Cleveland Sports Forum

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Chris Antonetti

Memo to MLB. Get your season over before the NFL starts. No one cares about your league on weekends.

rusty2 wrote:Memo to MLB. Get your season over before the NFL starts. No one cares about your league on weekends.

Good thought, and I agree. I think the compromise solution would be to play the post season only Monday through Friday.

I'm a huge NASCAR and Baseball Fan, but rarely catch either when the NFL is on.

Tony Lastoria


Mixed results for Pomeranz and White

Former Indians’ left-handed pitcher Drew Pomeranz and right-handed pitcher Alex White had mixed results in their final starts to finish what was a chaotic 2011 season for both of them.

Pomeranz had a solid Major League debut for the Rockies where in four starts he finished 2-1 with a 5.40 ERA (18.1 IP, 19 H, 5 BB, 13 K). After a sensational big league debut on September 11th where he threw five shutout innings he was very mediocre at best in his final three starts, but overall it was a very good foundation for him to build on for next year. At this point it looks very much like barring injury that he should open the 2012 season in the Rockies’ opening day starting rotation.

On the other hand, White’s future is not so certain. He was awful in his seven starts for the Rockies going 2-4 with an 8.42 ERA (36.1 IP, 48 H, 16 BB, 24 K). His numbers were horrific in that he put up a 1.76 WHIP and one-quarter of the hits he gave up were home runs (12). He averaged close to one home run allowed every three innings!

I said it at the time of the trade that White was not 100% healthy, and he certainly pitched like an unhealthy pitcher the rest of the season. It will be an interesting offseason to see if additional issues with his finger cropped up and if more surgery occurs to “correct” things. There definitely has to be some concern on the Rockies front about his future.

For those wondering, the other two players in that deal right-handed pitcher Joe Gardner and first baseman/outfielder Matt McBride both had mixed results as well while playing for the Rockies’ Double-A Tulsa affiliate. Gardner made six starts and went 3-3 with a 2.48 ERA (36.1 IP, 31 H, 8 BB, 22 K), and McBride struggled through injuries and played just six games and hit .235 with no homers, two RBI and a .513 OPS.

The Indians paid a pretty hefty bounty to acquire right-handed pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez from the Rockies back on July 30th. Some may wonder why updates on Pomeranz and White are necessary since both are no longer in the organization, but considering the magnitude of that deal it is very relevant to provide the information on the performances going forward of all the players involved in that deal. Whether we admit it or not, we will all be keeping an eye on White and Pomeranz to see how their careers end up in relation to what impact Jimenez has for the Indians.

Indians get #15

With the regular season coming to a close the Indians draft slot for next year’s draft was finally determined. The draft slot is determined by taking the worst record in the league and awarding them the #1 pick and so on, and the Indians ended up with the #15 pick.

While controlling where a team selects in the draft is not a goal a team shoots for, there was a bit of drama on the final day as with the Indians loss and the Washington Nationals win the Indians “earned” that #15 pick. Had the Indians won or the Nationals lost the Indians would have finished with the #16 or later pick, a difference that has some significance.

By getting the #15 pick the Indians now have a protected first round pick. Picks at #16 or later in the first round are unprotected. What this means is for a team with an unprotected pick that signs a Type-A free agent they lose their first round pick as compensation to the team they signed the player away from. Teams that have a protected first round pick do not lose the first round pick when signing Type-A free agents and instead lose their second round pick.

Of course, the Indians will never really be big players in free agency for the marquee free agents; however, being designated a “Type-A” free agent does not always mean such a player is a high profile free agent. The Indians have some interest in first base/left field right-handed bats this offseason, and two names that get brought up a lot are Michael Cuddyer and Josh Willingham. Both are Type-A free agents, so at least the Indians now know what the cost will be in draft picks going into any possible bargaining sessions for either player.

Explaining Non-Tenders

By Ben Nicholson-Smith [October 3 at 12:28pm CST]

Russell Martin, Alfredo Aceves and Joel Peralta were all non-tendered last offseason. One year later, we’re well on our way to welcoming another class of non-tenders to the club. It can be a confusing kind of transaction, so here’s an explanation of what exactly a non-tender is.

To tender a player a contract is to offer a contract, but non-tenders refer to a specific kind of offer: offers of arbitration. Rules and precedent shape the kind of salary a player can expect through arbitration, so players under team control usually get raises through the process.

For example, Jacoby Ellsbury isn’t eligible for free agency yet, but he and agent Scott Boras have some say in his future earnings. If the Red Sox offered Ellsbury $3MM in arbitration this offseason, Boras and Ellsbury could counter with a $10MM submission and win. Arbitration can be expensive for teams, since a player’s salary depends on his previous earnings and comparable players.

Players generally earn $400K or so for their first few major league seasons, so they’re usually relatively cheap in their first arbitration seasons. But players entering their second, third or (for super twos) fourth arbitration seasons stand to make more money if they’re tendered an offer.

If an arbitration eligible player hasn’t performed well and projects to earn a considerable amount, his team will likely consider a non-tender to save money and preserve roster flexibility. That means they have turned down the option to negotiate a contract with that player through arbitration, but it doesn’t mean the player’s going to sign elsewhere.

Left-handers Hideki Okajima and Andrew Miller both re-signed with the Red Sox after Boston non-tendered them last winter. The Red Sox signed the pair of pitchers for less guaranteed money, but only after they risked losing them to rival teams. (After a player is non-tendered he hits free agency and can sign anywhere.)

It’s complicated, but here’s what you need to know: teams non-tender players when they would rather risk losing them to another team than go through the potentially expensive arbitration process.

MLBTR first published a modified version of this post by Ben Nicholson-Smith in September 2010.

pgammo Peter Gammons

Indians development people are worried they lose Sandy Alomar to White Sox

3 hours ago

Terry Francona's first managing/coaching gig began with the White Sox. It's quite possible Sandy stays in Cleveland. Reinsdorf likes Francona. The only stumbling block might be the cash. Otherwise, if I'm Reinsdorf, I'd choose the experience over the rookie especially now when there could be a possible 5-team race in 2012. Francona had to deal with those odds in beantown. Same situation in the Central. The balance is there even if the talent level is not.

Dave Martinez is the favorite in Chicago. Francona is not going to get another managerial job this year. Might be back with the Indians as an adviser.

hoynsie paul hoynes
#Indians say he'll be ready for 2012 season. Does that mean they'll pick up his $9 million option? Good question.
34 minutes ago
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hoynsie paul hoynes
Grady Sizemore and right knee surgery on Monday. Not microfracture. Will be out six to eight weeks. #Indians.
35 minutes ago Favorite Retweet Reply

Another surgery for Grady; is he worth $9M? Not IMHO.

The job by Joe Gardner for Rockies AA team was not mixed results. It was very solid. He was a 3rd round draft choice and had a very good 2010 for us in Class A. He has nearly as much a shot as White at being a major league success.

That pretty much seals the $9 million situation for Grady.

Either he comes back at a large discount, or not at all.

Ex Los Angeles Dodger Milton Bradley and his wife have each filed divorce papers in the wake of Milton's arrest for allegedly swinging a baseball bat at her.

Bradley's wife called 911 on September 27, claiming he was swinging a bat at her, cage style. Milton was arrested and booked for assault with a deadly weapon.

Milton and wife Monique each cite irreconcilable differences. They were married in 2005 and have 2 kids.

It's been a bumpy road ... Monique filed for a restraining order in January. He's been arrested twice.

She filed for divorce last February but dropped the case.

For both of their sakes, hopefully they'll go through with it this time.

I guess Wedge knew what he was doing when he told this ass clown to get lost. Nah, he just couldn't relate to certain players.

Olney On Grady Sizemore, Rays
By Ben Nicholson-Smith [October 6 at 9:32am CST]
Grady Sizemore underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee this week and though the Indians say they expect him to be ready for spring training 2012, there’s no guarantee that they’ll exercise his $9MM option. Buster Olney weighed in on Sizemore and the Rays in this morning’s blog entry at ESPN.com. Here are the details:

If the Indians let Sizemore walk, many teams would be interested in his services. Specifically, Olney suggests the 29-year-old center fielder would draw interest from teams like the Red Sox, Yankees and Phillies.
At times, talent evaluators saw Sizemore’s old explosiveness this year and it wouldn’t be surprising if he became a star player again.
He’s not likely to be back with the Indians in 2013, Olney writes.
Olney outlines the options for Rays owner Stuart Sternberg, who expressed frustration with the team’s season-long attendance issues despite its on-field success. He could sell the franchise, continue with a low payroll and low expectations or look to move the team to Tampa or another city. "The St. Petersburg baseball market is dead," Olney writes.

If the Indians let Sizemore walk, many teams would be interested in his services. Specifically, Olney suggests the 29-year-old center fielder would draw interest from teams like the Red Sox, Yankees and Phillies.

Include the Marlins, White Sox, and Marlins in that mix.