| Al's Ramblings | |||
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Friday, November 07, 2008 (11/07/2008 02:17:00 PM) - Al MLBTR was kind enough to link to BA's list of minor league free agents...as usual, there's a plethora of fellas none of us have heard of, but I will link to a few names I recognized. If I was a team like the Padres or Mariners, I'd look to load up on the quality players from that list, and for the most part, just hope to throw enough of 'em against the wall and hope a couple stick. While the top 5 might actually get a six figure bonus and/or a 40 man roster spot, most get $10K or less, many almost nothing. While a team made up of minor league FA's would have a tough time winning more than 40 games or so (basically, at or about replacement level) over the course of 162, it would also be a team that would happily play for 25 times the league minimum, which is right about $400K, so about a $10M team. Here is one person's attempt at fielding a team made up of nothing but minor league FA's, needless to say, more to find the areas of strength, depth, and weakness than an actual experiment. Jorge Sosa--4.67 career ERA, throws hard. He'll have plenty of suitors. Kiko Calero--Had a nice few years of service, was hurt last year. Career 3.50 ERA. Brandon Medders--Brandon has had some success in the bigs, and has more than a K per inning in the minors. Royce Ring---Ring had a nice stretch with ATL, then fell apart this year. Lefty set-up man. Randy Keisler--I recall him vaguely as a member of the SL bullpen a couple years ago. 45-45 with a 4 ERA in almost 1000 AAA innings, he'll be a member of the mythical rotation. Jason Childers--Soft tossing reliever, career 3 AAA ERA, only 18 HR's allowed in 361 IP. Certainly not ever going to be dominant, but he's durable and would not embarrass anyone as a middle relief guy. Justin Lehr--Has had success starting and relieving, but has not shown up in the bigs since a short stint in MIL in '06. 3.65 ERA and a 2.5-1 K/BB ratio in 500 AAA innings. Nelson Figueroa--Solid career, very good AAA numbers. Probably be the ace of the staff, does everything well except keep the ball in the park. Chris Gissell--Unspectacular, but a 4ish ERA in AAA and 7 K's/9 IP works him onto the staff. 6-5 RH, at least has big league size. Marino Salas-Struggled with control in 17 big league innings, but throws hard and has a 3.52 minor league ERA, still just 27. He's a combo of velocity and youth, he'll be among the most sought after of the minor league FA's. Travis Chick--Just 25, pretty good overall numbers in the minors. Will be highly coveted on age alone. Colter Bean--440 K's in 375 AAA IP...what more do you need to know? Astounding he hasn't got an extended shot in the bigs. Luke Carlin--Switch-hitting catcher with a .362 OBP in 600 AAA AB's...who wouldn't want him? JD Closser --1000 AAA AB's, .360/.421, also switch-hitting backstop. Why did SD have both these guys at AAA last year? Tag Bozied --50 homers in the past 2 seasons at AAA, career .355/.509 in about 2000 AAA AB's. RH pop at 1B that you think would fit onto someone's team. Rob Mackowiak--Can play either IF/OF corner, and CF in a pinch, with a career .332/.405 statline. Lefty bat as well, he might be the best player on this list. Danny Klassen--2600 AAA AB's, .335/.409 line at that level. Has played 2B/SS/3B/OF over the years. Adam Morrissey.344/.404 at AAA over 4 years at AAA, 2B/3B capable, his inability to play SS has kept him down on the farm. D'Angelo Jimenez--Very good middle infielder, and an outstanding .371/.440 AAA history. Excellent OBP skills for a capable 2B/SS. Mike Rouse--Lefty hitter, .343 OBP in 6 AAA seasons. Let's be honest, AAA SS's don't hit a whole lot...that's why they're in AAA. John Rodriguez--Best known for his time with the Cards, a LH bat with power, a 900 OPS in oodles of AAA AB's. John-Ford Griffin--Former 1st round pick, .350/.450 line in AAA, good athlete. He will be very sought after this offseason. Jeff Davanon--Career .350 OBP in the big leagues, switch-hitter, capable of playing all 3 OF spots, this guy would not embarrass any team being on their roster. Last year, Gleeman wanted the Twins to bring him in to be their CF, and that's the spot I have him assigned as well. Jason Dubois--He's always been able to hit, compiling a near 900 OPS in almost 2000 AAA AB's. Hard to believe this kind of RH power has never found a spot in the bigs as at least a role player...last year in Iowa (Cubs AAA), he put up .400/.663 with 25 HR's in 238 AB's...golly. Jason Lane--Decent big leaguer, and very solid AAA numbers over the years. Chris Duffy--PIT chose him over McLouth a few years ago, nice .369/.467 AAA numbers. Nice, cheap reserve for anyone. It doesn't take much to see what the weakness of this group would be...most anyone in the bullpen could fit into an 11th/12th man role. Either catcher could be a backup for many teams. The infield is unspectacular, but wouldn't devastate you either. Any of the outfielders would fit in as a reserve. However, even I'm man enough to admit a rotation of Figueroa, Sosa, Keisler, Lehr, and Gissell would be a nightly struggle. That's why SP depth is so important to accumulate, as there is no free talent available in that area, even in the offseason. 11/07/2008 02:17:00 PM |
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