Hijack Central 3

Thursday, November 27 2003 @ 02:46 AM EST

Contributed by: Coach

With the still-active HC2 now at 116 comments, here's another open thread for gossip, discussion and breaking news.

Best wishes to our friends and relatives in the U.S. for a happy and safe holiday weekend.

Yesterday, technical gremlins "ate" an entry by Mike D. on the Bruce Chen signing. Sorry for any inconvenience; I really don't know what corrupted that thread. To me, Chen is this year's Trever Miller, more or less. Last winter, the Jays signed a lot of NRIs, because there were so many holes to fill. Fourth outfielder, another bench player and a couple of pitching spots were up for grabs in Toronto, and even Syracuse needed depth. This year, fewer jobs are available. The Jays should try out a few relievers and a couple of shortstops, but they will find it difficult to make the 25-man roster.

If they don't sign a more established lefty and Miller or Kershner can't find the strike zone in Florida, I suppose Chen could head north with the Jays, but it's more reasonable to expect him to end up in the Syracuse bullpen, waiting for an opportunity. The signing makes sense; he's been in eight organizations because they all see his potential. It costs very little to audition him, and it's worth a try.

The real free-agent frenzy begins soon. All those hitters who used to get multi-year, multi-million dollar contracts will be jockeying for the best spots at the now-standard rate of about a million for a one year deal. Pitchers may cost a bit more, but the majority will settle for less than they are expecting. A friend points out that the Red Sox, especially if they get Schilling signed and land Foulke, will have to make some difficult payroll decisions. Byung-Hyun Kim, for example, could cost Boston $4 million or more in arbitration, so unless Theo can pull off a last-minute trade, he might be non-tendered, and I presume J.P. would be interested.

Take it away, hijackers...

116 comments



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