Another former Blue Jay with an injury history may be San Diego bound.

Source: Padres?src=hash">#Padres have made one-year, incentive-laden offer to free-agent RHP Brandon Morrow. Only 87 2/3 IP in 2013-14 due to injuries.

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 13, 2014

We may have seen this movie before. Former Blue Jay starting pitcher with injury history comes to San Diego for a shot at redemption while playing under a contract with a bunch of incentives. The first time we watched this movie, Josh Johnson never made it past the opening credits. The Padres are now trying to buy the rights to a sequel with a better ending. And the opportunity still exists for Johnson to make a cameo in this movie.

Brandon Morrow, a 30 year old starting pitcher has had his share of setbacks as of late. As Rosenthal states in his tweet, Morrow only has 87 2/3 innings to show for 2 full seasons worth of baseball. In June 2013, Morrow was sidelined with a right forearm strain followed by a setback associated with it, then he was diagnosed with an entrapped radial nerve in his right forearm that kept him out for the rest of 2013. This past season, Morrow suffered a torn tendon sheath in his right hand in May that kept him sidelined until September when he returned as a reliever. Toronto declined Morrow's $10 million option for 2015 thus making him a free agent.

Morrow began his ML career as a reliever with the Seattle Mariners in 2007 and by the end of the 2008 season, he was making starts for the Mariners. He started 2009 as a closer, but soon transitioned to the starting rotation. Following a trade to Toronto in that offseason, he took his place in the Blue Jays rotation until 2014.

Morrow has a career 4.28 ERA with 42-43 record through 8 seasons in the majors. In 2011, his only season with over 30 starts, Morrow finished with an 11-11 record and 203 strikeouts. According to Jeff Todd of MLB Trade Rumors, Morrow would prefer to remain a starter rather than be relegated a reliever role again. If the Padres intend to have Morrow join the rotation, it may create an opportunity to flip one of the starters for offensive help. Right now, it's just an offer. But, there is an offer out there. We'll find out soon what pans out as we continue to watch A.J. Preller work his way through his first offseason as Padres GM.

Who's winning the arms race?

The Rays have the reputation of being a pitching factory. And frankly, they have to be if they're going to compete in a league where John Lester gets promised more than twice their entire expected annual payroll. The Rays can't buy pitchers on the open market so they have to draft them or trade for pitchers who have not yet reached their full potential, and then develop them into frontline starters.

Edwin Jackson, Scott Kazmir, Matt Garza, James Shields, Wade Davis, and David Price are all gone, traded for prospects, and there's a new crop of young pitchers in town. The extent to which they succeed will go a long way toward deciding whether or not Matt Silverman's Rays can remain relevant.

How does this young rotation stack up against the rest of the (richer) American League East?

Below is a graph comparing each of the rotations by their Steamer ERA projections.

The Steamer projection system has graded out as the best at predicting pitcher success, and beyond that, it's very cool. Like several others of the high-quality systems, it uses weighted regression (five years of data) on component statistics of pitching, but it goes a step further and factors in fastball velocity -- something usually relegated to the realm of scouting.

The numbers you'll see in the graph do not match what you'll find on FanGraphs, because I've stripped out the park adjustment. Steamer projects pitchers for the numbers they should put up in their home park (or, more precisely, half in their home park, half neutral). The Rays play in a park that favors pitchers, while all of the other teams in the AL East play in hitters' parks. This means that the park-adjusted ERA projections claim that every Rays starter is better than his equivalent on every other AL East team.

That's obviously wrong, as projected results are less important (for a comparison) than projected quality. When Michael Pineda comes to The Trop, he too gets the benefit of the deep power alleys, and when Drew Smyly pitches in New York, he must also contend with lazy fly balls carrying over the short right-field porch.

Therefore, I've adjusted the Steamer projections' output to be appropriate for a neutral park. Now take a look at the ERA each presumed AL East pitcher should be expected to produce under that scenario:

On paper, the Rays' Alex Cobb is the second best pitcher in the American League East.

What Steamer doesn't know about the number ones, though, is that Masahiro Tanaka partially tore the ulnar collateral ligament in his elbow last season.

Tanaka is a pretty great pitcher, and baseball is better with him in it, so I sincerely hope injury doesn't prevent him from replicating his brilliant debut season. Still, I wouldn't bet on it, and neither would Peter Gammons, apparently.

If Tanaka isn't fully healthy, the only legit no. 1,starter in the AL East is Alex Cobb

— Peter Gammons (@pgammo) December 11, 2014

As far as number two starters go, Steamer expects Drew Smyly to be the division's best over Michael Pineda by a healthy margin.

Much as we like Chris Archer around here, and even though he may still have room for improvement (particularly if he can further develop the changeup he played with occasionally last season), Steamer thinks he's a weak link in the Rays rotation. He's the Rays' third best pitcher right now, but his projection is lower than the third best pitcher on any of the other AL East teams.

The same goes for Jake Odorizzi (although the projections of his peers have a bit less certainty). Some think he can improve on last season, while others think he may have already reached his peak. Steamer thinks he's comparable to other number four starters, but certainly not better. Ivan Nova and Clay Buchholz are probably a step above if healthy,although like Tanaka, both will be attempting to come back from injuries. Steamer doesn't know that so discount them how you prefer.

The Rays do have an advantage with the fifth spot, perhaps. The projection listed above is for Matt Moore, who will be returning from Tommy John surgery, hopefully by June. Players often recover well from Tommy John, and if Moore can approach his former level of play, he's nothing like your run-of-the-mill number five. His upside is "best pitcher in baseball." His downside is "not in baseball."

Let's take a closer look at each rotation. All numbers are from Steamer, except "Career GB%." Regular ERA is in their presumed home park, and pnERA (pronounced Panera) is in a neutral park.

Rays

Okay, so the thing that jumps off the page about this staff is strikeouts. Every single pitcher has a strikeout rate over 20%. This is why the staff surpassed the previous season strikeout record in 2014 (while finishing second to Cleveland's staff). It's also a rotation that, Cobb aside, is flyball heavy. That can be a good thing, especially with a large outfield patrolled by defensive aces like Desmond Jennings and Kevin Kiermaier behind them.

Games missed by Matt Moore will be pitched by Nathan Karns and/or Alex Colome, two exciting prospects who need to improve their command to be good major league pitchers.

Yankees

I've already discussed Tanaka. He's really good, but his elbow may prevent him from replicating his 2014 success. Speaking of injuries, Michael Pineda returned last season, and pitched like his old, pre-injury self, meaning that the Yankees may in fact end up getting the better return from the the Pineda-Montero trade.

If you believe that extreme HR/FB rates will normalize, then C.C. Sabathia is not done, despite the ugly 5.28 ERA and 4.78 FIP.

Ivan Nova and David Phelps are better pitchers than people think, but let's be real here. There's a strong possibility that someone like Max Scherzer (or James Shields?) coasts into town and bumps everyone down a slot.

Blue Jays

Once upon a time, Alex Cobb was the most underrated pitcher in baseball, I think that time is past, with several national writers predicting him to with the Cy Young last season and Peter Gammons hyping him on twitter. The new must underrated guy nationally? Marcus Stroman. Dude's really good, and he's only 24. Stroman is essentially the northern version of Yu Darvish, meaning he can do anything to a baseball.

That's at least six pitches, and they're all very distinct.

Don't sleep on Drew Hutchison, either. He will also be 24 this upcoming season, meaning that the Jays have a lot to look forward to for the next few years.

Red Sox

The Red Sox have radically revamped their rotation, and the thrust is clear -- they are going to make you hit the ball on the ground. That makes some sense, as they play in a toy ballpark where routine fly balls turn into doubles. It also makes sense if they think Xander Bogaerts is an elite defensive shortstop. UZR didn't think so. We'll see.

Steamer predicts a bounceback season for righty-killer Justin Masterson. We'll see.

Orioles

If any team needs to buy an ace, it's the Orioles. Chen and Norris, the two pitchers Baltimore bought rather than developed, are decent enough, and there's a chance Tillman puts everything together and becomes one of the best pitchers in baseball, and Gausman is young. If those two can flip the standings and move into the territory of a #1 and a #2, this will look much prettier for Baltimore fans, but right now, it's depressing.

On the other hand, Dylan Bundy is coming, so maybe we don't need to feel bad for them.

So there you have it. This generation of Rays pitching doesn't quite stand up to the "best rotation in baseball" quintet of 2012, but you could still argue that they're the best in the division right now. That's an impressive accomplishment for a team completely unable to buy good pitching on the free agent market, or to retain long term the pitching they do manage to develop. It's a rotation that should enable the Rays to make a legitimate run for the playoffs in 2015 if they're able to squeeze a bit more offense out of their lineup.

Washington Nationals' GM Mike Rizzo addressed reporters this afternoon at NatsFest in the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, talking about discussions at the Winter Meetings, the one trade the Nats did make and more...

Though the Washington Nationals didn't come out of the 2014 Winter Meetings in San Diego, CA with the second baseman they are reportedly after this winter, Nats' GM Mike Rizzo told reporters on Saturday at NatsFest in the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in D.C. that he did have a number of discussions with other teams around the league and did manage to trade Ross Detwiler in return for minor league depth.

"I thought we made good progress," Rizzo said this afternoon. "We laid the foundation for further discussions and made the deal with Texas, acquired two young prospects for Ross and did a lot of investigating, a lot of kicking the tires for future possibilities."

The two prospects the Nationals received in return for Detwiler, infielder Chris Bostick and right-hander Abel de los Santos, helped the Nationals restock the system.

"The prospects, we scouted them extremely well," Rizzo told reporters. "They were both seen on multiple occasions this year and throughout their careers. Bostick is an offensive middle infielder. We feel that his power is on the come. He hit 11 HRs last year. He's an athletic player, runs well, has enough arm to play shortstop and a very versatile athlete that can play both shortstop and second base.

"[Abel] de lo Santos is a starter-made-reliever and since he's gone to the bullpen his velocity and stuff has spiked. Had a terrific year last year and we think that he'll come really quickly."

The decision to deal Detwiler, Rizzo explained, was made in part due to the Nationals' confidence in the left-handers they have available in the bullpen.

"I thought that we had some depth at pitching," Rizzo said. "In the bullpen we have Xavier Cedeno and we put Matt Grace on the roster, so we felt that we had great depth of our left-handed relievers. I thought it was a good time to acquire two good prospects for a player that was a five-plus that was going to leave [via] free agency after the season."

While Detwiler's representatives inquired about the Nats' plans for the left-hander going forward, Rizzo said today that the Nationals' 2007 1st Round pick never requested a trade.

"Ross never asked for a trade," Rizzo said clearly. "His representatives wanted to know what his situation was and I told them his situation was going to be one of our starting candidates after our starting five and competition there and then go to the bullpen. But he never asked for a trade and asking for a trade doesn't make me do a trade anyways."

The deal was the only one the Nationals consumated at the Winter Meetings, but there has been plenty of speculation about what the Nats will do going forward with five key players set to hit free agency after the 2015 campaign.

"We had a lot of trade ideas and we just haven't found the right time, place or situation to make trades," Rizzo said.

"We feel that we like the team that we have, but we certainly see room for improvement and to get better and we're always on the lookout to improve the ballclub."

The decisions they make, he explained, will not only be about 2015, but the long-term health of the organization.

#Nats' GM Mike Rizzo talked about Winter Meetings, dealing Detwiler & more at #NatsFest. We asked about A.J. Cole... pic.twitter.com/cT7LkTldcU

— federalbaseball (@federalbaseball) December 13, 2014

"I think you have to have a strategy and a plan to look long-term," Rizzo said. "We're always about trying to win now, in 2015, but we also have to have a global view towards the future. We don't want to be just good for 2015, but good on a consistent basis.

With all the Nationals' players set to hit free agency after this season, however, thinking about the present and future is a tough balancing act.

"It always is a delicate balance," Rizzo admitted.

"When you have players on the cusp of free agency, you certainly have to make the hard decisions. The decisions we have are always in the line of winning in 2015 with an eye towards the future."

Asked for his current thoughts on negotiations with Jordan Zimmermann, Doug Fister and Ian Desmond, three of the five players who will become free agents after the upcoming season, Rizzo said they were under contract for 2015, and declined to comment further.

"They're signed right now, for 2015," he said, "and that's right now what we're focused on and that's all we can comment on the negotiations."

Rizzo and Zimmermann's representatives did meet last week, but he wasn't offering any details on plans for further discussions.

"We haven't set up [more meetings] yet, I haven't spoken to them since the Winter Meetings," Rizzo said.

While the Nationals continue to look for options at second base, Rizzo said there were several possibilities, including a platoon or the possible pursuit of a third baseman.

"We keep all our options open," Rizzo told reporters. "We certainly consider anything if it's a benefit to the ballclub."

Anthony Rendon's flexibility is allowing the Nats to explore all possibile infield solutions.

"Anthony [Rendon's] athletic ability and defensive prowess at both [second and third] gives us a unique opportunity to go for a third baseman and move Anthony to second base if we see that that is the upgrade we want to make."

Going forward, he explained, there are a lot of possibilities.

"We've got a lot of options," Rizzo said. "We can go a lot of different ways. We can stand pat and go with a team that we think is a very competitive ballclub. We can make a few tweaks here and there and I think that we're certainly going to address our depth both with pitching and with our position players.

"We've taken a step towards deepening our minor league system with the Detwiler trade.

"We'll continue to make trades that not only help us win in 2015, but gives us a chance beyond, but that was a prime example of how to use a veteran major league asset to acquire players that will help you down the road."

The Nationals, he explained, will continue to do what they have since he took over as the general manager, and the work they've done in previous seasons has led them to where they now stand.

"There's a reason that we're in the position we are in, because of what we've done in the past," he said.

"We've put ourselves in this position to be very flexible on what we do. We have a good team now that we know can compete to play meaningful games in October and we're going to take that and run with it."

UPDATE: For what it's worth, as the festivities at NatsFest were wrapping up, the following report came out via ESPN's Jerry Crasnick, which said that the Toronto Blue Jays are interested in Rizzo for their CEO job, as the continue to search for a replacement for president and CEO Paul Beeston.

Rizzo was unavailable for comment for the article according to Crasnick and the article wasn't published until after the Nats' GM spoke to reporters today:

Sources: #Bluejays interested in #nationals Mike Rizzo for CEO job. http://t.co/YNJ5xkEQig

— Jerry Crasnick (@jcrasnick) December 13, 2014

Bonus Quotes: With some chatter about A.J. Cole possibly working out of the pen in the majors this season, I asked Mike Rizzo for his thoughts on Cole, if he thought he'd stay in a starting role in Syracuse, or maybe move to the bullpen in D.C.?:

"I think that he's our starting prospect, and a great starting prospect and a guy that you're going to hear from in the very near-future in Washington."

There was one semi-controversial development this afternoon at NatsFest. Bryce Harper, who is headed to a grievance hearing with the Nationals this Tuesday if they can't settle their disagreement over whether or not the 22-year-old should be able to opt out of his deal an into arbitration, decided not to attend NatsFest. Rizzo was asked about Harper's absence:

"We're disappointed he's not here, but he chose not to be here because of the grievance."

Bad decision on Harper's part? Or understandable given the situation?

Jerry Crasnick, of ESPN.com, reports that Mike Rizzo who is the Washington Nationals GM, is another person the Blue Jays are looking at to fill Paul Beeston's job.

He gets added to the list that includes Dan Duquette, Terry Ryan and Kenny Williams as a potential replacement for Beeston as Blue Jays CEO.

This is the line that I thought was interesting:

Sources told Olney that Toronto ownership was not pleased with some of Beeston's actions during the search for a replacement for commissioner Bud Selig.

I don't understand why Rogers would be upset that Beeston backed the runner up, but maybe he burned some bridges with the new commissioner.

I really have no idea who would make a good CEO. Rizzo has been around the game for 32 years, so he has experience.  Whether he'd do a good job for us, I have no idea. It seems like Rogers is going around to each of the other 29 MLB teams trying to entice someone to take the Jays job. They don't seem to be doing the most graceful job in their search.

Some late night Blue Jays news as the Chicago White Sox have signed free agent Melky Cabrera. The switch-hitting outfielder was of course a Blue Jay in 2014 and declined a qualifying offer from the team before testing the market. This means the team will receive a draft pick at the end of the first round after losing their original first round draft pick for signing Russell Martin. Bruce Levin broke the news:

Source tells me Melky Cabrera agrees to three year deal with WhSox pending physical .

— Bruce Levine (@MLBBruceLevine) December 14, 2014

Cabrera came to the Blue Jays as a free agent before the 2013 season signing a two-year $16 million contract. The team gave him a second chance after he was suspended for a positive testosterone test during the 2012 season with the San Francisco Giants. His first year in Toronto wasn't very memorable as a variety of ailments, including a tumour, made him fairly ineffective both at the plate and (especially) in the field. Thankfully he turned it around in 2014 and posted a wRC+ of 125 and a fWAR of 2.6 despite some bad defensive numbers.

The 30-year-old was thought to be heading for a four or five-year deal, but last night many people expected this three-year deal to carry a higher average annual value. Not true apparently as the reports are that the contract with the White Sox will be three years in length and worth $42 million. With an annual value of $14 million, that really doesn't seem to be that much higher than what he was expected to get with a longer deal.

melky cabrera agrees to three-year deal with white sox for $42M. @MLBBruceLevine 1st w/chisox

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) December 14, 2014

Overall his time in Toronto will be remembered as a tale of two years where he made a horrible first impression and then earned nearly the entirety of his contract in the second year. It would have been nice to have him back in Toronto for a few more years, but the team went in a different direction and gained a pick from it.

The White Sox will be Cabrera's six different team in the last seven years.

Free agent outfielder Melky Cabrera has found a new home, agreeing to terms with the Chicago White Sox on a three-year contract, per Bruce Levine of WSCR-AM in Chicago, worth an estimated $42-43.5 million per Jesse Sanchez of MLB.com.

The deal, which hasn't yet been announced by the team, is pending a physical.

Cabrera, 30, hit .301/.351/.458, a 126 OPS+, with 16 home runs, 35 doubles, 81 runs scored and 73 RBI in 139 games for the Toronto Blue Jays in 2014, in the final season of a two-year, $16 million contract he signed after 2012.

White Sox left fielders hit .225/.297/.344 in 2014, 12th among 15 American League teams in OPS (.641), on-base percentage and home runs (11), 13th in batting average and 11th in doubles (26) and slugging percentage.

The signing of Cabrera continues a busy offseason for the White Sox, who so far have signed first baseman Adam LaRoche and relief pitchers David Robertson and Zach Duke, and traded for starting pitcher Jeff Samardzija.

Cabrera turned down a qualifying offer of one year, $15.3 million from Toronto in November, meaning the Blue Jays get a compensatory pick for losing Cabrera as a free agent. The White Sox pick eighth overall in the first round, a protected selection for having one of the 10 worst record in 2014; Chicago will instead forfeit its second- and third-round picks for signing Robertson and Cabrera.

Late Saturday night, Cabrera retweeted a welcome tweet by center fielder Adam Eaton:

The Melk Man!!! Welcome fella!! @TheMelkman53#NewTeammates#SouthSide

— Adam Eaton (@AdamSpankyEaton) December 14, 2014

Chicago will be Cabrera's sixth different team in seven years, a span that included a 50-game suspension for testing positive for testosterone in 2012 with the San Francisco Giants. After hitting a career-high .346/.390/.516 in 2012, Cabrera responded by hitting .293/.340/.421 in two years with Toronto, though he averaged just 114 games per season.

Cabrera hit the disabled list twice with left knee injuries in 2013, then saw his season end with surgery in September to remove a benign tumor from his lower spine. Cabrera played in 139 of the first 140 games in 2014 but suffered a broken right finger on Sept. 5 that ended his season.

In parts of 10 seasons, Cabrera has hit .286/.339/.415 with 236 doubles and 88 home runs in 1,211 career games.

Biggest roster holes are filled after latest signing, but Rick Hahn can bolster a few spots in the lineup

The White Sox entered the offseason needing a starting pitcher, a high-leverage reliever, a lefty reliever, a left-handed hitter or two, and a corner outfielder. Could the White Sox do better elsewhere? Sure, but they couldn't afford to do worse in those specific areas.

Two weeks into December: Check.Check.Check.Check.Check.

Melky Cabrera crossed the last item off the list, reportedly signing with the White Sox for three years and $42 million. He's not a perfect player -- his defense deteriorated in left field with Toronto, and he was caught up in one of the more ludicrous PED dramas -- but assuming he's not a future suspension risk, the assets outweigh the liabilities.

Here's what he's done the last four years:

What doesn't show up in those lines:

*He missed almost all of September 2014 after breaking his finger diving into first base while getting picked off.

*He missed all of September 2013 after having a benign tumor removed from his spine. He went on the DL with an ankle injury before that on Aug. 1, but it seems like the Blue Jays just called it an ankle problem until they could figure out what was causing him to move like an old man.

*He missed all of September 2012 due to the PED suspension, which wouldn't have been all that memorable if he and his agents hadn't tried creating a fake website for a nonexistent product to explain a spike in testosterone. He played his last game on Aug. 14, and the Giants didn't put him on any playoff roster during their World Series run.

Cabrera's hit when he's healthy, before and after he got busted, in both leagues,and from both sides of the plate. He's shown virtually no platoon split over the last four years:

• vs. LHP: .308/.350/.477
• vs. RHP: .309/.352/.451

And that will allow Robin Ventura to play him everyday, presumably in the second spot, which is where he hit for the Blue Jays almost all of last season.

Theoretically, the White Sox could contend with this lineup if it all hangs together:

1. Adam Eaton CF
2. Melky Cabrera LF
3. Jose Abreu 1B
4. Adam LaRoche DH
5. Avisail Garcia RF
6. Conor Gillaspie 3B
7. Alexei Ramirez SS
8. Tyler Flowers C
9. Carlos Sanchez 2B

There's always the chance that any of the guys with established track records can get hurt and/or randomly crap the bed, but beyond the general risk associated with relying on mortals, there are a few specific areas of concern.

Right field

Garcia has almost has a full season of MLB games to his record, and it's underwhelming:

But he's also 23, and the labrum injury gave him a legitimate excuse for depressed numbers in 2014. His physical tools and scouting reports suggest an upswing is in store, and this is a risk the Sox have to take, for this season and future ones.

That said, an outfield with Garcia in right and Cabrera in left means that a defensively gifted outfielder is a necessity for the bench -- not just because Garcia and Cabrera are both below-average until proven otherwise, but also because neither of them can handle center field.

Jordan Danks ain't dead yet, but the Sox might want to give him some competition beyond Trayce Thompson.

Third base

If Gillaspie's 2014 resembled a reputable base line, there'd probably be no need to consider an upgrade. But 2014 could very well be the best he can do offensively -- regression certainly whupped him the last two months -- and his defense hampers his value further. That's why Chase Headley has been a popular name here, but it seems like the Cabrera signing made such an investment financially impossible. Unless it didn't.

Semien would've been an excellent right-handed caddy, at least assuming that one could attribute the errors there to a lack of reps. With Semien in Oakland, there isn't a complement to Gillaspie on the roster unless you believe in Matt Davidson after his disastrous 2014. There isn't one in free agency, either. A trade would be required to fill that gap.

Second base

Sanchez now holds the inside track, and after hitting .250/.269/.300 with three walks to 25 strikeouts over 104 plate appearances, he has the weakest bat of the bunch. However, his glove looks like the real deal at second, and given the possible liabilities in the corners, it might not be the worst idea to have a defensive specialist batting ninth, and it'd be an easy chance to take if he were the worst projected infielder of the bunch by a comfortable margin.

He isn't the only in-house option, either -- he just happens to the surest at this point. Tyler Saladino was due to join Sanchez as a late-season call-up before Tommy John surgery ended his season. He'll be back for spring training, but it could disrupt his development. Micah Johnson's health also puts some clouds on his ceiling. He offers more excitement, but he needs to get his legs back first.

Normally, that would be enough to run with considering reasonable payroll constrictions. But with solutions on the open market (Jed Lowrie, Asdrubal Cabrera) and trade candidates elsewhere (Ben Zobrist), it's not unreasonable to aim higher.

Catcher

This one's oftenlisted as a weakness, but it's hard to do better than Flowers without sacrificing prospects or a lot more cash. It's easier to do better than anybody who's backed him up in his life, and yet somehow Rob Brantly doesn't clear that bar.

Here's a rumor to perk up your Sunday afternoon.

The Cubs made three big moves last week, signing starting pitchers Jon Lester and Jason Hammel and trading for catcher Miguel Montero.

Some of you have thought the Cubs might make another "big" move. This rumor doesn't really qualify as such, but I thought I'd pass along this one from Sportsnet Canada in an article mainly talking about the White Sox signing Melky Cabrera:

Another former Blue Jays outfielder could also find his way to the Windy City.

The cross-town Cubs recently met with Colby Rasmus, and are one of several teams to have shown interest in the centre-fielder.

Rasmus struggled to a .225/.287/.448 slash line last season but still hit 18 home runs in a down season at a premium position. Manager Joe Maddon, known for his ability to get the best from his players, may help him regain his 2013 from when Rasmus batted .276/.338/.501 with 22 homers and 66 RBIs, producing a WAR of 4.8.

The Cubs could use a true center fielder and Rasmus surely qualifies as that. He has in the past produced positive defensive value (1.5 defensive bWAR in 2013, noted above as one of his better seasons).

The downsides to Rasmus have been well-documented, and some of them are noted in this Toronto Star article from last August, where his father, who's been accused of keeping too tight a rein on him and coaching him in ways his teams didn't necessarily like, is extensively quoted.

Rasmus was a No. 1 pick of the Cardinals in 2005 and a top-10 prospect in all of baseball in both the Baseball America and Baseball Prospectus rankings in 2008 and 2009. Even with all his troubles, he's hit 116 major-league home runs, put up an overall .751 OPS (103 OPS+) and 13.2 bWAR in six major-league seasons.

He's 28. It's entirely possible that he's a perfect change-of-scenery guy who could blossom under Joe Maddon.

I think he's worth a shot. He made $7 million last year, so unless the Cubs wanted to lavish him with a multiyear deal he might not cost that much. Signing Rasmus would probably spell the end of Ryan Sweeney's Cubs career.

What say you?

384 baseball players have moved between teams already, and there are still more names out there looking for new homes. Two of them (Shields and Scherzer) are very, very big. Which teams still have compelling needs, and cash?

Welcome to The Week AFTER Winter Meetings. So much time, so much history, so much perspective. Everything should be clear about everything, at least all the way up to , well, little more than head counts. Which brings me to, the head count. Yeah, that's all we got. a head count. But, boy, is it telling. Look at the turnover in Oakland! We are talking about a team that won 88 game made the playoffs last year. Same with the Dodgers, who won 94. The Blue Jays have been busy, but not as busy as the D'backs. The Marlins have been busy, too, but nothing close to the Dodgers.

Logic would dictate that those teams that fare poorly would be working very hard to improve, using all available means. Those means, of course, might often be extremely limited and restrictive, so not all mediocre/poor teams will be busy. But some are. On the other hand, note how hard teams that have been successful, are working to remain so. For a team such as Oakland, it's more about shuffling the cards and dealing new hands with regularity, having learned how to leverage extreme value out of 4 deuces. For teams such as Detroit, the Dodgers, and Angels, it could be about windows. Windows are objects that don't remain open forever.

But hey, it's gonna happen. Scherzer is going to land somewhere. Scott Boras will control the timing. It's time to start an office pool. What's your guess? Who will sign Scherzer, when will he be signed, will it be before or after James Shields, for how much money, and for how many years??

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Elsewhere in the Heavens of Anaheim: Trout Porn: The Face of Major League Baseball rises...........Ouch. This is a tough angle. Andrew Heaney carries the burden of making fans forget Howie Kendrick? No pressure, or anything..............For future consideration: if you are sitting in the seat of Jerry Dipoto, and are still pulling theoretical knobs and levers for a major bolster to your rotation, James Shields and Max Scherzer are going to cost you your first round draft pick next year. Which one is worth that pick?

Around Baseball: Curious as to what happens amongst all those umps with headphones during an Instant Replay review? Well, here you go. Wonder no more..............Talent continues to drift in to the gravity well that has become Chicago, Illinois. Most recently, Melky Cabrera to the White Sox..............I have, as many do, a sentimental spot in my heart for ex-Halos, especially ex-heroes. But, boy, I sure am glad that Jerry Dipoto allowed Kendrys Morales to walk away when he was..........The nationals and Bryce Harper and Scott Boras and the MLBPA continue to hurtle towards a train wreck of Charles O. Finley proportions. if things don't get sorted out today, tomorrow could be the start of cheapskate ugly.............If you are a fan of baseball cards, you may not have known it but your hero was Sy Berger, and he just passed away.  Do you love baseball? Are you good working with wood? Have you always dreamed of a career in sports? If you answered yes to all of the above, just follow this guy's dream!

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To all our Jewish members, neighbors, and friends, Happy Hanukkah!!

According to ESPN blogger David Schoenfield, Blue Jays utility guy Munenori Kawasaki finished second in baseball for hitting in "close and late" situations, averaging .346, just three percentage points behind the Red Sox's BROCK HOLT. "Close and late" situations are defined as when the game is in the seventh inning or later, and the team at bat is ahead by one, tied, or has the potential tying run on base, at bat, or on deck.

Yes, we know that "clutch" really doesn't exist, but this is sort of cool. We already kinda knew that Kawasaki had the ability to take a lot of pitches in his plate appearances (see FanPost), and we also sorta had a feeling that he keeps coming up with a well-timed hit in the late innings, but it's great to see the actual numbers behind it. In fact, when looking at innings splits on Baseball-Reference, we can see that his slash line in innings 7-9 is .310/.375/.352, much higher than the other six innings (small sample size alert!), so it could be "clutch" or it could just be good luck, with his .379 BABIP in that situation.

Speaking of Kawasaki, he recently did a Japanese-language interview where he talked about why he was so popular in Toronto, and he referenced how Blue Jays fans seemed to love fun middle infielders (he name-dropped John McDonald). I am getting this from a rough Google translation, but later in the article he also said something about being as popular as Derek Jeter. He also said that he would likely come back if offered a major league contract, but may also be considering a minor league deal...I think.

Another piece was translated quite horribly, but I think it is saying that Kawasaki is now down to deciding between signing a minor league contract (with a spring invite) with one of two teams who are still interested.

While Blue Jays fans hold out hope for the team bringing in a relief ace from outside the organization, Brett Cecil is the most likely Opening Day closer at this point. That's not necessarily a bad thing.

If the season started today the Blue Jays would probably be looking to Brett Cecil to hold leads in the ninth inning.

Viscerally speaking that idea might not sit well with fans of the team. Cecil as a closer just doesn't feel right. The 28-year-old is a southpaw who doesn't throw particularly hard by late-inning reliever standards and has massive career platoon splits. None of that fits the closer prototype.

Also, Cecil fits another prototype to the letter. He appears to be the perfect example of a failed left-handed starter who has found a role getting lefties out. Why put him in one box when he fits so well in another?

The most obvious reason is necessity. By trading J.A. Happ away the Blue Jays opened a spot at the back of the rotation for Aaron Sanchez, making it less likely he returns to the pen. Other incumbents like Todd Redmond, Chad Jenkins, and Marco Estrada aren't really cut out for high-leverage work and John Gibbons loves using Aaron Loup for multiple innings. The last man standing is Cecil.

The possibility still exists that the team will bring in outside help, but with limited trade chips in hand finding a better reliever than Cecil at a palatable price seems unlikely. Dioner Navarro is not utterly without value, but he's unlikely to bring the type of player you plug and play in the ninth inning.

It should be noted that an argument could be made that there is no specific player should be played exclusively in the ninth inning and that the current closer role is archaic and overrated. That argument is not without merit. However, you can bet your bottom dollar that Blue Jays will employ a traditional closer next year nonetheless.

Closers are imperfectly used (like when teams are up three in the ninth) but by and large they pitch in situations important enough that it's worth caring about who gets the gig. In this case it's worth evaluating Cecil as a candidate.

The most obvious concern with "Brett Cecil: Closer" is the platoon splits he's displayed over the course of his career. Right-handed hitters have roughed Cecil up in his six seasons in the league:

The southpaw manages to turn right-handed hitters he faces into elite mashers of baseballs. That's not good for a guy who's asked to pitch in situations where opposing managers will use their bench liberally with nothing to lose.

However, over the last two years as he's settled in as a permanent reliever Cecil has done a lot better against right-handed hitters.

Although the sample size is relatively small (60.2 IP) it's not insignificant, and the change in results is mirrored by a change in approach. As a starter Cecil's primary breaking ball was a slider, which left him vulnerable to big platoon splits. In recent years he's scrapped the slider in favor of a curveball:

Early in the year I hypothesized that Cecil's curveball may be getting better and that proved true over the course of the season.

He threw the pitch with unprecedented velocity...

... and got more whiffs with it than ever before.

Perhaps most importantly, he recognized its effectiveness and increased his usage:

This curveball-heavy approach does not come without it's drawbacks. Last season Cecil's BB/9  spiked to a career-high 4.56, a scary number for a high leverage reliever. Curveballs are rarely thrown in the strike zone and are the pitch that hitters take the most.

However, with a few extra base runners comes a lot of making guys look like complete idiots and sending them to the bench. This combines aesthetic appeal and utility.

Notice how Cecil buried almost every pitch in that at-bat well below the strike zone, but was still able to get the strike out. That's what an elite curveball will do for you.

Last year Cecil's excellent strikeout rate (12.83 K/9) granted him a career-high 20.9 K-BB%, showing that the benefits of his new pitch mix outweigh the costs. Since Cecil has embraced the way of the hook he was also seen his groundball rate rise above 50% each of the last two seasons after never cracking 45% before in his career despite no real change his sinker usage.

It's tempting to see Cecil as the type of pitcher who just found a few ticks on his fastball in the bullpen and turned things around. While it's impossible to deny that Cecil has more impressive juice than he did as a starter, it's really the way that he's adopted and mastered a platoon-neutral out pitch that has made the difference.

The Blue Jays may well bring in outside help to close for them this season, but even if they don't, they have a perfectly good in-house candidate. While Cecil used to be too much of a liability against right-handers to be considered for such a role, now he has a new and devastating weapon.

Now he's ready to take on all comers.

One long-time reader of Bluebird Banter is especially happy today.

For almost as long as I have known long-time Bluebird Banter reader PIkachu, he has wanted the Blue Jays to sign Daric Barton (see this insightful comment). And finally, after years and years of pining, the Blue Jays have done just that. Via press release, they've announced that they have signed first baseman Daric Barton to a minor league contract with an invitation to major league spring training.

Barton was a first-round selection by the Cardinals in 2003 and was packaged along with Dan Haren in the Mark Mulder trade about a year later. He made his major league debut at age 21 way back in 2007 and had a full-time job by 2008, but he has failed to hit well in the major leagues except for a standout season in 2010. That inability forced him to spend significant time in triple-A Sacramento in the past three seasons.

The 29-year-old bats left and throws right, from a shoulder that has periodically given him some trouble. He suffered a torn labrum that shortened his 2011 season

With Dan Johnson leaving the organization for the Astros, Barton would seemingly be the one tapped to fill in first base duties down in Buffalo in 2015 unless he somehow makes the team out of spring training. But that's OK. Buffalo is still close enough for Pikachu to drive down and see him play.

Minutes after shooting back an ounce of prescription-grade cold medication (this one gives me vivid dreams!) I saw reactions to a report that the Blue Jays are set to sign North Battleford, Saskatchewan native Andrew Albers. The source is not exactly rock sold (Robert Murray is one of those "teenage Twitter reporters"), but I don't think this is one of those moves anyone makes up. "Only baseball team in Canada signs a Canadian pitcher who was pretty bad in Korean ball" is not exactly a tweet that gets you enough sweet hits of RTs to justify typing out all those characters.

Source: #BlueJays to sign LHP Andrew Albers.

— Robert Murray (@RobertMurrayMLB) December 17, 2014

I mean, I guess Murray's "source" could be absolutely wrong but, hell I am going to pass out in about 10 minutes so why not get this post up anyway.

Albers, a 29-year-old southpaw, was drafted by he Padres in 2008 and appeared in five games for them in Rookie ball. Next spring training he tore his UCL and was subsequently released after getting Tommy John. The next season he was in independent ball before returning to affiliated baseball with the Twins organization. In 2013 he posted a 4.05 ERA as a starter for Minnesota. If you recall, he started his major league career in fine fashion: he took a four-hit shutout into the ninth against the Royals in his debut, and then tossed a complete game shutout against the Indians in his next start. He was, uh, not nearly as good in his subsequent starts, save the one against the Blue Jays, when he limited Toronto hitters to five hits over seven shutout innings, striking out a career-high five.

Then, a few weeks before spring training this year, Albers asked the Twins to release him so he could sign as a free agent with the Hanwha Eagles in Daejeon, South Korea. It was probably a financial decision for him, as he was given a contract that guaranteed $700,000 plus a club option for 2015. However, after a disastrous season, the Eagles decided against picking up the option. His 5.89 ERA was well above league average (5.21, according to Mike Bernardino).

But hey, the Blue Jays have a lot of minor league affiliates and they all need arms to fill in their rotations. With the possible addition of a prairie guy to their organization, the Blue Jays just need someone from out east to form a cabinet.

We'll probably get something more concrete by Wednesday morning, as I'm sure Bob Elliott is already calling up is Baseball Canada connections. Meanwhile I am looking forward to some vivid dreams.

What are you getting the Blue Jays fan in your life?

I figured that with about a week of shopping days left until Christmas, we should have a thread giving our best baseball related Christmas present ideas and tell us something that you would like to get for Christmas.

I guess, easiest, quickest idea would be a jersey with the name of one of our new Blue Jays. Maybe a Russell Martin jersey?

I think I'd go for a Donaldson jersey, but with my record of buying jerseys just to have the guy traded the next week, I'm a little afraid to put his name on my back.

Maybe tickets to see the Blue Jays in Montreal. I'm planning on going, and Minor Leaguer will be there, you could buy us a bière.

Though, maybe, if you are going to a spring training game, you'd rather go to one in the warmth of Florida? Tickets are on sale now. Florida in March is pretty great. If you were looking for the perfect gift for your favorite blog manager, a flight to Florida and a tickets to a handful of games would be high up on the list.

If a trip is a little out of your price range, maybe a book would work:

• Next on my reading list, whether it is under the Christmas tree or not, is Up, Up & Away, Jonah Keri's book about the Montreal Expos.
• Or, you can cheat a bit. Maybe someone on your list would like '501 Baseball Books Fans Must Read Before They Die'. 501 books might be a little bit of over kill, you really ought to read some other stuff, now and then, but I'm sure this would point you to some fun reads.
• Or perhaps you know a Gary Carter fan that would like to read his autobiography? I have this one. He was a little holier than thou but I wouldn't hold that against him. He really did seem to enjoy the game.
• Or, maybe you know someone that would rather watch than read. For them Baseball: A Film by Ken Burns is on DVD. It is a nice overview of history of baseball.
• If you know someone that would rather do their reading on line, a subscription to Baseball Prospectus or ESPN.com or perhaps Baseball America. I have subscriptions to the first two, on ESPN, I mostly just read Keith Law. Baseball America I don't have, I do wonder if it would be worth the money, maybe someone on here has it and can talk on that.
• My favorite subscription is MLB.tv. For $129.99, you get all of the MLB games. I have my computer on almost all the time and, during the season, I generally have a game playing in the corner of the screen. I don't pay close attention but if something interesting happens I can follow closer. If there is an exciting game, I can switch over to that. If you don't want to spent that much, you can get MLB Audio, which gives you the radio broadcast of every MLB game.

For non baseball presents, I got the complete series WKRP in Cincinnati DVDs and they are as funny now as they they were back when they were made. If you are looking for something for me, the Beer of the Month Club would likely work. Or maybe the complete Sandman Collection, in hardcovers, Volume 1 and 2

So give us your Christmas ideas, and left us know what you'd like to see if your name on under the tree.

The Blue Jays have continued their spree of minor-league signings this week by inking outfielder Ryan Kalish to a similar deal. The 26-year-old was drafted by the Red Sox in the ninth round of the 2006 draft and impressed in the minor leagues before making his major league debut in 2010. It didn't go so well. The lefty had a 87 wRC+ in 53 games and didn't get another chance with the Red Sox until 2012 where he struck out a quarter of the time and played some rough defence.

After a few shoulder and neck surgeries in 2013, Kalish was non-tendered at the end of the year and signed with the Cubs. He broke camp with the North-Siders and had an okay start to the season before fading and being sent to the minors in August. After electing free agency in November, Kalish likely held out for the slim hopes of a big league contract but eventually settled on this deal with the Blue Jays:

#bluejays announce they've signed outfielder Ryan Kalish to a minor-league deal w/ invite to ST. Kalish spent 2014 in Cubs' system.

— Brendan Kennedy (@BKennedyStar) December 17, 2014

The California native was consistently rated as one of the top prospects in the league before reaching the majors where it all seemed to go wrong thanks to shaky play and serious injuries. This signing goes along with the other minor-leagues deals handed out by the Blue Jays this week to Daric Barton, Wilton Lopez, Caleb Gindl, and Jake Fox.

What was reported a few days ago by one of the newly-famous teenage reporters on Twitter has come to fruition as the Blue Jays have signed southpaw Andrew Albers. The pitcher will return to North America after a year spent being hit pretty badly in Korea (not the one who has been in the news recently) playing for the Hanwha Eagles. Now Albers will return to his home nation to try and make the Blue Jays 25-man roster on a minor-league deal with an invite to Spring Training. The official confirmation was tweeted out this morning:

Canadian LHP Andrew Albers has a minor league deal with #BlueJays after a year pitching in South Korea.

— Ben Nicholson-Smith (@bnicholsonsmith) December 19, 2014

There was also an article posted by Nicholson-Smith with some quotes by the newest member of the Blue Jays organization:

As a Canadian it’s always something you look to — to be a part of that organization," Albers told Sportsnet Friday. "I’m really looking forward to it."

On his time in Korea:

It was a good life experience," Albers said. "I had some bumps along the road. One of those years that, unfortunately, just didn’t go my way. You want to make a good impression, but unfortunately the stuff just wasn’t there early on."

The addition of Albers brings bumps up the total numbers of Canucks aiming to make the major league roster this Spring to five with the obvious players being Dalton Pompey, Russell Martin, Michael Saunders, as well as Jeff Francis who received a contract similar to Albers'.

In other news around the league, the Padres continued their offseason reminiscent of the Blue Jays winter in 2012 by acquiring Justin Upton and Derek Norris overnight. The deal with the Braves for Upton includes prospects going back the other way including first round pick in 2012 Max Fried. This is the third corner outfielder the team has acquired in a week's time, with Wil Myers and Matt Kemp already being traded for. This means someone will be patrolling the massive center field area in Petco Park who probably shouldn't be.

The Derek Norris trade went down last night with Oakland for young players Jesse Hahn and R.J. Alvarez. The catcher's position has seen massive turnover for San Diego this month although it still looks to eventually be taken over by highly-rated prospect Austin Hedges in the next few years.

Reports are surfacing that the team is also sending newly-acquired catcher Ryan Hanigan to the Red Sox for Will Middlebrooks, bringing the number of players named Wil(l) on the Padres to two three, while the move will decrease their number of possible starting catchers to two.

Source: Padres nearing a deal that would send Ryan Hanigan to Boston for Will Middlebrooks.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 19, 2014

Bravo Padres, you're keeping this interesting.

This morning, the Buffalo Bisons tweeted out this picture of a fan's fresh tattoo depicting Celery winning crossing the finish line with Chicken Wing and Bleu Cheese trailing behind.

#Bisons fan David M. is hoping '15 is the year for @BisonsCelery. Training is going well for Buffalo's fav. Veggie. pic.twitter.com/iAKoawmDGj

— Buffalo Bisons (@BuffaloBisons) December 19, 2014

During every home game of the Blue Jays' triple-A affiliate down in Coca-Cola Field there is a mascot race between Atomic Wing, Bleu Cheese, Chicken Wing, and of course, Celery. Buffalo's Anchor Bar is thought to be the birthplace of the "Buffalo-style" chicken wing and is a big source of pride for Buffalonians.

The Wing, Cheese, Celery (or WCC) Race has been run 254 times since its establishment in 2011 and has been largely dominated by Chicken Wing, who won the title every year except in 2013, when Bleu Cheese pulled off the upset championship last season. There was quite a bit more parity in the 2014 race season, with Chicken Wing just squeaking by Bleu Cheese and Atomic Wing.

* Atomic Wing did not begin competing until 2012

Unfortunately, Celery has not won a single race in his/her (the Bisons PR department insists to me that Celery is gender-neuter) career. Celery has come close several times, but has always come up short thanks to the devious actions of the other participants--and of course, the evil villain Carrot.

An infamous example came back in August 3, 2013, when yours truly--the official Bluebird Banter WCC Race senior correspondant--travelled down to Buffalo to cover the race on Celery Bobblehead Night. Here is an excerpt from my report that evening:

The race started, as always, in right-centre field going clockwise. Atomic Wing took a large lead at he beginning, but then Celery caught up and was in the lead around the turn, down the foul line. Celery still had a large lead past the right field bullpen, but the evil bully Carrot hopped into the race and tried to tackle her. Fortunately, the three other mascots in the race (Atomic Wing, Bleu Cheese, and Chicken Wing) protected Celery by pushing Carrot down and beating him up. They were cheering on as Celery ran unimpeded to the finish line, but then out of nowhere this happened:

Courtesy goldandorsmith.com, used with permission.

Chicken Wing just pretended to help Celery then, when she let her guard down, did the two-handed push to knock her down by the first base coach's box, exploiting her high centre of gravity. Chicken Wing then coasted to the finish with a stolen win. The dirty move of all dirty moves.

That push is now known simply as "The Shove" to Buffalonians. I even made a short film of the incident on Chicken Wing Bobblehead Day this past season.

Even if Celery never wins a race in real life, she has clearly already won the heart (or forearm) of one David M.

The Blue Jays announced their eight minor league managers today via a press release, and their top affiliates announced their full coaching staff threw their own press releases (Buffalo, New Hampshire, Dunedin) as well. The coaches for Lansing and Vancouver were pulled from their respective websites.

The triple-A staff remains intact for 2015, while in double-A, manager Bobby Meacham will be entering his second year of duties as the Fisher Cats' manager with two new coaches to replace the departed Jon Nunnally and Jim Czajkowski. Stubby Clapp lands in New Hampshire as the hitting coach after two seasons doing the same in Dunedin, while 2014 Blue Jays bullpen coach Bob Stanley will return to the minors as the Fisher Cats' pitching coach (he spent 2013 in Buffalo).

John Tamargo, Jr., who managed the Lansing Lugnuts for three seasons, is now hitting coach in Dunedin under 2014 Florida State League Manager of the Year Omar Malave. Pitching coach Vince Horsman also moves up to Dunedin from Lansing.

The Lansing Lugnuts' new manager is Ken Huckaby, who will be making is managerial debut after being promoted from hitting coach of the same team. At his side will be 2014 GCL Jays manager Kenny Graham and Vancouver Canadians pitching coach Jeff Ware.

The aforementioned Czajkowski will return to Vancouver as the Canadians' pitching coach in 2015 under the direction of manager Jon Schneider, who has managed in Vancouver since 2011 (save for one season). Dave Pano will remain as hitting coach.

Former Padres minor leaguer Juan Pablo Oramas was claimed on waivers by the Toronto Blue Jays, according to a club release Friday afternoon. The Mexican lefty is 24 and has already spent eight seasons in professional ball (including a season in the Mexican League).

Last season he was used primarily as a starter in triple-A, recording a 5.61 ERA, which is about a run above average in the Pacific Coast League. However, he has been on a good run for Hermosillo in the Mexican Pacific League (winter ball) this offseason, recording 61 strikeouts over 63.2 innings to lead the league.

Oramas was designated for assignment when the Padres signed Brandon Morrow so it's kind of like a trade (but really, not really). He was first added to the Padres' 40-man roster in November 2013 to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft, so he still has two option years remaining.

This move leaves two empty spots on the Blue Jays' 40-man roster.

The Yankees president made an appearance Thursday to say that fans shouldn't get their hopes up for Scherzer and that he expects the team to be "very competitive" in the AL East.

Though he's been quiet for most of the offseason, Yankees president Randy Levine made an appearance Thursday in which he basically just reiterated what GM Brian Cashman has been saying for the past few weeks.

Max Scherzer and offseason spending

On the topic of Max Scherzer, Levine said that Yankee fans shouldn't get their hopes up that they will be signing him or any of the other top free agents on the market. Apparently signing Scherzer is not "realistic" because the payroll is already around $200 million. This is interesting, especially because the Yankees usually react to the moves of the other teams in the AL East by spending more. No one remind him of the $400+ million they spent last offseason.

2015 AL East competition

Levine went on to say that he expects the Yankees to be "very competitive" in the AL East next season. Obviously there is still plenty of time in the offseason for the team to sign other players or make a trade, but right now it doesn't feel that way, especially with the improvements that the Red Sox and Blue Jays have made. The rotation is both incomplete and a disaster waiting to happen. The worst case scenario would involve Masahiro Tanaka having Tommy John surgery, CC Sabathia's knees giving out (or CC just pitching horrendously) and Michael Pineda's shoulder getting messed up again. Ivan Nova should return in May or June, but Nova tends to pitch either very well, or very poorly. If everything goes awry, and the Yankees don't sign another pitcher, it's not outside the realm of possibility that we see this rotation at some point: AL East newcomer Nathan Eovaldi, Chris Capuano, Adam Warren, Chase Whitley and Bryan Mitchell. That's scary to think about. There's also the fact that the offense has been terrible for two seasons, and there haven't been that many upgrades to it.

Injuries

Finally, Levine pointed out that the team was "decimated" by injuries last season, and that the team will be better if last year's injured people are all healthy. So the plan for next season is just to cross our fingers and hope everyone stays healthy? Maybe it's just me, but it feels like the Yankees have been chronically injured since 2012. Derek Jeter and Mark Teixeira saw very little of the 2013 season. Curtis Granderson and Francisco Cervelli both broke a couple of bones. Alex Rodriguez missed most of the season due to hip surgery. Kevin Youkilis played in a whole 28 games. When the 2013 season ended, it ended with a sigh of relief and the thought that surely the team would be healthier in 2014. Then the entire rotation went down (minus Hiroki Kuroda somehow). Tex couldn't stay healthy, neither could Carlos Beltran. If anything, 2014's injuries were worse than the year before. Haven't the past few years been enough to show that we need to be over-prepared for injuries? Not to mention the fact that last year's old players will only be older and potentially more fragile this season. But if everyone stays healthy then things could be great, right?

How do you think the Yankees stack up to the rest of the AL East at this point?