Free Agency

According to MLB Trade Rumors the Mets are are pursuing starting pitcher Chris Young (formerly of the San Diego Padres).  The deal will in all likelihood be for one year, laden with incentives. The Mets are looking to add depth to a rotation which will not feature Johan Santana for a good chunk of the year.  Right now the Mets starting rotation features R.A. Dickey, Mike Pelfrey and Jon Niese.  

The 2010 season went down as one where we saw a shift to a different era.

Gone is the steroid era, and pitching has made a return to prominence. A new crop of rookies looks to be historically good, and many sure-fire Hall of Famers seem to be wrapping up their careers.

Now the season is over, and the offseason hot stove has started in full force. Already one major trade has happened that few saw coming, with Dan Uggla moving to a different team in the same division, the Atlanta Braves. But that won't be the only major deal that will happen.

Pretty much everyone knows about the two gems of this year's free agency period, Cliff Lee and Carl Crawford. Even though the pool is relatively weak this year, there are other big names out there. One of the most notable is that of Phillies right fielder Jayson Werth.

Werth had a career year this past season, hitting .296 with 27 home runs, 85 RBI, and a league high 46 doubles, en route to an eighth place finish in MVP voting. As such, there are many that could use his bat in the lineup.

Which teams have the best chance to land him, and who is the front runner?

In the digital age, rumors fly much quicker than they used to.  It literally takes only seconds to post a rumor online and create a huge buzz over basically nothing.  The same applies to Phillies free-agent  right fielder, Jayson Werth.  Early this morning, a talk-show radio host mentioned that the Phillies had offered Werth a contract and that it was good enough for him to possibly sign.  Should you give credence to this rumor?  The simple answer is "No."

Cliff Lee is by far the most attractive, and at the same time, most expensive option on the market this off-season. But after Lee, there's a big drop off in the market.

There are still a couple of pitchers who have the potential to be a solid top of the rotation starter available though, who are far cheaper than Lee. Unfortunately, they haven't shown any of that in recent seasons.

Dear Doug,

The Minnesota Twins offseason got quite the jump-start on Black Friday.

News came across the wire that the Twins were the highest bidder, and now have 30 days of exclusive contract negotiations with Tsuyoshi Nishioka. Nishioka, 26, is the reigning batting champ in Japan, and a sleek fielding middle infielder.

The winning bid from the Twins came in at over $5 million. If a contract can't be negotiated within 30 days, the Twins will get their bid back.

       Will he’ll be the third best shortstop on the team in a couple years?  Sure.  Don’t his career numbers make him a rich man’s Craig Biggio?  Of course.  But the Yankees need Derek Jeter as much as the Yankee captain needs the pinstripes.  The Yankees are built on quiet professionalism and championship legacy, and no player, now or on the horizon (sorry, Robinson Cano), represents the Yankee brand like Derek Jeter.

No one suspected that New York Yankee captain Derek Jeter’s contract negotiations would start to resemble a page out of the Alex Rodriguez biography.

The new Yankee regime sans “the Boss” has made it very clear that this is a business decision and not a personal one. The rumored offer made was somewhere in $45-$50 million range for a period of three years.

New York Yankee SS Derek Jeter has been reportedly told he will not be offered arbitration by the club.  It has been widely reported that there is a large gap between the Jeter and Yankee camps.  Rumor has it that the Yankees are holding fast at a three-year offer in the neighborhood of $15 million per season.  Meanwhile Jeter’s camp is reportedly looking for more years and a higher annual salary.