The Year of the IAFA

            The 2001-2002 offseason was an interesting one for Retro League Baseball. Big free agent signings from expected and unexpected(!) teams, a blockbuster trade, and a major rule change highlighted the time between the World Series and Spring Training. It’s the time of year where hopes are high for the coming season, everybody has money to spend (some more than others), and General Managers get bored and have nothing better to do than make their voices and opinions known in channels throughout Slack.

            Before we get into the titular topic of this article, let’s talk about the biggest trade of the offseason that was finalized back on December 12^th. After a year of 79 wins, the Tigers decided to take a big step toward building a playoff team by acquiring third baseman Bob Bromell and left fielder Jon Pickens from the Padres in a package featured by the current RLB #1 prospect Brad Blunk. With Blunk being a few years away from making an impact in the majors, the Tigers have traded the future for now in acquiring two top players to solidify their lineup. Bromell should benefit from making a switch away from shortstop, where he struggled defensively but still managed to compile 3.75 WAR despite a -10 ZR, thanks to a .299/.363/.502 slash line. Pickens will be in a similar situation, shifting away from center field to left, where he will be more comfortable and effective defensively.

            While the Tigers will surely “win” this deal in the upcoming few seasons, in the long run their long tenured GM surely hopes that Brad Blunk will not turn into the next Mike Hastings.** The #3 pick in the 2001 draft didn’t stay in the Detroit system for long, despite slashing .299/.399/.727 across Rookie level ball in his first professional season. If he develops, Blunk will provide elite level power and the ability to draw a walk, while playing more than capable defense at either second or third. He will never be a high average hitter as strikeouts will always plague him, but the power/eye combo should more than make up for his shortcomings there. Along with Blunk, the Padres received back a handful of league average type prospects that they hope will be able to fill spots on their roster in upcoming seasons and a veteran presence in Ryan Salzman.

Time will tell on how well this trade worked out for both teams, but for 2002 look for the Tigers to possibly make some noise in a tough AL Central, while the Padres sit back and hope that Blunk turns out to be the centerpiece of their franchise for years to come.

**My apologies to Jake for bringing this up yet again.

The league voted to amend the active roster size for the 2002 season and beyond, increasing from 25 to 26. This move will allow teams to be more flexible in either their bullpen or carrying an extra position player for platoons. There was surprisingly little resistance to the change, with the vote carrying a 88% approval rating amongst those that voted. Five General Managers decided not to take advantage of their democratic freedom and abstained from taking part in the vote for what will be a major change for RLB.

Harrison Prince. John Simpson. Christopher Guthrie. David Perez.

            These are all names that no RLB General Manager or fan could have told you who they were before this offseason, but this year’s crop of International talent created more buzz than any year prior. The number of elite prospects entering the league was not only higher, but the prices they demanded and received was surprising…at least to the one behind the computer here.

If you had told me the Astros would be the biggest players in Free Agency this year, I would have checked your sobriety first and then told you to stop telling jokes. It’s not yet confirmed if their owner suddenly decided to open his pocketbook or if other resources will be neglected in order to afford the trio of Simpson, Guthrie, and Perez, but the team has gone from a below .500 team to one that may be able to compete for the Wild Card in 2002. Between the three, Houston shelled out a total of $283 million, with Simpson receiving the largest contract at $165 million over ten years. Guthrie (6 year/$45 mil) and Perez (10 year/$73 mil) are anything but poor as well.

At 29, Simpson is the most talented of the three, but may also carry the most risk as he ages toward the end of his contract that will bring him into his late 30’s. If it carries over to RLB, he will be an elite power hitter and provide Gold Glove level defense at second base for the Astros. Guthrie will be a solid addition to the rotation, giving Brandon Gentsch some much needed help in a young and unproven staff. Guthrie is not only a flame thrower, topping out at 99 MPH, but has a deep six pitch arsenal that should help him go deep into games while mixing up what the hitters see. Perez is the youngest of the group at 22 and will provide plenty of firepower at the back end of the Astros bullpen.

Houston will be a fun team to watch this year, if nothing else you can’t say that they are sitting back on their heels and not trying to win.

For the less surprising team that decided to throw some real money around, we must talk about the Evil Empire Cincinnati Reds. As soon as Harrison Prince hit the market, there was little doubt about where he would end up. The only question was how much he was going to get, and we got that answer on December 13^th when he signed a 10 year, $375 million contract. Prince has four elite pitches in his repertoire and tops out around 97 MPH; opposing teams can only hope that his league average at best control will somehow allow them to get on base and score runs.

The signing of Prince made many questions arise within the chatter of the offseason. Are teams too rich? Should the financial playing field be leveled somehow? What will these big market teams spend their money on when International Free Agents only come from the newly formed KJBL? Should the Reds be sent to another division? (That last one may just be my own hopes.)

The financial questions are still open, as a shift to providing lower budget teams with more money through revenue sharing is in progress. We have seen that it can work, as the formerly small market Astros have become players in Free Agency. The extra influx of cash should help teams from feeling forced to rebuild for years and instead sign a key piece or two to help turn their team into a contender.

There has also been discussion about allowing teams to buy a Compensation pick after Rounds 1-5 in the amateur draft, giving teams the flexibility to spend money on a draft pick if no desirable Free Agents are on the market. While no vote has been formally held on this topic as of the time of writing, there does seem to be support for this movement. More details will surely arise as we go through the 2002 season.

Finally, what would an article be about some way too early predictions? Here’s my guesses for the upcoming 2002 season.

AL MVP: Bob Bromell

NL MVP: Jordan Nash

AL PotY: Nick Hall

NL PotY: Johnny Lortie

AL GMotY: Jake – Tigers

NL GMotY: Matt – Astros

AL Playoff teams: Washington, Milwaukee, Texas, Toronto, Minnesota

NL Playoff teams: Philadelphia, Cincinnati, San Francisco, Chicago, Houston

World Series Champion: Cincinnati Reds