The White Sox and Toby Hall have agreed to a two year deal, worth 3.65 million dollars. Hall will receive base salaries of $1.75 million in 2007 and 2008, while the White Sox have an option at $2.25 million with a $150,000 buyout. Hall batted .259 with 8 HR and 31 RBI.
The Red Sox were planning to announced the signing of J.D. Drew tomorrow but will have to delay the announcement because he flunked his physical. The Boston Herald is reporting that Drew's physical has raised a red flag. It has been two weeks since they agreed to a deal and with the flunking of his physical, the Red Sox will be forced to restructure a deal. Drew, who has battled injuries his whole career, batted .283 with 20 HR and 100 RBI.
The Red Sox are expressing interest in signing Marcus Giles to be their new second baseman. Giles, who was not tendered by the Braves, is already drawing a lot of interest. The Mets and Padres have already held talks, and it appears that because the Red Sox have Pedroia, they would not be as willing to fork over as much cash as a team like the Padres.
Giles batted .262 with 11 HR, 60 RBI, and 11 SB.
The Royals have traded Andy Sisco to the White Sox for Ross Gload. Sisco, taken in the Rule V Draft from the Cubs has exactly had a career like expected. Sisco went 1-3 with a 7.20 ERA and 52 K. He has a career record of 3-8 with a 4.85 ERA. Ross Gload, a first baseman and outfielder batted .327 with 3 HR and 18 RBI in 77 games. He could compete for a starting spot on the Royals next year.
The Yankees are supposedly willing to part with highly touted prospect Melky Cabrera in exchange for reliever Mike Gonzalez. Cabrera, 22, hit .280 with seven homers, 50 RBIs and 12 steals in 130 games as a rookie last season. A deal is far from being struck because it appears that the Pirates are asking for at least two players. Gonzalez, who went 3-4 with 24 SV and a 2.17 ERA is also drawing interest from the Braves, Red Sox, and Indians.
UPDATE: A three way trade is in the works that would send Melky Cabrera to the Braves, Adam Laroche to the Pirates, and Mike Gonzalez to the Yankees.
The Red Sox traded Phil Seibel to the Angels for Brendon Donnelly. Donnelly is the option for closer, but will most likely be a fallback if they are unable to acquire someone. He went 6-0 with a 3.94 ERA and 53 K. Seibel, 27, had a great season in all the levels of the Red Sox minor league system. He pitched in 80 innings with 1.24 ERA. The Red Sox also signed J.C. Romero to a one year deal. Romero, 30, was 1-2 with a 6.70 ERA in 65 appearances for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in 2006. He held left handed batters to a .211 average.
The Devil Rays signed Akinori Iwamura to a three year deal, worth $7.7MM with a club option at $4.25MM for 2010. "I am really excited and humbled by this opportunity," said Iwamura. "I look forward to being part of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and wearing the uniform." His contract calls for 1.8 in 2007, 2.4 in 2008, and 3.25 in 2009. The club has a $4.25 million option for the 2010 season or a $250,000 buyout. In 2006, he hit .311 with 32 homers and 77 RBIs for the Swallows.
According to Ken Rosenthal, the Blue Jays are closing in a on a seven year deal, worth 126 million dollars with Vernon Wells. Although it seemed that Wells would leave Toronto to command 20 million elsewhere, his representatives met with the Blue Jays yesterday and a deal could be finalized next week. Wells, who will receive the biggest contract in Blue Jays history, batted .303 with 32 HR, 106 RBI, and 17 RBI. He will command about 18 million dollars annually, one million more than Alfonso Soriano.
1. 2008 Anaheim Angels
2. 2008 Houston Astros
3. 2008 Toronto Blue Jays
4. 2008 Atlanta Braves
5. 2008 Milwaukee Brewers
6. 2008 St. Louis Cardinals
7. 2008 Chicago Cubs
8. 2008 Arizona Diamondbacks
9. 2008 Los Angeles Dodgers
10. 2008 New York Mets
11. 2008 Cleveland Indians
12. 2008 Seattle Mariners
13. 2008 Florida Marlins
14. 2008 Philadelphia Phillies
15. 2008 Washington Nationals
16. 2008 Colorado Rockies
17. 2008 San Diego Padres
18. 2008 Cincinnati Reds
19. 2008 Pittsburgh Pirates
20. 2008 Texas Rangers
21. 2008 Tampa Bay Rays
22. 2008 Boston Red Sox
23. 2008 San Francisco Giants
24. 2008 Baltimore Orioles
25. 2008 Oakland Athletics
26. 2008 Kansas City Royals
27. 2008 Detroit Tigers
28. 2008 Minnesota Twins
29. 2008 Chicago White Sox
30. 2008 New York Yankees
1. American League Standing Projections
2. Nationals League Standing Projections
3. American League Award Predictions
4. Nationals League Award Predictions
2007 World Series Prediction: Yankees...not quite.
2008 World Series Prediction: Diamondbacks
