0 comments by Randy Holt on 11/20/2014
The Toronto Blue Jays didn’t surprise too many people when they threw a whole bunch of money at Ontario native Russell Martin. And as blasphemous as a five-year deal for a catcher heading into his age 32 season may sound, it was probably necessary for them to actually be able to reign him in (even though we all […]
0 comments by Garrett Wilson on 11/19/2014
It happens every year, MLB teams desperate to inject some life into their World Series hopes throw big money at players and almost immediately come to regret it. No matter how smart we think MLB front offices should be, they continue to make mistake after mistake. Sometimes it can’t be helped, but sometimes it can. These nine […]
0 comments by Joe Lucia on 11/18/2014
On Monday, the Atlanta Braves set Twitter abuzz by trading Gold Glove right fielder Jason Heyward to the Cardinals. And while the move makes sense from an objective perspective (heading into his walk year, in line for a massive payday, Braves needed young pitching), it hurts from an emotional perspective. This is a guy who […]
0 comments by Ian Casselberry on 11/17/2014
The MLB hot stove season is already off to an active start, with some big signings and trades made before Thanksgiving. Free agency has plenty of options for teams seeking starting pitching or relievers, but those without money to spend might find better options on the trade market. Clubs looking for offensive help will almost […]
0 comments by Garrett Wilson
Over the last week, there was a burgeoning debate about which of the Atlanta Braves outfielders might get traded. That debate is over before it ever really began because the Braves just traded Jason Heyward and reliever Jordan Walden to the St. Louis Cardinals for pitchers Shelby Miller and Tyrell Jenkins: For Atlanta, this deal helps shore up their rotation […]
0 comments by Tim Livingston
In the first major free-agent signing in the the four-year long Alex Anthopolous tenure, the Toronto Blue Jays signed veteran catcher Russell Martin to a five-year, $82 million deal. Peter Gammons initially announced the signing as a “(Brian) McCann-level contract”, with Jon Heyman and Ken Rosenthal reporting the official length and worth. Catcher has long […]
0 comments by Ian Casselberry on 11/14/2014
Sure, Miami Marlins, you’re going to sign Giancarlo Stanton to a long-term contract extension. Oh yeah, you’re going to keep a star player around. Whatever, man — just let us know when Stanton is traded to the Red Sox for a boatload of prospects and we’ll resume writing those columns about what a feckless, disingenuous […]
0 comments by Joe Lucia
We end the free agent primer series with a look at possibly the most overpaid market in baseball today – relief pitchers. A top-tier reliever can make more money than a back-end starter, despite 70 innings a year being considered “a heavy workload”. This winter will be no exception, as there are some relievers out […]
0 comments by Joe Lucia on 11/13/2014
The 2014 MVP awards were announced and Thursday night, and Mike Trout finally claimed his first AL MVP award, claiming all 30 first place votes in the process. Over in the National League, Clayton Kershaw became the first NL pitcher to win the MVP award since Bob Gibson in 1968. Trout actually had the worst […]
0 comments by Ian Casselberry
Are the Detroit Tigers crazy? That was my initial reaction at the news that Detroit had re-signed Victor Martinez to a four-year, $68 million contract. As you may or may not know, I grew up as a Tigers fan and have spent the majority of my sportswriting career covering that team in one form or […]
0 comments by Joe Lucia
The starting pitching market this year is enough to make a team with a lot of money salivate. Three big names head the class, and the middle ground is loaded with intriguing options. If you’re a team that has no issues spending money, you can put together a damn good rotation of free agents this […]
0 comments by Ian Casselberry on 11/12/2014
Clayton Kershaw and Corey Kluber won the NL and AL Cy Young Awards, respectively, Wednesday night, as voted upon by the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA). Kershaw winning his second consecutive NL Cy Young is certainly no surprise. Though finalists Adam Wainwright and Johnny Cueto had excellent seasons, he was clearly the best pitcher […]
0 comments by Tim Livingston
On the heels of the best year of his career, Victor Martinez has cashed in and will be staying put in Detroit, agreeing to a four-year, $68 million contract with the Tigers on Wednesday, pending a physical per Jon Heyman of CBS Sports. Perhaps the most coveted offensive player on the free-agent market, Martinez had an […]
0 comments by Joe Lucia
The outfield market this winter really lacks that guy to carry the class and get a nine figure deal this year – with the possible exception of Cuban Yasmani Tomas. Don’t get me wrong – there are several great players in this group, but none I’d feel comfortable giving more than four or five years […]
0 comments by Ian Casselberry
Late Tuesday night, it appeared that we had our first big trade rumor of the offseason with the Cubs reportedly talking to the Nationals about acquiring pitcher Jordan Zimmermann. According to the Chicago Sun-Times‘ Gordon Wittenmyer, trade negotiations had progressed to the point that other names to include in the deal were being discussed, which […]
