MLB Off-season: Trades, awards and much more

Who said baseball would go into obscurity after the Giants finished popping the champagne? I didn’t think the heights of the 2012 season could be reached in the off-season, after all America’s game had quite a year, but after several weeks during the hot stove period we have seen plenty of movement in terms of players moving around and most recently the awards being handed out to the year’s top performers.

This winter sees a lack of big name free agents, although Josh Hamilton is one star who will be trying to get a six-year deal despite his age, inconsistent play and addiction problems. But for now I want to get into those trades and trophies.

We weren’t too surprised – well we weren’t surprised at all – that Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels and Bryce Harper of the Washington Nationals won the Rookie of the Year award in their respective leagues.

Trout produced the best rookie season in baseball history while Harper produced the best ever season by a teenager. It is crazy to think that Harper just turned 20 and Trout turned 21 in August of this year; and both put up 20-20 seasons.

What a proposition it is then that these two could make up the 1-2 punch in Joe Torre’s American lineup in the World Baseball Classic next spring. Such is their status, attitude and age, these two will be – if not already – the face of the sport for a very long time to come.

I love watching the Angels leadoff hitter because of his power and speed. He always runs out a grounder in under four seconds whether he has a chance of making it safe or not. They both hustle, they both play hard for 162 games, and although the Nationals made the playoffs this year, it will be a great occasion when both of these future greats are competing in the same postseason, and hopefully all the way to the fall classic so we can see these two former Arizona Fall League teammates do battle at its best.

What a story R.A Dickey is.

He has just won the NL Cy Young Award after compiling a 20-6 record during the regular season with a 2.73 ERA and 230 strikeouts. Those are the sublime numbers, but here is the superior story.

Dickey is 38 years old, making him the second-oldest first-time winner whose career started after the creation of the award in 1956. Dickey had never qualified for an ERA title until his career-saving season in 2010 with the Mets, and this year he won 27 out of a possible 32 first-place votes to beat the Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw to the award.

After all that, I still haven’t mentioned that Dickey is the first ever knuckleballer to win the Cy Young. So perhaps the greatest fact from all of this is the name that won, and the story behind it. From nothing to something, and that something is now in the record books for ever.

For your interest and to avoid focusing on one winner, I will state that the Rays’ David Price won the AL Cy Young despite hot competition from the Tigers’ and 2011 winner Justin Verlander.

Everything must go.

That is the message from Miami Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria as he continues his clearout in Florida. Oops, I probably shouldn’t say Florida but hey, if they are getting rid of so many parts, why not just restore the old stuff? That wouldn’t annoy Loria, after all it seems he is trying his best to make money for his already deeply-stuffed pockets.

This time, his franchise traded ace Josh Johnson, backup ace Mark Buehrle and star shortstop Jose Reyes to the Blue Jays for players to be traded later. This is what the Marlins do: When their good players get expensive, they flip them for younger and cheaper ones.

Recently, they traded Heath Bell to the Diamondbacks for players who do not cost as much as Heath Bell.

Whether or not Toronto got any better remains to be seen, because after a poor season they have just acquired players from a team that posted a 69-93 record in 2012.

Miami’s new stadium failed to fill up, and now the big acquisitions are all on their way after just one year. Loria needs to find a new manager after firing Ozzie Guillen this winter too, but don’t expect this to be the last of the fire sale. After all, there are plenty of empty seats in Marlins Park that Loria could flog somewhere and maybe even a hot dog that’s lying in the bleachers that can be sold for a decent price.

Even though the Tigers got swept in the World Series, which might just be the most debilitating thing after the 2006 loss and such high expectations this year, it hasn’t stopped them adding new pieces to finally fill that gaping hole in their trophy cabinet.
Veteran Torii Hunter, who was recently linked with the Braves, Dodgers, Red Sox and Yankees to name but a few, has signed a two-year deal with the Tigers to play every day in the outfield and add a significant and leading voice in the clubhouse.

The deal is worth $26million, a good investment given Hunter is a capable corner outfielder coming off an impressive season at age 37.
Hunter hit a career-best .317 last year with the Angels while posting 16 home runs and 92 RBIs. Acquiring a corner outfielder was a major offseason priority for Detroit, mainly because centre-fielder Austin Jackson was their only real solid defender in 2012. Hunter won nine straight gold gloves from 2001-09 before slowly switching from centre to right.

The Tigers are chasing their first ring since 1984 and now have a handful of massive names. Prince Fielder and Miguel Cabrera are both in their primes, Justin Verlander leads one of the best staff’s in the majors and now they have the experience to guide them. Certainly it is win or bust for the Tigers next season.

Finally, along with Hamilton, Nick Swisher is another big-name free agent on the market. Expect his business to be done soon, and for your sake keep up with the baseball world because the news seems to be flooding out quicker than a Mike Trout hustle play.