Phillies sign Polanco

[nyy26wc]

1) The Phillies re-signed 2B Placido Polanco to a 1 year, $2.875 million contract, which avoids salary arbitration.

Polanco had his 5th consecutive negative RCAA in 2002, in his 5 year career, while it was the 4th consecutive time he successfully fooled people into thinking he had a good year because of a batting average. Polanco hit .403 SLG, .330 OBA, .733 OPS, -3 RCAA in 147 games (first 94 with the Cardinals) and has a .723 career OPS, compared to his league average of .779, and -39 RCAA in 542 games.

2) The Tigers re-signed INF Travis Chapman, OF Andres Torres and Ps Nate Cornejo, Shane Loux, Matt Roney, Tim Kalita, Wilfredo Ledezma and Andy Van Hekken to 1 year contracts.

3) The Expos signed P Scott Downs to a 1 year contract and signed OF Damon Buford to a minor league contract and invited him to spring training.

Downs had a 5.29 ERA/-11 RSAA in 19 starts with the Cubs and Expos in 2000 and a 5.79 ERA in AAA in 2002.

Buford has a .697 career OPS, compared to his league average of .781, and -73 RCAA in 699 games with 5 teams from 1993-2001.

4) The Dodgers signed free agent 3B-1B Ron Coomer to a minor league contract and invited him to spring training.

Coomer had his 6th consecutive negative RCAA in 2002 and only a career low in PA (throwing out his rookie year in 1995, when he didn't make his major league debut until August 1) prevented it from being his 5th consecutive double digit negative figure. He hit .372 SLG, .290 OBA, .662 OPS, -8 RCAA in 55 games with the Yankees and has a .736 career OPS, compared to his league average of .780, and -111 RCAA in 842 games.

5) The Diamondbacks signed P Ricky Bottalico to a minor league contract and invited him to spring training.

After 4.83 ERA/2 RSAA and 3.90 ERA/3 RSAA seasons, Bottalico had a 4.61 ERA/-3 RSAA in 30 games with the Phillies and had season ending shoulder surgery late in June. He has a 4.03 career ERA, compared to his league average of 4.38, and 24 RSAA in 460 games.

6) The Royals nonroster invitees to spring training--1B Morgan Burkhart, INFs Mendy Lopez, Julius Matos, Luis Ordaz, Jarrod Patterson and Elvis Pena, Cs Mike DiFelice and Juan Brito and Ps James Baldwin, Sean Lowe, Rick DeHart, Jimmy Osting, Nate Field, Zack Greinke, Brian Rose, Buddy Carlyle and Jason Turman.

7) Cubs P Will Ohman recently had arthroscopic surgery to remove a bone spur from the back of his elbow.

Ohman missed the entire 2002 season, after having reconstructive elbow surgery and wasn't expected to make the team, even before this news.

8) According to the Chicago Sun Times, the Cubs are still interested in Expos C Michael Barrett and will check about his status during spring training.

[poorme]

how does his RCAA compare to all 2B's?

[rcartman28]

Isn't Polanco primarily a third baseman, or did the Phillies move him over to second ?????

[nyy26wc]

Originally posted by poorme
how does his RCAA compare to all 2B's?

He has -29 career RCAP, which is another big indictment of him. When a player is compared to a below comparision group and still is below that average, that's a bad sign for him.

It's also completely inappropriate to compare him to players at his position. Who cares. Polanco has spent more than 2/3 of his time in the past 3 years hitting 2nd. He is clearly not a player that the team is expecting no offense from. He is a cleary a player put in a position where offense is expected.

Why aren't players fielding skills measured against those in the same spot as him in the batting order? Why don't we see comments like he stinks in the field, but if we compare his fielding to those who hit 3rd in the lineup, he's not too bad? It's because it's a stupid comparision. But it's really no more ridiculous than the idea of measuring a players hitting production based on what area of the field he's located in for defense.

[nyy26wc]

Originally posted by rcartman28
Isn't Polanco primarily a third baseman, or did the Phillies move him over to second ?????

His primary position was 2B for half his career and the Phillies are moving him back there, since they have David Bell to play 3B.

[rcartman28]

sorry....I spaced it on the Bell signing....

[poorme]

well, unfortunately, only a certain number of players have the skill set to play the middle infield. Why on earth would I compare Polanco to a 1B? A 1B can't play second!

you can argue about where he hits in the order..I don't care about that. Polanco could bat 4th for all I care, it doesn't change his abilities.

[gyb13]

NL 2B, 2002 RCAA (min 150 AB)

46 Kent
29 Vidro
25 Bellhorn
22 Spivey
5 Castillo, Polanco
2 Walker
1 Vazquez
-2 Hill
-5 Alomar
-6 Giles
-8 Young
-10 Anderson
-11 Biggio, Reese
-12 Jimenez
-14 Vina, Ortiz
-16 Grudzielanek
-19 Lockhart, Shumpert
-25 Butler, Belliard

[nyy26wc]

Originally posted by gyb13
NL 2B, 2002 RCAA (min 150 AB)

5 Castillo, Polanco

Is there a reason why you are distorting the numbers by only including Polanco's 1/3 of a season with the Phillies and are excluding the -8 that he accumulated during the 2/3 of the year that he spent with the Cardinals?

[gyb13]

Originally posted by nyy26wc
Is there a reason why you are distorting the numbers by only including Polanco's 1/3 of a season with the Phillies and are excluding the -8 that he accumulated during the 2/3 of the year that he spent with the Cardinals?

yeah, sloppy homework. thanks, lee:

46 Kent
29 Vidro
25 Bellhorn
22 Spivey
5 Castillo
2 Walker
1 Vazquez
-2 Hill
-3 Polanco
-5 Alomar

[KCBOOMER]

Originally posted by nyy26wc
6) The Royals nonroster invitees to spring training--1B Morgan Burkhart, INFs Mendy Lopez, Julius Matos, Luis Ordaz, Jarrod Patterson and Elvis Pena, Cs Mike DiFelice and Juan Brito and Ps James Baldwin, Sean Lowe, Rick DeHart, Jimmy Osting, Nate Field, Zack Greinke, Brian Rose, Buddy Carlyle and Jason Turman.

Greinke is the only one of these guys with any hope and he is a year or two away (assuming the Royals don't screw him up first).