2045 AL Albatross List
Dec 31, 2017 17:43:21 GMT -5
NickP_Marlins GM, craigWhiteSox, and 11 more like this
Post by MetDaMeats on Dec 31, 2017 17:43:21 GMT -5
LEGEND:
* A great contract. No need to worry.
** Has some downside, but could make you look pretty smart.
*** A few red flags that could go either way.
**** This contract may be having a negative impact on the team.
***** Severe Albatross potential on every level.
Baltimore Orioles
***** (+1 star) Ed Ward (SP)
*** (New) Randolph Cashman (LF
** (New) Jesus Gonzalez (2B)
Boston Red Sox
***** (+2 stars) Thomas Kimball (CL)
**** (New) Carlos Sims (SP)
*** (New) Zach Porter (SP)
** (New) Cesar Gomez (SP)
Chicago White Sox
* (No change) Bruce Peak (C)
Cleveland Indians
** (+1 star) Jason Royal (SP)
** (New) Jose Rivera (DH)
Colorado Rockies
**** (New) Jerome Reynolds (DH)
*** (New) Pepe De Jesus (SP/RP)
** (New) William King (SP)
Detroit Tigers
***** (New) Jorge Siador (SP)
Houston Astros
*** (New) Andy Hebart (1B)
Kansas City Royals
I propose the Siador Rule, where no one can have an overall player budget less than one year of Jorge Siador’s salary.
Los Angeles Angels
**** (+2 stars) Ki-Nam Im (SP)
*** (New) Hoshi Nakashima (SP)
* (No change) Carlos Martinez (CL)
* (New) Shawn Palmer (SP)
Minnesota Twins
*** (No change) Scott Gaines (LF)
** (New) Joe Aitcheson (RF)
New York Yankess
*** (-1 star) Adrian Frost
** (New) Mario Eras
* (-1 star) Rafael Fernandez
Oakland Athletics
*** (New) Dennis Sanguillen (DH)
** (No change) Orlando Perez (SP)
* (New) Norris Barton (SP)
Seattle Mariners
*** (New) Juan Serrano (3B)
Tampa Bay Rays
*** (New) Hadde Leider (RF)
*** (+1 star) Terrence Henderson (1B)
** (-1 star) Claudio Aviles (SP)
** (No change) Brian Merrit (2B)
Texas Rangers
Badenho’s last two years are team options, so no Texan albatross sightings this year.
Toronto Blue Jays
The Jays did not trade me Pierre Boucher. Therefore they will not receive the high honor of being on my Albatross List. HOW DOES THAT TASTE?!?!
* A great contract. No need to worry.
** Has some downside, but could make you look pretty smart.
*** A few red flags that could go either way.
**** This contract may be having a negative impact on the team.
***** Severe Albatross potential on every level.
Baltimore Orioles
***** (+1 star) Ed Ward (SP)
- $25 Mill through 2046.
- $13 Mill team option in 2047 with a $3.5 Mil buyout.
- $15 Mill team option in 2048 with a $3.5 Mil buyout.
- The biggest mystery facing the league this year is whether or not the injury rate reduction makes Wrecked starters viable again. My best guess is that Ward’s a reliever, at best, from here on out.
*** (New) Randolph Cashman (LF
- $18.5 Mill through 2046.
- $8.5 Mill team option in 2047 with a $3 Mil buyout.
- I like him better as a platooning DH than as a starting outfielder. I think Baltimore might be a bit disappointed by him when (if?) they get a full season of play out of him. I call a .230 batting season for the dude.
** (New) Jesus Gonzalez (2B)
- $51 Mill through 2048.
- $11 Mill team option in 2049 with a $5 Mil buyout.
- Injuries have greatly reduced his playing time in recent years. I think this contract says a little about the scarcity of middle infielders in free agency. I do like that the contract is front-loaded, though.
Boston Red Sox
***** (+2 stars) Thomas Kimball (CL)
- $29 Mill through 2047.
- $9 Mill player option in 2048.
- Has pitched a total of 92 innings over the past 2 years. That’s unacceptable from a guy who is supposed to be a key part of your rotation. The best hope for the Sox at this point might be a Jimmy Smith-like retirement.
**** (New) Carlos Sims (SP)
- $23 Mill through 2046.
- $13.5 Mill player option in 2047.
- I’m all for buying lottery tickets. You see a guy with Sims’s skills, it’s hard not to want to take a flyer on whether he’ll be ready to play in 2046. This is some high risk, high reward stuff, right here.
*** (New) Zach Porter (SP)
- $40 Mill through 2046.
- $16 Mill player option in 2047..
- There’s been a 5 mph drop on his pitch speed in the past two years. He’s got the makeup for a successful run in Boston, but if the life on his fastball is slipping away he could be a disappointment.
** (New) Cesar Gomez (SP)
- $23 Mill through 2046.
- $8.5 Mill team option in 2047 with a $2.3 Mil buyout.
- It’s hard to resist the allure of a guy who routinely hits for .300 plus. If he can somehow stay healthy he’s a nice piece to have. But he hasn’t broken the 85 games started barrier in four years.
Chicago White Sox
* (No change) Bruce Peak (C)
- $7.5 Mill through 2045.
- $6.5 Mill player option in 2046.
- The White Sox have been running their organization on a shoestring budget. Frankly, I’m kind of surprised they haven’t put Peak on the block to save some cash. Could be a useful trade chip.
Cleveland Indians
** (+1 star) Jason Royal (SP)
- $38.5 Mill through 2046.
- $19.25 Mill player option in 2047.
- In the past he has shown the tendency to have rough years like he did in 2044 where he couldn’t keep the ball in the park. He also has a pattern of bouncing back. I wouldn’t bet against him rebounding again
** (New) Jose Rivera (DH)
- $40 Mill through 2046.
- $20 Mill vesting option in 2047 after 500 PAs..
- Promised Position: Starting Lineup
- I don’t begrudge the Indians this signing, but whenever I see a small market team let a guy like Rivera drift to free agency instead of trading him I shed a single tear. I get emotional that way.
Colorado Rockies
**** (New) Jerome Reynolds (DH)
- $32.35 Mill through 2046.
- $13.5 Mill team option in 2047 with a $3.35 Mill buyout.
- Why extend a guy who has been hovering around the Mendoza line for the past three years? That’s a real good question. Frankly, I can’t determine a reason why he’s batting so badly. Which means that maybe it could just stop? Maybe? I might be a moron.
*** (New) Pepe De Jesus (SP/RP)
- $35.6 Mill through 2047.
- I’m going to level with everyone. When two of my best starters imploded last year without any discernable reasons why, I went a little crazy. I woke up from a fugue state and De Jesus was just on my team.
** (New) William King (SP)
- $25 Mill through 2047.
- Admittedly, he’s borderline, but I still think he has what it takes to start. And if I’ve guessed right, these guys with high control can pitch forever.
Detroit Tigers
***** (New) Jorge Siador (SP)
- $228 Mill through 2050.
- $38 Mill player option in 2052.
- Last year in this space I wrote that for Detroit it was, “TIME TO GIVE SOMEONE 100 MILLION DOLLARS!” Well, I mean, I didn’t think anyone would listen to me! No one ever has in the past!
Houston Astros
*** (New) Andy Hebart (1B)
- $92 Mill through 2049.
- Player opt-out after 2049 season.
- $38 Mill through 2051.
- $19 Mill player option in 2052.
- He’s been legitimately great. But the fact is I don’t think the rest of the Houston team is ready to compete. And I don’t know if any team is going to want to pay sticker price for Andy in a trade.
Kansas City Royals
I propose the Siador Rule, where no one can have an overall player budget less than one year of Jorge Siador’s salary.
Los Angeles Angels
**** (+2 stars) Ki-Nam Im (SP)
- $27.5 Mill through 2046.
- $14 Mill team option in 2047 with a $3.5 Mill buyout.
- Last year was a terrible outing for the man who was supposed to be at the top of the Angel’s rotation (if not the ace). I guess I don't have anything else to day about that.
*** (New) Hoshi Nakashima (SP)
- $61.71 Mill through 2047.
- $20.57 Mill team option in 2048 with a $5.1425 Mill buyout.
- $20.57 Mill team option in 2049 with a $5.1425 Mill buyout.
- Promised Role: Starting Pitcher
- I won’t pretend I did make the guy an offer. It’s hard to lay off these international players. But man, at the end of the day you can’t deny that he’s in possession of the averege-est pitch selection imaginable.
* (No change) Carlos Martinez (CL)
- $30 Mill through 2046.
- Damn he’s good. How do you even approach 3 WAR as a reliever? That is legitimately supernatural.
* (New) Shawn Palmer (SP)
- $25 Mill through 2046.
- $12.5 player option in 2047.
- A great signing, even if his UCL is currently torn. You know what I always say: Close the deal while they still have low self-esteem.
Minnesota Twins
*** (No change) Scott Gaines (LF)
- $41.7 Mill through 2047.
- $13.9 Mill team option in 2048 with a $3.475 Mill buyout.
- $13.9 Mill team option in 2049 with a $3.475 Mill buyout.
- The power is definitely still there. But it’s becoming clearer that he shouldn’t be playing against lefty pithers. He’s become a liability against them.
** (New) Joe Aitcheson (RF)
- $55.6 Mill through 2048.
- He’s got some boring traditional skills like speed and defense, but the things that really get me interested are his weird abilities. Who else has a combination of absurdly low strikeouts and abnormally high triples? What a weird dude.
New York Yankess
*** (-1 star) Adrian Frost
- $100 Mill through 2047.
- Player opt out after 2047.
- $50 Mill through 2049.
- $25 Mill team option in 2050 with a $10 Mill buyout.
- $25 Mill team option in 2051 with a $10 Mill buyout.
- I thought the extravagance of this contract would never be beaten. Then Jorge Siador walked into my life. Frosty, you’re old news!
** (New) Mario Eras
- $50.5 Mill through 2048.
- Made a tremendous leap last year, but I’m skeptical that he can do it again. That may well have been a career high. I can already tell I’m going to regret this comment next year.
* (-1 star) Rafael Fernandez
- $41.28 Mill through 2048.
- $10.32 Mill player option in 2049.
- This contract is looking better and better. A 1.15 WHIP in 32 starts is nothing to sneeze at.
Oakland Athletics
*** (New) Dennis Sanguillen (DH)
- $37.5 Mill through 2047.
- $12.5 Mill team option in 2048 with a $3,125 Mill buyout.
- Promised Posiition: Starting Pitcher.
- Was, probably, the second best starter on the free agent market who didn’t come with a compensation pick cost. I don’t like how his HR/9 have been trending recently, but pitching at Alemeda County Coliseum should help.
** (No change) Orlando Perez (SP)
- $33 Mill through 2046.
- Still one of the best around. But it’s time to face the fact that he’s probably only going to pitch half of the year. He’ll be perfect for that half a year, but still.
* (New) Norris Barton (SP)
- $132 Mill through 2050.
- $22 Mill team option in 2051 with a $5.5 Mill buyout.
- $22 Mill team option in 2052 with a $5.5 Mill buyout.
- This is what it costs to extend a Cy Young winner. It’s a lot, but in the end it’s hard to imagine the A’s regretting this contract. I, on the other hand, regret it immediately.
Seattle Mariners
*** (New) Juan Serrano (3B)
- $104 Mill through 2050.
- Player opt out after 2050.
- $18 Mill through 2051.
- He’s getting paid like a .300 hitter, but I have serious doubts. Admittedly he was a bright spot in the Mariner lineup, but this is smells like an overpay me.
Tampa Bay Rays
*** (New) Hadde Leider (RF)
- $57.96 Mill through 2051.
- $8.28 Mill team option in 2052 with a $2.5 Mill buyout.
- This is about the right price, but anything can happen over 7 long years. And the power outage he’s been experience the past 2 years is concerning
*** (+1 star) Terrence Henderson (1B)
- $78 Mill through 2048.
- Would have been fine, except that he batted .183 against left handers last year. If you’re a team that can afford to have a platoon bat that costs an arm and a leg, you might want to contact TB.
** (-1 star) Claudio Aviles (SP)
- $16 Mill through 2046.
- If he can just lead the league in BABIP every year, he’s gonna be fine. That’s a thing that happens a lot, right?
** (No change) Brian Merrit (2B)
- $19.62 Mill through 2046.
- Still holding strong, except his defense is becoming increasingly suspect. He doesn’t move much from second base anyway, but now there really isn’t much of an option.
Texas Rangers
Badenho’s last two years are team options, so no Texan albatross sightings this year.
Toronto Blue Jays
The Jays did not trade me Pierre Boucher. Therefore they will not receive the high honor of being on my Albatross List. HOW DOES THAT TASTE?!?!