Spring Training Notes

Major league baseball is rocking and rolling with Spring Training underway, so now is a good time to take a little trip around the league to hit on a few of the stories making the rounds.

Mike Carp has been dealt from the Mariners to the Red Sox for a Player to be Named Later or cashola. He’ll likely serve as depth behind Mike Napoli at first base in case big Mike’s hip issue flares up. As for Carp, he’s gone deep 18 times with 71 RBIs in 545 big league at-bats spread over four seasons. He’s got decent pop though he doesn’t hit too many fly balls (33 percent) so that will cap his potential upside there even if he’s given a lot of work. A solid depth add for the Red Sox and a strong late round addition in AL-only leagues.

A follower pointed out today that Matt Holliday had a career worst strikeout total of 132 last year, and he wondered if that was a significant issue that needed to be addressed? My answer? Not really. It’s a concern that he posted a career worst total, but it’s also the only time he’s gone over 105 since 2007. In addition, his K-rate last season was 19.2 percent, a career worst, but only 1.2 percent above his 2011 mark (he appeared in 124 games in ’11 to keep his overall K total a bit muted). As players age they sometimes see an uptick in strikeouts, but Holiday’s overall skill set is very stable and I see little reason to think that he can’t repeat his totals from last season (.295-27-102-95).

Phil Hughes has a bulging disk in his back and he will be shut down for two weeks to let the area heal. There is still time for him to be available in the first week of the season, but as his Player Profile points out, you shouldn’t really care about his health as much as you might think.

Just how overlooked has Juan Marichal been when the discussion roles around to great pitchers of the past fifty years?

Shelby Miller, one day, will likely be a top of the rotation ace. Everyone believes that. Will that happen in ’13? Probably not. In fact, he may not even make the rotation out of camp. That won’t stop some from over drafting him this year though. Perhaps this note will. Miller is dealing with some soreness and tightness in his shoulder. The team believes it’s not a serious situation, but a little hiccup like this could lead to him falling out of contention for the 5th rotation spot, though it’s likely his spot to lose if he performs well.

Ever heard the urban legend of alligator’s in the sewer? Turns out it’s real…

Brett Wallace is going to play first base for the Astros, this according to Bo Porter the manager of the club. Wallace has 709 at-bats as a big leaguer, but he’s never attained the levels of success that were predicted for him when he was drafted. Wallace has hit .250 with a poor .699 OPS while going deep 16 times. He’s been a replacement level bat, simple as that. If he can’t make it happen this season he’ll likely settle in to a depth player for big league clubs for the rest of his career. With Wallace at first, that means Carlos Pena will likely be the DH most days. This seems like an odd choice to me since I don’t know of many baseball people who think that Wallace profiles as a better defensive player than Pena. By the way, Carlos will be looking to return to the 28 homer, 80 RBI level that he flashed each year from 2007-11 before dipping to 19 and 61 last year. Be careful with Pena as we all know he’s gonna kill your batting average (the last time he hit .230 was 2008). Chris Carter is likely to play left field on a regular bases with that power bat of his. He’s gone deep 19 times in just 332 at-bats, but he’s also struck out a whopping 124 times.

Did you know that Jered Weaver led AL hurlers last season with a .214 batting average against? The NL leader was Gio Gonzalez at .206. The #2 man in baseball was Clayton Kershaw at .210.

• Don’t forget to get your copy of the 2013 BaseballGuys Fantasy Baseball Draft Guide which is now available. Nearly 150 pages of insight to help you dominate the competition in 2013.

By Ray Flowers

Around the Horn: July17, 2012

(1) Joey Votto out 3-4 weeks with knee injury.

(2) Jose Bautista (wrist) placed on DL. Further tests to be run.

(3) Jacoby Ellbury/Carl Crawford return to 1-2 spot for Red Sox.

(4) John Axford to loose closing job?

(5) Dan Haren (back) to return this weekend.

(6) Jeff Francis looking pretty sharp for Rockies.

(7) Brett Wallace close to call-up for Astros.

(8) Phenom Matt Harvey close to starting for Mets?

(9) Justin Upton on trade block – why?

Player Profiles: 2011 Review

Most people like to brag about their successes, but few stand accountable when they screw things up. I’m not one of those people. More times than not I’d like to think I’m right, but there are also times where I clearly miss the mark.

In the section of my website titled PLAYER PROFILES, you can find all the 2011 Player Reviews I wrote. In the piece today I’ll review my recommendations. While you can review the whole reports if you click on the link above, I’ll truncate things today by quoting only a section of my reviews (in italics), before giving my thoughts on how things turned out.

Today, I will look at the hitters I reviewed. Tomorrow I’ll take a look at the pitchers.

NOTE: I will grade myself on the scale of single, double, triple, home run.

Jose Bautista – .302-43-103-105-9
“Can he keep up his current pace? I can say with 100 percent certainty that he cannot… There is no way he hits .370, .350, or even .330… why is everyone so willing to throw out logic and common sense when it comes to Jose Bautista?”

Bautista had a phenomenal season, better than I thought he would as he posted a second straight 40-100-100 season while leading baseball with a 1.056 OPS. So I was wrong. Period. Still he did score less runs, knock in fewer runs and have fewer RBI than he did in 2010. At the same time, I was totally right about his production slowing. Bautista hit only 12 homers with a .257 batting average over his final 65 games.
DOUBLE

Justin Smoak: .234-15-55-38-0
“Smoak appears likely to be a mixed league asset this year at the corner infield position. At the same time he doesn’t appear likely to break out this season.”

Injuries killed Smoak this season, and he seemed to have forgotten how to hit in the second half as he had three homers and 12 RBI, with a .661 OPS, over his final 39 games.
SINGLE

Brett Wallace: .259-5-29-37-1
“A valuable NL-only option, be careful not to overestimate his value in mixed leagues because of his hot start.” He was hitting 367 over 23 games at the time the piece was written.

I knew he would regress, but even I ‘m surprised by how much he did. Shocked actually. He barely ended up having any value even as a corner infield option in NL-only leagues.
DOUBLE

Willie Bloomquist: .266-4-26-44-20
“…he is not a league average performer in batting average, OBP or SLG… Even with his amazing start, which I give him full props for, there is no way that I’m counting on a difference making season from Bloomquist.” He was leading baseball in steals at the time the article was written

Come on. Did anyone other than Kay Adams really think I was gonna be wrong here?
HOME RUN

Ryan Raburn: .256-14-49-53-1
“Ryan Raburn is an end game grab in mixed leagues as an outfielder. If he happens to qualify at second base he becomes a mid round grab. Either way he figures to produce solid numbers, but I would hold off in expecting him to blow it up in 2011.”

His average dipped a bit, it was in the .280′s in 2009-10, but he was basically the exact same guy he had been the previous two seasons. Of course, it was a season of two halves for Raburn as he had a .213 average an a .609 OPS in the first half and a .341 average and .967 OPS after the All-Star break.
DOUBLE

David DeJesus: .240-10-46-60-4
“Is DeJesus a starter in mixed leagues with five outfielders? Possibly, but only barely. Is DeJesus a starter in AL-only leagues with three outfielders? You bet your rear he is. It’s all about putting players in position to succeed…”

I was right about DeJesus having value in AL-only leagues, but I was shocked at how poorly he performed. Still, do you know how many AL outfielders hit 10 homers with 45 RBI and 60 runs scored? The answer is only 21.
DOUBLE

Nick Swisher: .260-23-85-81-2
“I’d look for him to return to his career level in batting average while continuing the trend that has seen him hit 24 homers in four of five seasons. He’s also knocked in 80-runs each of the past two years while scoring more than 80 in 5-straight, so with that you have your baseline of what to expect in 2011.”

After hitting .288 in 2011 Swisher hit .260 this season, six points clear of his career .254 mark. He fell just short of 24 homers, but one, though he did hit 80 RBI and runs scored. You can’t get more dead on with a prediction that I did here.
HOME RUN

Adrian Gonzalez: .338-27-117-108-1
“…Fenway really doesn’t boost the power numbers of left-handed batters at all… I have him at 9th at the position. Is that too low? I’ll freely admit that it might be, by a lot. Still, I’d take Albert Pujols, Miguel Cabrera, Joey Votto, Mark Teixeira and Ryan Howard ahead of him with no problem. I think you have to also toss Prince Fielder into that mix…”

Can you be right while also being totally wrong at the same time? Gonzalez hit only 27 homers, a 5-year low, but that was all I was right about. Gonzalez killed it all year in a fantastic season for the BoSox. I was wrong. Still, I would caution expecting a repeat in 2012 in the batting average category. He hit .045 points above his career mark despite a normal 21.2 percent line drive rate (career 21.0) as his BABIP skyrocketed by .058 points.
SINGLE

By Ray Flowers

Mailbag: May 17, 2011

photo © 2010 Ro Datz | more info (via: Wylio)

Here are the answers to some of the questions that I have recently received at the BaseballGuys’ Twitter account.

Martin Prado vs. Howie Kendrick – how close is it?
– @kevingilmore3

I love this question. It’s kind of like asking – Kim Kardashian or Sofia Vergara? You really can’t go wrong either way. In fact, let’s be honest, you’d take either one home to meet mamma and feel pretty good about it.

Eligibility
M. Prado: Qualifies at 2B, 3B and OF
Kendrick: Qualifies at 2B. In most leagues he is also 1B eligible, and possibly OF (he’s played six games there this season).

Career Numbers
M. Prado: .305/.354/.454
Kendrick: .296/.331/.431

Pretty darn close, eh?

Career Numbers (per 500 ABs)
M. Prado: .305-11-60-76-3
Kendrick: .296-9-61-66-12

Pretty darn close yet again.

2011 Numbers
M. Prado: .305-6-27-28-1
Kendrick: .310-6-17-29-4

I know I’m supposed to be the expert and have all the answers, but in this case there may not be a definitive answer. Like I said, how do you choose between Kardashian and Vergara?

Ah hell, give me Vergara and Kendrick.

Jed Lowrie or Mike Aviles? Looking for a David Wright replacement.
– @itsthejohnes

I bet it would surprise a lot of people out there to learn that Aviles has more homers (five to three), RBI (26 to 18) and steals (eight to zero) than Lowrie. Don’t overlook how significant that difference in the steals department is either, it makes up for the massive gap in their batting average right now (.243 to .320).

Lowrie hit .368 in April. He is hitting .259 in May.
Lowrie had a .389 OBP in April. That mark is .317 in May.
Lowrie had a .574 SLG in April. That mark is .407 in May.
Lowrie had a K-rate of 16 percent in April. That mark is 28 percent in May.

You get the point.

A middle infield option who is hitting .320 is a fine addition to any squad, but what if that same player hits 12 homers and doesn’t steal a single base? That’s the pace that Lowrie is on for those of you who haven’t been keeping track.

Aviles owns a career .292 average, so where did those extra .050 points go? His BABIP is .253, only .067 points below his career level, as he has struggled to hit the ball on the screws. Aviles has posted line drive rates of 20.2, 18.9 and 18.8 percent the past three years which seems to strongly suggest that he won’t continue to struggle along at 11.6 percent. The problem right now is that he has jacked up his fly ball rate by 13 percent. Aviles would do well to remember that he is a 12-15 homer bat. If he continues to hit 50 percent of his balls sky ward success could elude him.

Lowrie is second base and shortstop eligible while Aviles is second base as well as third base eligible in almost every league, so there is no advantage there for either player. Given that Aviles is the only one who runs, and that he owns a .292 career average (Lowrie is at .266), I’m going with Aviles if I have to choose one.

Is it time to cash in on Curtis Granderson’s hot start?
– @rickyhelsel

If it weren’t for the ridiculously hot Jose Bautista, Granderson would be leading baseball in home runs as Granderson has 14 homers through 39 games putting him on pace to obliterate his career best mark of 30 long balls. Granderson is already roughly 40 percent to his carer best of 74 RBI with 31. Toss in a .993 OPS, .080 points clear of anything he has ever done before, and you should be considering selling high on the Yankees’ outfielder.

Granderson has a 53 percent fly ball rate. Not only would that be a career-high, it would blow past his 44 percent career mark. Granderson also has a 25 percent HR/F mark. He’s never posted a mark above 14.5 percent in a full season, and his current mark is nearly double his career rate of 13.2 percent. Can we reasonably expect both of those trends to continue? Not in my world.

All of the extra fly balls also create an issue in the batting average category. After hitting .249 and .247 the past two years the inclination when you see his .280 mark this year is that he has figured things out and is back on course. However, the data doesn’t really support that position. Granderson is within a percentage point of his career walk rate, and his current K-rate of 25.9 percent would be a five year worst. He’s also, partially because of the extra fly balls, posting a career worst 15.1 percent line drive rate. Putting all of that data together would seem to suggest that Curtis will have a hard time hitting .280 this season unless he changes his approach.

So would I trade him? I trade anyone on my roster if the right offer came along so I’m certainly not going to say you should hold on to a guy who it would seem is in line for a reduction in production the rest of the way.

Mark Reynolds or Brett Wallace the rest of the way?
– @gregory671

On the surface this seems like a preposterous question since Wallace is hitting .323 and Reynolds .191, but when you look a bit deeper, it’s a fair question – and no, I’m not faded from pulling back four Mai Tai’s this morning. Look at the other four fantasy categories.

Wallace: two homers, 12 RBI, 20 Runs, one steal
Reynolds: five homers, 19 RBI, 17 runs, one steal

You’re probably still skeptical. How about we look at how each guy has done in the month of May.

Wallace: .200-1-3-5 with a .600 OPS
Reynolds: .229-3-5-7 with a .800 OPS

Still not convinced, right? Does history mean anything to you? Obviously you can’t directly compare Reynolds to Wallace in that respect since Wallace has never played a full season, but that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t mean something when it comes to Reynolds. Yes, he is a dreadful option the batting average category, perhaps a debilitating one, but don’t forget these facts.

1- Reynolds has produced an average of 35 homers, 95 RBI and 88 runs the past three years. All told he was first amongst third basemen in homers, fourth in RBI and second in runs from 2008-10.

2- Reynolds has hit 37 homers with 104 RBI and 96 runs since the start of the 2010 season. Those numbers place him second amongst third basemen in homers, sixth in RBI and sixth in runs scored.

Do you take a chance on a guy who seems destined to hit 30 homers while struggling to hit .240?

As I warned back on April 28th in 2011 Player Profile: Justin Smoak and Brett Wallace, I’d be wary of overestimating the hot start of Wallace. That doesn’t mean he is waiver-wire fodder, but the fact of the matter is that to this point of the season Wallace has really been nothing other than an empty batting average producer. If I needed batting average on my squad I’d take Wallace, but if I was looking at rostering the player who will have the most fantasy value from this point forward, give me Reynolds.

Ray Flowers can be heard daily on Sirius/XM Radio on The Fantasy Drive, 5-8 PM Eastern, on Sirius 210 and XM 87.

2011 Player Profile: Justin Smoak and Brett Wallace

photo © 2008 Joel Dinda | more info (via: Wylio)

Both of these first sackers have been viewed as potential middle of the order threats since the day they were drafted two spots apart in 2008, and both have started out well this year after disappointing beginnings to their big league careers. Is 2011 going to be a breakout year for either or both?

JUSTIN SMOAK
Drafted: 11th overall, 2008
2010 numbers:.279-9-30-33-0 in 50 games (AAA), .218-13-48-40-1 in 100 games (majors)
2011 numbers: .302-4-14-9-0 in 19 games

When you’re the centerpiece of a deal for Cliff Lee, you had better come through.

Smoak has been thought of as a .290, 25 homer threat since being drafted by the Rangers. He flew through the minors entering Triple-A in his second professional season, and all told only has 104 games at that level (he has just 119 games in the bigs). Clearly he’s still a very raw 24 years old. Last season he looked over-matched if you judge his effort by his .218 average, but hidden inside that effort was some positivity. Despite that hideous mark, Smoak smoked the ball (you didn’t think I would be able to avoid that reference did you?) to the tune of a 23.1 percent line drive rate. With a mark like that you’d figure his BABIP would be at least .310 or .320, yet somehow he ended the year with a .255 mark. Was he unlucky? On the surface it sure seemed that way. Flash forward to 2011 and his hit rate has gone way up to .326 in the early going. However, that total isn’t supported by a strong line drive rate as it has fallen to a terrible 14.0 percent. Odd to say the least. It’s also a concern that he has struck out in a quarter of his at-bats, but that seems to be the norm in the game anymore.

In terms of his skill set, Smoak is looking good. His 0.98 GB/FB is pretty much average, but the fly balls he hits end up in the seats frequently given his career 13.8 percent HR/F rate (the big league average is 9-10 percent). Safeco is a hard park to go deep in, but it seems like Smoak may have the ability, much like Adrian Gonzalez when he played at Petco, to still power the ball into the seats even if the park doesn’t help matters at all.

Bottom Line: Smoak appears likely to be a mixed league asset this year at the corner infield position. At the same time he doesn’t appear likely to break out this season. His average should be solid, as will his power production, but this guy isn’t Mark Teixeira – he’s much more likely to give you a Gaby Sanchez like line   (.273-19-85-72-5 in 2010).

BRETT WALLACE
Drafted: 13th overall, 2008
2010 numbers: .301-18-61-64-1 in 95 games (AAA), .222-2-13-14-0 in 51 games (majors)
2011 numbers: .367-1-9-14-0 in 23 games

This man could always hit. However with about as bad a baseball ody as you could ever find, there have always been questions about his ability to play defense. Drafted as a third baseman by the Cardinals, he was moved to the Athletics, then the Blue Jays and finally to the Astros where is has settled in as a first baseman (honestly, his best “position” might be DH – though you never want to see that done with a guy who is this young).

Throughout his minor league career, Wallace has done as expected – he’s hit. In over 1,110 minor league at-bats Wallace has hit .304 with an OPS of .862 with an average of 21 homers per 500 at-bats. However, questions about his defense continued to dog him which is one of the reasons that he’s already on his fourth team.

As a major leaguer he’s only got 223 at-bats under his belt so it’s a bit tough to draw any real conclusions, but it’s safe to say that he has continued to be a solid hitter. However, his 29.1 percent K-rate bears watching, especially when pitchers learn how to get him out. How will he adjust? I’m also very concerned by his poor 0.25 BB/K ratio as there aren’t many players who can be uber successful with a rate like that. There’s also the little matter of that unsustainable .374 career BABIP mark.

Bottom Line: Wallace does a lot of things well, and there is little reason to think he’ll be anything other than a full-time player for the Astros. While he might hit for a better average than Smoak, he isn’t likely to match the power production of the Mariners first sacker. A valuable NL-only option, be careful not to overestimate his value in mixed leagues because of his hot start.

By Ray Flowers

Hote Stove: Not Everyone is Greedy

Relievers continue to get paid, Adrian Beltre is the last big bat on the free agent market, and a handful of mid-level offensive players have found their homes for the 2011 season.

Adrian Beltre: He wants something like $80 million dollars. He shouldn’t get it. However, he might, as the Angels have been unable to attract any of the options they were hoping to land (Cliff Lee, Carl Crawford, Josh Willingham etc.), while losing Hideki Matsui to the Athletics (Hot Stove: Lee Isn’t Only Newsmaker). Will they capitulate to the demands of the incomparable super agent Scott Boras who has likely tried to convince them that Beltre is better than Mike Schmidt? The Angels would be wise to read The Curious Case of Adrian Beltre where I point out how Beltre had one other “special” season in his career which, by pure chance I’m sure, just so happened to come right as Beltre was heading into free agency.

Kevin Gregg: Will he and the Orioles ever get this thing figured out? The two sides have been linked for weeks now with an offer of $8-10 million over two years reportedly being floated his way. Why has Gregg balked at what seems like a reasonable deal? The recent contracts given to Scott Downs (3-years, $15 million), Matt Guerrier (3-years, $12 million), Jesse Crain (3-years, $12 million) and Bobby Jenks (2-years, $12) certainly aren’t helping the Orioles (for more on Jenks give Hot Stove: Signings Galore a read). “It’s fair to say that we’re still in discussions with a few teams and Baltimore is one of them,” said Danny Horwits, Kevin Gregg;’s agent. Say what you will about Gregg, but the fact remains that he is one of only seven relievers in baseball with at least 23 saves in each of the last four seasons. With middle relievers getting such huge deals, you can’t blame Gregg for holding out for more.

Orlando Hudson: Sorry David Eckstein, but with Padres pending addition of Jason Bartlett and today’s signing of O-Dog (2-years, $11.5 million), it might finally be the end of the road for you. I for one have no issue whatsoever in tipping my cap to you. The fact you were able to accomplish so much with so little is flat out amazing. As for Hudson, can we please, finally, put this guy to rest as a solid fantasy option? Every year he is over-drafted, but the simple fact of the matter is that he is nothing more than a replacement level fantasy option, if that. He does own a career .280 average, but he has averaged only eight steals the past eight seasons, hasn’t reached double-digits in homers since 2007, has never knocked in 70 runs, and only twice scored 80 runs. Great defender, great guy, and a wonderful role model, but in terms of his fantasy value he is middling at best, especially now that he will call Petco home.

Bill Hall: Let us all shed a tear for the end of the Jeff Keppinger / Tommy Manzella era in Houston. How could the club look to replace the best up the middle duo since Trammell and Whitaker? Obviously it’s because of the vast improvement they were able to make through the trade and free agent market (wink, wink). A month ago the club signed Clint Barmes to play shortstop, and I wrote about just how poor an idea that was in AL CY and Two Deals. Not content with that brilliant move, the Astros then went out and added Bill Hall off the free agent market on Friday signing him to a 1-year deal for around $3 million dollars to play second base. Hall has power, I won’t dispute that, but he has hit just .225 over the past three years while striking out 32 percent of the time. That’s ain’t good. I have little doubt that Barmes will go deep 15 times or that Hall could approach 25 homers playing everyday, but what are the Astros doing to their teams ability to score runs? As it stands today, if we assume the club will go with Carlos Lee at first base which seems like their current plan (sorry Brett Wallace), here is how their infield would shape up in terms of their 2010 OBPs.

C: Jason Castro (.286), Humberto Quintero (.262)
1B: Carlos Lee (.291)
2B: Bill Hall (.316)
3B: Chris Johnson (.337)
SS: Clint Barmes (.305)

To compare, the big league average in 2010 was .325. That’s right, only one of those players was even league average last year in his ability to get on base. Better get one of those disaster survival kits Astros’ fans, there could be some significant scoring droughts this season.

Xavier Nady: Signed to a 1-year deal for $1.75 million with the D’backs. Nady will likely be asked to play some first base and left field, and to add some pop to a team that has lost its two best power bats from 2010 (Adam LaRoche who is a free agent and Mark Reynolds who was dealt to the Orioles). Nady wasn’t at full strength last year after Tommy John surgery, so the Diamondbacks are willing to cut him some slack for his poor performance (.256-7-31 with a .660 OPS in 236 at-bats). Nady hit 25 homers while batting .305 as recently as 2008, but he has only one other 20 homer season on his resume. Still, this was a nice low cost addition by the D’backs, and he does makes a fine NL-only option.

And finally, the strange case of Kerry Wood…

As I referenced above relievers, even middle relievers, have been getting ginormous deals this offseason. So what is your reaction when you hear that Wood signed a 1-year deal for $1.5 million to play for the Cubs? My reaction was utter shock – I couldn’t have been more caught off guard if a Playboy Playmate had shown up on my doorstep wearing a Santa suit and holding a bottle of champagne (sorry, that’s always been a fantasy of mine). Come on, honestly, isn’t a hottie on my doorstep a more reasonable expectation than Wood signing for a mere $1.5 million? Apparently he really missed Chicago, so I give him credit for leaving millions to return to Chicago (apparently he really wanted to pitch for the Cubs and not the White Sox who reportedly offered a 1-year deal for $3.5 million). Wood will serve as the primary setup man for Carlos Marmol in Chicago, and if he pitches anything like the hurler who had a 0.69 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 31 Ks in 26 innings with the Yankees this could turn out to be the best contract given by a club this offseason.

By Ray Flowers

Around the Horn: July 29, 2010

(1) Rangers pick up Jorge Cantu.

(2) Padres bring in Miguel Tejada.

(3) Phillies officially get Roy Oswalt.

(4) Brett Wallace on the move – yet again.

(5) Kerry Wood likely back on Friday. Sorry Chris Perez owners.

(6) Andrew Bailey likely to DL. Michael Wuertz and Craig Breslow to fore?

By Ray Flowers

Some Halladay Cheer

I wrote a couple of baseball articles today that if you haven’t read them, you might be interested if you have a few moments to spend. Just what were they about? So glad you asked.

The first piece was on THE DEAL as I’ve grown to call it at BaseballGuys’ Twitter Page. Obviously I’m talking about the massive deal that included Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee, and you can find that analysis at
Hallady, Lee Switching Leagues.

The second article is my breakdown of the Juan Pierre to White Sox move. The short of it? He should be a strong fantasy option in 2010.

Brett Wallace can flat out rake. Unfortunately he looks like he never skipped a helping of cake (that must have come from reading “The Night Before Christmas” early today). As a result of concerns about whether or not he will ever be able to handle the hot corner the Athletics, flush with options at first base, turned around and traded Wallace – who was picked up in the Matt Holliday deal – to the Jays for outfielder Michael Taylor (he was a member of the Blue Jays for about five minutes after being picked up in the Halladay deal with the Phillies). Wallace will have a chance to open the year with the Jays, he has hit .302 in 734 minor-league at-bats and only has Lyle Overbay in his way (the Jays have reportedly been shopping Lyle around for a while now). As for Taylor, he could start at a corner spot with the A’s as early as opening day. “He has a chance to be a superstar in the outfield,” A’s assistant GM David Frost said. “He’ll come into Spring Training with a chance to prove he is Major League-ready.” Standing 6’6″ and weight about 250 lbs, Taylor has hit .312 during his minor league career and last season he hit .320 with 20 homers, 84 RBI and a .977 OPS in a season spent mostly at Double-A (he also saw action at Triple-A). Both players deserve attention in league specific formats this season.

The Adrian Gonzalez to the Red Sox rumors just won’t die despite most pundits belief that a deal simply won’t get done. After all, the Padres hold all the cards with their run producing first baseman who has two years left on a deal that pays him just over $10 million the next two seasons. You’re going to have to give up one hell of package to land that slugger, and even with a deal highlighted by Clay Buchholz may not be enough to cause the Padres to send their slugger east.

Delusional quote of the day, courtesy Mike Cameron who told the Boston media that he could steal 20 bases in 2010, and the only reason he didn’t last year was because the Brewers held him back on the base paths. Uh, Mr. Cameron, you haven’t stolen 20 bases since 2006, and at 37 years of age in January, that really doesn’t seem like a statement you should have made. I wish you luck, you’ve been a 20/20 weapon four times in your career, but with all of 24 steals in your last 269 games played, I’m thinking you’re gonna fall a bit short with the Sox.

At this point, are you wondering what the photo that accompanies this piece has to do with the article? Nothing of course. I was just listening to some Christmas tunes while writing this and “Baby it’s Cold Outside” was on the radio, so I thought to myself – how could I best warm people up? A pretty lady in a bikini may or may not get the motor running, but it should remind you of the time you spent on the beach a few months back and that might help.

By Ray Flowers