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January 12, 2012

On Ryan Madson: Parsing Boras’ comments

Philadelphia general manager Ruben Amaro, Jr. and super-agent Scott Boras are having a skirmish of words regarding the Phillies' non-signing of closer Ryan Madson. Boras seems to be saying the Phillies reneged on their offer of $44 million over four years, while Amaro says, "there never was an agreement."

Obviously, since Madson is now a Cincinnati Red, Amaro is correct that there never was an agreement—at least not one so formal that it led to a signed contract. However, there may have been a verbal agreement, a handshake deal, a nod-and-wink, nudge-nudge, say-no-more pact that simply needed to be put to paper and submitted to Major League Baseball's offices for confirmation.

Or there may not have been. If we read exactly what Boras said, it becomes clear that he did not say that he and the Phillies had agreed to a four-year, $44 million contract.

Boras first stated, "We never rejected any offer from Philadelphia at four years and $44 million. We advised Philadelphia that we would agree to such a proposal." He followed that comment up with, "We agreed to a four-year, $44 million offer, and Philadelphia decided to sign someone else."

Let's take a look at the first sentence. While he and Madson never rejected the contract in dispute, Boras didn't say the Phillies made such an offer. You can't reject an offer that isn't made, so Boras may not be lying. Also, "never rejected" is not the same as "accepted."

His second sentence says they would have taken such a deal. Hey, so would I, but no one made me such an offer and, again, maybe the Phillies didn't make one to Boras for Madson's services.

The last sentence uses "we" vaguely. Which "we" agreed to the four-year, $44 million contract he mentions? It could be that "we" is Boras and Madson. Perhaps those two men decided between themselves that such an offer would be acceptable. Good for them, but if the Phillies never tendered such a deal, there was nothing for Boras to accept.

Scott Boras obviously is a phenomenally successful agent. He has made his clients billions of dollars and himself a nice cut of those salaries. He produces gold-lettered, platinum-laced, diamond-encrusted binders to demonstrate how clients such as Alex Rodriguez and Prince Fielder are the greatest athletes in the history of the universe and should be paid like minor deities. Boras does his job extraordinarily well.

But his success does not come from blunt directness. It comes from deception, obfuscation and borderline flat-out lying. Boras knows where that borderline is, and he has no fear of going up to it and nudging his toes right up against that line. It's what he gets paid so well to do.
Posted by: Greg Simons

October 27, 2011

Farrell situation a win-win for the Blue Jays

With much talk in the last three days regarding the possibility of John Farrell moving from the Toronto Blue Jays to the Boston Red Sox, the issue of Farrell's situation with the Jays seems to have slanted altogether.

If I recall, it was only a matter of weeks ago that there was a sect of Blue Jays fans and pundits that didn't seem to care much for Farrell's status with the team, even going as far as suggesting that the Jays should hire the recently unemployed Terry Francona to manage the team and in turn demote Farrell to pitching coach.

Now that there are rumors of the inverse occurring and Farrell perhaps moving over to the Red Sox, these same people are up in arms, ruing the potential loss of one of the game's bright young managers. The Blue Jays announced forcefully that they will not let an employee under contract to break it for a lateral move to another team. Farrell just completed the first year of a three-year contract.

Well, which is it? Does it really matter if Farrell takes off to the Sox? My inclination is to say no, absolutely not.
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Posted by: Chris Lund

September 16, 2011

Revisiting the Napoli-Wells three-way trade

After Rangers catcher/first baseman Mike Napoli collected two more hits to raise his average to .312, it brought me back to what turned out to be a relatively lopsided three-way trade.

The original purpose of the deal was for Toronto to get rid of Vernon Wells' contract, sending him to the Angels for Napoli and Juan Rivera, who was later designated for assignment and shipped to the Dodgers. With J.P. Arencibia seen as their future at catcher, the Blue Jays sent Napoli to the Rangers for Frank Francisco, who turned out to be the Jays' closer for a decent stretch this season.

I thought it would be a good idea to revisit the players in this trade, which was really two separate deals, with a nifty comparison graphic.

 
	                PA	 Slash Line	HR	RBI	 R	 WAR	   
Mike Napoli, Rangers	392	.312/.411/.613	26	67	67	 5.0	   
Vernon Wells, Angels	478	.218/.251/.399	21	56	56	-0.3	   
Juan Rivera, TOR/LAD	473	.260/.321/.381	9	62	40	 0.7	 

 
                              Innings 	Record/ERA/SV   WHIP    K/9	WAR	   
Frank Francisco, Blue Jays	47.2	1-4, 3.78, 15	1.36	9.44	0.7		 

Despite Wells having $86 million left on his contract at the time of the trade and Anaheim being left to start a light-hitting, defensive-minded catcher in Jeff Mathis, the Angels decided it would be best to acquire Wells and deal the power-hitting Napoli, coming off a 26-home run season, to the Blue Jays. Having led baseball in team home runs the season before, it was understandable that Toronto would trade Napoli to Texas for some relief help.

But the clear, obvious winners in the trade were the Rangers. Napoli has given them yet another power-hitting addition to their scary-potent offense, while Wells has proven that he will be a past-his-prime toxic contract for the Angels for years to come. Who would have thought that trading Napoli to Toronto would have drastically changed the landscape of the AL West race?
Posted by: Shlomo Sprung

August 23, 2011

The Rockies claim Wandy

After failing to deal Wandy Rodriguez during the trade deadline, the Astros decided to put their 32-year-old left hander on waivers to see what kind of last-minute deal could be struck. The Rockies pulled his name, and now the two sides have 48 hours to come to an agreement.

The Rockies made a big splash by trading Ubaldo Jimenez in the much-discussed deadline deal last month. The team is looking to test its crop of young pitchers in 2012 but is expected to be in the market for an established starter this coming offseason.

If they acquire Rodriguez, the 2012 Rockies rotation would include two left handers in him and Jorge de la Rosa along with Jhoulys Chacin and Juan Nicasio. Colorado still has enough talent to be formidable next season, but the pitching staff will have question marks as de la Rosa and Nicasio return from serious injuries.

Rodriguez will not add a lot of payroll next season as he is due $10 million in 2012 and $13 million in 2013. His contract was scheduled to have a club option attached for another $13 million, but if he is traded it becomes a player option.

Rodriguez doesn’t give up a high frequency of fly balls, with an average around 35 percent, and should be a good fit with the Rockies in that category. This season he has been plagued by a poor defense in Houston that has registered a -5.0 team UZR/150 as well as a DRS of -32.

In comparison, the Rockies have performed substantially better, with a team UZR/150 of -0.9 and a DRS of 19. Next season, the Rockies are expected to have new additions at the corners as the team isn’t expected to pick up Todd Helton’s $23 million club option.

During this trade season, Astros GM Ed Wade has been busy. Both the Red Sox and Yankees were interested in acquiring Rodriguez, but a price was never close to being reached. The Astros will be looking to add more prospects, and with Rodriguez’s contract still considered “team friendly,” one should expect a few high-profile names to be mentioned.
Posted by: Vince Caramela

July 31, 2011

Breaking down the trade deadline

NL East

Michael Bourn to the Atlanta Braves: The Braves get a much-needed center fielder and a bat at the top of the order. Bourn is benefitting from a higher-than-average BABIP but, overall, his defensive metrics have been above average, and he should be a solid leadoff bat for the Braves through next season.

Hunter Pence to the Philadelphia Phillies: What I most like about this trade is that the Phillies were able to get a right-handed bat/outfielder under the age of the 30 and not trade Domonic Brown in the process. I like that the Phillies are loading up for a playoff run while also focusing on the 2012 season. I always felt that maybe the Phillies should have made a move for Carlos Quentin (in terms of offering the same trade package), but this is a trade that could benefit both sides.

NL Central

Derrek Lee to the Pittsburgh Pirates: I like the moves the Pirates made from a business standpoint. I’m sure the Pirates realize the odds are stacked against them this season, but the move to acquire Lee—as well as Ryan Ludwick—should benefit a team in need of some right-handed power as well as keep the Pirates fans excited as they move forward for the remainder of the season.

Jerry Hairston and Felipe Lopez to the Milwaukee Brewers: With a team that is completely dependent on keeping their stars healthy, these trades are minor, since they couldn’t offer the same packages for players like Bourn, Ludwick and Orlando Cabrera. The Brewers should have been aggressive in pursuing options like a Clint Barmes or Kosuke Fukudome since they wouldn’t have been too expensive, but being in the same division with sellers like the Cubs and Astros may have been difficult.

Edwin Jackson, Octavio Dotel, Marc Rzepczynski, Corey Patterson, Rafael Furcal to the St. Louis Cardinals: This was probably instrumental in taking the air out of a possible Heath Bell trade since Dotel and Rzepczynski should shore up their bullpen, but a haul like this for Colby Rasmus could come back to haunt them in the future.

NL West

Carlos Beltran, Orlando Cabrera to the San Francisco Giants: Obviously, Beltran should benefit the Giants as their much-needed middle-of-the-order bat, but it’s tough to see him as anything more than a shiny 2011 rental. The prospects given for Beltran and Cabrera could prove costly (especially Zack Wheeler going to the Mets), and this could be another quiet feather in the cap of the Indians front office—especially if former Giants prospect Thomas Neal can get past this season’s shoulder injury and show some power for Cleveland as a future fourth outfielder.

Brad Ziegler, Jason Marquis to the Arizona Diamondbacks: Solid and safe acquisitions for the D'backs should be enough to keep the Arizona fan base excited until the Giants eventually pull away.

AL East

Mike Aviles, Erik Bedard to the Boston Red Sox: If Bedard remains healthy, I like this addition for the Red Sox, and I especially like this trade for the Seattle Mariners, since it allows them to flip a half-season of Bedard for Los Angeles Dodgers prospect Trayvon Robinson in this last-minute deadline deal. Leave it to Ned Colletti and the Dodgers to trade off a high-profile, MLB-ready prospect at a time when they are clear sellers.

Colby Rasmus, Mark Teahen, Trever Miller, Brian Tallet to the Toronto Blue Jays: This is a trade that greatly benefits the Blue Jays in the 2012 season and beyond. Rasmus should develop into a franchise center fielder; the rest of the haul is mere roster clogs and will be handled accordingly.

AL Central

Ubaldo Jimenez , Kosuke Fukudome to the Cleveland Indians: The Jimenez trade is still a few years away from being properly judged,but I do like the idea of Cleveland inserting a pitcher with the potential to miss bats among its other control artists like Justin Masterson and Carlos Carrasco.

The other advantage for Cleveland is that Jimenez comes relatively cheap, and if he only performs as a mid-rotation pitcher through next season, then the money owed won’t be too burdensome and won’t handcuff them in the future. Fukudome gives the Indians a good insurance plan until other options like Shin-Soo Choo and Grady Sizemore return from injuries.

Jason Frasor to the Chicago White Sox: Frasor doesn’t have the same bat-missing stuff he did last season, but he does add a bit more depth to a White Sox bullpen. Now, with that said, who cares? The White Sox should be expected to fall back as this race turns into a Tigers/Indians battle. Depending on their GM situation this offseason, the White Sox need to figure out pretty quick where they stand in 2012 and beyond and could benefit from some major roster reconstruction surgery.

Doug Fister, David Pauley to the Detroit Tigers: This is another trade I like because it gives the Tigers some depth without moving future Tigers starters like Jacob Turner and Andy Oliver. With Justin Verlander moving into elite status and Max Scherzer, Rick Porcello and Fister anchoring the rest of the rotation, the Tigers can be patient with their top pitching prospects, as they could have one of the better rotations in the AL Central going forward.

AL West

Mike Adams, Koji Uehara to the Texas Rangers: This trade should benefit the Rangers this season as they solidify their bullpen. The deal also will allow them to know who will be the team’s closer in 2012 as they revisit the "Neftali Feliz as starter" (for real) concept next spring.

These are ‘prospects’ who are likely to be MLB-ready

Chris Davis to the Baltimore Orioles: The best comp I see for Davis is Russell Branyan. Davis’ struggles against left-handed pitching are genuine, and this should put an anchor on his potential going forward. The Orioles now have a team full of high-strikeout guys on the wrong side of the roster, and this will need to change soon.

Brandon Allen to the Oakland A’s: After losing out on Lars Anderson in the negated Rich Harden deal with the Red Sox, the A’s finally receive a legitimate prospect to compete with Chris Carter at first base. Allen is MLB-ready, so he will be a bonus for a team badly in need of power.

Jordan Schafer to the Houston Astros: Schafer was a highly-touted prospect a few seasons back, but his inability to handle MLB pitching has put his abilities in doubt. He is still a capable defender, and if he can show improvement in handling off-speed pitching, he may be fine. At best, the Astros traded for a probable fourth outfielder.

*Major thanks to Brian Cartwright for gathering and organizing each transaction
Posted by: Vince Caramela


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