Cleveland Sports Forum

Omar Vizquel makes Blue Jays roster at almost 45 years old

Published: Thursday, March 29, 2012, 7:43 AM Updated: Thursday, March 29, 2012, 8:59 AM
By Associated Press sports staff

DUNEDIN, Fla. -- Omar Vizquel has played his way into yet another season in the majors.
Boosted by an excellent showing in spring training, the backup infielder was told Wednesday that he'd made the team and would be added to the roster.

Vizquel found out a month before his 45th birthday, making him the oldest active position player in the big leagues.

The 11-time Gold Glove winner had signed a minor league contract on Jan. 23. He spent the previous two years with the Chicago White Sox as a utilityman and mentor to younger players.

"We knew what his character was and what kind of guy he was going to be in the clubhouse," Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopolous said after Toronto beat Baltimore 9-3. "So that obviously came out the way it was expected. Omar just had a very good camp and he deserved to be on the team."
Vizquel turns 45 on April 24. The three-time All-Star shortstop from Venezuela is batting .433 in 15 exhibition games. He had a bunt single and scored a run in Toronto's win over the Orioles.

The Blue Jays optioned Mike McCoy, Vizquel's primary competition, to Triple-A Las Vegas after the game.

"McCoy had to be that much better than Omar and (Luis) Valbuena just because he had options and they had the ability to keep him," Anthopolous said. "Mike knew he didn't have a great camp, he's a lot better than he played."

"He's going to be back, like he was last year a lot, and I expect him to be back again. It's just one of those things that Omar had the best camp," he said.

This will be Vizquel's 24th season in the majors. He hit .251 with eight RBIs in 58 games for the White Sox last year.

Is it too early to declare Yu Darvish as a candidate for the Cy Young Award this year

The kid looks awesome tonight against the Rockies. Five innings and nine strikeouts. He's thrown all seven of his pitches at one time or another tonight. The Rockies are guessing at what's coming and guessing wrong the majority of the time.

Darvish is fun to watch.

Some new and exciting, young ballplayers to watch this year. I wish we had some.

Kipnis, Santana

CINCINNATI --

The Reds have agreed to terms on a 10-year, $225 million contract extension with first baseman Joey Votto, according to a report Monday evening by USA Today.

The blockbuster deal would keep Votto with the Reds through the 2023 season, and reportedly includes a no-trade clause. It would be the richest contract in franchise history.

Votto, 28, still has two years remaining on the three-year, $38 million contract he signed in January 2011. He is due to make $9.5 million this season and $17 million in '13.

Is Cincy considered a small market city ?!!?

Votto getting a new deal could further complicate extension negotiations with second baseman Brandon Phillips, who can be a free agent after the 2012 season. Jocketty and Phillips' agent have not been close to hammering out a deal since negotiations commenced in late September.

Reds may regret massive Votto contract


KEN ROSENTHAL

UPDATED APR 3, 2012 8:25 AM ET

Am I missing something? Have the standards for valuing players changed that much, seemingly overnight?


Maybe, if you believe that the sale of the Dodgers for $2.15 billion significantly raised the value of all franchises, and that dramatic increases in local and national TV revenues are inevitable across the sport.

But even if you give the Reds every benefit of the doubt — and it takes an Anthony Davis-sized leap to do that — I still don’t see how signing first baseman Joey Votto to a 10-year, $225 million extension makes sense.

If there’s one thing the new age of baseball analysis taught us, it’s that emotional decisions are often irrational decisions — and that irrational decisions on $100 million and $200 million contracts often suffocate a franchise.

Reds owner Bob Castellini made an emotional decision on Votto, a homegrown star who overcame a bout with anxiety in 2009 to become the 2010 National League MVP. Based on the available evidence, it is an irrational decision. And unless Castellini is planning to increase payroll dramatically, it is a decision that will shackle the Reds soon.


Lest anyone forget, the Reds tried this once before, trading for center fielder Ken Griffey Jr. in February 2000 and signing him to a nine-year, $112.5 million contract.

Castellini, who bought the team in January 2006, should know how many times the Reds made the playoffs during Griffey’s tenure, which lasted until July 2008.

None.

Now I don’t have precise knowledge of Castellini’s finances. It’s certainly his right to do whatever he wants with his money. But most teams spend in accordance with their revenues. And the Reds do not appear to have the revenues to support a $100 million-plus payroll, which is where they will need to be, at the very least, when they are paying Votto $22.5 million a year from 2014 to 2023 – assuming the deal does not include massive deferrals, as Griffey's did.

Maybe that price is the new normal for slugging first basemen, given Albert Pujols’ $24 million average in his 10-year deal with the Los Angeles Angels and Prince Fielder’s $24.3 million average in his nine-year deal with the Detroit Tigers. But Pujols and Fielder were free agents. Votto was under contract for two more years, and Castellini decided to award him monster dollars through age 40, anyway.




I get it if Castellini is turning into the NL version of Mike Ilitch, the gazillionaire who owns the Tigers and spends whatever he pleases, regardless of the bottom line. But when has Castellini ever acted like Ilitch before?

The Reds’ payroll the past four seasons has ranged between $73.6 million and $80.8 million, according to Cot’s Baseball Contracts. This season it is projected to be $81.8 million.

True, second baseman Brandon Phillips, third baseman Scott Rolen and closer Ryan Madson are potential free agents, representing a possible savings of $27 million. But the Reds will need to replace those players. And salaries, thanks in part to deals like Votto’s, aren’t going backward.

Again, what am I missing?

The Reds, coming off a division title, ranked only 16th in the majors with an average attendance of 27,327 last season — more than 10,000 per game below the Milwaukee Brewers, a franchise that plays in only a slightly larger market.


Cincinnati is the smallest Nielsen market in the majors. The Reds will receive $30 million a year through the end of the decade from their deal with Fox Sports Ohio, according to FOXSports.com’s Jon Paul Morosi. By contrast, the Angels’ new deal is worth $150 million a year. Even if Castellini re-negotiates the Reds’ terms, the new money does not figure to be the same type of game-changer.

But forget the revenue equation for a moment, difficult as it might be, and just consider the baseball aspect. History has shown that teams almost always regret deals of this length. I’ll bet it happens again not just with the Reds and Votto, but also with the Angels and Pujols and the Tigers and Fielder.

The Tigers actually might stand the best shot of getting a fair return — Fielder, the youngest of the three first basemen, will play the final year of his deal at 36. The AL also offers Fielder and Pujols the opportunity to become DHs later in their careers. Votto will be stuck at first base, except in interleague games on the road, when he can serve as a DH.

Hello?

Teams in the testing era are turning away from older players, forcing some into retirement earlier than they anticipated. As one GM points out, a 10-year deal might be logical for someone like Toronto Blue Jays third baseman Brett Lawrie, who is only 22 and already on the verge of stardom. But such contracts lose appeal when they mostly cover a player’s declining years.

I’m sure the Reds will present a united front when they announce the Votto extension, but I have a very difficult time believing that general manager Walt Jocketty is fully on board. Jocketty, after more than three decades in the game, knows the folly of such deals. He also faces the unenviable task of trying to build a team around a player who is likely to represent one-fourth to one-fifth of his payroll.

Reds fans might not want to hear it, but the better move for the team might have been to trade Votto during the offseason. The Blue Jays, sitting on one of the game’s deepest farm systems, might have gone all-out to land Votto, a native of Toronto. Even the Angels might have preferred two years of control with Votto and the chance to extend him over the mega-deal for Pujols.

Castellini, though, was having none of it. Castellini had stars in his eyes. Castellini determined that the Reds would keep Votto, then figure out everything else later.

Am I missing something? Come to think of it, no.

Emotional leads to irrational. And irrational leads to trouble.

BASERUNNING
SB: Salcedo 2 (2, 2nd base off Martinez, C/Ross; 3rd base off Martinez, C/Ross)

This will be Salcedo's second full season in pro ball. He spent a little less than 1/2 season at Rome two years ago, 1 full season in Rome last year, and starts this season off in Lynchburg. He's progressing nicely. He did well for the future Braves against the Atlanta Brave starting lineup tonight. Salcedo is now 20 years old this year. Too bad the birth certificate snaffu robbed him of 3 years of professional baseball experience. Too bad we couldn't have signed him when he was a 16 year old.

Braves sign highly regarded Salcedo

By Mark Bowman / MLB.com

02/23/10 8:35 PM ET

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. --

During the past offseason, the Braves attempted to improve their organizational depth at the shortstop position. With the acquisition of Dominican shortstop Edward Salcedo, they have done so in an impressive manner.

Atlanta announced Tuesday afternoon that it has signed Salcedo, an 18-year-old shortstop, who was regarded as one of the top available talents on the international market. The young infielder received a $1.6 million signing bonus.

"This is a significant signing for us," Braves director of international scouting operations Johnny Almaraz said. "We feel that Edward is one of this year's most talented prospects. He has outstanding makeup, and the combination of his fielding and hitting ability make him one of the top international players that we've seen in a while."

With his five-tool talents, Salcedo has led some Braves talent evaluators to draw comparisons to Marlins All-Star shortstop Hanley Ramirez.

Based on the way Atlanta handled Yunel Escobar after he was selected in the 2005 First-Year Player Draft, there's reason to believe Salcedo will likely spend most of the upcoming season with Class A Rome. The club has routinely kept many of its top young prospects in Rome for a majority of their first full season in professional baseball.

After watching video of Salcedo, Braves general manager Frank Wren described him as being "very impressive." Wren said that he believed the young shortstop would have been a top 10 Draft selection most years.

Thus Atlanta has found away to account for the first-round Draft choice it lost when it signed closer Billy Wagner in December. The Braves' first pick in this year's Draft will be the 35th selection, which they gained when the Orioles signed Mike Gonzalez.

The Braves began their aggressive pursuit of Salcedo after paying Major League Baseball to perform an investigation to verify his age. The determination that he was born in 1991 backed up earlier suspicions regarding his age.

[Wonder why the Cleveland Indians never bothered to pursue this approach !?!?!]

When Salcedo agreed to a $2.3 million signing bonus with the Indians in 2007, his path to professional baseball was blocked by the United States government, which was suspicious of his claim that he was born in 1989 and of legal age, 16 years old, to sign with a Major League organization.


[This organization never ceases to amaze me !]

What a sad sight, Mohammed Ali at the Marlins game

Braves Edge Future Stars in Front of Record Coolray Crowd

Coolray Field welcomes 10,568 fans as Braves claim 4-3 victory in seven innings

By Dave Lezotte / Gwinnett Braves04/04/2012 12:02 AM ET
Dan Uggla blasted a solo home run for the Braves in the second inning. (Daniel Hamby)

Lawrenceville, GA -

It was certainly a thrilling night - albeit a rain-shortened one - at Coolray Field on Tuesday night as the Atlanta Braves edged the Future Stars 4-3 in the first-ever "Atlanta Braves All-Stars vs. Future Stars Game." The home of the Triple-A Gwinnett Braves welcomed a franchise record 10,568 fans as Fredi Gonzalez's major leaguers bested Bobby Cox's group of talented youngsters in seven innings.

Among the many highlights of the night were Cox's standing ovation during pre-game player introductions and Braves' President John Schuerholtz's rendition of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" during the seventh-inning stretch.

The Future Stars held a 3-1 advantage heading into the bottom of the fifth, but the Braves pounded out three runs on three-straight extra-base hits off right-hander J.R. Graham of Advanced-A Lynchburg to claim victory.

With Graham on in the bottom of the fifth, Braves' third-baseman Juan Francisco reached on a single and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by David Ross. Two batters later, Michael Bourn stroked an RBI double scoring Francisco to cut the deficit to a run. Martin Prado's RBI triple scored pinch-runner Jose Constanza for the tying run, and Brian McCann notched the winning RBI with a double scoring pinch-runner Luis Durango.

The sides battled for scoreless sixth and seventh innings before rain halted the game. Braves' relievers Kris Medlen and Eric O'Flaherty (S, 1) combined on 2.0 scoreless innings. Right-hander Cristhian Martinez (W, 1-0) received the win despite allowing two earned runs in the top of the fifth for Atlanta.

The Future Stars took a 1-0 lead in the opening frame against Braves' left-hander Mike Minor as Lynchburg's Matt Lipka walked, stole second, advanced to third on first-baseman Freddie Freeman's throwing error and scored on an RBI groundout by Gwinnett's Joey Terdoslavich.

Atlanta knotted the score at 1-1 in the bottom of the second as Dan Uggla belted a towering solo home run off the top of the picnic tent in left field. The only home run of the game came off Future Stars' starter and 2011 Braves' first-round pick, left-hander Sean Gilmartin. It was the lone run and only hit allowed by Gilmartin over 2.0 innings of work.

Minor threw 3.0 innings and allowed only an unearned run while striking out four. Braves' right-hander Livan Hernandez added a scoreless frame before Martinez was tagged for two runs in the fifth.

Rome first-baseman Brandon Drury doubled and scored on an errant throw by Braves' catcher Ross, and Lynchburg's Edward Salcedo singled, stole both second and third base and scored thanks to heads-up base-running by Lipka. Though picked off of first base, Lipka stayed in a rundown long enough to allow Salcedo to reach the plate.

Still, it wouldn't be enough for Cox's Future Stars to hang on as Graham (L, 0-1) allowed three runs on four hits over one inning of work.

Bourn enjoyed the only multi-hit night for either side, finishing 2-for-3 with a double and a RBI for the Braves. The record-setting sell-out crowd at Coolray Field topped the previous franchise record of 10,427, set on April 17, 2009.

The Gwinnett Braves open the 2012 regular season on Thursday, April 5 as they take on Durham at Durham Bulls Athletic Park in Durham, NC. Starting pitchers will be announced. Listen to the broadcast on WDUN AM 550 and 102.9 FM.

Tickets for all Gwinnett Braves games including Opening Night on Thursday, April 12 against Durham are on sale now at the Coolray Field Box Office. Call (678) 277-0340 or visit gwinnettbraves.com for more information.

Lynchburg has quite a few of the Braves top prospects playing for them. The Mudcats and the Hillcats should be seeing a lot of each other this year.

4 games underway, 3 in the 5th innning, one just in the 1st. No scoring anywhere. Conclusion: This is a Year of the Pitcher. 1968 Revisited. All we'll need are 2 runs a game to be winners. Maybe we can manage that.

CC having a rough time today. Normally I'm happy when the Skankees lose, but he's on my fantasy team!

Mariano just blew a save! And my player CC won't get the win

I was letting my wife surf Friday night TV and she noted she wanted to land on a pair of Monk re-runs starting at 9PM. I went out to get a pizza and then tuned into the A's game against Eric Wedge and Seattle.

Yoenis Céspedes was on deck as we sat down on the couch and I quickly gave her a thumbnail of his history in Cuba and his 2011 "defection" through The Dominican.

I added he seemed to be the real deal as a five tool player (I've previously explained 'five tool') and I had seen pics (those provided by Joez) that he was ripped and dripping muscle.

I told her that he was the kind of guy who could crush balls.

Two pitches later he hit a ball into the damp and cool Oakland night that would have usually been slowed down after launch in some way. This ball cleared the left center fence and almost made the outfield luxury boxes. Longest and hardest hit ball I have seen in my years of watching the A's in Oakland.

On the replay, Ray Fosse noted, "he CRUSHED that one."

My wife heard and chirped, "you know a lot about baseball."

Most of what I learned about Yoenis Céspedes, I learned here from Joez.