Dan Uggla; Photo from Wikimedia Commons

The Winter Meetings are officially underway and, as expected, most of the Bluegrass speculation centers on a certain Florida second baseman. Check out those rumors and more in some mid-afternoon links:

• Andrew Baggarly of the Silicon Valley Mercury News reports the Florida Marlins may be asking for top pitching prospect Madison Bumgarner from the San Francisco Giants in exchange for Louisville-native Dan Uggla. The Giants are unlikely to pursue Uggla at that price.
• Stan McNeal of The Sporting News writes the Marlins’ biggest question entering the Winter Meetings is whether they will move Uggla.
• Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe also lists Uggla as the likely Marlin to move in his team-by-team Winter Meetings breakdown.
• Daan De Kerpel of TSN in Canada speculates the Blue Jays could create a market for closer and UK alum Scott Downs despite the glut of relievers available.
• John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer asks where will 2009 Louisville Bat and Cincinnati Reds’ top prospect Todd Frazier play in 2020?

Halladay on the trade block

In light of reports that suggest Roy Halladay will NOT accept a trade after the beginning of Spring Training, the 2010 Winter Meetings just became the most likely spot for Halladay’s departure from the Toronto Blue Jays. With Halladay trade rumours swirling in recent weeks, it appears his suitors have been narrowed down to four possible teams; the Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, LA Dodgers and LA Angels.  Halladay, of course, wants to play for a sure contender, which significantly reduces the number of possible destinations for the superstar. While the Yankees and Red Sox have the most to offer in a trade scenario, Jays General Manager Alex Anthopolous may be hesitant to trade Halladay within the American League East. If the Jays are truly building for the future, trading him within the division should be less of a concern as long as they receive big name prospects in return.

The Winter Meetings kick of on Monday and Halladay is, without a doubt, the biggest name rumoured to be on the move. Other big names that will likely have new homes come the end of this week include; John Lackey, Matt Holliday and Canada’s own Jason Bay.

Anthopolous has stated that he doesn’t see a quick fix for the Blue Jays via free agency, so don’t expect the Jays to take a run at Jason Bay. However, understanding the impact that losing Halladay to free agency before the 2011 season would have, expect Anthopolous to be aggressive in trying to move the long time staff ace.

Has Halladay handcuffed the Blue Jays management team by setting a deadline for his potential trade?

Roy Halladay has likely thrown his last pitch as a member of the Toronto Blue Jays.

With the latest statement from Roy Halladay’s agent that the star pitcher wants to be traded before the season starts or not at all, the Toronto Blue Jays find themselves in the uncomfortable position of dealing the face of the franchise, or risk losing him for nothing at all. Halladay has been a consummate professional during his tenure in Toronto but the 12-year veteran wants the chance to play for a World Series caliber team, and that’s not going to happen north of the border.  Worse yet, the Blue Jays be may forced to send their ace to a division foe like Boston or New York, two teams with payrolls large enough to accomodate the giant contract that Halladay will receive after his deal ends in 2010. Toronto has been to this dance before, dangling Halladay at last season’s trade deadline only to nix a deal with Philadelphia at the last minute. Now though, the Blue Jays are running out of time to make a decision that could shape their franchise for the next decade.

Roy Halladay has arguably been baseball’s most consistent and durable pitcher since a line drive ended his 2005 season. In the past four years Toronto’s staff ace has won at least 16 games every season to go along with a sub 3.70 ERA and at least 200 innings pitched. At only 32-years-old, Halladay could anchor a pitching staff for the next half decade or more, and his ability to go deep into ballgames takes pressure off the entire pitching staff. Though his increased workload may scare off some suitors, “Doc” has pitched the best baseball of his career the last two seasons (2008: 20-11, 2.78 ERA, 206 K’s; 2009: 17-10, 2.79 ERA, 208 K’s) and his work ethic and off-season conditioning are nearly unparalleled. While Toronto might not be the biggest market in baseball, Halladay proved that he could pitch under a spotlight last season, refusing to let the month-long media frenzy surrounding him affect his pitching. Players like Halladay don’t come along often and teams will likely be stumbling over themselves to sign him if the Blue Jays can’t move him before Opening Day. With a miniscule chance of Halladay resigning after 2010 Toronto has no choice except trading their best player, but to whom?

Roy Halladay may be coming to a city near you...if you live in a major metropolitan area on the East Coast.

The most obvious destinations are Boston, New York, Los Angeles (Dodgers and Angels) or Philadelphia. Halladay has a full no-trade clause in his current contract that would allow him to veto any deal the Blue Jays made; the teams listed above are supposedly on Halladay’s short list of organizations he would consider moving to. The Yankees are always a threat to land a big name like Halladay, but the organization is looking to trim it’s payroll and would be hesistant to part with youngsters Phil Hughes and Joba Chamberlain (much like they were with the Johan Santana trade). The Red Sox might be looking to make a splash after the arch-rival Yankees captured last year’s World Series, though they have to consider whether trading away players like Clay Bucholz, Daniel Bard and Jed Lowrie is worth what might amount to a one-year rental of Halladay. The Dodgers don’t have the money after the messy divorce of their owner Frank McCourt, but the Angels might become a major player if their are unable to resign free-agent Jon Lackey (though they have shown a reluctance to part with top prospects in the past). It’s difficult to believe the Phillies will actively pursue Halladay after getting burned by the Blue Jays at last year’s trade deadline, but anything is possible when a player of Halladay’s caliber is available.

Toronto has been an afterthought in the AL East for the past decade and trading away their best player certainly won’t vault them to the top of the division, but they’ve backed themselves into a corner and have to act fast in order to gain maximum value for Halladay. They won’t receive as much in a trade for him as they would have in July, but if Halladay stays with the team they will remain a mediocre ballclub in 2010 and then have nothing to show for him except for a couple of compensation picks in the 2011 draft (which are never a sure thing). In baseball’s highstakes free agent market he who hesitates is lost, and the Toronto Blue Jays are dangerously close to giving away the game’s best pitcher for pennies on the dollar.

Finally, it starts to get interesting.

Pitching is Theo’s top priority at the Winter Meetings.  It looks like we’re shifting our focus from Roy Halladay to John Lackey.  That’s very good news.  I don’t want to give up both Clay Buchholz and Casey Kelly for a pitcher who is, in all likelihood, past his prime.  Yes, it’s possible he could be another Randy Johnson, who won four straight Cy Youngs after turning thirty-five, or Curt Schilling, who was a Cy Young runner-up three times after turning thirty-three.  But it’s also possible that he just won’t deliver or that he’ll become a medical liability or, worse yet, the dreaded combination of both.  (See Randy Johnson in pinstripes.  Talk about disasters.) And if you compare the two, Roy Halladay doesn’t even enjoy a complete edge in the numbers.  In his career, he started and won more games, struck out more batters, and had a lower ERA, OPP AVG, and WHIP.  But Lackey’s gone the distance more often (which translates to durability) and has allowed fewer earned runs, home runs, bases on balls, and hit batters.  And if we land Lackey this offseason, it would be through a signing, not a trade, so we wouldn’t have to mortgage our future.  Besides, we theoretically have some money left over from our decision to not pick up Alex Gonzalez’s option.

Supposedly, we’re also seriously pursuing Rich Harden.  I like that less.  He’s got a 3.39 career ERA with 783 strikeouts and a record of fifty and twenty-nine, but he’s never thrown two hundred innings in a season and has only made more than twenty-six starts once.  Durability? Not so much.  But he’d be a good bargain option, arguably a better one than Smoltz or Penny, because he’s pitched in the American League.

Speaking of pitching, the Braves cleaned out two of our peripheral relievers.  Wagner signed a one-year deal worth seven million dollars to close for them.  I would’ve liked to see him come back to Boston, but he did give us fair warning that he wanted to close, and we don’t exactly have a vacancy in that position.  One day later, the Braves signed Saito also, to a one year deal worth just over three million plus incentives.  I’m not too torn up about it.

Say hello to the latest shortstop to don a Boston uniform: Marco Scutaro.  If I sound cynical, it’s because I am.  He’s wearing Number 16; the last Boston shortstop to wear Number 16 was Edgar Renteria, so here’s hoping this time around will work out a little bit better.  Let’s not kid ourselves: he’s a veteran.  He’s a career .265 hitter with fifty home runs, 294 RBIs, and 297 walks to his credit.  But he’s thirty-four years old.  There’s a reason why the deal was only for two years.  It’s worth eleven million dollars plus a dual option.  Things that made this possible: the draft pick we’re getting from the Braves that will offset the one we have to give to the Jays, another undisclosed team pushing hard for Scutaro that forced the issue, and Scurato has reached that point in his career when he really wants a ring.  (Ironically, Alex Gonzalez signed a one-year deal with the Jays earlier, worth close to three million plus an option.) Either way, we now have a shortstop who is not Dustin Pedroia.

That needs to be cleared up once and for all.  Dustin Pedroia said he would be willing to play shortstop if the team needed him to.  But the team wasn’t about to let that happen.  Trust me.  You don’t move a Gold Glove second baseman to short because you don’t want to spend some money.  You don’t do that for a number of reasons.  Not the least of which is the fact that it doesn’t solve anything.  Fine; you move your second baseman to short.  Now you need a second baseman.  Sure, the market for second basemen is more fluid than that for shortstops, but not when you’re talking about second basemen as good as Dustin Pedroia.  Also, the caliber of Pedroia’s defense at short would be comparable to, if not worse than, any career shortstop on the market, with the obvious exception of Julio Lugo.  Thirdly, shortstop is no defensive walk in the park.  It’s the most difficult infield position.  And that means it carries a higher probability of injury, especially for someone who’s not used to it.  So we would have lost valuable playing time from him, both in the field and at the plate, had he made the switch.  Would he have been capable of doing so? Absolutely.  If anyone could, Dustin Pedroia could.  If there’s one ballplayer who embodies the don’t-tell-me-I-can’t-‘cause-I’ll-show-you-I-can attitude, it’s him.  Not to mention the fact that in 2003 he was the NCAA National Defensive Player of the Year at short.  And he’s actually in a better position to play shortstop at the Major League level now than he was when he first came up, due to his offseason workouts and in-season conditioning that have made him lighter and faster.  But even though he’d use his baseball acumen to compensate, his range would leave much to be desired.  And sometimes, in pressure situations in that part of the field, the range of the shortstop is what it comes down to.  It would have put considerable pressure on Mike Lowell to improve his range as compensation, that’s for sure.  So while I’m not doubting Pedroia’s ability to make the switch, I don’t think it would be a good for him or the team in the long run.  The team wasn’t actually serious about that possibility anyway.  Ultimately, Theo never would have allowed it.  Thankfully, it’s a moot point now either way.

But that would explain our earlier interest in Placido Polanco.  After the Tigers declined to offer him arbitration, we made a call or two.  But like I said, we don’t need a second baseman, and even if we did, he was all but off-limits.  The Phillies have since closed the deal.  So much for Chone Figgins, who ended up signing a four-year deal with Seattle.

Last but not least, we extended arbitration to Bay earlier this week.  (We declined offers to Baldelli and Byrd.) That means that, even if he signs with someone else, we get compensatory draft picks.  So the saga continues.

Congratulations to Joe Castiglione, Dave O’Brien, and Jerry Remy for landing on the ballot for the Hall of Fame’s Frick Award, honoring the baseball’s best announcers.  They definitely deserve it.

We beat the Lightning and the Leafs.  Not so much the Habs.  We lost, 1-5, to Montreal.  Ugh.  That was just an awful game to watch.  Even with that loss, though, we’re in first place in the Northeast! Finally! One point ahead of the Sabres, but I’ll take it.  But the most significant B’s news this week has nothing to do with wins and losses.  Marc Savard signed a seven-year extension.  Ladies and gentlemen, that could very well be the highlight of the regular season.  It’s going to have a hugely positive impact it’s going to have on our future.  There is arguably no other center in the league who is as multi-faceted and deeply talented as Marc Savard.  Things aren’t as cheerful on the football front.  Talk about awful games to watch.  The Saints defeated us, 38-17.  Yeah.  Awful.

Boston Globe Staff/Jim Davis

Scott Downs; Photo from Wikimedia Commons

James Paxton continues to dominate the BluGrass Baseball headlines, but the Winter Meetings start tomorrow in Indianapolis so plenty of trade rumors will break in the next few days. Baseball executives will arrive in Indiana today so keep checking back for news about your favorite Kentucky major leaguers.

• Aaron Fitt of Baseball America looks at UK’s response in the James Paxton lawsuit, and lists three possible outcomes.
• Dan Uggla tells Joe Capozzi of The Palm Beach Post that if the Marlins are going to trade him, he would prefer it to be sooner than later.
• Jordan Bastian of MLB.com lists UK alum Scott Downs as one Blue Jays trade candidate.
• Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports echoes the Downs rumors.
• Mark Sheldon of MLB.com looks at the Cincinnati Reds’ farm system including AAA Louisville Bats.

NOTE: The opinions expressed in this blog are mine and mine alone, and are not intended to offend anyone. I apologize in advance for any offense this may cause you.

On December 4, veteran Venezuelan Shortstop Marco Scutaro came to terms with the Boston Red Sox on a 2-year deal, which included an option for 2012. I was surprised after learning about this because: 1. I’m not a Red Sox fan; and 2. Scutaro was a great clutch for the Oakland Athletics. My mom wanted to call him names like “Marco Screwtaro” and “Marco Traitaro.” But then, the minute speculation began rising about Boston showing “preliminary interest” in the now 34-year-old ballplayer, I told myself: “They’ll get him.”

The L.A. Dodgers, Seattle Mariners, and Texas Rangers were the other teams with whom Scutaro spoke prior to deciding to sign with Boston, who lost a 1st round pick.

Born Marcos Hernández Scútaro on October 30, 1975, in San Felipe, Venezuela, Mr. Scutaro has played in the Venezuelan Baseball Leagues for many years. He made his MLB debut in 2002 with the New York Mets, then went to the aforementioned Oakland Athletics, the team with which he was most well-known in the clutch (where in 2004 he registered a .272 batting average), and in January ‘08 was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays, with whom he would spend the next two seasons. He also made a film appearance in a movie called A Player to Be Named Later.

Handsome MARCO SCUTARO Holding Red Sox Uniform

Don’t get me wrong. I absolutely love Marco Scutaro. However, I love Derek Jeter more because of his style and everything, and I don’t understand the continued obsession that ESPN has with Boston over the Yanks…and it’s not just because Scutaro is the Red Sox’ new Shortstop. The acquisition of Scutaro is likely to be a major advantage for the Red Sox’ Infield line, though, despite the aforementioned loss of a draft pick and the release of Alex Gonzalez. The Red Sox needed some Shortstop help. Although Dustin Pedroia said he could play Shortstop again (the position he played in 2005, his Major League debut season), Scutaro will most likely fill the void.

Derek Jeter is 35 years old, has spent his whole career with the New York Yankees, and already has five World Series rings. To date the handsome Scutaro has not won a World Series Championship. Speculation is now being generated by the fans in the Red Sox Nation about how the Red Sox are the most complete MLB team thanks to the acquisition of Scutaro, and that he might be of some help as the Red Sox try again for a World Series title.

Also, while I give ESPN credit for giving Scutaro a chance to show his true colors just like he did with Toronto in ‘09, ESPN’s Peter Gammons continues to underestimate Jeter’s superior potential. To him I say both Jeter and Scutaro have incredible skill. So what’s the harm in giving both of them credit for their offense when produced?

Jeter, who surpassed Lou Gehrig’s Yankees hit record in 2009, has a career 224 home runs, 1,068 RBI, and .317 batting average. Scutaro, who was once dubbed “the unheralded MVP of the [Oakland] A’s,” finished the 2009 season at his career best: he had a .282 batting average, 100 RBIs, and 12 home runs. To his credit are 50 career home runs, 294 career RBI, and a .265 career batting average among other things. Still, Marco is great in the clutch (I remember the Jackie Robinson Day 2007 walkoff home run he hit off of Mariano Rivera), and so is Jeter (remember the walkoff home run he did in Game 4 of the 2001 World Series, anyone? I sure do). (ROTFL at the STUPID nicknames being shouted, like “Derek Cheater” and “Marco Scrodemo.”)

Best of luck with the Red Sox Nation, Mr. Scutaro. Voy a mirarte.

Anyway, I’ve said enough of this Marco Scutaro shit for now.

Marco Scutaro Makes Sense for Red Sox at Shortstop

Seattle looks to be adding third baseman Chone Figgins to the fold.  Figgins, who had his best season with the Angels in 2009 – a .395 OBP and .298 Batting Average with decent stolen base numbers – would likely bat on either side of Ichiro Suzuki at the the top of the Mariner lineup.  FoxSports and SI are reporting a 4-year, $36 million deal with a $9 million option for a fifth season.

This means, of course, that Adrian Beltre will become a free agent.  The Mariners offered Beltre arbitration, but it would appear that Beltre will decline it and test the market.  Beltre really slipped offensively last year ( 8 – 44 – .265 – 19 walks in 111 games), though he still has as much range as any third baseman in the AL.  If Beltre doesn’t hit for any power, Figgins will generate a lot more offense.  Defensively, however, I show Beltre (and his replacements) to have made about 11.26 plays more than the average third basemen per 800 balls in play – and Figgins is that average third baseman (.30 better than average).

So, let’s figure this out.  Last year, Figgins generated about 100 runs of offense to Beltre’s 53.  Of course, Figgins played the whole year while Beltre missed about 50 games (and his backups weren’t much better), so the net difference is probably closer to 30 runs improvement on offense.  By my defensive rating system, the Seattle’s third basemen likely prevented an additional 58 hits – equal to about 32 runs.  (My system says that for every eight hits saved, the fielder saves his team about 4.38 runs, which is how I get to that number…)  So – the net change, assuming Figgins plays a full season again is, well – no change.  For every extra run scored, the defense will give one back.  Figgins will make less money than Beltre (just finished a five year, $64 million deal) – so that has to be worth something, right?  The Mariners will see the same overall production and save about $3 or $4 million in salary.

I like that deal.

Other Hot Stove News…

The Dodgers signed reliever Justin Miller to a minor league deal.  Miller was successful with San Francisco last year, a 3.18 ERA in 44 games.  They also signed minor league outfielder Prentice Redman to a minor league deal.  Redman has a little power, but at best can be described as “organizational depth”.  [MLB]

Greg Zaun will be around another year – maybe two.  The Brewers inked the veteran backstop to a one-year $2.25 million deal with a club option for 2011.  [FoxSports]

Texas claimed Toronto infielder Joe Inglett off waivers, bringing in a younger utility infielder than last year’s option – Omar Vizquel.  [Fox Sports]

Two who didn’t sign were Brad Penny and Juan Uribe of the Giants.  Each were given one-year deal (Penny got incentives, Uribe a club option), but the players turned down the offers.  [SI]

What?  The Yankees are going to slash their salary budget?  That’s what ESPN reports…

Happy Birthday!

One of my favorite players – and someone who I think SHOULD have had a Hall of Fame career except that injuries continually derailed his career – is Cliff Floyd – and Floyd turns 37 today.

Others celebrating with cake, cards, or remembrances include:  Patsy Tebeau (1864) – a player and manager during the early days of baseball, Giants catcher Frank Bowerman (1868), Emerson “Pink” Hawley (1872), a Pittsburgh area pitcher who crosses Rube Waddell’s path a couple of times, Gus Mancuso (1905),David “Boo” Ferris (1921),  Bill Rodgers (1922), Chico Ruiz (1938), Gary Roenicke (1954), Sammy Khalifa (1963), and Gene Harris (1964).

Afterthoughts…

Sammy Sosa did not attend a hearing in a court case where he allegedly owes more than $200K in unpaid services. [ESPN]

Speaking of steroids, four minor leaguers were given suspensions for the abuse of substances – three were steroids, while the fourth was labeled “a drug of abuse” – which could be anything, really.  No need to name names, unless you want to read the article.  [MLB]

MLB.com has compiled its draft roundups for each of the 30 major league franchises. I’ve linked the relevant roundups for the Kentucky audience below with a reminder of what Kentucky players mentioned in the roundup went to that team.

• San Francisco Giants — 3B Chris Dominguez (UofL)
• Detroit Tigers — 3B Wade Gaynor (WKU)
• Oakland Athletics — LHP Justin Marks (UofL)
• Chicago Cubs — LHP Chris Rusin (UK)
• Seattle Mariners — RHP Tyler Blandford (Daviees County)
• Florida Marlins — SS Terrence Dayleg (WKU)
• Toronto Blue Jays — LHP James Paxton (UK) — Did Not Sign

The University of Kentucky has issued an 87-page response to James Paxton’s lawsuit and also clarified that Paxton has been on the team throughout the process and his scholarship money was never in jeopardy. UK says Paxton was told not to discuss the NCAA meeting with his parents because they would likely be interviewed as part of the investigation and would need to provide individual accounts. The investigation appears to center on what I originally speculated: Paxton’s representative Scott Boras’ role in negotiations with the Toronto Blue Jays.

• You can read UK’s response here.
• Read the Kentucky Kernel report here

The Phillies signed Placido Polanco to a three-year $18 million deal and will switch him from second to third.  I don’t like this deal at all for the Phils.  I don’t have any doubts that Polanco can handle the hot corner, but he’s getting at least one year and $6 milli0n more than he’s worth, particularly in this market.

After fine years in 2005 and 2007, Polanco’s OPS has dropped each of the last two seasons, down to .727 in 2009.  He’s 34 next season, so the odds of him having another full season with an OPS over .750, let alone three, are not particularly good.

By way of comparison, the Red Sox apparently just signed Marco Scutaro to a two year deal for a guaranteed $12.5 million (but three years at $14 million at Scutaro’s option).  This deal seems much more reasonable to me.  Like Polanco, Scutaro will also be 34 next year.

Scutaro at SS plays a more important defensive position than Polanco will in 2010, and Scutaro is coming off a much better season.  On the other hand, Polanco has had a much better career to date than Scutaro.  All in all, I’d rank the two about even going forward, which means the Phillies overpaid Polanco.

Of course, the Red Sox have to give up a late first round pick to the Blue Jays (unless the Sox sign a better free agent offered arbitration later this off-season and give that pick to another team), and that affected Scutaro’s signing price.  However, I still don’t think the Phillies should have guaranteed any more money to Polanco than Scutaro got.

Also reported is that the Mariners are closing in on a deal with Chone Figgins on a four year deal.  According to mlbtraderumors.com, Figgins wants $36 million and the Mariners want to pay him $32 million (or $27 million over only three years).

$9 million a year for four years for possibly the best lead-off hitter in baseball who plays great D at thirdbase is not unreasonable, even if Figgins will be age 32 through 35 over the life of the contract.  Figgins has had onbase percentages of .393, .367 and .395 the last three seasons, which is terrific, and he still runs well.

If Figgins signs a contract for around $36 million, it’s another sign that free agent prices are down again this year, and that it’s a better year than most for teams to consider giving free agents (at least the younger ones), an extra year on their deals.  If Figgins can maintain most of his current value by year four of the contract, he’ll be a bargain in 2013 at $9 million.

It’s that time of year again.

It’s the time of year when Baseball America reveals which teams have the best farm systems and the worst. Baseball America also does an update of their rankings around the spring time.

If there is one good thing (amongst many) about the end of the Steroid Era in Major League Baseball it’s that there has been a re-emphasis by teams on the development of young players and improving their minor league system.

Teams have gone from trading young players like hot cakes in the 90’s to holding on to them for dear life in the late-2000’s. With the economy in a rut and free agent spending down, teams are holding on to draft picks and their own talent more than ever.

Back in the 90’s, GM’s for the most part didn’t care about giving up a first-round pick in order to sign a Type A free agent. Now, that is not the case.

Here are the teams that Baseball America has ranked as having the done best job of developing and holding on to their prospects and the worst job of developing and holding on to their prospects.

Five Best Farm Systems

1. Rangers: Neftali Feliz has a special arm and could still be an impact starting pitcher, but if he’s not, he has already shown the ability to be a shutdown reliever. The Rangers’ pitching depth remains impressive, as lefty Martin Perez earned top prospect honors in the low Class A South Atlantic League in his first full season.

Texas’ top signed draft pick, right-hander Tanner Scheppers, showed premium stuff in the Arizona Fall League, and the system has power lefties in Kasey Kiker and Robbie Ross. Texas lacks depth in terms of hitters, but switch-hitting first baseman Justin Smoak isn’t far away from being able to help a lineup that needs it.

Davis leads the Rays farm system

2. Rays: Talk about top-heavy. Every system would love to have two big league-ready right-handers like Wade Davis and Jeremy Hellickson, who both have stuff, command and success at the upper levels. And neither of them is even the Rays’ top prospect — that honor goes to five-tool center fielder Desmond Jennings, whose only issue is durability.

In between Triple-A and low Class A, the Rays are a bit thin, but they have a bevy of power arms at the lower levels, led by left-hander Matt Moore.

3. Giants: San Francisco has two elite talents in catcher Buster Posey and left-hander Madison Bumgarner, both of whom should contribute to the major league club in 2010.

The Giants also have depth, despite the uncertain status of slugger Angel Villalona, who was stripped of his U.S. visa after an off-season murder charge in his native Dominican Republic. San Francisco has shortstop options, some solid bats (such as outfielder Thomas Neal) and solid depth, but it’s really about the stars.

4. Phillies: Philadelphia had the depth to trade for Cliff Lee and still have a top-flight farm system. Outfielder Michael Taylor has hit .333 over the last two seasons, rocketing to Triple-A, and fellow outfielder Dominic Brown has better tools, though he’s still a bit raw.

Righty Kyle Drabek, son of the former Cy Young Award winner Doug Drabek, has three above-average pitches to go with excellent athletic ability. Beyond their Big Three — all of whom have performed at Double-A or above — the Phillies are bursting with young power arms, toolsy Latin American infielders and athletic outfielders, such as Anthony Gose.

5. Indians: Cleveland has traded many of the key players from its 2007 playoff team. That’s cold comfort to Tribe fans, but many of the prospects acquired in those trades now give the Indians one of the game’s top farm systems.

The organization’s top arms, right-hander Jason Knapp and left-hander Nick Hagadone, both were trade pickups, with Knapp coming from the Phillies in the Cliff Lee deal and Hagadone from Boston as the key piece in the Victor Martinez trade.

Catcher Carlos Santana, acquired from the Dodgers for Casey Blake, is a switch-hitting offensive force who was the MVP of the Eastern League in 2009, and 2008 first-round pick Lonnie Chisenhall reached Double-A in his first full pro season.

Five Best Worst Systems

26. Nationals: They have the best prospect in the game in No. 1 draft pick Stephen Strasburg, plus solid talents in catcher Derek Norris, right-hander Drew Storen and shortstop Danny Espinosa. Beyond that, though, the Nats have very little help, especially at the upper levels, which is a pity considering the state of the big-league roster.

27. Diamondbacks: Years of conservative drafts have left Arizona painfully short on athletes, especially up the middle of the diamond. Plus top prospect Jarrod Parker, a right-hander drafted third overall in 2007, will miss next season after having Tommy John surgery.

28. Blue Jays: Toronto would be No. 30 if not for last summer’s Scott Rolen trade, which brought needed pitching talent from the Reds. Toronto’s top hitters, such as infielders Justin Jackson and Kevin Ahrens and catcher J.P. Arencibia, had poor seasons in 2009, and the Jays also failed to sign three of their first four draft picks this year.

29. Cardinals: Ranked eighth last spring, St. Louis traded away both star power and depth in 2009 in acquiring Matt Holliday and Mark DeRosa. What’s left is a bunch of role players and 2009 first-rounder Shelby Miller, a promising right-hander but a prep pitcher who has yet to play a full season.

30. Astros: Houston has added solid talent in its last two first-rounders, catcher Jason Castro (2008) and Jiovanni Mier (2009), as well as ‘08 supplemental pick Jordan Lyles, a promising right-hander. But the Astros’ system is full of holes — it hasn’t produced a team with a winning record since 2007.

If you look at the five worst farm systems, the one that really sticks out to me is the Nationals. When you are bad on the field and perhaps have just as bad farm system–then you have a major problem.

What this tells me is that it is imperative that Strasburg, Storen, and perhaps Bryce Harper pan out. If not, this team could start spinning their wheels like the Pittsburgh Pirates and Kansas City Royals.

Not surprised to see the Astros on this list. The Astros are one of the few teams in baseball, who still operate like it is 1998–bloated contracts at the major league level and very little emphasis on player development.

All team rankings and prospect information is courtesy of Baseball America, via SI.com.

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

Marco Scutaro has reportedly signed a 2 year deal with the Boston Red Soxs and will make $5 million annually.

It doesn’t surprise me but it doesn’t make it hurt anyless. If he was brought back I would of been more surprised since the Jays now have two shortstops. I don’t thinke he would have wanted to play in the outfield like he might have had to if he came back to the Jays.

But it’s the Red Soxs that he signed with. It’s better then the Yankees but not by much.

I don’t know what there is to look forward to next season.

It’s not enough that the Philadelphia 76ers resigned Allen Iverson, the Philadelphia Phillies came to terms with a former infielder, Placido Polanco, a gold-glove winning second baseman for the Tigers.  Polanco will become Philadelphia’s new third baseman, as the Philles allowed Pedro Feliz to enjoy free agency…  [ESPN]

Polanco still makes a lot of contact – but his batting average (career .303) has dropped each year since 2007 when he hit .341 for Detroit.  Last year, Polanco hit .285 with 31 doubles and 10 homers – but only 36 walks, so he has a rather pedestrian OBP (.331).  Still, he’s not appreciably less productive than Feliz (12 homers, 30 doubles, 35 walks, and only a .266 average in a park that would appear to be better for hitting).  Polanco hasn’t played third much in a few years but when he did, Polanco was dependable (68 double plays, only 15 errors) and mobile.

And, he gives the Phillies a little extra versatility.  He can move to second to spell Chase Utley, or let Utley play first to spell Ryan Howard.

Look – Polanco can still play second.  I just spent a night putting together the defensive stats for the AL using my ranking system and it shows that Polanco had as much range as anyone at that position last year, almost a dead heat between Polanco, Ian Kinsler, Aaron Hill and Robinson Cano.  (I’ve only done this at a team level so far, so I’ll know a bit more once I break this down for individuals.)  And, he remains dependable and relatively error free.  So, to have spent $18 million for three years (and an option for a fourth year) is probably not so bad.

The other real concern is Polanco’s age.  He’s 34 and while he’s aging gracefully, he’s still aging.  He might look good for a year, but by the third year it might not be so pretty.  On the whole though, two good years make this a good deal for the Phillies – and if they get three good years, $18 million might look like a bargain.

So, with Iverson and Polanco back, who’s next?  Mark Recchi?

Pedroia Can Stay at Second…

The Red Sox signed former Toronto shortstop Marco Scutaro to a two-year deal.  Wow – now THAT’S taking advantage of one really good year…  Scutaro had never played the way he did in 2009 – .282, with a little power, a .379 OBA before, and seeing as he (like Polanco) turned 34 in October, one wonders if he can do that again.  [SI]

Okay – from a defensive standpoint, Toronto shortstops (mostly Marco) were below average in range.  Oddly, they were better than what Boston put out there last year (Jed Lowrie, Nick Green, Alex Gonzalez).

If you were curious, Boston with a range score of -7.89, had the 13th worst range at the shortstop position, while Scutaro and Toronto were 12th at -4.29, which means that for every 800 balls in play, Boston shortstops were involved in nearly 8 fewer plays than the average shortstop.  Since the average team puts about 4300 balls in play or so, Boston’s shortstops basically allowed about 40 more hits than the average shortstop over the course of the season.  The only team worse than Boston was New York, with their gold glove winning shortstop, Derek Jeter, who were at -8.49.  The best defensive shortstop was, by far, Elvis Andrus.  Texas shortstops scored at 13.28, which means they saved their pitchers about 55 hits over the course of the season – or at least 100 more than the guy who was supposedly the best fielding shortstop in the AL.

Anyway – this means that Boston is inheriting an aging infielder coming off a heel injury that shelved Scutaro for the last two weeks of the season, and coming off his best season as a regular ever, as he moves another year away from his supposed prime, and already has below average range.  Long and short, I’m not a fan of this deal.

Oh, and because Scutaro was a top tier free agent and had been offered arbitration, Toronto receives a first round draft pick from Boston and another sandwich pick in between the first and second rounds.

Other News…

The Braves continue to bolster the bullpen, signing one-time Dodger and Red Sox reliever Takashi  Saito.  Saito gets a one-year, $3.2 million deal with incentives.  Saito, now 40, was a closer in LA and a solid set up man in Boston – now he gives the Braves some flexibility when finishing games (Wagner is a lefty; Saito a righty).  [FoxSports]

Having lost Brian Schneider, the Mets signed two potential backup catchers, Chris Coste and Henry Blanco.  They still have Omir Santos, prospect Joshua Thole, and might still be shopping for a front line starter.  [SI]

The Oakland As acquired Jake Fox and Aaron Miles (and cash) from the Cubs for a few prospects.  I’m not totally sold on Aaron Miles, but Jake Fox is a Hitter (!) and should vastly improve the Oakland offense (though you might not notice it playing in the Colisseum).  Miles is probably looking at his last major league season unless he suddenly gets healthy and produces.  At least he can play a lot of positions and act like a coach to other infielders.

The Cubs get prospects.  Pitcher Jeff Gray is a 28-year-old reliever with okay control, but a little hittable.  He’s at best a long reliever…  Matt Spencer was once a pitcher but now is a bit of a free swinging outfielder.  24 in January, I don’t see how he’s going to be a long term prospect.  He has a little power (19 homers in two levels last year, finishing at AA Midland), but I’d rather have Spencer’s teammate Chris Carter.  He can’t hit the way Fox can hit, that’s for sure.  The third prospect is Ronny Morla, a string bean Domincan fireballer, just twenty, who seems to be finding his way in the low minors.  Morla is the one who gives the Cubs a chance to break even on this deal.  Otherwise, I like what Fox could do for Oakland.

Here’s SI’s take on the best and worst farm systems…

Happy Birthday!

My brother, Michael, a pretty good ballplayer as a kid anyway, turns 42 today…  Happy Birthday, Bro!

Hall of Famer Jesse Burkett was born on this day back in 1868.  Burkett was the Ty Cobb of his day…  Others celebrating with cake, cards, or remembrances include:  Joe Corbett (1875) – brother of boxer Gentleman Jim Corbett and a pretty good pitcher, Shano Collins (1895), Bob Shawkey (1890) – a member of the 1920s Yankees, Harvey Kuenn (1930), Barbaro Garbey (1956), Pat Sheridan (1957), Lee Smith (1957), Tai Iguchi (1974), Kyle Lohse (1978).

As a young kid and adult, I remember Lee Smith pitching for the Cubs.  The first time I got to see a game in Fenway Park, he was then with the Red Sox and I amazed those sitting around me with my understanding of the Smith routine.  By then, he might make eight warm up tosses in the bullpen because he didn’t want to get tired before he dragged his huge carcass to the mound.  He smoked the first two hitters before blowing it – allowing a few hits and the lead runs to score in the top of the eighth or ninth inning.  All I could think about was that I finally got to see Fenway, and when I do, I get to see Lee Smith blow another game.  All that way for something I had seen dozens of times before!!!

That being said, Lee Smith was a great reliever for a long, long time, and probably deserves more consideration for the Hall of Fame.

Update: According to Buster Olney, the Scutaro deal is a two-year deal worth $12.5 million total. That’s pretty much right on par with what I thought he would get on a per year basis.

I figured he would get a three-year, $18 million deal. He is still getting $6 million a year, but for one year less.

The mutual option for the third year breaks down like this: The Red Sox hold a $6 million club option and Scutaro holds a $3 million player option.

This is very similar to the mutual option Jason Varitek had in his contract last year. So there is still a chance Scutaro can earn the $18 million I thought he would get.

Original Post

If first you don’t succeed, try, try, try, and try again.

Boston Red Sox GM Theo Epstein has tried and tried and tried to find a replacement at shortstop for Nomar Garciaparra ever since he traded the star shortstop in the summer of 2003.

Perhaps tonight, he has finally tried and succeeded.

According to Ed Price of AOL Fanhouse, the Red Sox have signed free agent SS Marco Scutaro to a two-year contract. The deal also includes a mutual option for a third year.

The Red Sox shortstop

No financial terms of the deal have been disclosed yet.

Okay, so a couple of weeks ago I wrote a free agent primer and said that Scutaro would be the biggest bust hitter of this free agent class. And despite Scutaro signing with the team I root for, I am sticking to my statement.

The Ghost of Moonlight Graham doesn’t backtrack on statements.

I don’t care if this deal was for one-year, two-years, or 10-years–I am not a fan of this signing. This has Julio Lugo Part Two written all over it.

I just don’t see how a guy, who was a scrub his whole life and is 34-years-old, has one good year and all of a sudden is going to produce like that on a yearly basis. I am sorry, but I just don’t see it.

What also kills me about the Red Sox signing Scutaro is that they have to give up a first-round pick for the guy. Due to the fact that Scutaro is a Type A free agent and was offered arbitration by the Toronto Blue Jays, Scutaro will cost the Red Sox the 29th pick overall and a supplemental pick in the 2010 draft.

I have a hard time justifying giving up a first-round pick for a stop-gap shortstop.

There are a couple of positives to deal, so I am not going to be completely negative.

First, unlike the Lugo deal, this deal is only for two years. Epstein was smart not to give Scutaro anything longer than two years. Second, this will give slick fielding shortstop prospect Jose Iglesias time to develop in the minors.

The Scutaro signing means Iglesias won’t be rushed to the majors–hopefully.

Scutaro last season hit .282 for the Blue Jays, with a .379 OBP, 35 doubles, 90 walks (seventh in the AL) and 100 runs scored. My guess is Scutaro will bat ninth for the Red Sox in 2010.

The deal is pending a physical and should be finalized Friday morning.

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

VIBE magazine was shut down earlier this year only to be bought by InterMedia Partners months later who will now relaunch the magazine starting with this December Relaunch issue which will feature two different covers, one with Chris Brown and the other with arguably the hottest hip-hop star in the music and entertainment industry right now, Drake. The Drake cover is being called “Everbody Loves Drake” while the Chris Brown cover is being called “Everyone Hates Chris”.

SOURCE: Freshness

UK’s official comment about the James Paxton lawsuit, is no comment. Baseball Spokesman Brent Ingram told Ben Jones of The Kentucky Kernel last night: “It’s an ongoing legal situation and we can’t have any comment other than that.” So let me stress I know nothing about this situation from the UK or Paxton side as of now, but I think there are a few points worth looking at from The New York Times report.

First, Paxton’s lawyer Richard Johnson successfully represented Oklahoma State pitcher Andrew Oliver in his lawsuit against the NCAA regarding college players’ use of lawyer to negotiate professional contracts. An Ohio judge ruled in February that the NCAA rule barring players from using legal representation was invalid in that state. Oliver is from Ohio, and Johnson is based in Cleveland. Paxton is from British Columbia.

James Paxton; Photo: UK Athletics

“I’m ecstatic,” Johnson told Aaron Fitt of Baseball America after the Ohio decision. “We wanted three things–to have those two rules thrown out and to have Andy’s eligibility restored–and we got all of them . . . To have a complete win–hardly ever do you win everything. To have a complete win is as unusual in law as it is anywhere else. Having a complete win here is not an anomaly–it shows you how one-sided the argument is here. The NCAA is a bully, and they’ve been beating up on these kids and these schools for years, and everybody’s been taking it. I can’t believe people put up with it, I really can’t.”

Now consider that Paxton was highest drafted college player to return to school from the 2009 draft, a move that surprised most onlookers including me in August. Numerous reports, including this one from the Toronto Sun, said Paxton was being represented in negotiations with the Blue Jays by baseball super agent Scott Boras.

Ingram also declined to tell the Kernel if Paxton was still with the team at this time, although his name is still listed on the online roster for what it’s worth. I have no idea if Paxton’s representation has anything to do with the NCAA investigation he mentions in the lawsuit, but those are just a few talking points to consider as news continues to break on the situation. Keep checking back to BluGrass Baseball as I track down more information.

From Jordan Bastian on the Jays page:

“We would’ve liked to have had the player back, but there’s no question it had to be at the right price for us knowing the opportunity cost.”

Opportunity Cost. A word I learned in ECO20 at Western (usually while trying to recover from last night’s hangover at the Ridout, but that’s another story…damn 10am classes).

I have never heard any other sports General Manager use the term. I’m sure a few of them are familiar with it, but to finally hear it actually used by the person in charge of running my baseball team. I can’t tell you how happy this makes me.

We’ve got the right guy running the show now. Yes Beeston (he of the Dick Cheney like search committee) made him bring back Cito, but otherwise, everything Anthopoulos has done, and more specifically, the way he has done them and the rationales he has used, I love it all.

This team may not make the playoffs next year. But by God, with this guy in charge, it’s not going to be for lack of INTELLIGENT EFFORT or for a true understanding of value.

Go Double A.