I was just about to post my third FanShot while cleaning out my feed reader, which is more than enough to sustain a link dump... so, here it goes.
-
The Mets are "not ready" to deal Fernando Martinez.
[Mets GM Omar] Minaya always has refused to label any prospect "untouchable," but he kept Mike Pelfrey off the table last year at this time and he seems ready to do the same with Martinez. With the Mets connected to numerous reports involving White Sox outfielder Jermaine Dye and closer Bobby Jenks, it was not surprising to see Baseball Prospectus suggest that Minaya was discussing a "blockbuster" deal that could bring both to Flushing for a package centered on Martinez. But a person familiar with the situation said yesterday there was "nothing there."
- Tango pens his annual case for Tim Raines for the HOF.
- Shawn Hoffman pinch hits at Baseball Analysts with a piece called Baseball's Bear Market? Why 'Caution' is the Keyword This Winter
-
Gonzo has lots of little nuggets from the as yet-to-be-posted-online conference call with Kenny Williams. Some scary thoughts: Lillibridge described as Ozuna with more upside, while Poreda "will probably gravitate toward the bullpen."
[Update by The Cheat, 12/04/08 3:06 PM CST]: The call is online. it's a half-hour long, so I haven't been able to sift through it yet.
- The Brent Morel and Jordan Danks led Winston-Salem team will no longer be called the Warthogs. They're the Dash, reflecting the Sox new commitment to speed. Seriously, their nickname is the Dash now, but they were named after a hyphen. It has nothing to do with speed.
- Keith Law adds a few MPH to Santos Rodriguez' fastball compared to what we had previously heard from Gonzo. In the Gonzo link above, KW stated that Santos would be converted to a starter this year.
- MLBTR takes a stab at identifying some possible non-tenders, arbitration-eligible players still under team control who may not be offered contracts and thus become free-agents. Most recently, the Sox picked up Toby Hall after being non-tendered. Interesting and/or scary names include Daniel Cabrera and Willy Taveras. The non-teneder deadline is December 12th.
I'm sure I'll add more, but this is a start