Baseball

Fantasy owners may have seen Russell Martin as a top three catcher heading into last season, but after an extremely disappointing 2009 his value has taken a big hit. A deflated value on draft day 2010 will be tantalizing for owners looking for a bargain. Will they find a bargain in Martin?

Despite a regression in counting stats, there are several factors that point to 2010 as being a comeback season from this former top tier catcher.

Remember the good ol' days of baseball?

The Yankees were Pedro Martinez's daddy (or was it the other way around? It still is unclear, but either way, someone has daddy issues...) and Johnny Damon was Boston's homeboy.

My, a lot has changed since then.

I remember when Damon came to the Yankees.

The Washington Nationals have been working very hard to answer some of their many lingering questions this offseason.

Get rid of a closer who walked more batters than he struck out? Check.

Bring in at least one, and possibly two, relievers to take his place? Check.

Cover the team’s posterior, in case Jesus Flores is not 100 percent healthy, by signing a former all-star catcher willing to take on a reduced role? Check.

The title to my original piece was "Roy Halladay Should NOT Be in the Yankees' 2010 Plans." However, as usual, the thoughts are in my head and in my notebook (with generous amounts of information and facts to back up my thoughts), but the time to get it all down was non-existent.

Then with the whopping four-team, 175-player trade that went down last week, I thought that I had to get something down.

Halladay being traded outside of the American League was the best thing to happen to the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees.

What we know right now is that there is one team pursuing Matt Holliday.

Despite Scott Boras' best antics, everyone that follows baseball knows only the St. Louis Cardinals are in the running for Holliday.

Why hasn't Holliday signed yet?

Boras.

Boras won't let Holliday sign until they have exhausted every option and gotten the offer they want from the Cardinals. In other words, he wants to prolong this until he gets his way.

Now that Mike Lowell's torn thumb ligament has put a pinch on the Rangers' pocketbook, Theo Epstein and the rest of the Red Sox front office face a rapidly diminishing market for the 36-year-old's rapidly diminishing services.  However, despite Lowell's Major-League worst -14.4 UZR/150 (i.e. his defense was atrocious), he remains a viable, affordable DH option for the Kansas City Royals.

It is getting close to that time of year again. Time to roll out Bert Blyleven, blow the dust off Andre Dawson and look at the cast of newcomers to the National Baseball Hall of Fame ballot.

The first year nominees are Roberto Alomar , Kevin Appier, Andy Ashby, Dave Burba, Ellis Burks, Andres Galarraga, Pat Hentgen, Mike Jackson, Eric Karros, Ray Lankford, Barry Larkin, Edgar Martinez, Fred McGriff, Mark McLemore, Shane Reynolds, David Segui, Robin Ventura, Fernando Vina, and Todd Zeile.

Jayson Werth will hit the open market next winter as one of the premier free agent outfielders. All we know right now is that he'll be asking for a pretty hefty raise from the Philadelphia Phillies, or he'll pack his bags for someone who's willing to give him the top dollar.

There is a very comparable situation happening right now in the baseball universe as Jason Bay has allowed his agent to price himself out of a good situation in Boston and into a situation that will not be very promising in terms of competing for a World Series.

So, let me get this straight.

Your team's spark-club and legitimate stolen-base threat—gone.

Arguably, the club's best starting pitcher and Game Seven starter in 2002—gone.

The club's most consistent reliever and great clubhouse guy—gone.

The team's most feared hitter and former league MVP—gone.

The sole additions being two 35-year-olds with weak knees?

What exactly is going on over in the the offices in Anaheim of Los Angeles?

This time of year there are two types of teams—spenders and savers.