Moving Day for Tejada, Rowland

After years - literally years - of rumors regarding Miguel Tejada getting out of Baltimore, the Orioles pulled the trigger on a deal to send him out of town.

Tejada will join the Houston Astros, with the Orioles getting five players in the swap. According to the Baltimore Sun, which broke the story:

In return for the four-time All-Star, the Orioles will get outfielder Luke Scott, pitchers Matt Albers, Troy Patton and Dennis Sarfate, and third baseman Michael Costanzo.

The Astros will assume the $26 million left on Tejada's contract.

I'd nearly forgotten that Tejada started his career as a member of the Oakland A's until I went back through the story. Look there for more complete breakdowns of

Also switching zip codes is Aaron Rowland, the big silver medal in the Torii Hunter sweepstakes with Hunter and Andruw Jones already in California. Rowland follows suit and signs with the Giants.

The San Francisco Chronicle has the story tagged "Slick-fielding outfielder signs with the Giants" while I would have opted for "Collision-prone outfielder signs with the Giants" but, whatever.

Rowland has reportedly signed a five-year contract with San Francisco, which means Rowland with be 35 when the deal is up. That's assuming he isn't failing neuro-psych exams like an aging quarterback by that point.

(Image from ESPN.com)

Welcome, Mr. F*** You Dome!

Oh Lord, will this be great on Opening Day.

Sure, a left-handed outfielder who hits for contact and should shore up the middle of the Cubs' lineup - and thus, keeping him out of the dugout on the South Side - is fine and all, but how dope is it to have a starter that can't be announced on television in some southern states?

(Yes, I know this is an overplayed joke already, and I promise I'll keep things to a dull roar from now on.)

According to the Chicago Sun-Times tonight:

The Cubs reached agreement tonight with Japanese free agent Kosuke Fukudome on a four-year deal, according to sources, beating out the White Sox and San Diego Padres for Japan's top hitter.

The deal is believed to be worth $45 million to $50 million.

(Image from: WeLoveKosuke.com)

This warms my heart

First, they signed Kyle Farnsworth.

Now, they go out and do this.

I swear the Yankees are trying to win me over. And they're getting very, very close to achieving that goal.

There was something very satisfying about seeing Farnsworth enter a game at the Metrodome and being able to turn to the other fans and say confidently, "Oh man, watch this."

Twenty minutes later, the carnage was cleared off the field and I looked like a complete genius.

It made for a good night.

(Image from MLB.com)

The plot thickens

For those watching the Johan Santana trade with nervous/gleeful/heartbroken anticipation (that would be Red Sox fans/AL Central fans/Twins fans) the Boston Globe is doing a phenomenal job with the updates.

That link is here.

As of a half hour ago, the Angels seem to be making a strong play to close a deal immediately and the Twins are rumored to want the whole thing wrapped up today.

From the site:

From the Globe's Nick Cafardo (3:37 p.m.): "We've said here all along that the Los Angeles Angels have the ability to make any deal they desire because they have the chips to make it happen. If they have jumped into the Johan Santana hunt, they pose a real threat to the Red Sox and Yankees for Santana's services.

The Angels have extra pitching, so they're able to offer a major league-ready starting pitcher like Ervin Santanta or Jered Weaver as well as a host of positional players - anyone from Howie Kendrick to catcher Jeff Mathis, infielder Brandon Wood, outfielder Reggie Willits, and even Gary Mathews Jr."

"I do not believe the Yankees are out of the Santana hunt yet."

Well, OK, then.

Actually that makes perfect sense. The Angels have a recent history of sniping players at the last second, usually with half of America unaware that they were even in the market - this includes their recent signing of Torii Hunter.

No word yet on which fast food restaurant will host the signing if the deal goes through.

Also worth keeping an eye on is this new rumor that sends Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis to Detroit for pitching and prospects.

Update: That last deal appears to be final with Detroit capturing both Marlins stars in exchange for outfielder Cameron Maybin, pitcher Andrew Miller, catcher Mike Rabelo and three other minor league pitchers.

(Image from Angels in the Outfield)

Yankee countdown enters final hours

Good for the Yankees in taking a stand against the big market clubs like Minnesota and instituting a strict deadline (Monday at midnight) to come to a decision in the Johan Santana sweepstakes.

It's about time someone taught those northerly bullies a lesson.

Not much is happening in Nashville on the big stage yet and most of the reports I've read today point to the Santana stalemate as a big reason for that. Teams want to see how that shakes out at the top before they proceed this week.

How Santana ending up with the Yankees, Red Sox or Angels impacts signing Damien Miller to the Nationals is beyond me, but I suppose that's why I'm in my underpants, eating Cheetos in my mother's basement and not calling the shots in Nashville tonight.

Some interesting rumors are floating about, though, with Miguel Cabrera still on the block in Florida and Dontrelle Willis apparently off of it for now.

MLB.com is reporting tonight that the White Sox are in the mix for the young third baseman, which, of course, clouds the issue of what the South Siders will be doing this year at the position.

In much the same manner that the Cubs horde outfielders like the mentally unstable pick up copies of Catcher in the Rye, it appears the White Sox have a new love of third basemen.

While I love the whole interference angle - Hank Steinbrenner has made no secret who he's talking about when discussing Santana - that has come up from some writers, it's been entertaining to say the least.

While I strongly oppose putting Jacoby Ellsbury on the table for a pitcher who only sees the light of day once every five starts, if there's a pitcher who will make it worth your while, it's Santana.

His starts were always electrifying and the Twins fans never had to search for a savior with Santana on the mound. Need a stopper when your team has dropped a few games?

There's Johan.

Need a big win to shore up a playoff spot?

There's Johan.

While I doubt there's such a thing as a calming presence in Boston, Santana might be as close as they come. Now to get back to work on that troubling Catch-22; Trade young pitching while your staff ages itself out of the league or wait for them to develop and risk the inevitable flame-outs that come with the territory when talking about young pitchers?

Mild update: Elijah Dukes is now a member of the Washington Nationals, presumably to put him closer to the nation's top law enforcement agencies.

(Image from: MLB.com)

Hunter didn't sign for more money - He left

Say what you will about Torii Hunter, but the guy seems to be pretty honest. In interviews I've heard with Hunter when I was living in the Twin Cities, he towed that line between being straight with the fans and getting himself in hot water for saying things he probably shouldn't have.

I guess there's no reason to expect any less now that he's packing up his things and getting ready for next year in California.

According to Sid Hartman in the Star-Tribune Sunday, Hunter could see the writing on the wall and made his decision partially based on his perception that the Twins weren't gearing up to be a contender.

This is a major problem for the franchise, as Johan Santana has voiced similar concerns this summer following the trade of Luis Castillo to the Mets.

(As a short sidenote, in the first start for Santana after the trade and minor controversy that followed, Castillo's replacement, Alexi Casilla had a rough game behind the pitcher. At one point a cutoff throw from the outfield hit Casilla in the chest. I was paying attention to those next few starts and it seemed like Casilla's jitters came into play when Santana was the starter. That probably didn't help matters and certainly can't be helping now.)

Hunter had a few choice words on the subject when talking to Hartman (which, of course, are subject to backpeddaling to start the week because of the exclusive nature of the interview):

"Sometimes you're going to ask for a raise or whatever. And it just so happened that in major league baseball the market is up, it's way up." he said. "So, I was going to get what I was going to get. I just wanted to make sure that I was with a team that wants to win, that's going to try to win day in and day out. Whatever pieces to the puzzle that they need, they were going to go out and get it. I just didn't feel the Twins were that ballclub."

I just had this conversation last night with a few White Sox fans I went out with. When the topic turned to the Twins and exactly what was going on up north, it was pretty much word-for-word with Hunter's assessment.

You take away Hunter, you plan on Santana jumping ship before Spring Training and there's not much left on that team for next year. Sure, the Twins appear to be stocked with good young arms from the farm system, but why would you gamble away one of the best pitchers of this generation?

Assuming that the exodus continues, Minnesota will be hurting for star power in March.

There is a very real possibility that Joe Mauer, Joe Nathan and Justin Morneau will be the only bankable stars on the roster in the near future. On it's own, this isn't the end of the world, but Hunter also raised a point that has been kicked around here as well - the new stadium on the horizon.

The simple facts remain that the Twins need to fill that new stadium and the best way to do that would be to stock it with proven commodities like Hunter and Santana. So much for that.

The strongest Plan B would be to sign a new crop of stars to build a buzz around the team, but with Hunter being the first I've seen to publicly question the decision to leave the ballpark without a roof, this doesn't look good.

Now you have the perception that Minnesota is a team that doesn't value its stars, refuses to pay them market value (or negotiate with them at all) and prospective players will spend time freezing their tails off when the weather turns.

Again, quoting Hartman's column:
"People aren't even thinking about [the open air stadium]," he said. "I wouldn't play in Minnesota unless my career was at an end and I had to go to Minnesota to play the game. ... People think that's not true -- that's 100 percent accurate. This is coming from a player, so I'm telling you."

Whether or not Hunter is correct remains to be seen, but there's a lot to be said for perception. People perceive Minnesota to be a very cold place to live and that can't be very appealing to Latino, California- or Florida-bred players.

Think of the problems the Green Bay Packers had signing free agents before they shocked the football world and signed Reggie White. This situation has the possibility to be just as bad.

With the image problems brewing from a fan and a player perspective, it could shape up to be an ugly winter for the Twins. And no amount of small-town charm is going to fix that.

(Image from: MLBlogs.com)

Hunter racking up frequent flyer miles

At the very least, Torii Hunter is going to make some poor airline his bitch.

Bouncing around between Chicago, Texas and who knows where else, Hunter's name keeps coming up in Chicago and in his home state.

Hunter reportedly had dinner with Rangers' owner Tom Hicks Monday night at his home with G.M. Jon Daniels and manager Ron Washington. Frank the Tank officially checked in this week to place his vote for Hunter over the return of Aaron Rowland.

I tend to agree with that take, though there's something to be said for the fan favorite in Rowland, over the on-paper smarts of Hunter. In addition to adding a Gold Glove center fielder, the White Sox would simultaneously cripple a division rival by taking the face of their franchise away.

This also opens the door for all sorts of crazy trade scenarios for Johan Santana as the Twins look to offload his contract - assuming they don't take the savings from passing on Hunter and use that to lock up Santana to pair with Francisco Liriano - and we all love crazy trade scenarios, right?

Incidentally - and this is not backed up with any sort of fact or substantiated rumor - why wouldn't Minnesota be a good fit for Joe Crede? If the White Sox are holding out for young, cheap talent and need to move Crede to make room for Josh Fields, why not Minneapolis?

They have an abundance of young arms, a problem at third with Nick Punto and if the aforementioned intra-divisional incest doesn't bother the Twins or the Sox, it seems like a good solution for the two teams.

At the very least, the Twins would upgrade at a traditional power position - though Crede has not had monster numbers in the past, he's been consistent - and move Punto in the process.

Well, it's that or listen to more fan-generated schemes about Joe Mauer moving to the hot corner.

(Image from: USAToday.com)

Holding patterns

The big news in actual baseball this week - that would be dealings that take place outside of the courtroom - seemingly all came out of New York.

* Alex Rodriguez will likely stay a Yankee. For the next decade.

* Mariano Rivera is also opting to keep his pinstripes. For a significantly shorter period of time.

* Paul Lo Duca was never given an offer from the Mets. He's deeply hurt on a personal level because of this.

* Yorvit Torrealba won't need to apply for Empire State license plates just yet.

It really makes you buy into the whole East Coast bias conspiracy theory, doesn't it?

Despite all of the NYCentric developments, the impact felt by the moves and non-moves made by the ripples are being felt in the Windy City, especially on the city's South Side.

Case in point are the rumors that have died to a whisper of a possible Johnny Damon to the White Sox deal that would get Joe Crede out of the way for Josh Fields at third. With Rodriguez now apparently set to spend the next 10 years in the Bronx, the White Sox need to find other possible suitors for Crede, who returns from back problems.

Cribbing heavily from Bugs & Cranks, the top two teams in the mix should be the Red Sox and the Phillies. With the possibility of Mike Lowell letting the Red Sox off the hook and excusing himself from a contract in Boston, that would leave room at Fenway for Crede, while the Red Sox have enough young talent to keep Chicago interested.

No word on whether or not Coco Crisp would be a throw-in to balance the karma of Lowell's addition with the Josh Beckett trade. The White Sox would be rolling to their second World Series next year before you know it.

I'd also be interested in knowing what Florida is thinking here, with rumors that Miguel Cabrera is on the move - cash concerns not withstanding. That team seems to fit the same bill for cheap, young talent and a hole at third.

The wait to see what the Yankees and Mets will do seems strange as noise on the free agent front has been limited to the Cubs trading for Omar Infante and shipping Jacque Jones to Detroit and Craig Monroe to Minnesota for a player to be named later.

Seems they're making amends for the outfielder-friendly spree they engaged in this summer.

The Cubs, too, are seemingly locked up waiting to see who keeps and who trades in their Yankee pinstripes, as they were players in the Rivera sweepstakes in lieu of their closer-by-committee for 2008.

Wake the rest of us up when you're done New York - we'll fight over the leftovers here in flyover country.

(Image from Brooks.MLBlogs.com)

When playing in Miami, always wear sunscreen

Good morning, Free Agent Class of 2007 and welcome to the open market.

While this is a first-time adventure for some, others have been here before and I can only imagine how exciting this must be for those of you who have been with your organizations since the minor leagues. Congratulations to Jorge Posada, who appears to be exiting the free agent pool after a quick dip.

For others, you're about to make the next stop on what has turned out to be a journeyman's career. Don't feel too bad, not many players stick around with the same team anymore. Hell, even Jackie Robinson was traded at the end, right?

So, in a world where players leave millions on the table to escape playing in the Bronx, teams like the Angels and Rangers figure to be major players in the free agent market, the Cubs are willing to spend money and the Red Sox now have bookended World Series trophies, things can only continue to be interesting, right?

For a decent breakdown of the rumor mill as of Monday morning, check out this quick list compiled by MLB.com that was posted today.

Here is the ever-popular ESPN.com Free Agent Tracker.

(Image from: holyobserver.com)

This will get six kinds of ugly

It should have been enough of a warning shot to see this on ESPN.com's MLB front page yesterday.

Yes, that is Carlos Silva. No, he is not very good. Or consistent. Or photogenic. Or less than mildly disturbing in person - and I sat 10 feet away from him as he warmed up two summers ago. I think of that day whenever I'm trying to cure a case of the hiccups.

Here's the screen grab in case you missed it.

Better yet if you're a Cubs fan - in addition to recent word that if years of futility hadn't interceded, the 1984 World Series would have been played at Comiskey Park - is more evidence that pitchers are at a premium this year.

Following the rousing success that was the "college of coaches" the Cubs are going to buck traditional wisdom and employ (or at least entertain the idea of) closer by committee with Kerry Wood and Bob Howry nailing down the end of the bullpen in 2008.

Two key points here:

1.) They will be removing the current closer, Ryan Dempster, who was shuttled to the bullpen after elbow trouble shelved him for parts of the 2003 and 2004 seasons to put in Wood who hasn't seen a full season since he was playing American Legion ball in Texas.

2.) The 2008 season will mark 100 years since the Cubs last won the World Series, so why the hell not? You guys just do whatever you want on Addison. I'll just go buy another hat and pretend like I don't know these conversations are taking place right down the street.

(Image from ESPN.com)

The biggest name in Japanese baseball

Just to clarify:

This is Kosuke Fukudome:

And this is Thunderdome:


This will be fun for months. Heh... Fuck you dome - Sounds like a new ballpark in New Jersey.

(Image from: WeLoveKosuke.com / News.com)

Schilling back for one more year

Curt Schilling just posted to his blog that he and the Red Sox have agreed to a one-year deal that's full of all sorts of incentive clauses, not the least of which is a weigh-in clause designed to help him keep his girth down in the offseason. If you think that won't be driven into the ground on all sorts of message boards before Spring Training, you're a damned fool.

Also, if you haven't seen it yet, here's Will Leitch's take on Schilling from his NY Times blog during this year's playoffs. I've just been waiting for some substantial Schilling news to post it with.

While Red Sox Nation rejoices, here are the three points of his full post that I thought were most interesting.

1.) $1 million for receiving a Cy Young vote, any vote.

Weird. I wonder if this hurts or helps the chances of him getting a vote next year. What's to say that one of his pals in the media doesn't offer up a mercy vote as a retirement present? On the flip side, what's to say that a polarizing character like Schilling doesn't drive off all voters, regardless of his final record?

More on this when the 2007 Cy Young winners are announced.

2.) Bottom line is Mr Henry, Mr Werner, Mr Lucchino, Theo, Tito and John wanted me to come back, and I wanted to be back. So it’s all good. Saying it’s not ‘about the money” is a lie too. Both sides have a price, at some number I was not a viable option for the Red Sox, and at another number the Sox might have become a non-contender to us, but we both wanted this to happen and it did. Contrary to what some ‘insiders’ think they know, they don’t. Theo and I have an enormously respectful and friendly relationship and the same can be said for all three owners. As far as Tito goes, well I have too much dirt on him to ever worry about him selling out on me…

Isn't it nice when something as open and shut as returning a veteran pitcher is actually taken care of in a straightforward manner like this? Makes me all warm, fuzzy and damn near Boras-proofed on the inside.

3.) I’ve already heard from Josh and Wake, and am excited to know that my last year in the game will be with a team that has another legitimate chance to win the World Series. Also, the thought of being able to be teammates with this incredible group, for a final run is pretty damn cool.

"Last year" is the strange part here. Granted, I've been in fan limbo with Brett Favre for three years and counting, but still, to have an athlete cop to this is pretty odd. Someone remind me where this post is in a year if Schilling changes his mind.

Update: See, I'm not the only one who figured this out. Little did I know that Boston writers apparently have the votes next year.

(Photos taken for Siberian Baseball)

Jersey will miss Joe Torre

Thanks to Bugs & Cranks for posting this from the Adult Swim site.

I think my favorite part of this is that if you changed the accent and the names involved, it could have just as easily been a bit about NASCAR.