Commentary: Baseball's Hot Stove thaws frigid winter doldrums

By Casey Michel     1/14/10 6:00pm

It's been a cold winter. A winter of noses turned faucets, bones turned brittle and fingers turned frigid. Cold enough that the Washington Wizards' Gilbert Arenas had to pack heat just to stay warm. Cold enough that Tiger's remaining mistresses will have to wait until spring to unveil their allegations. Cold enough that Colt McCoy's tears actually warmed his blubbering cheeks - as well as the hearts of 'Horn-haters from Pensacola to Portland. Yeah, it was a cold winter. But if you were huddled around baseball's annual Hot Stove, there was little discontent to be found.

(For those who assumed that our wintry woes precluded any talk of summer's favorite pastime, a rejoinder: You're at Rice. Baseball reigns as a kindly lord, and it's only a matter of time before Wayne Graham's visage will replace Willy's in the middle of the academic quad. So let's talk ball.)

It's been over two months since the Yankees trampled the Phillies with their cash-cows - yes, that's a knock against C.C. Sabathia's gut - but the fans' interest in the game hasn't waned in the slightest. There may have been an oh-so-slight downturn when, upon Jay-Z hopping aboard the Manhattan parade float next to Alex Rodriguez and Andy Pettitte, people assumed Hova was a steroid user, but that malaise passed as soon as the first burners of the Stove fired up.

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The yearly carousel of baseball roulette, with tepid general managers crumbling and inflated contracts running the gauntlet, results in the most player movement of the year. Curt Flood, the progenitor of free agency, undoubtedly revels in his legacy reawakening every off-season. This year made it clear that it was a seller's market, with a dearth of top-flight talent joining the milquetoast economy in driving down the free agent dollars. Thus, as long as you're not betting on Mark McGwire's Hall of Fame chances, the winter probably brought a smile to your face.

As such, let's take a prefatory look at how the free agent class is going to help some of the winners, and how some teams might as well stay indoors when the winter finally thaws.

In terms of improvement, no team rose higher than the Seattle Mariners. (Full disclosure: My Mariners trump my love for everything not named Zooey Deschanel.) Coming off the feel-good season of the decade - the campaign ended with tears streaming and teammates carried off the field; never has an 85-win season seemed so sappy - Seattle GM Jack Zduriencik used his acumen to patch up a team that, just two years ago, became the first $100-million/100-loss squad in the history of the game. The below-market signing of third baseman Chone Figgins and four-year extension of center fielder Franklin Gutierrez - by some calculations, Gutierrez signed for only 30 percent of his market worth - solidified the league's best defense, and Milton Bradley brought much-needed pop to a peevish lineup.

However, Zduriencik's mastery shined in stealing 2008 AL Cy Young winner Cliff Lee, a blockbuster deal that saw Seattle lose nuts and bolts to create, alongside wunderkind Felix Hernandez, the best one-two, left-right punch since the Diamondbacks' peak nine years ago.

Per usual, the Red Sox and Yankees pawed at nearly every deal that was mentioned, with Boston finally landing the top free agent pitcher, former Angel John Lackey. Sure, Boston GM Theo Epstein overpaid for a No. 3 pitcher, but he hollowed out an already struggling Angels' rotation at little cost to his bottomless wallet. Plus, his signings of defensive wizards Adrian Beltre and Mike Cameron should make up ground on the defending champs.

But those Yankees made some key moves of their own, acquiring Javier Vazquez and Curtis Granderson, with the latter filling their one, All-Star-less hole in the lineup. New York GM Brian Cashman may have the most fitting name in all of sports, but he's no slouch when it comes to monitoring the trade waters.

In the senior circuit, Philadelphia GM Ruben Amaro should be chided for providing a declining Placido Polanco three more years of security, but his acquisition of superstud pitcher Roy Halladay assuaged any concerns about this erstwhile NL powerhouse. Meanwhile, St. Louis kept outfielder Matt Holliday and his potent bat powering through Busch Stadium, with the offseason's only $100 million signing. The Cardinals' Brad Penny signing also brings them a high-risk, high-upside pitcher - much like the Rangers with Rich Harden - who can pad his stats in a pitiful NL Central.

So, those are the winners. But don't worry - many losers crashed the party as well. They were the typical bunch, running their typical game. The Kansas City Royals partied like it was 2005, signed the washed-up Jason Kendall and the broken-down Scott Podsednik, while the Washington Nationals threw $15 million at Jason Marquis, the definition of a back-end starter, and another $6 million at Pudge Rodriguez, whose best years are stuck nearly a decade ago. And for the sake of my sanity, please don't get me started on the Houston Astros. If owner Drayton McLane has any sense, GM Ed Wade should be the next panhandler squatting in Montrose. If you're a 'Stros fan, you have my pity.

Other teams had peculiar offseasons - the Mets bidding against themselves for outfielder Jason Bay, the Los Angeles Dodgers handcuffed by their divorcing owners - but the weighed-down dollar made this offseason an abnormally quiet one. As the calendar turns, the Hot Stove has all but burned out, leaving us, once more, with the frostbitten chill of a winter without baseball.

Five weeks till pitchers and catchers report. Start counting the days.

Casey Michel is a Brown College senior and Thresher editor in chief.

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