2012/2013 MLB Offseason Thread

[9 to 5]

Are you my ex?

[Ananas]

Braves acquire Jordan Walden from the Angels for Tommy Hanson. And I know Atlanta has pitching depth to spare and all, but really? Angels did really well. Ervin Santana out, Tommy Hanson in. Now imagine if they can get Greinke to come back.

[Maxx]

Why would they trade for Walden when they already have Kimbrel? Their bullpen wasn't that desperate, was it?

[Ananas]

Save some $$ on avoiding taking Hanson to arbitration after opening the vault for Upton? Or they're concerned with Hanson's shoulder going forward maybe. I dunno, I get the trade for LAA but I can't figure out the Braves side. They don't just have Kimbrel, they've got Venters and O'Flaherty too. Maybe a replacement for Chad Durbin? No way Walden closes ahead of Kimbrel obviously. I just think some front offices over value bullpen arms.

[thatshortguy]

Why would they trade for Walden when they already have Kimbrel? Their bullpen wasn't that desperate, was it?

It's an odd move, but...

Save some $ on avoiding taking Hanson to arbitration after opening the vault for Upton? Or they're concerned with Hanson's shoulder going forward maybe. I dunno, I get the trade for LAA but I can't figure out the Braves side. They don't just have Kimbrel, they've got Venters and O'Flaherty too. Maybe a replacement for Chad Durbin? No way Walden closes ahead of Kimbrel obviously. I just think some front offices over value bullpen arms.

...I think Durbin is on the way out. This strikes me as something we don't know...but Wren & Co. do. Hanson I have no problems seeing go, as he strikes me as a poor man's Kevin Millwood (flashes of talent, but not quite there during his time with Atlanta).

[naiwf]

It appears that A-Rod needs hip surgery again. It looks like any chance he ever had at catching Bonds is pretty much done now.

[gunnar hendershow]

Dammit, that sucks, best thing that could happen to the Yankees is not having him out there for as long as possible.

[Maxx]

Napoli to the Red Sox on a 3 year deal. Love it.

[gunnar hendershow]

Every OF free agent has to thank their lucky stars that Hamilton is a FA this year. Boston just got 32-year-old Shane Victorino for 3 years/39 mil. Wow. And this on the heels of the player-friendly deal Pagan got.

Looking forward to Bourn getting 5 years/70 mil.

[Ananas]

The Rays have traded James Shields, Wade Davis and a PTBNL to the Royals for Wil Myers, Jake Odorizzi, Mike Montgomery and Humberto Arteaga. Holy shit that's a high price tag for Shields.

[gunnar hendershow]

KC gave up waaaaaaaayyyy too much. They have Shields for 2 years and just sold basically any hope they had of building a winner for him. Tampa does it again though. They know how to retool better than anyone.

[The Buscher]

That Royals trade is indefensible. The Tigers' window appeared to be closing after 2014 (Verlander, V-Mart, Hunter, etc. all hitting free agency plus Cabrera and Fielder being 30+). They gave up 6 years of team control of the best hitting prospect in baseball for a guy who will be leaving right when the time to strike in the AL Central arrives.

I know they've been bad for a long time as is, but 2015 is really the year the Royals should have been targeting.

[gunnar hendershow]

That Royals trade is indefensible. The Tigers' window appeared to be closing after 2014 (Verlander, V-Mart, Hunter, etc. all hitting free agency plus Cabrera and Fielder being 30+). They gave up 6 years of team control of the best hitting prospect in baseball for a guy who will be leaving right when the time to strike in the AL Central arrives.

I know they've been bad for a long time as is, but 2015 is really the year the Royals should have been targeting.

It has to do with selling fans on now though. They've brought up a lot of prospects over the last few years and couldn't excite the fanbase. It stinks of a desperation deal to try and sell tickets. The Orioles did this for years trying to convince us that "this year we're trying, we mean it" and the team still sucked. That's where the Royals are, and it's a hard cycle to get out of. It takes longer to build a team than fans generally have patience.

[DMN in the House]

Is Greinke a Dodger yet?

[Powerhart]

Yepp. Magic just announced it on Twitter.

[Maxx]

I never thought we'd see a team spend more than the Yankees, but the Dodgers are going to put them to shame.

[gunnar hendershow]

We're gonna live in a world where both LA teams, Boston, Philadelphia, and Detroit might all have higher payrolls than the Yankees. Hal might second-guess his stance on the luxury tax.

[Ananas]

Are we all in agreement that next year's AL East will have the greatest single division assemblage of talent in modern baseball history? The Jays spent funny money to bring almost all of the good Marlins plus Melky, the Red Sox added Napoli and Victorino and seem to be aiming at adding pitching, the Orioles' decline is likely to be minor given a full season of Manny Machado and the inevitable starting debut of Dylan Bundy, the Rays just added the best power prospect in baseball who is MLB ready while picking up an above average shortstop and have the depth to replace Shields respectably, and the Yankees are still the Yankees. This division is nuckin futs.

[gunnar hendershow]

Assuming Anibal Sanchez winds up in Boston we're looking at a total war in the division where injuries might decide everything. Excited that the O's have finally put things together (except, maybe, starting pitching), but disappointed it has to happen at a time when the whole division is loaded. Really, the healthiest team might be the one who wins the division.

[Gabriel]

It's going to be so much fun to watch the AL East this year. I'm not going to get too excited for the Jays, because every off-season it looks like we're going to do better, and end up falling short... but this looks like the one division where it wouldn't be a huge shocker for anyone to come out on top. It should be pretty even right until October, unless injuries decimate one or two of the teams.