Post by MetDaMeats on Sept 10, 2020 10:17:12 GMT -5
Arizona Diamondbacks
*** (New) Naoki Masanobu (1B)
Atlanta Braves
**** (No change) Alberto Ramirez (RP)
*** (New) Carlos Costello (SS)
*** (New) Ray Dickey (SP)
* (-2 stars) Bruce Boyer (2B)
Carolina Warhounds
** (New) Sifaks Ben Hassi (1B)
Chicago Cubs
** (-1 star) Juan Garcia (SP)
** (-1 star) Juan Silva (CF)
Cincinnati Reds
**** (No change) Gerald Callahan (CF)
*** (No change) Miguel Valentin (2B)
** (No change) Hisamitsu Kanegawa (DH)
Los Angeles Dodgers
***** (+1 star) Jason Jenkins (1B)
*** (No change) Jim Tuttle (SP)
Miami Marlins
* (-1 star) Robert Hall (3B)
* (No change) Wen Zhui (SP)
Milwaukee Brewers
* (No change) Jose Nunez (SP)
Montreal Expos
** (No change) Johnny Smith (2B)
New York Mets
***** (No change) Jorge Molina (2B)
Philadelphia Phillies
***** (+2 stars) Dan Turner (LF)
***** (+1 star) Fred Caballero (RP)
**** (+2 stars) Octavio Macias (2B)
*** (No change) Henry Alexander (SP)
Pittsburgh Pirates
**** (+1 star) Dave Peterson (LF)
San Diego Padres
*** (No change) Kata Okada (DH)
*** (No change) Taro Takahashi (2B)
* (No change) Jim King (SP)
* (No change) Manny Sanchez (SP)
San Francisco Giants
***** (+1 star) Dana Brassard (SS)
** (New) Enrique Vazquez (SP)
** (New) Pedro Perez (SP)
* (New) Alfonso Salgado (3B)
* (No change) Jake Moore (SP)
St. Louis Cardinals
Roberto Serrano is eating a lot of cash this season, but as of right now the Cardinals have an Albatross free future.
Washington Nationals
*** (New) Alonso Bravo (SP)
** (New) Tony Padilla (CF)
* (No change) Julian Robles (SP)
* (New) Raymond Page (1B)
*** (New) Naoki Masanobu (1B)
- $15.8 Mill through 2056.
- Player opt out after 2056.
- $15.8 Mill through 2057.
- Promised role: Starting Lineup.
- Last year, Arizona’s big payroll expenditure was John Ross. He had a strong year and got traded for a selection of prospects and a first rounder. My instinct is that Masanobu will have a similar tenure in Arizona if he can repeat the career year he had in 2055. When you’re a small market team sometimes you have to spend with the hope of selling those assets later on.
Atlanta Braves
**** (No change) Alberto Ramirez (RP)
- $10 Mill through 2056.
- $10 Mill player option in 2057.
- Pitched some solid relief, and leaned on a strong 11.2 K/9 to get himself out of trouble. His WHIP dropped from 1.75 in 2054 to 1.19 the following year. But I have to feel a lot of that was luck. And you don’t want to be paying 7 figures to a reliever you can’t rely on.
*** (New) Carlos Costello (SS)
- $28.4 Mill through 2058.
- $8.32 Mill player option in 2059
- $2 Mill MVP award bonus.
- Between Carlos Costello and Bruce Boyer, I’m getting the feeling that Atlanta is trying to prove that players who hit for average are undervalued in the league. I’m not entirely sure if it’s true, but these ideas intrigue me and I wish to subscribe to their newsletter.
*** (New) Ray Dickey (SP)
- $38.5 Mill through 2058.
- $11.5 team option in 2059 with a $3.75 Mill buyout.
- If you wanted a proven starting pitcher (who wouldn’t cost a compensation pick) from this free agency, then Ray Dickey was your man. According to his BNN page, Dickey is approximately 6’ 1”. This means that I can’t legitimately start calling him Little Dickey. But lets all take a moment to acknowledge how fun that would have been.
* (-2 stars) Bruce Boyer (2B)
- $74 Mill through 2057.
- $30 Mill player option in 2058
- Promised role: Starting lineup.
- $6 Mill MVP award bonus.
- $2 Mill All star award bonus.
- Oh wow. That was real close. If Alfonso Salgado hadn’t gone on his crazy 2055 MVP run, the award was Boyer’s for the taking. That would have been an extra $6 Million out of Atlanta’s pocket in addition to an already hefty contract. However, it’s hard to argue that getting their first division win and playoff berth in 7 years wasn’t worth the expense.
Carolina Warhounds
** (New) Sifaks Ben Hassi (1B)
- $47.5 Mill through 2058.
- Player opt out after 2058.
- $87.5 through 2063.
- $17.5 Mill player option in 2064.
- Everyone’s favorite Rule V draft pick finally gets the contract of his dreams! Except… Hassi will be 31 in his opt out year. Maybe by that point he’ll be thinking that $17.5 per year is a little underwhelming. I mean, he did lead the NL in WAR just 2 seasons ago. In theory, his contract could double if he hit free agency… A lot depends on his next 3 years of production.
Chicago Cubs
** (-1 star) Juan Garcia (SP)
- $49 Mill through 2058.
- $17 Mill team option in 2059 with a $4.75 Mill buyout.
- $17 Mill team option in 2060 with a $4.75 Mill buyout.
- Garcia is a workhorse. Not flashy, but reliable. You prefer not to pay retail for a player like that, but you can’t be too annoyed when you do.
** (-1 star) Juan Silva (CF)
- $64 Mill through 2059.
- You know, I’m not a fan of pyramid players. What do I mean by that? Well, sometimes when you look at a player’s skills you’ll see a pyramid form from low contact/avoid K’s, middling gap/eye, and high power. Silva is one of those guys. But he also goes to show that if your high power is high enough, the lower ends of the pyramid don’t really matter.
Cincinnati Reds
**** (No change) Gerald Callahan (CF)
- $158.56 Mill through 2059.
- $1.5 Mill MVP award bonus.
- I get the feeling that Gerald doesn’t like playing in Cincinnati. Personally, I’ve never been there. I’ve only driven past it at speed. From what I saw from the highway I can’t really blame him. In any case, with the kind of money he’s getting it’s not likely that he’ll be playing elsewhere any time soon.
*** (No change) Miguel Valentin (2B)
- $42.64 Mill through 2057.
- As a shortstop he was expensive. As a second baseman, he’s officially overpaid. Also, he’s kind of a jerk. Also, he smells. Also, he lives in a tree house. Some of my complaints about him may be fictional but I’ll leave you to figure out which ones.
** (No change) Hisamitsu Kanegawa (DH)
- $26 Mill player option in 2057.
- $13 Mill team option in 2058 with a $3.25 Mill buyout.
- Promised role: Starting lineup.
- $2 Mill MVP award bonus.
- Yet another guy on the list of star Reds players who seem to be going through a bout of depression. But unlike Gerald Callahan, Kanegawa’s contract is still quite tradable, even at 39.
Los Angeles Dodgers
***** (+1 star) Jason Jenkins (1B)
- $30 Mill through 2057.
- $15 Mill team option in 2058 with a $4 Mill buyout.
- $16 Mill team option in 2059 with a $4 Mill buyout.
- 34% of his hits were homeruns last year. Unfortunately, he played minimal innings and only had 79 hits. That, and a .208 average will make you a replacement level player.
*** (No change) Jim Tuttle (SP)
- $32 Mill through 2057.
- $16 Mill team option in 2058 with a $4 Mill buyout.
- $16 Mill team option in 2059 with a $4 Mill buyout.
- Promised role: Starting pitcher.
- I don’t have a lot to say about Tuttle, but I am mildly impressed that he’s still suspended for a brawl that happened during last year’s playoffs. That’s actually a little badass. In a Kobra Kai kind of way.
Miami Marlins
* (-1 star) Robert Hall (3B)
- $45 Mill through 2058.
- $15 Mill team option in 2059 with a $3.75 Mill buyout.
- My name is Robert Hall, and I hate you one and all. I hate you one and all. Damn your eyes!
* (No change) Wen Zhui (SP)
- $58 Mill through 2059.
- $14.5 Mill player option in 2060.
- Certain contracts demand certain levels of performance. If you give a man $40 million for one season of work, that work better be a masterpiece of baseball excellence. Zhui hasn’t been exceptional since coming to Miami but with the contract he’s signed to, Miami can afford for him to be merely above average.
Milwaukee Brewers
* (No change) Jose Nunez (SP)
- $21 Mill through 2057.
- Last year was, without question, the best year of Nunez’s career. Honestly, he’s just here as a formality. The Brewers aren’t spending any long-term money until they have their young superstars (Jorge Salazar, Kenny Ibarra, Bill White) locked down or traded for a profit. I know their M.O. pretty well.
Montreal Expos
** (No change) Johnny Smith (2B)
- $62.6 Mill through 2060.
- Player opt out after 2060.
- $30 Mill through 2062.
- Johnny Boy played some thoroughly average second base last year. For him, that’s a best case scenario. Unfortunately, his bat was thoroughly average as well. That wasn’t part of the plan. I think the Expos would probably trade in a little defensive efficiency for the kind of hitting (regularly averaging above .300) he was doing in the minors.
New York Mets
***** (No change) Jorge Molina (2B)
- $13.45 Mill paid by San Diego through 2057.
- $40.65 Mill paid by the Mets through 2057.
- Again, just want to clarify, Jorge Molina is not a New York Metropolitan. He is in San Diego, staying classy, drinking milk on hot days, and watching his dog eat a whole wheel of cheese.
Philadelphia Phillies
***** (+2 stars) Dan Turner (LF)
- $197 Mill through 2060
- Promised Role: Starting Lineup.
- NO TRADE CLAUSE.
- Turner isn’t washed up, by any stretch of the imagination. But the Phillies have devoted such a huge portion of their payroll to him that any sign of deteriorating skills is cause for extreme alarm. I’m going full red alert until he has a season where he bats above .250.
***** (+1 star) Fred Caballero (RP)
- $64.6 Mill through 2057.
- Young talent, recent signings, and all around poor pitching have relegated Fred to the bullpen. It’s a tough way to go out. He’ll just have to rely on his mountains of cash to console him through this difficult time.
**** (+2 stars) Octavio Macias (2B)
- $58 Mill through 2057.
- $30 Mill player option in 2058.
- His 2054 performance was always going to be difficult to replicate. So its not all that surprising that in 2055 he regressed in nearly every measurable stat. The problem is how much he’s regressed in average (from .281 to .231), OBP (from .401 to .329) and slugging (.458 to .380). I’m probably overreacting here, but it’s a real concern.
*** (No change) Henry Alexander (SP)
- $160.2 Mill through 2062.
- $28.07 Mill team option in 2063 with a $8.6 Mill buyout.
- When you look back at Henry’s history as a pitcher you see some notably bad seasons peppered throughout his career. He’s a streaky guy and he gets in ruts. I would bet on him pulling out of it this year but he’ll never be completely reliable.
Pittsburgh Pirates
**** (+1 star) Dave Peterson (LF)
- $40 Mill through 2056.
- $40 Mill player option in 2057.
- I’ve always liked ole Dave. It takes a special guy to put up 4 WAR while batting .242. Last year he led the NL in walks with an impressive 123. But people don’t sign $40 million contracts for neat secondary tools. So I want to take a moment to appreciate all the little things Dave brings to the table before I acknowledge that he’s heading into some severe Albatross territory.
San Diego Padres
*** (No change) Kata Okada (DH)
- $100 Mill through 2060.
- $20 Mill team option in 2061 with a $5 Mill buyout.
- $20 Mill team option in 2062 with a $5 Mill buyout.
- It’s the second year in a row that Kata has put up less than impressive totals because he spent over a month on the DL. In all honesty, I don’t understand what’s happening to him. DH is the safest position you can play. Is he doing some dangerously aggressive baserunning? He still has all the talent in the world, but he’s got to stop hurling himself into the catcher when he dives for home, I guess.
*** (No change) Taro Takahashi (2B)
- $94 Mill through 2060.
- $19 Mill player option in 2061.
- Takahashi is, in almost all respects, an identical player to Bruce Boyer. As such, I can’t really justify upping his rating due to one bad year. However, note that I said almost all respects. The two players have one major difference: Taro is a truly terrible second baseman. Having a -14.1 ZR is near criminal. But where else do you put him when Nelson Parker plays a strong first, and DH belongs to Kata Okada?
* (No change) Jim King (SP)
- $60 Mill through 2057.
- Player opt out after 2057.
- $60 Mill through 2059.
- $30 Mill player option in 2060.
- Jim pitch. Jim pitch good. Me write blurb about Jim pitch good. Me bored by blurb. Me try absurdist self-referential humor. Me unimpressed by me. You unimpressed by me. Albatross list fail.
* (No change) Manny Sanchez (SP)
- $99.008 Mill through 2060.
- $18 Mill team option in 2061 with a $5 Mill buyout.
- $18 Mill team option in 2062 with a $5 Mill buyout.
- You think there’s conflict in the Padres locker room? Jim King is sitting off in the corner, polishing his Cy Young award. Then Sanchez walks by carrying all three of his Cy Youngs. Their eyes meet for a momentary glance of shared hatred. Somewhere in the distance, a man with a potbelly spits a sunflower seed in the dirt. And then the moment passes.
San Francisco Giants
***** (+1 star) Dana Brassard (SS)
- $36 Mill through 2057.
- Well, since his contract is coming to a close, Brassard won’t be on this list next year. But he’s spending his last year as an Albatross in the most ignominious way possible: DL’d with a torn knee ligament. That’s rough.
** (New) Enrique Vazquez (SP)
- $70 Mill through 2057.
- $35 Mill team option in 2058 with a $9 Mill buyout.
- Promised role: Starting Lineup.
- Being back in SF must have agreed with Vazquez. Admittedly, he’s only ever had one mediocre season in his entire career (2054) so a bounce back isn’t exactly that surprising. Normally contracts above $25 million give me pause but with pitchers like Enrique that’s just the price you have to pay for their service.
** (New) Pedro Perez (SP)
- $57 Mill through 2059.
- $12 Mill team option in 2060 with a $4.5 Mill buyout.
- $12 Mill team option in 2061 with a $4.5 Mill buyout.
- Pedro is decidedly streaky. Since becoming a full-time starter he’s had two solid seasons (2051 and 2054) and three decidedly poor seasons (2052, 2053 & 2055). Maybe he’ll have better luck on the west coast. If he does have a strong 2056, his contract becomes immediate trade bait since it’s very front-loaded.
* (New) Alfonso Salgado (3B)
- $148.8 Mill through 2062.
- $24.5 Mill team option in 2063 with a $6.7 Mill buyout.
- $24.5 Mill team option in 2064 with a $6.7 Mill buyout.
- I’m proud of my tenure as the manager of the Rockies. I think I’ve taken good care of that team an made some solid moves which can be directly related to our success. However, in 2047 I traded Alfonso Salgado to Kansas City for a closer. In my defense A) he was a good closer, B) Alfonso was a long way off from being viable and C) Alfonso took a developmental leap that I didn’t anticipate. With all that in mind, I am forced admit what a gawd-awful trade that was. Gawd-awful.
* (No change) Jake Moore (SP)
- $76.5 Mill through 2060.
- $15 Mill team option in 2061 with a $5 Mill buyout.
- $15 Mill team option in 2062 with a $5 Mill buyout.
- $1.25 Mill bonus for 180 IP.
- It’s always dangerous to bet against the Padres in the NL West, but man, San Francisco’s starting pitchers are looking real strong this year. Enrique Vazquez, Mel Lultz and Moore make for a nasty 1-2-3. I wouldn’t want to see them in the playoffs.
St. Louis Cardinals
Roberto Serrano is eating a lot of cash this season, but as of right now the Cardinals have an Albatross free future.
Washington Nationals
*** (New) Alonso Bravo (SP)
- $48 Mill through 2059.
- Bravo is the kind of guy who is living proof that I have no idea what I’m doing. If you asked me, I’d tell you there was no way a guy with such supbar movement could be a viable starting pitcher. And yet, year after year he proves me wrong.
** (New) Tony Padilla (CF)
- $33 Mill through 2057.
- $18 Mill team option in 2058 with a $4.5 Mill buyout.
- Tony’s best seasons may be behind him, but he is a strong bat with impressive defense at the centerfield position now that Chris Allen is going to have to move to corner outfield.
* (No change) Julian Robles (SP)
- $114 Mill through 2059.
- He is about as consistent as a starter can be. Seriously. Look through each of his pitching stats. They barely alternate each season. He just marches forward, unyielding, unstoppable. He’s like the terminator.
* (New) Raymond Page (1B)
- $30 Mill through 2057.
- $15 Mill team option in 2058 with a $3.75 Mill buyout.
- $1 Mill MVP award bonus.
- I think this is a good moment to consider Page’s Hall of Fame resume. Although he’s always been one of the best batters around, he rarely tops any year-end lists. He led the league in runs four times and triples (?!?) three times. If you made lists of the top 10 players in the PBL every year, I think he would have been on that list consistently this past 15 years. I think that counts for something, even if he usually was part of the lower end of the upper tier.