Some time ago, the Angels attempted to trade Dan Haren to the Cubs in exchange for Carlos Marmol. The Angels had concerns about Haren, and wanted to turn him into something useful. The Cubs had concerns about Marmol, and wanted to turn him into something useful. On paper, the deal looked lopsided in the Cubs’ favor, and so one had to consider that maybe the Angels knew something scary about Haren’s medicals. Sure enough, the deal fell through, and now Haren is a free agent looking for a short-term contract. No one’s going to be ballsy enough to give him a long-term contract.

Friday, the Angels completed sort of the opposite of that Haren/Marmol trade. Instead of the Angels dealing a troubled starter to get a troubled reliever, they’ve dealt the somewhat troubled Jordan Walden to the Braves in exchange for the troubled Tommy Hanson. Unlike with Haren, we don’t have to speculate that something might be up with Hanson, physically — we know that his shoulder has been groaning. The Angels, without question, know that they’re taking a chance, here. They determined, at the cost of Jordan Walden, the chance is worth taking.

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In case you hadn’t heard, The Hardball Times Baseball Annual 2013 has hit internet bookshelves. You can read all about it here in Dave Studeman’s post, or you can listen to Carson Cistulli and myself discuss it here on a FanGraphs Audio podcast.

Because we’re giving folk, and since it’s the beginning of the holiday season and all, we want to give you a chance to win yourself a free copy of the book. So each day this week, we’ve been running a trivia contest based on one of the articles in the book. Today is our final contest — you can find the previous contests here, here, here and here if you’re into that sort of thing. The first person to post the correct answer in the comments today will win a free physical copy of the book (sorry, no free Kindle or Nook versions). It’s just that simple!

Today’s question comes from the article entitled “Bryce Harper and Mike Trout Make History.” Written by THT’s prospect wizard Jeff Moore, it takes a look back at the season that was for the two impactful rookies, and how the season compares to other seasons with awesome rookies. And that brings us, dear reader, to the trivia question before you today:

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This morning, the Mets re-signed David Wright to a seven year, $122 million contract extension that seems to be a good price for the team, and right about what we expected he would get if the two sides wanted to reach an agreement. Wright is probably going to be worth the contract on his own; the real argument has been about whether or not the Mets should be the one giving it to him.

I touched on this briefly last week in my article about the perils of losing on purpose, but I don’t think the Mets are the kind of team that need to be tearing down the talent in place and going for a youth movement. While the Mets have had four straight losing seasons, I just don’t see a lot of evidence that the team can’t win in the near future. When I look at this team and what they have in place, I just don’t see a roster that is really all that far away from being a viable contender.

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Much of the deliberation over whether or not Russell Martin deserves the two-year, $17.5 million contract he pulled in from the Pittsburgh Pirates yesterday will hinge on how his defense is viewed. Martin has been measured as a tremendous pitch framer, and for many that will be enough to put a notch in the team-friendly side for this contract.

But what about his arm Martin threw out just 24 percent of basestealers last season, down from 30 percent last year. The league rate also fell, from 28 percent to 25 percent — 2012 was the best year for basestealers since 2007, when they also accomplished a 75 percent success rate. Still, it was a disappointing year for the 29-year-old backstop, his first below average since 2008.

In today’s pitcher-friendly environment, the equation on the basepaths has shifted towards more and more stolen bases. Observe:

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The MLB Rule 5 draft is scheduled for Dec. 6 during the final day of the 2012 Winter Meetings. It’s become a fan favorite over the years but the draft is not as valuable as it used to be for clubs. In the last Collective Bargaining Agreement update roster rules were changed to give organizations one more year of protection for prospects before they had to be added to the 40-man roster and therefore protected from the selection process.

The key thing to remember about players chosen in the amateur draft is that they cannot be optioned down to the minors (expect for an injury rehab assignment) and must remain on the big league roster for the entire season. There are basically two approaches for teams to take: 1) Take a very raw player from the low minors and use him sparingly for the year expect perhaps in blowouts, basically spending the year with a 24-man roster, or 2) Look for a player that is MLB ready and can hopefully provide at least league-average production for a league-average salary.

Below, you’ll read three scouting reports on prospects who I personally feel could make solid Rule 5 selections in 2013. For those of you new to the process, here is a quick primer for the Rule 5 draft by our own Bradley Woodrum.

Table of Contents
Here’s the table of contents for today’s edition of Daily Notes.

1. Baseball Event: Tender Deadline, Tonight
2. GIF: Mark Reynolds Bat Toss
3. SCOUT Leaderboards: Australian Baseball League

Baseball Event: Tender Deadline, Tonight
The deadline by which teams must tender contracts to their arbitration-eligible players is tonight (Friday) at 11:59pm ET. Players to whom contact offers are extended then have the opportunity to negotiate with their respective teams until January 18th, when arbitration figures are due for exchange. Players to whom contracts are not tendered become free agents and are free to negotiate with all 30 teams.

Using some combination of a slide rule, abacus, and cheat codes from early and beloved Nintendo game Contra, Matt Swartz has projected salaries for all arbitration-eligible players and published the results at MLB Trade Rumors.

Here are three notable players who might become free agents tonight:

Player: Mark Reynolds, CIF, BAL
Proj. Salary: $8.9 million
Notes: Reynolds has been worth less than a win in over 1100 plate appearances as an Oriole. Owing to his power, he’d certainly receive attention as a free agent, but likely not $9-million-annually of attention.

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Multiple sources are reporting that David Wright and the New York Mets have reached agreement on a contract extension that essentially makes the third baseman a Met for life.

Initial reports have the deal at 7 years/$122 million. This is on top of next year’s $16 million team option, taking the total years and value of the contract  to 8/$138.

It always pays to be skeptical of long-term deals for players on the wrong side of 30, simply because we know — on average — that performance only declines from this point on.

Let’s take a look at how this might play out for the club.

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The Tampa Bay Rays have a deep and talented pitching staff, which extends into their farm system. Of the bunch, Taylor Guerrieri has a chance to be as good as any.

A 20-year-old [as of tomorrow] right-hander, Guerrieri is the team’s top pitching prospect. Drafted 24th overall in 2011, he began his professional career this summer with short-season Hudson Valley and dominated the New York-Penn League. He featured a mid-90s fastball and a plus curveball while he logged a 1.04 ERA and a 0.77 WHIP in 12 starts. In 52 innings, he struck out 45 batters and walked only five.

Guerrieri talked about his pitching approach after the Futures at Fenway doubleheader in mid-August.

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David Laurila: How do get guys out?

Taylor Guerrieri: I just get ahead with the fastball, or really with any pitch. Making sure you stay ahead is the key. To me, it’s get ahead early and get ahead often.

I try to stay true with my pitch sequence. A lot of it, for me, is based on where the guy is set up on the plate. If he’s further in, I’m going to come in. If he’s a little bit away from the plate, I’m going to go away. A lot depends on the batter, but I also have a game plan.

DL: Who dictates your game plan?

TG: It’s basically the manager, pitching coach and myself. It’s about staying ahead with the fastball until they prove they can hit the fastball. I usually don’t show them too much until they show they can hit it. The plan isn’t so much about particular hitters as it is my approach.

DL: You throw your two-seam fastball more than your four-seam. Why?

TG: I grew up throwing a two-seamer. I’m just now learning how to throw a four-seam off the mound and get comfortable with it. That will be a big pitch for me, so I’m looking to progress with it.

I don’t think there’s a lot of difference [in velocity]. It’s more of a placement pitch; more of a set-up pitch. I like to throw a lot of two-seamers and my four helps me set that up.

My two-seam has a little running action and some sinking, as well. It has more run toward the glove side and more sink toward the arm side.

DL: How important is velocity to your game?

TG: It is important. I’m not going to lie. Read the rest of this entry »

Russell Martin was a Yankee, and then Russell Martin became a free agent. Russell Martin is a catcher, and once he became a free agent, the Yankees were in need of a catcher. Russell Martin is pretty good, and he wasn’t looking to break the bank with a contract. Russell Martin is 29. Martin seemed like an excellent candidate to re-sign, and indeed, there were indications that the Yankees were making Martin a priority. Then Thursday, Martin signed a two-year deal with the Pirates. It’s worth just $17 million, but the Yankees reportedly weren’t interested in matching that price. While the Pirates had been mentioned as a serious suitor in recent days, it’s an undeniable surprise to see the Yankees essentially get priced out for something they could really use.

The Yankees, as has been mentioned several times over, are trying to avoid paying luxury-tax penalties in 2014, meaning they’ve placed a particular emphasis on one-year contracts. In that light, staying away from Martin makes some sense, but the Yankees still need a catcher, and guys like A.J. Pierzynski and Mike Napoli are unlikely to sign for one season. Surely the Yankees will figure something out, and this isn’t going to make or break their whole next year, but from the outside, this is a little perplexing.

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