Tag: Baseball

R.A. Dickey to Braves: Latest Contract Details, Comments, Reaction

Veteran pitcher R.A. Dickey signed a one-year deal with the Atlanta Braves on Thursday.

The team announced the move and added there is also a club option for the 2018 season.

According to Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports, Dickey will receive $8 million guaranteed, with $7.5 million coming in ’17. For 2018, he’ll receive an $8 million team option with a $500,000 buyout.

Dickey, 42, went 10-15 with a 4.46 ERA, 1.37 WHIP and 126 strikeouts in 169.2 innings pitched and 29 total starts for the Toronto Blue Jays in 2016. While he has never rediscovered his dominant form from the 2012 season, when he went 20-6 with a 2.73 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and 230 strikeouts in 33 starts with the New York Mets, he was a valuable innings-eater at the back of Toronto’s rotation in 2016.

The Blue Jays ultimately moved the knuckleballer to the bullpen late in September, though, and he didn’t make the team’s postseason roster.

For the Braves, he’ll provide an experienced, veteran presence who is still capable of having quality innings as a fourth or fifth starter.

Dickey’s signing isn’t a major splash, but he figures to be beneficial to an otherwise young team.

The Braves have some major question marks in their starting rotation behind ace Julio Teheran, but Dickey should be able to find his niche and aid in the development of younger pitchers such as Matt Wisler (24), Aaron Blair (24), Mike Foltynewicz (25) and other arms who come up from the minors over the course of the season.

Dickey is familiar with the NL East from his three-year stint with the Mets, and that familiarity should help him have some success in Atlanta.

The Braves’ rebuilding project is making strides and being accelerated thanks to a mix of exciting youngsters and experienced veterans.

Dickey should be a positive influence in the clubhouse, and he could also make for great trade bait if the Braves are out of it by the 2017 deadline.

     

You can follow Timothy Rapp on Twitter.

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Todd Frazier Trade Rumors: Latest News, Speculation Surrounding White Sox 3B

The Chicago White Sox are reportedly listening to trade inquiries for third baseman Todd Frazier as part of what could be a busy offseason for the organization.

Continue for updates.


Latest on Frazier’s Trade Availability

Thursday, Nov. 10

Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports reported Wednesday that Frazier is among a high-profile group of potential White Sox trade assets this winter that also includes Chris Sale, Jose Quintana, Brett Lawrie, Melky Cabrera and David Robertson.

“I think they’re in the exact same place they were in during the summer,” a rival executive told Rosenthal. “They’ll listen on everyone, but I think they’ll focus on trying to move the short-term guys first and then listen on the big guys—and ultimately not move the big guys.”

Frazier would fall into the category of “short-term guys.” He’s under team control for only one more season and can hit free agency after the 2017 campaign, according to Spotrac.

The 30-year-old infielder slugged a career-high 40 home runs during his first season with the White Sox after spending his first five years with the Cincinnati Reds. His batting average fell to a career-low .225, and his .302 OBP was the lowest since his rookie season.

While the latter numbers are concerning, finding the type of power he possesses isn’t easy, which equates to value on the trade market. And it’s no surprise the White Sox may be looking to shake things up after going 78-84 to miss the playoffs for the eighth straight season.

That said, Colleen Kane of the Chicago Tribune noted Frazier expressed interest in sticking with the White Sox in August after building a straightforward relationship with general manager Rick Hahn:

I would rather they build around this, to be honest with you. I like it in Chicago. I like the atmosphere. I like the people there. I think they’re all genuine. … When Rick comes and talks to me about things, I haven’t had any bad (feelings) about it. He goes about his business the right way. He says, ‘We’re going to do this,’ and eventually it happens. You can be happy with that. Good, bad or ugly, he tells the truth.

Several teams make sense as trade partners on paper if Chicago does opt to move him. The San Francisco Giants, Los Angeles Angels and New York Yankees are among the clubs that could use both more power and an upgrade at third base.

Ultimately, Frazier doesn’t get on base enough to serve as the main piece of an offense despite his pop. But he’s a perfect fit as a No. 5 or No. 6 hitter who can deliver a lot of runs for a team with a strong top of the order.

                                            

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What Is Mets’ Backup Plan to Save Offense If Yoenis Cespedes Leaves NY?

To get Yoenis Cespedes in 2015, the New York Mets had to give up the guy who will probably be the American League‘s Rookie of the Year (Michael Fulmer). To keep Cespedes in 2016, the Mets had to offer him a three-year contract that also allowed him to make $27.5 million in one year and become a free agent.

The first price was high. The second price might have been higher.

The price for 2017 and beyond will almost certainly be higher still.

And what about the price if they allow him to walk away? That could be the highest price of all.

“They’re going to keep him,” an American League scout who closely follows the Mets said Wednesday.

Yes, I told him, I understand. The idea here is to come up with a plan for what to do if they don’t.

“They’re going to sign him,” he repeated, not with the confidence of owning inside information but simply with the belief in what makes sense.

I get it, and I get why general manager Sandy Alderson told reporters (including Adam Rubin of ESPN.com) he wants an answer to the Cespedes question before the Dec. 5-8 winter meetings. As well as waiting worked out for the Mets last winter—they re-signed Cespedes January 26 after he found the market softer than expected—waiting would be a bad strategy this time around.

Cespedes felt like more of luxury a year ago, when the Mets were coming off a World Series. He feels like more of a necessity this time, although that mainly means if he does leave, there’s a real necessity to find someone to fill his spot.

Quite simply, if the Mets’ pitching gets healthy and Cespedes returns to the lineup, this team would have a chance to return to the World Series. With no Cespedes and no ready replacement, the Mets might not have enough offense to even return to the postseason.

They were barely a .500 team when he showed up in 2015 before going on a 38-22 run that began the day of the trade. They were 72-52 with Cespedes in the lineup in 2016 and just 15-21 in games he didn’t start.

He drove in 24 more runs than anyone else on the roster and was 24 times the offensive presence of anyone else they could put in the middle of the lineup.

There’s more.

“Say what you want about Cespedes, he has charisma,” the scout said. “Nobody else on that team has it.”

No position players, anyway.

Still, that hardly means the Mets will sign him at any price. That hardly means they should sign him at any price.

So we’re back at the original question of how to replace him if he leaves, with the caveat that this time, the answer can’t be there’s no way they can let him leave.

The easiest way would be to sign another free agent instead, and James Wagner of the New York Times tweeted from the general managers’ meetings about one possibility:

Jose Bautista makes some sense, especially since Mets executive J.P. Ricciardi traded for him as general manager of the Toronto Blue Jays. He has power, and he’s right-handed—an important consideration for a Mets team that leans lefty.

He’s also 36, trending down and still hoping for a big contract.

Edwin Encarnacion, Bautista’s Blue Jays teammate, is also a free agent. But he fits best at first base, which would require the Mets giving up on Lucas Duda, or at designated hitter, which would require them moving to the American League.

The trade market might be a better answer, even though it would require Alderson to do something he has so far resisted: trading one of his big starting pitchers. Trading a pitcher this winter would be complicated, because the Mets wouldn’t deal Noah Syndergaard, and every other top starter they have will be recovering from some kind of surgery.

Trading Matt Harvey would make the most sense. He has two years left before free agency, and the Mets fully expect him to leave. His health is a factor, though. Harvey’s surgery was to correct thoracic outlet syndrome, and while he’s said to be making a full recovery, it’s unclear how confident other teams will be that he comes all the way back.

The Mets would prefer to keep Jacob deGrom, who underwent surgery in September to address an ulnar nerve issue. But teams would likely view him as a safer bet to come back strong, so he could be a more likely choice to net them the type of hitter they need.

Who would that be? It’s always hard to read the trade market this early in the offseason, with only suggestions about who is available and how much the teams would want in return.

To truly replace Cespedes, the Mets must think big, which means asking about players like Andrew McCutchen and Miguel Cabrera. And that means being open to trading not just Harvey or deGrom, but also top prospect Amed Rosario.

McCutchen is coming off his worst season, and he’s eligible for free agency after next season. Position-wise, though, he’s the best fit, because he can play center field. Cabrera plays first base, turns 34 in April and has a huge contract that runs until he’s 40, with a full no-trade clause. But he might be the biggest lineup-changer in baseball.

McCutchen’s Pittsburgh Pirates and Cabrera’s Detroit Tigers both seem open to listening to trade offers this winter. It’s still hard to know how willing the Tigers would be to moving Cabrera; they could also deal outfielder J.D. Martinez, who could be of interest but is not in Cabrera’s class as a lineup force.

Ryan Braun could be a more realistic option, but the rebuilding Milwaukee Brewers would likely want mostly young players in return. Rival scouts who follow the Mets’ farm system say there’s not much of great value beyond Rosario, although 23-year-old Robert Gsellman’s 2016 big league debut could make him attractive.

If they’re willing to offer Harvey and/or deGrom, the Mets may have plenty of options on a winter market devoid of top free-agent starting pitchers. Either one could be a fit for teams like the Texas Rangers, Chicago Cubs or Boston Red Sox, all of which have deep lineups.

Alderson’s reticence to trade a starter is understandable, because the Mets rely so heavily on their pitching. They’ll go to spring training with some concerns about Harvey and deGrom, but also about Steven Matz (who had shoulder issues and surgery to remove a bone chip from his elbow) and Zack Wheeler (still recovering from a 2014 Tommy John surgery).

“If they keep the pitching healthy, they might be able to win a lot of games 2-1,” a National League scout said.

If they don’t re-sign Cespedes or find an adequate replacement, they might need to win all their games 2-1. But how do they replace him?

“They’re going to keep him,” the first scout predicted again.

When you look at the alternatives, it’s easy to understand why they should.

    

Danny Knobler covers Major League Baseball as a national columnist for Bleacher Report.

Follow Danny on Twitter and talk baseball.

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Dodgers Need Chris Sale, Have Ammunition to Get Blockbuster Done

The Los Angeles Dodgers need another ace. They have a deep farm system. And the free-agent starting pitching cupboard is basically bare.

Add those disparate facts up and what do you get?

Possibly Chris Sale plying his trade in Southern California.

It’s pure speculation at this point. But the Dodgers targeted Sale at the 2016 trade deadline and were willing to dangle prized young left-hander Julio Urias, per Joel Sherman of the New York Post.

The deal never materialized, and Sale finished out the season with the Chicago White Sox. The Dodgers, meanwhile, advanced to the National League Championship Series but fell to the eventual champion Chicago Cubs, in part because their depleted rotation ran out of fuel.

Now, imagine Sale paired with Los Angeles ace Clayton Kershaw. That’s two of the top southpaws in baseball, and a 1-2 buzz saw that could push the Dodgers over the top.

Will Sale be moved?

It’s no sure thing, but this much is clear: After four straight losing seasons and an eight-year postseason drought, it’s time for the White Sox to engineer a course correction. 

“We aren’t approaching this offseason thinking we can make a couple of short-term tweaks to put us in position to win on a sustainable basis,” general manager Rick Hahn said recently, per Colleen Kane of the Chicago Tribune. “We intend to make a firmer commitment to a direction to put ourselves in a better long-term position.”

Translating from GM speak, that means the Sox could be sellers. Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe has heard from multiple rival executives that “Hahn is open for business on just about his entire roster.”

Sale is Hahn’s shiniest item.

The 27-year-old five-time All-Star has eclipsed 200 strikeouts in each of the last four seasons and thrown more than 200 innings in three of them. He’s averaged 10.04 strikeouts per nine innings since his debut in 2010, the sixth-highest total among active pitchers. 

Most importantly, he’s under contract for the next three seasons, for $12 million in 2017, a $12.5 million team option in 2018 and a $13.5 million team option in 2019. In a world where the Arizona Diamondbacks paid Zack Greinke $34 million to post a plus-4.00 ERA, that’s an unequivocal bargain.

The sticker shock will be real. The Dodgers would likely have to part with multiple prospects from a farm system Bleacher Report’s Joel Reuter ranked No. 6 in the game.

That could include one of Urias and right-hander Jose DeLeon and a top position player such as power hitting outfielder/first baseman Cody Bellinger or touted 19-year-old Cuban outfielder Yusniel Diaz. 

That’s a lot to give up. But the Dodgers need to bolster their rotation—period.

Last year, injuries decimated their starting corps like henchmen in a James Bond flick. By the time the playoffs arrived, they rolled with a three-man unit of Kershaw, Japanese import Kenta Maeda and trade-deadline pickup Rich Hill through the division series before handing a start to the 20-year-old Urias in the NLCS.

Maeda will be back alongside Kershaw after posting a 3.48 ERA in 175.2 innings in his first big league season. 

The 36-year-old Hill battled blister issues after coming over from the Oakland A’s in early August, but he put up a 1.83 ERA in six regular-season starts with L.A. He’s a free agent, and while the Dodgers will surely kick the tires, it’s not normally in president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman’s DNA to give multi-year contracts to players rounding the bend on 40.

Right-hander Brandon McCarthy is signed through 2018 but is coming off an injury-plagued, up-and-down season. South Korean left-hander Hyun-Jin Ryu is an even bigger question mark after missing all of 2015 and nearly all of 2016 with shoulder and elbow problems. 

Lefty Scott Kazmir is around after declining to opt out of his contract, though the Dodgers may look to trade him, per Sherman. Alex Wood pitched out of the bullpen in the postseason but is an option to rejoin the rotation if healthy.

That’s a lot of ifs, maybes and what-have-yous. Plus, Los Angeles could lose closer Kenley Jansen to free agency, weakening a bullpen that led MLB with a 3.35 ERA and covered for the rotation’s lapses.

Not a good look for the squad with baseball’s highest payroll and a 28-year championship drought.

Getting Sale would immediately and immeasurably boost the Dodgers’ stock. Along with Kershaw and Maeda, he’d form a rock-solid top three augmented by either Urias or DeLeon and whomever manages to come back and stay healthy from the above-mentioned group.

The Dodgers won’t be Sale’s only suitor. Expect every club with pitching needs and prospects to burn to come sniffing. Cafardo astutely name-dropped the Boston Red Sox in particular:

In the thinking-big department, [Boston president of baseball operations Dave] Dombrowski may have enough starting pitching, but how could he resist at least exploring a deal for White Sox ace Chris Sale? Dombrowski inquired about the lefthander at the trade deadline but the price was high. That price will be high again, but adding Sale would give the Red Sox a starting rotation that includes David Price, Rick Porcello, Eduardo Rodriguez (unless he was in the deal),Steven Wright, and Clay Buchholz/Drew Pomeranz.

The Red Sox have the pieces to outbid Los Angeles. But while they may want Sale—who doesn’t?—they don’t need him like the Dodgers.

The hot stove is about to start crackling. Rumors will fly like sparks in a stiff wind. This isn’t the last time you’ll read about Sale and the Dodgers.

Some speculation just makes too much sense.

   

All statistics courtesy of MLB.com and FanGraphs unless otherwise noted.

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Miguel Cabrera Would Transform Astros into an AL Power

Houston, we have a rumor.

You want details? Here you go, courtesy of MLB Network’s Jon Morosi:

Let’s unpack the particulars.

First, the Houston Astros are planning to increase payroll. That’s a positive development for Houston fans after their club crashed the postseason party with a wild-card berth and advanced to the division series in 2015 but fell to a third-place finish in the American League West last season.

The Astros want to get back to October glory. They want to topple the Lone Star State-rival Texas Rangers, who have won the last two division crowns.

Miguel Cabrera or Edwin Encarnacion would move the needle toward that end, but let’s focus on Cabrera.

He is, after all, one of the best hitters of his generation with 446 home runs and 1,533 RBI in his career. And the Detroit Tigers are ready for a fire sale, as they should be, per Kurt Mensching in a special to the Detroit News.

Add Cabrera to Houston’s lineup, and you could be looking at a new power in a wide-open American League.

The Astros fell exactly in the middle of the pack in 2016 with 724 runs scored and were No. 24 in baseball with a .247 average. 

Houston, however, has an enviable offensive core, including second baseman Jose Altuve (.338 average, .928 OPS, 24 home runs, 30 stolen bases), shortstop Carlos Correa (.274 average, 20 home runs, 96 RBI), right fielder George Springer (.815 OPS, 29 home runs, 82 RBI), catcher/designated hitter Evan Gattis (.826 OPS, 32 home runs, 72 RBI) and 2015 first-round pick Alex Bregman.

Now, imagine Cabrera in the mix. The 11-time All-Star and two-time MVP hit .316 with a .956 OPS, 38 home runs and 108 RBI for the Tigers in 2016. He’s a future Hall of Famer riding out his peak.

Plus, as MLive’s Evan Woodbery pointed out, Cabrera and Altuve “both hail from Maracay, a hotbed of baseball on Venezuela’s Caribbean coast.”

That could inspire Miggy to wave his no-trade clause. 

The Astros would likely need to part with legit prospects to land Cabrera. They have a loaded system, though, ranked No. 3 by Bleacher Report’s Joel Reuter

The bigger hurdle might be Cabrera’s contract, which will pay him a minimum of $212 million through 2023. Even if the Tigers toss in some cash, that’s a hefty investment for a guy who’ll turn 34 on April 18. 

On the other hand, as Morosi noted, Houston appears willing to nudge the budget northward and has few payroll commitments beyond next season. 

In all likelihood, Cabrera will be a financial drag before he’s off the books. Sometimes, though, you pony up now and worry about the future when it arrives. 

This is workable. With a shallow free-agent pool, it could be one of the winter’s most impactful moves.

“We can be better, and we’re going to keep trying to be better,” manager A.J. Hinch said at the end of August, per Brian T. Smith of the Houston Chronicle

Hitting isn’t the Astros’ only need. Their starting rotation finished 2016 with a mediocre 4.37 ERA, with ace Dallas Keuchel (4.55 ERA) falling disconcertingly shy of his 2015 AL Cy Young Award-winning peak.

Keuchel, however, showed signs of recovery in the second half, shaving 25 points off his first-half ERA and winning three of his last four decisions.

The bullpen, meanwhile, finished 10th in baseball with a 3.56 ERA and boasts ample depth even after Houston traded right-hander Pat Neshek to the Philadelphia Phillies on Nov. 4.

This club is capable of contending. It pushed the eventual-champion Kansas City Royals to five games in the division series in 2015 and, despite a stumble back last season, remained relevant.

The Rangers are a threat. The Cleveland Indians desperately want to get over the hump after their devastating seven-game World Series defeat. Out East, the defending division champion Boston Red Sox and up-and-coming New York Yankees are forces, with the Baltimore Orioles and Toronto Blue Jays there, too.

There’s no obvious powerhouse. With the right machinations, the ‘Stros could be as safe a pick as any.

Having Cabrera protect the likes of AL MVP finalist Altuve and Correa would count as the right machination. 

It’s not reality. Far from it.

But it’s a rumor, and a titillating one at that.

                                                                                                               

All statistics courtesy of MLB.com and Baseball-Reference.com unless otherwise noted.

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Andrew Miller Trade Rumors: Latest News, Speculation on Indians RP

With the Cleveland Indians looking to get over the World Series hump in 2017, trading star reliever Andrew Miller could make their task more difficult.

Continue for updates.


Report: Teams Inquiring About Miller

Wednesday, Nov. 9

Per Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports, the Indians are getting calls about Miller from other teams, but general manager Mike Chernoff described any potential trade as “a long shot.”

The Indians acquired Miller from the New York Yankees on July 31. The lanky left-hander turned in a fantastic 2016 season, posting a 1.45 ERA with 123 strikeouts, 42 hits allowed and nine walks in 74.1 innings between the two teams.

With Cleveland’s starting rotation ravaged by injuries in the postseason, the team asked Miller to carry a heavy load out of the bullpen. Miller was brilliant, recording 30 strikeouts while allowing only 12 hits in 19.1 innings over 10 appearances, and was named the ALCS MVP, though the burden caught up to him in the World Series, when he allowed three runs over his last two appearances against the Chicago Cubs

The Indians operate on a limited financial budget, making Miller’s $9 million salary in each of the next two seasons more than mere chump change to them.

They would be foolish to immediately shoot down trade requests for any of their expensive players if the return is to their advantage.

With a team that will return starting pitchers Carlos Carrasco and Danny Salazar, who missed most of the postseason, and outfielder Michael Brantley, who missed all but 11 games last season because of shoulder injuries, the Indians should be in the playoff mix again next year.

Miller makes their pitching staff deeper and provides an incredible bridge to closer Cody Allen. Unless the Indians get blown away with an offer, the southpaw will likely still be in Cleveland when the 2017 season begins.

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Andrew Bailey Re-Signs with Angels: Latest Contract Details, Comments, Reaction

Andrew Bailey was an All-Star closer early in his career, and the Los Angeles Angels hope he can become a bullpen force once again after re-signing him to a new contract.  

The Angels announced they signed Bailey to a one-year contract on Wednesday, and Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reported the deal is worth $1 million with incentives.

Bailey has played for the Oakland Athletics, Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, Angels and Philadelphia Phillies in his career. He was a dominant force in his first two seasons with Oakland and made the 2009 and 2010 All-Star Games.

He won the 2009 American League Rookie of the Year behind a 1.84 ERA, 0.88 WHIP and 91 strikeouts in 83.1 innings. He also notched 26 saves in the process. He followed that up with a 1.47 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, 42 strikeouts and 25 saves in 49 innings in 2010.

However, injuries sapped him of much of his effectiveness after those initial two years.

Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe chronicled his physical ailments before the 2012 season and said Bailey underwent thumb surgery in 2012, suffered a forearm injury in 2011, had elbow surgery in 2010 and had knee surgery after the 2009 season.

What’s more, he underwent season-ending surgery to repair a torn labrum in 2013 and didn’t make a single appearance in 2014 as a result. He pitched in just 8.2 innings in 2015. 

Bailey’s numbers were still solid in 2011, but he was plagued by inconsistency and a couple of lackluster seasons after that:

The silver lining for Bailey is his performance with the Angels last year. His overall numbers left much to be desired because of a 6.40 ERA in 33 appearances for the Phillies, but he sported a 2.38 ERA, 0.97 WHIP and six saves in 11.1 innings down the stretch for Los Angeles.

While they weren’t pressure-packed appearances for a team well out of playoff contention, the positive results were a welcome sign for the 32-year-old veteran.

The hope for Los Angeles is that foreshadowed a return to prominence for the two-time All-Star and wasn’t just a small-sample blip. The injury concerns are still quite real, but the chance Bailey finds his form again makes this a high-upside deal.

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Rangers Stadium Deal Passed by Arlington Voters: Latest Comments, Reaction

Voters in Arlington, Texas, overwhelmingly approved a proposition to help fund a new $1 billion stadium for the Texas Rangers, which will keep the organization in the city through at least 2053.

Jeff Mosier and Loyd Brumfield of the Dallas Morning News reported the group fighting the proposal quickly conceded Tuesday night after early returns showed strong support. They also passed along comments from Arlington Mayor Jeff Williams about the result:

It’s a phenomenal thing how so many generations now have grown up going to the Texas Rangers here in Arlington. And now we have an opportunity for us to say that we want the Rangers to be here for our kids and grandkids. … It is a historic time in which all of our leaders have come together here to work hard to ensure that we kept the Rangers now.

T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com noted the Rangers are hopeful the new retractable-roof facility will be ready in time for Opening Day 2020. That’s based on a timeline of finalizing designs in 2017 and two years of construction following Tuesday’s election victory.

While Rangers co-chairman Ray Davis expressed the obvious benefits for fans in terms of avoiding the summer heat in Texas, he interestingly suggested the new stadium could also help the front office when it comes to attracting more on-field talent, according to Sullivan.

“Long term, it means our fans can enjoy climate control without getting burned up and we can recruit more free agents,” he said. “Our fanbase has changed as millennials have come along, and we compete with people watching on television. This will create an environment they can enjoy every day.”

Rangers manager Jeff Banister also discussed his feelings about the result with MLB.com, choosing to highlight the strong connection between the team and the community.

“It’s incredible,” Banister said. “A lot of hard work has been done by a lot of people who believe in the Texas Rangers and want to keep baseball in Arlington. I’m happy for all of those people, their hard work has paid off.”

The Save Our Stadium project had attempted to get voters to vote no on the proposition by questioning financial studies about the issue. The group argued the team’s current stadium, Globe Life Park, was recently paid off and had been built to last a century after opening in 1994.

“Asking Arlington residents with a median income of $52,000 a year to fork over their money to millionaires and billionaires so that they do not have to pay for their own stadium is just wrong,” a statement on its website read.

Nevertheless, voters moved forward with the plan anyway. Results from the Dallas Morning News showed 60 percent voted for the project with all precincts reporting, granting the approval of the project by more than 23,000 votes.

                                               

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Buster Posey Adds Final Missing Piece to MLB Legacy with Gold Glove Award

Buster Posey didn’t need to pad his resume.

At age 29, the San Francisco Giants catcher has already won a Rookie of the Year trophy, a batting title, three Silver Sluggers, a National League MVP and three championship rings.

For even the all-time greats, that’s a career and change.

On Tuesday, however, Posey gilded the lily, winning his first Gold Glove award, per MLB.com’s Doug Miller.

Posey beat out St. Louis Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina, who had won the prize for the past eight seasons and become the Baby Gerald to Posey’s Maggie Simpson. 

That’s not to suggest Molina was undeserving. During his impressive Gold Glove streak from 2008 to 2015, he was the best defensive catcher in baseball, per FanGraphs

Posey, however, was a better backstop than Molina between 2015 and 2016 by FanGraphs’ metric, and was a better pitch framer in 2014, 2015 and 2016, per StatCorner

In 2016, StatCorner had him as the best pitch framer in baseball. He also gunned down a stout 37 percent of would-be base stealers. 

Defense is something that I’ve always taken pride in,” Posey said, per Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News. “It was a bigger focal point as a kid with my coaches and my dad, so as a kid, I paid attention to the Gold Glove award as much as any. So it’s pretty cool to be recognized in this way with this honor.”

On Oct. 27, Baggarly threw his weight behind Posey with a hefty Molina caveat:

The point, again, isn’t to take away from Molina. But Posey has been hovering around the edges of a Gold Glove for a few seasons at least. It was the last feather missing from his cap.

The fact he won it along with fellow Giants Brandon Crawford (shortstop) and Joe Panik (second base) ratchets up the Bay Area’s pride.

“I think it was the one award that he hadn’t won yet,” Crawford said of Posey, per Alex Pavlovic of CSN Bay Area. 

Posey has been such an indelible part of the MLB landscape since he burst on the scene in 2010; it feels as though he’s been with us forever.

More than anything, the cherub-faced Florida State alum has packed a career’s worth of highs (and lows) into a scant seven seasons.

He won NL ROY and a title in 2010, busting the Giants’ 56-year championship drought and bringing the first Commissioner’s Trophy home to San Francisco.

In 2011, his ankle exploded in an ugly home plate collision with the Marlins‘ Scott Cousins, and the Giants missed the playoffs.

In 2012, he won the batting crown with a .336 average and hoisted a second trophy.

Then, in 2014, he reeled in a third ring and top-10 MVP finish.

That’s a lifetime of peaks, valleys and confetti. Or, to put it another way: Every World Series in San Francisco history has been won with Buster Posey on the roster.

Granted, in 2016 Posey posted a good-not-great .288/.362/.434 slash line with 14 home runs as the Giants were bounced in the division series. It’s possible he’ll need to get out from the squat before long to save his legs and prolong his productivity. 

First base is the most logical landing spot, which could mean shifting Brandon Belt to the outfield and various other machinations.

The Giants will consider it all at some point. Posey is a cornerstone at AT&T Park, inked at least through 2021 and embedded into the team’s recent even-year lore. 

For now, we pause to consider the legacy of a ludicrously decorated player who’s still on the right side of 30 and plays a premium position perennially lacking in star wattage.

In April, Grant Brisbee of McCovey Chronicles parsed Posey’s Hall of Fame candidacy and concluded, correctly, that he’s not quite there.

This Gold Glove doesn’t earn him a bust in Cooperstown. It pads his resume, however. That much we know.

On a night when America made a consequential, divisive decision, let’s focus on one we can all get behind: Buster Posey is an awesome catcher.

Now, he has the hardware to prove it.

 

All statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com unless otherwise noted.

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Gleyber Torres’ Fall Breakout Shows Yankees Their Superstar of the Future

Nolan Arenado caught scouts’ eyes in the Arizona Fall League when he was 20 years old. So did Derek Jeter, Corey Seager and Francisco Lindor.

Gleyber Torres is 19.

“He’s playing against older guys,” Carl Moesche of the Major League Scouting Bureau said in an interview on Saturday on MLB Network. “And he’s not intimidated.”

Torres is the youngest player in baseball’s well-respected fall development league. As of Monday, his 1.026 OPS ranked third-highest in the league. In 12 games, he had more than twice as many walks (11) as strikeouts (five), with three home runs.

“The bat’s going to play,” a National League scout said.

As dangerous as it is to declare prospects to be future superstars, the current trend has young players starring earlier than ever. Five of the nine players in the Chicago Cubs‘ World Series Game 7 lineup were 24 or younger, and the Cleveland Indians‘ best hitter through the postseason was the 22-year-old Lindor.

It’s enough to persuade every other team searching for young stars of its own, just as the New York Yankees did when they demanded Torres as the key part of the July 25 deal that sent Aroldis Chapman to the Cubs.

As Yankees general manager Brian Cashman told George A. King III of the New York Post, Torres is “someone you can dream on.”

And as the Cubs were realizing a dream by winning a World Series with Chapman’s help, Torres was in Arizona, continuing to justify Cashman‘s faith. The Cubs have no reason to regret giving him up, not with a trophy to show for it, but the Yankees have even more reason to believe their side of the deal will play out well, too.

“I saw [Torres] in [Class-A] Tampa and in Arizona,” another National League scout said. “He’s going to hit in the 2-hole or 5-hole, and he’s good defensively, too. Very instinctive. I like him a lot.”

The Arizona Fall League is about dreams, and it’s never a perfect indicator of future success. Kris Bryant was an Arizona Fall League MVP (2013 at age 21), but so was Chris McGuiness, now out of baseball after 10 major league games.

And while Torres has been impressive at the plate, he also has three errors and has at least one scout concerned that he won’t be able to stick at shortstop.

“Defensively, he’s just OK,” the scout said. “He has good arm strength, but he’s erratic. He could end up moving to second base or maybe even third. He’s not terrible defensively, but he’s not [Yankees shortstop] Didi Gregorius.”

The same scout said Torres doesn’t run as well as you might expect, but even after the critiques, he went back to how good of a hitter he expects Torres to be.

“The one thing he can really do is hit,” the scout said. “He centers the ball, and he drives it.”

Gregorius is just 26 years old, and the Yankees have another young and touted middle infield prospect in 21-year-old Jorge Mateo. It’s too early to know if Torres will remain at shortstop and become the Yankees’ answer to Lindor or Seager or Carlos Correa, but his skills with the bat should enable him to be a key part of their future lineup.

Torres’ offensive numbers so far in Arizona are impressive because of his age and relative lack of experience. His third home run was against Chris Ellis, a 24-year-old Atlanta Braves right-hander who spent most of the 2016 season in Double-A.

One scout who goes to Arizona every fall said the pitching was significantly better in the league this year.

Torres, who signed with the Cubs for $1.7 million at age 16, according to Jesse Sanchez of MLB.com (via colleague Adam Berry), is accustomed to facing older players. The Cubs moved him to High-A Myrtle Beach at the end of the 2015 season and started him there again in 2016. He was one of the youngest players in the Florida State League when the Yankees sent him to Tampa after the trade.

“Mature bat for a young kid,” a scout said.

“Just keep him challenged,” another said.

The challenge for the Yankees will be sticking to their plan of developing a strong, young core, even if it takes longer than they would like. Scouts in Arizona have also been impressed by Miguel Andujar, a 21-year-old third baseman who is one of Torres’ teammates at Scottsdale.

“He has great wrist action and big power,” one scout said. “I think he can be their everyday third baseman by 2018.”

If Torres and Andujar move quickly from the fall league to the Bronx, they’ll only be following a path Jeter laid two decades ago and one Gary Sanchez followed much more recently. Sanchez played in last year’s Fall Stars Game and led the league in home runs before quickly becoming a hit himself when the Yankees called him up in August.

Sanchez turns 24 on December 2, which makes him young by major league standards but almost exactly four years older than Torres, who will turn 20 on December 13.

By season’s end, Sanchez was the Yankees’ best player. Perhaps he will be for years to come.

Or maybe it will be the young shortstop, the kid already starring in the fall league before he even turns 20.

       

Danny Knobler covers Major League Baseball as a national columnist for Bleacher Report.

Follow Danny on Twitter and talk baseball.

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