SIGNED! Delmon Young

One Year $750K to the Phillies.

Uuuuuughhhhh...yikes. Ok I really don't know what's going on in Philadelphia. As I established in my offseason review, the Philadelphia Phillies are an aging franchise who seem unwilling to give up the ghost. I really don't think Delmon Young is going to be some sort of game changer in Philadelphia, but I can see some logic in his contract being used as a trade chip down the line. Young could have made a lot more money but his burdensome behavioral track record made him arguably a "bargain"depending on how you look at it. I personally don't really want guys who get intoxicated and shout anti-Semetic slurs at passerby no matter how much of a bargain they are, so this signing doesn't impress me. So yep, I guess this one makes sense, assuming you're capable of overlooking and/or taking advantage of really unlikeable character traits in a player and inflicting that on the rest of your clubhouse. Not for me.

Offseason Review: The Philadelphia Phillies

New Philadelphia 3B Michael Young
casually surveying his new
 home in full uniform.

What should a team do when for the first time in five years they are not dominating their division? How do you respond when your team goes from having the most wins in all of baseball one season to a piddling .500 season the next? And when everyone professional analysts to your everyday fan can tell that the reason your dominance has suddenly disappeared is because your older stars are no longer able to remain healthy, and can't compete with the same tenacious viciousness they used to? If your answer is to acquire even more old talent and dying flames than you should put your application in at Citizen's Bank ball park, because the Phillies like your style!

All joking aside, the Phillies offseason wasn't a total bust. The core rotation that made the Phillies the absolute monster they were in 2011 is largely in tact, just no Roy Oswalt and a couple years older. Philadelphia also replaced Shane Victorino and Juan Pierre in center field with Ben Revere, who is an extremely promising young talent who they acquired from Minnesota. The problem with that? They had to trade a comparably valuable talent in RHP Vance Worley. Granted the starting rotation is still very good, arguably dominant even, but exchanging young talent for young talent to fill an empty slot doesn't make sense unless you're poised to win now, and the Phillies are not.

New Phillies CF Ben Revere, young
talent for young talent trade from
Minnesota for Vance Worley.

Other curious additions include veteran infielder Michael Young and veteran reliever Mike Adams. The operative word for these additions is "veteran", and why the hell any more veteran presence in the Phillies roster is necessary is beyond me.  Most puzzling is Michael Young, who at 36 is not exactly a candidate for a boost in performance that comes with some players who are given a change of scenery. I'm not saying Young isn't decent, he is. Michael Young is a team captain type of player with valuable experience. Mike Adams is also a very good reliever who's seen the post season and been completely lights out at times, so what's the problem? The problem is this: the Phillies are looking up at two pretty elite teams in Atlanta and Washington, both in their division, and no amount of realistic spending or acquiring can put Philadelphia in their opposition's, so they should consider sitting this one out.

Philadelphia's fate gambled
 on aging stars (above:Roy Halladay)
 staying healthy.

The Phillies management woes are only woes in my opinion. It might seem weird to look at an upgraded team  (the addition of Adams, Young over Polanco) and consider it an unsuccessful offseason, but it just doesn't seem plausible that these additions are going to be playing in any meaningful capacity by the time Philly is ready to contend again. What reinforces my wary attitude towards Philadelphia's management is who they were/are looking who hasn't become a Philly. Vernon Wells? Alfonso Soriano? It's just not going to work. The Phils window is momentarily slammed shut by insurmountable divisional competition. Management needs to remember that they are only about a half a season separated form a reality that had them shipping out Hunter Pence and debating the same fate for young ace Cole Hamels. Barring fluke circumstance, Philadelphia will end up third or fourth in their division.

Offseason Review: Washington Nationals

Washington Nationals

Scowlin' ass home-stealin'
Bryce Harper. 

The Washington Nationals are the best team in baseball and didn't really need to do a whole lot with their offseason. Mike Rizzo is a genius, Davey Johnson is a very good manager and top to bottom the whole roster ranges from competent to prodigious. To make matters much, much worse for their competition is the fact that the bulk of their talent has years of excellence ahead of them; most notably staff ace Stephen Strasburg and the 20 year old total-bro NL Rookie Of The Year wunderkind Bryce Harper. The Nats are so goddamn good that they are actually in a position where they will either have to trade or bench the coveted and versatile Michael Morse due to the surplus of talent they have built up.

Washington is only responsible for two major moves in the offseason. One is the addition of RHP Dan Haren, an MASSIVELY underrated pitcher who after one underwhelming year was signed on a remarkable one year $13MM contract. If Haren bounces back, which I think is almost inevitable given his age and prior track record, this is going to be a major steal for the Nationals. Worst case scenario, Haren duplicates or degrades from his 2012 performance and Washington has a little money to chew. My estimation is that Haren will win 15 of his 30 or so outings and get extended by the end of the 2013 season and 29 other teams are going to look salty as hell.

Washington's new center fielder Denard Span

The other major move by the Nationals was the acquisition of center fielder Denard Span from the Twins for pitching prospect Alex Meyer. I am a little iffy on this move (I'd have preferred Ben Revere) but Span should play well in Nationals Park. Span has proven to be an exceptional leadoff hitter thanks to a career .357 OBP. His defensive prowess when paired up with Harper and Werth make an already formidable Nationals outfield an exceptional force to be reckoned with. I personally think that Meyer has what it takes to be a pretty damn good starting pitcher, and while exchanging a potentially good pitcher for a pretty good center fielder might look silly in a few years, the Nats have enough young up and coming talent to not really need every competent farmhand they have in stock. 

The inherent risk in either of the aforementioned deals is pretty much washed out by the brilliantly designed team already set up and ready to play, so what do they have left to do?  The only glaring issue right now lies is the bullpen. The Nationals let a substantial bulk of their pen walk. Mike Gonzalez signed with the Brewers, as did Tom Gorzelanny who was non-tendered by the Nationals. Sean Burnett signed a two year contract with the Angels, leaving Zach Duke as the only lefty in the pen. GM Mike Rizzo said that a second lefty was not necessary given the dominant splits over left handed hitters on behalf of several of the right handed relievers. While many of the RHP's do appear more than capable holding together a capable pen, I think re-signing Gonzalez or a more aggressive pursuit of J.P. Howell would have been a prudent move given the Nationals relatively inexpensive offseason.

Small imperfections aside, the Nationals are set up for their second consecutive year of domination. Strasburg is going to pitch his first complete year and dominate his way to a possible Cy Young THANKS TO THE SMART THINKING ON BEHALF OF THE NATIONALS MANAGEMENT TO LISTEN TO MEDICAL EXPERTS AND SHUT HIS SEASON DOWN, REGARDLESS OF PLAYOFF CONTENTION, SEE ROBERT FUCKING GRIFFIN THE THIRD. The offense is going to crush and the defense is going to shut opposition down behind a dominant starting rotation. The Nationals, best team in baseball, are going to win the 2013 world series. I'll put a beer on it*.

Sneak preview of everyone getting me beer after they thought
some other team was going to win the World Series and
foolishly bet against me and had to buy me beer.

*Applicable to the first 12 readers ages +21.

Offseason Review: New York Mets

New York Mets

It's relatively difficult to assess with any real accuracy how the Mets performed in this offseason because it seems like they still have work to do. The Mets are in an interesting place franchise-wise and kind of remind me of the Nationals a few years ago. Lots of young, developable talent that has yet to prove itself; but no realistic ambition of contending immediately. That being said, there are still a few loose ends in the bullpen and off the bench that need to happen and an major extension for David Wright that needs to prove itself worthwhile.

David Wright
Lovin' the game.

It's almost impossible to disagree with extending a player with franchise status such as David Wright. He's given the Mets an all-star performance in all but one of his eight seasons, as well as two gold gloves, two silver sluggers and a 30-30 performance. Not too shabby. The problem being that he's a little older, has a little bit of a history with injuries and is playing in the difficult-to-inspire role of being the cornerstone in a franchise that isn't poised to be do a whole lot in the immediate future. This hasn't discouraged Wright from expressing a desire to stay with New York for the remainder of his career, and my guess is he'll repay Sandy Alderson for his $140MM investment.

Travis d'Arnaud
Centerpiece in the Dickey trade

It's pretty unlikely for a team in the Mets position to make several major moves in one offseason, but after 38 year old R.A. Dickey's unlikely Cy Young season, that's just what needed to happen. The Mets appeared to be willfully inactive on a ripe market for Dickey through early December until he made his displeasure for that inactivity known. The Mets struck a deal with the hyperactive Blue Jays and shipped Dickey, Josh Thole and Mike Nickeas for fine young catching prospect Travis d'Arnaud as well as Noah Syndergaard, John Buck and Wuilmer Becerra. The bounty hauled in by the Dickey trade is an unexpected and well-played boost for a team in need of rebuilding.

Ike Davis
I haven't mentioned him at all in this post but he looks
a LOT like a young Bruce Springsteen, right?

The Mets aren't going to make the playoffs next year and probably not for a couple years after that. The NL East of today is the AL East of yesterday. Every other team with the exception of the stupid ass Marlins looks like they are at least capable of contending for the next several years, forcing the Mets to be at least marginally docile. With players Frank Francisco as the incumbent closer and Lucas Duda, Collin Cowgill and Kirk Nieuwenhuis heading up the outfield, it's clear that the Metropolitans need some bandage additions to even breach relevancy; but they are proving to be competent in their plans for the future. Expect the Zach Wheeler and Travis d'Arnaud era to be an exciting one in Queens, but until then expect to see a few consecutive second to last seasons for New York. 

Offseason Review: Atlanta Braves

Young Jason Heyward hopes to bounce back after a down 2011 season

The Braves have been perennially competitive for the past several years, having not endured a losing season since 2008. Last year Atlanta missed the playoffs by a heartbreakingly small and fluke fashioned margin. The Braves have many of the pieces in place to be competitive again this season and, barring markedly slow seasons by the likes of players like Jason Heyward and Brian McCann, they are definitely in the discussion for playoff potential. Given their relatively sturdy situation, Atlanta's front office was pretty quiet this offseason. That doesn't mean that units won't be moved as the season goes on.

Offseason Review: Washington Nationals

Ace Stephen Strasburg returning in 2012 after Tommy John surgery.

As I stated in my article about Ryan Zimmerman's extension, the Nationals aren't messing around, and this is the first year in a long time that they are set to emerge as a relevant team. There are a few key elements that need brushing up, some outfield help and bullpen for example, but the age of futility is not far from being abandoned in the nation's capitol. Last year the Nationals made, in my opinion, the second worst deal for a free agent in Jayson Werth (the first being Carl Crawford, which makes me question the whole Theo Epstein thing... more on that in a week or so when I get to the Cubs). This offseason they were abuzz with productive, gutsy moves. The acquisition and securing of young talent are setting the bullish nats up to be a force in the coming years.

Offseason Review: Philadelphia Phillies

Injured MVP Ryan Howard

Last year the Phillies were perceived to be a lock to win the World Series. Their path to the ring was going to be forged by an amazing pitching staff, recalling memories from the 90s Braves staff headed up by the likes of Glavine, Maddux and Smoltz. The result was a dominating, best record in baseball 102 win season, followed by first round elimination at the hands of the wild card Cardinals. The window for the aging Phillies is still pretty wide open, but after their regular season mastery was proven futile, the path to victory could seem a little murky.

What To Do About Hamels' Contract

Dashing

 The Philadelphia Phillies' number one handsy boy Cole Hamels is set to face free agency, and it brings up a serious set of issues for the Phillies front office to deal with. As far as payroll is concerned, it seems the sky's the limit, but with how long ownership will want to pony up enormous contracts for a surefire championship teams that aren't winning championships is hard to say. Don't get me wrong, I think the window for the Phillies to win is still wide open, but it's closing fast, and we're talking about a player with one year left before he reaches a very lucrative free agency.

Adorable

The starting three in the Phillies rotation kicks ass right now. Halladay, Lee and Hamels were a very integral part in making Philadelphia the best team by record in baseball last year. Veteran goatee king Joe Blanton and promising young right hander Vance Worley round out as solid of a four and five as any rotation could have.  Hunter Pence is an amazing trade acquisition from last year to help cover the loss of Raul Ibanez who aged himself out of the roster. The offense is still good, but the core of it is aging. So what does this have to do with Hamels?

Priceless

 

Well, assuming the front office learned anything from Ryan Howard, it means that salary and years are going to have to be a rational factor in how Hamel is approached. Not just from the standpoint of Hamels, but how the team is going to be restructured once the already pretty old players get older. Hamels isn't going to settle for a three year deal when pitchers like CJ Wilson are getting paid up the ass by the Angels, but the Phillies aren't going to want to throw an amount of money at him that could anchor them down to irrelevance. If I were Cole I'd tell Heidi (the beautiful minx in the past two pictures) to start looking at real estate in New York or Los Angeles and get ready to pitch my ass off for the next six months.


I know that none of the media I've posted on here is baseball relevant, so here's a video game home run Cole Hamels crushes off of R.A. Dickey in MLB The Show. MRsuh1312 deems it "rettarted"

Rettarted indeed!