Over the weekend I discovered Alec Zumwalt’s name. Zumwalt’s career is unspectacular and mostly unworthy of examination. The only interesting thing about his toils came as a last resort to change his outlook. Drafted as an outfielder, the Braves converted Zumwalt to the mound. His ability to throw hard translates to the mound to some extent, as he was able to pitch in the low-90s. His command lacked polish and, and he never reached the majors in any capacity – although the Devil Rays did take him in a Rule 5 draft.

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Ed Wade and Dan O’Dowd combined for a straightforward deal of major leaguers.

Clint Barmes turns 32 in early March. It’s a little early to start setting depth charts, but one has to figure Barmes will be under serious consideration to start at shortstop in place of Tommy Manzella and Angel Sanchez. Part of that consideration may stem from his price tag (more than $4 million) which could have led to a non-tender from Colorado. The book on Barmes begins and ends with defense since he profiles as a plus defender at either middle infield position. His leather is slick enough that Colorado kept him at short during the 2006 season despite racking up -41.7 park-adjusted batting runs.

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The offseason is still in its infancy, but rest assured: this deal will involve the most unique names of any completed ever. The Oakland Athletics just acquired David DeJesus and cleared a piece of their outfield logjam by sending Rajai Davis to the Toronto Blue Jays for a pair of arms (with bodies attached!) named Trystan Magnuson and Daniel Farquhar.

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No owner attracts more synonyms of cheap than the Marlins’ Jeffrey Loria. Parsimoniously or prudently—depending on your perspective – the Marlins roster usually consist of players in the Land Before Dime stage of their careers. The conversation briefly, ever so briefly, centered on Loria’s sudden generosity yesterday when the team inked John Buck for three years and $18 million … then the team went and traded Dan Uggla for a (perceived) whimsical return.

On Buck – who possesses one of the most preposterously pun-able names for two separate categories of player: 1) home run hitting 2) paid baseball player – the contract appears overproduced. Too much pay and too many years make for a poor soundtrack. The 2010 season stands out in Buck’s portfolio as it does for many of his Blue Jays teammates. Buck racked up nearly 2,000 plate appearances with the Royals from 2004-2008 and hit .234/.298/.398 with 20 home runs per 592 trips. Over the last two seasons, Buck has 639 plate appearances with 28 home runs and a line of .271/.309/.487.

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James Loney is the position player the Dodgers are most willing to move according to Ken Rosenthal. The hostile (and snarky) response here is, “Duh.” The more tactful response includes noting that Loney is not the kind of player that a team should overpay for his production. That statement is banal as it can apply to just about any player, but Loney’s production is more easily replaceable than most, which is exactly why his trade value is likely minimal.

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Friday marks the month anniversary of the Los Angeles Dodgers re-signing Ted Lilly for three years and $33 million. If Lilly wants to throw a grandiose party to celebrate his good fortune in life he now can do so while splitting the costs with the Dodgers’ newest rotation member who will also make eight figures annually. Describing Hiroki Kuroda as “new” to the Dodgers is ungenuine. Kuroda has 82 starts with the franchise, thus encompassing his entire North American league career. His reward for good performance is reportedly worth $12 million and is legally binding for the 2011 season only.
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Timing is everything with analyzing signings like this one. The signing of Geoff Blum probably has little to do with the knowledge that Mark Reynolds is much on the market, but until that other string is tied in a knot, the two will dangle next to each other. That dangling state leads folks to wonder whether Blum is the Diamondbacks’ new third baseman or if he’s just the placeholder. And that line of thinking is unfair to Blum and unfair to the Diamondbacks, unless Blum being the starter is the plan, in which case this whole ordeal is just unfair to Diamondbacks’ fans.

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Matt Eddy and Baseball America released their annual collection of minor league free agents yesterday – it’s a must bookmark for those who partake in organizational rosterbation. The offseason becomes officially underway once the legions of busted prospects pop up on the radar once again, if only to cause for great reminiscing about those who the game passed by. One of the names delivered in this year’s edition is Angel Salome.

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Signs that the uneventful portion of the offseason is upon us: Eric Hacker stole the spotlight for about an hour’s span yesterday. There are a lot of starting points in most acquisitions, but not here, as the protagonist is a virtual unknown. One could say that Hacker’s offseason job is forest ranger and nobody would know any better. His onseason job is starting pitcher and more relevant to the discussion at hand.

Hacker is a short righty originally drafted by the New York Yankees in 2002. The Yankees traded Hacker to the Pittsburgh Pirates in May of 2009 for Romulo Sanchez. Hacker made a trio of relief appearances with the Pirates during the 2009 season before eventually hitting free agency and signing with the San Francisco Giants. That major league stint left some pitchfx residue in its wake, allowing us to confirm his low-90s fastball and usage of a mid-80s slider and mid-70s curveball.

Why is he relevant? Because the Minnesota Twins made a questionable decision yesterday by signing Hacker to a big league deal – a contract that places him directly onto the 40-man roster.

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In a free agent market brimming with capable relief options, Koji Uehara is an enticing option. Originally brought over as a starter, Uehara finished his Orioles’ career as their closer. Besides his majestic sideburns, the most noticeable tool in his shed is excellent control. The 2009 season may have marked Uehara’s first on American soil and by extension his first in the frigid American League East, but he still managed a strikeout-to-walk ratio of four.

Uehara worked exclusively out of the bullpen in 2010 in between injuries and topped himself. In 44 innings, he struck out 55 and walked five. Uehara’s season included no intentional walks, no hit by pitches, and a single wild pitch. Keith Law wrote that his control plays up even more in the bullpen, citing a “grade 70 or better” on the 20-80 scouting scale. The numbers certainly support the assertion.

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