Return Of The Beard: Napoli Signs For 2 Years

(AP Photo)

Multiple reports indicate that Mike Napoli has signed a two-year, $32 million deal with the World Series Champion Red Sox. This signing was almost a necessity in the wake of other departures and the need to have some protection for World Series MVP David Ortiz. The pickings were slim on the fist base market, so the team probably overpaid Napoli—but at least kept the term of the contract down.

Phillies Actively Shopping Jonathan Papelbon

How the mighty have fallen! With two full years left on his four-year, $50 million contract, Jonathan Papelbon finds himself being shopped by the Phillies. Of course, there are some teams that could use a closer (like The Evil Ones), but there are plenty of lower-cost options that don't come attached to a cantankerous 33-year-old with waning skills. Papelbon also has a no-trade provision in his contract that allows him to choose 12 teams he can be dealt to—further complicating any effort to dump him. During the past season, Papelbon made some remarks that alienated both the front office and the fan base—so no one would really mourn his departure.

Red Sox May Still Be In On Choo Sweepstakes

(USAToday)

With Curtis Granderson off the market and Carlos Beltran still asking for too many years, the Red Sox may focus on the other major OF free agent—Shin-Soo Choo. Of course, we think Jackie Bradley, Jr. should be handed the CF job, but it looks like BenCher is intent on covering his bets with a bigger ticket player. Our biggest problem with Choo is his horrific splits against LHP—in 2013, over 100 points lower than against righties. Yesterday, Peter Gammons tweeted that rumors had Boston "in" on Choo.

Red Sox Talks With Napoli Are At 'Critical Stage'

(USAToday)

UPDATE: Mariners Talking To Mike Napoli
According to Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com, talks between the Red Sox and free-agent first baseman Mike Napoli are at a "critical stage". Reportedly, another (unidentified) team has made a (presumably) better offer than Boston's—and Ben Cherington needs to match or exceed it to keep The Bearded One. Given the poor alternatives at first—and the loss of Jacoby Ellsbury and Jarrod Saltalamacchia—Boston really needs to keep Napoli's big bat in the lineup. They may have to overpay.

Granderson Goes To Mets In 4-Year, $60M Deal

One of the center field options for the Red Sox is off the table as Curtis Granderson signed a four-year, $60 million deal with the New York Mets. This deal makes it even more likely that The Jackie Bradley, Jr. Era will begin in earnest next April. Reportedly, the Red Sox balked at exactly what the Metropolitans caved on—the four-year length of the deal. Good for Ben Cherington!

Robinson Cano Signs With Mariners For $240M

Well, maybe Jay-Z isn't as stupid as we initially thought. Multiple reports suggest that Robinson Cano has signed a 10-year, $240 million contract with the Seattle Mariners. This is a huge blow to The Evil Ones—who somehow thought signing Jacoby Ellsbury was more important than keeping their homegrown future Hall of Fame-calibre second baseman. This will, however, free up cash for The Bronx Embalmers to shore up their pathetic rotation and probably trade for someone like Brandon Philips to play second.

Sox Should Just Commit To Jackie Bradley, Jr.

If all this talk about fiscal prudence is real, then the Red Sox should eschew any long-terms deals for the likes of Curtis Granderson and simply let the Jackie Bradley, Jr. Era begin. The team's player development people have been pretty good about identifying players who can thrive at the major league level (e.g., Jacoby Ellsbury, Dustin Pedroia, Xander Bogaerts). These same talent evaluators are certain Bradley can be an offensive and defensive force in center field for many years to come. While the former first-round pick slumped to a .189 average in 2013, he showed his on-base potential early on and was more than adequate in the outfield. Let's not forget that in his minor league career, he has delivered a slash line of .297/.404/.876 in 218 games. The kid is ready. Let him play.

Hall Of Fame Opens Sox World Series Exhibit

The National Baseball Hall Of Fame yesterday officially opened an exhibit honoring the 2013 Red Sox World Series Championship. Entitled, "Autumn Glory", the exhibit displays some great artifacts from the team's eighth title, including: a bat at used by World Series MVP David Ortiz; spikes worn throughout the World Series by closer Koji Uehara; a jacket worn in Game 6 by Red Sox Manager John Farrell; a catcher’s helmet and mask worn by Red Sox catcher David Ross and (our personal favorite) the fake beard Carlton Fisk wore to throw out the ceremonial first pitch in Game 6. The exhibit is on display through the 2014 postseason.

Jay-Z Shows Why He Should Keep His Day Job

(AP Photo)

Apparently, rapper turned agent Jay-Z (Earth name: Shawn Corey Carter) made a complete horse's rear end of himself at a meeting with the Mariners yesterday. As a result, Robinson Cano has likely missed out on 9-year, $225 million deal from Seattle. The word is that the moronic owner of the Brooklyn Nets demanded a tenth year, forcing a Mariners official (said by some to be the principal owner) storm out of the meeting in disgust. Now, Cano may have to slink back to the Bronx and accept an 'inferior' offer (around $170 million). Somewhere, Scott Boras is smiling.

Red Sox Ink Mujica To Two-Year, $9.5M Deal

The Red Sox added to an already strong bullpen corps yesterday by signing Edward Mujica to a two-year, $9.5 million contract. Mujica closed for the National League Champion Cardinals part of last year—but fell out favor with the Redbirds after fatiguing toward the end of the season. He did not pitch at all against the Red Sox in the World Series. Overall, the 29-year old Venezuelan came in with a 2.78 ERA in 2013 and compiled a ridiculous 9.20/1 strikeout-to-walk ratio over 64 2/3 innings.

Cano Team Met With Seattle Mariners Tuesday

UPDATE: M's May Have Topped Empire's Offer
Well, apparently it's not just a rumor. It looks as if the Seattle Mariners—historically the "bridesmaid" at most big free agent auctions—are deadly serious about landing Robinson Cano. The New York  Post reports that sources confirm a meeting on Tuesday in Seattle between Mariners officials and representatives of the Yankee second baseman. After laying out $238 million in one day to Jacoby Ellsbury and Brian McCann, The Bronx Embalmers might not have the wherewithal to also sign Cano. Hey, maybe Cano really likes Starbucks anyway—or rain. Stay tuned.

A Second Opinion On The Ellsbury Signing

by Larry Shiman, FN Board

I'm having a tough time getting worked up about the Yankees signing Jacoby Ellsbury. This doesn't feel the same as Johnny Damon, for a couple of reasons: First, I really like Ellsbury. He's put his time in, and never did anything obnoxious. I never felt a big ego coming from him. In other words, he doesn't feel like a traditional Yankee to me. From a personality standpoint, he's not Jeter, he's not ARod, he's not Clemens. So when the Yankees threw a ton of money at him, he took it. I don't blame him, and I hope when he visits for the first time, the fans cheer all he's done for us, rather than boo him for taking the cash. We can always boo him later if he helps the Yankees finally win a post-season series. Second, these aren't even the Yankees anymore. Jeter and ARod are washed up. Teixeira may be done. Mariano and Pettitte are gone. They've won exactly one championship in 13 years. They don't have an All-Star at every position - not even close. Their players - at least the ones young and healthy enough to stand without the need of a walker - are bland, and kind of hard to hate. For years, Sox fans were more into this rivalry than Yankees fans, because the Yankees always won, and it's hard to really hate a team that never wins anything. Now the shoe is on the other foot. The current team playing in the Bronx just isn't Yankee enough for our scorn. Especially if Cano leaves (please, please, please!)

Is Middlebrooks The Price For Kemp Or Ethier?

Before Jacoby Ellsbury betrayed The Nation, the Red Sox knew he'd be going somewhere. That's why they were and are talking to Magic Johnson and company about trading for either Matt Kemp or Andre Ethier. The one serious hole the Dodgers have is at third base. Word is that they are trying mightily to pry away Will Middlebrooks in any deal for one of LA's two surplus outfielders. Kemp has six years and $128 million left on his deal, while Ethier's contract is for four more years and $71.5 million. If Middlebrooks is the price, Xander Bogaerts could move to third and either a re-signed Stephen Drew or a stop-gap like Rafael Furcal could move to shortstop. Don't forget that Dustin Pedroia is best buddies with Ethier from way back in their Arizona State days, and they've wanted to play together professionally for years.

Red Sox Offered 6 Years, $120M To Jacoby

According to ESPNBoston.com's Gordon Edes, the Red Sox were willing to go as high as 6 years and $120 million in the negotiations for Jacoby Ellsbury. Previous information pegged Boston's initial offer at 5 years and $100 million—which would have been a manageable pact for the Red Sox. Once things escalated beyond six years, however, there was no way Ben Cherington was doing a deal for a 30-year old player with a history of missing significant time due to injury (albeit mostly because of a crappy Red Sox medical team).

Yawn!-Winter Meetings Start Monday In Orlando

Hopefully, the baseball media establishment has reservations at Disney World or Universal next week.  The 2013 Winter Meetings that start Monday in Orlando are likely to be a big yawn in the wake of yesterday's barrage of activity. Ironically, the Red Sox may be the biggest players at the meetings—with potential holes at first base, centerfield, shortstop and third base. Chances are Ben Cherington will back fill these openings with complementary players like Rafael Furcal, Corey Hart, or Nate McClouth. Or, he may go all internal and start the year with Jackie Bradley, Jr. in center, Xander Bogaerts at SS, Will Middlebrooks at 3B and either Mike Carp or Daniel Nava at 1B. And, of course, he could solve one of these problems by re-signing Mike Napoli. With Ellsbury off the table, BenCher will have a lot more payroll flexibility to fill these needs.

Bifurcated Feelings On The Ellsbury Signing

If you want a crystal clear illustration of the cluelessness of Boston's mainstream sports media, you need look no further than the Globe's Nick Cafardo. The newly-minted employee of John Henry went on MLB Network last night and gave this piece of advice to Red Sox fans upset over the Jacoby Ellsbury signing: "Grow up".  According to Cafardo, we in the Peanut Gallery (who aren't employed by moribund print outlets) have to recognize that baseball is a "business". I don't know about you, but I'm tired of hearing that canard. No kidding, Nick, we get that. However, fandom is not a business. It is driven by what you would consider "petty" considerations like loyalty. It is possible, Nick, to have a more complex view of the Ellsbury situation: sort of a 'left-brain'/'right brain' type of thing. First, a Red Sox fan can be outraged that yet another Boston player (this one totally homegrown) has defected to our mortal enemy. Secondly, that same fan can offer an assessment of the deal that sees it as a good thing for the Red Sox and a bad thing for The Evil Ones. Seven-year contracts given to 30-year olds have not worked out well in the past. Ellsbury will be 37 at the end of this contract—and his unique skills (speed and elite defense) will have probably eroded. Over that span, the Red Sox may have a far younger and cheaper clone in Jackie Bradley, Jr. So, we don't have to "grow up" to know how we stand on this deal. Thanks for the advice anyway, Nick.

Sox May Focus On Curtis Granderson For CF

Now that they have officially lost Jacoby Ellsbury to the worst possible team, Boston may look to scoop up The Evil Empire's former centerfielder. Multiple reports are suggesting that the Red Sox—wary of giving out a three-year deal to Carlos Beltran or inheriting a 6-year obligation on Matt Kemp—may take a shorter, cheaper route with Curtis Granderson. Most reports peg a Granderson deal at around $15 million a year—so Boston could conceivably lay out $30 million for a two-year pact. Granderson has his issues (tons of Ks), but has solid power—although that might be diminished in Fenway Park. His character would fit in nicely in the clubhouse—as he is viewed as the nicest person in baseball. Of course, the Red Sox could simply go internal with Jackie Bradley, Jr. in center.

Ellsbury Signs 7-Year Deal With The Evil Empire

Judas Jacoby

Nightmare of nightmares! The New York Yankees have signed Jacoby Ellsbury to a 7-year, $153 million contract (a potentiality reported by FenwayNation way back on November 1st). The deal is pending a physical—which would sour things if the Red Sox physicians are at all involved. And you think Johnny Damon was hated in Boston after he went to The Darkside? This is a far deeper cut than Damon, since Ellsbury was reared in the Red Sox system and spent his entire seven-year career in Boston. Mark the date: April 22nd—the first trip into Fenway by the traitor of the hour. Just call him Judas Jacoby!

REPORT: Miami Marlins Close To Signing Salty

UPDATE: Salty Signs With Miami
According to Jeff Passan of YAHOO!Sports.com, the Miami Marlins are "extreme favorites" to sign Jarrod Saltalamacchia. Reportedly, the Marlins have offered Salty a 3-year deal—worth $7-8 million a year. The way the catcher market evolved this year played right into Salty's wheelhouse. Although, he will have to live with the fact that he has little hope of getting another ring over the course of his new pact. If he is headed to South Beach, we wish him the best!

Mariners May Push Empire Out Of Cano Sweeps

Lookin' Good!

According to multiple sources of ESPNNewYork.com, the Yankees have a less than 'fifty-fifty' shot of signing their only remaining superstar—Robinson Cano. While newcomer Brian McCann will likely perform well in the Bronx, he does not have the "duende" of a Cano. The reason for the dwindling chances of The Bronx Embalmers is that the Mariners have emerged as a legitimate suitor of the Yankee second baseman. Reportedly, Seattle is offering 8 years and $200 million—while The Pinstriped Posers have held the line at no more than 7 years and less than $200 million. How sweet it is!