2010-2011 MLB Offseason Thread

[MiamiHomer]

Now the Yanks and Red Sox battling for Russell Martin.

[DColts]

I want Martin
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As the arms race between New York and Boston has been kicked up a notch over the last 12 hours, the two rivals are reportedly engaged in a bidding war. According to Yahoo! Sports’ Tim Brown, both the Yanks and Red Sox are “going very hard on Russell Martin.” The recently non-tendered 27-year-old is an appealing target for two teams who are soft at the catching position, and a Martin deal could be a key low-cost signing for 2011.
For both teams, Martin is a very obvious target. Right now, the Red Sox’s starting catcher is Jarrod Saltalamacchia who played just 12 games in 2010. Saltalamacchia, 25, was a heralded prospect with the Braves, but he’s never caught more than 83 games in a season and has a career OPS+ of 82. A 38-year-old Jason Varitek is the back-up.
The Yanks are in a similar boat. They’re apparently entrusting the starting job to Jesus Montero, questionable defense and all, and the team has clearly soured on Francisco Cervelli as a back-up. Jorge Posada will be the primary DH as his body can’t withstand the impact of catching. If anything, the constant rumors connecting the Yanks to Martin suggest that the team isn’t sold on Montero’s defense right now.
So Martin has emerged as a pawn. He’ll turn 28 before Opening Day, and he’s coming off of two bad injury-plagued years. During his ages 23-25 season, he hit .285/.373/.433 but turned in a Cervellian .249/.350/.330 slash line during his past two seasons. For the right price and with the right expectations, Martin would be a fine addition both for depth and for potential behind the plate.

http://riveraveblues.com/2010/12/a-b...ackstop-39713/

[MiamiHomer]

Our former steroid storm trooper signed with the Mets.

Also some stuff on Cliff Lee.

# The Yankees have presented Lee with an assortment of contract choices, writes Sherman. He believes the bids are something like five years for $125MM ($25MM per), six years for $144MM ($24MM per), and seven years for $161MM ($23MM per). I have a feeling this will reach its resolution with Lee signing the largest pitching contract ever.
# The Rangers requested the Arkansas meeting and plan to increase their offer beyond five years, tweets Rosenthal. The Rangers are "adding any perk necessary" to please Lee and his family, tweets Yahoo's Steve Henson.
# Crasnick reports that the Yankees' new seven-year offer has a lower average annual value than the $23.3MM of their previous one. So this offer could be worth less than Sabathia's contract.
# The Rangers are sending a contingent to meet with Lee and agent Darek Braunecker in the pitcher's hometown of Little Rock, Arkansas, reports ESPN's Jerry Crasnick. This will mark the team's third trip to Arkansas. The Rangers are sending owner Chuck Greenberg and assistant GM Thad Levine, tweets Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

[Swifty]

Jay Bruce got a 5 year extension.

[DColts]

Good signing

[jOOj]

Manny Ramirez will receive $15MM in deferred payments from the Dodgers over the next three years and $1.94MM for each of the next 16 years from the Red Sox.

That's adorable.

[MiamiHomer]

Hey, he needs to feed his family.

[Bobbob1313]

Doesnt Cliff Floyd receive like $5 mil a year from the Mets until 2020 or something silly?

[MiamiHomer]

Just one of the many things wrong with how grossly overpaid athletes are.

[Mainge]

Ehh. They'll stop getting paid so much when we stop giving a fuck.

I think they deserve what they get for the most part.

[Swifty]

I think they're almost universally overpaid, yet I also believe they deserve significant salaries.

[Mainge]

That's fair.

[MiamiHomer]

Basically what Swift said.

[Bobbob1313]

I think they are paid what they deserve based on how much revenue the sports generate. Yeah, being a baseball player might not be as valuable to society as a teacher, but it produces a lot more money.

[Ramp]

Doesnt Cliff Floyd receive like $5 mil a year from the Mets until 2020 or something silly?

Bobby Bonilla

$1mil per til 2020 I believe