Napoli does not remain a Jay for long

Exactly four days after acquiring him from Los Angeles in the big Vernon Wells trade, the Toronto Blue Jays forced Mike Napoli to change his uniform again, this time to the Texas Rangers' blue and white. The Jays were able to make another acquisition, picking up reliever and closer Frank Fransisco. Fransisco owned a 3.76 ERA last season, and in six seasons, he has been able to post 32 saves, with 25 of those in 2009. Meanwhile, as I said very recently, Napoli was able to put up his best home-run season with 26, though his average dropped to .238. I guess this answers some of the questions I had earlier. For instance, maybe the Jays only wanted to pick Napoli up if they could immediately ship him back out for a good reliever. Also, I can't understand why Texas would want Napoli. After all, they want someone proven in the postseason. Well, I suppose Napoli is proven, just proven in the wrong way, with only 2 homers and a .194 average in four Octobers with the Angels. Meanwhile, Fransisco has never played a postseason game, so he could be good or could be bad. But then, the way the Jays have played in recent years, we might not find out this season.

Trivia
Napoli has hit both of his bombs and knocked in all four of his RBIs in the postseason in just one season: 2008, when the Angels lost.

Johnny and Manny come back together

Johnny Damon and Manny Ramirez, two of Boston's greatest hitters in 2004, have reunited, according to a major league source. The pair both signed one-year pacts with Tampa Bay, a new nemesis of Boston. Manny appears to be declining, as he only whacked 9 homers last year in 90 games while only managing a .261 average, well below his .313 lifetime pace. However, Tampa could be all set if they coax one more great year out of Ramirez. On another line, why would they sign him? This is obviously going to be a rebuilding year, with Garza and Crawford gone. What's the point of signing Mr. Manny being Manny? Also, who can forget his big suspension for steroids? Who likes Manny now? Even Boston fans have pushed him out of their mind.

Damon fell to a .271 BA with only 8 homers. Again, this guy was a monster in his prime, but now, he's old. The 37-year old will have another chance with a third AL East team. It seems like Johnny likes postseason teams. Red Sox win, then Yankees who stay in the postseason, now Rays, who won the AL East last year. The only good thing about Johnny is the fact that he managed to leg out 5 triples and steal 11 bases last season, keeping some resemblance of his old speed.

There are two more big pieces of news in baseball. As the first, Billy Butler, a 24-year-old Kansas City Royal, accepted a four-year contract from KC. Butler managed to put up a .318 average and nail 15 homers for another terrible KC team. Maybe the Royals hope that this young guy can help them climb out of the second division.

The final piece of news is one of the biggest. The Toronto Blue Jays got rid of their icon, their highest paid player, and their major star. One person. Here's a hint: He will earn $21.5 million over the next four years. Still no? Vernon Wells, the poster boy for Toronto, was handed to the LA Angels in exchange for Mike Napoli and Juan Rivera. Why on earth would you agree to trade a great guy for two mediocre players? Other then money, I mean. Napoli only had a .238 pace last season, with a career-high in homers, 26, and a career high in strikeouts, with 137. I bet the two are related. Meanwhile, Rivera only managed a .252 clip with 15 bombs. On the other side, Wells posted his third All-Star season and competed in the Home-Run Derby. He finished the year with 31 homers and a .273 BA. He also laced 44 doubles. Well, the Jays will have more signing room in the years to come, but Toronto appears to have joined the Rays in a rebuilding year.

Trivia
Wells's 44 doubles last season was his second-most.

Soriano defects to Yanks

Rays closer Rafael Soriano decided to accept a one-year contract from New York. Soriano, who led the league with 45 saves last year, will join Mariano Rivera in the Yankees bullpen. I understand why the Yankees would sign Rafael, since their pitching was, to be kind, shaky last year. They still need another good starter to join C.C. Sabathia. Some diehard fans of the Bronx Bombers would argue that A.J. Burnett could fill the role. Sure. If you like having a guy go 10-15 as your second starter. No. Pettite? Maybe, but he has just had too many injuries and, let's face it, he's getting old. Hughes? Well, 18-8 isn't bad, except when you have a 4.21 ERA. Soriano, on the other hand, has no reason to go to New York except for the money, which, obviously, he could get anywhere else with his impressive resume. After all, the Yanks already have a great closer in Mo, so why would Soriano choose to sign with a team that won't let him pitch as much as he did? Duh.

Meanwhile, the Red Sox starting rotation looks fairly impressive, at least in the first two spots. Not that I suggest that Soriano should sign with Boston. Why? Maybe because the Sox already have two pro bono closers, Jonathan Papelbon and Bobby Jenks. However, Jon Lester is in the number one spot, and he looked great last season, 19-9 with 225 strikeouts. Clay Buchholz helps provide a 1-2 punch, as he was 17-7 with a 2.33 ERA last season, second in the league. After Clay, however, the rotation quivers, with John Lackey, who had a 4.40 ERA and a 14-11 record, followed by Josh Beckett, who fell off with a 6-6 record, a 5.38 ERA, and lots of injuries. Finally, Daisuke Matsuzaka brings up the inconsistent rotation with a 9-6 record and a 4.69 ERA. At least the bullpen looks good, with Pap and Bard closing and setting up, respectively.

Trivia
Bard had just a 1.82 ERA last year.
Rivera is second all-time in saves, as I said in my last post.

Save king hangs up uniform

Trevor Hoffman, the all-time saves leader with 602, decided today to hang up his shoes and uniform. Last year, he posted an all-time low in saves since his rookie year, and the year when he was injured. The 43-year-old knew it was time to retire. Hoffman will join the front office of the team he played for for 16 years, the San Diego Padres. Meanwhile, across the country a Panaman is smiling. Mariano Rivera, at 41, will have a couple more years to earn 43 or more saves; to tie or win, in other words. Mr. Rivera, although regarded as the best closer of all time, has a total of 38 saves per 162 games, while his opponent Hoffman earned 39 in his long tenure. Another nemesis, Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon, has already garnered 188 saves in five seasons as a closer, as he also has 38 saves. Being a Red Sox fan, I hope Pap can outscore Mo, but given the stats, I sincerely doubt it. However, it is true that the two can at least be compared, with the saves per 162 games and ERA, where Jon edges Mariano 2.22 to 2.23. True, Pap will need to work more to earn his worth, but he can at least hold his own. However, I think we can agree that Trevor Hoffman overshadows both.

Trivia
Hoffman, in his second league-leading save season, was 0-2 and finished second in the Cy Young Award voting.
Hoffman's older brother Glenn played for Boston for eight years.
Rivera's cousin Ruben played for both the Yankees and Padres, so he might be able to tell us who was better.

Angels look for speed, power

The Los Angeles Angels have several choices in the offseason. Los Angeles, whose offense was, shall we say, weak last season, has decided to reach out and grab a slugger. Now their problem is which way to turn. I believe they should go for speed or power, and indeed, that is what they seem to be going for. For available speedsters, the choice is between former Red Sock and Yankee Johnny Damon or White Sock, Royal and Dodger Scott Posednik. Personally, I think they should go for Posednik in this situation. I mean, look at the recent stats. Johnny Damon last year for the Tigers? .271 and 5 triples, 8 homers and 11 steals. For Posednik, a .297 average, 6 bombs, 7 triples and 35 stolen bases. The only spot in which Damon edges Scott is in the one that in my opinion does not matter at all for leadoff men. My final case is that Posednik turns 35 in March, and Damon is currently 37. My opinion on this matter is that one of the last prime years is at age 36 or 37. So, Damon has one more year, Pod has at least 2 or 3. One final thing; Scott has been a better fielder recently.

Slugging options for LA are slightly more plentiful, with Vladimir Guerrero, Jim Thome, Manny Ramirez, and Jim Edmonds all possibilities. Manny? No. Last year, the 38-year-old slugger (39 in May) garnered a grand total of one home run and two RBI in 24 games. Plenty of time to at least make it to ten RBI, right? Oh yeah, and one double, making two extra-base hits. Okay, one option down. Edmonds? Great player for the Cardinals in his prime. A possible option, considering he turns 41 in June and managed to hit 11 homers and add 28 doubles in just 86 games last year. However, with a .276 average, he might just have to wait, but he could be a nice one-year choice for the Angels.

OK, now Jim Thome's turn. Same age as Jim Edmonds. He had an even better year last year, floating 25 homers and knocking in 52 in just 108 games. Quite a passable candidate, but again for one year. One final flaw with him: Whenever he had a great year, he would always have over 130 strikeouts. Finally, Vladimir Guerrero. Probably the best choice, especially considering Vlad's history with the club. Turns 36 this year, so he has time before he goes down. Vlad, one of the flashy stars of the Montreal Expos during that era. Best season out of all the top candidates last year, with a .300 average, 27 bombs, and 115 runs batted in. Some comeback year, considering he also netted 28 doubles. Definitely the prime candidate.

Trivia
Vladimir Guerrero's brother was a .282 hitter in an eight-year career.

Major League Baseball welcomes new Hall of Fame inductees

Roberto Alomar and Bert Blyleven have become the two newest members of the Baseball Hall of Fame. Blyleven was finally elected in his fourteenth chance, while Alomar got in on just his third try. Blyleven, who was fifth in strikeouts and ninth in shutouts all time, completed the list of shutouts and strikeouts. To be more clear, now every player in the top 20 in shutouts and top 17 in strikeouts is in the Hall of Fame. Blyleven somehow found his way in despite a mediocre .534 winning percentage. I think that his strikeouts and shutouts speak for themselves, since after all, he didn't play on the best teams of his era.

Meanwhile, Alomar was widely recognized as being one of the only players who could both field and hit. Roberto is the only man with 450 stolen bases, 200 home runs, and 2,700 hits as well as at least one Gold Glove. It's kind of strange, really, considering Alomar was only a .984 fielder lifetime. That is more than average, but really not amazing. Although, Alomar did absolutely excel in the postseason, with a .313 batting average, thirteen points higher than his lifetime .300 BA. Meanwhile, Blyleven also played amazingly in the postseason, with a .833 winning percentage. Imagine if he actually won 5 out of every 6 games he pitched.

Trivia
One of the years Alomar finished with a Gold Glove, his fielding percentage was only .980, his fourth-worst total.
Blyleven was not an All-Star when he won 19 games and lost just 7 with a 2.87 ERA, but he was the next year at 17-16 with a 3.16 ERA.

Rays seem to enter "rebuilding year"

The Tampa Bay Rays apparently decided to make 2011 a "rebuilding" year. Tampa decided to send Matt Garza, one of their aces, the other being David Price, to the Chicago Cubs. In return, the Rays were given five prospects, including the 2010 Minor League Pitcher of the year and another player who earned the minor league MVP. Tampa Bay is attempting to rebuild their club after losing the first round of the playoffs to the AL champs the Rangers. With Garza, Chicago is probably attempting to counter Milwaukee's pickups of Shaun Marcum and Zack Greinke. I must say, the Rays are putting a lot of faith into this trade. I mean, Garza has been consistently good, right? So by trading him, you expose yourself to a lot of risk. Honestly, just look what happened to Stephen Strasburg, the top pitching prospect. Hmm. Another player the Rays get is a mostly unknown minor league player named Sam Fuld. Fuld was raised in my state, New Hampshire, so I am kind of annoyed that he will be playing for the Sox's new rivals.

Trivia
Garza has a 3.48 ERA in the postseason and a 3.97 overall ERA
Garza, despite his prominence, has actually lost more games than he has won, at 42-44.

Beltre is signed by Rangers

The Texas Rangers added another free agent to their team as they landed free agent Adrian Beltre. I wish that Beltre had come back to the Sox, but hey, they look pretty good themselves with Youk at third and A-Gonzalez at first. Anyway, the Rangers were Beltre's first choice, because they are "committed to winning." Uh huh. If you want that approach, then go to the Giants. The Rangers couldn't do anything against the Giants, right? So how can Beltre choose them over San Fran?

And as another setback for the Rangers, super-excellent third baseman Michael Young will be pushed out of the way to DH and utility infielder. Gosh, you're taking out your best infielder for a guy who can really only hit? Why not just put Beltre at DH? I mean, sure, he's pretty darn good at third, so maybe the Rangers want someone off the bench who can play everywhere. And another thing. They signed him to a six-year contract. Honestly? This guy, the year before coming to the Sox, missed almost half the season due to a groin injury. Ouch, so this 6-year fling is a big risk for Texas. Maybe his agent helped him decide. I mean Scott Boras, the evil one. He helped Tim Wakefield and Jason Varitek, the latter in his arbitration year. Tek, under his agent's advice, wanted way too much money for the way he had been playing.


Trivia
The Rangers have never won a World Series.
Teams from Texas have won one out of eight Series games (Houston was swept by the White Sox in 2005)

Orioles look to pop out of cellar

The Baltimore Orioles, in the wake of a disastrous season, signed first baseman Derek Lee out of free agency. According to mlb.com, Lee was considered the best of the remaining free agents. The deal is not yet official, but they have agreed to a verbal contract and if Lee passes a physical exam, he will be in. Derek Lee broke into the big leagues with San Diego in 1997, where he only played 22 games. The next season, he joined the Florida Marlins, where he stayed just long enough to help them beat the Yankees in the World Series. From 2004 on, he was a big part of Chicago Cub culture, staying through 2009 and into 2010. Midway through the season, he was traded to Atlanta, where he completed the season before being dumped into free agency. Lee will turn 36 on September 6, when he will be in Baltimore. Lee could provide just the spark the O's need, a passable .282 hitter.


Trivia
Lee bats .292 in the postseason overall.
Baltimore will be the first American League team Lee has played for.