Ty Wigginton's new contract
by Stephen Higdon on Dec 17, 2008 11:30 AM CST
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With no Astros news this morning—which is actually a blessing—let's check in on our old friend Ty Wigginton and see what his brief stint as a free agent has brought.
According to the Star Tribune, the Twins:
I have to admit, I'm a little shocked at Wigginton's alleged contract demands, but I guess it does make sense, given that Casey Blake is a lot less of a ball player than Wiggy. The last little bit makes me understand why we couldn't find a decent trade partner, in spite of the fact he posted a 128 OPS+ (a park neutral measurement). If teams really think that Wiggy is a lucky, lead gloved clod then we were screwed from the outset. What I don't get, is that he wasn't bad a third base last year at all. In fact, he was the best 3B in the NL, if you set the cut off at 600 innings at 3B (according to RZR).
My question after all of this, is how did Ed Wade not present these kinds of facts and figures to potential trade candidates. Sure, Wiggy doesn't look great by most traditional metrics, but you don't have to go to far into the realm of stat-nerdom to realize that he was actually pretty damn good. I hope Wiggy's agent is better than Ed Wade at pimping his client.
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Maybe they didn't believe him...?
“What is this RZR??? Is that a cola or something?”
by entropic soul on Dec 17, 2008 12:04 PM CST reply actions 0 recs
“Did you just call me a name? You’re a VORP, dickbag!”
by Only_A_Lad on Dec 17, 2008 3:20 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
HAHAHA
The Crawfishboxes
A good friend of mine used to say, "This is a very simple game. You throw the ball, you catch the ball, you hit the ball. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, sometimes it rains." Think about that for a while.
by Stephen Higdon on Dec 17, 2008 5:31 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Most productive conversation of those meetings...
For the Astros, that is.
The Crawfishboxes
A good friend of mine used to say, "This is a very simple game. You throw the ball, you catch the ball, you hit the ball. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, sometimes it rains." Think about that for a while.
by Stephen Higdon on Dec 17, 2008 5:32 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
If Wigginton can get that much....
and it wouldn’t surprise me if he did, then this makes the decision not to offer arbitration look even worse. It suggests that the Astros should have had a good market in which to trade Wigginton after they offered him arbitration. The arbitration award would look “cheaper” (and certainly fewer years) than what a team would pay for him in free agency.
by clack on Dec 17, 2008 9:25 PM CST reply actions 0 recs
If Wiggy gets that much...
Then the only question is whether the difference between the projected arbitration award and the market contract would have been big enough that another team could have justified trading a body instead of just paying the market cost. If the difference is only a million or two a year, I’m not sure we could have gotten a decent player back. And Ed Wade would have gotten crucified had he gotten a 5th starter in trade for Wiggy.
by AstroAndy on Dec 17, 2008 9:39 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
A 5th starter is better than getting nothing...which is what he got.
And I don’t think you are exactly correct in your analysis. A team could well be willing to give players plus $8 million salary for Wigginton in a trade. The fact that they are willing to pay that same annual salary if he is a free agent doesn’t rule out the possiblility that they would do the former trade if he isn’t a free agent. The two scenarios are distinctly different circumstances which are controlled by the Astros’ decision to offer arbitration. Why is that possible? Start with the fact that the monopoly right of team control is worth something (i.e., certainty that you get the player). This value may depend on the number of teams want him. Also, some teams may want to avoid a multi-year contract which is worth something. Oh, I don’t know why I am trying to debate this…it’s really an academic question.
by clack on Dec 17, 2008 10:15 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Let’s just say that lots of things went into the decisions made by all sides and call it a day.
I have one day of exams left, and then I’m done with academic questions for the year.
by AstroAndy on Dec 18, 2008 1:14 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Interesting:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/sfgate/detail?blogid=22&entry_id=33718
The one team I expect will go hard after Wigginton is Pittsburgh. A source told me the Pirates were trying to deal for him during the winter meetings before the Astros non-tendered him.
Obviously, that could all be a bunch of bullshit. But if it’s true, Wade screwed that one up big time. Getting something is always better than getting nothing.
by Only_A_Lad on Dec 18, 2008 12:57 AM CST reply actions 0 recs
Another interesting point in that article....
You might recall that I suggested in my Rule 5 article that Jesus Garza should be a possible draft choice for the Astros if they intended on letting Wiggy go. The Giants signed Garza to a minor league contract but didn’t protect him; and they got lucky because nobody drafted him. According to that article, the Giants may look at him as a possible starter at 3d base:
For now, Pablo Sandoval is the third baseman, but the Giants have an intriguing alternative that has not been publicized, and there is an interesting story in how they got him.
His name is Jesus Guzman. He is 24. He won the Texas League batting title in 2008 and he just set a Venezuelan League record by driving in his 57th run. He has 11 home runs for the Caracas Lions, which is one short of the league lead co-held by none other than — Pablo Sandoval. Guzman’s batting, on-base and slugging numbers are .363/.458/.665.
The Giants recently signed Guzman to a minor-league contract with an invitation to spring training. Interestingly, they wrested him from the Oakland A’s, who had Guzman last season and thought they had a deal to re-sign him for 2009, until the Giants offered a little more money and the spring-training invite, which the A’s were not prepared to do.
by clack on Dec 18, 2008 10:14 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs
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