Nomar isn't going anywhere, signing what looks to be an $18m/2yr deal to stay in Los Angeles. It's a good deal as long as he stays healthy, but considering he's missed 221 games over the past three years, that's an important caveat. Now a comparison:
Garciaparra: .303/.367/.505, .292 EqA
Sexson: .264/.338/.504, .280 EqA
(Each spent half their time toiling in a pitcher's park.)
Sexson's getting $10m more than Garciaparra over the next two years. Is he worth it? He's a better bet to stay on the field, but he's awful with the glove, and he's coming off a season in which his offense was considerably worse. The market for Richie Sexson isn't as lucrative as we'd all like it to be.
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John Hickey talks about Kei Igawa, offering up hope that the Mariners may join the bidding. Igawa was posted today, but because of the Thanksgiving break we won't know who won the bidding until next Monday. There hasn't yet been any indication whether or not Seattle's going to throw their hat into the ring, although given that Igawa might be one of the only pitching bargains available all winter, I'd certainly like them to make an effort.
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Even better than the Alfonso Soriano contract is the hilarious fallout. And I quote:
Using one of the worst deals of all time to aid your pursuit of some of the most overrated pitchers in the league? It's like selling your house and moving to the Indian jungle to be closer to the man-eating alligators. I'm absolutely loving this.
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Now some defensive news: David Pinto just posted his PMR for left fielders yesterday. It's not UZR, but it doesn't claim to be, and it's probably the best individual defensive metric we have that's publicly available. The important stuff - Raul Ibanez came in fifth-to-last, ahead of only Carlos Lee, Chris Duncan, Bobby Kielty, and Manny Ramirez. He was even worse than Adam Dunn, which I didn't think possible. #1 in the Majors? None other than LL favorite and noted beanpole Brandon Fahey, who celebrated his victory by purging.
Obviously we can't make any conclusions based on one single metric, but it does serve to drive home the point that Ibanez really isn't helping us much in the field. Permanently moving him to DH is a really easy way for the Mariners to gain 5-10 runs without breaking a sweat.
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Posting's going to be a little lighter over the coming week as I'll be out of town for the holiday. I'm not going to disappear completely, though. Bear with me.