Off-Season Review: AL West

Oakland (93-69)

Incoming: C (hah!) Mike Piazza (FA from Padres), OF Shannon Stewart (FA from Twins), P Alan Embree (FA from Padres), P/guitar strummer Lenny DiNardo (waivers from Red Sox), OF Ricky Ledee (minor), INF/Nomar buddy Lou Merloni (minor)

Outgoing: P Barry Zito (FA to Giants), DH Frank Thomas (FA to Blue Jays), OF Jay Payton (FA to Orioles), P Kirk Sarloos (trade to Reds),

In the works: Trouble in the outfield: Only a week into spring training, starter Mark Kotsay and backup Bobby Kielty are already hors de combat, while starter Milton Bradley and newcomer Stewart are notoriously brittle. The A’s could turn one of their extra arms in camp—maybe DiNardo or Brad Halsey—into an outfield insurance policy.

Analysis: Another off-season, another teary goodbye to a homegrown star. This time it’s Zito (apparently the grass—or something—is greener on the other side of the Bay). He continues a tradition that has seen Giambi, Mulder, Hudson, Tejada, and so many others depart Oakland either as free agents or in pre-free agency trades. Frankly, I have always considered Zito to be somewhat overrated (we’ll get into that discussion when we look at the NL West), but nevertheless, his and Thomas’s departures overshadow anyone the A’s brought in. Piazza had a resurgence of sorts last season, posting his highest HR (22) and RBI (68) totals in four years, but he’ll be 39 before this season is over and I’m saying there’s no way he replicates the Big Hurt’s 2006 performance (.270, 39 HR, 114 RBI). And that’s significant, because Thomas was the heart of that lineup. Remember his playoff performance? Against the Twins, he was 5 for 10 with two homers, and the A’s swept the series; against the Tigers, he was 0 for 13, and the A’s were swept. Now he’s in Toronto and the A’s are praying that Piazza has one more good year left.
Meanwhile, the A’s are stocking up on former Red Sox lefties. Still only 27, DiNardo is a good gamble, even though his three seasons in Boston were better known for his appearances at the Hot Stove concerts than his appearances in actual baseball games. Embree bounced back from a disastrous 2005 to post a 3.27 ERA in ’06, so there’s some life in that arm yet.
Oh, and memo to Lou Merloni: Oakland is 373 miles from L.A. If you’re trying to stalk Nomar, you’re not doing a very good job.

Off-season grade: D+. With the A’s omnipresent budgetary problems, this grade is perennially going to be low. Oakland will be looking more to the continuing development of their promising young players—Nick Swisher, Dan Johnson, Rich Harden, Joe Blanton, et al.—than to their off-season acquisitions to help them continue their impressive record of success.

Anaheim, or Los Angeles, or . . . whatever (89-73)

Incoming: OF Gary Matthews Jr. (FA from Rangers), 1B/3B/all-around nice guy Shea Hillebrand (FA from Giants), P Justin Speier (FA from Blue Jays), P Darren Oliver (FA from Mets), P Chris Resop (trade from Marlins)

Outgoing: 2B Adam Kennedy (FA to Cardinals), P Brendan Donnelly (trade to Red Sox), 1B/OF Darin Erstad (FA to White Sox), P Kevin Gregg (trade to Marlins), P J.C. Romero (FA to Red Sox)

In the Works: This team has a ridiculous number of 1B/3B/DH types (Hillebrand, Dallas McPherson, Casey Kotchman, Robb Quinlan, Kendry Morales, Chone Figgins). That’s a lot of trade bait. The projected starting DH, Juan Rivera, coming off a .310/23 HR/85 RBI season, broke his leg in winter ball, and the Angels hope Hillebrand can make a run at those numbers while staying out of fisticuffs with the manager, coaches, teammates, ballboys, etc. But with Rivera due back by July, Hillebrand—who joins his fifth team in four seasons—might want to consider renting. . . .

Analysis: Bad luck Dept: Angels sign Matthews (5 years, $50 million), who just a couple of months later is implicated in a steroid investigation emanating from a raid of two Florida pharmacies. Matthews, a lifetime .249 hitter through 2005, had a Balconian year in ‘06, batting .313 with 19 HRs, 79 RBIs, and 102 runs (all career highs). Now the cloud hangs over him, suggesting the possibility that he started cheating when most others were going clean. But even before the ‘roidtroversy, I thought it was a bad move to shell out that much cash for a guy who was, well . . . just a guy until last year. At age 32, can he replicate that season even once, let alone legitimately earn that $50 million over the next five years? Doubtful. Thus, the bad luck only adds insult to the injury of an already bad signing.
There’s not that much else to get excited about, either. I like Speier, who is an upgrade over the older and more visually challenged Donnelly. But Oliver is a reach and Resop is nothing more than a moderately intriguing arm.
The Angels also said goodbye to two players who were key parts of their lineup over the past few successful seasons, including their world championship of 2002: Kennedy, the scrappy second baseman, and Erstad, the scrappy centerfielder turned brittle first baseman. With one of the best farm systems in the majors, neither should be missed much. How quickly they forget. . . .

Off-season grade: D+. If Matthews is clean and still able to put up numbers that resemble his Dad’s, this grade rises. That’s a big “if.”

Texas (80-82)

Incoming: P Eric Gagne (FA from Dodgers), OF Frank Catalanotto (FA from Blue Jays), OF Kenny Lofton (FA from Dodgers), P Brandon McCarthy (trade from White Sox), OF Sammy Sosa (minor), P Bruce Chen (minor), P Jamey Wright (minor), INF Desi Relaford (minor), P Willie Eyre (minor)

Outgoing: C Rod Barajas (FA to Phillies), OF Mark DeRosa (FA to Cubs), P Adam Eaton (FA to Phillies), OF Carlos Lee (FA to Astros), OF Gary Matthews (FA to Angels), P Kip Wells (FA to Cardinals)

In the works: The Rangers just signed star shortstop Michael Young to a 5-year, $80 million extension. Hard to see how they can top that. . . .

Analysis: Year after year, it’s the same old story for Texas: they need more pitching. Last off-season, they shelled out $60 million over 5 years for Kevin Millwood, but he was inconsistent (16-12, 4.52), and the team finished 8th in the AL in ERA, 12th in strikeouts. This off-season, they took a more penurious tack, watching Lee, DeRosa, Eaton, Matthews, Barajas, and Wells leave town for a total of $194 million. Considering their sub-.500 record, it probably wasn’t that difficult to see them go. But is this team better than it was in 2006? A lot depends on the 23-year-old McCarthy, whose middle name could be “Potential.” If he can turn that promise into results, the makings of a decent rotation are there. They still have one of the best infields in the game, and if Gagne is healthy, he’ll combine with Akinori Otsuka (32 saves) in a formidable back end of the bullpen. In other words, they could actually have the pitching they need.

Off-season grade: C+. The names may not be overwhelming, but I give them credit for getting a little creative. Gagne and McCarthy are interesting and relatively low-priced gambles. Catalanotto is one of the more underrated hitters around and a good glue guy. Lofton can still hit and run a little, although I’m not crazy about him as their (or anyone’s) starting centerfielder. And then there’s Sosa—now that’s getting creative (seriously, he can’t actually make the roster—can he?). The cost—in both dollars and players—of their acquisitions wasn’t steep (although the two prospects traded for McCarthy may nullify that statement in a few years). After all the money this team has spent in the past—with marginal results—perhaps it makes sense for them to try a more austere approach.

Seattle (78-84)

Incoming: OF Jose Guillen (FA from Expos) P Horacio Ramirez (trade from Braves), P Miguel Batista (FA from Diamondbacks), 2B/DH-to-be Jose Vidro (trade from Expos), P Chris Reitsma (FA from Braves), P Jeff Weaver (FA from Cardinals), SS Rey Ordonez (minor), P Arthur Rhodes (minor)

Outgoing: P Gil Meche (FA to Royals), P Joel Pineiro (FA to Red Sox), P Rafael Soriano (trade to Braves), OF Chris Snelling (trade to Expos), P Emiliano Fruto (trade to Expos), 1B Eduardo Perez (FA to White Sox/minor)

In the works: OF Jeremy Reed (a disappointment last season at .217/.260/.377) and 1B/DH Ben Broussard are two intriguing chips on the M’s table. Reed is still only 25 and a good fielder with a significant upside, and Broussard can hit a little. It would make sense to swap them for some bullpen help.

Analysis: Hmm, where to begin? Trying to decipher all this is like reading Egyptian hieroglyphics. I see two men covered in bandages (Ramirez and Vidro), a bleeding man with his fists raised (Guillen), a man with his head in the clouds (Weaver), a man with a crooked arm (Reitsma), and two men with gray beards and wrinkled skin (Rhodes and Batista).
These moves bring up as many questions as answers:

• Jose Vidro at DH? Really? Well, it’s better than having him play in the field, but I’ll be shocked if he isn’t the worst DH in the league—and that’s assuming he stays healthy. He had 7 HRs and 47 RBIs last year; that’s barely acceptable for a shortstop, let alone a DH. Snelling, who was half of the package that brought Vidro, could probably put up the same numbers at a fraction of the cost.
• Who does Batista compare with? He compares pretty closely to . . . Gil Meche (11-8, 4.58 ERA, 1.53 WHIP for Batista, 11-8, 4.48 ERA, 1.43 WHIP for Meche). O.k., Batista comes cheaper (3 years, $25 million—still ridiculous), but he’s 36 years old. Is there any Mariners fan anywhere excited about the 36-year-old version of Meche?
• Is Ramirez worth Soriano? Exchanging a reliever for a starter usually seems wise, but Soriano looked like one of the best setup men in the game in 2006, while Ramirez is injury prone and has regressed since showing promise in 2003-04. He’s still only 27 and he’s penciled in as the team’s No. 5 starter, but there’s a major bust potential there.
• Can Guillen stay healthy and sane? Not quite 31 years old, he’s a decent gamble at $5.5 million for one year, but between the injuries and the volatile personality, you never know what you’ll get from him (maybe the M’s miss Carl Everett). Guillen played in only 69 games last year and batted .216, but as recently as 2004 he put up a .294/27 HR/104 RBI line. If he can approach those numbers, the M’s will have a deep and versatile lineup.
• In the playoffs, who was that guy that pitched really well who looked like Jeff Weaver? We don’t know, but he made Weaver rich to the tune of $8.3 million (o.k., he was already rich).
• What in the name of Rupert Jones is going on here? Hard to tell, but it appears General Manager Bill Bavasi may have fallen from the Space Needle and suffered brain damage.

Off-season grade: D. Getting Vidro for Snelling and Fruto just makes no sense—Vidro could have a decent season but he’s a completely unnecessary piece and the cost in players and money is far too steep. Getting Ramirez for Soriano appears to be a bad trade; the M’s almost certainly could have gotten more for a premier setup man. Expecting Reitsma to play the role of Soriano is like expecting Rosie O’Donnell to play the role of Angelina Jolie. Giving Weaver and Batista $8 million per year each is—and I can’t believe I’m saying this—not incomprehensible in the present market. But they’re both long shots to be anything better than league-average. I think Guillen and Rhodes are good pickups, but they’re dwarfed by the influx of mediocrity into Safeco. While no one else in the division did anything to separate themselves from the pack, and the M’s still have a nice lineup and the promise of King Felix, I just don’t see how they’ve made themselves better with these moves.