Tag Archives: Rays

Quack

Posted on June 14, 2011 | Leave a comment

Why did home-plate umpire John Tumpane make a duck-face when he threw out Rays manager Joe Maddon last night after he defiantly called Justin Ruggiano out at home plate on a play where he was quite obviously safe?  Duck-face is a trademark of teen girls and those douchebags you usually find on college campuses playing tackle football in the commons to try and impress said teenage girls.

Anyway, duck-face Tumpane called Ruggiano out despite every piece of logic (even his own) suggested he was very, very safe.  I’m not here to discuss the merits of instant replay (although, really baseball?  Why the fuck not?), I’ll leave that up to more articulate people.  Nor am I here to pass judgement on the allegedly blind and moronic umpire who made the call.  I won’t even discuss how the Rays probably win that game if the proper call is made (ultimately, I should be happy since the Rays are an AL East foe).  I simply wanted to point out Tumpane’s use of duck-face, further proving is already obvious douchery.

No, there wasn’t any real point to this post.

Because I wanted to!

No, you’re stupid.

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Power Rankings, May 9th — The Phils stay on top, while the Red Sox fall out of the top five.

Posted on May 9, 2011 | 4 Comments

Evan Longoria's return to the lineup this past week will further the Rays' surge back toward the top of the rankings after a slow start.

Welcome to the fortnightly instalment of Baseball Canadiana’s Power Rankings.  For those of you unfamiliar with the concept of power rankings, you must know that it has very little to do with the standings.  Even though the Indians currently hold baseball’s best record, it’s difficult to say that they are better than Philadelphia, the Yankees, or even Boston.  Power rankings are meant to look past the standings and are therefore not reactionary to hot and cold streaks, as they take into account the unreliability of small sample sizes. 

I made a decision with the Power Rankings here at Baseball Canadiana; I’m making them bi-monthly.  Why you ask?  Because at this time of year, teams start to show who they really are and very little changes from week-to-week.  I feel like there is more to talk about when it’s done every two weeks.  This instalment is no different; here are the rankings:

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2011 Tampa Bay Rays: Friedman & Co. should just write a ‘Baseball Front Office for Dummies’ book and get it over with.

Posted on February 10, 2011 | Leave a comment

2010 Record: 96-66, 1st AL East
2010 Prediction: 90-72, 3rd AL East
Diff: 6
2011 Prediction: 2nd AL East

Impact Player: 3B Evan Longoria
Impact Pitcher: LHP David Price
Best Reliever: RHP Joel Peralta
Top Prospect: RHP Jeremy Hellickson

General Manager: Andrew Friedman
Manager: Joe Maddon (404-406, .499)

Significant Acquisitions:
RHP Joel Peralta, RHP Kyle Farnsworth, RHP Adam Russell, OF/DH Johnny Damon, DH Manny Ramirez, OF Sam Fuld, RHP Rob Delaney, LHP Cesar Ramos

Significant Departures:
1B Carlos Pena, SS Jason Bartlett, LF Carl Crawford, INF/DH Willy Aybar, C Dioner Navarro, OF Gabe Kapler, DH Hank Blalock, DH Brad Hawpe, OF Rocco Baldelli, RHP Matt Garza, RHP Rafael Soriano, RHP Lance Cormier, RHP Joaquin Benoit, RHP Dan Wheeler, LHP Randy Choate, RHP Grant Balfour, RHP Chad Qualls

The Rays won their second AL East title in three years proving that they are the best-run organization in baseball and perhaps in all of sports.  Despite being on one of the tightest budgets in the league, the Rays have managed three straight winning seasons, two division titles and an AL pennant.  This year, however will be a big challenge as many key parts of their success left via free agency.

The Rays are built in a very smart way combining an impeccable drafting record with savvy trades and smartly taking advantage of baseball’s free agent compensation system.

This offseason was one where the Rays saw their franchises’ best player, their franchises’ all-time home run leader and almost their entire bullpen sign elsewhere, and as a result, a lot of people see the Rays taking a step backward.

Having watched closely this offseason, I could not agree less with that opinion.  I think the Rays will not only compete in the AL East in 2011, I think they’ll be better than the Yankees.

Not only are they built for this year, but the 12 draft picks in the first two rounds that they have accumulated ensures that they’ll have a well-stocked farm system for many years.

Starting Rotation
Saying that the Rays may fall back below the .500-mark totally ignores that this team has one of the best starting rotations in baseball.  Led by David Price, who finished second in AL Cy Young Award voting last season, the Rays might be better in this regard than they were last year.

James Shields has been inconsistent over the last two seasons but is still a durable arm logging four consecutive 200-inning seasons and also posting the best K/9 rate of his career.  His 3.75 K/BB was fourth in the AL.  I fully expect him to be solid number-two pitcher this season.

Wade Davis was inconsistent last year, but showed a ton of promise and at 25, should be ready to take the next step and be a very good number-three pitcher; all the ingredients are there.  His K/9 rate was oddly low and should rebound this year, which will help.

The one question mark, in my opinion, in this rotation is Jeff Niemann.  I’ve never been the biggest believer in his abilities and although he is good enough to be a solid back-end option, his peripherals have never been great and at 28-years-old they’re unlikely to get much better.  He may be a tad overrated.

The trading of Matt Garza to the Cubs was the type of move that the Rays have perfected: trading something of value from a position of strength to bolster the farm system.  The Rays made off with a thief’s bounty of prospects from Chicago and at the same time cleared a rotation spot for #1 prospect Jeremy Hellickson who I believe will have a better year in 2011 than Garza.  Hellickson has dominated at every level and has had more than enough time to adjust to pro-ball.  He should step in and be immediately effective.

Barring injuries, the Rays should be able to compete nightly with their rotation.

Bullpen
Rafael Soriano signed with the Yankees, Joaquin Benoit with the Tigers, Dan Wheeler with the Red Sox, Chad Qualls with the Padres, Grant Balfour with the A’s, Randy Choate with the Marlins, and Lance Cormier is still a free agent.

One look at the decimated Rays bullpen and you could assume that they’re in trouble once their starters leave the game.  But as I said in a post last week, that may not be the case.

Joel Peralta will prove himself to be one of the biggest bargain signings in 2011 after coming over from the Nationals for $900,000; he had a 2.02 ERA and 3.02 FIP last year.  Kyle Farnsworth may be scorned upon by most, but I truly believe he’s getting better with age and will be a reliable option late in the game for the Rays.

J.P. Howell was a very consistent lefty until last year when he missed the whole season recovering from shoulder surgery.  If he bounces back and is as effective as before, the Rays bullpen should be okay.  Andy Sonnanstine can be a valuable swing-man and will likely be on the Opening Day roster as well.

The rest of the bullpen will be made up of names not many people have heard about, but all of them are primed to become reliable Major-League relievers.  Left-hander Jake McGee could be a terribly dominant southpaw now that the Rays have converted him to relief and Mike Ekstrom has shown he’s very capable after dominating in AAA last year.

The two relievers acquired in the Jason Bartlett trade with the Padres, righty Adam Russell and lefty Cesar Ramos could also be useful.  Waiver pickup Rob Delaney, and non-roster invites R.J. Swindle, Cory Wade, Dirk Hayhurst, and Jonah Bayliss will also be in the mix to make the team.

Manager Joe Maddon says he will not name a closer just yet and will use a “by committee” approach.  I almost always see this as a good thing.

Catchers
John Jaso is back as the main catching option for 2011 after spending a lot of time in the leadoff spot last season.  His .372 OBP and above average baserunning skills make him perfect for that role even though he is a catcher.  Maddon should be applauded for his unconventional thinking in this regard.  Some have compared Jaso to Jason Kendall in his prime.  Kelly Shoppach seems to have forgotten how to hit, but he is still a solid backup catcher.

The Rays also acquired prospect catcher Robinson Chirinos in the Garza trade and he seems to be no more than a year away from breaking in with the major-league team.

Infielders
With Carlos Pena moving on to Chicago, the Rays do have a notable hole at first base, but they are hoping Dan Johnson finally sheds his AAAA-label and sticks with the team.  He was unbelievable in AAA last year posting a 1.054 OPS.  If he falters, the team signed Casey Kotchman to a minor-league deal and may also consider using Ben Zobrist there.  Chris Carter, who’s also in on a minor-league deal, is an intriguing option who could be primed for a breakout year after holding his own in 100 games with the Mets in’10.

Zobrist will likely see most the time at second base but will move around the diamond to take advantage of his superior defence at several positions.  He fell back to earth offensively in 2010 after a monster ’09, but still had a solid .346 OBP and 3.1 WAR rating.  Sean Rodriguez could develop into a solid power hitter and will see time at second.

Evan Longoria is an MVP-in-waiting and is one of the truly elite third basemen in the game.  Last season he posted an 11.1 UZR rating and a ridiculous 6.9 WAR.  Only Josh Hamilton and Adrian Beltre posted higher WAR ratings last season in the AL.

The Bartlett trade has made room for Reid Brignac who possesses all the tools to be an All-Star shortstop.  He has more power and on-base ability than Bartlett as well.

Rodriguez can also fill in at short and third while Elliot Johnson and non-roster invites Ray Olmedo, Daniel Mayora and Felipe Lopez will also have a shot at cracking the team.  Lopez has the best shot.

Outfielders
With Crawford gone, the Rays will finally get to see what Desmond Jennings has to offer.  With the acquisition of Johnny Damon to play leftfield, Jennings will likely slide over to rightfield which should be no problem for him.  I believe Jennings will be an All-Star within two years and is my pick for Rookie of the Year.

B.J. Upton is back in centerfield after another year of low batting average.  Even while hitting .237, however, Upton was still a 3.4 WAR player who had a solid walk-rate and stole 42 bases.

Matt Joyce should finally be able to show what he can do and will fit in as a fourth OF and occasional DH.  He may also log some time at first base if all the other options fall through.  Sam Fuld posted a .383 OBP at AAA-Iowa in the Cubs system last year and may have the biggest impact in 2011 of any of the players acquired for Garza.

Rodriguez and Zobrist can also play the outfield.

Designated Hitter
Manny Ramirez was signed for just $2-million this offseason and could be the biggest bargain of the year.  Even in a 2010 that was considered a “down” year for Manny, he still posted a .409 OBP and .869 OPS.  Fully healthy and motivated, he could be very dangerous.

For a look at the Rays’ lineup and roster for 2011, click here.

Overview
The Rays have such ridiculous organizational depth that I have no fears of them falling back in 2011.  Their defensive versatility will allow them to hide some of the holes they have and players such as Hellickson, Jennings, McGee, Peralta and Brignac could be cheaper and in some cases better versions of what they’re replacing.  Led by a solid starting rotation and a core that still consists of some very good players, I expect the Rays to be back in the playoffs in 2011.
Final Prediction: 93-69, 2nd AL East

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Posted in 2011 Previews

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A look at the Rays’ bullpen

Posted on February 1, 2011 | 1 Comment

As promised, I will go over the Rays bullpen situation for 2011.  The reason I’m doing this, by the way, is because these are issues I won’t have time for come preview time.  I want to keep each preview in the 750-1000 word range so in-depth discussions of bullpens would be out of the question.

The Rays lost pretty much their entire 2010 bullpen, which ranked among the best in baseball.  Closer Rafael Soriano left to sign a $35-million deal with the Yankees to be Mariano Rivera’s setup man.  Surprise bargain find Joaquin Benoit cashed in with the Tigers for $16.5-million and went from best to worst bargain in the space of a year.  Dan Wheeler, meanwhile, signed with the Red Sox, Grant Balfour with the A’s, Chad Qualls with the Padres and both Lance Cormier and Randy Choate remain on the free agent market.

The only holdovers are J.P. Howell, who missed all of last season with shoulder surgery, and Andy Sonnanstine, who’s had trouble sticking with the major-league club since they got good.

But don’t fret Rays’ fans, you have the smartest GM in baseball and the bullpen might not be bad at all, in fact, it just might be better than it was last year; it’ll certainly be cheaper.

The free agent deals signed to former Rays’ relievers this offseason totalled over $65-million in guaranteed cash.  That is money the Rays can put toward signing the crazy amount of picks they’ll have in next June’s draft.

To replace those players, the Rays signed two free agent relievers: Joel Peralta and Kyle Farnsworth.

Both, in my humble opinion, are fantastic signings.  Peralta was stupidly good in Washington last season posting a 2.02 ERA, a 3.02 FIP and a 5.44 K/BB ratio.  He also allowed only five home runs in 49 innings of work.

If he was a few years younger (he’ll be 35 on opening day) or had played in closer to 60 games rather than 39, he’d be cashing in similar to the way Benoit did.  As it is, the Rays got him for the bargain basement price of $900,000.  He’s better than Benoit and $15.6-million cheaper.

Then there’s Farnsworth: Yes, he’s easy to pick on.  He was once a sure-fire elite closing prospect and his career has seemingly been nothing but shattered expectations, but the Rays have grabbed him at the right time.

Even though he’ll be 35 just after Opening Day, Farnsworth has been getting progressively better over the past two seasons with Kansas City and Atlanta.  After posting a disastrous 5.49 FIP in 2008 with the Yankees and Tigers, Farnsworth has followed up with two spectacular seasons.  In 2009 he raised his K/BB ratio to 3.00, the third highest total of his career to that point and then bettered it in 2010 with a 3.21 mark.  Farnsworth has also posted fantastic FIPs in that span at 3.10 and 3.06.

The success he’s had over the last two years can be traced to better pitch selection.  He’s used his slider much less often (from 34.7% of the time in 2008 to 20.6% in 2009 and 12.4% in 2010) and has incorporated the use of a cutter in its place.  He’s also started using his changeup occasionally to keep hitters off balance and to be more successful against lefties.

Farnsworth will be paid $3.25-million in guaranteed money which is less than both Octavio Dotel and Jon Rauch and also less than Chad Qualls.  A lot of experts didn’t like the deal, but this non-expert loved it.

Then there’s the rest.  Manager Joe Maddon has said he will use a “closer-by-committee” until someone steps up.  I never see this as a bad thing as I think situational closing is actually the best way to handle the position.

Peralta and Farnsworth will be joined by Howell who is a very effective lefty when healthy.  Andy Sonnanstine should also hold down a spot, possibly as a swingman.

Then there are a couple players that I think are primed to become elite relievers.  The first is Jake McGee.

McGee is a 24-year-old left-hander who has an electric fastball and a decent slider.  His inability to develop secondary pitches has all but ended his run as a starter, but his absolute dominance at times leads me to think that he’ll be an elite-level reliever in the majors very soon.

After a call-up to AAA around the middle of last season, McGee transitioned from a starter to a reliever and that’s when he started to show real promise.  In 11 games, McGee posted a 0.52 ERA with 27 Ks in 17.1 innings of work.  He also walked only three batters and allowed just nine hits.

He earned a September call-up to the big club where he allowed just one earned run over five innings of work, striking out six.  Even as a starter at lower levels, McGee posted surreal strike out numbers and showed decent command.  I fully expect him to step in and dominate at the major league level and perhaps even close out games regularly.

Mike Ekstrom posted a 2.79 ERA and 3.72 FIP at AAA in 39 games last season and also looked solid at the major-league level in 15 games, while Adam Russell and Cesar Ramos (both acquired from the Padres in the Jason Bartlett trade) could also be very good at the major-league level.

The team then has Rob Delaney, who was claimed off waivers from the Twins, and non-roster invites R.J. Swindle, Jonah Bayliss, Cory Wade and everybody’s favourite former Jay and part-time author Dirk Hayhurst.

The sheer depth of major-league-capable arms tells me that the Rays will have little trouble adapting to their free agent losses.  Guys like Peralta, Ekstrom and McGee should be more than capable of replacing what left.

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Posted in Aimless speculation, Predictions

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Who’ll play first base for the Rays in 2011?

Posted on February 1, 2011 | Leave a comment

As I did with the Red Sox yesterday, I charted out the Rays current roster today in preparation for my upcoming previews (which tentatively will start February 7th).

This, of course, coincided with the press conference introducing both Johnny Damon and Manny Ramirez as official members of the Rays, but I’m not here to talk about that; well, not mostly anyway.  We know that the Rays plan to use Manny as the DH and Damon in mostly a corner-outfield role, which will certainly yield hilarious results.  I do, for the record, love both signings as I think the two of them still have a lot left offensively and came so cheaply that I’m considering asking Rays GM Andrew Friedman to marry me on a count of his ability to run a baseball team.

But like I said, I’m not here to talk about that.

No, I want to talk about one area of concern for the Rays: First base.

The storyline this offseason for the Rays has been the departure of many key free agents.  Franchise staple Carl Crawford signed with division-rival Boston.  The franchise’s all-time home run leader Carlos Pena signed with the Cubs, and the bullpen was also gutted with the loss of closer Rafael Soriano and other relievers Joaquin Benoit, Dan Wheeler, Grant Balfour, Chad Qualls, Randy Choate, and Lance Cormier.

But as we will soon know in more detail thanks to Jonah Keri’s upcoming release The Extra 2%, the Rays are a franchise that is built to absorb these types of losses.  You see my friends, the Rays are built like an onion; when one layer is peeled away, there is a fresh new layer of young talent ready to step up and take their place.

Trading from strengths for prospects and building through the draft are the cornerstones of this system.  Friedman and his staff were at it once again this offseason, trading from their two positions of strength, shortstop and starting pitching, to maintain a system that is expected to graduate the team’s top two prospects in Desmond Jennings and Jeremy Hellickson.

First, the Rays shipped shortstop Jason Bartlett to the Padres for a host of relief arms to help rebuild their bullpen and then they dealt starting pitcher Matt Garza to the Cubs for a thief’s bounty of prospects, which allows the team the space to bring Jeremy Hellickson into the fold full time.

And all those free agents leaving means a boat-load of compensatory draft picks for the Rays.  They’ll actually have twelve of the first 93 picks in the 2011 draft, and eleven before the Tigers even make their first selection.

But let’s get back to the first base situation.

Carlos Pena had his worst season as a Ray last year, but was still able to sign for some healthy coin in Chicago leaving a gaping hole at first base in Tampa.

At first glance, it appears as though Dan Johnson is the most likely to take over there this season, which is frightening if you’re a Rays’ fan since he’s 31 and has all of 1429 plate appearances.

The good thing is that Johnson was a monster at AAA-Durham last year posting a surreal 1.054 OPS with 30 homeruns and 95 RBI in only 98 games.  The bad thing is that he has always been a good hitter at AAA, but it has yet to translate to the majors.  At his age, there’s a good chance it never does.

So what if Johnson fails miserably?  Well, the Rays just inked Casey Kotchman to a minor-league contract.

Kotchman had a disastrous season in 2010 with Seattle finishing with an atrocious slash line of .217/.280/.336.  On top of that, he wasn’t strong defensively, which was unusual considering just how good he had been as a first baseman in his career.

Kotchman has been around a while, but is still only 28 and in his prime.  With regular time, he should see a rebound to his career numbers of .259/.326/.392.  Not terrific, especially for a first baseman, but he may be a better option than Johnson for this year; he’s certainly a huge upgrade defensively.

Then there’s the intriguing option no one seems to be talking about: Chris Carter, formerly of the Mets and Red Sox.

Carter was once a highly touted outfielder in both Boston’s and New York’s system, but has fallen off the map in recent years.  He’ll come to camp, like Kotchman, on a low-risk minor-league deal.  He’s played more than enough first base in the minors to be considered an option there and last season posted a .263/.317/.389 line mostly in cavernous Citi Field while finding his way into 100 games with the Mets.

If Carter proves he can hit enough this spring, then he could break camp as an everyday player.  Kotchman and Johnson do have the inside track though.

Another good thing about the Rays lineup this season is its versatility.  Ben Zobrist can play anywhere but catcher effectively, Sean Rodriguez can play the middle infield and corner outfield spots, while Matt Joyce can play both corner outfield spots with ease which will give the Rays a lot of flexibility.

Not to mention that Dan Johnson can sort of play third base and Chris Carter, if he makes the team, can play the outfield.

The main area of concern, however, for the Rays has to be their bullpen.  I’ll go over why I don’t think it’s nearly as bad as people think later tonight or tomorrow.

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Wells traded to the Angels — Manny and Damon sign in Tampa

Posted on January 21, 2011 | 5 Comments

Leave it to me to say that there is no news in baseball right now.  As soon as I posted that Pujols piece, all hell broke loose.

The Toronto Blue Jays, led by noted ninja Alex Anthopoulos unloaded Vernon Wells and his gaudiest of gaudy contracts to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim for catcher/DH/1B Mike Napoli and outfielder Juan Rivera.

On a pure talent level, the Angels may have an edge in this deal, but this was clearly a salary dump for Toronto.  They get out from under four years and $86-million owed to Vernon Wells and in return get two serviceable major-leaguers who fill urgent needs for 2011.  Beyond that, nothing is guaranteed to either player, giving the Jays much more financial flexibility going forward; Rivera is a free agent after this season and Napoli is still in his arbitration years.

The best part of this deal is that the Angels will take on all $86-million still owed to Wells.  The Jays get off.  Scott.  Free.

Juan Rivera can occupy one of the now empty outfield spots (probably leftfield, moving Snider to right) with Rajai Davis most likely manning center until Anthony Gose or Darin Matroianni are ready.  Rivera could also be flipped in another trade.

Napoli fits in nicely as an insurance policy behind the plate in case Arencibia shows signs of not being ready and if he is ready, he can DH and play occasional first base.

Napoli has very dramatic splits (.305/.399/.567 against lefties vs. .208/.277/.423 against righties) which set up some really nice platoon options for Toronto with Adam Lind at first base.

As the Wells news began to settle down, the Tampa Bay Rays popped up with some equally significant news; they signed both Manny Ramirez and Johnny Damon to one year contracts.  Damon’s deal is for $5.25-million and Manny’s is apparently for $2.0-million!!!!

I speculated earlier this week that Manny would get far more than $4-million and I really did think he’d get $6-$8-million.  Mind=blown.

I’m a little confused as to why the Rays would get both Manny and Damon considering neither can play outfield, but maybe they are planning an insane DH platoon, who knows?

Both players are still more than competent at the plate and to get them both for under $8-million is nothing less than very impressive.

The Rays and Jays are both fully aware of the kind of savvy it takes to compete in the AL East on a small budget and within minutes, they both showed you why.

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Posted in Free Agent Signings, Trades

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Why the Rays are among the best and the Cubs are among the worst: The Matt Garza trade in perspective

Posted on January 7, 2011 | Leave a comment

What the hell just happened?  Are you going to look me straight in the eye and tell me that Matt Garza just got traded to the Cubs for a package of prospects that treats Garza like a perennial All-Star?

That is precisely what appears to be happening.  It’s being reported that Garza has been dealt to the North Side for a package of prospects headed by the Cubs supposed number one prospect Chris Archer.  Also included in the deal are outfielder Brandon Guyer, former infielding catcher Robinson Chirinos, infielder Hak-Ju Lee and outfielder Sam Fuld.

Now, the deal isn’t completed yet so this might change but Tampa is said to be giving back outfielder Fernando Perez along with Garza.  Perez was once thought to be a decent prospect but has essentially fallen off the map in recent years.  After posting a .903 OPS in 2007 at AA-Montgomery, Perez slid all the way to a .754 OPS in 2009 at AAA-Durham and then to a .579 OPS last year at AAA.  Something tells me he’ll never be a quality major-leaguer.

There are a few people out there who think Garza is underrated, but I am of the opposite stance.  Although he is a solid pitcher, those who give him ace status fail to look anything tangible.

As FanGraphs points out, Matt Garza is essentially Aaron Harang, who even in his prime was not exactly ace material.

I make the comparison to A.J. Burnett on a few levels.  He’s talented (although maybe doesn’t have the raw stuff A.J. possesses) but tends to lose focus on the mound far too often which leads to an elevation in mistakes.  At times he can be dazzling, as displayed by his no-hitter last season, but other times he can be shelled without regard for outs or wins.  In fact, these graphs show he’s probably much worse than Burnett.

ERA

K/9

BB/9

The Cubs didn’t give up a Zack Greinke or Roy Halladay-type package of prospects, but they did give up some useful pieces.

Chris Archer was acquired by the Cubs from Cleveland for Mark DeRosa and had a lights out year last season in the minors combining in A+ and AA to go 15-3 with a 2.34 ERA.  His walk total was slightly (although not horrifically) high, but he also struck out a boat-load and posted a solid 2.29 K/BB ratio.  He’s the type of pitcher who, with some refining of his command, could be better than Garza.

With the Rays rotation set to be one of the youngest and best in baseball without Garza next season, Archer has plenty of time to develop.  David Price, James Shields, Jeff Niemann, Wade Davis, and Jeremy Hellickson are expected to be the 5 starters heading into 2011 for Tampa.  The trading of Garza allows the spot for Hellickson who is showing signs of being a much better option, even in 2011.  I would wager that Hellickson will have a better year than Garza this year.

Another useful comparison is the other major pitcher trade to have occurred involving an AL East team this offseason.  For Garza, the Rays grabbed a package that in sum equals far more than the Jays got for Shaun Marcum when they traded him to the Brewers in December for Brett Lawrie.  A quick look at the graphs for Marcum and Garza illustrate that Marcum seems at least equitable to Garza, if not superior to him.

ERA

BB/9

K/9

K/BB

HR/9

Either the Rays made a fantastic deal or the Cubs made a terrible deal, but no matter how you angle it, it fits in with expectations for both of these teams.

This deal also gives the Cubs six major-league starters on their depth chart in Garza, Carlos Zambrano, Randy Wells, Tom Gorzelanny, Ryan Dempster, and Carlos Silva.  This should open up the trade talks for one of them to be shipped off, probably in another dumb deal.

One last question: is it worse to be a Leafs fan or a Cubs fan?  I’m a Leafs fan so I’m biased.

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Posted in Trades

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