Kuzul

Last night, the Philadelphia Phillies basically shocked the world as they signed one of the top pitchers in baseball, Cliff Lee.

An unexpected move considering that the Phillies already had one of the best, if not the best rotation in all of baseball in Cole Hamels, Roy Halladay and Roy Oswalt.

The Phillies have used an enormous chunk of their payroll to snatch Cliff Lee from the foaming mouths of the Yankees’ front office and the desperate pleas of Rangers’ ownership.

So, now waking up in his incredibly soft and comfortable bed in either his spectacularly expensive home or five-star hotel, Ruben Amaro Jr. must now ask himself 10 questions.

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It has been a busy off-season thus far that has seen almost all of the coveted free agents sign with different teams.

We have seen Jayson Werth sign a massive contract with the Nationals, Carl Crawford signed a bigger contract with the Red Sox, and the Sox also acquired Adrian Gonzalez.

There are numerous free agents left on the market and only half of them are really good players.  Meaning that the asking price for certain players like Derrek Lee and Adam LaRoche will go up because they are the best left at their position.

So, now is the perfect time to analyze the risks, rewards, and my predictions for all the free agents that are left like Beltre and Lee.

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Last years regular season began with high hopes and great expectations for the Seattle Mariners.  They had had a very busy offseason as they acquired such players as Cliff Lee, Milton Bradley, and Casey Kotchman.

Unfortunately, the team fell way short of expectations and ended up with the worst record in the American League.  They were dead last in hitting in the major leagues and hit the fewest home runs in all of baseball as well.

The season was chaotic and treacherous as their new players were busts (except for Lee) and the clubhouse morale was bad.  Don Wakamatsu got the guillotine and the Mariners finished at a god awful 61-101 mark.

Once again, the AL West looks weak and if Seattle makes the right moves they can maybe compete once again.  The right moves you may ask?  Are the ones I am about to suggest.

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On July 21, 2006, Jeremy Accardo was dealt from the San Fransisco Giants to the Toronto Blue Jays for third baseman Shea HIllenbrand.

This trade proved to be an absolute steal for the Blue Jays as Accardo was given the closer’s job in 2007 because of the injury to B.J. Ryan.  During his time as the full time closer for the Jays, Accardo saved 30 games in 35 opportunities and finished the season with a ridiculous 2.14 ERA.  

When the 2008 season rolled around Accardo was again considered for the closer’s role but struggled upon his return because of an injury he had been dealing with.  So, he spent the majority of his time that year in the minor leagues rehabilitating and getting his stuff back.

Then, the 2009 season came and Accardo was told that he would soon be back in the majors by then general manager J.P. Ricciardi.  Things did not go as planned and Accardo became frustrated with the Jays organization and rightfully so.  He went on to have a pretty great year with the Jays’ minor league club in the Pacific Coast League (PCL) which is a hitter friendly league.

And then came the 2010 off season, where Accardo was promised by current general manager Alex Anthopolous that he would get his time soon.  Soon did not come as the regular season finished without even a brief appearance in the major leagues.  A casual fan may have wondered if he was injured or if he had had a really bad year, but no, in fact, it was quite the opposite.  Like I said, the PCL is a very hitter friendly league and Accardo actually managed to win PCL reliever of the year award which is quite impressive.  So, that raises the question: Why isn’t Jeremy Accardo with the big club?

In my mind there are two possible answers to this question.

—The first answer—

As we are simply fans, we have no idea what goes on behind the scenes and there may be something we don’t know about.  It is extremely unlikely that Accardo has anything wrong with him physically because he has been pitching very well for a while and has won a few awards.  The only thing I can think of is maybe there is something wrong mentally with Jeremy Accardo.  But that may be even more unlikely because Alex Anthopolous wouldn’t want somebody who is mentally unstable in the farm system with the young players.  Attitude problems are something that general managers try to keep away from the up and comers.  So, it seems like any of the usual signs are not there.  Strange.

—The second answer—

This answer seems to be the popular one among Blue Jays critics and fans who pay any attention whatsoever to Accardo.  That Jeremy is being mistreated and punished for something he has done.  Now, the next question one asks is what did he do?  Well, here is what he may have done.  Accardo was engaged to a girl with whom he broke off the wedding at the last possible second.  The girl you may ask? Jays owners Rogers Communications’ vice chairman Phil Lind’s daughter.  Hmm…not suspicious at all.  Now, I hope this isn’t the case but, it seems as though the Jays are using their power to punish Jeremy Accardo in a way that is unfair.

I pray actually that the Jays aren’t abusing Accardo in that sense because it is cruel.  He is doing fantastically in the minors and has deserved another shot in the bigs for a long time now.  He has every right to be frustrated and is still young.  It seems unfair that if the Jays aren’t going to use him that they don’t want to trade or release him.  It is a pity…

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Ever since Alex Anthopolous has taken over as General Manager of the Toronto Blue Jays, nothing but excitement has surrounded the team.

He has said that he is committed to building a strong franchise that will have the ability to compete for many many years.  He has managed to build a strong farm system that continues to grow, while still managing to field a team that can compete in the toughest division in baseball.

The odds are that AA won’t sign many (if any) Type A or B free agents this off season, but I still think that if the price is right that AA won’t hesitate to pull the trigger.

Alex Anthopolous is a very crafty individual and has a habit of keeping his cards very close to his chest.  The fans are excited and they have reason to be.

This franchise is going in the right direction.  

Because Alex is sneaky and leaves no stone unturned, I believe there are many signings and trades on the way.

Now let us get down to business, here are the players I believe the Jays should target.

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