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Mike Piazza a catcher who can't field, nor throw but kind of bat signs with... a National league team (Padres) for what amounts to a one year contract for 2.75 million (2 million this year with a 750 thousand buyout which will happen of course)
 
I think Molina only helps the Jays in terms of veteran leadership. Zaun had comparable numbers last year (with less protection) and was a good enough backstop.

I still think they challenge for the division title, and make the playoffs.
 
Yeah, both the signings are near the end of the last thread.

Let me give you newer people, to the thread, a warning, be prepared to read a lot of opinions about the Red Sox, as the appear to be the favorite team for 75% of the people posting regularly.
 
[quote name='depascal22']first[/QUOTE]

Good lord we really don't need that bullshit starting here do we?


And on subject.. as far as Toronto making the playoffs.. remember.. Boston, NY, Tampa Bay and Toronto all could contend (and will all play each other quite a bit).. in the central its basically just Chicago and Cleveland. That's going to make it alot tougher for the wild card team to come out of the East.
 
[quote name='Cornfedwb']Good lord we really don't need that bullshit starting here do we?


And on subject.. as far as Toronto making the playoffs.. remember.. Boston, NY, Tampa Bay and Toronto all could contend (and will all play each other quite a bit).. in the central its basically just Chicago and Cleveland. That's going to make it alot tougher for the wild card team to come out of the East.[/QUOTE]
I agree with everything you say except for that tampa will contend. I was telling my yank friends all last year, tampa is tough, you have to play good to beat them, but they will always crack. Did they do anything to get better this offseason. I know balldelli should be back and will imporve there offense, but wasn't it there pitching that sucked. Kashimir is good, and will be great but who else do they have?
 
[quote name='ryanbph']I agree with everything you say except for that tampa will contend. I was telling my yank friends all last year, tampa is tough, you have to play good to beat them, but they will always crack. Did they do anything to get better this offseason. I know balldelli should be back and will imporve there offense, but wasn't it there pitching that sucked. Kashimir is good, and will be great but who else do they have?[/QUOTE]

Tampa's probably the number 4 team, but they're still going to be harder to get wins against then say Minnesota, Detroit or Kansas City. And although I admit I haven't been watching Tampa's offseason action so well, I don't believe they really lost anything from the team that had one of the best records in baseball for the last half of the '05 season.

All this is assuming Cleveland didn't lose too much putting Jason Michaels in Coco's place and losing Millwood. There may well not be anyone in the Central to contend for the Wild Card spot this year.
 
[quote name='ryanbph']many mlb writters are claiming for minn to be the darkhorse[/QUOTE]

And Milwaukee, I love hearing that!
 
[quote name='ryanbph']many mlb writters are claiming for minn to be the darkhorse[/QUOTE]

They just didn't show me enough last year and didn't do nearly enough so far in the offseason for me to put any credence to those reports. I'd give Detroit a much better chance of coming out of nowhere given their young players that could break out at anytime.
 
[quote name='Cornfedwb']They just didn't show me enough last year and didn't do nearly enough so far in the offseason for me to put any credence to those reports. I'd give Detroit a much better chance of coming out of nowhere given their young players that could break out at anytime.[/QUOTE]

Unless they lose Hunter, they still have a chance. They picked up a 2B, in Luis Castillo and lost Jacque Jones, forget where he went, and I think a reliever. They shouldn't be too far back this year.
 
Minnesota's window has closed. They will have a winning record but not much more will be able to be said. Radke has been wilting, still no pop in the batting order. I hope i'm wrong but I doubt it. There is no real buzz with the twins up here in the Minnesota, Dakotas area. (at least that I have read or noticed)
 
[quote name='ryanbph']j. jones went to the cubs[/QUOTE]

I should've known that, as thats all I ever hear about around here, the Cubbies and occassional White Sox fans.

The Cubs look poised in the Central, and could overtake St Louis this year, giving that St Louis has been rather quiet thus far in the offseason.
 
[quote name='craven_fiend']I should've known that, as thats all I ever hear about around here, the Cubbies and occassional White Sox fans.

The Cubs look poised in the Central, and could overtake St Louis this year, giving that St Louis has been rather quiet thus far in the offseason.[/QUOTE]

Brewers will be competitive too if things go right.
 
[quote name='greendj27']Brewers will be competitive too if things go right.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, and by things, you mean a healthy Sheets and another monster season by Lee. Add Prince(???) into the mix, and it could be a nice 3 team dance in the NL Central.
 
Hey green, I take it your a brewers fan, can you explain to me wtf was ben sheet doing resigning. I can understand him possibly being a moron, but what the fuck was his agent thinking. He could have competed and gotten a HUGE payday in the free agent market.
 
My take on the AL East:

Toronto is arguably the most improved team in baseball (you could make a case that the Mets are as well) and is definitely in the mix. That being said, A.J. Burnett and B.J. Ryan are not sure things (Burnett is still a career .500 pitcher), and Halladay and Glaus are both injury prone. I still predict them coming in third but they are definitely a dangerous team.

The Yankees continue to get older, especially on the pitching side. They'll score buckets of runs especially with Damon at the top of their order (grrrr....) and despite another year in decline in their starting pitching they probably will still finish on top since they have the will and the resources to bring in an impact player when they need to and Rivera (who is really the team MVP) continues to dominate and shortens games into 8 or even 7 inning affairs.

I will preface this by saying I am a big Red Sox fan but I honestly think they are much better this year than last year. Their infield is completely upgraded both offensively and defensively. Lowell will definitely do better than last season and is a significant upgrade both offensively and defensively over Meuller. Gonzalez is a huge defensive upgrade over Renteria (though I am in the minority that thinks they should have kept him) and is a little underrated offensively. Loretta is a perfect no 2 hitter and now they are "forced" to finally play Youkilis at first which is what they should have done last season. In the outfield, there is a downgrade in CF but Crisp is a serviceable player with upside but otherwise they are the same. In addition, Beckett is a huge pickup (a better pitcher than Burnett for half the price) and the Red Sox have excellent young pitching depth that should continue to improve. I think they will fall just short to the Yankess but I still forsee a 1-2 finish with the Red Sox getting the wildcard.
 
[quote name='ryanbph']Hey green, I take it your a brewers fan, can you explain to me wtf was ben sheet doing resigning. I can understand him possibly being a moron, but what the fuck was his agent thinking. He could have competed and gotten a HUGE payday in the free agent market.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, I live in Madison, WI. To be honest, I think Sheets knew the Brewers were an improving organization and he wanted to be a part of that. Not to mention he got a pretty nice payday to stay too. ;)
 
Dopa, as much as I like the red sox, and I do believe they will be first or 2nd in the al east, I don't agree with your breakdows. Lowell is 50% at BEST will do better offensively then bill mueller. Besided hitting .300 or in that area every year, mueller was CLUTCH and came up with key hits almost as often as big pappi, the difference being they were singles. Gonsalez is not a huge upgrade over the career of renteria. Rent had a horrible fielding year, but he was throwing to kevin millar. If you look at rent stats, he has had some horrible fielding seasons, followed up by stellar ones. Gonzalez, I hope to god doesn't make the roster, and that they go with the rookie dustin pedrioa. Loretta is great if you are considering him replacing bellhorn, but if you consider him replacing graffinino, i think it was a mistake. We still have graffinio, and in order to get loretta, we had to trade the catcher the wakefield pitched to. Wakefield didn't win 1 game without mirabelli last season. Mirabelli missed at least a month with an injury. I don't think that loretta will be as much of an upgrade over the loss of wakefields trusted catcher. Graffinio was solid in the field and hit .316, played a lot last year compared to his usual back up role, and fit in/played well in boston.
 
[quote name='greendj27']Yeah, I live in Madison, WI. To be honest, I think Sheets knew the Brewers were an improving organization and he wanted to be a part of that. Not to mention he got a pretty nice payday to stay too. ;)[/QUOTE]

he might have been paid great for millwakee brewer money, but the red sox, yankee's would have dueled it out for him. Throw in other potential big spenders in the mets, the angels and the tigers. Also the orioles have money to spend as does the dodgers. He would have made well over 10mill per season on the free agent market, when you look at people like carl pavano making $10mill, and matt clement making $9mill a season
 
[quote name='ryanbph']Dopa, as much as I like the red sox, and I do believe they will be first or 2nd in the al east, I don't agree with your breakdows. Lowell is 50% at BEST will do better offensively then bill mueller. Besided hitting .300 or in that area every year, mueller was CLUTCH and came up with key hits almost as often as big pappi, the difference being they were singles. Gonsalez is not a huge upgrade over the career of renteria. Rent had a horrible fielding year, but he was throwing to kevin millar. If you look at rent stats, he has had some horrible fielding seasons, followed up by stellar ones. Gonzalez, I hope to god doesn't make the roster, and that they go with the rookie dustin pedrioa. Loretta is great if you are considering him replacing bellhorn, but if you consider him replacing graffinino, i think it was a mistake. We still have graffinio, and in order to get loretta, we had to trade the catcher the wakefield pitched to. Wakefield didn't win 1 game without mirabelli last season. Mirabelli missed at least a month with an injury. I don't think that loretta will be as much of an upgrade over the loss of wakefields trusted catcher. Graffinio was solid in the field and hit .316, played a lot last year compared to his usual back up role, and fit in/played well in boston.[/QUOTE]

Lowell will have a big bounce back year, 25 HR, 90+ RBI and plays gold glove defense. I loved Mueller but the fact remains he had too little power for a 3B. I agree Gonzalez is a downgrade at SS but his defense is definitely superior and makes up somewhat his offensive shortcomings and he has enough power to be dangerous at the bottom of the order. I think you have to agree that Graffinino overachieved considerably and at best he is a solid utility infielder so I think it's fine for him to return to that role. Losing Mirabelli hurts... a little but I'm sure Varitek can adjust to catch Wakefield (or they can groom another backup catcher to play that role).
 
Just look at the CWS, Gonzalez proves he can have some pop to his swing by winning a few games for the Venenzulian team. I wish Rentierra would've gotten a 2nd chance this year to work out his fielding, but the pressure of playing on the big stage was what ultimately led to his departure.

Too bad he didn't voice his disgust prior to dealing Hanley, then SS wouldn't be too big of an issue.
 
[quote name='ryanbph']he might have been paid great for millwakee brewer money, but the red sox, yankee's would have dueled it out for him. Throw in other potential big spenders in the mets, the angels and the tigers. Also the orioles have money to spend as does the dodgers. He would have made well over 10mill per season on the free agent market, when you look at people like carl pavano making $10mill, and matt clement making $9mill a season[/QUOTE]

And how happy do you think those players are when they move to a team that they aren't comfortable on and struggle. Sure, they may be making a little more per year right now, but Sheets is happy and making almost as much. Plus in a few years, he will get another big payday while they won't. There is a lot to be said for staying on a team you enjoy playing for.

He said this when he signed, " The Brewers haven't had a winning season since 1992, and Sheets said he put off the opportunity to become a free agent because he wants to be part of the team's resurgence.

"You can go somewheres else and maybe win a title or whatever, win a division," Sheets said, "but is it as special as helping build one? Probably not. I can't imagine it would even be close."

Also, his contract was 4 years for 38.5 million. Last year was six million because he would have been arbitration eligible, but that means the last three years he will be making about eleven million per year.
 
Sheets is probably one of those guys that is comfortable in a smaller market, not much pressure, some people care what you do, unlike KC or Tampa, but not too many.

Hey, its pretty comfortable to play in an environment like that, and since they're a .500 team now instead of being completely horrible, its not so bad. A lot of players don't like a situation like Boston, lots of pressure, people recognize you on the street, and they scrutinize every throw you make. Nothing wrong with that at all.

He certainly didn't stay in Milwaukee for the money, or for the exciting nightlife.
 
[quote name='dafoomie']Sheets is probably one of those guys that is comfortable in a smaller market, not much pressure, some people care what you do, unlike KC or Tampa, but not too many.

Hey, its pretty comfortable to play in an environment like that, and since they're a .500 team now instead of being completely horrible, its not so bad. A lot of players don't like a situation like Boston, lots of pressure, people recognize you on the street, and they scrutinize every throw you make. Nothing wrong with that at all.

He certainly didn't stay in Milwaukee for the money, or for the exciting nightlife.[/QUOTE]

Actually, if you look up his contract, he is making about 11 million a year for the next three years, so he was paid a lot to stay.
 
[quote name='greendj27']Actually, if you look up his contract, he is making about 11 million a year for the next three years, so he was paid a lot to stay.[/QUOTE]

We just paid AJ Burnett $9mill to stay, rest assured that Sheets would easily command that and more.

Apparently the Nationals offered Sosa "an incentive-laden" contract; that's about the best he can hope for.
 
[quote name='greendj27']Actually, if you look up his contract, he is making about 11 million a year for the next three years, so he was paid a lot to stay.[/QUOTE]
He could have made a great deal more than that on the open market. The Yankees and Red Sox alone would have driven the price sky high.
 
and other clubs intersted in sheets wouldn't have been pressure cookers, like ana, detroit, baltimore, maybe even the rangers, they need pitching....

sosa was offered incentive filled contract, but it was a guaranteed ml contract...
 
I don't get it.. a player does what we all hope for and stays with his team instead of running after the money.. and we are rebuking him for it? $11 million a year is more then enough money, does he really need the extra $2 mil or so he'd get for going to a different team?

And let's not forget $11 million in Milwaukee is a heck of a lot more then $13 million in New York.
 
[quote name='Cornfedwb']I don't get it.. a player does what we all hope for and stays with his team instead of running after the money.. and we are rebuking him for it? $11 million a year is more then enough money, does he really need the extra $2 mil or so he'd get for going to a different team?

And let's not forget $11 million in Milwaukee is a heck of a lot more then $13 million in New York.[/QUOTE]
I'm not faulting him for it, I'm giving him credit for realizing that being comfortable might be worth more than a little extra money. Milwaukee is a comfortable, low pressure environment. Nothing wrong with that.
 
[quote name='ryanbph']I am faulting him for it...DAMMIT COME TO BOSTON[/QUOTE]

I though you guys had 20 starting pitchers already ;)
 
[quote name='ryanbph']yeah, but most of them are old, and won't last that long...[/QUOTE]

:applause:

Thank you. And I know adding Clemens would only make the rotation older, but damnit its Roger Clemens, so yeah. Plus, what you pitcher wouldn't want to learn from Clemens? Beckett and Arroyo would definitely listen, as would the prospects.
But yeah, I figured when Sheets hit free agency, he would've been on a different team. More power to him for staying with the team that made him. Atleast this way, I may have a chance of seeing him at Wrigley or the new Busch Stadium.
 
I dunno know about arroyo listening to clemans, he isn't a spring chicken. He was old when he started to pitch a couple years ago.
 
Not really a Sox or Yankes fan. I'm actually a Dodgers and Cards fan. Just haven't heard any good news since the Furcal signing(thank the gods) and I'm just gonna sit back and check them out at spring training first. Anyone for a roll call for favorite teams?
 
[quote name='Cornfedwb']Good lord we really don't need that bullshit starting here do we?


And on subject.. as far as Toronto making the playoffs.. remember.. Boston, NY, Tampa Bay and Toronto all could contend (and will all play each other quite a bit).. in the central its basically just Chicago and Cleveland. That's going to make it alot tougher for the wild card team to come out of the East.[/QUOTE]


Dude, you gotta lighten the fuck up. No wonder everyone hates Cleveland as a city. Just cuz you got Tony Soprano as your avatar, it doesn't mean I'm gonna shake in my boots when you throw your two cents in.

Back to the topic, you're very correct about Chicago and Cleveland probably taking two playoff spots. The East and West will be very competitive and leave those teams to coast into the post season. I'd love to see a Cleveland-Toronto ALCS. It'd be a nice changing of the gaurd.
 
Roger Clemens I got is going to a) retire b) go back to Houston, i'd lean towards B because this guys at the top of his game, and he's got it easy there, the only reason I could see him going to Boston is so he wouldn't have to bat.
 
Yeah, all signs point to Roger staying in Houston. He's a god in Texas. He could have a losing record this year and he'd get standing ovations every time he takes the mound. In Boston, it might be a different story. Some people are still pissed off at him for what he said when he was in Toronto.
 
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