While we’re waiting for Kosuke Fukudome to decide what he wants to do with his life, we may as well catch up on some recent transactions, haiku style:
Nats and Yankees trade –
Clippard, Albaladejo,
anonymous arms
Cincy trades Buck Coats
to Blue Jays for Justin James –
who are these people?
Cards drop Taguchi –
they are So over that guy,
you wouldn’t believe
Padres sell Terrmel
to Japan’s Pacific League,
where he will fight ham
(Yes, I know, but don’t ruin the joke.)
Brewers sign Riske
to a big three-year contract –
seems kind of risky
(Ugh, they’re getting worse.)
Cincy waives Cantu –
I sure can understand why
they did that, can’t you?
(Seriously, this is terrible.)
Nationals sign …read more

About two weeks ago, it was reported that the New York Mets had signed catcher Yorvit Torrealba to a 3-year, $14.4 million deal. Those reports turned out to be premature, and now Torrealba has re-upped with the Colorado Rockies. The price tag? A more “reasonable” $7.25 million for two years with a mutual option for 2010.
That’s still more than I’d be comfortable paying a catch-and-throw guy, but it’s not the worst signing I’ve seen this winter.

It’s nice to see that teams aren’t repeating past mistakes in this year’s free agent market. The New York Mets have signed Yorvit Torrealba to a 3-year deal worth $14.4 million.
Torrealba, whose first name loosely translates as “overpaid,” hit .255/.323/.376 for the Colorado Rockies in 2007. Away from Coors Field, those numbers were .212/.292/.326, which is pretty much vintage Gary Bennett.
Way to go, Mets. Good luck with your new catcher.
[Update, Nov 17: So, apparently now this didn’t happen. The deal was reported as done, but no dice. Torrealba is still on the market, giving some other team the opportunity to …read more

Congratulations to the Boston Red Sox on beating the Colorado Rockies in four straight to win the World Series. It would have been nice to see the small-market team win, but oh well. Red Sox fans were going to be obnoxious all winter either way, so what’s the difference.
Bottom line, it’s done. Let the hot stove league begin…
Like what you just read? Subscribe to Knuckle Curve and you’ll never miss another article…

Somehow I’d missed this earlier. Colorado’s Todd Helton and Boston’s Kevin Youkilis have blogs that they’ve been updating throughout the postseason.
From a recent post by Helton:
I’m told that my teammates appreciate what I’ve contributed, and I hope so. I try not to be overbearing. I try to play as hard as I can, do my job. If it wasn’t for my teammates, I wouldn’t be here.
And an excerpt from Youkilis:
We have to play for each other. It’s a business, both in the media side or other sides, where people might write bad things about you. You know what? Just take …read more

Welcome to the moment network execs have been dreading. The Cleveland Indians need to win one of the next three games to face the Colorado Rockies in the World Series.
A nation yawns. Or it would, if it could summon the enthusiasm.
Thursday’s contest at Jacobs Field (first pitch, 5 p.m. PT) features a rematch of Game 1 starters and leading Cy Young candidates C.C. Sabathia and Josh Beckett. For Boston, the equation is simple: win or go home for the winter.
For the Indians, it’s more like win or go to Boston’s home for two more games. I’m thinking they’d prefer Door …read more

Congratulations to the Colorado Rockies on completing their sweep of the Arizona Diamondbacks on Monday en route to their first-ever World Series. Colorado’s assault on the National League since mid-September has been nothing short of spectacular:

Rockies Late Domination

 
G
W
L
RS
RA

End of regular season
15
14
1
102
51

NLDS vs Phillies
3
3
0
16
8

NLCS vs D’backs
4
4
0
18
8

Total
22
21
1
136
67

Perhaps the American League will have better luck…

The NLCS begins on Thursday. Colorado Rockies at Arizona Diamondbacks — TV network executive’s worst nightmare. Reassurances that both places are, in fact, part of the United States. (Quick check of Wikipedia reveals that Colorado entered the union in 1876 as the 38th state, while Arizona checked in 36 years later as #48.)
Game 1 of the series takes place at Chase Field (or as I like to call it, ex-BOB). First pitch is at 5:30 p.m. PT. Jeff Francis and Brandon Webb take the mound. As I note in my series preview at Hardball Times, Arizona needs to win Webb’s …read more

The regular season is done save for one final, originally unscheduled game in Denver on Monday afternoon (4:37 p.m. PT first pitch; TBS, XM 183). Thanks to the Colorado Rockies’ 13-1 finish, they’ll host the San Diego Padres in a one-game playoff to determine which team advances to the postseason as the NL wild card.
On paper, Jake Peavy vs Josh Fogg looks lopsided in favor of the Padres. The games, however, are not played on paper. With three studs in the lineup (Matt Holliday, Todd Helton, Brad Hawpe), a strong supporting cast, and a home crowd that hasn’t seen meaningful …read more

Barry Bonds hit the 747th home run of his career on Monday night to help the San Francisco Giants defeat the Toronto Blue Jays, 4-3. Bonds’ two-run shot off Josh Towers came in the fourth inning and landed beyond the fence in right-center, some 438 feet from home plate.
The Giants, meanwhile, improved their record to 29-34 and pulled to within two games of the Colorado Rockies for fourth place in the National League West. In related news, a Dallas-based auction house has removed the $1 million bounty it had placed on Bonds’ 756th home run ball.
Trying to muster the energy …read more