March 30th, 2008
Note: All the rosters on the site will be updated with the correct players, 2008 salaries and a fresh look throughout the month of April. Right now, much of the information is out-of-date or incorrect.
The following entails MLB4U.com’s predictions for the 2008 MLB season. For reference, you can view our picks from last year here. We try to be bold where possible. Comments are welcome.
Predicted finish:
AL East:
- Boston
- New York
- Tampa Bay
- Toronto
- Baltimore
AL Central:
- Cleveland
- Detroit*
- Kansas City
- Chicago
- Minnesota
AL West:
- Los Angeles
- Seattle
- Texas
- Oakland
NL East:
- New York
- Atlanta
- Philadelphia
- Washington
- Florida
NL Central:
- Milwaukee
- Chicago
- Cincinnati
- Houston
- St. Louis
- Pittsburgh- 20gb
NL West:
- Arizona
- San Diego*
- Los Angeles
- Colorado
- San Francisco
Playoffs:
ALCS: Los Angeles defeats Boston
NLCS: Arizona defeats Milwaukee
WS: DIAMONDBACKS capture the trophy in 7 games over the Angels
Awards:
NL AL
Surprise team: Cincinnati Tampa Bay
MVP: Conor Jackson Manny Ramirez
CY: Jake Peavy C.C. Sabathia
ROY: Kosuke Fukudome Jacoby Ellsbury
Manager: Bobby Cox Mike Scioscia
Related Posts: Opening Day Rosters | 7 file for free agency on final day | 2007 Predictions | 2005 Award Predictions | Spring Training Day 0: Finally |
December 14th, 2007
The Diamondbacks moved around 12 players while adding Dan Haren to their rotation.
Farther west, the Padres acquired Jim Edmonds from the Cardinals in exchange for David Freese.
The Dodgers could be the next to pull the trigger if they agree to move some of their top prospects for the Orioles’ Erik Bedard.
According to Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Freese, born in St. Louis is “jacked up over the trade.”
Freese, a third base prospect, made giant leaps with the Padres’ High-A affiliate in 2007, but the Padres are not for their development at that position and Chase Headley and Kevin Kouzmanoff stand ahead of him anyway.
In other news, props to Gary Bennett for admitting that he used HGH as outlined in the Mitchell Report. Unlike other, more marquee players, he actually apologized for making a mistake. I completely believe that ever player mentioned in that report used performance-enhancing drugs. I mean no player on the list was a surprise at all. And as far as Bennett, he suffered his own bit of karma already. Shortly after he reportedly used the steroids, he injured his knee when Brian Jordan collided with him at the plate. During the season, he used Human Growth Hormone, he also surpassed his career high for at-bats and garnered a suspension for an altercation with Albert Pujols.
Related Posts: Padres deal Eaton to the Rangers | Teams With Needs | AP/Arizona Republic: Jason Grimsley used performance-enhancing drugs | 2007 Baltimore Orioles Preview | NL East Division Preview |
December 11th, 2007
The following players were not tendered contracts by Wednesday’s 9PM PST deadline. Teams had until that time to offer contracts to all unsigned players on the 40-man roster. The players below are immediately eligible to sign with any team.
Arizona:
Atlanta: Willie Harris
Baltimore: Roberto Novoa, Cory Doyne
Boston: Brendan Donnelly
Chicago: Mark Prior
Chicago White Sox: Andy Gonzalez and Heath Phillips
Cincinnati: Brad Salmon, Jerry Gil
Cleveland:
Colorado: Darren Clarke, Sean Barker
Detroit: Chad Durbin
Florida: Miguel Olivo
Houston: Adam Everett
Kansas City: Emil Brown
Los Angeles: Mark Hendrickson
Los Angeles Anaheim: Dallas McPherson
Milwaukee: Kevin Mench and Matt Wise
Minnesota: Jason Tyner
New York Mets: Johnny Estrada, Ben Johnson and Juan Padilla
New York Yankees: Darrell Rasner, Matt DeSalvo, T.J. Beam and Bronson Sardinha
Oakland: Kiko Calero and Jose Garcia
Philadelphia:
Pittsburgh: Brad Eldred and Brian Rogers
San Diego: Jack Cassel, Morgan Ensberg, Ryan Ketchner, Jason Lane
San Francisco: Scott Munter
Seattle: John Parrish
St. Louis: Aaron Miles
Tampa Bay:
Texas: Akinori Otsuka, Nick Gorneault
Toronto: Josh Towers
Washington: Nook Logan, Mike O’Connor
Related Posts: 7 file for free agency on final day | Arbitration Deadline for Players | 2007 Free Agent Rankings | 2007 Free Agent Rankings | Your 2006 Non-tenders |
December 7th, 2007
Seventeen free agents were offered salary arbitration by their teams prior to the 9PM PST deadline on December 1.
The players had until 9PM PST on December 7 to accept or reject the offer. By accepting the offer, the players immediately were added to the team’s 40-man roster and are considered signed players for the 2008 season. By declining the offer, the player retains his right to free agency and can continue to negotiate with any team. Under the new CBA, a player declining the arbitration offer remains eligible to re-sign with his old team.
Players that accepted arbitration and their teams will exchange salary arbitration figures between Jan. 5-15. The league will announce the figures Jan. 18. Arbitration hearings will be scheduled for between Feb. 1-21. At any time during this process, a player and the team may reach a contractual agreement on their own. For more information, click here.
Players that declined arbitration and then with a new team merit compensatory draft picks for their 2007 team. For more information, click here.
Meanwhile, teams have until 9PM PST on December 12 to tender contracts to any unsigned players on the 40-man roster. A failure to offer a contract immediately causes the player to become a free agent eligible to sign with any team.
PLAYERS THAT ACCEPTED ARBITRATION
Houston: Mark Loretta (B)
New York Yankees: Andy Pettitte (A)
San Diego: Michael Barrett (B)
PLAYERS THAT DECLINED SALARY ARBITRATION
Arizona: Livan Hernandez (B)
Atlanta: Ron Mahay (B)
Boston: Eric Gagne (B)
Houston: Trever Miller (B)
New York Yankees: Luis Vizcaino (B), Alex Rodriguez (A) and Mariano Rivera (A)
Oakland: Mike Piazza (B) and Shannon Stewart (B)
Philadelphia: Aaron Rowand (A)
San Diego: Mike Cameron (B)
San Francisco: Pedro Feliz (B)
Related Posts: Two lefties dealt; RHP dealt | Spring Training Notes | Spring Training Notes | Free Agent Arbitration Offer Deadline | Your 2006 Non-tenders |
December 4th, 2007
The Marlins have agreed to trade Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis to the Tigers in exchange for Andrew Miller, Cameron Maybin, Mike Rabelo, Burke Badenhop, Dallas Trahern and Eulogio De La Cruz.
Peter Gammons first reported the completed deal while Ken Rosenthal had the first scoop.
The Marlins had been trying to drive up the price for Cabrera since the World Series. They had not planned on trading Willis until the Tigers made the tremendous offer. Within a frew hours, a deal was completed. The Angels and Marlins had been struggling to consummate a deal for more than two weeks.
The Giants, Dodgers, Indians, Nationals, Rangers, White Sox, Tigers and Angels all expressed interest in Cabrera at one point. The Marlins’ asking price of three major leaguers and a top pitching prospect for Cabrera discouraged most teams.
Early on, the Dodgers were considered the frontrunners to land him. Had they been willing to offer Matt Kemp, Andy LaRoche, James Loney and Clayton Kershaw, a deal could have been struck easily. While the Dodgers showed a willingless to deal Kemp and LaRoche, Loney and Kershaw were considered to be untouchable.
Meanwhile, the Angels had the most extensive talks. They nearly pulled the trigger on a deal several times. However, the Marlins kept raising the asking price. Prior to the winter meetings, the sides agreed to a basic package of Howie Kendrick, Jeff Mathis and Nick Adenhart. The Marlins wanted Ervin Santana as the fourth player to round off the deal, but the Angels were not willing to deal him. While Reggie Willits could have been a suitable fourth player, the Marlins remained adamant about receiving at least two pitchers of a group including Adenhart, Santana and Joe Saunders. The Angels refused to budge from their position of offering only a one pitcher from that group and remained reluctant about moving Adenhart at all. The Angels initial offer had included Ervin Santana and Chris Bootcheck to complete that package. Earlier in the discussions, Maicer Izturis and Brandon Wood were also mentioned in potential deals. The failure of the sides to compromise allowed the Tigers to enter the mix.
The White Sox could have offered Gio Gonzalez, Jerry Owens and Josh Fields, but the talent of those players paled in comparison to what the Angels could provide. The White Sox would have played Cabrera in left field.
The Cardinals also expressed interest before finding the asking price of Colby Rasmus too steep.
While originally thought that a team acquiring Cabrera would likely want a 72-hour window to work out a long-term deal with him before completing a trade, the Tigers never requested one. The Marlins had said they would not have granted a window anyway. Cabrera could command a 7-year, $140M deal on the open market. He is eligible for free agency following the 2009 season.
Willis can also become a free agent in the fall of 2009, but his value on the open market is unknown to a disappointing 2007 campaign. The Marlins were planning to hold onto him until the July trading deadline while praying for a first-half revival. However, the Tigers’ offer blew them away. The Reds, Astros and Diamondbacks had also recently inquired about Willis. In July, the Mets, Yankees, Indians, Rockies, Mariners, Dodgers, Red Sox and Diamondbacks all held talks with the Marlins about him.
Finally, the Tigers offered Andrew Miller to the Athletics for Dan Haren Monday. But when told Cameron Maybin along with additional prospects would have to be included too, they decided Willis would be a more realistic target. By asking for Cabrera in addition to Willis, and upping the offer to six prospects, they made the Marlins’ job easy.
Related Posts: Tigers add another Jones | AL Post-Deadline Wrap-Up and August 2006 Trades | Brad Lidge traded to the Phillies | Voting Results for 2005 Mid-Season Awards | Padres, Diamondbacks make their moves |
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