Baseball Balance Sheet

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

Padres Rumors: San Diego to Conduct Fire Sale

The San Diego Padres ownership yesterday fired their general manager, Josh Byrnes, yesterday and might be looking to continue their summer house cleaning.

According to Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe, "As for other hitters, start with San Diego, which would like to conduct a fire sale, with Carlos Quentin and/or Seth Smith sought after." "Chris Denorfia is another Padres outfielder who could change teams."

Yankees Rumors: NY Expects to Make Trade

As always, the Yankees are looking to makes trades before the July 31st deadline. Even the casual baseball fan wouldn’t be shocked by this. David Lennon of Newsday.com reported on June 18th that Yankees general manager Brian Cashman expects to make a trade in the next few weeks. Cashman said, " We usually make moves every year, so I expect to make moves again."

Blue Jays Rumors: Toronto Looking for an Infielder

The Blue Jays are in the market for an infielder. On June 18th, Ben Nicholson-Smith of SportsNet.ca reported that the Toronto Blue Jays would like to add an everyday infielder between now and July 31.

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“We’ve absolutely had some dialogue about some position players that could come in and be an improvement or an upgrade over what we have now,” Alex Anthopoulos, GM and Senior VP of Baseball Operations, said.

The Blue Jays have a record of 41-33 and are barely holding on to a 1 1/2 game lead in the American League East. After just being swept by the Yankees, the ball club could definitely use an infusion of stability at second base. In my feature article yesterday at sportsrumoralert.com, I offered a list of four infielders that I believe are ripe for the taking.

The opening day payroll for Toronto was a tick above $137 million with only about $4 million allocated to the position of second base. After only 11 games,Maicer Izturis went down with a tear of his lateral collateral ligament in his left knee. Currently, the Blue Jays are relying on the platoon situation between Munenori Kawasaki and Steven Tolleson . Unfortunately, their offensive totals are anemic. With combined splits of (.219/.274/.386), 10 extra base hits, eight RBIs, and eight runs scored, the team is definitely in need of a change.

The boys from Canada have not had the opportunity to partake in a “Fall Classic” since 1993.

Last month, Peter Gammons quoted the GM: “We are pretty much maxed out in terms of payroll, but more important, we cannot keep trading our young pitchers”.

The question now: are the Blue Jays ready to become contenders or stay pretenders?

Mets Rumors: David Wright Doesn't Want to be Traded

New York Mets third baseman David Wright does not want to be traded, according to Kevin Kiernan of nypost.com: "Wright told The Post he wants no part of being traded." "I knew that when I signed my extension, I knew that things were not going to be easy...(I am) still 100 percent committed to the Mets," Wright said.

Astros Rumors: Houston, Jason Castro Talking Extension

By Vincent Scotto on 4:45 PM

Astros catcher Jason Castro will serve as their player representative to the union but has not discussed details of his own contract status. Evan Drellich from Ultimate Astros reported on June 4th that Castro has engaged in preliminary talks with the Astros on a long term deal. Castro said, "It's something you try not to think about obviously during the season, but you know, I would love to be part of the Astros moving forward."

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Castro was selected to his first All-Star Game in 2013 and posted a respectable 4.3 WAR. Over the last four seasons, the 27-year old left-handed hitting catcher has averaged 135 hits, 69 runs, 60 RBIs, 33 doubles, and 16 home runs. His .993 fielding % and .738 OPS compares favorably with Yadier Molina (.994 fielding % and .744 OPS). Castro was drafted 10th overall out of Stanford in 2008 and recently avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one year deal in 2014 for $2.45 million.

If you're a savvy baseball fan, you're probably taking note on what's going on in Houston. Jeffrey Luhnow, GM of the Houston Astros, has brought a more analytic business approach to signing players. Locking in young talent to long-term deals and postponing free agency seems to be the wave of the future. As a recipe for championship success, smart teams look to be strong up the middle: pitcher, catcher, shortstop, and center fielder. Jason Castro is part of that plan, provided the Astros can sign him to a long-term deal and avoid his pending free agency in 2017. This is even more important when you consider the young Astros arms that are being developed within the system.

Phillies Rumors: Philadelphia Making it Known that Anyone on Their Roster is for Sale

By Vincent Scotto on 10:30 PM

Nick Cafardo of bostonglobe.com reported on June 7th that the Phillies have made it known that anyone on their roster is for sale.

A fire sale this early in the season may be premature considering the club has played only 61 games this season with a record of 25-36. Even though the Phillies are in last place and seven games out of first place, anything can happen. Is there something under the surface that hasn’t come to light yet or are the Phillies just looking to shed some excess contract weight?

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Even though the current 2014 payroll for the Philadelphia Phillies is approximately $178 million, the total salaries owed to the core 2008 World Championship players are approximately $400 million inclusive of options: Ryan Howard, $98 million,Cliff Lee, $77.5 million, ,Cole Hamels, $132.5 million, Chase Utley, $40 million,Jimmy Rollins, $22 millionCarlos Ruiz, $30 million. Additionally, free agentsA.J. Burnett, Jonathan Papelbon, andMarlon Byrd, are owed approximately $80 million over the next three years combined. The remaining members of the 25 man roster are all under one-year contracts with the exception of Miguel Gonzalez, ($12 million) for a total of approximately $40 million.

Just recently, the Sporting News ranked Ruben Amaro Jr., Phillies G.M. as the worst general manager in all of MLB. Amaro’s lack of sabermetric thinking coupled with an aging roster of stars might very well be the catalyst behind this rumor. Regardless, if the Phillies hope to rebuild their struggling franchise, they need to seriously consider available trade options. Sometimes in baseball, as in life, you have to let go of the past and embrace the future.

Thursday, June 5, 2014

DODGERS RUMORS: LA, HANLEY RAMIREZ NOT DISCUSSING EXTENSION - SPORTS RUMOR ALERT

By Vincent Scotto on 1:15 PM

Dodgers shortstop Hanley Ramirez has not talked to the club about a contract extension, reports Jon Morosi of FoxSports.com.

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Morosi noted that while Ramirez wasn't happy to be replaced defensively. When asked specifically about a July trade, Ramirez responded: "Who? Me? I'm not getting traded. I'm a winner, and here it's all about winning."

According to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com, Ramirez is asking for more than $130 million over six years to avoid free agency. Apparently, the Dodgers are not convinced that Ramirez is capable of staying healthy enough to handle the rigors of the shortstop position.

Let's compare Hanley Ramirez with one of the game's best all-around shortstops, Troy Tulowitzki.On that note, Ramirez has committed an average of fourteen errors per year for the last ten years (139 errors in 2570 attempts) compared to Troy Tulowitzki who has averaged seven per year (64 errors in 2868 attempts) over his nine year career.

However, Ramirez had the second best OBP in all of MLB for 2013 (based upon a minimum of 251 AB) at 1.040, only trailing Miguel Cabrera (1.078). If you compare Ramirez' 10-year career splits of (.300/.371/.504), at age 30 to Troy Tulowitzki's 9-year splits (298/.372/.518), at age 29, the offensive numbers are similar.

Tulowitzki signed a contract extension in late 2010 for approximately $158 million, with $118 million to be paid out over the next 6 years starting in 2015. In consideration of that fact, a long-term contract extension for Hanley Ramirez becomes more of a compelling argument.