Phillies Sign Eaton

[vance_the_cubs_fan]

I just heard it on ESPNews.

 

3/24...I think.

[killthegoat06]

I just heard it on ESPNews.

 

3/24...I think.

 

Meh. I don't think he was a target for us. The pitching market is heating up, though. Hendry better act fast...

[jtownie]

I just heard it on ESPNews.

 

3/24...I think.

 

Just saw that myself. What does this do the FA pitching market? Looks like it might begin at around 8MM a season.

[goonys evil twin]

Wow, he's neither good nor dependable. Amazing the junk that passes for such a contract.

[Post Count Padder]

Darn, beat me to it. I thought he said 21 mil, but I could be mistaken. I think this is slightly overpaying for a guy who missed a lot of last season with an injury. However, in today's market, I don't know what's overpaying and what's not anymore.

[vance_the_cubs_fan]

ESPN.com now has a Link.

 

Free agent pitcher Adam Eaton has reached preliminary agreement on a three-year contract with the Philadelphia Phillies worth more than $24 million, a baseball source told ESPN.com.

 

 

The contract includes a mutual option for a fourth year that could bring the overall package to more than $33 million, the source said. The agreement is contingent on Eaton passing a physical exam, and is expected to be announced by the club later this week.

[AlwaysaCub]

The second-tier pitching market has been set. I really hope Ted Lilly doesn't want much more than that...

[fromthestretch]

$8 million per year for a guy that hasn't once pitched 200 innings in a season and has never had a season ERA below 4.00. On top of that, he's coming off a season that saw him pitch only 13 games. Insane.

[RynoRules]

New chant in Philly:

 

http://www.pandasthumb.org/archives/images/captaincaveman.jpg

 

ADAM EEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTTTTOOOOONNNNNNN!!!!!!

 

After all, they just lost the "Wolf Den" to LA.

[Twiggy]

way to much money

[abuck1220]

if that's what it takes to get that kind of production, i'll just take sean marshall at $300k.

[Omar]

Jesus.. For a guy that has never peaked below 4 in his ERA?

[indifferent]

Jesus.. For a guy that has never peaked below 4 in his ERA?

 

Given that criteria, Sidney and Russ (Ortiz) should be rolling in the dough. But I get your point.

[Rob]

if that's what it takes to get that kind of production, i'll just take sean marshall at $300k.

 

Are you crazy, dude? Everybody knows we have to spend money on pitching, even if we aren't going to get anything nearing a decent return from anybody on the market at this point. Nevermind the fact that there are decent hitters on the market that can make a difference and likely deserve their paychecks, we need to throw money at Gil Meche.

[10man]

if that's what it costs, forget the 2nd tier market!

just sign one of the top tier then open up a slot for one of the kids.

the other possibility would be to ask maddux back at a "hometown" discount.

[NorthsideAvenger]

New chant in Philly:

 

http://www.pandasthumb.org/archives/images/captaincaveman.jpg

 

ADAM EEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTTTTOOOOONNNNNNN!!!!!!

 

After all, they just lost the "Wolf Den" to LA.

 

Actually, I believe they were call "The Wolfpack."

[ToupeeOnFire]

if that's what it costs, forget the 2nd tier market!

just sign one of the top tier then open up a slot for one of the kids.

the other possibility would be to ask maddux back at a "hometown" discount.

Jim Hendry might be on the same wavelength. As one unnamed agent said courtesy of the Tribune:

 

"I think Jim Hendry is not sure whether he wants one big [free-agent pitcher] or two lesser ones," one player agent said.

Just sign one big one (Jason Schmidt, please) and bargain shop for the other. I'd rather commit to one stud than overpay for a couple of mediocrities. Wade Miller is already in the fold, Cotts can start if need be, plus you have a bevy of starting pitchers getting their first taste from last year that you can choose from (the M&M boys: Marshall, Mateo, and Marmol). And that's not counting Mark Prior.

 

Seeing a guy like Adam Eaton get 3/24, I'd rather not go in that direction.

 

Anyhow, it appears the Cubs are unlikely to make a big splash before the winter meetings.

 

The Cubs' general manager says he doesn't "remember free-agent pitching ever going too fast."

 

And that will make Hendry, who needs two or three starters and has money to spend, a popular guy at the baseball's annual winter flea market, to be held this year not far from Fantasyland in Florida.

 

"Some of the better position guys moved faster than usual," Hendry said.

 

"That the starting-pitcher market is slower isn't really surprising."

 

So don't expect a Zito or Schmidt signing before then.

 

It doesn't appear the Cubs will be signing Schmidt or Barry Zito, the big two in the free-agent market, before next week's meetings. Agents for those players seem to be waiting to see who the Yankees want and what the current market price is, which the Yanks normally set.

 

Plus, according to the Tribune, it appears that the Cubs put in a bid for Igawa. Considering the free agent market, he might be a steal.

 

A second-tier Japanese pitcher, 27-year-old left-hander Kei Igawa, also is coming to the U.S., and the Cubs are believed to have put in a bid for his rights, although Hendry would only say Monday—the deadline for submitting proposals—that "we are considering it."

[Pinktermite]

This is really amazing. 8 million per for this guy. I'd way rather pay Maddux similar money for two years, at least you know you'll get 210 innings and an ERA around 4.20 or so.

[Ding Dong Johnson]

Remember that good year Eaton had? Yeah, me neither.

[biittner77]

The only thing Adam Eaton has going for him is that at least he's somebody most fans have heard of and probably don't realize that he's not very good.

[Lefty]

Most people (not on this board of course) misunderstood the message of Moneyball. It was about efficient use of resources, getting value for your money. With the amount of money going to some very pedestrian starting pitchers, I wonder what an appropriate response by a smart team would be.

 

First of all, spend your money on offense. J.D. Drew at 3/45 is preferable to Zito at 6/90. They're both are around 40-60 VORP. This includes Drew's tendency to miss some games. Pitchers have greater injury issues in general than position players and their performances are more highly variable.

 

So who pitches? Let's look at the Cubs. We mention all the guys who might help; Miller, Marshall, Cotts, Prior etc. But if creativity is required, what would be a totally new approach? Wood says he can't start, but is relieving 2 out of 3 days really better? How about tandem starting Marshall and Wood every 4 or 5 days. Hard throwing righty for 60 pitches, then soft-tossing lefty for a few innings. I suspect that the 100 innings Wood pitches in this scenario is easier on the arm than the 80 IP he might get in the bullpen.

 

If Prior is healthy, great. Same goes for Miller though I am not a believer. But we have good bullpen arms. If Wood/Marshall goes nine, how about reliever day before a day off or before Zambrano. I can hear the whining about "roles," but you could plan it a week in advance so every starter, and even a couple of relievers would know when they were going and what was expected of them.

 

Finally, our replacement pitchers of last year were costing us 1 to 1.3 runs per game. The problem was that we had 3 or 4 such pitchers in the rotation all year. For each slot that's about 2 or 3 wins a year. If we have 2 such spots, and that's probably where we are now, Lugo over Cedeno/Izturis/Perez makes that up. So if the Cubs continue to add bats strategically, and Floyd over Murton probably does not qualify, not signing any pitchers appears to be a rational response. As such, expect Jason Schmidt to sign next week.