Transactions Abound!

Jason Michael Barker

Last week in this space, all we had to discuss in the "trades and signings" department were Jim Thome and David Bell to Philly, and the possibility of Tom Glavine joining them. Almost as if the baseball deities heard my cries -- "Please! Just give me something to write about!" -- a week later we have all sorts of things to discuss. It's scary to have this much power.

It all started last Tuesday, when the Oakland A's traded closer Billy Koch and two players to be named later to the White Sox for closer Keith Foulke, catcher Mark Johnson, minor league pitcher Joe Valentine and some cash. The media, in their infinite wisdom, declared that Oakland had been forced to dump salaries once again -- despite the fact that Foulke is slated to make $6M next season, while Koch will almost certainly get less than that in arbitration. Yes, the cash makes up the difference. So in other words, this deal was a wash in terms of dollars.

It isn't a wash on the field, however. Foulke may have lost his job closing games last season, but that was more a knee-jerk reaction by his manager than a reflection on his pitching ability; he's a darned good reliever and has been for the past four seasons. Koch, on the other hand, has never been truly dominant despite electric stuff, and he walked 46 hitters in 93.2 innings last season. Throw in a solid backup catcher (Johnson) and a minor league reliever with very good numbers (Valentine) and you're looking at a good return on Koch's services.

As for the players to be named, the fact that they can't be announced yet means they're eligible for the Rule 5 draft which will take place at this week's winter meetings. And what does that mean? It means they aren't on Oakland's 40-man roster. That might be because they don't have to be protected yet (i.e., they're far from the majors) or because the A's don't think enough of them to use a roster spot. In either case, the White Sox most likely aren't getting premium talents.

Also Tuesday, the Cubs signed lefty reliever Mark Remlinger away from Atlanta with $10.65M over three years. I'm not one to advocate big spending on relief pitching, but Remlinger as been very good over the past three years. Of course, it's also worth noting that he'll be 37 in March, and despite his left-handedness he has actually been more effective against right-handed batters over the past three seasons. Hmm.

Wednesday the Dodgers and Cubs completed their much-rumored swap of bad contracts, with LA sending the right side of their infield (Eric Karros, Mark Grudzielanek) to Chicago for free agent bust Todd Hundley and prospect bust Chad Hermansen. Where to begin? The Dodgers get rid of two bad contracts which expired at the end of the year, but got back one bad contract which expires in two. The Cubs rid themselves of Hundley and get those salaries off the books in a year, but also acquired players who block two young players (1B Hee Seop Choi and 2B Bobby Hill) who are ready for the majors right now.

It's all madness, I tell you, madness.

Thursday, free agent Tom Glavine signed with the Mets, spurning fellow NL East clubs in Atlanta and Philadelphia. As has been said many times before, it certainly will be weird to see Glavine pitching in a different uniform after sixteen years and 505 starts with the Braves. All he has to do to make this contract work is pitch well at the ages of 37, 38 and 39. That's not to say he can't do it, but the odds are certainly stacked against him. In his favor is the fact that he has always been extremely durable, having averaged 35 starts a season over the past seven seasons.

Elsewhere, the Yankees signed 3B Robin Ventura to a one-year, $5M deal, a $3.5M pay cut compared to what he made last season. This one should work out well for both sides. Ventura gets a nice check at age 35, and the Yankees get a productive player without making a long-term commitment. Ventura still has a great batting eye -- his 90 walks last season were good for sixth in the AL -- and last year just over 38% of his hits went for extra bases. He's no world beater, but he still has some good innings left in him.

Friday the Indians fleeced the Rangers in a four-player deal. In exchange for catcher Einar Diaz -- he of the .667 career OPS and two years left on his current contract -- and pitcher Ryan Drese, Cleveland received 1B Travis Hafner and pitcher Aaron Myette. Hafner hit a robust .342/.463/.559 at AAA Oklahoma last season and will make a nice cheap replacement for departed free agent Jim Thome. Myette and Drese have both struggled mightily in the majors, though Myette is a year younger and has better stuff. The real steal here was turning Diaz into Hafner, however, especially considering the Indians didn't even want Diaz, what with catchers Victor Martinez and Josh Bard ready for the majors.

Saturday was arbitration day, and my colleague Michael Cox has already gone over some of the highlights. Every year I'm amazed which players get offers and which do not. For example, this year the Braves offered arbitration to Darren Bragg, Keith Lockhart and Julio Franco. It's not that these three are going to get big pay raises by going to arbitration, but what on earth do the Braves want with these three in the first place? All three are easily replaceable with minor league free agents, who come cheaper to boot. The Phillies, perhaps attempted to counteract Thome, offered arbitration to Doug Glanville, a player they should have dumped two years ago. The list goes on.

On the other side, the Mets did not offer arbitration to Edgardo Alfonzo, who last I checked was still a pretty good player. Worst case scenario: he accepts, the two sides go to arbitration and the Mets wind up with his services for one year without a long-term commitment. If he declines and signs elsewhere, they get draft compensation. Instead, by not offering arbitration, they get nothing. The mind boggles.

Boggle boggle.

about the author

Jason Michael Barker was not offered arbitration by Strikethree.com this winter. Suggest a new plan of attack including a balloon, two large drums and a guy named Lenny when you write jmb@strikethree.com.

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