

The number that really caught my attention is Mauer’s 1.031 OPS.  How good is that for a catcher in a single season?  Good enough for 6th best all-time, based on my limited research.  Here are the five players who did better than Mauer (with year):

Mike Piazza (1997)  1.069

Jack Clements* (1895) 1.058

Javy Lopez** (2003) 1.065

Bill Dickey** (1936) 1.045

Gabby Hartnett (1930) 1.034

* Jack Clements would not have been considered to have had enough plate appearances to qualify under modern rules (3.1 plate appearances per each game played by team), but he was considered to have played enough to be considered the National League’s third best hitter in 1895.

** Javy Lopez had only 495 plate appearances in 2003, so he falls off some lists.  However, if he had made seven more outs to reach the 502 modern minimum for plate appearances, his OPS would still have been 1.040, so it’s fair to list him ahead of Mauer.  Bill Dickey also just missed the 3.1 plate appearances per game played by team requirement (by five plate appearances), but he was also considered the AL’s third highest hitter in 1936 and would beat Mauer if the additional outs were added to his 1936 batting records.

What can we conclude from this list?  Obviously, Joe Mauer’s 2009 season was one of the best hitting years by a catcher ever.  He’s also on a list that includes some really great hitting catchers in baseball history.

Also, it’s worth noting that all six of these seasons happened in what where among the best offensive years in baseball history.  The mid-1890’s (after the pitcher’s rubber was moved back to its current 60′6″), the period from 1920-1939, and the current period starting around 1995 (after the ‘94 Players Strike and the peak steroids era) are the greatest hitting eras in Major League history.

In fact, now that wide-spread steroid abuse is out of the game, power numbers have dropped significantly, and Joe Mauer has a legitimate claim to the best offensive season ever by a catcher.  Of the five players ahead of Mauer on the list above, none actually led his league in OPS during his monster season.  Mike Piazza came closest, finishing second in the NL about 100 basis points behind NL league leader Larry Walker.

Joe Mauer, on the other hand, led the AL in OPS this year by a whopping 70 basis points (Kevin Youkilis was second with a .961 OPS).  According to my research, this makes Mauer the only regular or even semi-regular catcher (Jimmy “The Beast” Foxx led the AL in OPS in 1935 in a year in which he played catcher in 26 games, I have to assume when both of the A’s regular catchers were hurting mightily) to have led his league in OPS since 1900.  That’s an accomplishment that speaks for itself.

Jason Heyward was chosen by the Atlanta Braves as the 14th pick in the first round of the 2007 Major League Baseball draft.

Now, according to Baseball America and USA Today, he’s the No. 1 prospect in all of Minor League Baseball. And with the Stephen Strasburg hype machine chugging along at full steam, Heyward has, in a way, become the forgotten uberprospect of 2009.

But hey, he’s used to it.

Nearly half of Major League Baseball couldn’t see Heyward’s incredible promise; the then 17-year-old high school product from Georgia’s McDonough High was passed on by 12 other teams in 2007’s stacked draft class. Outside of Baltimore’s Matt Wieters and Tampa Bay’s David Price, he’s thoroughly surpassed all of his contemporaries and will become 2010’s premier impact prospect.

It’s a funny story how Heyward fell to the Atlanta Braves. In the high school circuit, the lefthanded Heyward was a feared hitter renowned for his plate discipline. He was pitched around frequently and refused to chase anything out of the zone. As a result, regional MLB scouts rarely saw a full at-bat. When the draft came around, no one was truly sure of the skills Heyward possessed because they simply hadn’t seen them.

But for Atlanta Brave’s scouting director Roy Clark, proximity to the prospect was both a luxury and an advantage.

Heyward was sent to the club’s rookie level teams in the Gulf and Appalachian leagues after the draft. The short stints did little to clarify exactly what Atlanta had signed in Heyward, but the 17-year-old held his own.

Heyward finished third in the low Class A South Atlantic League in batting average (.323) and fourth in on-base percentage (.388) in 2008. A brief call up to the high Class A Myrtle Beach Pelicans at the end of the season wasn’t a success, but the rookie campaign was enough to solidify the rightfielder as Atlanta’s No. 2 prospect behind righthander Tommy Hanson.

Any debate surrounding Heyward’s potential disappeared as he rocketed through three levels of professional baseball in 2009. With the same high Class A Myrtle Beach club where he hit a paltry .182 to finish 2008, Heyward started his dominating season by hitting 10 homeruns, driving in 31 runs and scoring 34 runs in just 49 games.

The performance garnered a promotion to the Double A Southern League, where Heyward slammed 7 homeruns, 30 RBI, and 31 runs in 47 games. The plate discipline that had frustrated high school pitchers and intrigued pro scouts returned: in 195 plate appearances, Heyward walked 28 times compared to just 19 strikeouts. His batting average soared to .352.

The tremendous performance earned him a three-game showcase with the International League’s Gwinnett Braves. He hit .364 in limited action.

Heyward’s progression has many comparing him to former-Brave’s wonderkid Jeff Francoeur. Others seem more satisfied comparing him to a young Frank Thomas, a franchise player that was once the epitome of patience, power, and discipline.

A hybrid of the two seems the most appropriate evaluation.

Heyward’s offensive accomplishments often overshadow his defensive prowess. For a 6′4″, 220 pounder, Heyward is surprisingly lithe patrolling the outfield. He profiles as an above-average corner outfielder with an extremely strong arm a notch below Francoeur’s cannon. Some speculate that Heyward could possibly play centerfield, but his barely above-average speed makes the notion merely a pipe dream.

Offensive comparisons to Francoeur seem uninspired. Francoeur was a strikeout machine at the minor league level, notching 262 punchouts to just 88 base-on-balls. This hacking approach at the plate belied future struggles to come; Francoeur’s inability to adapt to major league breaking balls earned him a return trip to the minors in 2008.

Heyward, on the other hand, has struck out just 138 times and earned 108 walks. His plate discipline has markedly improved at every level and his approach has been described as “cerebral” and “commanding.”

It’s incredibly optimistic to call him the “next Frank Thomas,” but Heyward’s plate presence is extremely polished for a 20-year-old.

Heyward and Francoeur’s power numbers, however, are undoubtedly similar. In his first two full professional seasons, Heyward hit 11 and 17 homeruns, respectively; Francoeur notched 14 and 18 through the same time period. No matter which level he begins the oncoming season in, Heyward will most likely test his power stroke at the expense of a few batting average points.

He doesn’t have incredible speed, but he is just as smart on the basepaths as he is in his outfield routes: he’s been successful 26 times out of 31 tries, an 84 percent success rate.

According to the Brave’s brass and Heyward himself, there is no definitive timeline for Heyward’s ascension to Major League Baseball. If he plays well enough in Spring Training, he’ll make the team and if the team decides he’s not ready, he won’t.

But Atlanta has patience. And for a 14th round pick that has the potential to be a game-changer, they’ll make all the time in the world.

On January 13, 2009, the Atlanta Braves signed Derek Lowe to a four-year, $60 million deal. The Braves signed Lowe after they failed to sign AJ Burnett, who signed with the New York Yankees.

Now less than one year later, the Braves are looking to trade 6′6” righty.

Why would the Braves look to trade Lowe just after one year? Well, for one, they feel they have an excess of pitching. And two, if they are able to trade Lowe, they could free up some money to add offense.

The Braves want to unload Lowe

So can the Braves trade Lowe? Let’s take a look at the pros and the cons of Lowe and what teams would be interested in trading for the former member of Red Sox Nation.

Pros

If you trade for Lowe, you are going to trade for one of the most durable pitchers in the game.

Lowe has started 30-plus games every season since moving from the bullpen to a starter in 2002. And since moving to the National League in 2005, Lowe has led the league in starts three out of those five years.

Over the last three years, Lowe is third in the National League in innings pitched with 605. In a sport where quantity counts just as much as quality for a pitcher, Lowe’s durability goes a long way.

Perhaps Lowe’s best asset is his ability to pitch well in big games. We all know what he did in the 2004 playoffs for the Red Sox winning the clinching game in all three series.

Lowe was also solid in two out of his three starts for the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 2008 playoffs.

Cons

Can you believe Lowe is going to be 37-years-old next year? It’s a little surprising considering that he looks a lot younger.

And with Lowe getting older, perhaps his age started to show in 2009. Lowe’s ERA rose from 3.24 in 2008 to 4.67 in 2009 and Lowe’s hits/9 increased to 10.7, which was his highest since 2004 (11/9).

Lowe K’s/9 went down from 6.3 in 2008 to 5.1 in 2009 and his BB/9 went up from 1.9 in 2008 to 2.9 in 2009. And while Lowe is known as a sinkerball/groundball pitcher, in 2009 he threw a lower percentage of groundballs (56.3) than at any point during his career.

It’s never a good sign when a groundball pitcher is throwing more flyballs than ever.

Lastly, the biggest con Lowe has going for him is his contract. Lowe still has three years and $45 million on his contract. The Braves overpaid for Lowe last year and they are going to hard pressed to move that size contract in this economy.

Now that we have looked at the pros and cons of Lowe, let’s take a look at the teams that might be interested in trading for the native of Dearborn, MI.

Milwaukee Brewers: There was a lot of talk recently of a Lowe for Corey Hart swap, but that was correctly turned down by the Brewers.

I know the Brewers are desperate for starting pitching, but even if all things were equal I wouldn’t have made that move if I was the Brewers’ GM.

New York Yankees: The Yankees had their choice between Burnett and Lowe last year and went with the younger Lowe. However, if Andy Pettitte doesn’t come back they feel Phil Hughes is still better suited to be in the pen, then Lowe could be an option.

It would be a long shot, but an option none the less.

Seattle Mariners: Another long shot, but the Mariners do need a number two starter and perhaps the Mariners could bring back the pitcher they traded away almost 12 years ago.

For those of you not familiar with what I am talking about, the Seattle Mariners trade Lowe and Jason Varitek to the Boston Red Sox for Heathcliff Slocumb.

I’ll check that one off as a win for the Red Sox.

Texas Rangers: Unless the Braves ate a significant portion of Lowe’s contract, it would be hard for the Rangers to acquire Lowe.

However, the Rangers could use a guy like Lowe and if they can get the Braves to eat a large portion of Lowe’s contract, then he would make sense for the Rangers.

As I have mentioned, the biggest problem the Braves will have with trading Lowe is his contract. Unless the Braves eat a significant portion of the deal, they are going to have a tough time trading him.

Now if it were my decision–I wouldn’t trade Lowe. This whole “the Braves have an excess of pitching” is comical to me.

Guess what? There is no such thing in baseball. The Red Sox had more pitching depth than any team in baseball going into 2009 and they still had to bring in Paul Byrd off his couch in August.

I guarantee that if the Braves trade Lowe or Javier Vazquez, something will happen to one of their remaining starters and they will be searching for a starter by the July 31st trading deadline.

That’s just the way baseball works.

You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @ theghostofmlg

Let me start off by saying that my second favorite team, (along with the Detroit Tigers) are the Yankees and that if my favorite team(The Atlanta Braves) were to EVER make it out of the first round, let alone win the World Series again I’d probably be one of the most ridiculous fans on the face of the Earth. With that said,there is one very distinctive difference between my fanhood and that of Yankees fans.The difference would be that the Braves have only won ONE World Series Championships before and the Yankees…well they have uh, TWENTY SEVEN.I’m not sure about you, but for the most part,I’ve never liked when the superstar on the team makes a big time score or a big play and then act like it was their first time doing so. To me, it shows a lack of self control.That brings me to the New York Yankees,well, moreso their fans actually(at least most of the ones I know) and their behavior after winning the World Series.

Let me start at the top, I can understand being estatic after winning it all. Why not right? By all means, live it up, but was the man pile in the middle of the field really necessary? At what point in that man pile do you remind yourself that you’re on the best team in the league? When do you tell yourself  “Self, this really isnt a surprise.”? Is it before or after you look down at the pinstripes and realize that the only reason your jersey is dirty is because you decided to jump on your teammates like you jump on your $500,000 mattress at home? Granted, most of the players on the team hadn’t won one so celebrating your first ring is definitely alright and I compeletly understand it but when you have a billion dollar roster…championships are expected.

Recently, at a Cleveland Cavs/New York Knicks game in New York, Lebron James decided he would wear a pair of tennis shoes with the Yankees’ logo on it. Come on ‘Bron! I know they’re your favorite team but really? A pair of shoes for the ONE game you play in MSG this year? Do you have nothing better to do than remind the world that the Yankees won another ’ship…as if we didnt already know? Its been well documented that LeBron is a a big Yankees fan but by the way he acts you would think he grew up in New York.

As if the man pile in the middle of the field and LeBron acting like he’s from New York werent enough, you got the Yankees fans themselves. Before they finally clinched number 27, I thought I had seen it all from sports fans, then I hopped on Facebook one day and saw my roommate’s profile picture which was one that was similar to the one I have here of the Yankees and their male bonding episode. I wouldnt mind that picture being up for a few days,you know? But after a while doesnt the “shock” of it all wear off? I mean, its not like you didnt see this coming MONTHS ago when you spent more money than most people will see in a lifetime on CC Sabathia, AJ Burnett.

Here is a darkhorse in the Roy Halladay sweepstakes: the Atlanta Braves.

Reports have it that the Braves are hoping to trade Derek Lowe this off-season.  For some reason, I find the idea of the Braves thinking they can find someone to take Lowe and his outrageous contract off their hands in this economy very amusing.

I thought signing Derek Lowe last off-season for four years at $60 million was a very poor decision.  I could certainly understand why it happened: the Yankees signed the top two free agent starters C.C. Sabathia and A.J. Burnett to enormous contracts, and Lowe appeared to be the Best of the Rest.  Also, Lowe was represented by Scott Boras, who always seems to get top dollar for his free agents.

Nevertheless, giving Lowe that much money over that many years going into the season in which he would be 36 years old just wasn’t a wise decision.  Lowe really didn’t have a bad year in 2009.  Aside from the 15-10 record, he pitched 194.2 innings with 63 walks and 111 K’s.  His 4.67 ERA wasn’t pretty, but given that he was moving from Dodger Stadium to Turner Field, it pretty much matches the rest of his 2009 numbers and what you would reasonably expect from a good pitcher going from age 35 in 2008 to 36 in 2009.

The problem, of course, is that Lowe will be 37, 38 and 39 the next three seasons, and somebody (mostly the Braves, I suspect, even if they do find a trading partner) will have to pay him $15 million for each of those seasons.  I’d guestimate the odds of Lowe having a better season in any of the next three years than he had in 2009 at about one in three or two out of five.  He wasn’t worth $15 million in 2009, what with the Braves finishing a disappointing 3rd in the NL East, so the odds aren’t good he’ll be worth $15 million a year at any time in the future.

One of the problems the Braves have in looking for someone to bite on Lowe is that most of the teams dumb enough to make a trade this unsound (the Pirates, the Royals) don’t have the money to take on a contract like Lowe’s (or even two-thirds of it).  The Nats are the only team I can think of who have some money to spend and not enough sense to avoid a player like Lowe like the plague.  They’re also desparate for pitching, so if I were the Braves GM, I’d be on the phone with the Nats GM trying to convince him that Lowe is the “veteran presence” the young Nationals’ pitching staff needs.

Corey Hart; Photo from Wikimedia Commons

Two evening trade rumors to pass along concerning Kentucky natives. Jason Stark of ESPN.com reports that trade talks from the Marlins with the Giants and Rangers about Louisville-native Dan Uggla got “pretty hot and heavy” at the GM meetings. Uggla remains the most likely Marlin to be traded, but the team told Stark they would keep him and trade someone else if they didn’t get what they wanted for the second baseman.

Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com reports the Braves are trying to move starting pitcher Derek Lowe and there most serious discussion so far came with the Brewers concerning Bowling Green-native Corey Hart. That deal appears to have fallen through, and Mark Bowman of MLB.com says the Braves would prefer prospects to Hart.

Rosenthal:

Braves right-hander Derek Lowe turns 37 on June 1. He is guaranteed $15 million in each of the next three seasons. And he had a 6.65 ERA in his final nine starts. So, while Lowe is the starting pitcher the Braves most want to trade, they are finding it difficult to move him, according to major-league sources. … The White Sox are another potential match for Lowe — first baseman Paul Konerko, another right-handed hitter who would fit the Braves, will earn $12 million next season. Konerko, however, has only one more year remaining on his contract, while Lowe has three years at greater dollars.

Stats: B-R: Paul Konerko, Derek Lowe. Fangraphs: Paul Konerko, Derek Lowe.

A would be 37 next year with a K/BB under 2 and 3 $15 million years remaining on his contract? And in the NL? Stay away Kenny. Don’t go there.

At 12:01 tomorrow morning, the free agent signing period begins in baseball. Will you see players signing with teams at 12:05 like in the NFL and NBA? No, you won’t.

This will be a very long offseason in baseball. Just like last year, you will see some quality players still available going into the month of February. And just like last year, you are going to see GM’s try to wait out players hoping to get their version of a Bobby Abreu deal.

With the free agent signing period just a mere 12 hours away, here is a free agent primer on this year’s batch of free agents.

Best Free Agent Starting Pitcher: John Lackey. The same people who are concerned with Lackey being “injury prone” are the same people who thought Adrian Peterson was “injury prone” coming out of Oklahoma.

Kind of silly.

Best Free Agent Hitter: Matt Holliday. Holliday is the best hitter in a weak free agent hitting class. I am not sold on Holliday being paid like a franchise player, but he will be.

Best Free Agent Relief Pitcher: Rafael Soriano. Soriano is only 30-years-old and is entering the prime of his career. 12.1 K/9 in 2009 is very impressive.

Biggest Free Agent Hitter Bust: Marco Scutaro. I am sorry, but I just don’t see it from this guy. He has been a scrub all his life and now at 34-years-old he is worth a mutli-year deal? No thanks.

Biggest Free Agent Hitter Bust II: Chone Figgins. This is Juan Pierre Part II. Some team is going to give this guy a four-year, $42 million deal and regret it from the first day. In the third year of this deal he will be a pinch runner off the bench.

Biggest Free Agent Starting Pitcher Bust: Joel Pineiro. Back in August I wrote about how teams should stay away from Pineiro. My feelings towards him haven’t changed. He has Jeff Suppan and Kyle Lohse written all over him.

Biggest Free Agent Relief Pitcher Bust: Brandon Lyon. If a team signs Lyon as an eighth inning, set-up guy, I have no problem with that. But if a teams signs him to be their closer, all bets are off.

If you go into 2010 with Lyon as your closer, you are pretty much telling your fan base we have no shot to win in 2010.

Perfect Match Most Likely To Happen: Mark DeRosa to the Philadelphia Phillies. When you look at the Phillies team and then you look at the type of player DeRosa is, this is a perfect match. DeRosa is a “baseball player” and on a team filled with “baseball players,” DeRosa fits in perfectly.

Perfect Match Most Likely NOT To Happen: Orlando Hudson to the New York Mets. Hudson wanted to play for the Mets last year and it didn’t happen. He wants to play for them again this year and it won’t happen again.

Hudson is just what the Mets need, but since Luis Castillo and his horrific contract are holding down the fort at second base, Hudson will need to look for work somewhere else.

Biggest Free Agent Surprise: Jason Bay will not be back with the Boston Red Sox. As I told my buddy Odie, Bay is like the girl in high school who appears all sweet and innocent, but has slept with the entire football team.

Bay won't be a Red Sock in 2010

Everyone thinks because Bay is a soft-spoken nice guy and has thrived in Boston, he will just accept whatever Theo Epstein offers him and money doesn’t matter–not the case. I think Bay gets a five-year deal from another team and takes the years and the money and runs.

And I wouldn’t fault him for that.

Player Who Will Make The Most Money Who You Never Heard Of: Aroldis Chapman. Chapman is the 22-year-old Cuban defector, who is a starting pitcher and just happens to throw 100 mph. It looks like it will be a two-team race for Chapman’s services–the Red Sox and the New York Yankees.

This is Jose Contreras Part II.

Best Low-Risk, High-Reward Hitter: Xavier Nady. Last year, I correctly predicted that Russell Branyan would be the 2007 version of Carlos Pena–a journeyman guy, who finally gets a chance to start and has a big year.

Nady is that free agent this year. Let a small market team sign him to a one-year deal, let him play 1B/DH and watch him hit 30 home runs.

Best Low-Risk, High-Reward Hitter Part II: Troy Glaus. Glaus is relatively young at 33 and just two years ago hit 27 home runs and had an .856 OPS. Can he play third at this point in his career? Probably not.

But he can probably play first or DH and still be a power threat at a very low-cost.

Best Low-Rick, High Reward Pitcher: Ben Sheets. Sheets missed all of the 2009 season because of flexor tendon surgery. But Sheets should be 100 percent healthy by the start of spring training and I think could have an impact in 2010.

Remember, Andy Pettitte had the same surgery in 2004 and he has fully recovered from the injury. A team like the Texas Rangers would be wise to sign him to an incentive laden deal.

Pitchers Who Have To Stay In The NL In Order To Be Successful: Randy Wolf and Brad Penny. American League teams should really stay away from these guys. Hopefully both of these guys know where their bread is buttered and won’t pull a Jeff Weaver after the 2006 season.

Bedard won't work in New York or Boston

Big Market Teams Should Stay Away: Erik Bedard. Bedard just strikes me as a guy who would rather pitch in Kansas City and not be bothered than pitching in a pennant race in New York of Boston.

Worst Pitcher To Be This Offseason: Kevin Gregg. Gregg is a Type A free agent and he stinks. Very bad spot to be in.

Worst Hitter To Be This Offseason: Jermaine Dye. Dye is a Type A free agent, is 37-years-old, and can’t play a lick of defense. He is a DH in a strong DH market. I think it will be a while before a team looks at Dye.

Hitter Who Should Get More Love, But Won’t: Mike Cameron. Despite being 37-years-old, all Cameron is going to do is play a Gold Glove caliber center field, hit around .265, and hit 20-25 home runs.

Something tells me because of his relationship with CC Sabathia, Cameron signs with the Yankees on a one-year deal.

Pitcher Who Should Get More Love, But Won’t: Jon Garland. Why Garland was sitting the bench, while Hiroki Kuroda was starting playoff games for the Los Angeles Dodgers last year is beyond me.

I know wins for pitchers are overrated, but all Garland does is win. That does count for something. He is going to win games and pitch 200 innings. Teams could do a lot worse.

The Milwaukee Brewers would be smart to sign him.

Best Utility Player: Jamey Carroll. Great club house guy, who can play second, third, left, and right. Every team could use a player like Carroll on their roster.

Non-Tender Candidate Sleeper: Kelly Johnson. On December 12th, hundreds of players will not be tendered contracts. The sleeper out of this bunch–Kelly Johnson.

Johnson was put in Bobby Cox’s doghouse in Atlanta in 2009, but in 2007 he had an OPS of .831 and in 2007 he had an OPS of .795. He is a classic change of scenery guy.

You can find a full list of this year’s free agents here.

You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @ theghostofmlg

Colorado’s Jim Tracy and Angels manager Mike Scioscia were named Manager of the Year in their respective leagues yesterday, which means  one of them has a chance to get fired in two years, right?  If I had to pick, I’d guess that Tracy would be more likely to get the boot…

Seriously, though, Tracy turned around a Rockies team that was lifeless until he took over for a fired Clint Hurdle.  Scioscia managed his Angels through a series of nasty injuries to his entire pitching staff and outfield, and helped his team cope with the loss of Nick Adenhart, who had been killed in a car accident after his first start of the year in April.

Tracy’s efforts were rewarded – he got a three-year deal from Colorado to remain as manager.  [ESPN]

Other News…

Bud Selig wants to tweak a few things in baseball, but the one getting attention right now is shortening the time lapse between playoff series.  The schedule is frequently dictated by television contracts, but Mike Scioscia was on the money when noting that his team played only eight games in twenty days – after six months of 28 – 30 games a month…  [ESPN]

Taking Sides…

FoxSports’ Ken Rosenthal talks about how agents and baseball executives have a vastly different opinion as to the financial state of baseball teams.  It’s a fascinating look at the economics of the game.  [FoxSports]

Hot Stove…

The Braves could be shopping both Derek Lowe and Javier Vasquez, two 200 inning types.  Let the bidding begin…  [FanHouse]

Jason Marquis, a New Yorker, wants to be a Met in 2009.  Marquis is the best four month pitcher in baseball…  He tends to tire and is far less effective after August 1.  That being said, the Mets could use a dependable arm and Marquis is that.

Third string catcher, George Kotteras, was released by the Red Sox and immediately scooped up by Milwaukee.  Kotteras has some skills behind the plate, is a left handed hitter – a low average hitter with some power.

Happy Birthday!

Hall of Famer Roy Campanella, one of the greatest catchers to don the mask, was born on this day in 1921.

Before I get to the rest of the list, there’s a great baseball site operated out of Atlanta called Baseballisms (www.baseballisms.com) and its goal is to collect all of these snippets and memories people have of the game – whether it’s a personal anecdote about a little league or high school game, or your memories of going to games and seeing your favorite players, or whatever it is that makes you love the game.  Today’s baseball list would fill a dozen posts for Baseballisms…

Anyway, others celebrating or being remembered today include: The Parson, Billy Sunday (1862), John Roach (1867), Everett Scott (1892) – a shortstop who held the record for consecutive games prior to Lou Gehrig, Joe Morgan (1930) – a good Red Sox manager who couldn’t catch a break, Larry Haney (1942), Bobby Tolan (1945) – I can still picture his batting stance, a lefty with the high hand placement, another guy whose career never seemed to take off, Bob Boone (1947) – I can remember when he managed the Royals PLEADING with him not to have Jay Bell bunt after someone had led off with a single.  Sure enough, Bell bounced into a double play.  By the way – if you ever check out the infield grass at Royals stadium, the grass goes right up to the baselines in part because Boone wanted more grass to catch bunts.  Continuing…  Dickie Noles (1956) – another Cubs/Phillies trade back when Dallas Green ran the Cubs, Gary DiSarcina (1967) – who never, ever, took a walk if he had to, Jeff Berblinger (1970) – the second baseman for Kansas when Andy Finch and I used to broadcast Jayhawk baseball games, Andy Sheets (1971), Justin Duchscherer (1977), Jeff Bailey (1978) – a minor league nomad who finally got to play for the Sox in 2008 and hit a homer for his first major league hit, and “Big Sexy” – Ryan Howard.

See a lot of baseballisms for me today.

1990 Donruss Greg Maddux

Another card has been added to my Greg Maddux player collection!!

Typically when I see a card, especially one that I have not seen in a while, I take a few moments to quickly analyze the overall design before I make my final decision and form my opinion of the card.

For this one, the jury is still out.  And I got this card a few weeks ago…

I like the action photo, but the background draws my eye away from Maddux.  I  like the Red border, but the odd confetti-esque elements running down the side of the card look  strange.  The only part that I definitely love about this card is the script used for the player’s name – what a great change from the normal and boring fonts used in previous issues!!

So  while I decide if I am going to give this card a thumbs up or down, tell me your opinion…

Nice to be back after a long weekend camping near Lake Okeechobee with my son – a boys weekend and a good time.  In retrospect, we probably should have stayed longer and fished more on Sunday morning, so next time that will be the plan…

Coghlan wins NL MVP…

Beating out a good crowd, including Andrew McCutchen and J.A. Happ, Florida Marlins outfielder Chris Coghlan won the NL Rookie of the Year Award.  He’s the third Fish to win, following Dontrelle Willis and Hanley Ramirez.  Keith Law was interviewed on ESPN Radio last night and said that the Marlins are going to have ROY candidates every year because they need to integrate young players onto the roster more regularly than other teams – a fair assessment.  At the same time, Coghlan deserved it.

I don’t know if you have ever seen him play, but he’s got to be the quietest hitter you’ll ever see.  There is little wasted motion.  He gets in his set position and hardly moves until he whips his bat around to tattoo a pitch.  He strikes me as a Todd Walker, Chuck Knobloch type, someone who can be valuable at the top of the order for a few years and then maybe last forever as a utility player/pinch hitter type.  Having seen him play, though, (and admittedly as a Marlins fan) I’d love for him to take another step forward.  To do that, he’d have to add a little power and keep his speed.  I don’t know that it’s possible, but even if he stays the way he is right now (and Coghlan finished the season with about 80 hits in the last two months alone – singles and doubles all over the place and two hits nearly every night), he’ll be a good one for a long time.

In the NL, there were several really good candidates.  Andrew McCutchen could be a Curtis Granderson type – but as a rookie, he wasn’t any more impressive than Coughlin.  Tommy Hanson was a very good pitcher for Atlanta, as was Happ for Philadelphia, and Randy Wells for Chicago.  Of the three, I think Hanson has the best chance for long-term success, but I’d be happy with Wells in my rotation for the next ten years, too.  It’ll be fun to see where they wind up in 2012.

Andrew Bailey Takes AL Rookie Hardware…

In the AL, a closer won the Rookie of the Year award, Oakland’s Andrew Bailey.  Bailey was impressive – 26 saves in 30 chances, a solid ERA and opposing batting average.  Certainly, Bailey had the credentials for the award.  Other rookies were equally solid – Brett Anderson (Oakland starter), Rick Porcello – who could be a good pitcher for a long, long time, and (my choice), Elvis Andrus.  Andrus was an amazing fielder and had as much to do with the success of his team as anyone.  If he continues to improve as a hitter, Andrus will be an all-star for a long time.  Andrus got robbed twice this year – once by Derek Jeter for a Gold Glove and now this…

Hot Stove News…

Ramon Hernandez will be back with the Reds, signing a one year, $3 million deal with an option for 2011 tied to games played (and collecting a $1 million buy out).  The Reds had declined his $8 million option…  [ESPN]

Ben Sheets says he will be ready for spring training.  Any takers?  According to ESPN, there will be interest, for sure, even though he’s had five arm related DL trips and a case of vertigo…   (I’d love to find out, personally – can the Marlins sign him to a one year, incentive laden deal???)  [ESPN]

Speaking of Milwaukee, the Brewers declined Braden Looper’s option worth $6.5 million (not a bad price for a league average – at best – pitcher), and paid Looper $1 million in a buy out.  Looper will join the list of more than 150 free agents…  [FoxSports]

Jack Wilson signed a two-year, $10 million deal to stay in Seattle – which the pitchers will appreciate…  [ESPN]

FoxSports says that free agent Pedro Martinez had so much fun in Philadelphia, and feels so good, that he wants to play all of 2010.  Philadelphia, LA, and Chicago are expected to be suitors…  [FoxSports]

Another Phillie chose to become a free agent…  Eric Bruntlett declined a minor league contract offer from Philadelphia.  [SI]

Colorado declined a $5 million option on Rafael Betancourt, but are still trying to work something out with the setup man.  [FoxSports]

Think about it…

FoxSports Bob Klapisch talks about the Yankees and contract options regarding Derek Jeter.  I think it’s a good read…

One of my favorite writers, SI’s Joe Posnanski, picks four players who deserve Hall of Fame plaques.  Tell me if you agree with him…

Happy Birthday! Tom Seaver hits 65.  I can’t believe he’s that old – I can still see him zinging pitches past the Cubs hitters of the 1970s.  (Except that one that Burt Hooten hit off him for a Grand Slam…)

Others celebrating with cake, cards, or rememberances include:  George Stallings  (1867) – a fantastic manager who may become my next biography topic, “The Big Bear” Mike Garcia (1923), Jim Brewer (1937), Dave Frost (1952), Mitch Williams (1964), Jeff Nelson (1966), Eli Marrero (1973), Ryan Braun (1983), and Nick Markakis (1983).

Afterthoughts…

Wally Backman, whose post playing career has been rather problematic, has a job managing Brooklyn – a minor league outpost for the Mets – in 2010.  [ESPN]

I haven’t really spent a lot of time thinking about baseball’s best rookies this year, and I don’t really have any strong feelings about the choices the voters made.  Chris Coghlin hit .321, had a .390 OBP and an .850 OPS, all while playing a full season for the Marlins, which are sufficiently good reasons to make him the NL Rookie of the Year.

Pretty much the same for Andrew Bailey.  He had 26 saves and an ERA under 2.00, which is terrific for a rookie thrust into the closing role.  I also like the seasons second and third place finishers Elvis Andris and Rick Porcello had.

Going forward, I was thinking that Andrew McCutchen was the NL rookie I’d most like to have on my team.  However, after checking fansgraphs’ estimate of defensive performance and minor league hitting performance, I think that Colby Rasmus is probably the better bet.

According to fangraphs, Rasmus was the second best defender in centerfield in the NL in 2009, behind only Mike Cameron.  McCutchen ranked a hair below average, and Dexter Fowler (a lot of good rookie centerfielders in the NL this year) was ranked the worst defender in centerfielder in the league.

Rasmus and McCutchen are also both a year younger than Fowler (actually, more like six months).  Rasmus had a much better career minor league career OPS than McCutchen, so I think Rasmus is the better bet going forward.

Among the remaining rookies who received ROTY votes, I like Tommy Hansen the best.  He’s the same age (23 in 2010) as Rasmus and McCutchen and had fantastic minor league numbers.  I don’t like him as much going forward as Rasmus or McCutchen only because pitchers are more prone to injury than position players.

Padres SS Everth Cabrera is also 23 next year, but he’s harder to predict going forward than Rasmus or McCutchen because Cabrera’s only significant minor league playing time came at the A level.  In other words, his 2009 major league numbers could be a fluke.

I’d rank Coghlin about even with Cabrera going forward, given that Coghlin is two years older.  The best of the rest is probably the Diamondbacks  Gerardo Perra.  He’ll also be 23 next year, but didn’t hit enough for a leftfielder in 2009 (.729 OPS).

J. A. Happ, Casey McGehee and Randy Wells were all 26 in 2009.  26 year old rookies generally don’t go on to have great major league careers, no matter how well they played during their rookie seasons.  The major exceptions seem to be at catcher and among power pitchers who finally achieve major league control.

Garrett Jones will be 29 next season, and he had a 2009 campaign that is completely aberrant in comparison to his long minor league career.  In other words, the odds are mighty slim that he’ll ever have another major league season as good as 2009.  It wouldn’t surprise me if he’s trying his luck in Japan’s major leagues by 2012.

In the American League, the obvious choice going forward is Rangers SS Elvis Andrus.  He’s only 20 next year, and fangraphs ranked his defense at SS behind only light-hitting Cesar Izturis.

Andrus minor league batting numbers are not impressive, but that has more to due with the fact that he was consistently the youngest player in the leagues he played (I’m not sure about that, but I doubt there were a lot of other 18 year olds playing in the A+ California League in 2007 or 19 year olds in the AA Texas League in 2008).

Absent injury, Andrus looks sure to be a great player for many years.  In fact, he’s probably a fair bet to challenge his 2009 mentor’s record for games played at SS (Omar Vizquel is now the all-time leader).

There aren’t a lot of players who have established themselves as major league-caliber shortstops on both offense and defense by the time they reach their 20th birthdays.  By way of example, Andrus is further along than Alex Rodriguez was at the same age.  In fairness to ARod, he hit .358 with 54 doubles and 36 HRs in 1996, the year in which he turned 21.

I doubt that Andrus is going to come anywhere close to those numbers in 2010, but he doesn’t have to to become a great player.

After Andrus, I like Gordon Beckham.  He’ll be 23 next year, and he’s a former No. 8 pick in the 2008 draft.  He shot through the minors and should become a big star.

One player I’m not particularly enamoured with is Rick Porcello.  He posted only 89 Ks in 170.2 IP this year, after posting only 72 Ks in 125 IP in the A+ Florida State League last year.  He’s young enough to improve his strikeout numbers considerably over the next few seasons, but pitchers with Ks-to-IP ratios that low do not tend to be consistent.

Another thing is that he threw a lot of innings in 2009 for a 20 year old, and he will likely pitch a lot of innings the next couple of seasons as one of the Tigers’ rotation anchors.  He’s got a contract which paid him more than $2 milli0n in 2009 (according to ESPN), so the Tigers have an incentive to try to get the most out of him now, whether or not his arm is developed enough for the strain of high annual IP totals.

I would much rather have the A’s Brett Anderson going forward than Porcello, even if Anderson is a year older, and Porcello had a better 2009 campaign taking into account their home pitching parks.  Anderson struck out 150 men in 175.1 major league innings pitched this year, and struck out 243 in 225.1 career minor league innings pitched.  Anderson’s walks-to-IP ratios are also better than Porcello’s in spite of the fact that Porcello wasn’t striking anyone out.

I’d also rather have Andrew Bailey going forward than Porcello, although it’s close, given that Porcello is a starter.  Although Bailey will be 26 in 2010, his Ks-to-IP and Ks-to-BBs ratios were terrific this year.  Bailey also has strong numbers in the minors, where he was used primarily as a starting pitcher.  In fact, his major league numbers were far better than his minor league career record, almost certainly because he benefited enormously from the switch to pitching in relief.

The last player to receive votes for AL ROTY is the Rays’ Jeff Niemann.  His numbers look almost exactly like J.A. Happ’s right down the line.  The only major difference I see is that Happ is a lefty and Niemann throws right.  Like Happ, Niemann will be 27 next year, which makes him a poor candidate to become a future superstar.

As I surfed through a few 3200 count boxes labeled $0.25 on the outside, I became a little nostalgic.

While not letting my emotions take control of my wallet, I did manage to pull these three rookie cards from the 1980’s of guys that left a lasting impression on me during my youth.

Dave Stewart – One of the most intimidating guys I have ever seen on the mound.  His look of concentration, mixed with intimidation, left me shaking in my Nikes when I was watching him pitch for the A’s.

Bret Saberhagen – Saberhagen won the Cy Young award in both 1985 and 1989.  I distinctly remember him winning the award in 1985 and when he did it again in ‘89, I was surprised and a little shocked that he was that good.  This of course was before Maddux, Clemens, and Randy Johnson became elite pitchers and set a new standard…

Julio Franco – That batting stance stood out like a sore thumb in the mid-80’s and I can still picture it vividly today.  Before Jerome Walton and Junior Felix and Chris Sabo, it was Julio Franco that I was impersonating in the street when the neighborhood kids got together to play ball.

Yesterday, the MLB Network replayed Kerry Wood’s 20-strike out game against the Houston Astros in 1998. I have been watching baseball for almost 25 years and in my opinion, that was most dominating regular season performance I have ever seen.

The Astros didn’t have a chance that day.

Flash forward 11 years later and Wood is still throwing 97 mph in the major leagues. Did he become the pitcher everyone thought he would be after watching him pitch in 1998? No he didn’t.

Wood is a trade candidate this winter

But Wood has made a very nice career for himself. Because of injuries, Wood moved into a relief role in 2007 with the Chicago Cubs and became their closer in 2008.

Wood excelled as the closer in Chicago and in the winter of 2008, he signed a two-year, $20.5 million deal with the Cleveland Indians to be their closer.

The Indians signed Wood expecting to compete in 2009. Things really didn’t work out that way and now the Indians are in rebuilding mode yet again.

When a team is rebuilding, they really don’t have any use for a 32-year-old closer who will be making $10.5 million in 2010. We should be hearing Wood’s name in trade rumors this winter.

Let’s look at what a team would be getting with Wood. Here are the pros and cons of trading for Wood and the teams who might be interested in trading for the former Grand Prairie High School star.

Pros

Can you believe Wood is only 32-years-old? It seems like he has been around for 20 years. Even at 32 (not that old mom!!!), Wood can still throw 97 mph.

He can still blow the fastball by hitters when he needs to. Wood still struck out 10.3 hitters per nine innings last year.

Despite getting off to a rough start in April and May (6.08 ERA), Wood had a stellar second half of the year. In the second half, Wood was eight for 10 in save opportunities and had a 2.86 ERA.

And Wood is still better than half the closers in baseball. I would take Wood over a lot of the pitchers who are closing games for contending teams.

Cons

In the last 11 years, Wood’s arm has been through hell and back. He has had Tommy John surgery, a partially torn rotator cuff, a sore elbow, a strained triceps, and blisters on his fingers.

You name the arm injury, Wood has probably had it.

Health is the number one concern for any GM who is willing to trade for Wood. The other concern with Wood, would be his relatively down year in 2010.

His WHIP of 1.382 was his highest since 2000 (1.453), his strike out rate went from 11.4/9 to 10.3/9 in 2009, his walk rate almost doubled from 2.4 in 2008 to 4.6 in 2009 and threw more pitches per inning (17.6) than at any point of his career.

Has age and injuries finally caught up to Wood?

Now that we have looked at the pros and cons of acquiring Wood, let’s look at the teams that might be interested in Wood.

Atlanta Braves: Mike Gonzalez and Rafael Soriano are both free agents and if they leave, the Braves have no internal option to replace them. Wood would be a nice replacement for the Braves.

Chicago Cubs: Could the Cubs possibly bring Wood back? It’s not out of the realm of possibility.

Wood and the Cubs had a pretty clean break and the Cubs don’t have a closer going into 2010. Carlos Marmol is much better suited to be a set-up guy than a closer on a team trying to compete for a pennant.

Houston Astros: Wood would love to follow in his idol’s (Roger Clemens and Nolan Ryan) footsteps by pitching for the Astros. Jose Valverde and Latroy Hawkins are both free agents and Wood would make sense.

With Wood making $10.5 million in 2010, I am not sure the Astros have the ability to take on the salary or the prospects to acquire Wood.

I would never count out Drayton McLane though.

Tampa Bay Rays: For me, the Rays are a match made in heaven for Wood. They have the surplus of mid-level prospects and they have the need to get a deal done.

The Rays can’t go into 2010 with JP Howell and Dan Wheeler as the closers. They caught lightning in a bottle in 2008 and it’s not going to happen again.

This team needs a closer and Wood would be a great fit.

Detroit Tigers: Trading Wood within the division isn’t as crazy as it sounds for the Indians. The Indians aren’t expected to compete this year and by the time the Indians are ready to compete, Wood will be long gone from the Tigers.

I know the Tigers have said they are in cost cutting mode right now, but saying it and doing it are completely two different things. Fernando Rodney and Brandon Lyon are free agents and I don’t think the Tigers feel Ryan Perry is ready to close.

On the surface, Wood makes sense for the Tigers.

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim: The Angels are known to fix their mistakes rather quickly. Signing Torii Hunter to replace Gary Matthews Jr. is a perfect example of that.

The Angels found out first hand in the postseason Brian Fuentes might be a nice regular season closer, but he is not big time. Acquiring Wood would give Mike Scioscia options at the end of a game.

When acquiring Wood, a GM has to ask himself the tough question of which Wood am I getting? Am I getting the Wood who was rock solid in the second half of 2009 or am I getting the injury-prone closer who struggled for the first half of 2009.

My prediction is that Wood stays with the Indians through the winter and they trade him close to the July 31st trading deadline when teams are making one last playoff push.

You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @ theghostofmlg