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Pro Sports Wrap - Sports Personality of the Day:Steven Stamkos

11/24 MLB Rumors: Reliever Rumblings

November 24th 2011 09:48
The New York Times reports that Joe Torre could be interested in owning- mostly partially owning- the Los Angeles Dodgers. While this doesn't seem likely, there is a chance that Torre ends up teaming up with somebody like Rick Caruso to own the team.

The Minnesota Twins are interested in re-signing Matt Capps and implementing him as their closer after Joe Nathan signed with the Texas Rangers. Capps is a slightly below-average closer, but he's the best option they have and will likely be cheaper than making a move like trading for Francisco Cordero or Huston Street.


Speaking of which, there are six teams interested in acquiring the Rockies closer. Street, like Capps, is 28 years old, and he was also the 2005 Rookie of the Year. He's about a league-average closer, and the six teams interested (per Sports Illustrated) are the Red Sox, Jays, O's, Mets, Marlins and Reds. The Reds are also trading their closer, and Street would present a minor upgrade over Cordero. The Jays, O's, and Mets have a huge need at closer, but it is interesting to note that the Mets rejected a previous deal from the Rockies in a proposed Street-Pelfrey swap.


According to the New York Post, Mariano Rivera might retire after the 2012 season. Mo has one year left on his contract, and below are two quotes to mull over. The best closer in history is about to turn 42, and he has saved a record 603 games over his Major League career so far. I don't think he should hang up the spikes now, as he has still been pitching at a very high level. However, he knows his body more than we all do, and I'm sure that the future Hall of Famer will make the best decision for himself.

"I don't know what will happen,'' said Rivera. "I have one year left. I might call it over. I will know more in spring training.''

"Every time I talk it gets worse and worse,'' Rivera said when asked about his vocal chord problems that have arisen this offseason which may require surgery.

There are a lot of replacement-level to average starter middle-infielders who are making bank this offseason, and Jerry Hairston Jr. could be among those guys. Hairston is really just a utility backup guy. Hairston is an above-average defensive outfielder, and he plays at a high level at second. However, he is considered to be mediocre at the hot corner. But with his positional versatility, Hairston is an intriguing option and provides value to a ballclub. He was worth 1.2 WAR in 376 plate appearances, so he is an inexpensive option who would be a solid stop-gap option.

In fact, there are three teams interested in signing Hairston; the Dodgers, Brewers, and Giants all want to sign him. The Dodgers lost Jamey Carroll to the Twins in free agency, the Brewers have a hole at short, and the Giants are obviously in the market for a shortstop with their situation at the position. The 35 year old did get a one-year offer from the Brewers to re-sign with the team, but it seems like the Brew Crew want to get a marquee shortstop. They have also made it clear that signing Yuniesky Betancourt is also an option, although everybody will agree that it's not exactly a good option.

The Nationals are fighting with the Miami Marlins to sign solid veteran free agent starter Mark Buehrle. The Nats have made him their number one priority this offseason Buehrle has been worth over 3 WAR for the past three seasons, and he will definitely bolster this rotation and is worth about 10-12 million on the open market.

Count Sandy Alomar Jr. out of the race for the Boston Red Sox manager opening, as Bobby Valentine has been swooning the Sox brass recently. I expect the Sox to name Valentine their manager, but there are still a couple of candidates remaining.
Will he retire after 2012?
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2011's Best Starting Pitchers

November 23rd 2011 18:53
This is a ranking of the best starting pitchers of the 2011 season, and it's based on the performance of last season alone.

1. Roy Halladay- His 2.20 FIP was awesome, his efficiency gets overlooked because of the hype surrounding the guy directly below him.

2. Justin Verlander- Deserved the Cy Young, but his season was a little overrated (.236 BABIP). Still, accomplishing a 2.40 ERA with 8.96 fans per nine is no easy feat.

3. Clayton Kershaw- Although Halladay should have won the award, it's tough to argue with a guy who had the pitching Triple Crown. But of course, the Triple Crown doesn't trump advanced statistics; even if it's still an incredible feat.

4. CC Sabathia- Lost among a season of elite pitching was Sabathia's 2011 campaign.

5. Cliff Lee- Had a 2.60 FIP and was in the thick of the "race", well, for those who paid attention to him.

6. Dan Haren- If you dig deeper, it becomes apparent that Haren was truly the best starter on the Angels last year.

7. Jered Weaver- But hey, Weaver did have a 2.41 ERA regardless of the luck involved.

8. Ian Kennedy- How could I not reward the former Yankees prospect?

9. Madison Bumgarner- This sophomore was no bum, as he garnered a 2.67 FIP.

10. Zack Greinke- A 10.54 K/9 and 2.56 xFIP? I think so.

11. C.J. Wilson- There's a reason why he's easily the top free agent starter on the market.

12. James Shields- Would have been in the top ten in most seasons; just not this one.

13. Matt Cain- The guy who somehow defies sabermetrical logic year in and year out, but he did have a 2.88 ERA that was in line with his 2.91 FIP this season.

14. Cole Hamels- Yeah, the Phillies offense really dragged the team down.

15. Doug Fister- And we thought this trade was meaningless when it first went down.

16. David Price- Wasn't all that much worse than his teammate, but he was still worse.

17. Matt Garza- Well, at least the Cubs got what they wanted in the trade; an over-performing pitcher. He won't always be this good, but that season alone might make that trade at least a solid one for the Cubbies.

18. Felix Hernandez- Yeah, I probably put him a little too low, but it really wasn't the best of years for Felix. But just you wait for 2012 Mariners fans, you'll have the Astros to beat up on.

19. Tim Lincecum- No top 20 is complete without Timmy's presence, even in a "down" year (he still had a 2.74 ERA).

20. Daniel Hudson- He and Kennedy are two young starters to build a rotation around.

21. Brandon McCarthy- Now who saw that coming?

22. Josh Beckett- He really carried the Red Sox sagging rotation this year with a 2.89 ERA.

23. Matt Harrison- Scouts love him when he doesn't nibble, and he had a solid year that he should be able to build on.

24. Chris Carpenter- A boss year in and year out, and to think that the Cards won it all without Wainwright.

25. Jaime Garcia- What better way to end a top 25 starter list than a World Champion?
What a rebound year
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Albert Pujols is coming off of the worst season of his career, and many people are questioning whether or not the inevitable is happening; is the greatest player of this decade beginning to decline? It's a fair question to ask, but Pujols is still going to be a valuable player over the next few seasons. The Cardinals are still trying to make sure that Pujols will retire with the team, as they have not retracked on their earlier offer of nine years and about 200 million. It seems ludicrous, but Pujols is that valuable to the franchise as a Cardinal. Naturally, the future Hall of Famer has far less value for any other team. The Marlins have- to nobody's surprise- offered Puj a contract well below 200 million dollars. Pujols would obviously be better off re-signing, because that type of money just isn't given to players who will be heading into their late 30's during the deal.

The Milwaukee Brewers are probably going to foolishly go internally and the very light-hitting Mat Gamel at first. As a result, the Brewers are focusing their resources on other positions; such as shortstop. Jose Reyes isn't the only option, as the team is talking to the under-priced, scrappy Clint Barmes. The Brew Crew have also contacted veteran and former MVP Jimmy Rollins, but don't rule out the possibility of them signing the "perennial groan"; Yuniesky Betancourt. Again, how was this guy ever a Type B FA? (Like Shrek, I know it happened, but I just can't believe it. Don't blame Elias, the league gave them their mindbogglingly stupid method.)

Forget a trade knuckleheads, the Giants are looking to re-sign their two aces (you know who they are) before they become free agents. I really hope nobody actually believed those trade rumors, no matter how fun they were to believe.

C.J. Wilson wants a six-year deal, but I wouldn't really give it to him. I addressed this in a previous rumors post, but I will say it again; one year makes a lot of difference. A five year deal with an option for a sixth is the most I would go for. He's a great pitcher, but he is also 30 years old. Wilson is also looking to get 120 million dollars, and that 20 million a year is actually fair value.

Eric Chavez could have been one of the best third basemen of the decade, but injuries broke what would have been a great career. However, the current Yankees third baseman still wants to play ball. The Yankees will most likely bring him back, and he was mildly productive at a weak position, but he did get injured during the season. However, Chavez has some value coming off the bench.
Should stick around in St. Louis
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A Giants lifer, Jim Davenport spent his 13 year career playing solid ball for the San Francisco Giants. The 1962 All-Star third baseman is currently with the Giants as a front office worker, and he used to be a manager for them; albeit an unsuccessful one. Davenport later went on to be a coach for the Philles and a scout for the Tigers.

Although he wasn't a good hitter- career wRC-plus of 90- he did play some nice D over at the hot corner and was a Gold Glover in 1962. That was easily his best season, as he was on their World Series squad and earned his only All-Star appearance. Jim Davenport posted a 4.7 WAR on the strength of arguably his best season in the field and his best season as a hitter (119 wRC-plus). Davenport crossed the plate 83 times that season with a triple slash of .297/.357/.456. I know that runs scored is a bad measurement of skill, but I just put that out there for the traditionalists and the guys who like to know (although I doubt anybody cares at all).

The Alabama Sports Hall of Famer lost his job in 1964, when this guy named Jim Ray Hart emerged as the starter. Davenport still managed to milk out some playing time as a utility player who wasn't set at a certain position and spelled other players of playing time. Although his defense was affected negatively from its previously high standard, Davenport still managed to be a quality player.

Consider, he had one of his best defensive seasons in 1967 playing mostly at third but also other areas around the diamond (shortstop and keystone). Jim Davenport's WAR was 3.2 with a 112 wRC-plus with a .366 OBP. Yeah, that was his highest OBP of his career.

Unfortunately, Davenport had only two other 2 WAR (average starter) seasons. His first was as a rookie in 1958, in which he had a WAR of exactly 2. In 1961, his wRC-plus of 111 coupled with some solid defense led to a 3.5 WAR season.

While Jim Davenport wasn't a spectacular player, most Giants fans who were born before the 70s know who he is. Davenport was a solid third baseman who played good defense, wasn't that bad of a hitter as he got on base, and he also accumulated a good amount of sacrifice hits (led the league with 17 as a rookie). Davenport pretty much did what every minor league baseball player dreams of doing: he played with Hall of Famers such as Willie Mays, he made an All-Star team, he won a Gold Glove award, and he also played in a World Series.
The Glove and bottle are iconic
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For 14 seasons, centerfielder Tom Goodwin tore up the basepaths and played some solid defense as well. Although he was a poor hitter with almost no power, he had some terrific inside-the-park home runs (like the one against the Braves). Goodwin played for the Dodgers, Royals, Rangers, Cubs, Padres, and the Giants.

In truth, however, Tom Goodwin was actually a horrible hitter who had a career wRC-plus of just 79 and never had a season worth two WAR. Regardless, he was still well-liked and hit a good amount of triples with his speed. Only weighing 175 pounds, his main asset to a club was his devastating speed and was a speed demon in every sense of the word. Goodwin played good D and was among the league leaders in sacrifices, as he was definitely a "small ball" player over his career


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"Dirty" Al Gallagher spent four years in the Majors as a third baseman, and he was also a teacher. Although he was a subpar player, he did enjoy an okay season in 1971, when he hit five triples and had an OPS-plus of 104. His career OPS-plus was 91, which isn't such a good mark.

Gallagher was a poor defensive player who never had a positive dWAR in his career. In 1971, his 1.8 WAR was a career high, and that was the only year in which he was a league-average starter. The other three years in his career were spent in the doldrums, as he never attained a positive WAR total in any of those seasons


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8/2011 MLB Power Rankings

August 26th 2011 11:24
1. Red Sox
2. Yankees
3. Phillies


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8/2011 Center Fielder Rankings

August 6th 2011 14:07
One of the premier positions in baseball is center field. First off, it is the second most important position on the diamond- after shortstop- and many of the game's greats were center fielders. Below are my rankings of the center fielders in baseball today. (Minimum 750 plate appearances as a center fielder since 2009)

1. Rangers Josh Hamilton


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7/30 MLB Rumors: Ubaldo Jimenez

July 30th 2011 14:20
Ubaldo Jimenez is the best pitcher up for grabs right now, and I don't think much of an argument can be made for anybody else. He is going to be extremely difficult to get, and he probably won't be traded at all. In any case, add the Detroit Tigers to the list of teams in the hunt for Jimenez. The Reds, Indians, Yankees, and Red Sox are also interested.

Rockies


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Guys, I am finally back from a very lengthy vacation that did not produce a single blog post. A lot has transpired in my absence from this blog, and I am going to start things off with a rumor post that details potential trades in the MLB.

The Yankees are still searching for left-handed relief help with Rafael Soriano still on the DL, and Pedro Feliciano and Damaso Marte are out for the rest of the year. Boone Logan is their only lefty in the pen, and this is certainly a pressing need for the Bronx Bombers


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Last season, the Padres were baseball's surprise story and were in first place in their division for most of the year. Their devastating collapse at the end of the year- and the incredible comeback by the Giants who would eventually win the World Series- has continued on to this season. The Padres are last in the poor but competitive NL West.

It's no surprise that their hitting has been awful, and that's the reason why they are last in their division. Their rotation has been disappointing, especially when you consider that their ballpark is PETCO. The Padres do have one of the best bullpens in baseball with Heath Bell, Mike Adams, Chad Qualls, Luke Gregerson, and Pat Neshek


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5/2011 Starting Pitcher Rankings

May 22nd 2011 14:01
1. Tim Lincecum
2. Roy Halladay
3. Josh Johnson


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5/2011 Closer Rankings

May 12th 2011 14:23
1. Mariano Rivera
2. Jonathan Papelbon
3. Heath Bell


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