HOT STOVE LEAGUE 2011 Omnibuster Thread

[twballgame9]

I'm convinced Adam Dunn doesn't get more respect in real life beisbol is because too many fantasy baseball nerds think his .240 batting average is a problem.

It's because he doesn't care either. He'll never be as good as that ole scrapper David Eckstein who never leaves a game without getting his jersey dirty and always hustles 100000% for every batted ball, even though most of those batted balls are weak grounders to the second baseman.

I watched Dunn for too long in Cincinnatti. No hustle. He's a stiff who would have fit right in for some of those late Yawkey era Red Sox teams.

He looks good on a computer screen though, so elvii likes him.

[BCEagle74]

Red Sox should go after Jeter just to be dicks.

Rumor had it they were trying to move Scutaro too on ESPN?

Jeter has no range, but could hit 20+ homers in Fenway -- or not?

It is not an impossibility. Jeter is a $6-8M ballplayer for 2 years... age 39.

My guess is he gets $18M for 3 --or $38M too much.

You need shortstops to gobble up the 1-2 hits up the middle and in the hole with the overwhelming number of righty batters and that is 250+ outs Jeter is not getting to.

Gold Glove doesn't include range and getting to those balls..

OUT DER FXCKING MINDS.... $50/3? plus an option year now. I am guessing the option buyout is $5M.

Jeter is worth $8M for 2 and no option... 55ish -16 = Yup around 38M too much...

WOW... funny money.

[Endless Mike]

I'm convinced Adam Dunn doesn't get more respect in real life beisbol is because too many fantasy baseball nerds think his .240 batting average is a problem.

It's because he doesn't care either. He'll never be as good as that ole scrapper David Eckstein who never leaves a game without getting his jersey dirty and always hustles 100000% for every batted ball, even though most of those batted balls are weak grounders to the second baseman.

I watched Dunn for too long in Cincinnatti. No hustle. He's a stiff who would have fit right in for some of those late Yawkey era Red Sox teams.

It's baseball. Hustling is for guys who can't hit 40+ home runs.

[cvilleagle]

Gonzo's going to hit 40 next year, maybe 50.

[eepstein0]

I'm convinced Adam Dunn doesn't get more respect in real life beisbol is because too many fantasy baseball nerds think his .240 batting average is a problem.

It's because he doesn't care either. He'll never be as good as that ole scrapper David Eckstein who never leaves a game without getting his jersey dirty and always hustles 100000% for every batted ball, even though most of those batted balls are weak grounders to the second baseman.

I watched Dunn for too long in Cincinnatti. No hustle. He's a stiff who would have fit right in for some of those late Yawkey era Red Sox teams.

He looks good on a computer screen though, so elvii likes him.

I'll happily take Adam Dunn as a DH on any team....although true I want him no where near defense. He's a horrible defender anywhre you play him.

[flyingelvii]

I'm convinced Adam Dunn doesn't get more respect in real life beisbol is because too many fantasy baseball nerds think his .240 batting average is a problem.

It's because he doesn't care either. He'll never be as good as that ole scrapper David Eckstein who never leaves a game without getting his jersey dirty and always hustles 100000% for every batted ball, even though most of those batted balls are weak grounders to the second baseman.

I watched Dunn for too long in Cincinnatti. No hustle. He's a stiff who would have fit right in for some of those late Yawkey era Red Sox teams.

He looks good on a computer screen though, so elvii likes him.

Well yes, and he can hit the living fuck out of a baseball, which is all anybody really cares about with him. JD Drew apparently doesn't care either but he's a damn good fielder and was at a time a solid hitter. I'll gladly take a lineup of JD Drews and Adam Dunns.

[bignick33]

Werth's seven-year, $126 million contract immediately drew anger from rival officials who were furious about the terms. "Absolutely crazy," said one high-ranking AL official.

"You're kidding me," a general manager screamed into the phone. "What could they have been thinking?"

Mets executive Sandy Alderson offered this, dryly: "I thought they were trying to reduce the deficit in Washington."

http://insider.espn.go.com/mlb/blog?nam ... id=5890505

[twballgame9]

I'm convinced Adam Dunn doesn't get more respect in real life beisbol is because too many fantasy baseball nerds think his .240 batting average is a problem.

It's because he doesn't care either. He'll never be as good as that ole scrapper David Eckstein who never leaves a game without getting his jersey dirty and always hustles 100000% for every batted ball, even though most of those batted balls are weak grounders to the second baseman.

I watched Dunn for too long in Cincinnatti. No hustle. He's a stiff who would have fit right in for some of those late Yawkey era Red Sox teams.

He looks good on a computer screen though, so elvii likes him.

Well yes, and he can hit the living fuck out of a baseball, which is all anybody really cares about with him. JD Drew apparently doesn't care either but he's a damn good fielder and was at a time a solid hitter. I'll gladly take a lineup of JD Drews and Adam Dunns.

I'll take JD Drew. He's a good defensive player.

[EagleNYC]

I have been asleep when it comes to the Sox this offseason, other than the official moves (Victor gone, Gonzo in, Beltre probably gone). Is there more going on re: free agency for them? Youk goes to 3rd, Gonzo at 1st. Who catches?

[twballgame9]

I have been asleep when it comes to the Sox this offseason, other than the official moves (Victor gone, Gonzo in, Beltre probably gone). Is there more going on re: free agency for them? Youk goes to 3rd, Gonzo at 1st. Who catches?

Saltalamachia at this point. But really, who cares?

With respect to the rest of FA, expect them to sign a power arm for the pen and make at least a run at Crawford. Otherwise, they are pretty much set.

[EagleNYC]

I have been asleep when it comes to the Sox this offseason, other than the official moves (Victor gone, Gonzo in, Beltre probably gone). Is there more going on re: free agency for them? Youk goes to 3rd, Gonzo at 1st. Who catches?

Saltalamachia at this point. But really, who cares?

With respect to the rest of FA, expect them to sign a power arm for the pen and make at least a run at Crawford. Otherwise, they are pretty much set.

Thanks for the update.

I asked about catcher because, in theory, losing Victor could really be a blessing for the pitchers, not even taking into account all of the SBs. Someone back there who can contribute marginally on offense (read: hits 40 points higher than Varitek with 12-15 HR, 65 rbi) is obviously nice, but given how shaky Dice K, Beckett, and Lackey were last year, in think a veteran catcher's impact could be significant.

I'll put it another way. I'm guessing that there are many Sox fans that reason thusly: Lackey, Dice and Beckett all had bad years. What are the odds they all do again? Putting aside the fact that this assumes that Lester and Clay repeat their success to a large degree (though I agree this is fairly likely), I think the strength of these 3 pitchers has been greatly inflated. Lackey saw his WHIP and ERA soar last year (about a half-run higher than his career average, about .2 higher WHIP as compared to his previous 3 seasons), and despite his durability (33 starts), he never really put it together. Dice K turned into a marginally effective 6-inning pitcher. Beckett, after returning from the DL, posted an atrocious stat line dotted with AJ Burnett-like performances. In short, I think the chance of 2 out of these 3 guys really turning it around are less than 50%.

Can a catcher "solve" any of these problems? I think it is possible. And it is certainly worth a try.

[eagle9903]

Werth's seven-year, $126 million contract immediately drew anger from rival officials who were furious about the terms. "Absolutely crazy," said one high-ranking AL official.

"You're kidding me," a general manager screamed into the phone. "What could they have been thinking?"

Mets executive Sandy Alderson offered this, dryly: "I thought they were trying to reduce the deficit in Washington."

http://insider.espn.go.com/mlb/blog?nam ... id=5890505

He's 32. He needs Ritalin. He takes plays off. The plays he takes off sometimes are during things like the NLCS. His career already almost ended due to injury.

This will be fun to watch. The Phillies offered him 3 years, 48 million. Instead of being Adam Dunn, Strasburg, Zimmerman and some castoffs, the Nationals can now be Jayson Werth, Strasburg, Zimmerman and some castoffs.

Is Snyder offering consult?

[shockdoct]

Werth's seven-year, $126 million contract immediately drew anger from rival officials who were furious about the terms. "Absolutely crazy," said one high-ranking AL official.

"You're kidding me," a general manager screamed into the phone. "What could they have been thinking?"

Mets executive Sandy Alderson offered this, dryly: "I thought they were trying to reduce the deficit in Washington."

http://insider.espn.go.com/mlb/blog?nam ... id=5890505

He's 32. He needs Ritalin. He takes plays off. The plays he takes off sometimes are during things like the NLCS. His career already almost ended due to injury.

This will be fun to watch. The Phillies offered him 3 years, 48 million. Instead of being Adam Dunn, Strasburg, Zimmerman and some castoffs, the Nationals can now be Jayson Werth, Strasburg, Zimmerman and some castoffs.

Is Snyder offering consult?

Will be interesting to see if crawford's agents try and use this as a precedent for his deal. If they are successful, you could see a 8-10 yr 180-200MM?

[Endless Mike]

I have been asleep when it comes to the Sox this offseason, other than the official moves (Victor gone, Gonzo in, Beltre probably gone). Is there more going on re: free agency for them? Youk goes to 3rd, Gonzo at 1st. Who catches?

Saltalamachia at this point. But really, who cares?

With respect to the rest of FA, expect them to sign a power arm for the pen and make at least a run at Crawford. Otherwise, they are pretty much set.

Thanks for the update.

I asked about catcher because, in theory, losing Victor could really be a blessing for the pitchers, not even taking into account all of the SBs. Someone back there who can contribute marginally on offense (read: hits 40 points higher than Varitek with 12-15 HR, 65 rbi) is obviously nice, but given how shaky Dice K, Beckett, and Lackey were last year, in think a veteran catcher's impact could be significant.

I'll put it another way. I'm guessing that there are many Sox fans that reason thusly: Lackey, Dice and Beckett all had bad years. What are the odds they all do again? Putting aside the fact that this assumes that Lester and Clay repeat their success to a large degree (though I agree this is fairly likely), I think the strength of these 3 pitchers has been greatly inflated. Lackey saw his WHIP and ERA soar last year (about a half-run higher than his career average, about .2 higher WHIP as compared to his previous 3 seasons), and despite his durability (33 starts), he never really put it together. Dice K turned into a marginally effective 6-inning pitcher. Beckett, after returning from the DL, posted an atrocious stat line dotted with AJ Burnett-like performances. In short, I think the chance of 2 out of these 3 guys really turning it around are less than 50%.

Can a catcher "solve" any of these problems? I think it is possible. And it is certainly worth a try.

Well, Salty spent last season seeing a therapist because he was afraid of throwing the ball back to the pitcher. So there's that whole thing.

[eagle9903]

Werth's seven-year, $126 million contract immediately drew anger from rival officials who were furious about the terms. "Absolutely crazy," said one high-ranking AL official.

"You're kidding me," a general manager screamed into the phone. "What could they have been thinking?"

Mets executive Sandy Alderson offered this, dryly: "I thought they were trying to reduce the deficit in Washington."

http://insider.espn.go.com/mlb/blog?nam ... id=5890505

He's 32. He needs Ritalin. He takes plays off. The plays he takes off sometimes are during things like the NLCS. His career already almost ended due to injury.

This will be fun to watch. The Phillies offered him 3 years, 48 million. Instead of being Adam Dunn, Strasburg, Zimmerman and some castoffs, the Nationals can now be Jayson Werth, Strasburg, Zimmerman and some castoffs.

Is Snyder offering consult?

Will be interesting to see if crawford's agents try and use this as a precedent for his deal. If they are successful, you could see a 8-10 yr 180-200MM?

If that happens we can all thank Boras and Lerner for another lockout.

[pick6pedro]

Mark Reynolds to the Orioles!!! K's galore!

[flyingelvii]

What's the o/u on the amount of times Lester K's Reynolds?

[pick6pedro]

What's the o/u on the amount of times Lester K's Reynolds?

I'd say 2 out of every 3 times he faces him. Not to take anything away from the top of the staffs for the Giants and Pads, but I'm certain he will surpass himself in the record books yet again.

[cvilleagle]

Red Sox pursuing Beltran - rumor of the day.

I've got to say I don't understand that move. How much better than Cameron is he?

[flyingelvii]

A whole hell of a lot better if healthy. That's the key for him. Would be interesting in the least. Signed through next year for $18.5M so the Sox would have to shed some salary if they wanted to avoid the luxury tax.

[cvilleagle]

A whole hell of a lot better if healthy. That's the key for him. Would be interesting in the least. Signed through next year for $18.5M so the Sox would have to shed some salary if they wanted to avoid the luxury tax.

The Globe mentioned a Daisuke for Beltran trade as a possibility. I know Daisuke hasn't been the superstar some thought, but that seems like a bad deal to me.

[twballgame9]

A whole hell of a lot better if healthy. That's the key for him. Would be interesting in the least. Signed through next year for $18.5M so the Sox would have to shed some salary if they wanted to avoid the luxury tax.

The Globe mentioned a Daisuke for Beltran trade as a possibility. I know Daisuke hasn't been the superstar some thought, but that seems like a bad deal to me.

Trading him just as he learns the American strike zone seems really dumb.

[claver2010]

Red Sox pursuing Beltran - rumor of the day.

I've got to say I don't understand that move. How much better than Cameron is he?

Please take Beltran, the guy is a shell of his former self. If he gets a hang nail he'll be put on the DL. I wouldn't take Dice K unless his contract is up post-2011 the Mets have a ton of expiring contracts that year (NBA style): Reyes, K Rod, Beltran, Castillo, Perez, etc that adds up to about $60 MM.

That being said since it's Beltran's contract year he'll probably be: .330-50-140

[cvilleagle]

Starting to see on Twitter that the Sox landed Crawford. Looking for confirmation.

[branchinator]

Rumor is 7 year / 142 mil for Crawford. If true, MASSIVE overpay. Carl Crawford and Jason Werth aren't elite players.

[cvilleagle]

Rumor is 7 year / 142 mil for Crawford. If true, MASSIVE overpay. Carl Crawford and Jason Werth aren't elite players.

I agree on Werth, but Crawford just does everything well, including stealing bases.
The lineup will look very solid top to bottom next year now. This is going to be a very good team.

[twballgame9]

Rumor is 7 year / 142 mil for Crawford. If true, MASSIVE overpay. Carl Crawford and Jason Werth aren't elite players.

I agree on Werth, but Crawford just does everything well, including stealing bases.
The lineup will look very solid top to bottom next year now. This is going to be a very good team.

Agreed. Mentioning Werth and Crawford in the same sentence is an insult to Crawford. I hear it is done.

[branchinator]

Rumor is 7 year / 142 mil for Crawford. If true, MASSIVE overpay. Carl Crawford and Jason Werth aren't elite players.

I agree on Werth, but Crawford just does everything well, including stealing bases.
The lineup will look very solid top to bottom next year now. This is going to be a very good team.

Does everything well? He hits for average and is fast. He has a noodle arm and doesn't walk. Like at all. And his defensive speed is negated if he's playing LF in Fenway. I like Crawford but this is a massive overpay for a player whose OPS is always in the low to mid .800s. JD Drew, for instance, almost always tops that.

[twballgame9]

Rumor is 7 year / 142 mil for Crawford. If true, MASSIVE overpay. Carl Crawford and Jason Werth aren't elite players.

I agree on Werth, but Crawford just does everything well, including stealing bases.
The lineup will look very solid top to bottom next year now. This is going to be a very good team.

Does everything well? He hits for average and is fast. He has a noodle arm and doesn't walk. Like at all. And his defensive speed is negated if he's playing LF in Fenway. I like Crawford but this is a massive overpay for a player whose OPS is always in the low to mid .800s. JD Drew, for instance, almost always tops that.

His arm won't matter in left at Fenway and is made up for by the fact that he is a plus outfielder when on the road. He not only is fast but is a great baserunner. He hits .310, so he doesn't need to walk as much as .260 hitting JD Drew. And of course his OPS isn't much more than .800 - the power changes that as much as anything.

Slot him in the three hole and you have a great top of the order. Slot him late in the order. I don't care. It's a great deal. Maybe a slight overpay at $20 million, but in the Sox line up, not much.

[twballgame9]

Oh, and thank god Theo didn't decide to pay a player based on OPS for once.