MLB '07: The Year in Review Awards

Since today is the final day of 2007, I've decided to mention the goods and bads of the year that was in baseball.

Most Improved Franchise: Chicago Cubs
It's amazing what happens when teams decide to spend money more freely (EX: Mets, Red Sox, and Tigers recently). The Cubs went from the laughing stock of the worst division in the NL, to the Champions of the highly improved, yet still; worst division in the NL. Still, they showed that if you're willing to spend big bucks to bring in guys like Alfonso Soriano and Ted Lilly, you could make a great improvement in a short period of time. Not to mention the contributions made by the Rich Hills and Ryan Theriots of the world.
Runner Up: KC Royals

Least Improved Franchise: Cincinnati Reds
Sure they recently made an "improvement" bringing in Dusty "Throw Prior and Wood Out There 'Til their arms fall off" Baker. And of course they picked up Josh Hamilton in the rule five draft... oh, forgot the traded him for, err.. well nobody of any significance (Edison Volquez [might be okay] and Daniel Herrera). Still, since their collapse late in '06, they have done little to improve. They didn't trade Dunn for anything useful (yet) and Bronson Arroyo has just gotten worse. Reds fans can only hope that Jay Bruce pans out, and soon.
Runners Up: Baltimore Orioles, Pittsburgh Pirates

Best Anti-Umpire Rant: Chipper Jones
He earned a lot of my respect with this one. I was hoping someday, somebody would stand up against the horrible umpires that roam the major league diamonds these days. Not only that, he didn't even apologize afterward. As a Met fan it is hard to say this... but here it goes, Chipper Jones is the most respectable player in the game today.
Runner Up: none

Steroid Face of the Year: Roger Clemens
Who would've though that the year that Bonds finally got indicted that he wouldn't be the biggest story of the year. He officially proved to me that the steroid era wasn't only good for baseball (it saved the game after the strike), it was also bad. Clemens might not be as hated a person as Bonds (except by Mike Piazza) but if this is true, at least Bonds didn't steal any rings with his steroid use.
Runners Up: Bonds, George Mitchell

Team with Brightest '08 and Beyond: KC Royals
Hear me right now: The Royals are a playoff team in '08. Mark my words, they will edge out the Tigers in the Central. They might not look as good on paper as the rest of their division, but they have the best bullpen in that division as well as a pair of future studs in Alex Gordon and Billy Butler. Also, I truly believe that Meche and Greinke will be the best 1,2 punch in that division next year. While it is a stretch, the Royals are, in my eyes the team to beat.
Runners Up: Tampa Bay Rays

New Ultimate Baseball!

As you can see I have a whole new look here at Ultimate Baseball. The reason for this is I received some feedback from people over at MLBTR (STLRedbirds) that the colors were a little vexing. So I made the colors a little more plain. Hope you like it.
Along with the artistic complaints my Joba Chamberlain Perspective gathered some complaints about me letting my bias toward the Yankees show a little too much. Unfortunately you can't see some of those comments because I accidentally deleted them (it seriously was an accident). While I'm a believer of any publicity being good publicity (as you can see by the increased number of people participating in the GM poll on the side) I will try harder in the future to hide my bias towards teams that displease me (maybe not the Phillies so much).

* Just as a heads up, their are only 4 days to vote on the best general manager poll. The winner's post will be put up some time next weekend. *

Prospect Perspective: Joba Chamberlain

A couple of weeks ago I walked into Models and saw something that made me sick to my stomach... A Joba Chamberlain jersey. Here in New York, they are selling the jersey of a player who hasn't proved anything other than the fact that he is afraid of bugs. I mean, they still aren't selling John Maine shirts here. Now, I know I sound a little biased, however, say you're a Yankee fan and you walked into Models and saw a Joe Smith jersey but couldn't find a Robinson Cano jersey. You'd be upset too, wouldn't you? So I've decided to discuss Joba Chamberlain in this addition of "Prospect Perspective."



Value: Yes Chamberlain had a great end of the season. He showed that he could be dominate. Which is the sole reason he has the type of value he has today. Maybe he will be a lights out pitcher some day (highly unlikely). However, there is no reason to have him off limits at what I believe to be his peek value. Still, he would be a more valuable trading chip than any other pitcher in baseball. Overall Value: A+

Ability: There are many people who believe Chamberlain is a bonafide ace. Those people belong locked up in an insane asylum. Sure, he dominated in the Majors; but, he dominated people who were burned out and really playing for nothing. I mean, what major contenders were there for the playoffs in the AL: Red Sox (had it wrapped up early), Indians (wrapped up fairly early), Angels (No other good team in their division), Yankees (played for them), Mariners (did anybody really consider them a contender), Tigers (faded rather early). So as you see, he faced people who were either trying to save their energy for the post season, or people who didn't care about the season. We'll see his true ability in April, but until then his ability is nowhere near A caliber. Overall ability: B

Future: Unlike his teammate, Phil Hughes, Joba's future is not too bright. He will not post an ERA under 4 as a starter unless he makes some real improvements. However, I do see him as an above-average reliever. If the Yankees kept him in the pen he could be a Jason Isringhaussen type closer. So, I'll give him two separate future ratings. Starter Future: B-; Reliever Future Rating: A-



Overall Prospect Rating: A- This rating would be a lot lower if it wasn't for his value. Part of being a good prospect is having a high trade value. However, come May, his value probably will take a bit of a plunder, and the Steinbrenners are too obstinate to put him in a package for Santana. If a package of Melky Cabrera, Joba Chamberlain, and a no-name prospect could get a Santana deal done, why not do it?

Prior: Ultimate Bargain

Who would've guessed when Mark Prior first came up that he would be non-tendered. I mean, if people had heard that Gil Meche would get 11 million per in '06 , with Prior reaching free agency in '07, he wouldn't get more than 5 million per. In fact, if you told them what the contracts were nowadays, people would've believed Prior could get 22-28 million per, over seven years. However, overuse by Dusty Baker and years of injury have cost Prior more money than most people can even fathom.
Still, even though he won't return until May, I believe he could still be worth close to 20 million. A change of scenery is clearly all he needs. I could honestly see him winning 8-10 games in the second half of this year. More astonishingly, I believe, barring injury, he is a legit candidate for 20 games and a Cy-Young Award in '09. So, as a word of advice to all GM's out there, don't spend your farm on a Johan Santana or Erik Bedard unless you're ready to contend this year (That means you Cincinnati Reds). Instead, focus on obtaining equal value for less than 5 million dollars. Consider it trading Johan Santana for your own farm system, Mark Prior, and a gargantuan amount of money!

Rumor Mill or Rumor Mull? Royals Trade Buckner for Callaspo

Earlier today, as the Royals sent 24-year-old pitching prospect, Billy Buckner, to Arizona for 24-year-old second baseman Alberto Callaspo. As usual, I will discuss the ups and downs for both teams.

1. Kansas City Royals: Buckner had some chances to show what he had in September. I personally was impressed by the way he pitched in his limited time. Buckner was one of the highest touted prospects in the Royals system last year. However, perhaps more importantly than losing Buckner, this opens up a trade of second baseman Mark Grudzielanek.
2. Arizona Diamondbacks: I don't quite understand this from the D'backs' end. Sure Buckner has potential, but Callaspo will be quite good himself. I could see Callasp as a 20HR .320AVG 80RBI 30SB type player, and potential gold glover. The D'Backs could've acquired more for Callaspo, in my opinion. Tim Dierkes points out Callaspo's arrest in May.

As usual, Dayton Moore gets away the victor here!

Is Lowry the Key?

Recent rumors have suggested that the Mets offered Lastings Milledge to the Giants for Noah Lowry. If the Mets were able to obtain Lowry, they'd have three goo arms about to enter their baseball primes (28-32), in Maine, Perez, and Lowry. Rick Peterson was the pitching coach for the dominating trio of Zito, Hudson, and Mulder. Could he get Maine, Perez, and Lowry to excel to that level. I believe so. Here are my predictions, barring injury, for that trio if Omar were to acquire Lowry:

1. John Maine: 19-7, 3.30 ERA, 200K's, 200IP. After having an above average season last year, even though he was hurt all year and it was his first full year, one can only imagine how he could do in a full, injury-free season this year.
2. Oliver Perez: 17-10, 3.45 ERA, 225 K's, 190IP. It seems Perez may finally have found adequate consistency. If he can keep that up for close to 200 innings, he could strike out nearly 250 this year. However, he does have some bad outings, so don't count on that.
3. Noah Lowry: 16-3, 3.75 ERA, 125K's, 170 IP. This kid has potential! While those numbers aren't dominating, they're still pretty good. This year would be more a year for him to improve on his K: BB rate, than anything else. In a few years though, he could win 20 games.

If I'm Omar, I'm trading a package of F-Mart and Humber/Mulvey for this kid. While it is highly unlikely, this tandem could have three 20 game winners in 2011 with Peterson's tutelage.

Rule V Draft: Mets Gain Two Pitchers With Upside

The Rule 5 draft was held earlier today and Omar Minaya was able to pluck two potentially important relievers:

1. First there's 24-year-old righty, Steve Register. Register was the 13th overall pick. He led the Double-A Texas league in saves with 37 for Tulsa.
2. Then they took 24-year-old righty, Gary Bakker. He had an ERA of 3.67 (despite a 2-7 record) for Class A Winston-Salem of the Carolina League last season.

In order to hold onto Register, the Mets have to keep him on their 25 man roster all year. So, basically, register is going to have to try to pitch his way off of the defending National League Champion, Rockies in Spring Training. This idea would be absurd if the Champs were any other team than the Rox, Nats, Bucks, or Giants. Then again, I guess it's better to play for a Major League team than an affiliate of a champion Major League team.

Winter Meetings: Breaking Down the Cabrera/Willis Trade

As most of you know already, last night the Tigers acquired Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis from the Marlins for Cameron Maybin, Andrew Miller, Mike Robello, and three decent minor league pitching prospects. This is the biggest trade in a long time, and could become the biggest trade since The Babe if all the players pan out.

Cameron Maybin could be the best hitter in baseball in 6 or 7 years. I believe he will be the next 40-40 guy in about ten years. He is the definition of a five tool player.

Andrew Miller was going to be the number one overall pick in the 2006 draft out of UNC, until he priced himself out of the Royals range. He fell to number six, where the Tigers gave him a nice signing bonus. He might end up better than Willis this year if Willis doesn't get his act together.

Mike Robelo is another great pickup. The Marlins got the young catcher they were looking for!

This could be the Marlins lineup in a few years:
1. Hanley Ramirez, SS
2. Jeremy Hermida, RF
3. Cameron Maybin, CF
4. Dan Uggla, 2B
5. Mike Jacobs, 1B
6. Mike Robelo, C
7. Josh Willingham, LF
8. Alfredo Amezaga, 3B (they'll improve here I believe)
That could be an unbeatable lineup. If the Marlins would move out of that place now and make enough money to resign all of these players, they could establish a dynasty!

The only bad thing about this trade for baseball fans is that Dontrelle will no longer get to hit in the American League.

Heyman Agrees on Nady; I Add Twist

As I reported yesterday, Xavier Nady is available. Though, apparently, he will not be non-tendered. However, si.com's Jon Heyman agrees the Mets could pursue Nady for right field. As far as I could tell, I was the first to suggest this idea. So, three cheers for me! So, I'll have some fun and add a twist to my own proposal.
Maybe the Mets can put together a strong package and also look to acquire Pittsburgh ace, Ian Snell. Snell is my favorite pitcher in baseball, outside of New York. I believe a deal of Gomez, Mulvey, Muniz, and maybe even another, lower level, guy could do it. What do you think? Leave your own thoughts in the comments!

Winter Meetings Report: 1st Half of Day One

Seeing as I wasn't home all morning, I haven't been able to stay up to the minute with the meetings. So here are some of the highlights so far:

• The Diamondbacks send Carlos Quentin to the White Sox for Chris Carter.
• Erik Bedard doesn't want an extension, and is being shopped, with the Mets, Red Sox, Dodger, Mariners, and possibly the Yanks in the mix.
• Elijiah Dukes is possibly on the move to Washington.
• Andy Pettitte returns.
• As usually, Billy Beane's asking prices are insane.

I'm not as efficient at keeping up to the minute as most sites, so feel free to leave any rumors of note in the comments. I will only be covering major trades and Met/Yankee stuff during the meetings.

Winter Meetings Report: Predictions

With the Winter Meetings kicking off tomorrow, from Nashville, I've decided to cover the top 3 stories with my predictions as to what will happen:

1. Johan Santana: In an earlier post, I discussed the Angels, Yankees, and Red Sox as the main suitors for Johan. Over the last few days, the Yanks and Sox have been exchanging the lead in the Santana derby. However, the Yanks have seemingly made their best offer, and will look elsewhere if it is not good enough. Prediction: Santana to Boston
2. Miguel Cabrera: The Angels and Giants have been frustrated with the Marlins tactics in putting together a Cabrera deal. Even the Angels have more to offer, the Giants have a greater need with Bond's not coming back. In the end, I don't think the Marlins will be able to pull the trigger. Prediction: Cabrera stays in Florida
3. Andruw Jones: In my opinion, the best player to reach free agency this year (including pitchers), remains unsigned. With Scott Boras as his agent, asking only for a long term, high expense deal. The one GM I believe is smart enough to go after Andruw at this price, is Dayton Moore. He is very familiar with Jones from his days in the Atlanta scouting office. Prediction: Jones signs with Royals for six years 102 million with incentives up to 110 million.

X- MAN 2: X-Man Returns?

According to the Pittsburgh Post Gazette the Pirates will look to get rid of Xavier Nady, either by trading him, or non-tendering him. Apparently, the Pirates are unwilling to exceed the all important (sarcasm) 3 million dollar mark for Nady. On the open market Nady could net 4 years and 8-10 million. However, Scott Boras is his agent; therefore, he could net a five, or even six year deal (I believe) at about 12 million a year. So, the best bet to obtain Nady would be in a trade.
So I plead, Omar, part with a Phil Humber or a Kevin Mulvey, whatever it takes. Get Nady back. He and Church would platoon well in right. This would also make it easier to trade Gomez for a pitcher, seeing as you wouldn't need to keep a sixth outfielder (along with Alou, Nady, Church, Beltran, and Chavez). Church could spell Alou every once in a while and Nady could spell Delgado at first. It is the definition of a perfect fit!
Remember, giving up a pitching prospect for Nady is really like giving up a pitching prospect for Oliver Perez and Roberto Hernandez. You'll get the better end of the deal!

Melky Gone = Bernie Back?

I was just reading over at Mlbtraderumors.com that Joe Pawlikowski says Andruw Jones would be a better replacement than Aaron Rowand if Melky is traded(DUH!). However, I got to thinking about other scenarios. I came to a conclusion that should make all Yankee fans happy.

If Melky is traded, I believe that the Yankees should go after Bernie Williams as a part time outfielder. Then, they can sign Cuban-defector, Alexia Ramirez(apparently 26-years-of-age) to play with Bernie. Bernie could mentor Ramirez as he adjusts to the MLB. It's a perfect match, right? What do you think?

Winter Meetings Report: What's Missing?

It's that time of year again! The time where all the general managers in baseball gather to talk trades and pick up unwanted players in the Rule V draft. Although these are similar festivities every year (a lot of talk, some action{meetings at bottom part of page on link}), these meetings tend to feel a little different. For example, last year the big trade names in the pitching market were Brad Penny and Rich Harden. This year big names like Santana and Haren are ready to go! This year instead of the Mets losing a somewhat high upside pitcher for a young power arm, they lose an extremely high upside outfielder for... well, nothing much. However there are a few major aspects of the meetings we are missing as of now:

1. Manny Not Being Manny? Over the past years, it seems every year, Manny Ramirez asks for a trade. However, this year (so far) we've heard nothing of Manny. Has his second ring finally made him happy in Boston, or is even Manny tired of Manny being Manny?
   
2. No More Barry Lamar Bonds: One of the most hilarious parts of the meetings last year was when Barry Bonds, the self-centered, arrogant, soon to be home run king, showed up and begged Giants GM Brian Sabean for his job.(At least that's how I saw it). Sabean, not being the brightest man in the world, allowed Bonds to sign for one year 16 million. This year, Bonds will be spending the meetings fighting perjury charges. Who knows, he may still show up and beg for a job. Now that, that would be the most hilarious thing to ever happen in Major League Baseball history.


3. Has Boras Lost Control: Over the last several years, Agent Scott Boras has had a vice-grip on all of baseball. But it seems that since he was defeated in the Dice-K adventure last year, he's lost his touch (Other than the Zito steal). Then, this year, he was fired by Kenny Rodgers, who just signed with the Tigers, and was forgotten in the A-Rod mess. So, is Boras washed up or did he have a bad year. With free agents like Andruw Jones under his control this year, it will be interesting to see.

So when the meetings start next week, don't be shocked if you feel there's something missing. Just sit back, relax, and look out for the wonderful rumors as they unfold.

Prospect Perspective: Phil Hughes

It was decided last night that the Yankees are willing to include Phil Hughes in a package for Johan Santana. The package seems set at Hughes, Melky Cabrera, and another pitching prospect (Alan Horne?). So I'll be decided to discuss Hughes this morning.

Value: There's obviously no doubt that Hughes has tremendous value. If he didn't, the Yankees wouldn't be able to come close to pulling a deal off with just Cabrera and another pitcher alongside Hughes. You can't get much more valuable than a 21-year-old who has potential to be an all time great. Overall Value: A+

Ability: Hughes was gifted with tremendous ability as well. He has a fastball that sits in the mid 90's, with good movement; and, he can place it well too. He also can place his two-seamer well with good speed (low 90's). His best pitch is an amazing curve. He trows it in the mid to low 80's with excellent movement.
Hughes also possesses great presence and poise on the mound, and is extremely hard to rattle.
Overall ability: A+

Future: It's clear as day that Hughes will be a bonafide Ace in the next few years. Personally, I see him winning 250-300 games, whether for the Yanks or Twins. He will probably win at least one Cy-young. His average season should be about 16-5 3.25 ERA and 200 K's. It's extremely possible he'll be better than Santana in a few years. Overall Future: A+

Overall Prospect Rating: A+
Clearly, Hughes is the definition of a blue-chip prospect. However, if I were the Yankees I would refuse to trade him. Even with Santana, they might not be able to beat the Red Sox this year.