Mega Extensions for Trout and Cabrera

These past few days two of the biggest players in the game signed extensions with their current teams. Mike Trout signed a 6 year $144.5 Million deal with the Angels which will carry him until his age 28 season, where he will likely get a deal worth $30 Million in average annual value. Miguel Cabrera signed an 8 year $244.5 Million deal with the Tigers.

The Trout deal is great for both the Angels and Mike Trout. The deal starts off slow with Trout making just $5.25 Million in 2015, $15.25 Million in 2016, $19.25 Million in 2017, then $33.25 Million the three years following. The best part of this contract for the Angels is the fact that Trout will only begin to earn the bulk of the contract when Josh Hamilton's deal ($25 Million average annual salary) is finished. The deal is great for Trout because if he hits the open market, he will be 29 years old. Whether the following contract is with the Angels or another team Trout is likely to get a contract of equal or greater average annual value if he continues how he is playing. Also with Trout being just 22 years old, the timing of this contact may cause Trout to be the richest baseball player of all time.

I do not agree with the Miguel Cabrera deal. Although he has been the most productive hitter in baseball the past three seasons, he is already 30 years old. Cabrera will play out the next two seasons earning $22 Million each season, then the deal will kick in starting 2016. Cabrera will only get older like anyone else, and his fielding will become progressively worse. Cabrera has never been an average fielder anywhere he played at any age. He made 25 errors in 2 seasons at third base, and his range is limited at first base. The second half of this contract is most likely going to be paying for Cabrera to be a designated hitter. I saw a picture on Facebook that Miguel Cabrera will be making $49,000 an at bat for the rest of his career, and the median annual salary in Michigan is $48,000. We all know baseball players are over paid, but when is enough? Is extending  Cabrera really worth the departure of both Fister and Fielder?

The Detroit Tigers

Miguel Cabrera 

The Tigers made way more subtractions than additions this off season which is why I rank them with the worst off season. They traded Prince Fielder for the definitely non equivalent Ian Kinsler and traded a legitimate pitcher in Doug Fister for practically nothing, The Tigers definitely will not win the American League Central in 2014.

The Tigers will have a very old and a very right handed heavy lineup in 2014, although the defense will improve with Miguel Cabrera moving back to first base. Rajai Davis will be joining the team in the outfield giving the team and exceptional amount of speed on the base pads. This is how the lineup for the Tigers may look in 2014.

1. R. Rajai Davis           LF 88 OPS+
2. R. Austin Jackson     CF 103 OPS+
3. R. Miguel Cabrera     1B 187 OPS+
4. S. Victor Martinez    DH 111 OPS+
5. R. Ian Kinsler           2B 105 OPS+
6. R. Torii Hunter          RF 114 OPS+
7. L. Alex Avila             C 87 OPS+
8. S. Steve Lombardozi 3B 69 OPS+
9. R. Jose Iglesias         SS 77 OPS+

Max Scherzer

The pitching rotation for the Tigers is still one of the best in baseball with Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer. Doug Fister is also no longer in the rotation which would have made it one of the best in baseball, but the Tigers want to save that money to extend Scherzer. Filling in the 5th spot in the rotation will probably be Drew Smiley, but here is how the rotation may look in 2014.

1. R. Justin Verlander   121 ERA+
2. R. Max Scherzer       145 ERA+
3. R. Anibal Sanchez     163 ERA+
4. R. Rick Porcello        97 ERA+
5. L. Drew Smiley        178 ERA+ in bullpen

The Tigers solved their closer problem by signing veteran closer Joe Nathan. They also added to their bullpen by adding Joba Chamberlain looking to rebuild his career and hard throwing Ian Krol acquired in the Fister deal. Lefty Phil Coke and young gun Bruce Rendon.

Trades, Free Agent Signings, Non Tneders, and More!

Yesterday was a very busy day in baseball as many players found new homes. Two trades went through yesterday and several players signed with new teams and re-signed with their same teams.

Jim Johnson

The biggest news was the trade between the Athletics and Orioles. Closer Jim Johnson has a 2.70 ERA over the past 3 seasons and has 101 saves over the past 2 seasons. Jemile  Weeks is the younger brother to Ricky Weeks, and has not found much success at the Major League level besides his rookie year. Weeks is set to compete for a spot at second base. These two players were exchanged for one another strait up. Johnson is going to replace closer Grant Balfour, and Johnson is projected to earn $10 Million or more in arbitration. The Orioles are trying to land a starting pitcher and by freeing up salary they may be on the verge of making a splash.

Doug Fister

The other big trade was between the Washington Nationals and the Detroit Tigers. The Nationals acquired starting pitcher Doug Fister who featured a respected 3.30ERA over the past 3 seasons and a 3.67 ERA in 2013. In exchange for Fister the Tigers pitching prospect Robbie Ray, infielder Steve Lomardozzi, and left handed reliever Ian Krol. Fister will be a definite improvement over Dan Haren who signed with the Dodgers as a free agent who featured a 3.97 ERA in the past 3 seasons and a 4.67 ERA in 2013. Fister will join a rotation with Stephan Strasburg, Gio Gonzalez, Jordan Zimmerman, and a 5th starter.

Also last night the Red Sox signed free agent catcher AJ Pierzynski to a 1 year deal with $8.25 Million guaranteed. Pierzynski played for the Texas Rangers in 2013 posting a .272/.297/.425 slashline with 17 home runs in 134 games. The Red Sox were preparing for the departure of Jarrod Saltalamacchia who  posted a .273/.338/.446 slashline with 14 home runs in 121 games.
It appears the Red Sox have taken a down grade at the catcher's position especially with Pierzynski's age.

Phil Hughes

Phil Hughes has a 4.54 career ERA, but a 95 career ERA+. The reason for having an ERA+ around average with a high ERA is the ballpark factor. Hughes has pitched most of his games in Yankee Stadium, one of the smallest ballparks in the league. Hughes signed a 3 year $24 Million deal with Minnesota Twins. The deal also includes bonuses up to $1 Million a year based on the amount of innings pitched. As Hughes moves to the spacious Target Field his ERA will drop dramatically. If his ERA+ is any indication of the type of pitcher he is, his ERA may drop to around 3.70.

After several successful seasons early in his career Scott Kazmir has fell of quite a bit. Its weird to think Kazmir will only be 30 in January, but he has been around around for 9 seasons. Kazmir hasn't found much success in recent years, but he signed a 2 year $22 Million deal with the Oakland Athletics. This deal is probably the reason why Brett Anderson is now available for trade.

The Blue Jays signed catcher Dioner Navarro to a 2 year $8 Million that will pay $3 Million in the first season and $5 Million in the second season. This move made JP Arencibia become non-tendered and become a free agent. Navarro played 89 games with the Chicago Cubs and posted a 132 OPS+ , very good for a catcher, and he is a defensive upgrade over Arencibia in my opinion.

Joe Nathan

Being announced a little more than an hour ago was the signing of closer Joe Nathan. Nathan signed a 2 year deal with the Detroit Tigers. The salary in the deal hasn't been made official yet, but this is a good deal for the Tigers. With the failures of Jose Valverde and the shakiness of the closer position last season, the Tigers needed a stud for the ninth inning. Nathan posted 2 stellar seasons with the Texas Rangers by collecting 80 saves with a 2.09 ERA.

On smaller notes, the Rays have traded for catcher Ryan Hannigan, the Giants re-signed starter Ryan Vogelsong to a 1 year $5 Million deal, the Mariners signed Willie Bloomquist, and the Rays re-signed  reliever Juan Oviedo.

Several players were non tendered yesterday as it was the non tender deadline. When a player gets non tendered it means that the team will not be tendering a contract to that player, because they believe they will be too expensive through arbitation, so the team allows them to become a free agent. Some of the important players that were non tendered yesterday are J.P. Arencibia, John Axford, Andrew Bailey, Ronald Belisario, Chris Coghlan, Chris Getz,Tommy Hanson, Jeremy Hefner, Daniel Hudson, Jayson Nix, Xavier Paul, Omar Quintanilla  Sandy Rosario, Ryan Webb, Jerome Williams, and Wesley Wright. These players are now allowed to sign with any team that offers them a contract. 

Cardinals Sign Peralta and Angels Sign Smith

The St. Louis Cardinals make the move of the day by signing free agent short stop Jhonny Peralta to a 4 year $53 Million deal. The Angels were the minor news by signing free agent reliever Joe Smith to a 3 year $15.75 Million deal.

How does Peralta look in a Cardinals uniform? 

The Cardinals were on a hunt to acquire a short stop this off season whether if be through trade of the free agent market. They finally made that move and got Jhonny Peralta. His name was misspelled on his birth certificate, but his parents decided to keep it, but Peralta made the mistake last season. Peralta was caught in the Biogenesis scandal along with several other players and received a 50 game suspension. Before the suspension Peralta had a .303 avg, .358 OBP, with 11 home runs and 55 RBIs in 107 games. The batting average and on base percentage are well above his career average, but his power numbers are below his career average even without the suspension. Peralta's career numbers are a .268 avg, .330 on base percentage with 17 home runs and 75 RBI per season. Peralta will be 32 next season and the Cardinals probably will not see power numbers like that anymore. The possibility for Peralta to consistently hit for average and get on base is also unlikely.

Peralta will slot in the number two hole behind Matt Carpenter and in front of Yadier Molina. In my opinion Peralta was not worth the money the Cardinals spent on him and will definitely be a problem for them in the second half of the contract.

Smith doing his thing

Joe Smith has found much success in the past few seasons. As generic as his name sounds, his stats are the opposite Smith has pitched 197 innings over the past 3 seasons and has put up a 2.42 ERA for the Cleveland Indians. He will be leaving the Bullpen Mafia in Cleveland and be joining the Halos as it seems they are interested in strengthening their bullpen. After acquiring Salas, keeping Frieri, and now signing Smith, the Angels are making their pitching priority obvious.

   

Tigers and Rangers Trade Fielder for Kinsler

This trade has  been the most surprising move of the off season so far. Two all star caliber players are swapping teams, everyone knew the Rangers wanted to trade Ian Kinsler to accommodate Jurickson Profar, but no one expected the Tigers to trade Prince Fielder.

How does he look in a Rangers jersey?

The trade was made official last night with Prince Fielder going to the Rangers with $30 Million and Ian Kinsler going to the Tigers with a possible pla
yer to be named later. Both Kinsler and Fielder had down years in 2013, but are expected to have bounce back seasons in 2014. Fielder had a .279 avg, .362 OBP, with 25 home runs, and 106 RBIs. While Kinsler had a .277 avg, .344 OBP , with 13 home runs, and 72 RBIs. Kinsler has battled injuries for a few years and is definitely not the player he was when he was in his 20s, and Fielder has been more than healthy his entire career and continues to hit well.

How does he look in a Tigers jersey? 

The Rangers obviously did this deal to add offense to their team and to open a spot for the young Profar who will be playing at league minimum. The Tigers are trying to free up salary to sign Max Scherzer to a long term deal and possibly sign another bat. The move will also allow Miguel Cabrera to move back to first base. The Rangers are expected to use the $30 Million in the deal to try to sign a free agent, perhaps an outfielder such as Carlos Beltran, Jacoby Ellsbury, or Shin-Soo Choo.

These two teams are definitely not done making additions to their teams, but as of now the Tigers' lineup seems a bit more bleak and the Rangers' lineup looks incredible. Observe the effects Prince Fielder had on Miguel Cabrera's stats in 2012 and 2013, you can expect the same thing to happen to Adrian Beltre in 2014 and for as long as Fielder and Beltre will man the 3-4 hole in Texas.

An additional note is Prince Fielder had a limited no trade clause in his contract with the Tigers, and the Rangers were in fact on that list. Fielder waived his no trade clause to complete the trade.

The 1-5 for both teams is pretty much set, but still very much subject to change. As we observed last night. Anything is possible in baseball.

Jackson                                        Andrus
Hunter                                          Profar
Cabrera                                        Fielder
Martinez                                       Beltre
Kinsler                                         Moreland

San Francisco Giants and Detroit Tigers

I will be evaluating teams in pairs or trios and I thought the first two should be the National League and American League champions respectively.

The San Francisco Giants put together their team of oddballs every year and they are usually underrated. A major factor of their winning formula is team chemistry. With the addition of Hunter Pence this past season that chemistry has sky rocketed. He was a major reason why they won the World Series.

Playing in one of the most beautiful and largest ballparks in baseball the Giants have one of the best pitching rotations in baseball. The key to their success has always been suppressing the other team. They can't win if they can't score.

Tim Lincecum had the most horrendous season of his career. With a 5.18 ERA in one of the largest ballparks his ERA+ was just 67. That is well below average. In the playoffs he was pushed into the bullpen and ended up being a difference maker. I expect that Lincecum and the Giants have worked this off season and will continue to work on fixing whatever the problem is. I expect Lincecum to have a bounce back season, but if he does not I expect the Giants to put him into the bullpen. The rest of the rotation looks as such:

R. Matt Cain: 2.79 ERA
L. Madison Bumgarner: 3.37 ERA
R. Ryan Vogelsong: 3.37 ERA
R. Tim Lincecum 5.18 ERA
L. Barry Zito: 4.15 ERA

The Giants' lineup was anchored by National League MVP, Buster Posey. Full of characters that the fans love the Giants' lineup is both productive and entertaining. I will be using OPS+ which is on base percentage plus slugging percentage fixed to compare the player to league average and the ballpark he plays in.

1. S. Angel Pagan 121 OPS+
2. R. Marco Scuttaro 99 OPS+
3. S. Pablo Sandoval 124 OPS+
4. R. Buster Posey 172 OPS+
5. R. Hunter Pence 103 OPS+
6. L. Brandon Belt 124 OPS+
7. L Gregor Blonco 95 OPS+
8. L. Brandon Crawford 85 OPS+

The bullpen for the Giants is held down by Sergio Romo, Santiago Cassilla, and Jeremy Afeldt. Brian Wilson may return to the Giants in 2013 if he is willing to take on a lesser salary.

I project 94 wins for the Giants in 2013

The Detroit Tigers became World Series favorites when they signed Prince Fielder last year, but now they are even stronger than before. They will get Victor Martinez back as their every day designated hitter, Torii Hunter as their right fielder, Omar Infante as their second baseman, and Anibal Sanchez as their number four starter.

The American League triple crown winner and MVP will man third base for the Tigers. Miguel Cabrera is a force to be reckoned with. Now he is in an even more protected lineup. The sky is the limit for the numbers he may put up. Here is how the Tigers lineup may look in 2013:

1. R. Austin Jackson 130 OPS+
2. R. Torii Hunter 132 OPS+
3. R. Miguel Cabrera 165 OPS+
4. L. Prince Fielder 152 OPS+
5. S. Victor Martinez  131 OPS+* 2011
6. R. Alex Avila 100 OPS+
7. R. Jhonny Peralta 85 OPS+
8. L. Brennan Boesch 77 OPS+
9. R. Omar Infante 93 OPS+

The Tigers are credited for having one of the best starting rotations in baseball. Some say it is the best, but I wouldn't go that far. I think it is top ten, but number one. Anchored by Justin Verlander it is as follows:

1. R. Justin Verlander 2.64 ERA
2. R. Rick Porcello 4.59 ERA
3. R. Max Scherzer 3.47 ERA
4. R. Anibal Sanchez 3.86 ERA
5. L. Drew Smyly 3.99 ERA

The pitching rotation is strong and for the most part young. These five guys can match any rotation in a five game series, but the bullpen is a bit messy. Jose Valverde seems to be departing Detroit to find a new home. He had a terrible season and the Tigers have faith in young pitching prospect Bruce Rondon. They think the flame throwing right hander can handle the ninth inning in the big league. Octavio Dotel, Phil Coke, and Joaquin Benoit hold down the late innings in Detroit and did a pretty good job with it 2012.

I project 93 wins in 2013 for the Tigers

A Long Way to Travel

Ichiro had a really far way to travel last night when he heard he was traded to New York. He had to make a very long trip to the other dugout. Ichiro was acquired by the Yankees in exchange for the two minor league pitchers DJ Mitchell and Danny Farquhar. Ichiro will bring an aspect that the Yankees haven't had this year; speed. The injury to Brett Gardner has left the bases basically motionless. Ichiro is batting just .261/.288/.352 this season, but his defense is a definite upgrade over Raul Ibanez and Andruw Jones.

Detroit and Miami completed a trade yesterday as well. Omar Infante and Anibal Sanchez are going to Detroit in exchange for Jacob Turner, Rob Brantly, and Brian Flynn. Infante will make a big difference for the Tigers, because their production from second base has been terrible this season. Infrante is hitting .287/.312/.442 this season. Sanchez will make the pitching rotation more stable after Verlander. Sanchez has a 3.94 ERA with 5 wins, but that is result of the Marlins offense.

A trade for Dempster was leaked yesterday before it was official. The rumors say that Dempster will go to Atlanta for young pitcher Randall Delgado. Dempster tweeted that he had not yet been traded, but it is very likely. Dempster will be huge addition to the Braves and keep them in competition with the Nationals.

Why Does Everything Happen On Friday?

The first thing to write about is Justin Verlander's dance with a no hitter. The Tigers supplied Verlander with a 6 run lead entering the top of the ninth. Verlander had just over 100 pitches and 12 strikeouts with 1 out into the 9th. Then a fate that happened to so many pitchers before a seeing eye single up the middle. Verlander finished the game with a complete game shutout 1 hit and 2 walks. It would have been his 3rd no hitter.

The second thing that happened on Friday was just dandy. Dandy Andy, Andy Pettitte looked like he was still in the early 2000s with his stellar performance on Friday. Pettitte pitched 8 shutout innings against the Cincinnati Reds. He struck out 9 and allowed only 4 hits and 1 walk. Pettitte's fastball was around 87-89 MPH, but it was his curveball and his cutter that looked just masterful. The Reds' hitters just couldn't hit it. The Yankees won 4-0

The Blue Jays beat up on the Mets on Friday night in a 14-5 victory in Toronto. JP Arencibia went 3-5 with 2 home runs, 6 RBI's and 3 runs scored. The Jays had their way with the Mets not only on offense but on pitching.  Ricky Romero pitched 6 innings allowing only 3 hits and 4 walks. He struck out 6.

Kerry Wood was a phenom in the late 90s and early 2000s, but in 2012 he retires from baseball. In his final game with the Cubs Kerry Wood did what he did best, struck out his batter. A 3 pitch strikeout to ride off into the sunset with must be nice. You have to wonder what would the Cubs be like if Mark Prior and Kerry Wood would have stayed healthy, but anyway Wood takes his 4 200+ strikeout seasons home.

Another thing that has been occurring in the past few weeks was a heat up from Albert Pujols. Pujols has a few home runs now, but still isn't his MVP self. He is scoring runs and collecting RBI's and the Angels are winning ballgames. It looks like Pujols may be arriving soon.

Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting

What a busy Saturday April 21, 2012. A perfect game, a 9-0 comeback win, a double header between two powerful teams, and several great pitching performances.

Lets start off with The Humber Games. The 21st perfect game in MLB history goes to the 29 year old Phillip Humber. Collecting 9 strikeouts against The Seattle Mariners Humber enters baseball history as another pitcher to complete baseball immortality. A very exciting game for baseball fans all over the country and congratulations to Phillip Humber.

The next thing to talk about is the greatest rivalry in sports history. The Yankees beat the Red Sox in the first game of a 3 game set 6-2. In game 2 of the weekend series The Red Sox looked dominant through the first 6 innings. Starter Felix Doubront pitched 6 innings and gave up just 1 run, a solo home run to Mark Teixeira. Doubront was taken out after the 6th inning with a 9-1 lead. The problem for The Red Sox this season has been the bullpen and yes they did not perform well. A grand slam and a 2 run double for Nick Swisher and a 3 run homer and a 2 run double for Teixeira lead The Yankees to  an momentous 15-9 victory over The Red Sox.

A double header between The Tigers and The Rangers took place on Saturday as well. In the first game Rick Porcello got rocked pitching only 1 inning while giving up 8 runs. The Rangers got an easy victory in that game. In the night game Justin Verlander took the hill for The Tigers and Neftali Feliz took the hill for The Rangers. Feliz went 8 innings giving up 3 runs and Verlander went 6 innings giving up only 1 unearned run. The two teams split the double header.

AJ Burnett made his first start of the season after recovering from an injury in spring training. He pitched 7 shutout innings against The Cardinals. He was acommponied by Justin Verlander, Stephan Strasburg, Clayton Kershaw and Phillip Humber as starters to not allow a run on Saturday.





What will Sunday hold?

The Cleveland Indians

The Cleveland Indians are going to have some trouble trying to keep up with The Detroit Tigers in the American League Central. Although The Tigers appear to have already locked up the division title The Indians may have a chance of competing.

Just recently we found out that the pitcher Fausto Carmona is three years older than he claims and has a different name. Maybe if the Indians can take his inconsistent pitching and his seven million dollar contract off the team, it will free up room for a better player.

The Indians have a pretty decent pitching staff, above average if you will say. During the 2011 season they traded for Ubaldo Jimenez. Although he wasn't as good as The Indians expected he may have a bounce back season for 2012. Ubaldo will not put up the same numbers he did with the Rockies in 2010, but anything close to that will be a great advantage for The Indians. Lets not forget about the young pitcher Justin Masterson, who also proved he can pitched at the big league level. Masterson is 26 years old and posted a 3.21 ERA for the 2011 season. The Indians also have starting pitchers Josh Tomlin and Derek Lowe. Lowe will be 39 in 2012. Although he can pitch close to 200 innings a year, his ERA has been elevated over the past few seasons. As for Josh Tomlin, he is young and still has something to prove at the age of 26. He posted a 4.25 ERA over 165 innings in 2011.

The Indians have a decent offense that can provide a comfortable amount of runs for the pitcher. When Shin Soo Choo, Grady Sizemore, Travis Hafner, Asdrubal Cabrera, and Carlos Santana are healthy The Indians have a powerful offense. If they can add one more bat to their lineup The Tigers may have something to worry about.