The Phillies have signed Placido Polanco to a three-year $18 million contract. The deal includes a mutual option for a fourth year. I’m not thrilled about the length of this contract — would have preferred a two-year deal instead — but the Red Sox were rumored to be hot after Polanco as well, so I’m willing to bet the third and fourth years were needed to seal the deal.
Length of the deal aside, Ruben Amaro has once again done a nice job of making the Phillies a better team. For those fans — and I admit I was one — who would have preferred Adrian Beltre to Polanco, keep this in mind. Beltre is coming off an injury-shortened season, and is no sure bet to bounce back to form. He is also represented by Scott Boras, so the odds of him signing this early in the offseason were slim at best. I believe Amaro realized this, and didn’t want to miss out on an opportunity to upgrade his team at a position of need. Polanco also gives the Phillies more flexibility with their lineup. They should be more balanced with Polanco batting 2nd and Shane Victorino batting 7th in the lineup. Just as important, Polanco’s ability to play second base will give Chase Utley a few days off and help keep him fresh down the stretch.
ESPN’s Jayson Stark has reported that the Phillies are making “very serious” effort to sign Placido Polanco. The Phillies have been rumored to have interest in Polanco, in addition to Adrian Beltre and Mark DeRosa, to fill the third base spot left vacant when they declined their option on Pedro Feliz. It appears as though talks with Polanco heated up yesterday when the Tigers declined to offer him arbitration, meaning the Phillies could sign him without losing their first round draft pick.
This would be an interesting signing. Polanco played for the Phillies between 2002-2005, so there is a level of comfort and familiarity there, which I’m sure may factor into things. Polanco is actually a perfect fit for the Phillies lineup. He is a prototypical #2 hitter, and would allow Charlie Manuel to move Shane Victorino down in the lineup — probably batting seventh — which would create greater balance than the Phillies have had in the past couple seasons.
Without question, Polanco represents a significant upgrade offensively over Pedro Feliz. My concern is how Polanco will handle a move to third base full time. He is a two-time Gold Glove winner at second base, but he hasn’t spent any extended time at the hot corner since 2002. At 34 years of age, I think it is fair to worry about his range and how he will handle the transition. Assuming he handles it well, the Phillies could do a lot worse than signing Polanco.
The Phillies have not offered arbitration to Type-B free-agent pitchers Scott Eyre and Chan Ho Park. Ruben Amaro said that the Phillies are open to re-signing one or both of them — similar to what they did last offseason with Jamie Moyer. This certainly isn’t shocking news, however, given Park’s desire to start, I think I may have taken a chance and offered him arbitration. I have to believe that the Amaro and the Phillies are concerned that the number he would have gotten in arbitration would have been too high for them to justify.
ESPN’s Jayson Stark has reported that the Phillies are kicking the tires on free-agent pitcher John Smoltz. Ruben Amaro hasn’t denied the rumor, and stated that he would like to add some starting pitching depth — a low-risk, high-reward type of pitcher.
I suppose Smoltz may fit that mold, but I can’t say I’d be overly thrilled if the Phillies were to sign him. I highly doubt Smoltz will be willing to accept a role in the bullpen. At the very least, he’d expect a chance to make the rotation wherever he signs. He was beyond horrible as a starter last year with the Red Sox and just acceptable with the Cardinals. At 43, does anyone think that he can still be an effective starting pitcher in the Major Leagues?
Even if he were to find the Fountain of Youth — or agreed to a role in the bullpen — let’s not forget that this is the same John Smoltz who openly trashed Citizens Bank Park, calling it “a joke” when asked about his performance after giving up four runs to the Phillies. Any pitcher who allows a ballpark to get into his head that much isn’t worth any amount of risk in my mind. Especially one whose best days are behind him.
The Phillies have signed free-agent catcher — and noted “Phillie Killer” — Brian Schneider to a two-year deal. Schneider will be a nice backup to Carlos Ruiz and certainly represents an upgrade at that spot over years past. If/when Ruiz goes down for a week or two with the inevitable wrist/neck/back injury I know I will feel much better with Schneider in the lineup than I did with Paul Bakos of the baseball world. I have to give Ruben Amaro major props for quietly filling a position of need and making the Phillies a stronger team for 2010.
The Phillies have agreed to a one-year deal with Juan Castro, who will serve as a utility infielder. The deal is worth less than $1 million — I’ve heard it’s for roughly $700,000 though I haven’t seen anything official yet — with a club option in 2011. Castro is not an offensive upgrade over Eric Bruntlett — they are roughly the same — but he is without question a better defender.
The Phillies have stated that one of their priorities this winter is to improve the defense on their bench. Castro does help accomplish that goal, but I think it would have made more sense for the Phillies to sign a middle infielder who can spot-start to give their starters a rest — someone like Ronnie Belliard. Given his offensive skill set — or lack thereof — I just don’t think Castro is that guy. In the end, Castro will probably end up being the 25th man on the roster, and since it didn’t cost much to sign him, there is more money left to spend on other areas of need.
The Phillies are apparently deep in talks to sign a replacement for Eric Bruntlett. FOXSports.com has reported that the Phillies are pursuing veteran utility-man Juan Castro — a.k.a. Bruntlett v2.0. Castro, who turns 38 next season, had a .277/.311/.339 line in 57 games with the Dodgers last year.
I was under the impression that the Phillies were looking to replace Bruntlett with someone who would be a versatile option off the bench. One of the reasons Bruntlett was let go was because he wasn’t a viable option to give the Phils middle infielders a rest, and the Phillies wanted to upgrade that part of their bench. I just don’t see how Castro — lifetime OPS of .601 — represents ANY upgrade over Bruntlett — lifetime OPS of .633. I am in favor of upgrading the bench, and by no means am I sad to see Bruntlett go, but adding someone, who is at best a nearly identical player just doesn’t make much sense to me. Charlie will stash him at the end of his bench as he did with the bearded-one, and Utley and Rollins will once again play 158ish games.
FoxSports.com is reporting that the Phillies are the early favorites to sign free agent third baseman Mark DeRosa. I can’t say I’d be thrilled by this signing, but at the same time I wouldn’t hate it either. I think DeRosa would be an excellent fit for the Phillies as a utility player — starting a few games/week at third and spelling both Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley here and there — but certainly have concerns about him being an everyday player.
DeRosa struggled following a mid-season trade to the St. Louis Cardinals, posting a .228/.291/.405 line in 68 games with the Red Birds. He will turn 35 before the start of the 2010 season and recently underwent surgery to repair a torn tendon sheath in his left wrist. That leads me to wonder if his struggles at the end of last season were due to age and a declining skill set, or the injury. Either way his offensive struggles are a cause for concern.
Personally, I’d rather the Phillies try to sign Adrian Beltre, who at 31 would be less of a risk in my opinion. His glove is as good as — if not better than — Pedro Feliz’s, and would give the Phillies another right-handed power bat in their lineup. Money is a concern with Beltre. He made $12 million last year in Seattle and the Phillies are reportedly only looking to spend between $4 and $6 million on a thrid baseman this offseason.
Some people may already know this, but for those who don’t, Darren Daulton has completely lost his mind. For those of you unfamiliar with what Dutch “believes”, here’s an excerpt from his Wikipedia page:
Daulton holds a series of beliefs related to conspiracies, occultism, and numerology. He maintains that the universe is created and sustained by numerical synchronicities, and that all matter is charged with vibrational energy, which has escaped human perception because it is extradimensional in origin. He believes that those who are conscious of this energy can manipulate it to affect reality in different ways, such as altering the weather. He also believes that the pyramids and Mayan temples were created by a lost civilization, and that people with knowledge of the workings of the system will “ascend” at the conclusion of the Mayan calendar on Dec. 21, 2012, at 11:11 a.m. (Greenwich Mean Time), vanishing into a new plane of existence.[5] He recently claimed in a televised interview with ESPN that he has “skipped through time” and undergone “astral travel” and will “blast into space.”
I recently stumbled across Daulton’s website dedicated to his beliefs and getting his message out there. I’ve never seen the site before, so I have to believe it was created to garner business with the release of the movie 2012. If you’re in need of a good laugh, and know how to use a cyber-machine — Dutch-speak for a computer – check out his website. I promise you won’t be disappointed.
The Phillies appear ready to make an offer to free agent pitcher Chan Ho Park. Park has once again stated he would prefer to be a starter despite having much more success for the Phils last season out of the pen. Park posted a 7.29 ERA in seven starts last year, but was brilliant working out of the bullpen, posting 2.52 ERA in 38 games. At this point in his career, Park is much better suited for the bullpen, and I think he can certainly help the Phillies in that role in 2010. Hopefully he realizes that fact and re-ups with the Phils to help bolster their bullpen.
