The Winners- the Losers- and the Neutrals of MLB’s Free Agency Period (AL Version Only)

We’re a little over three months into the baseball’s free agency with not much more time to go.  All 30 teams have made at least one move, which is expected in the business.  Some, however made much better moves than others.

Without further ado, the winners, losers, and neutrals in 2005-06 free agency.  All 30 teams will be analyzed, however (for length’s sake) the first part of my analysis will encompass the 14 American League teams only.WINNERS

TORONTO BLUE JAYS: Hats off to GM J.P. Ricciardi, for he may have made the Blue Jays one tough team to beat in 2006.  Troy Glaus (Diamondbacks), closer B.J. Ryan (Orioles), starter A.J. Burnett (Marlins), and catcher Bengie Molina (Angels) are among the significant additions to this ballclub.  They now have a rotation consisting of Roy Halladay, Burnett, and Gustavo Chacin (among others), which will make life difficult on the American League.  Did the Jays overpay for some of these acquisitions?  Perhaps.  However, the last time I checked, the Yankees were overpaying for players and winning games.  Cease the criticism of overpayment if the players produce.  For more on the Jays, read an article I wrote earlier.  http://www.sportscolumn.com/story/2006/1/13/215647/295

NEW YORK YANKEES: Now, the Yankees might not stand out as major winners.  After all, they didn’t pry away an all-star from the other 29 teams in the offseason.  They did grab Johnny Damon from the Red Sox to roam center field in New York last year and hit in the leadoff spot.  When you combine the addition of Damon with the fact that the biggest loss in the offseason was Tom Gordon going to the Phillies, you can’t but help think that the Yankees were winners.  The Yankees are hoping that the signings of Kyle Farnsworth (Atlanta) and Octavio Dotel (Oakland) will help fill the void left by Gordon.  NOTE: Dotel will not be able to pitch until the All-Star break.

CLEVELAND INDIANS: They may have lost starter Kevin Millwood, who signed with the Texas Rangers; however, the Indians made up for it by signing Paul Byrd (Anaheim) and Jason Johnson (Detroit) to fill out a rotation that already consists of C.C. Sabathia, Cliff Lee, and Jake Westbrook.  Sabathia, Lee, and Westbrook were a combined 48-30 in 2006.  The loss of Coco Crisp looked to be bad at first; however, my opinion of that has changed.  In the deal with Red Sox, the Indians picked up youngsters Andy Marte and Kelly Shoppach.  Marte and Shoppach are regarded as two of the brightest young stars in the game and may have long, bright futures in Cleveland.  The Indians bolstered their bullpen with the signing Guillermo Mota (Boston) and were able to resign closer Bob Wickman, a good choice to close out games in Cleveland.

KANSAS CITY ROYALS: I have read stories that they’re just the same old Royals and that they lose in every offesason.  I’ll go out on a limb and disagree with that.  They sign Reggie Sanders and Mark Grudzielanek away from the Cardinals, Doug Mientkiewicz from the Mets, Mark Redman from the Pirates, and Elmer Dessens from the Dodgers.  Finally, the Royals are spending SOME money.  Their losses are, surprisingly, minimal – starter Brian Anderson signed with the Rangers and the Royals released Terrence Long.  Now they certainly shouldn’t contend for first place; however, I see them as winners this offseason.  Call me crazy…go ahead.

DETROIT TIGERS: Like the Royals, no one ever considers the Tigers to be winners in everything.  However, the Tigers improved where they needed to – pitching.  They sign the troubled Kenny Rogers away from the Rangers, and they bolster the bullpen by signing Matt Mantei away from the Red Sox and Todd Jones from the Marlins.  The pitching, despite the Tigers losing Jason Johnson to the Indians, improves.  The lineup will be without Rondell White (signed by the Twins), but they still have Brandon Inge, Ivan Rodriguez, Craig Monroe, and Dmitri Young.  Like the Royals, they won’t contend.  However, I call them winners this offesason.

TEXAS RANGERS: They lose the attitude (but also the power and speed) of Alfonso Soriano, but they get Brad Wilkerson from the Nationals.  They sign starter Kevin Millwood away from the Indians and they get Vicente Padilla (an ex-All Star) from the Phillies.  They bolster the staff further with the acquisition of Adam Eaton from the Padres and, in the same deal, they got Akinori Otsuka to help bolster the bullpen.  The staff is much stronger, despite the loss of Kenny Rogers (Tigers), and the still have a lineup consisting of the likes of Teixiera, Young, Mench, and Blalock.  The rise of the Rangers is coming.  For more, read my article on the Rangers.  http://www.sportscolumn.com/story/2006/2/6/161557/9359

OAKLAND ATHLETICS: When your biggest losses are an injured Octavio Dotel (Yankees) and reliever Ricardo Rincon (Cardinals), you come out a winner in my book.  The A’s add Esteban Loaiza (Nationals) to the staff.  Adding Loaiza to a staff with Zito and Harden is a plus.  Milton Bradley (Dodgers) and Frank Thomas (White Sox) were added to the offense.  The A’s should be clear cut winners to win the division.

LOSERS

MINNESOTA TWINS: They lose relievers Grant Balfour (Reds) and J.C. Romero (Angels) and they allow starter Joe Mays to sign with the Kansas City Royals.  They do essentially nothing to make up for the losses in the pitching department – Darrell May is NOT an improvement – while they pick up one significant offensive player in Luis Castillo (Marlins).  Castillo may be past his prime, however, since he attempted just 17 steals last year (10 for 17) and appears to be slowing down on the basepaths.  He stole 62 bases in 2000, something the Twins will probably not see happen.  They lose ground to the Indians and White Sox this offesason.

CHICAGO WHITE SOX: I would love to call the World Series Champs winners in the offseason because they acquired Javier Vasquez from the Diamondbacks and Jim Thome from the Phillies.  However, the White Sox lost way too much (not enough to be losers this offseason).  They lost Carl Everett (Mariners), Orlando Hernandez (Diamondbacks), Damaso Marte (Pirates), Aaron Rowand (Phillies), Frank Thomas (A’s), and Luis Vizcaino (Diamondbacks).  Granted, Thomas’s exit was almost inevitable.  However, the losses in the pitching department will be hard to overcome, especially since Javier Vasquez is not a top tier pitcher.  Jim Thome was hurt for most of last year and his best days may be behind him.  Don’t get excited Chicago, you’ll have competition this year…

LOS ANGELES ANGELS OF ANAHEIM: They should lose automatically because of the long team name, but I digress.  The acquisitions of an aged Edgardo Alfonzo and a mediocre Hector Carrasco (Nationals) are not headline makers.  The best offesason addition was to the bullpen, and that came in the form of J.C. Romero from the Twins.  The Angels lose Steve Finley (Giants), Paul Byrd (Indians), Jarrod Washburn (Mariners), and Bengie Molina (Blue Jays), while getting essentially nothing in return.  The Athletics and maybe even the Rangers will pass them by.  They better hope the youngsters in the rotation (ex: Ervin Santana) will step up.

NEUTRALS

TAMPA BAY RAYS: Hey, we might as well get used to calling them the Rays and dropping the name “Devil” altogether.  That announcement of the plan is considered one addition in the offseason.  But seriously, the signings of Russ Branyan (Milwaukee) and Sean Burroughs (San Diego) will bolster the Rays’ lineup slightly and the pickups will nicely complement the young hitters on the team, such as Jonny Gomes, Jorge Cantu, and Aubrey Huff.  The Rays earn a “neutral” spot due to the fact that they completely decimated their bullpen by trading Danys Baez and Lance Carter (perhaps the only players in their bullpen aside from Travis Harper) to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

BALTIMORE ORIOLES: The fact that the Orioles didn’t resign Rafael Palmeiro is a plus in my book.  They signed catcher Ramon Hernandez (San Diego), which will save some wear and tear on the knees of Javy Lopez.  The O’s also kept Miguel Tejada, one of the bright spots in the Baltimore lineup (though, who knows who they could have ended up with if they traded him?).  They earn a “neutral” because the one spot they have trouble with is pitching.  Aside from acquiring starter Kris Benson (New York Mets), the Orioles watched the majority of their bullpen bolt.  Jorge Julio was traded to the Mets, Steve Kline was traded to the Giants, and B.J. Ryan signed with the Blue Jays.  You can’t tell me that acquiring LaTroy Hawkins (San Francisco) will make all of THAT go away…

BOSTON RED SOX: I give credit to the BoSox.  All seemed lost when Johnny Damon signed with the hated Yankees and Edgar Renteria was traded to the Atlanta Braves.  WRONG.  They acquired Josh Beckett from the Marlins, Coco Crisp from the Indians, and they signed J.T. Snow from the Giants (which could be a VERY underrated move – think about the short right field).  They earn a “neutral” because they let Damon sign with their rivals and because they traded away a bunch of promising prospects – Hanley Ramirez and Anibel Sanchez to the Marlins, Andy Marte and Kelly Shoppach to the Indians.  They lose in the AL East race, with the Yankees and Blue Jays passing them by.

SEATTLE MARINERS: They bolster their rotation by signing Jarrod Washburn away from the Angels and the signings of Carl Everett (White Sox) and Matt Lawton (Yankees) improve the lineup a little bit.  The biggest loss (which wasn’t much of a loss) for the Mariners was proven steroid user Ryan Franklin, who signed with the Phillies.  They get a “neutral” because signing a bunch of old veterans (aside from Washburn) will not contribute to a pennant run.