-Continuing with my series of yet another Free Agent the Yankees should consider who's likely to come on a very cheap one-year deal: Kiko Calero
Calero made $500,000 pitching for the Marlins last season, posting a 1.75 WXRL in 60 innings. He's averaged more than a strikeout per inning for his career, and while his walk rate is a tad high (3.7 BB/9 for his career) he still has a solid K:BB ratio of 2.5:1 for his career. He is a flyball pitcher who has spent most of his career in spacious ballparks, yet there are only negligible differences in his career home/road splits.
I said this last week: bullpens are a crap shoot and the best strategy is to stockpile live arms that throw strikes. Kalero may not be young, but cheap depth is cheap depth, and regardless of who else the Yankees may have in the pool of eligible relievers, some team is going to sign Kalero for $750,000 or so and get themselves a bargain.
-Chad Jennings draws some comparisons between the recently-retired Randy Johnson and Yankees' farmhand Andrew Brackman.I feel like Brackman is one of those prospects that we want to succeed so badly that we're willing to stretch facts and stats beyond a reasonable hope. Let me ask this question - if Brackman was more typically-statured - 6-foot-3 let's say - would any of us even know who he is? You can point to his injury, or something else, but it doesn't change the fact that he's pitched 100 professional innings in A-ball where he walked nearly as many batters as he struck out. By the time most true prospects are 24, they're reached the high minors or the majors for good.
Being the next Randy Johnson is like being the next Babe Ruth - it's impossible. At this point, I think Brackman will be lucky if he winds up being the next Eric Hillman, the only other 6'10" pitcher in history.
-Being a Hall of Famer brings pridge, prestige...and a lot of money too. Looking at it that way, it a shame that certain players have been perpetually snubbed. I don't feel bad for Mark McGwire or Roberto Alomar, but for guys like Bert Blyleven, Tim Raines, Ron Santo, whose prime seasons came before the salary explosion of the mid-90s, being elected to the Hall of Fame would bring a certain level of financial security to them and their families. Just one more reason to dislike the voting process.
-How much do you think Jeter's lawyer is going charge for drafting the pre-nup? Maybe A-Rod will finally get the hint and settle down with Madonna once and for all.