Just take a pitch already!

It seems as though Hamels was just lights out tonight. There were a few times in the game when it was concievable that we might get a shot, but alas, our patience had struck out.

Martin and Ethier were clearly not themselves at the dish, while Pierre is looking more and more like... well... Pierre. Its a matter of time before he begins his regression to the mean. As for Martin, who knows? Maybe he is injured? Maybe he should dump his crazy girlfrind?

Anyway, Hamels had 17 three pitch at bats, according to Vin. And I doubt that there were that many 0-2 counts. We were off for one game and Hamels was on. Lets come back tomorrow and make some magic for Milton.

Mota finished the game recording 5 outs! Apparently Ausmus gave him some pointers about hiding the ball better and tightening up his delivery. Seems to be working. I still dont trust him, but as long as he comes in for mop up duty and doesn't walk anyone, I'm happy.

Bowa Boner.

To quote Boner himself:



"I'm going to tell you something. If Manny doesn't sign with us, we're in deep trouble. Deep, deep, deep trouble...We're going to be lost without a guy of that caliber a hitter in our lineup...There's two places I really don't want him. The other place is Anaheim because we'd have to read about it every day. If he goes to the Giants, the Giants have definitely improved their ballclub, and if they put a hitter like that in the lineup, they'll be the team to beat I think."

"Manny is sort of that constant in that lineup," Bowa said. "With the kids, you don't know what you're going to get."

I agree that Manny was impressive last year and that "the kids" underperformed. But, between Martin, Loney, Kemp, and Ethier, we know pretty darn well that they are good enough to be on any starting roster in baseball. The worst thing for the Dodgers right now is crochety old dudes who think "young kids" are ruining the game because they get paid more. While I enjoy Bowa's feistyness and "giddyup", I hate that he is officially "the old guy that finds a reason to hate everyone".

What's more is, before Furcal went down, "the kids" were part of a team that hosted the 3rd best offense in all of baseball. Cenrtainly Manny is better than the alternative (Pierre or Dunn), but to suggest that we are nothing without Manny is absurd. Without Manny, right now, we are a better team than last year. Furcal is an upgrade at short, if he is healthy. Blake is an upgrade at third. Dewitt is an upgrade at second. Pierre, surprisingly, is an upgrade in left, over having Jones in center.

I'd certainly welcome Manny if he wants to come back. But 2 years 45 million is a very generous offer and he should consider taking it before it becomes 1 year 17 million. At least he isn't Bobby Abreu, who will likely sign for 1 year 5 million.

The main concern for this team is the starting pitching... and the bullpenn. Why Guillermo Mota? I could see signing him for half a million with incentives, but he really isn't worth more than what McDonald, Elbert, Stults, or Troncoso will be able to do. I just don't see the value of adding a guy like with little value for so much money. Why not just resign Beimel? I just don't get the signings.

Considering the starting pitching: I guess only Randy Wolf is left... or Braden Looper. Looper is older and perhaps more reliable and a better pitcher. Wolf has pretty good K ratios which will bode well for the weak Dodger defense. In reality were looking at adding two starting pitchers. Why not sign both. Put Looper in the pen when we don't need him until April 25th and use Wolf as the 4th starter. Not the best situation... but not terribly horrible either.

Bills
Kershaw
Kuroda
Wolf
Looper

Broxton
Kuo
Wade
Mota
Troncoso
Elbert
McDonald

I have no problem with that.

Calling all NES geeks!

Here's a little treat for ya!

So, the video quality isn't the best... I just need to get a new camera.

Even cooler is that there are other versions. One where you can play at the old Yankee stadium. One where you can play at Wrigley Field. Another where you can play at an option of 6 stadiums including Fenway. In the Fenway game you can also play a season or a tournament. It really opens up a whole new game for me!

I did some studying up on ROM hacking to see if there were a way to get a game with all 30 stadiums, the season option and editable players... looks like a lot of work. Maybe when I am done with school.

So boring!

One guy getting little to no interest from anyone is Ray Durham! To go along with Garret Anderson, Eric Hinske, Jim Edmonds, Paul Byrd, and Fatdalis Perez, Durham might be a valuable assett on the bench with Loretta. Defensively he plays only one position. But truely his only value comes from his bat. It's not what it once was, but his plate discipline is impressive and he does swing it from both sides. Should something happen to Delwyn or Loretta he'd be a nice option coming off the bench or in spot starts at 2nd. In the next few weeks there are going to be a lot of singings.

Manny Ramirez
Orlando Cabrera
Adam Dunn
Bobby Abreu
Ben Sheets
Orlando Hudson
Andy Pettitte
Jason Varitek
Ty Wigginton
Ivan Rodriguez
Kevin Millar
Mark Grudzielanek
Braden Looper

Free Agent signings

I think it is safe to say that Ned Colletti has done a bad job with his free agent signings. We all know that. But lets take a different look at this situation alltogether.

1. The Dodgers currently have 10 free agents that still haven't signed with anyone this offseason. Only the Red Sox and Mets are close. Of the remaining (Joe Beimel, lhp; Gary Bennett, c; Nomar Garciaparra, ss; Jason Johnson, rhp; Jeff Kent, 2b; Greg Maddux, rhp (aanounced retirement); Pablo Ozuna; Manny Ramirez, of; Mark Sweeney) only Beimel and Nomar might be able to get a contract that guarantees them a spot on the 25 man roster or DL. Manny, Kent, and Maddux are all set to retire. But the rest of the guys are crap. No one will sign them. And to be honest I'm surprised anyone signed Berroa.

2. No one wants the current FA signings we have. Think of any of our current position players that were signed as free agents. Schmidt, Furcal, Pierre, Jones, Kuroda, Blake, Loretta... do you think anyone would want them in a trade. I think teams might take a flier on Loretta. And someone might add Furcal, Kuroda, and Blake if we put some money in the pot. But clearly no one wants Pierre, Jones, or Schmidt.

Ned has done such a terrible job at putting together a team that can be flexible, moveable contracts that he has no room to sign one of the greatest right handed batters of all time. Granted, the game he is playing with Boras is legendary. Lets just hope he waits it out and pulls of 2 year deal with 3rd year option. I have a bad feeling that ultimately he will end up with the Giants.

Anyway... this post was focused directly on the bad signings of Ned Colletti. It can only get worse with names like Kris Benson, Jon Garland, and Randy Wolf being bandied about.

The End of an era....

Sayonara Andruw Jones. Apparently team officials want Jones gone by January 15th. No sense in keeping him until after the he proves he can do something and try and trade him and save 5 million. Lets just cut our ties now and let him show progress with some other team on our dime. It just begs me to ask one question...

When will the Ned Colletti era end?

cross your fingers.

Good and Bad news.

The good news is that Pat Burell signed with the Rays for an annual salary of 8 million dollars. This means the price for Manny should drop off quite a bit. I had Burrell going for at least 10-12 million a year. Last year Pat made 14 million and it's concieveable that he's be looking for a slight bump this year. For him to take half of what was projected just shows you the market for baseclogging/non-defensive hitmen.

The bad news: If Burell is going for roughly half of what was expected this brings Manny into play for a lot more teams. Manny at 15 million instead of 25 million makes both New York teams, the Giants, Angels, any AL team, and the Dodgers into the bidding war for him. In the end I don't think anyone can offer him more than what the Dodgers can, but does this mean some desperate AL team offers him the 6 year deal he is looking for? Even if the annual salary is only 15 million a year, thats still 90 million bucks. I can't see the Dodgers going past 3 years and 60-70 million.

If we can have Dunn at 9 million a year he is totally worth it! I'm not as sure about him playing first as I once was, but it is an option. Even Bobby Abreu at less than 10 million a year is a steal. If that would mean Ethier moves back to left our outfield defense would be a significant upgrade. Granted Abreu's defensive numbers have dropped off quite a bit. I still think I'd rather have Manny in left for 3 years and 66.6 million. The number is fitting.

Payroll

http://mlbcontracts.blogspot.com/2005/01/los-angeles-dodgers.html

According to Cott's baseball contracts the Dodgers have, roughly, 88 million locked up for the 2009 season. I am estimating 5 million each for Ethier, Martin, and Broxton. I think Martin and Ethier will get more than 5 and Broxton less, but in the end were talking about less than 2 million each way. So the payroll is currently between 82-94 million range. Still far less than last year.

And while we are still not using our resources to the best of their abilities (Dewitt at second?), we still have enough cash free to sign Manny. But we also need at least one more starter. We are still 28 million below what we were at last year, but given the decline in the economy, I am to assume that we will be somewhere in the 110 million range.

A guy like Andy Pettitte must be on the dodgers radar. At 10 million next year I'll take him over having Sheets, Perez, or Garland all of which have significant draw backs and multiple year contract requests. Garland might be the pony of the group. He would eat innings at a terrible cost. Perez would be a nightmare watcing because he walks everyone. And Sheets is just another Jason Schmidt in the making. He's missed significant time 3 of his last 4 years. He's been effective, but what we need is someone to eat innings (be healthy), be effective, and also not cost us more than one year.

Randy Johnson right?

Wrong.

Anyway, Pettitte should be the only one on the Dodgers list. If we could trade Jones and eat some of the salary then great. But I'd rather just send him to Albuquerque and hope he figures it out.

Hopefully after signing Pettitte we still have enough money to make a run at Manny for 2 years and 45 million again. Backload the contract so we can pay him more when Jones and Schmidt leave.

By 2010 Martin, Ethier, Broxton, and Bills will all qualify for a bump. It's only going to get harder from here on out. I hope Ned gets fired!

Just spitballin here...

So, cut me a little slack.

Jason Stark has come out and said that the Dodgers are interested in signing Adam Dunn. Surely not to play left field!? While Dunn is a power threat I still think Manny would be needed in our order. So Loney would have to go... for a starting pitcher! But who?

I've expressed my interest in Bedard already. If we signed Dunn and Manny, we'd also have to shed some payroll. Naturally no one would want to take on Jones or Pierre all by themselves. I think we'd have to pair either of them up with Loney and Hu and take on a mediocrely bad contract.

Something like this really hamstrings the process, so Ned better have something lined up before signing Dunn. I think if he were actually going to sign Dunn he would have done it already. I think this is just a scare tactic. Manny will sign eventually with the Dodgers and take 22-25 million over 2 years with a third option. I like the direction this is going for the Dodgers. I wouldn't mind if we signed Dunn to play first and traded Loney for a decent starting pitcher while also ridding ourselves of Jones or Pierre. Could you imagine the lineup?

Furcal
Martin
Dunn
Manny
Ethier
Kemp
Blake
Dewitt
P

Not too bad. Plenty of power and OBP at the top and some clutchiness/veteranyness/potential at the bottom. I like it. So that means its not going to happen. I still don't like have Casey Blake but whatever.

Better options at SP.

After some excessive research (on youtube) I could see a possibility of the Dodgers plunging into the international market. While it can be argued that Ned has hamstringed the farm by not spending any money at all on international players, whoever is scouting the japanese market is clearly doing a great job. To say we need more of it is an understatement.

Takashi Saito and Hiroki Kuroda could possibly get some company with either Kenshin Kawakami or Koji Uerehara. I like both pitchers. Both have decent K rates and go deep into the season. Both supposedly have similar traits to Kuroda as "big game pitchers". If we could sign either of them (or both... unlikely) for a similar contract to Kuroda I'd be happy with it. Considering our optoins are now limited to :

Pedro Martinez
Eric Milton
Oliver Perez
Ben Sheets
Randy Wolf
Andy Pettitte

I'd rather take the international route as well.

So... there goes that.

Johnson is off the table. Thanks to the giants I can hate a player that is easy to hate. The official Red-Arse will be pitching for the Orange and Black next year throwing his 45 year old 90 mile an hour fast balls to Dodger hitters not likely named Manny Ramirez.

The Dodgers largest hole is still in the rotation. Even if we don't sign Manny we have options that could play reasonably well in left field. A Juandruw Pones monster in left/center would be a nasty thing to see. It would also be an abomination to have to settle with a 4th and 5th starter giving us laegue average or less quality because McCourt couldn't drop the cash on decent players. The well is drying up fast. And if Ben Sheets is still eyeing Texas our option shortens to .... gulp... Andy Pettitte.

Over the last 4 years he has been a little more durable than I would like to remember, but he hasn't been very effective. And at 10+ million dollars being called Randy Johnson Lite at a fraction of the cost isn't very reassuring.

While the talk around the net is about Manny being freed up for the Dodgers and literally no one else, the Dodgers largest hole is still in the pitching staff. Who else is there.

I had conversations with my brother concerning Eric Bedard. I suppose my main concern is that if he couldn't handle the big lights in Seattle, what would enable him to settle down in LA and become the lights out pitcher of 2007? Surely we'd be able to get him without giving up anyone on our current 25 man roster. I'd send Hu, Miller, Orenduff, Repko, and another throw in. I doubt that would get it done, but you never know? Naturally it would be a temporary fix. But Hu is only going to be a caddy to Furcal/Dewitt up the middle and finding someone to replace him shouldn't go any further than our own farm system.

The main reason why I would consider Bedard is because, 1. was good last year when he wasn't hurt, 2. he is canadian. I could only assume that he and Martin would get along well enough to overcome the "playing in the big city" effect.

Miller, Orenduff and Repko are nothing that the current team wont miss. Getting any kind of value for these 4 would be a great coupe. I doubt, again, that Ned would pull off such a deal and I figure he could only be thinking that something like this could only be done by sending Kershaw over. It sounds so illogical it makes sense. Not to me... but when I put my "Colletti-dunce" hat on it all lines up.

Before we can address Manny we need one more starter.

Predictions update.

So Teixiera has signed with the Yankees. Supposedly. At least this is not a FOXSports rumor. ESPN has reported that Teixiera has signed with the Yankees for 180 million over 8 years. At the beginning of the offseason it seemes simple to think that the Yankees would target Tex after losing Giambi and Abreu. Instead they traded junk for Swisher and added starting pitching depth only to come away with Teixiera before Boston could counter.

This just means its less likely that they also add Manny. Unless they trade any one or two of Melky, Swisher, Nady, Matsui and Damon. I don't think that they will hold onto all 5 but it might not be such a bad idea as Matsui and Damon are both huge injury risks. Nady is best as a part time player and Melky is best at AAA. They really should target a real centerfielder like Mike Cameron or more starting pitching depth.

This just makes it more likely that the Dodgers sign Manny. Unfortunately it also means that since Ned has the advantage in negotiations he will likely sign Manny to a 3 or 4 year deal. I still think it'd be best to just let him go and collect the picks.

Apparently Derek Lowe is in conversations with the Mets. It seems more likely that the Mets add a starting pitcher before targeting a bat like Burrell. If he signs with the Mets we get their 1st round pick and a sandwich pick. Hopefully Manny signs with someone other than the Yankees because we would get their 2nd round pick and a sandwich pick.

I still maintain that the Dodgers would do well to add maybe one or 2 starters. Id be happy with any 1 or 2 of Oliver Perez, Randy Johnson, or Ben Sheets. I'd be happy with Johnson and Sheets at 20 million total. Anything more than that and we are taking a significant risk. I't would be hard to justify signing Perez. He has high walk rates and is incredibly erratic. I like Sheets and Johnsons control as the current mix of youth we throw out there is still struggling with control. Plus Perez is a Borass client. We can't have any of that now.

Top Remaning free agents predictions

1. Mark Teixiera- Boston Red Sox.

2. Manny- New York Yankees.

3. Derek Lowe- Atlanta Braves

4. Adam Dunn- Washinton Nationals

5. Ben Sheets- Texas Rangers

6. Jason Giambi- Oakland A's

7. Milton Bradley- Toronto Blue Jays

8. Orlando Hudson- Seattle Mariners

9. Pat Burrell- New York Mets

10. Brian Fuentes- St. Louis Cardinals

11. Bobby Abreu- Cincinnatti Reds

Dodgers get Furcal.

Furcal gets $7.5 million next season, $9.5 million in 2010 and $13 million in 2011. The deal includes a $13 million team option for 2012 with a $3 million buyout.

It's a backloaded deal. So maybe Ned is intending on spending more on a starting pitcher now. I still think an incentive laden deal was best.

With roughly 8 million to Furcal, 6 to Blake, and 1.25 to Loretta we still have about 35 million to spend this offseason. We need a starting pitcher and I am afraid that Ned will waste a lot of money on ANOTHER outfielder. I hope not.

I don't think we're gonna get Manny and the next best option is Dunn. That said, Ned will probably settle with Burell at 16 million. BAH!

Update: The numbers are different. 6.5 next year. 8.5 in 2010 and 12 in 2011 with an option for 13 million in 2012. Even better.

Furcal update.

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/8954110/Sources:-Furcal-picks-Dodgers-over-Braves

According to Ken Rosencrap Furcal has chosen to sign with the Dodgers. If it is true (don't hold your breath- consider the source) it appears that Furcal chose the Dodgers because he would be able to play short. Whereas playing in Atlanta meants playing second base. Dollar numbers would likely be very similar at about 10 million a year for 3 years with a 4th option year.

If this is true the Dodgers just got better. They still need an effective starting pitcher. That might be had by using our own resources more effectively.

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/hidden-gem-ramon-troncoso

Dave Cameron, writer at ussmariner, suggests using Troncoso as a starter. His groundball rates are Derek Lowe'esque, and his strikeout rates are Jake Peavey'esque. What a mixture! Don't let his ERA fool you. He does have a great power sinker and if he could mix a good slider and an offspeed pitch in there he really might be poised for stardom. Again: Don't hold your breath. He will be a nice addition to the bullpenn in a long relief role/ spot stater role to go along with Scott Elbert and James McDonald.

Our best option in the free agent market right now is to sign Randy Johnson. He doesn't block anyone from coming up in 2010. He is still effective and he is a veteran precense... which is worth an extra 6.75 wins per season (according to Colletti-logic). I think if we were signing an outfielder I'd still want someone with some defensive abilities. That rules out all the current free agent outfielders...

So lets just stick with Jones in center, Ethier in left (his natural position) and Kemp in right (his natural position). By saving runs defensively the team can manage to win more games. Manny would help, but having Kemp and Ethier out of position the outfield defense is abysmal. Kemp is league average in center and Ethier is terrible in right. They both have great arms no matter what position they are playing but their range and effectiveness suffers when out of position.

The difference between a good offense and a great defense is a push. Except we save the money used on Manny for another day. Or even possibly a better starting pitcher. I know having Jones play full time is not everyone's ideal situation, well it's downright lunacy, but it is our best option.

Furcal

So here is the contract I'd offer.

A 4 years 32 million dollar base salary with a games played incentive.

If he playes 140 games in year one of the contract he gets a 2 millon dollar bonus with a 2 millon dollar bonus after year 2. The same bonus would carry over to year 2, 3, and 4. Making it potentially a 4 year 52 million dollar contract if he plays in 140 games all 4 years. He is worth the money if he is healthy.

Adversely if he does not play 140 games in a year he only gets his base salary of 8 million. The problem is going to be if he starts to play hurt again like he did in 07. I still like having him around when he is healthy, but if he is not healthy I don't want to waste so much money.

I still think he signs with the Braves though. Cross your fingers.

And the mystery team is...

the Braves.

Furcal did indeed agree to terms with the Atlanta Braves today. Reports had Furcal being offered contracts from the A's, Royals, Dodgers, and a "mystery team".

Furcal chose the Braves and what they have done created some flexability for the future. If they aren't comfortable with Yunel Escobar they can make a misdeason trade and pick up a valuable pitcher. Meanwhile Furcal will move to second and Kelly Johnson will play left field.

The Dodgers hopes of fielding a playoff worthy team is slowly slipping down the drain. The good news is, the worse this team gets, the better the liklihood of Joe Torre and Ned Colletti getting fired gets. So, lets just play for 2010!

Hopefully we don't sign anyone else that could impact the team negatively for 2010 (Casey Blake, Manny Ramirez, etc). I can only hope that we also don't make any blunderous trades for players that will be free agents after next year. It seems Colletti is willing to trade prospects on the cheap and sign aging free agents to lucrative long term deals. This the exact opposite plan he should be taking at building a major league team.

Anyway, next years free agent crop looks a little better than this years. Considering we don't truely have a leadoff hitter anymore (unless you consider Pierre a leadoff hitter... and then I would consider you mentally challenged) next year Brian Roberts will be a free agent. Of course he would be blocking Blake Dewitt at second and Dewitt can't move to third because of the blunderous signing of Casey Blake. However, we could move Casey to the outfield (which I don't like) or we could have Casey be our roving right handed bat off the bench (a role he could fill now). Other options next year include Adrian Beltre, Placido Polanco, Freddy Sanchez, Matt Holliday, Jason Bay, Jermaine Dye, Miguel Tejada, and Jack Wilson... wait who? Scratch Jack Wilson. I wouldn't have him on my team if he was free.

Concentrating on the 09 team, what other options will help us both this year and the 2010 team.

1. Getting rid of Juan Pierre. That should be the first choice on anyone's team.

2. Signing a good, young, injury free, starting pitcher.
a. Oliver Perez- not the best option, but the best option was taken by the Yankees.
b. Ben Sheets- still not a good option as he has Jason Schmidt written all over him
c. rely on the youth. I like this option best.

3. Get that POWER bat!
a. Manny- Seems unlikely as the Yankees have now drawn interest in him. Though it is more unlikely that they sign him.
b. Wait till next year. I like this option best.

4. Find undervalued players that go unnoticed on other teams and make smart trades for them.

5. Use the rule 5 draft to find talented players that can't fit on most teams rosters. Good thing Colletti passed up his drafting spot by taking no one!

I just can't see us competing for a playoff spot next year. Not this team. Not with Juan Pierre AND Chin Lung Hu starting. The pitching staff should be pretty good no matter who we sign. We certainly need someone who can eat up innings. And we still really need a power bat.

Update: Apparently Furcal hasn't agreed to the terms of the Braves contract. His agent will be calling the Dodgers today to try and match or exceed it. No doubt Colletti will. And I for one think it is worth it. 3 years at 33 million with an option 4th year at the same rate. If he signs it just means Pierre has no place on the team.

Turn your back!

Ken Gurnick answeres some questions from Dodger fans at main site. This one touched me specifically, as I am more of an unrealistic fan. It's easy to see where other teams have made improvements in their respective front offices (Mariners, Red Sox, A's, Brewers, Rays) by adding a division that uses statistical analysis instead of/ or with typical scouting. The Mariners specifically will no longer have travelling scouts but use a video analysis system.

Do you think this will be the year when Dodger fans turn their backs on the team?-- Mike M., Riverside, Calif.

The Dodgers were in baseball's final four two months ago. The Angels weren't. The Yankees weren't. If fans are turning their backs on the Dodgers because they aren't spending more money than the Yankees, consider that the Dodgers spent wildly in the past on the winter's top free agent (Kevin Brown) and heaped tons of money to keep their own players from leaving. It hasn't worked.

The question wasn't about spending money. The question was about management overall and the fans turning their backs on the stupid Dodger management. I will always be a Dodger fan, but if they sign any more high priced free agents over the age of 35 it will be easy for me to never watch another game knowing that they can't win that way.

Also, you can't possibly make the case that the Dodgers were a better team than the Yankees or Angels because we made it further in the playoffs. We made it further because we faced the rest of the "nancy" NL West and a Cubs team that fell asleep at the wheel sometime in late July when clinched the NL Central.

The Dodgers are trying a different approach, dependent on the continued improvement of their younger players. A lot of fans never will be happy with that approach. They only want the biggest names that come with the biggest salaries, and they will be satisfied with nothing less.
None of last year's highest-paid free agents signed with the Phillies or the Rays, who met in the World Series. If spending the most always meant winning the World Series, the Yankees would have won rings over the last eight seasons. They didn't.

I for one will be happy if we take the "go young" approach! I've always felt that we need players from both free agency and our farm system, but the only way we could develop a winning additude was to play players that we drafted. Signing Jones, Schmidt and Pierre didn't work. 2 out of the 3 we knew it wouldn't work. And Jones was questionable at best. We certainly need to fill our holes with free agency. But to try and develop excess through it is ridiculous. We'd have 5 full time outfielders with Manny. 2 of which would be on the bench making a combined 30 million dollars. I'm not in favor of that. But at the same we would still have a hole in the outfield if we didn't sign Manny.

Logan White has done his job in the draft. Taking great players and loading up our system with uber-talent. Ned has traded some of that away in mostly questionable deals. Whatever system he has for the Dodgers (I don't think he has one) isn't working and we do need a change before he ruins what little hope we do have.

The McCourts are running a business, not only a team. There always will be fans resenting that, especially when the Yankees seem to have no limit to their resources. But it's reality.

I totally understand that baseball is a business. There is a huge amount of money being passed around and it can't go overlooked. The reality is, when passing around such huge amounts of moeny, why would they do it so unwisely? Why would they invest 125 million in the ideas of a mad man named Ned Colletti? Oh the humanity!

It will be easy for me to turn my back on the Dodgers when they raise ticket prices, parking prices, and concession prices, and they can't even field a winning team. It will be easy to change my colors to a blue more aqua (Seattle).

UGH...

So, Rafael Furcal is set to sign a contract tomorrow no matter what. Apparently he has offers from the A's, Dodgers, and Royals. He has come out and said specifically that he does not want to play for anyone but the Dodgers. This is likely his way of jacking the price up for the Royals and the A's. And it has worked so far. And with this I could only suppose that he will eventually sign with the A's.

The Dodgers on the other hand have apparently offered him an incentive laden deal. Probably a 2 year deal with 2 option years. I think I'd rather have Furcal at short than Pierre in left. That's what it comes down to. If we sign Furcal you can close the door on Pierre as an everyday player. However, if Furcal isn't signed the likelyhood of Torre starting Pierre everyday in left is a disturbing thought. But he'd do it to have his "leadoff hitter".

I'd rather just sign Furcal, Dunn, and (name your starting pitcher here) and settle with trading Pierre and Jones for nothing and a lot of cash. But that's unlikely.

My main goal would be, "How can I keep Joe from starting Pierre at all costs?"

Unfortunately, Colletti is the guy who thinks Pierre should be starting... so... go figure. We also paid 45 some odd million for 6 games of Jason Schmidt knowing he was injured... and 36 million for a 172 hitter and anything over 2 million for Pierre is ludacris. And now we have shafted Saito!

And now there are rumors of Omar Vizquel. Of course. He is an ex Giant. Where all of this comes from I have no idea. But Colletti is retarded. So get ready for the 6 year deal for Manny and the 3 year deal for Pettitte. I wouldn't be surprised... nor happy. But that would be typical of the worst GM in baseball. I also wouldn't be surprised if he overpaid for another starter. I think he will eventually sign Pettitte and another starter at 2-3 years similar to the Brett Tomko deal a few years back.

Back to the point. I think Furcal will sign with the A's. Somewhere in the 4year X 44 million range. If they can add Giambi to DH they would all of a sudden be able to contend with the Angels.

My crystal ball says the Dodgers overpay for Orlando Cabrera, Andy Pettitte and Pedro Martinez all getting multi-year deals and blocking 17 prospects that are better than them allready which Ned trades for Alfonso Soriano. Then my crystal ball laughed at me for being a Dodger fan...

Why I like the A.J. Burnett signing.

Because I hate the Yankees.

Inevitably Burnett will take the spot that Pavano left as overpaid, injury riddled, starting pitcher in New York.

Undenaible evidence shows that Burnett is a bomb waiting to explode.

http://www.chrisoleary.com/projects/Baseball/Pitching/ProfessionalPitcherAnalyses/AJBurnett.html

The concept of "scapular loading" comes with certain rules that must be kept to not just keep from serious injury but also help in control.

O'Leary explain the process pretty well, but to take it step further, I've always felt that limiting your extra movements will always help your pitching ability. The reason that the Inverted "W" is so bad is because of the stress the elbow and shoulder go through when transitioning from the "M" (inverted "W") to the fast movements when the front foot lands of actually throwing a ball.

It reminds me of Eric Davis and his high step/low hands combination that created a ton of power and created a huge loop in his swing while delaying his timing.

Timing is one of the finer keys to pitching. Having a detailed loop in your delivery not only creates added stress to your elbow and shoulder, but it also creates a timing hitch in your delivery. If your hitch is off just a little bit, your all over the place and can't locate. For 16.5 million, the Yankees could have done better.

Personally I would have targeted Teixiera first. Then a lower tier pitcher, maybe Ben Sheets for 3 years 42 million'ish. Lowe at 16 million over 4 years simply isn't worth it. He's good, reliable and old. He'll produce well, but he wont be worth 16 million. He's worth what you give him... but he's not worth what Borass wants. Maybe 12-14 million. maybe....

Overall, if Burnett can be healthy over 3 years of the course of the 5 years of the contract its a push if he pitches like he can when he is healthy. I only like the signing because it means that the Yankees are out 82.5 million bucks and have a potentially huge hole in the rotation.