I can’t believe it.

As a baseball analyst on several highly trafficked websites, it is important to stay objective when covering the whole league. I know there have been several times when I have broken from this mold to show love for my Philadelphia Phillies, and I have to say this is probably the best sports moment of my life. I always wondered what it would be like to have a team you devote so much of yourself to, to come away with a championship, and to be honest, my eyes were teary for several minutes following that 0-2 slider to Eric Hinske.

First, I don’t care about the viewing audience of this World Series, as several writers have discussed. This was a very fun series of baseball to watch, as was this entire post-season. This game five was quite unconventional, but it made for one entertaining three and a half innings of baseball. Ryan Madson did not want to know whether or not he would be “starting,” instead hoping that he would get his call via the bullpen phone in order to keep his normal routine in order. Geoff Jenkins experienced an extremely reduced role following an injury and had not seen consistent playing time in several months. He comes up and smacks a 3-2 double to right-centerfield to kick things off.

Jimmy Rollins bunts him over and Jayson Werth singles him in on a popup that narrowly missed Akinori Iwamura’s glove. Then, somehow Rocco Baldelli muscled that Madson fastball over the left-field wall, a point at which my hope began to diminish. JC Romero then managed to induce a BJ Upton double play and a Carlos Pena flyout before Pat Burrell, hitless in 13 World Series at bats, barely misses a home run, instead settling for a double. After that, Pedro Feliz, of all people, knocks in what amounted to be the game-winning run.

Even when Brad Lidge came in, my breath still had to be held. He may have been “perfect” in save opportunities, but as those who follow the team know, his saves never tend to be easy or stress free. When Evan Longoria popped out, my confidence increased exponentially, but the Fernando Perez stolen base helped cancel some of that out. With a runner on second, and one out, I swore Ben Zobrist’s line drive was going to fall in, as my heart nearly stopped. Two outs. In steps Eric Hinske, who absolutely demolished a home run in his previous World Series at bat.

As he swung over the 0-2 slider, I did not know how to react. I knew I was happy, but the emotions inside me did not manifest themselves in the form of jumping up and down or streaking up and down my elderly neighborhood. I smiled. I laughed. My eyes became teary for a bit. I finally got to see the team I pull for the most win a championship. Pat Burrell likely won’t be back, and who knows what will happen with Jamie Moyer, or whether some of the players currently on the roster will return or not, but regardless, this team has firmly entrenched itself as one of the best the city has seen, and it is a great feeling.

Congratulations to both the Rays and Phillies for reaching this juncture, and I can only hope these two meet again in October sometime soon.

Moving back to the mound in our series on free agent bargains, we find an interesting name – the tallest player in baseball and a sure fire Hall of Famer, you wouldn’t think Randy Johnson would fly under too many radars. But that’s the state of the game – overemphasis on ERA as a tool to evaluate pitching, and for whatever reason, a premature willingness to put great talents out to pasture.

Sure, Randy Johnson may not be what he once was, but he’s still a pretty terrific starting pitcher. Check out his standing among his peers this year:

8.46 K/9, 6th best in NL
2.15 BB/9, 11th best in NL
3.9 K/BB, 3rd best in NL
3.76 FIP, 15th best in NL

Or, if you prefer, his closest comparable pitcher in the NL this year was Cole Hamels – their walk rates are nearly identical, Johnson’s got a slightly higher K/9, and Hamels has a slightly lower HR/9, but the final product is almost exactly the same. Can you imagine what kind of money Cole Hamels would get if he was a free agent this winter? Now, obviously, there’s a huge age difference, and Johnson’s not going to be pitching for another 10 years like Hamels will be, but their current value is almost identical.

Despite all this, and the fact that he’s unlikely to ask for a long term deal given his age, the D’Backs are still talking about only being interested in Johnson if he takes a significant pay cut. That’s just nutty.

Even if we expect Johnson to regress significantly, giving up about 4.5 runs per nine innings, and only throw 150 innings next year, he’d still be 25 runs above a replacement level starting pitcher. He’s easily worth $10-$15 million a year for a single year, and considering how well he’s fought off decline, a two year deal shouldn’t even be out of the question.

Randy Johnson’s still a pretty terrific pitcher, and teams who just see him as an old guy with back problems are going to miss out.

The Graduate: Johnny Cueto | Born: February 1986 | Right-Handed Pitcher

The Reds received some solid performances from rookies in 2008 and Johnny Cueto was no exception. Despite the 9-14 record, Cueto pitched 174 innings and allowed 178 hits. He posted rates of 3.52 BB/9 and 8.17 K/9. Cueto needs to work on his consistency and avoiding the long ball (1.50 HR/9). He mainly relies on his low-to-mid-90s fastball and slider, but also features a hard change-up (averages 84 mph).

The Riser: Daryl Thompson | Born: November 1985 | Right-Handed Pitcher

After batting injuries throughout most of his career, the once-promising Daryl Thompson showed his potential again thanks to two straight (relatively) healthy seasons. He made three Major League starts in 2008 and struggled by allowing 20 hits and seven walks in 14.1 innings. His numbers, though, in Double-A and Triple-A were excellent so he is a good bet to have a bigger impact in Cincinnati in 2009. Thompson features a low-90s fastball, slider, curveball and change-up.

The Tumbler: Pedro Viola | Born: June 1983 | Left-Handed Pitcher

Pedro Viola was a late bloomer out of the Dominican Republic and did not make it stateside until the age of 23 in 2007. He made up for lost time and rocket through three levels that year before settling in Double-A. Viola returned to Double-A in 2008 but struggled with being too hittable. He allowed 88 hits in 82.1 innings and posted rates of 3.94 BB/9 and 9.18 K/9. He has a low-to-mid-90s fastball but his secondary pitches are fringy.

The ’08 Draft Pick: Alex Buchholz | Born: September 1987 | Second Baseman

A sixth round pick out of the University of Delaware, Alex Buchholz is an offensive-minded second baseman, who was converted from a college third baseman. He was assigned to Rookie Ball, despite his age and experience, due to a plethora of infield talent in the system. Buchholz dominated and posted a line of .396/.460/.604 with 15 doubles in 134 at-bats. He also posted rates of 10.7 BB% and 18.7 K%. He should begin 2009 in A-ball and could move quickly.

The ’09 Sleeper: Kyle Lotzkar | Born: October 1989 | Right-Handed Pitcher

Kyle Lotzkar, a Canadian, was selected in the 2007 supplemental first round due to an impressive repertoire that features a low-to-mid-90s fastball, solid change-up and improving curveball. The big issues with Lotzkar, who has limited pitching experience, are his command and control. In his second season, Lotzkar allowed just 29 hits in 37.2 innings and posted rates of 5.73 BB/9 and 11.95 K/9. He allowed just two home runs. His season was cut short by a stress fracture in his elbow, which should be healed by the spring. Fellow Canadian prospect Adam Loewen had his pitching career ended by a stress fracture, while White Sox closer Bobby Jenks was able to rebound from a similar injury early in his pro career.

Up Next: The Cleveland Indians

As we move behind the plate for today’s free agent bargain, we take a look at a guy with one of the most inconsistent track records of any player in baseball – Dave Ross. Take a look at his seasonal batting lines:

2003: .258/.336/.556, 140 PA
2004: .170/.253/.291, 190 PA
2005: .240/.279/.392, 138 PA
2006: .255/.353/.579, 296 PA
2007: .203/.271/.399, 348 PA
2008: .225/.369/.352, 182 PA

That’s a weird set of numbers. In 2003 and 2006, Ross was pretty close to the best hitting catcher alive. In 2004, 2005, and 2007, he was replacement level. In 2008, he abandoned his normal skillset, hitting for about half as much power as usual but walking twice as often. That made him a decent player, but nothing like what you’d expect from his historical record.

So, what do we make of Ross going forward?

His contact problems are always going to depress his batting avearage – when you’ve got a 30% K%, you’re just not going to hit for much of an average. Even with the inconsistency, we can be sure that Ross is going to strike out a lot and not hit for much of an average. His value lies entirely in his secondary skills.

As for the ridiculous walk rate he displayed last year, that seems to be a direct response to a change in approach. Over the last four years, Ross has cut back significantly in how often he swings, seeing his Swing% go from 50.96% in 2005 to 42.74% last year. Despite a big cutback in how often he swings, he’s still making contact at essentially the same rate, so he’s not just staring at hittable strikes. It seems like that his 12% BB% over the last three years is more likely to continue than for him to revert back to his free swinging ways of 2003 to 2005.

So, what about the power? His ISO the last three years are .324, .197, and .126. Not exactly trending the right way, especially for a catcher who will be 32 next year. However, if we were looking for evidence that he wasn’t hitting the ball hard anymore, his career high 24.5% LD% in 2008 seems to rule that out. He just hit a lot of doubles instead of home runs last year, which naturally drove down his slugging marks. But considering that 12 of his 32 hits were still extra base knocks, it seems unlikely that his power is just disappearing at a rapid rate.

The Marcel projection system seems to be in agreement with these assessments, pegging Ross as a .232/.330/.421 hitter in 291 plate appearances next year. While the average is low, the secondary skills are still very strong, and project Ross as an above average hitting catcher for 2009. Not bad for a guy who was released outright in August.

There are quite a few teams who could use some added punch from behind the plate in 2009. If they can get over their obsession with batting average, Dave Ross could be a very low cost, short term option to provide some walks and power at a position where both are rare.

The Cincinnati Reds may have struggled to compete over the last several seasons, but there were still several bright spots. One of these positives was the right arm of ace Aaron Harang. A former Athletics prospect, Harang emerged as a durable and extremely effective pitcher for the Reds, compiling some of the best numbers in the senior circuit from 2005-07. In that span, he made 32+ starts each year and amassed a minimum of 211.2 innings pitched. His K/9 rose from 6.93 to 8.47, while his BB/9 with intentional walks removed dropped from 2.04 to 1.80 before settling in at 1.90 in 2007.

Harang’s WHIP of 1.27 in 2005-06 dropped to 1.14 in 2007, and his strand rate ranged from 73.8%-74.6%, three marks well above average. Additionally, his ERA decreased from 3.83 to 3.73. Unfortunately for Harang, his HR/9 rose from 0.94 to 1.09, and his FIP “rose” from 3.67 to 3.71. In 2005-06, his FIP was better than the ERA, however in 2007, they were essentially identical. Regardless, it is hard to argue that he seemed on the verge of several all star berths as one of the best righthanded pitches in the National League.

This season, however, he suffered a setback. In 30 games, 29 of which were starts, he only tossed 184.1 innings, and experienced worse numbers pretty much across the board. His K/9 decreased by one full strikeout to 7.47, while his unintentional walk rate rose to 2.20. This increase in walks, coupled with a .317 BABIP resulted in a 1.38 WHIP, his highest in any full season. Additionally, his 4.78 ERA and 4.79 FIP were significantly worse than anything over the previous four seasons. How did this happen? Well, it’s easy to point to a lack of luck, but was that really the case?

Harang’s HR/9 skyrocketed to 1.71, way up from the 1.09 in 2007, so perhaps his performance really was the result of bad luck. Unfortunately, his dropoff in strikeouts also contributed to the higher FIP, as his walk rate did not necessareily rise that much. The .317 BABIP, as well, while much higher than average, is actually in the same range as his marks in 2004-06, when he was able to produce quality seasons, and his strand rate of 73.6% is not only above average but right in line with his 2005-07 rates. And even though the HR/9 rose to 1.71, his HR/FB was just 13.9%; while 13.9% is definitely above the average of 10-11%, it was not as if this rate soared to 17-20% or anything along those lines. One way to check if poor luck with regard to the home run aspect of controllable skills affects the FIP is to look at the normalized version of the metric. Via The Hardball Times, Harang’s xFIP was 4.38, meaning yes, he was a bit unlucky, but still significantly worse than 2005-07.

This past season saw his highest percentage of flyballs in a full season at 44%, so he threw more balls in the air, and a higher percentage than usual left the park. This should regress moving forward, but the dropoff in strikeouts does signal some sense of a dropoff. He lost some velocity on the fastball, but nothing drastic enough to claim a large role in the much poorer 2008 campaign. Is Harang as bad as he performed in 2008? No, not by a longshot, but there was a serious performance decline here that cannot be chalked up solely as bad luck, which could have to do with some type of injury, or could signal the start of his decline. He will likely be much better next season, but the potential award winner from 2005-07 may be gone for good.

A continuation of the series of retrospectives looking back at the regular season and how teams fared. They will be presented, from first to last, in order of their run differential as given by the BaseRuns formula and adjusted for strength of schedule, which I feel is the best measurement of a team’s actual talent level.

Number Seventeen: Texas Rangers

Say hello to either the most balanced or the most unbalanced team in the majors in 2008 depending on how you view it. The Rangers had the widest disparity between their ranks of runs scored and runs allowed allowed, finishing first in the former and last in the latter. On the other hand, according to BaseRuns the Rangers came in with 917 runs scored and… 917 runs allowed.

The offense was legit, even after adjusting for the launching pad that is Arlington. The Rangers did a fantastic job of avoiding black holes in the lineup. Ben Broussard and German Duran were about the only exceptions and they were minor at that. Countering their meager negative contributions were massive positive contributions from newcomers Milton Bradley, Josh Hamilton, and Chris Davis. Marlon Byrd had another fine season as well, showing some results after all the potential in Philadelphia and Washington.

On the flip side of those players additions at the plate were their detractions in the field. The Rangers ranked dead last or, at minimum, well below average in most every advanced defensive metric. They were so pitiful that they wiped out a healthy chunk of their offensive gains.

On the pitching front, the bullpen was a mixed bag with a few bright spots amongst a mostly drab collection. Luis Mendoza and Frank Francisco were both helpful members and Jamey Wright was about dead average which, over the amount of innings he kept away from the worse members of the pen, counts him among the better relievers.

The rotation, on the other hand, could have used a huge helping of just average. One of the worst overall units in baseball this past season, the Rangers’ starters did see slight rebound years from Kevin Millwood and Vicente Padilla, but given their sad state in 2007 that’s not saying much. Even that small piece of good news has a cloud behind it in that both of their groundball rates saw a decline this year, painting a potential bad sign for things to come.

Over the summer, I wrote a post discussing the idea that Javier Vazquez is the most disappointing pitcher in baseball. Sure, he has had success, and he always has exhibited great stuff and the potential to dominate, but something is missing. After eleven seasons in the big leagues, he has proven himself capable of being productive, but nowhere near the award-winning caliber of production that so many analysts saw in him for a while. His controllable skills and peripheral statistics are always very good, but they just do not seem to translate into extremely solid measures of run-prevention.

Consider this: from 2000-2008, there are only six starting pitchers who made at least 190 starts, with a K/9 above 8.0 and a BB/9 below 3.0, and Vazquez has the highest inclusive ERA of them all at 4.11. For good measure, the others are: Pedro Martinez (2.99), Randy Johnson (3.25), Jake Peavy (3.25), Roger Clemens (3.34), and Josh Beckett (3.78). Something tells me that Vazquez does not exactly belong in the same conversation as these other five all stars and/or future hall of famers. Regardless, the fact remains that he has always been able to strikeout plenty of batters, routinely fanning around, if not more than 200 a season, while vastly limiting his walks.

He has made 32+ starts for nine consecutive seasons, surpassing 200 innings in all but one of those years, when he amassed 198 innings with the Yankees in 2004. In fact, he leads the aforementioned six pitchers in innings pitched by a great margin, trails only Johnson in total strikeouts and complete games, and is virtually tied with Pedro with a 2.24 BB/9; Pedro’s was 2.16, so not much of a difference.

These controllable skills translate into very nice FIP marks throughout his career, but Javy’s ERA consistently exceeds his FIP. And, when his ERA is technically lower than the FIP, it is much closer to being the same than definitively better. This season was no different than many years past, as Vazquez started 33 games, threw for 208.1 innings, posted an 8.64 K/9 and 2.64 BB/9, with a 4.67 ERA and 3.74 FIP. Now, his BABIP rose to .328 this season, from .297 in 2007, which increased his WHIP to 1.32, the highest it has been since 1999. Couple that with a well below average strand rate of 68% and we see that he allowed many more baserunners and was not able to prevent them scoring at the league average rate.

He is generally about even when it comes to percentages of groundballs and flyballs, and he has not lost any velocity on his pitches. In fact, he has actually gained velocity on some offspeed deliveries. Javy’s WPA/LI pegs him at a bit over nine wins above average for his career, and since 2000, he has been above average in that regard in all but one season, which was not the 2004 season with the Yankees. Instead, the following season, his 2005 campaign with the Diamondbacks is considered below average via context-neutral wins.

Vazquez signed a three-year extension that will keep him under contract until 2010, earning $11.5 mm. This appears to be who he really is, and the potential tag should be all but gone by now, which is very disappointing given how durable and effective he seems capable of being. I asked before and I’ll reprise my question: is there any pitcher in recent history as frustrating and/or disappointing as Javier Vazquez? To clarify, I am talking about pitchers that have been virtually as durable as him and not frustrating in the sense that Kerry Wood and Mark Prior have been frustrating and disappointing. Instead, someone who has been out there all the time, has the potential to dominate, still posts great peripherals, but just seems to be missing something from pushing him over the top.

So, this time, I swear, the free agent bargain is actually a free agent.

Much like with Juan Rivera, this potential bargain was a tremendous player in 2006 – he hit .283/.323/.506, good for a 0.71 WPA/LI in 586 plate appearances. The power overcame the low on base rate, and he was a somewhat above average hitter. Meanwhile, John Dewan’s +/- system had him at +31 plays at his position, a staggering total that profiled him as an elite defender. As a third baseman, the combination of above average bat and remarkably awesome glove made him one of the game’s under-appeciated stars.

I’m guessing that practically no one has figured out that I’m talking about Joe Crede, because he certainly didn’t get much publicity for his outstanding 2006 at the time. As defensive performances get more notoriety, however, we can look back at that season and recognize it as one of the best under-the-radar seasons in recent history.

However, in 2007, Crede’s balky balk finally went out, and he had to undergo season ending back surgery. Those back problems cut his 2008 season short as well, and over the last two years, he’s been limited to just 551 plate appearances while playing through pain. His reliability is a real question, and the White Sox are expected to go another direction in their quest for a full time third baseman.

Now, I’m not a doctor, so don’t take this as any kind of endorsement of his future health. For all I know, his back problems could be career ending. However, if they’re not, and the medical people can figure out how to keep him on the field, his 2008 performance should assure potential GMs that Crede can still play.

The power is still there – he had a .212 ISO, built on 36 extra base hits in just 335 at-bats. His contact rate was identical to his 2006 performance, so it doesn’t appear he had to adjust his swing to compensate for the pain. Contact and power are the building blocks of a good hitter, and Crede’s abilities in those areas didn’t seem to suffer when he was on the field.

Defensively, it’s pretty much the same story. He’s played just over 1,200 innings at third base the last two years, basically a full season’s worth of games, and +/- has him at +24 plays over that time. Even as a step down from his +31 in 2006, it’s a great rating. You could conservatively drop his true talent level to +15, accounting for more aging, and he’d still be among the very best hot corner defenders around.

In terms of on field skills, Crede projects as something close to a league average hitter with defense that’s worth +1.5 to +2.0 wins above an average third baseman. Over a full season, that would make Crede a +3.5 to +4 win player. If he was completely healthy, we’d expect him to get something like $15 million a year in a long term deal.

But he’s not healthy, and so he’s not going to get anything close to that. It’d be shocking if he got anything beyond a one year offer with a team option for 2010. But if he can stay on the field, even for 100-120 games a year, he’s got the abilities to play at an all-star level. Right now, he’s Milton Bradley with less attitude problems, and there are probably quite a few teams who wish they would have taken a chance on Bradley last winter.

It all depends on his health, because there shouldn’t be too many questions about Joe Crede’s abilities to help a winning team when he’s on the field.

The Graduate: Alexei Ramirez | Born: September 1981 | Infielder

Signed this past winter after leaving Cuba, Alexei Ramirez had an up-and-down season after surprising everyone – including the White Sox – by making the club out of spring training. He hit .290/.317/.475 with 21 homers in 480 at-bats. The wiry infielder also drove in 77 runs. Ramirez needs to work on his patience and pitch selection as he posted rates of 3.6 BB% and 12.7 K%. He also needs to work on his base stealing after getting caught nine times in 22 attempts.

The Riser: John Ely | Born: May 1986 | Right-Handed Pitcher

After making his 2007 debut in Rookie Ball, the former third round pick out of Miami-Ohio University skipped two levels and pitched in High-A ball in 2008 with success. In 145.1 innings, John Ely allowed 142 hits and posted rates of 2.85 BB/9 and 8.30 K/9. Like a lot of young players, Ely struggles with consistency and had two really bad months, including July when he posted a 9.67 ERA and allowed 35 hits and 15 walks in 22.1 innings. He gets a lot of movement on his pitches and his best offerings include a low-90s fastball and a plus change-up.

The Tumbler: Jack Egbert | Born: May 1983 | Right-Handed Pitcher

The 2008 season was supposed to be a big one for Jack Egbert, who had been proving people wrong for a number of seasons. But the right-hander with a high-80s fastball (as well as a solid breaking ball and change-up) struggled at Triple-A and saw his HR/9 rate jump from 0.13 in 2006 and 0.17 in 2007 to 1.04 in 2008. His posted rates were still solid at 2.85 BB/9 and 8.12 K/9, although the strikeouts fell off about 1.00 K/9 from 2007. Already 25, Egbert needs a fast start to 2009 to prove he can remain in the starting rotation.

The ’08 Draft Pick: Jordan Danks | Born: August 1986 | Outfielder

Jordan Danks could have been a first or second round pick coming out of high school, but he sent a letter to every club stating that he was 100 percent committed to playing for the University of Texas. Regardless, Chicago drafted him in the 19th round but failed to sign him. Four years later, with Danks’ draft status having taken a hit with a modest college career, he was again selected by the White Sox. He came to terms with the club as a seventh round selection and joined his brother John as a White Sox player. Danks posted solid numbers in his debut, albeit in just 10 games. He is loaded with athletic gifts but scouts question his ability to hit good pitching.

The ’09 Sleeper: Aaron Poreda | Born: October 1986 | Left-Handed Pitcher

Aaron Poreda was drafted 25th overall in the 2007 draft, after a solid college career at the University of San Francisco. The 6’6” left can dial his fastball up into the mid-90s, but his secondary pitches are still lacking. He posted solid numbers in his first full pro season despite having just one consistently-dominating pitch. In 161 innings combined between High-A and Double-A, Poreda allowed 148 hits, showed better than expected control with 40 walks (2.26 BB/9) and struck out fewer than expected batters with 118 Ks (7.39 K/9). On the positive side, his strikeout rate climbed significantly in Double-A (almost 2.00 K/9). If he can consistently throw strikes with his slider – look out.

Up Next: The Cincinnati Reds

Today, we take a look at the third undervalued free agent (my bad, he’s signed for ’09) this winter, who will be able to help a team win some games without requiring significant dollars or a long term commitment. The next name on the list is Endy Chavez, the polar opposite of the outfielder we profiled yesterday.

See, Chavez isn’t much of a hitter. He hit .267/.308/.330 last year, and for his career, he’s got a .680 OPS and a -4.95 WPA/LI in 2,274 PA. That makes him about one win below an average hitter per full season. Considering he’s already 30, it’s unlikely he’ll be improving with the bat much. He is what he is – a slap hitter without much power who doesn’t draw walks.

But he also might just be the best defensive outfielder alive today. He’s certainly in the discussion, at least. John Dewan’s +/- system ranked him as +19 during his time between LF and RF this year – in 600 innings! In what accounts to about a half season of playing time, Dewan’s system judged Chavez to be almost 20 plays better than an average defensive corner outfielder who plays an entire season. That’s just a huge, huge difference.

The reason, of course, is that Chavez isn’t really a corner outfielder. He’s a CF who has spent time in the corners because of Carlos Beltran’s presence on the Mets roster, and on pretty much any other team in baseball, Chavez is a CF. In fact, over the last three years, Chavez has accumulated about 360 innings in CF, and +/- gives him a +10 ranking in that time. +10 plays compared to other center fielders in about 1/4 of a season’s worth of playing time.

It doesn’t matter which system you look at – the results are all the same. Chavez is projected to be +10 to +20 runs better than an average CF over a full season, and something like +25 to +30 runs over a corner outfielder given regular playing time. The guy can cover ridiculous amounts of ground.

That defense counteracts all kinds of bad hitting. If a team sees him as a CF, and gives him 600 plate appearances, he’ll probably be a -1.5 win hitter, a +3 win defender, and a +0.5 win baserunner. Add it all up, and you’ve got a +2 win player, or approximately a league average center fielder.

Endy Chavez – league average player at a premium position. You won’t find too many teams who think he’s that good, but the defense is more valuable than almost all of them realize. He could hit .230 and still be a useful major league player, and right now, he’s established a track record of good enough hitting to be worth an everyday job. Look for some smart team this winter to snatch him up (in trade!) and turn him into the outfield version of Adam Everett.