Baseball News

Baseball players who met last week to discuss union matters at a pricey resort outside of Las Vegas had good reason to be happy. The weather was good, there was a golf course just outside the front door, and there wasn't an autograph seeker in sight.
Even better, the news coming out of baseball's front offices kept reminding them that this is a very good time to be a major leaguer.
Make that an incredibly good time — if you happen to be a pitcher.
The free agent season isn't yet over but, in the spirit of the holidays, general managers are playing Santa Claus to anyone who can raise one arm over their head and throw a baseball 60 feet, six inches.
It's almost enough to put a smile on the face of union chief Donald Fehr, whose job it is to help loosen the pursetrings of owners.
"The kind of activity we've seen so far in certain respects is encouraging," Fehr said.
Discouraging, though, if you're a fan who will eventually have to pay in the form of pricier tickets and ballpark beers.
It's one thing to overpay for everyday players (think Dodgers and Rafael Furcal). Mortgaging a team's future with pitchers is quite another.
The Toronto Blue Jays may find that out after setting the tone for the free agent season by giving a combined $102 million to a starting pitcher with a career record of 49-50 and a closer who has saved only 42 games in his career.
Before they were so richly rewarded, all A.J. Burnett and B.J. Ryan had in common were initials in front of their surnames. Now they've both got multimillion dollar contracts guaranteed through 2010.
"One thing about the free-agent game is if you're going to get in it, you can't get in it halfway," Blue Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi said. "Either you're going to be a player or you're not."
When you become a player, though, you risk getting burned.
Burnett may have a 98 mph fastball and a no-hitter on his resume, but he's also had elbow surgery and has never won more than 12 games in a season. Ryan, meanwhile, was a mediocre middle reliever before finally getting his chance to save games with Baltimore.
But the Blue Jays were badly in need of pitching if they wanted to compete with the Yankees in the AL East. And, after cutting payroll and grooming future stars, they had money to spend in a thin free agent pitching market.
Unfortunately for Toronto, there's a reason five-year deals for pitchers have been out of vogue in recent times. Teams have ended up with bad cases of buyer's remorse after making big investments on the mound.
Chan Ho Park cost Texas $65 million over five years, but won just 22 games before the Rangers shipped him along with a wad of cash to San Diego. Kevin Brown got a seven-year deal that included private jet service from the Dodgers, yet averaged only 10 wins a year between Los Angeles and the Yankees.
Darren Dreifort, meanwhile, earned $13.4 million last year and didn't even touch a ball. He was injured so much he won only nine games over the length of his five-year, $55 million contract with the Dodgers.
And in Colorado they surely remember the eight-year, $121 million contract Mike Hampton signed with the Rockies.
It's only money, though, which is what the Mets must have been thinking when they signed Billy Wagner for $43 million to be their closer for four years. Wagner will be 38 when the contract is up, so for good measure New York threw in a club option for a fifth year.
And who really can blame the Tigers for giving $16 million to camera-basher Kenny Rogers or the Cubs for making instant millionaires of setup men Scott Eyre and Bobby Howry?
Baseball owners have a long history of not being able to control themselves when it comes to landing pitching talent. That goes back to Ted Turner winning a bidding war for one of baseball's first free agents in 1976, signing Andy Messersmith to a three-year, $1.75 million contract.
Messersmith won only 16 games in two years for Atlanta, was sold to the Yankees and won only two more games the rest of his career.
Messersmith's contract wouldn't barely cover expense money for today's players, but the underlying dynamics haven't changed. There are only so many decent pitchers to go around, and only a few left for next season.
Fans may not like the price, but they demand the players.
"It's a byproduct of our industry," Ricciardi said after signing Ryan. "We're damned if we do and damned if we don't."
Houston showed rare restraint by allowing Roger Clemens to go, but imagine what the 43-year-old will be worth if he decides to return next season. The Boston Red Sox are already salivating at the thought of the Rocket's return to Fenway Park.
Jeff Weaver also figures to land a big multiyear deal when agent Scott Boras is done marketing the free agent righty who most recently toiled for the Dodgers. And Boras is shopping Kevin Millwood for the kind of money and length of deal that Burnett received.
After that, who knows?
The way the market is going someone may want to offer Dreifort another five years. He is, after all, a free agent once again.

NEW YORK - Alex Rodriguez probably will play for the Dominican Republic in next year's inaugural World Baseball Classic.
When the commissioner's office and the players' association announced commitments from players last week, Rodriguez's country was left blank. The New York Yankees third baseman, who last month won his second AL MVP award, was born in New York but his parents are Dominican.
"That seems to be pretty much where I'm leaning," Rodriguez said of the Dominican team during an interview Tuesday on WFAN radio. "I think it's going to be the team I'm going to represent, kind of like what (Mike) Piazza's doing with Italy."
Rodriguez said staying healthy was key during the tournament, which is being played by 16 teams from March 3-20.
"It's going to be a lot of fun. I'm excited about it and a little nervous, too, about obviously getting guys injured that time of year," he said. "You pull a hamstring, you're out for three or four weeks, that really may impact your whole season. I mean, you may have some type of ill effect going into even June or July."
Rodriguez predicted the U.S. team might be less motivated than other countries.
"I think the Latino teams are going to have a major advantage," he said. "I think that American team might take it more like an exhibition and these guys are kind of playing for their religion down there, the pride of their country."
Rodriguez also addressed the possibility that the Yankees would sign free agent Nomar Garciaparra. Manager Joe Torre told New York reporters at a function Tuesday that he had called Garciaparra to express the team's interest in having him come join the Yankees.
"That would be kind of weird," A-Rod said. "I remember almost 10 years ago we made the cover of GQ, us three as the premier shortstops in the game coming up. And now all of us may be in the same infield. I think that's kind of funny."
Rodriguez's spokesman, Steve Fortunato, said the decision will be made by Major League Baseball and the players' association.
"Alex's comments are based on discussions with the tournament organizers," Fortunato said. "The organizers are ultimately going to recommend what team Alex should be placed on, and he would follow that. We're waiting to see what that is. He wants to do whatever is best for tournament."

ATLANTA - The Atlanta Braves may be on the market.

A statement released by the team Tuesday said Time Warner is exploring the possibility of selling the Braves and the Turner South cable network, which carries many of the Braves' games.
"We have engaged an investment banking firm to help us assess strategic options for Turner South and a significant programming contributor to that network, the Atlanta Braves franchise, which may lead to the sale of one or both," Greg Hughes, the team's vice president of public relations and communications, said in the statement.
It is the first recent indication that Time Warner, formerly known as AOL Time Warner, is considering selling the Braves.
All of the company's sports properties were on the market until the sale of the Atlanta Hawks, Atlanta Thrashers and Philips Arena was announced on Sept. 16, 2003.
At that time, TBS vice chairman Terry McGuirk said there no longer was "an ongoing marketing plan to sell" the Braves. McGuirk now is chairman and president of the Braves.
Forbes magazine estimated the Braves' value at $374 million in 2004.

After a blinding flurry of trades and a handful of notable free-agent signings, the 2005 baseball winter meetings are in the books.
Last week, almost 20 trades went down and hundreds of millions of guaranteed dollars tossed were about. So with this most important of off-season stepping stones behind us, let's take a look at the winter meetings winners and losers.

Winners

1. Boston Red Sox
The Sox nabbed a starting second baseman— a quality one, Mark Loretta — at a cost of their backup catcher. They also off-loaded most of the overrated Edgar Renteria's contract to the Braves in exchange for Andy Marte, one of the five best prospects in all of baseball. Oh, and they also talked about bringing back erstwhile general manager Theo Epstein back into the fold. Quite a fruitful week for Red Sox partisans.

2. Toronto Blue Jays
You can quibble with the dollars the Blue Jays doled out to B.J. Ryan and A.J. Burnett, but they hauled in a boss-load of pitching talent. In Ryan they get a genuine shutdown closer who figures to maintain his peak level of performance for the next few seasons, and in Burnett they get a promising hurler whose groundball proclivities and strikeout chops bode exceptionally well for the future.
The Jays overpaid for Lyle Overbay (unless they get the 2004 Overbay model), but he does give Toronto perhaps the best defensive infield in all of baseball (something that will be of great benefit to Burnett and Roy Halladay), and it also allows the Jays to trade Eric Hinske or Shea Hillenbrand before opening day. The Brewers got the better end of that particular trade, but Overbay will be useful.
While one might question whether B.J Ryan is worth his contract, there's no denying the Blue Jays are making a real attempt to become a contender.
On an entirely different level, team ownership and GM J.P.Ricciardi have sent a message to Jays fans that the organization once again has a vision that extends beyond "cut payroll." If the Red Sox and Yankees regress much in 2006, Toronto will be right there.

3 .Cincinnati Reds
Laying aside for the moment the inexplicable decision to acquire Tony Womack, the Reds, more importantly, were able to make Sean Casey go away. As a result, the Reds can move Adam Dunn to first base and thereby relieve the outfield bottleneck. Trading Casey, who is subpar with the glove, prone to shoulder problems and no longer an adequate hitter, to Pittsburgh also means (one hopes) that GM Dan O'Brien will resist any temptation to trade Dunn, Austin Kearns or Wily Mo Pena. After all, those three players are infinitely more valuable to the Reds' future than was Casey. That Cincy got back a potentially league-average starting pitcher in Dave Williams (and some cash) makes this deal all the better for them.

4. Milwaukee Brewers
The Dan Kolb-for-Wes Obermueller deal barely merits mention, but the Brewers did get a strong return package for the aforementioned Overbay. In David Bush, they get one of the 15 or 20 best pitching prospects in all of baseball, and Zach Jackson, because of his control and ground-balling ways, may be in for a breakout season in 2006. Add Gabe Gross, who'll be a useful platoon outfielder at the highest level, to the mix, and it's a nifty deal for the Brewers. Shipping off Overbay also allows Prince Fielder to take over at first on a full-time basis.

Losers

1. Florida Marlins
The Marlins have greatly bolstered their minor league pitching corps, but that's really incidental to the larger issue. This isn't a criticism of the on-field consequences of the decisions to trade away Josh Beckett, Carlos Delgado, Paul Lo Duca and Juan Pierre; it's an indictment of Jeffrey Loria's way of doing business. Florida's (most recent) sell-off is motivated by the local citizens' refusal to indulge the team in corporate welfare. It's an attempt at extortion.
Teams should pay for their own stadiums, and local governments need to show some fortitude in resisting the selfish entreaties of owners. Ideally, the Marlins won't sell a single ticket in 2006. Good riddance.

2. St. Louis Cardinals
The Cardinals have glaring needs at both outfield corners, at second base and in the rotation, and to fill these voids they've turned to ... Larry Bigbie?
Is Larry Bigbie supposed to be the player that puts the Cardinals over the top?
St. Louis GM Walt Jocketty is unassailably one of the best in the business, but he's been church-mouse quiet thus far this winter. Perhaps the market is inflated this time around, but the Cardinals have playoff revenues fattening their coffers, and they're moving into a new state-of-the-art ballpark next season. So it's not as though they can credibly feign impoverishment. The Cardinals are very much a "win now" team — they have an imposing core of veteran performers and a weak farm system. The front office needs to behave as such. By low-balling their prime free-agent targets, St. Louis has allowed the rest of NL Central to close the gap.

3. Atlanta Braves
Renteria has been rather average with the bat over the last two seasons, and in 2005 he had an absolutely brutal year with the glove — both in terms of demonstrating range and in terms of avoiding errors. He'll also be moving from a park that is a veritable Valhalla for right-handed batters to one that plays relatively neutral. It may be that Renteria won't be able to outdo what the Braves could have gotten from in-house solution Wilson Betemit. And for that they gave up Andy Marte, one of the best prospects in the game.
As for their other deal, it certainly seems as though the Braves could've gotten more for Johnny Estrada than two middling relievers.

4. Chicago Cubs
The Cubs had grand designs this off-season: Rafael Furcal, A.J. Burnett, Brian Giles, Juan Pierre ... they all might find themselves toiling on the North Side. In reality, the Cubs wound up with the least of these. Pierre is an overrated defender with no power and inconsistent on-base skills. This is a bad team whose off-season to date consists of adding a mediocre center fielder. Only a one-sided deal for Miguel Tejada can salvage the winter.

World Series titles aren't won on paper, aren't won in December, aren't always won by the best team. But White Sox general manager Ken Williams, always aggressive, never afraid, is extending his team's October roll into the off-season. His killer trade for right-hander Javier Vazquez gives the Sox — on paper, in December — a legitimate chance to repeat.
The addition of Vazquez makes the game's deepest rotation even deeper, putting further distance between the White Sox and the rest of the AL Central. Jim Thome, if healthy, will be an upgrade at designated hitter over Carl Everett. Rob Mackowiak, a versatile utility man, gives the Sox a viable backup for third baseman Joe Crede, who is recovering from two herniated disks in his lower back.
Lest anyone forget, the White Sox also accomplished their biggest off-season priority — re-signing first baseman Paul Konerko. The Vazquez deal, though, is the topper. The players the White Sox traded — "El Duque" Hernandez, reliever Luis Vizcaino and minor-league outfielder Chris Young — all should be replaceable.
Vazquez will take Hernandez's rotation spot, allowing right-hander Brandon McCarthy to pitch in the bullpen, possibly in Vizcaino's role. Young is a top center-field prospect who had a monster season at Class AA despite being only 21. But the White Sox plan to play an even more highly regarded prospect, Brian Anderson, in center next season.
Here's the best part: By acquiring Vazquez, Williams suddenly is in a position of strength with his rotation. Just as the signing of free-agent right-hander Esteban Loaiza gave A's GM Billy Beane the flexibility to trade left-hander Barry Zito, Williams now can entertain offers for right-handers Jose Contreras and Jon Garland, both of whom can be free agents after next season.