Saturday, January 14, 2006 |
Angels Long-Term Figgins, Rivera
Update: Yes, everyone on the 40-man has an automatic invite to ST. So my bad on that one.
Figgins' deal is more intriguing. A three year-deal will take him through his age 30 season, by which time we can reasonably expect to see the speedy Figgins become the not-so-speedy Figgins. In two of those years -- and in all probability, this year -- we can expect Figgins to be the team's starting center fielder starting in 2007, with the possibility that he could take on that role this year once Erstad succumbs to the inevitable collapse of his fragile hamstrings. If you're not on the "Brandon Wood to center field" bandwagon, this is as good a time as any to hop on; it's hard to imagine the club eating the balance of Orlando Cabrera's absurd contract for 2007 and 2008.
Furthermore, it means that the team's actually bought some breathing room for Dallas McPherson if need be. He really has this year to prove himself before being shipped to somewhere for a real player or a solid prospect, but in case that doesn't work out, he's got Figgins to start at third until Erstad turns into a pumpkin. I'm still fairly optimistic about McPherson, but his clock is ticking. Let's hope it's a stopwatch and not a time bomb.
Update 2: It appears that the early reports on the money were wrong; AP says it's two years and $3.275 million. The $1.5M figure was probably a bastardization of the $1.25M he'll make next year.
: 1/14/2006 11:39:00 PM : 1/15/2006 02:50:00 AM : 1/15/2006 09:50:00 AMRev/John -- who knows but that team might just be the Braves if Renteria doesn't hold up...
: 1/15/2006 11:52:00 AMThe Hall of Very Good is filled with players who were essentially lefty platooners -- Rick Monday (a bigger whiffer than D-Mac, I'll bet), Lou Whitaker, even J.T. Snow.
Jeez, Matt, your short list includes J.T. Snow? Uh... don't know what to say to that one, probably something along the lines of, ouch.
It's when you pile on unreasonable expectations on a guy, and set up artificial "make-or-break" years, that you end up needlessly squandering perfectly decent talent.
Unreasonable? What's so unreasonable about expecting him to stay healthy, and actually proving he's worth all the hype over a full season? Plus, eight dingers in 205 AB is kinda weak.
: 1/16/2006 06:07:00 AMNewer› ‹Older
 |
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.