Kotsay is 32 years old and has battled numerous injuries over the years, primarily back problems. Kotsay, of course, says he feels great, but it’s easy to feel great in January, when you’re not playing actual games.

Personally I have a soft spot for Kotsay, who did a nice job patrolling center field in San Diego from 2001 to 2003. Still, I wonder if he’s headed down the Darrin Erstad career path and if the Braves gave up too much to get him.

Devine ranked #9 among Braves prospects in the 2007 Baseball America Prospect Handbook, while Richmond checked in at #24. Seems like a steep price for a stopgap solution.

Post from: Knuckle Curve

Yorvitize – v. To publicly announce a contract signing as done and then go back on the announcement.

Here it is in a sentence:

Man, I’ll bet Phillies fans are bummed that their deal with J.C. Romero didn’t get Yorvitized.

Anyway.

The Brewers have inked Mike Cameron to a 1-year, $7 million deal that was finalized Monday. The 35-year-old center fielder, who spent the past two seasons with the San Diego Padres, will miss the first 25 games of 2008 while serving a suspension for testing positive for a banned substance.

Brewers GM Doug Melvin praised Cameron for his on-field skills and clubhouse leadership abilities. Cameron and his agent, Mike Nicotera, meanwhile, must be wondering what happened to the long-term deal they were seeking earlier.

It’s called misreading the market. Ask Jody Reed about that sometime…

Post from: Knuckle Curve

• What happens to Juan Pierre? If he slides over to left, as some have speculated, he becomes even more worthless than he already is. Don’t get me wrong, as a Padres fan, I’d love nothing more than to see the Dodgers run Pierre out to a corner spot every day, but I can’t bring myself to believe that anyone would really do that. Then again, someone signed him to a 5-year deal in the first place, so what do I know.
• What happens to Andre Ethier and Matt Kemp? If Pierre stays, then one of these guys has to go — or so it would seem. What will either of them fetch in trade? I’ve heard rumblings about an Erik Bedard deal, but right now the signal-to-noise ratio is very low in terms of rumors vs facts.

Jones certainly represents an upgrade over Pierre in center, but the Dodgers still have to deal with the latter’s contract in some way. Even still, assuming Jones rebounds from a poor ‘06 season, he’s a .260/.340/.500 hitter or so. That’s solid, but is it enough to “put them over the top”?

From a value standpoint, I can live with this contract. From a “what are the Dodgers trying to accomplish” standpoint, I’m left scratching my head.

Other Voices

• Dodger Thoughts
• 6-4-2
• Sabernomics

Post from: Knuckle Curve

(Guest blogger TD — thanks, bud! — covered this transaction while I cavorted about the Pacific and was similarly unimpressed.)

I don’t really see how the Angels were even players here given that they threw $50 million at Gary Matthews Jr. last winter to play Hunter’s position. Matthews had a nice little Damion Easley type season, which isn’t bad, but which also isn’t worth $10 million a year.

Presumably Hunter’s presence pushes Matthews to a corner outfield spot, reducing the latter’s value even further. I guess the good news, if you’re an Angels fan, is that the franchise has plenty of dough and can afford to be a little careless at times. Best hope it doesn’t happen too often, though.

Post from: Knuckle Curve