Friday Follies

Johnny Cueto was given a seven game suspension for his Bruce Lee like efforts to impale the Cardinals with his Feet of Fury (Bruce Lee was in a movie entitled Fist of Fury). Oh, and in case you have no idea what I’m talking about, Cueto tried to kick about half of the Cardinals team when the Cards and Reds fought recently. Cueto took his suspension like a man, after acting like a child, and he’ll serve the suspension without an appeal.

Chipper Jones will have knee surgery and if his rehab goes well he plans on trying to play next year. I’ll try to rehab this weekend with copious amounts of alcohol so that I can return to work on Sunday night for the radio show I co-host with Kyle Elfrink from 8-12 PM EST called the Fanball Fantasy Recap. By the way, the show is on XM 147 and Sirius 211, and you can read all about it in I’m a Star.

Joe Mauer leads baseball with a .435 batting average the past 30 days (Chris Johnson leads the NL at .432). As pointed out to me today by Kyle Elfrink, Mauer hasn’t a single homer this season at home in 162 at-bats. Mauer’s also gone deep just seven times on the year. Where are those people that called me an utter buffoon when I said before the season started that there was not a scintilla of a chance that Mauer would go deep 30 times this season after hitting 28 big flies last year? Crickets? If we remove those 28 bombs, here is what his homer totals look like since his rookie season: 9, 13, 7, 9 and 7 this year.

Felix Pie is hitting .340 the past two weeks. At the same time he has a .333 OBP as he hasn’t walked a single time in that time. I don’t know if that’s real progress or not (things like sacrifice bunts and sac hits count as plate appearances and will therefore lower a players OBP even if the players batting average is not moved by the outs generated).

Dan Uggla may have “only” 26 hits in his last 25 games (he’s hitting .283 in that time), but he has made those hits count as he has gone deep 10 times, has knocked in 20 runs and has scored 24 times. It’s been said before but it bears repeating: Uggla is the only second baseman in the history of baseball with 4-straight years of at least 27 homers, 88 RBI and 84 runs scored. All he need is one more homer, 16 more RBI and four more runs scored to run that streak to 5-straight seasons.

Are you following me on Twitter yet at the BaseballGuys’ Twitter Account? If your not, and yes I’m biased, your missing out on some of the best baseball knowledge you could ever hope to find. Here are some of my favorites from today.

Casey McGehee has 73 RBI, one more than Evan Longoria.

Casey McGehee has 18 homers, one more than David Wright.

David Ortiz has seven 25 HR seasons for the Red Sox. 2nd most – tied with J. Rice – behind T. Williams (14).

Orioles considering going to a 6-man rotation to get a look at guys like Tillman and Britton.

Here comes the Panda. Pablo Sandoval in August: .349 with an .899 OPS for the SFGiants.

Sign up if you are on Twitter, you wont be disappointed. If you are you can take it up with management (which just so happens to be me).

By Ray Flowers

K-BAD: PART III

In my last two posts, I discussed the team I rostered in the K-BAD experts league. In Part III of my review, I’ll give my thoughts on how the draft played out after quickly running through my final few selections.

Note: If you want to read my review of picks 1-10, click on the link to K-BAD: Part I.

If you want to read my review of picks 11-28, click on the link to K-BAD: Part II.

ROUND 21: Matt Thornton, RP, White Sox
TEAM: BaseballGuys.com
I may not have saves in abundance, but Thornton and my last pick, Ryan Madson, give me arguably two most talented setup men in the game.

ROUND 22: Chris Young, OF, Diamondbacks
TEAM: BaseballGuys.com
Once upon a time he went 30/25. Hell, it was just the other day really (2007). If he comes through in ’09 he could be a cheap, vastly underrated, 20/20 option.

ROUND 23: Elijah Dukes, OF, Nationals
TEAM: BaseballGuys.com
Seems refocused knowing his career might be on the line. Too bad the Nationals didn’t buy it as they let him go. This is what happens when you do a draft far in advance of any meaningful games.

ROUND 24: Delmon Young, OF, Twins
TEAM: BaseballGuys.com
My third straight young outfielder. All three have a ton of potential, and each could be a terrific fifth outfield option this year.

ROUND 25: Rod Barajas, C, Mets
TEAM: BaseballGuys.com
This late you can throw a dart. Hopefully Rod will hit 15 long balls and bat .250. If he does, I’ll be ecstatic. If not, I’ll hit the waiver-wire.

ROUND 26: Brandon Lyon, RP, Astros
TEAM: BaseballGuys.com
There were certainly better relievers still available, but being that I’m weak in saves I had to take a chance on this inferior relief option.

ROUND 27: Casey Blake
TEAM: BaseballGuys.com
He has no upside, but I had him as 15th best third basemen so no harm in taking him this late. See Breaking Down: Casey Blake.

ROUND 28: Brett Myers, SP, Astros
TEAM: BaseballGuys.com
Not a bad last pick. Seriously. If he can control the homers, in tough park for pitchers, he could return 15th round value.

Here is my team (number is round selected).

C Russell Martin 11
C Rod Barajas 25
1B Miguel Cabrera 1
2B Brian Roberts 3
3B Casey Blake 27
SS Miguel Tejada 9
MI Dan Uggla 6
CI Lance Berkman 5
OF Carl Crawford 2
OF Ichiro Suzuki 4
OF Andrew McCutchen 7
OF Ryan Ludwick 15
OF Chris Young 22
UT David Ortiz 18

P Yovani Gallardo 8
P Scott Baker 10
P James Shields 12
P Trevor Hoffman 13
P Ryan Dempster 14
P Brad Lidge 17
P Aaron Harang 19
P Ryan Madson 20
P Matt Thornton 21

Bench Rafael Furcal 16
Bench Elijah Dukes 23
Bench Delmon Young 24
Bench Brandon Lyon 26
Bench Brett Myers 28

Team Review:

* I already have my fingers crossed. When the draft took place Roberts, Berkman and Martin where totally healthy, and Dukes still had a big league job. So are the breaks of the game.

* Blake in the 27th round was a nice grab, and I’ll have Tejada as an option at the hot corner as well once season gets underway.

* Crawford and Ichiro are a dynamic duo in the OF. If McCutchen does what many expect, that is one potentially fantastic threesome. The group is light on power though, so I added Ludwick who should be a fine 5th hitter for the Cardinals. My final outfield spot will go to one of two men who could be a terrific 5th option – D. Young, C. Young (Dukes hosed me).

* My offense might be a bit light on pop but you can’t have everything when picking against astute owners in an experts league.

* My staff has as good a 5-some of hurlers as any in the league: Gallardo, Baker, Shields, Dempster and Harang. Not a “superstar” amongst them, but that is a fantastic group of arms.

* My bullpen is thin. Every time I went to grab a closer someone else did. In fact, I had only one closer heading into the 17th round. At the end of the round I had two (gulp with Lidge), but another team had three and one grabbed a 4th in 18th. Closers went way too early in this league if you ask me. I didn’t want to roster a flunky just cause they were going, so I ended up passing and grabbed two of the best set up men in the game in Madson and Thornton. In the 26th round I then grabbed Lyon who could be the full-time closer in Houston, a part time option, or a total failure. Still, in the 26th, it was a risk worth taking.

* My staff is really strong top to bottom. I’ll need some help in the saves category, hopefully I’ll be able to snag one of those guys off waivers since there are always at least a handful of guys who emerge, but I should be sitting pretty in wins, ERA, WHIP and strikeouts.

Random Thoughts:
* Surprised to see these power arms not drafted: Luke Gregerson, Daniel Bard, Mike Adams, C.J. Wilson and George Sherrill.

* No one took the steady Andy Pettitte, or last year’s ground ball star Joel Pineiro.

* Three Cubs outfielders were left on waivers: Xavier Nady, Kosuke Fukudome and Marlon Byrd.

* Youngsters Carlos Gomez and Cameron Maybin also went teamless. Each offers some upside and should have been rostered in my opinion.

* At second, Kelly Johnson and Mark Ellis are free agents. I would be shocked if both don’t end up as top-20 options at second, and both have a chance to sneak into the top-15.

* No one bought into Russell Branyan repeating his effort from last season now that he is with the Indians, so he was left undrafted. Across the diamond, here are a few of the third basemen that went undrafted as well: Mark Teahen, Mike Lowell, Brandon Inge, Juan Uribe and Adam Kennedy.

I’ll keep you posted throughout the year as to how my team stacks up. Let’s just hope there aren’t more injuries prior to the season starting – there is nothing more frustrating that losing because your guys are on the shelf.

By Ray Flowers

KBAD – PART I

For the second straight year, I was invited to play in an expert’s league by the folks over at KFFL. Nicknamed K-Bad, for Baseball Analysis Draft, the league pits 11 of the top minds in the game against one flunky (that would be me). I thought I would give my analysis of the team I was able to roster in the 12-team, 5×5 mixed league with 28 rounds (I had the ninth pick in the draft).

Note: If you want to read all the participants comments on why they chose the players they did, click on the link to K-BAD Draft (this draft was completed two weeks ago).

ROUND 1 – Miguel Cabrera, 1B, Detroit Tigers
TEAM: BaseballGuys.com
It came down to the power of Fielder, the speed of Crawford, and the all-around excellence of Cabrera. Ultimately I went for the most well rounded option in Cabrera. He is working on 6-straight years of hitting at least .292-26-103 (Teixeira has five), and the difference between Cabrera and everyone else at the position not named Albert Pujols is his batting average which sits at .311 in his brief career.

ROUND 2: Carl Crawford, OF, Tampa Bay Rays
TEAM: BaseballGuys.com
Jacoby Ellsbury or Carl Crawford? Both are top-15 picks in my mind, so I was happy to have the choice here. Ultimately I went with Crawford who has a more well-rounded game. Plus, he is playing for a huge new contract. I was tempted to take David Wright here as well since top shelf third basemen will be gone by my next pick, but I didn’t want to pass up on the 50+ steals.

ROUND 3: Brian Roberts, 2B, Baltimore Orioles
TEAM: BaseballGuys.com
I targeted three players. Grady Sizemore went right before I was up, so my choice was between Ichiro and Brain Roberts. I wanted to go with Ichiro, but given that Roberts was the last second baseman available in the top tier, I decided to go for the second sacker. If this league did not include a middle infield position I would have taken Ichiro, but it does so I wanted to make sure I had some strength up the middle.

ROUND 4: Ichiro Suzuki, OF, Seattle Mariners
TEAM: BaseballGuys.com
Sometimes, things just work out for you. I considered taking Ichiro with my 3rd round pick but passed. He was still available here, so I jumped. I’m a little low on pop right now with Ichiro, C. Crawford and B. Roberts, but add M. Cabrera to that mix and I’ve got a .300+ average and 100 steals locked up already. I can afford to target some power guys with lower averages, guys like Dunn and Uggla, thanks to this start.

ROUND 5: Lance Berkman, 1B, Houston Astros
TEAM: BaseballGuys.com
I had to decide – did I want to add the more valuable Shane Victorino, or Berkman? Why did I go with Lance? Position scarcity. First basemen go quick this year, and third base isn’t deep, so I wanted to get Berkman to fill my CI spot so that I wouldn’t end up with some flunky there. Plus, I think Berkman rebounds and reaches his 3-year averages of .289-29-96 with 94 runs. His knee surgery happened well after this draft occurred. Oh well.

ROUND 6: Dan Uggla, 2B, Florida Marlins
TEAM: BaseballGuys.com
As suggested in my 4th round comment, this was a guy I was going to target since I built up my batting average early on. He owns a career .257 batting average, but Uggla is the only 2B in history to have 4-straight years of 27 HR, 88 RBI and 84 runs.

ROUND 7: Andrew McCutchen, OF, Pirates
TEAM: BaseballGuys.com
Took a bit of a chance here, though the potential was too enticing to pass on. He could struggle and basically repeat last season (.286-12-54-75-22), or he could breakout, hit 20 homers, steal 30 bases, score 100 runs and be a top-10 outfielder in ’10.

ROUND 8: Yovani Gallardo, SP, Brewers
TEAM: BaseballGuys.com
My most agonizing selection. It’s not that I doubt Gallardo, I don’t (he could be a be a top-10 option this year), I just couldn’t decide if I wanted to take my first pitcher or continue stockpiling a dynamic offense. I guess common sense won out.

ROUND 9: Miguel Tejada, SS/3B, Baltimore Orioles
TEAM: BaseballGuys.com
Why take this no upside guy at this point? Position flexibility. Shortstops were getting really thin, and though Yunel Escobar has more upward room for growth, Tejada will offer 3B eligibility in-season, and that was enough to sway me his way with this boring pick.

ROUND 10: Scott Baker, SP, Minnesota Twins
TEAM: BaseballGuys.com
I really wanted to add a fourth outfielder, but I kept looking at the starting pitchers that were left and I ended up realizing that if I didn’t take one here, I would like be shut out on the few remaining arms I had in my top-25.

By Ray Flowers

ADP Talk: What is It?

This is the time of year when everyone is firing off their top-whatever lists ranking players in fantasy baseball. Those lists certainly have value as they give you an idea of what the “experts” are thinking in terms of player value, but they are really only half the story. Just because I have Howie Kendrick as my 11th second baseman, doesn’t tell you two things. (1) It doesn’t tell you where he is being drafted (maybe everyone else has him 16th?). (2) It doesn’t tell you when he is being drafted? That’s where ADP comes into play.

What is ADP? Simply put, it means Average Draft Position. What is that? It’s just what it says – in a standard draft when, on average, is the player being drafted? This information is crucial. Let’s return to our example of Howie Kendrick.

Again, let’s postulate my rankings system has Kendrick at 11th amongst second basemen. Therefore, you would most likely want to draft Kendrick after the top-10 second sackers were out of the way right (duh)? Now I trust my own draft list so I would have a lot of confidence in it on draft day, but I would be foolish not to check out what others were thinking. The best way to do this is to look over ADP information from a source, something like Couch Managers for example. That site offers draft software which enables people to do as many mock drafts as time permits. After those drafts, the site then compiles all the data and presents its ADP data based up on all the drafts for a specific time frame. This way you can average out the Anaheim crazy who drafted Kendrick 5th at the position as well as those leagues that are scared away by his poor track record of health causing him to fall to 22nd. The resulting number would be his “average” draft position (how convenient given the title of this piece, no?) This is the real world information you need in order to know where he is being drafted at the position as well as where he is being drafted overall.

Let’s take a look at the actual data.

Currently, Kendrick has an ADP of 173 according to Couch Managers. This means that he is going 173rd overall in standard leagues. So, if you are trying to decide if you should take him with the 122nd pick overall, you’d likely be able to wait at least another round or two before being pressed into having to make a decision. If you think Kendrick can be the 122nd most valuable player you can certainly draft him at that spot, but the ADP information allows you to understand that you don’t need to draft him that early – that is if you buy into the law of averages and what others are doing.

Secondarily, ADP data obviously gives you an understanding of where amongst the hierarchy at the position a player is being selected. Again, if I have him at 11th yet his ADP value shows him to be going 18th at the position as he is according to Couch Managers, I may be able to wait a bit longer before pulling the trigger on the Angels’ second sacker.

Third, ADP data is also useful because it can help to solidify some tiering thoughts in your mind. As an example, at second base Dan Uggla has an ADP of 87, 11th at the position. The 12th man on the list, Asdrubal Cabrera, isn’t being drafted until 120th overall. That means the average fantasy drafter clearly sees a big gap in the perceived value of second basemen with 33 spots in the overall rankings separating #11 from #12. Useful information, right?

In future pieces I’ll break down some of those players that I think are going off the board too early, as well as some of those that might be great draft day bargains, but I wanted to make sure we were all on the same page when it came to ADP data before I moved into the nitty gritty of it.

And finally, in case you missed it, one of the greatest sports stories I have ever come across showed up today, and I would be remiss if I didn’t direct you towards it. It involves a wiener, a guys eye, and a mascot, and if you think that sounds oddly enticing do yourself a favor and click on the link to Living Up the Nickname. Trust me, you won’t regret spending a few minutes on this one.

By Ray Flowers

Around the Horn: Signings, Jan.19, 2010

A whole bushel of players agreed to one year deals with their teams in the past 36 hours. Which signings made sense? Which were bad idea? I’ll give my thoughts on each of the players listed below in today’s Around the Horn piece.

Twins: J.J. Hardy
Marlins: Jorge Cantu, Leo Nunez, Dan Uggla
Rays: Jason Bartlett
Cardinals: Ryan Ludwick
Rockies: Huston Street
Rangers: Josh Hamilton
Brewers: Carlos Gomez, Rickie Weeks
Dodgers: Hong-Chi Kuo, James Loney, George Sherrill

By Ray Flowers

Around the Horn: Jan. 14, 2010

Today, I’ll take a look around MLB. (1) The latest on Carlos Beltran’s knee surgery. (2) Brad Lidge has second surgery this off-season. (3) Adam LaRoche signs with D’backs. (4) Josh Johnson wants 4 years. Will he get it? (5) Johnny Damon to Braves? (6) Joel Zumaya agrees to deal. (7) Jermaine Dye to Cubs? (8) Dodgers need starting pitching.

By Ray Flowers

Feeling Frisky

Today I’m feel, what is that word, frisky? Another way to put it would be to say that I’m acting sassy, at least that’s how my brother’s wife would label it. The bottom line though is that I’m feeling a bit irreverent, so read what follows with a grain of salt.

Didn’t you used to be Jose Arredondo, you know the guy who vultured 10 victories as a rookie in 2008 with a sterling set of ratios (1.62 ERA, 1.05 WHIP)? Well at least we know why your ratios skyrocketed to 6.00 and 1.56 last season – your arm was severely jacked up. On Friday it was announced that Arredondo will miss the entire 2010 season (and maybe half of 2011) as he has Tommy John surgery scheduled for January. I take back all the mean things I said about you last season Jose.

Chan Ho Park has a one year deal on the table from the Phillies for something like $3 million. Two problems with that, well three. (1) LaTroy Hawkins just got a two year deal for over $7 million and Brandon Lyon got a 3-year deal for $15 million. (2) Park is still operating under the misguided belief that he can be still a starting pitcher (he can’t). (3) Why can’t I throw 93 mph?

I touched on many of the hot button questions that are still left unanswered as we head into the weekend in my Friday Five Questions piece.

I’m in California, and I know it’s nearing Christmas, but really, snow?

With all the scumbags in sports including Mr. I’m going to save the world with my golf swing (his name rhythms with a Geiger, as in the counter used to detect radiation, if you don’t know who I’m talking about), it’s nice to know that there are still guys out there that we can all look up to. Of course I’m referring to Derek Jeter who was named Sports Illustrated’s Man of the Year. If you can’t see the picture that accompanies this piece, click on the link to BaseballGuys – you can see it there.

Is it me, or does anyone else ever wonder why when you look at the serving suggestions on the back of a can of soup it always says that it’s two or two and a half servings? Who is their target audience, gnomes?

I’m still in awe of the Rays’ bullpen arms now that Rafael Soriano is in town. You can read more about my thoughts in Winter Meetings Review – Pitchers.

Going to the Sharks game tonight with my pops. Yep, on top of it all I’m also a tremendous son.

The Giants are still trying to land their man to put in the middle of the lineup. Since this entire piece seems to be me simply linking to other articles I’ve written in the past 24 hours why not throw another one in here and send you all to my Five Questions piece where I take the Giants temperature vis a vis Dan Uggla.

Still looking for that last minute stocking stuffer? If you are let me point you toward our 2010 Baseball Preview Magazine that is already on newsstands. If you don’t want to fight traffic to pick one up, just order one from the comforts of your own home in the Fanball Store. That way you can drink some spiked eggnog and not have to worry about driving drunk. See, I’m quite the humanitarian aren’t I?

Oh, and in closing, those of you looking for some really in-depth reporting, check back on Monday. I seem to be spent this week.

By Ray Flowers

Turn Back the Clock: Second Base

In my continuing trip down memory lane I’ll review the second base position to see how my prediction for the top-10 at the position panned out (the following list is taken from the 2009 Fanball Annual Guide that was on newsstands prior to the start of the 2009 season).

To read previous positional reviews click on the following link:

CATCHERS

FIRST BASE

1. Ian Kinsler

2. Brian Roberts

3. Chase Utley

4. Brandon Phillips

5. Dustin Pedroia

6. Dan Uggla

7. Robinson Cano

8. Mark DeRosa

9. Kelly Johnson

10. Rickie Weeks

Kinsler was injured yet again and hit a career worst .253 making this call a bust right? Well, not really. Kinsler went 30/30 with 31 homers and 31 steals, as he also knocked in 86 runners while crossing home plate 101 times. Nothing wrong that that effort at all.

Roberts is historically good, and I’ve written it before. He has produced at least 100 runs, 30 steals and 40 doubles in 3-straight years. It may not sound like much, but it is an all-time major league record for second sackers.

Utley would have been the #2 guy on the list if it wasn’t for concerns about his surgically repaired hip (remember this was back in January when we thought Utley could miss April, and yes, I would have still had Kinsler higher than Utley last season even if dude was healthy). All Utley did was go 20/20 for the first time while hitting 31 bombs with 93 RBI and 112 runs.

You are pretty darn good when you’re an afterthought after the top group despite going 20/20 in each of the past three years. If you have to “settle” for Phillips consider yourself in good hands.

Dustin Pedroia didn’t repeat his MVP effort of 2008 (.326-17-83-118-20), but that was never going to happen anyway – though he got awfully close. He settled in and had a fine season one that was well worth a top-5 selection at the position (.296-15-72-115-20).

Uggla is a beast at the dish, a fact I recounted in Player Movement Thoughts.

Cano was, simply put, amazing. He hit a career best 25 homers, knocked in his second best total of 85 runners, scored a career-high 103 runs all the while batting .320 with 48 doubles. Time to include this man in the discussion of outright stars at the position.

DeRosa was traded from the Indians to the Cardinals, and dealt with a left wrist injury that eventually required surgery when the season was over. He wasn’t great, but it’s not like a .250-23-78-78 line is weak if you play second place.

Johnson completely tanked – completely. After 2-straight years of at least .276-12-68-86-9, Johnson struggled all year hitting just .224 with eight homers and 29 RBI in just 303 ABs. Eventually the Braves turned to Martin Prado who hit .307 and now appears the favorite to start at second for the club in 2010.

I was higher on Weeks than anyone on staff. Though mid-May, I was looking like a genius. Unfortunately, Weeks was once again struck by another wrist injury, and as a result he appeared in a mere 37 games. Still, if we quadruple his effort we would end up with a .272-36-96-112-8 line which would have made me look like a genius. What could have been.

By Ray Flowers

Player Movement Thoughts

Finally, we’ve got some baseball news that doesn’t pertain to the World Series. With organizations analyzing where there team stand and what needs to be done to improve their outlook for 2010, here are some of the stories that are currently making the rounds.

The Royals made the odd decision to bring in Josh Fields in a trade with the White Sox despite the fact that they already have a third basemen in Alex Gordon. Does this move signify that the Royals have given up on their former first round draft pick? Apparently not. The team appears set to open the year with Gordon at third base and Fields possibly in the outfield. For more information on the deal that brought Fields to town, given Kyle Elfrink’s blog Royals with Cheese a read.

Curtis Granderson might be available in a trade according to reports. Curtis struggled to his worst performance in the batting average category at .249 in 2009, largely because of an extreme inability to his left-handed pitching (.183 in 180 ABs). Still, the dude has produced an average of 25 homers, 70 RBI, 108 runs and 19 steals the past three years. If you ask me he is totally miscast as a leadoff man but he would profile as a terrific #5 option. Owed “only” $26 million the next three years, one would think he would bring a lot in a deal if the Tigers do indeed decide to move him.

Ken Griffey Jr. will return for one more year with the Mariners after signing an incentive laden one year deal. Griffey, who turns 40 later this month, is coming off an abysmal season of a .214 average, but he did sock 19 homers in 387 ABs. In addition, after striking out 40 times in 230 ABs in the first half he slumped to 40 in 157 ABs after the All-Star break. I hope that the guy has one final season of productivity in that bat of his, but the data seems to suggest otherwise.

Joe Mauer and the Twins have begun the difficult task of working out a contract extension. Mauer has one year left on a deal that will pay him $12.5 million in 2010. The question with Mauer has nothing to do with his skills but whether or not a small market club like the Twins can afford to pay their catcher more than $15 million a year. In fact, it wouldn’t be shocking if Mauer’s representatives started with something like a 5-year, $100 million deal as a jumping off point. Is a catcher worth that amount of loot?

While the Giants would like to bring back Juan Uribe after he hit .289 with 16 homers for the club in under 400-ABs, he could price himself out of the Giants comfort zone with a desire for a big ticket, multi-year deal. As a result, the Giants are in the market for an infielder with some pop. According to Fox Sports they have been in contact with the Marlins about second baseman Dan Uggla who the Marlins appear desperate to move considering that he is on his way to a big pay day in arbitration (possibly upwards of $8-9 million). The Giants already have Freddy Sanchez at second so if they do acquire Uggla it would appear that the team would potentially move Dan to third base resulting in Pablo Sandoval moving across the diamond to first base (the team could also go with Uggla at first and leave Pablo at third). Uggla is a whiff machine, 150 or more the past three years, but he also has gone deep at least 30-times in each of the past three seasons. Do you know how many second baseman in history have hit at least 30-homers 3-straight years? Uggla is the only one. Moreover, Uggla has hit 27 homers with a least 88 RBI and 84 runs in each of his four big league seasons, and no other second baseman in history has accomplished that feat either. In truth, there were only three third basemen in 2009 that went 27-88-84 and they were Evan Longoria, Mark Reynolds and Ryan Zimmerman.

By Ray Flowers