Kuzul

Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times has just reported that the Blue Jays could be close to signing catcher A.J. Pierzynski, formerly of the Chicago White Sox.  With the catching position not fully determined, the Jays seem to be looking for insurance behind the plate.  Chicago didn’t offer arbitration to Pierzynski, so the signing would not cost the Blue Jays a draft pick.

J.P. Arencibia didn’t get a lot of experience calling the game at the major league level last year, so he might not yet be ready, and Jose Molina is there as a back-up only.  

The durable 34-year old catcher fell off offensively somewhat this past year, as he batted .270/.300/.388 with nine homers in 503 plate appearances.  

Admittedly, Pierzynski seems like a strange choice for the Blue Jays.  The veteran is both an above average defender and batter, but he is known for his rather controversial (some would say abrasive) personality.  

The Blue Jays have a strong bond in their dugout, especially with their pitching staff, so it would make sense to question whether his style of play would meld with the personalities already present.  

With the young starters forming a strong bond this past season and excelling on the mound, it is important to have a catcher that can work with them and continue their development.  

Anthopoulos is no doubt aware of this and wants to take no chances on having someone dependable at catcher.  Pierzynski has been around a long time, and his experience in dealing with pitchers and calling games cannot be underestimated.

Update: A few hours after Cowley reported that Pierzynski was close to signing with the Blue Jays, Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports denied that was the case and instead said that the veteran catcher was close to signing a two year deal with the White Sox.

Whether the Jays were actually close to signing Pierzynski remains to be seen, but once again leaves the catcher position somewhat unstable.  There is a chance they could still offer a contract to Miguel Olivo, who they obtained from Colorado but didn’t offer arbitration to.  Or, the Blue Jays could stand pat with what they have, and see how Arencibia and Molina perform together in spring training.

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According to various reports, The Chicago White Sox have pulled off the tremendous coup of slugger Adam Dunn.  Sports Illustrated’s Jon Heyman reported earlier on his Twitter account that terms of the deal are said to be $56 million over four years.

As a member of the White Sox, Dunn’s long-ball ability should fit well U.S. Cellular Field.  In his last two seasons spent with the Washington Nationals, he 38 hit home runs in consecutive years at Nationals Park.  His new home in Chicago is considered to be a power hitter’s paradise and Dunn could well eclipse 50 long-balls in the upcoming 2011 season.

ESPN.com lists their “Ballpark Factors” home run index for every major league stadium since 2001.  For those who are unaware, the mathematical equation takes into account home runs hit by clubs at home and on the road to decide which ballpark is the most long-ball friendly.

U.S. Cellular field came out on top of the rankings in 2010 and since 2003 has been amongst the top five in all of baseball, according to the formula.  During Dunn’s two seasons in Washington, Nationals Park has placed 19th and 15th, respectively, from 2009 to 2010, making the stadium “middle of the road” at surrendering home runs.

Judging by the evidence presented, Dunn should have a significant surge in power numbers in 2011.  His signing makes perfect sense for the White Sox, who are yet to re-sign their previous foremost slugger in Paul Konerko. 

The first baseman who hit 39 home runs in 2010 is reportedly being chased by the Chicago Cubs, Baltimore Orioles, Texas Rangers and Boston Red Sox.  If the White Sox are unable to retain Konerko, Dunn would fill his absence in the lineup.

White Sox general manager Kenny Williams will do his best to keep Konerko on “The South Side” of Chicago.  Losing him to inter-city rivals in the Cubs or the American League playoff contending Red Sox or the defending AL champion Rangers would be a hard pill to swallow.

If Williams is able to hold on to the loyal Konerko, the White Sox would have a dominant pair of No. 3 and 4 hitters in their lineup and make a stronger push at making the playoffs in 2011.  Last year, the “Pale Hose” finished six games behind the division-winning Minnesota Twins and failed to meet the expectations that many baseball writers had of playoff berth.

With Dunn in the mix and the probable re-signing of Konerko, the White Sox will have an excellent chance at overtaking the Twins and clinching a postseason place in 2011.

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Sports Illustrated and ESPN are both reporting that Red Sox team captain Jason Varitek will return to the team for the 2011 season, agreeing to terms with the club on a one-year, $2 million deal that will contain an additional $300,000 in incentives, based on playing time.

Varitek, 39, had not been offered arbitration by the team prior to last week’s deadline, and reports hinted the Los Angeles Dodgers might be interested in luring him westward to serve as a part-time catcher.

This is the way this situation was supposed to resolve itself. It was impossible to imagine Varitek wearing another uniform for the last year, or two, of his career.

I had visions of Dwight Evans, who signed a one-year deal with the Baltimore Orioles when the Red Sox turned their back on him at the end of his career. “Dewey” spent an inglorious season in Baltimore, and regretted having spent that single season in a uniform other than his beloved Red Sox.

I imagined interviewing Varitek ten years from now, having him tell me that he regretted having gone to the Dodgers for one last (smallish) pay day.

Instead, Varitek will return to the Sox for his 15th season, backing up and mentoring new backstop Jarrod Saltalamacchia, who will replace C/1B Victor Martinez after he signed a free-agent contract with the Tigers last week.

But V-Mart’s departure cleared the way for V-Tek to return to Boston.

Saltalamacchia’s reaction to the news? “That’s great… (I’m) thrilled he’s coming back.”

So is Red Sox Nation, Jarrod!

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Throughout MLB history there have been countless examples of irresponsible overspending. With no salary cap, general managers are able to throw money around like they’re playing Monopoly, only I’m not that careless while playing a game.

This is the sport that saw Alex Rodriguez sign two contracts valued at over a quarter billion dollars. A sport where eight teams have nine-figure payrolls. A sport where one player can out-earn an entire team.

So in the history of this lucrative sport, what are the most baffling signings? Which undeserving players have benefited the greatest?

With free agency ongoing, we could be adding to this list shortly, but for now, I present the 10 most shocking signings in MLB history.

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No it’s not Jeter, Rivera or Pettitte and as far as I know Cliff Lee has never been a Yankee so who could it be?

As I type with complete and utter nausea, the player is Sergio Mitre.

No, this is not a joke, as the Yankees have signed Mitre for another year at $900,000 to bring his talents back to the Bronx.

What talents convinced the Yankees to make this decision?

Please, someone let me know ASAP.

This has skipper Joe Girardi’s name written all over it because we know he loves players from his Florida Marlins days in 2006.

Do you remember whose brilliant idea it was to pay Nick Johnson over bringing back the World Series MVP Hideki Matsui?

Well, it was Girardi as Johnson was on the 2004 Marlins too.

GM Brian Cashman and Hal Steinbrenner are doing a great job so far.

Signing Mitre totally solves all the problems on the mound because Mitre has been so good in the past.

Mitre has a career record of 13-29, with a 5.27 ERA over seven seasons. Stellar record, but he also is injured a lot and struggles in big jams on the mound.

Mitre gives Yankee fans shivers, the same way Kyle Farnsworth used too.

What’s next? Announcing that Mitre is going to play shortstop too?

Sorry, but this was one player I was hoping to not see in pinstripes ever again.

Well, I guess Mitre can just hog a roaster spot again for 2011.

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It has been a big week for the Colorado Rockies as they have extended Troy Tulowitzki through 2020 (for $157M, no less) and resigned free agent Jorge de la Rosa.  

It seems painfully obvious that staying in Denver is ideal for Tulo and not so much so for de la Rosa, but these are two players worth examining further heading into 2011.

Starting with Tulo, durability concerns are a big issue for the shortstop.  In four Major League seasons, Tulo has played over 150 games twice but fewer than 125 in the other two seasons. Torn quadriceps, lacerated palms and broken wrists have sidelined Tulo in his career. Whether that means he is injury prone or just unlucky—in that he has not had any recurring injuries—is debatable, but a concern for fantasy owners either way.  

However, shortstop is such a paper thin position that many will see Tulo as being worth the risk, and I am inclined to be one of those people.  With 162 game averages of .290 BA, 104 R, 99 RBI, 27 HR and 12 SB, you could certainly make the argument that if he remains healthy, Tulo could be the fantasy MVP in 2011 based on the woeful lack of depth at his position.

Tulo figures to be a borderline top 10 hitting option in next year’s fantasy drafts, so with Roy Halladay sure to fit somewhere into that mix it seems that Tulo will be an early second round, possibly late first round pick you can feel good about drafting.

As for de la Rosa….

Continue Reading>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

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According to MLB Trade Rumors the Mets are are pursuing starting pitcher Chris Young (formerly of the San Diego Padres).  The deal will in all likelihood be for one year, laden with incentives. The Mets are looking to add depth to a rotation which will not feature Johan Santana for a good chunk of the year.  Right now the Mets starting rotation features R.A. Dickey, Mike Pelfrey and Jon Niese.  

In the past, Chris Young has been a dominant pitcher posting an ERA under 4.00 from 2006-08.  His career, however, has been marred by injuries for the last three years.  Last year, Young pitched in only four games, and it is very unlikely that he will pitch more than 20 for the Mets.  Taking injury into account  this is still a great move for the Mets because they add another starting pitcher with limited funds that could win 10-15 games.  Adding Young to the Mets is a very low-risk high-reward deal which could alleviate the stress that will be put on Dickey, Pelfrey and Niese in the 2011 season.  This deal also shows that Alderson is willing to keep true to his word.  

Alderson has already said this offseason that he would not make any drastic changes to the Mets roster, which will shed over 40 million dollars by losing Oliver Perez, Carlos Beltran and Luis Castillo.  By not signing any large/bloated contracts this offseason, the Mets are looking to a future where this team is built through the draft and will be able to be a legitimate contender in the NL East for years to come.  Mets fans might have to sacrifice this season as another average year, but the future looks bright in Flushing.       

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The 2010 season went down as one where we saw a shift to a different era.

Gone is the steroid era, and pitching has made a return to prominence. A new crop of rookies looks to be historically good, and many sure-fire Hall of Famers seem to be wrapping up their careers.

Now the season is over, and the offseason hot stove has started in full force. Already one major trade has happened that few saw coming, with Dan Uggla moving to a different team in the same division, the Atlanta Braves. But that won’t be the only major deal that will happen.

Some things will be expected this offseason, while others will come out of nowhere. The following are 50 bold predictions of what will happen in the upcoming three months.

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Pretty much everyone knows about the two gems of this year’s free agency period, Cliff Lee and Carl Crawford. Even though the pool is relatively weak this year, there are other big names out there. One of the most notable is Phillies right fielder Jayson Werth.

Werth had a career year this past season, hitting .296 with 27 home runs, 85 RBI, and a league-high 46 doubles, en route to an eighth-place finish in MVP voting. As such, there are many that could use his bat in the lineup.

Which teams have the best chance to land him and who is the front runner?

Good chances: Giants, Angels, Phillies, Tigers, Red Sox

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In the digital age, rumors fly much quicker than they used to.  It literally takes only seconds to post a rumor online and create a huge buzz over basically nothing.  The same applies to Phillies free-agent  right fielder, Jayson Werth.  Early this morning, a talk-show radio host mentioned that the Phillies had offered Werth a contract and that it was good enough for him to possibly sign.  Should you give credence to this rumor?  The simple answer is “No.”

Black Friday came and went and no “sale” on outfielders was ever advertised.  Tomorrow is Cyber Monday. For those awaiting a holiday miracle and second-chance sale on Werth, put it out of your mind.  

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