One Year Ago Today: Gil Meche Retires

post from Royals Review on 18 January 2012 11:01:24 PM. © Royals Review

Look homeward Angel. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

This was one of those not-stunning-stunning-news stories. Or maybe it was expected-but-not-expected. I'm not sure. But one year ago today, Gil Meche retired, walking away from his last year of pay from the Royals. Meche saved the team $12 million dollars.

Breaking News: Royals Pitcher Gil Meche to Retire - Royals Review

On the day it happened, I argued with quite a few of you that this was not entirely the case. I didn't doubt the veracity of the reporting on the subject -- remember, when it first happened no one really knew what was going on -- I just figured that there was likely some settlement in place that we'd eventually, maybe, hear about. (I still suspect it was a little more complicated than simply an honorable man walking away from money... the insurance/injury angles complicate the issue on both sides, but we'll likely never know. But it was good PR for both sides to have it end this way, so it did.)

In the end, the Royals paid Meche $43 million for four years, and overall it's a difficult contract to evaluate. Meche pitched very well in 2007-08, then moderately passable in 2009, then barely at all in 2010. By a pure WAR or whatever you prefer calculation, the eventual deal of 4/$43 wasn't that terrible, though it was incredibly front loaded performance wise. Of course, that changes if we take away the Royals' good fortune, as they paid north of $35 million for Meche's last, oh, 23 starts and some desultory relief work.

And by the stated goals of the contract, it has to be viewed more harshly. Meche didn't guide a young team to the playoffs, didn't really help a young rotation along either. If he showed that KC was serious about free agents, that was, on balance, a new negative, because the biggest FA the team signed was Jose Guillen. Meche was briefly part of the Moore knows pitching narrative, but then he was also part of it's downfall. So in the end, really, what was the point? The contract didn't really end up as a dumpster fire, but it's not going to be part of the funeral montage either.

The unfortunate thing is that the Royals could really use the 2007 Gil Meche now. Had Trey Hillman not shredded his arm, perhaps Meche could have kept pitching effectively and either a) been traded or b) hung around and possibly come back to the team on another deal. Should Cliff Lee give him a call?

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Ms sign LHP Perez to minor league deal (AP)

post from MLB News Blog on 18 January 2012 08:44:24 PM. © MLB News Blog

The Seattle Mariners have signed left-handed pitcher Oliver Perez to a minor league contract with an invite to major league spring training. Seattle announced the deal with the nine-year veteran on Wednesday. He spent all of the 2011 season pitching for Double-A Harrisburg in the Washington Nationals organization.

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Cust agrees to $600,00 deal with Astros (AP)

post from MLB News Blog on 18 January 2012 08:36:26 PM. © MLB News Blog

Outfielder Jack Cust has agreed to a $600,000, one-year contract with the Houston Astros after getting released by Seattle and Philadelphia last year. Cust’s deal, announced Wednesday, includes a 2013 team option. The 33-year-old hit .213 with three homers and 23 RBIs in 67 games for the Mariners, who released him on Aug.

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Rockies sign Moyer to minor league deal (AP)

post from MLB News Blog on 18 January 2012 07:36:25 PM. © MLB News Blog

Jamie Moyer has agreed to terms on a minor league contract with an invite to the Colorado Rockies’ spring training, pending a physical. The 49-year-old lefty didn’t play last season after undergoing Tommy John surgery on his throwing elbow. Moyer has played 24 major league seasons, starting with the Chicago Cubs in 1986.

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Andre Dawson MVP Major League Players Collector
Pin Set

post from 30-Year Old Cardboard on 18 January 2012 06:08:59 PM. © 30-Year Old Cardboard

Andre Dawson MVP Major League Players Collector Pin Set Kind of a neat collectible here if you ask me. Produced in 1990, the set includes a 1990 Score baseball card and a MVP collector’s pin of Andre Dawson. Created by … Continue reading →

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The deal came down to the wire, with minutes left
to go before the deadline. Failing to sign...

post from Beyond the Box Score on 18 January 2012 06:02:52 PM. © Beyond the Box Score

The deal came down to the wire, with minutes left to go before the deadline. Failing to sign would've kept Darvish with the Nippon Ham Fighters -- and the Rangers would've kept their $52 million posting fee. Now, though, they have their phenom.The big[...]

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-with-minutes-left-to-go-before-the

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Rangers Sign Yu Darvish To 6 Year/$60M Deal

post from 6-4-2 ? an Angels/Dodgers double play blog on 18 January 2012 06:02:52 PM. © 6-4-2 ? an Angels/Dodgers double play blog

Per Buster Olney of ESPN, the Rangers signed Japanese import Yu Darvish to a 6-year/$60M deal. Favorite Twitter gag about this so far:

Props to Angels GM Dipoto. Angels sign Wilson for 75 mil, force the Rangers to spend 120 mil to back fill his spot in the rotation #genius

I'm not so sure about that; word so far is that Darvish may be the best Japanese pitcher to hit the US in approximately ever, and is quite a bit younger than the Angels' C.J. Wilson. On the other hand, Texas paid a "record" $51.7 million posting bid. That's a lot of money to have sunk into a guy nobody's ever seen pitch in the majors. We'll see how this plays out.

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Darvish, Rangers agree on 6 years, $60M (AP)

Yu Darvish and the Texas Rangers have reached a deadline deal. The two-time defending American League champion Rangers and the 25-year-old Darvish, who is considered Japan’s best pitcher, came to an agreement on a $60 million, six-year deal Wednesday just before the end of a 30-day negotiating window.

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Rockies Pomeranz: Misdemeanor dropped (AP)

Colorado Rockies pitcher Drew Pomeranz says he is no longer facing a misdemeanor disturbing the peace charge. The left-hander was arrested on Oct. 14 in downtown Oxford, where he played college baseball for Ole Miss. Pomeranz retweeted his sports agency, Beverly Hills Sports Council, on Friday, which announced on Twitter the charge had been dropped.

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Stockholm Spa Hotel

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