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Now that Milton Bradley is a Seattle Mariner, we need a new rumor to keep our hot stove burning. Ken Davidoff was nice enough give us a little branch to throw on the fire. In his baseball insider column, he mentions that Johnny Damon has turned his attention from re-signing with the New York Yankees to signing elsewhere. Where does Damon prefer to go? Davidoff lists the following teams as Damon's "top three choices": Atlanta Braves, Chicago Cubs and...the Tampa Bay Rays. Say what?

While Damon may prefer the Rays, the pairing doesn't seem likely; in his column, Davidoff admits as much. I'm not the Rays would even discuss the possibility until Pat Burrell was moved first.. Nonetheless, it's the hot stove. It's Andrew Friedman. And as Kevin Garnett pointed out a few years ago, anything is possible.

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by Tony Dejak - AP

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Kelly Shoppach's swing and miss issues are nothing new. The overall contact issues have been illustrated here, and also by RZ (formally of Rays Party) here. Specifically, I want to see is what pitches does he tend struggle with? With a K-rate of over 35% the answer, not surprisingly, is most of them.

Kelly Shoppach is a fastball hitter. There's no two ways about it. In 2009, he whiffed on around 10% of all fastballs thrown. This is by far the lowest of any pitch in which he received a fair amount of sample size. Career wise, his higest pitch value is far and away on the heater. With his power, any fastball over the plate and slightly elevated is likely to end up somewhere near the left field party deck.

Breaking balls? That's a different story.

Like many free-swinging, power hitters, Shoppach's kryptonite comes in the form of breaking balls. Sliders and Curveballs (especially low and away) give him fits. He made contact with air on 17.5% of curveballs in 2009, and came up empty on nearly a quarter (24.3%) of the sliders thrown in his general area. It's not surprising his lowest pitch values are also associated with these bendy pitches.

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More photos » by David Zalubowski - AP

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In addition to Mike Gonzalez, the Orioles have reportedly inked corner infielder, Garrett Atkins, to a one-year deal believed to be in the neighborhood of $4 million dollars. Andy MacPhail is easily one of my favorite GM's after Andrew Freidman, but in a market that has multiple cheaper alternatives, I question the signing of Atkins at $4 million dollars.

It's no secret that Atkins's numbers have declined in each of the last four seasons. It's also not a secret The Rockies have been trying to ship him out of Colorado for quite some time before finally non-tendering him last weekend. After posting a career high wOBA of .410 in 2006, Atkins bottomed out last season and finished with a .291 wOBA. Accompanying that wOBA dip, is a dip in ISO. Once again, after a career high in 2006 of .228, Atkins' ISO was a dismal .116 in 2009. It's true, his HR/FB rate was down around three percent from his normal 10%, but for a player that just recently turned 30, a rapidly declining ISO is not a good sign.

His 2009 BABIP shows there is some regression due for Atkins, but that wouldn't explain all of the power outage. It might produce some more doubles, but hard to see it justifying the major collapse. The good news is Atkins does show a decent batting eye. He will collect a walk nearly 10% of the time while keeping the strikeouts around 15%. Defensively, he is on a rare upward UZR swing for a player headed into his thirties, but a sample size warning; he has played less than 1,000 innings in the field each of the last two seasons.

Much like the Gonzalez deal, the Orioles aren't taking a big risk here; however, is this move really necessary? We know Joshua Bell isn't ready, but I don't see the reason to pay Atkins $4 million dollars to be the stop gap; especially in this market. The going rate on a win in this early market seems to be around $3-3.5 million. Nick Johnson, a likely 2-win player, is about to sign a one-year deal worth around $6 million. For five or six potential wins, the Orioles have spent at least $19 million dollars on Atkins, Gonzalez and Kevin Millwood. That is not much over the market's current rate, still given their likely standing in the division, I don't see the need to pay sticker price in what is shaping up as a buyer's market.

If the Orioles really wanted a corner infielder who could impact them winning the pennant in 2010, this guy is a free agent and can be had for less than $4 million.

More photos » by Tom Mihalek - AP

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Being a fan of the Rays, I'm used to Yankees and Red Sox being the top competitors in the division. Yet, the Baltimore Orioles are quietly becoming a team that is starting to scare me. Maybe not in the 2010 season, but come 2011 there could be a serious battle from first to fifth in the AL East.

The Orioles have a deal in place to acquire the services of Mike Gonzalez to become their closer. The deal is reportedly for two years and $12 million dollars with incentives that could push it to $16 million. Despite his type-A status, the Orioles first round pick is protected meaning they'll lose a second-round pick for him. While I'm some what confused by the signing, I don't think it is a bad deal.

I do like Mike Gonzalez, although the price tag still might be a bit high. Despite owning some above average seasons, Gonzalez has never crossed the $6 million WAR dollar value. His career high of 1.7 WAR occurred in 2004, and that was many pitches (and DL stints) ago. As is the case with a lot of pitchers, especially ones with injury histories, health is the key.

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While the Milton Bradley rumor game (pun non intended) continues to produce little or no new news, Kelvim Escobar's game is just starting...literally. What we know so far is the Rays like Escobar. In return, Escobar likes the Rays too, but there are other teams involved; according to reports out of Venezuela it could be eight or nine teams. We also know that the Rays were one of eight teams to watch Escobar in a simulated game today. The Mets, who are rumored to be among the more aggressive suitors, were not one of the eight teams listed by Efrain Zavarce.

It's a simulated game so results are of no consequence. If I'm translating Zavarce's tweet right, in the first inning of the simulated game, Escobar threw his slider, change up and fastball with the fastball being consistently between 92 and 94 mph. If that report is accurate then Escobar's velocity is exactly where it should be; his average fastball is 93.4 career. He is scheduled to pitch in a live game this weekend in which the Rays will also attend. What happens after that is anyone's guess.

More photos » by Charles Rex Arbogast - AP

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Somethings just never die: Freddy Krueger, Jason Voorhees, and the Milton Bradley to Tampa Bay trade rumors are just some examples. Recently, things have cooled down on the Bradley front. I feel like it's almost been a week since we had a "Bradley deal imminent" story posted. Fear not, Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago has us covered.

Sooner or later, and most likely as soon as this week, beleaguered Milton Bradley will be traded to the Tampa Bay Rays for Pat Burrell.

The grain of salt rule applies as we've heard this same story about 100 times now. Levine also brings up the difference with dollars, which we all know is the biggest hurdle this trade must overcome.

However, the perception the Cubs will have more money to spend on free agents and trades by moving Bradley is false. Bradley and Burrell will make $9 million in 2010 -- that's a wash -- whatever money Jim Hendry saves on Bradley's 2011 contract will not impact $1 of his 2010 payroll. Bradley's owed $12.5 million in 2011. If Hendry can save $6.5 million by eating $6 million, that will only help the person running the 2011 team

It seems like this is pure speculation on Levine's part, but if the Cubs are only willing to pick up $6 million of the 2011 tab, then this deal won't get done. The Rays already stretched the 2010 budget for Rafael Soriano. I doubt they would want to carry $6+ million for Bradley on the 2011 books.

In the end, it seems like nothing has changed since late September.

by Gregory Smith - AP

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Kind of a loaded question, but we hope so. We can argue about designated roles, and who is really the Rays best relief pitcher, but Rafael Soriano will hold the title. The team, as well as the other relievers, should benefit from that fact. That also means that he'll get a chance to answer the question posed in the title.

Like catcher and right field, the Rays search for a closer more often than not has come up empty handed. While Mariano Rivera has racked up 478 saves since the (Devil) Rays debut  in 1998, 39 different Rays' relievers have comprised the franchise's 427 saves. We now turn to Soriano and hope #40 is the charm.

Looking back on Rays closers, the list is a mixed bunch. Ranging from one of the all-time save kings in Troy Percival down to Lance Carter, the list is hardly a picture of relief aces.  Since we know a closer shouldn't be limited to, or just measured by, saves, I decided to set the criteria for a closer as such: The reliever must have pitched at least 40 relief innings in a season with a pLI minimum of 1.60. Here is the list:

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The Blue Jays finally made their move. Oh I don't mean the rumored earth shattering blockbuster that involves two of the Major Leagues top 10 pitchers in Cliff Lee and Roy Halladay. I mean signing John Buck to a one-year deal worth $2 million dollars.

Less than a day after being non-tendered by the Royals, Buck will likely be the backstop on most days for the Toronto squad. Buck was non-tendered in part to the Royals signing of Jason Kendall, who was given a $3 million dollar annual salary from the Royals over two years. Why the older, more expensive Kendall over Buck? That's just Dayton Moore.

Buck isn't an offensive dynamo, but has flashed some power (.171 career ISO). He did have a .332 wOBA during limited action in 2009 (202 PA) mostly due to his power. Overall, he compares well with the recent group of catchers, who have signed for two-year deals at a greater guranteed paycheck.

Defensively, I haven't heard much about Buck being a butcher behind the plate and his ~26% caught stealing percentage is just below Kendall's 27%. Of course he isn't as gritty, or as veteran-ny as Kendall, so that probably justifies the $4 million more in guaranteed money as well as the six-year difference in age. Just proof that the hopes for a replacement level team in Kansas City is still alive.

More photos » by Lenny Ignelzi - AP

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So about that other reliever we talked about earlier...

Reports out of Venezuela (via Jorge Arangure) say that the Tampa Bay Rays remain interested in free agent pitcher Kelvim Escobar, and by the words of Escobar the feeling is mutual. The report also states that Escobar will work exclusively in relief to limit the toll on his arm. Here are some of the tweets:

Venezuelan journalist Efrain Zavarce reports that Mets have offered Kelvim Escobar a minor league deal.Rays are also interested

Also, Escobar tells Zavarce that he will pitch as reliever to avoid taxing his injured shoulder, which has kept him on DL past 2 yrs

Escobar:"Tampa would be a good place.They have a need for relief pitching.Last year they lost several games because of the bullpen."

Escobar continued: "Now with Rafael Soriano and possibly me, Tampa could be better."

I tend to agree with the last statement.

While the mutual attraction appears to be there, Arangure says it looks like the Mets are the favorite because they have been most aggressive.  The reliever is schedule to pitch on Friday in Winter League ball. It will be interested to see which team, if any, makes a move soon after. For more on Escobar and why he makes sense for the Rays click below.

Why The Rays Should Target Kelvim Escobar

More photos » by Mary Schwalm - AP

Tampa Bay Rays catcher Dioner Navarro, left, and pitcher Lance Cormier both received one-year deals, avoiding arbitration.

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Now that decision Saturday is finished, the Rays roster has gotten a bit clearer in some areas, yet remains unsettled in others. Not surprising, but B.J. Upton, Matt Garza, Jason Bartlett, J.P. Howell, Grant Balfour and Kelly Shoppach were all tendered contracts for the 2010 season. Barring an unforeseen event, all should be back with the Rays. The remaining questions are: who will sign before the mid-January deadline? And will any have a hearing like Dioner Navarro did last season?

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