MLB Update: Baseball Never Sleeps
December 15, 2008 • written by John Miller
Even though the baseball season has come to an end, it doesn’t mean that their still aren’t plenty of things happening during this off-season. With the Winter Meetings in Las Vegas wrapping up, lots of things are going on. There were plenty of questions going in to the Winter Meetings, such as where will pitcher C.C. Sabathia end up? Where will Francisco Rodriguez end up? Who will be traded? You could argue that the winter for baseball is almost as fun as opening day, with so many things happening; you never know what to expect.
Well, C.C. Sabathia, who was traded from the Indians to the Brewers last year, decided to sign with the “Evil Empire,” the New York Yankees on Wednesday. The deal is for 7 years and 161 million dollars, which is the biggest contract ever given to a Pitcher. With the Yankees freeing up 80 something million dollars this winter in expiring contracts, they have enough money to go out and sign the best players available for maximum dollars. The Yankees are reportedly now offering free agent pitcher and former Blue Jay A.J. Burnett a five year offer, but he has yet to sign with them or anybody else. One thing for sure about the Yankees, they will always have the money to go out and sign who ever they want.
K-Rod aka Francisco Rodriguez has found a new home also. The former Angel, who holds the single season record for most saves, has signed a 3 year 37 million dollar contract with the New York Mets. Last month, the agent for Rodriguez was saying that they were expecting contracts for about 5 or 6 years in the 75 million dollar range. With so many closers on the free agent market this year, Rodriguez’ services weren’t in very high demand, so he had to take fewer years and money then he was expecting. Now that the Mets have found a closer, they are reportedly looking for a middle reliever to give more stability to their bullpen. The Mets were the second worst team in blown saves last year, having blown just one less game then the Cardinals.
Our team, the Minnesota Twins, have yet to do anything this winter…surprise! That’s normal for the Twins, because they usually build their team from within by developing prospects. The Twins are looking to fill a hole on the left side of their infield, either at third base or shortstop. They were interested in the likes of Casey Blake, but he ended up signing a three year deal with the Dodgers. So we, the Twins fans, are in a wait and see what happens kind of mood.
Inside the Twins division, the AL Central, other teams, unlike the Twins, are looking to make moves. The Tigers’ have traded for Texas Ranger backup catcher Gerald Laird for two prospect. They have also signed former Twin Adam Everett to a one year deal. The White Sox have traded Pitcher Javier Vasquez to the Braves for a couple of prospects. They are also looking into trading Jermaine Dye to the Reds for Homer Bailey, but that deal has yet to happen. The bottom dwellers of the AL Central, the Royals, are interested in signing free agent shortstop and former Dodger, Rafael Furcal.
With so much time left this winter for free agent signings and trades between teams, we will see what happens. There is definitely more to come with free agents such as All-Star first Baseman, Mark Teixeira and future Hall of Famer Manny Ramirez still on the market. Those two guys will definitely get the money they are asking for even in these times when money is tight. There are many more free agents then just these players, and I will do my best to keep you posted with updates on the latest MLB News.
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