RealGM

To date, it seems like these players will possibly net comp picks next year if they leave. Please correct any errors:

Bautista - Type A?
Frasor - Type A/B?
EE - Type B?
Rauch - Type B?
Dotel - Type B?

If this is correct, it seems that part of AA's strategy is to acquire players who will quickly net him a comp pick or two the next year. Smart move. I guess he figures that relievers are a dime a dozen, so he may as well pick them up for a one year contract, then flip them for a comp. pick.

I believe Shawn Camp has five years of service time as of today, so he'll likely be a free agent after 2011 as well.

Rivera - Type B
Francisco - Type A

With the deal expiring in December 2011, I am curious how that would effect for the 2011 season?

Like, would that be governed by the rules that were in place for the 2011 season? or the new rules that would be newly implemented?

At any rate, so long as the system is in place, let it ride!

Next off-season, the Jays will be like the Rays were this off-season: an exodus of relievers, resulting in copious amounts of compensatory picks.

And draft day in June will continue to be one of my fav days of the year.

Baseball reference lists Shawn Camp as FA eligible after 2011, so I guess that means he would qualify for type 'B'. That puts us at:

Bautista - Type A
Frasor - Type A/B
EE - Type B
Rauch - Type B
Dotel - Type B
Rivera - Type B
Francisco - Type A
Camp - Type B

Wow. Considering that 5 (including EE) of those 8 were acquired this off season, it is clear that AA has a strategy of signing players in hopes of getting a comp. pick out of them. Since 3 of those 8 were relief pitchers acquired this offseason, it seems he picks up relief pitchers to turn into comp. picks.

The relief pitchers = comp picks is a great strategy, because there isn't a more fungible commodity in baseball.

However, we really have to hope that Francisco, Camp and Frasor either end up as Type Bs or absolutely cruise; none are quite good enough to draw a top 60 pick and multi-year deal out of someone, and if they have bad years their previous arb figures are high enough that they might again take arbitration.

Additionally, odds are on that at least one or more of the five relief pitchers will have poor seasons and fail to make comp status; otherwise, we're going to have one of the best 'pens in baseball on our hands.

Schadenfreude wrote:The relief pitchers = comp picks is a great strategy, because there isn't a more fungible commodity in baseball.

However, we really have to hope that Francisco, Camp and Frasor either end up as Type Bs or absolutely cruise; none are quite good enough to draw a top 60 pick and multi-year deal out of someone, and if they have bad years their previous arb figures are high enough that they might again take arbitration.

Additionally, odds are on that at least one or more of the five relief pitchers will have poor seasons and fail to make comp status; otherwise, we're going to have one of the best 'pens in baseball on our hands.

+1 for everything

Very hard to see EE making it to type B remember hes in the 1B/DH section now not the 3B section. Other than that looks about right but for all we know comp picks could be severely changed in the next CBA

Of the 11 Type A relief free agents this winter, only three of them were signed by other teams (Soriano, Downs, and Balfour), therefore the signing team relinquishes picks. Four were not offered arbitration (Rhodes, Saito, Wheeler, Guerrier). One re-signed with their own team (Rivera). One retired (Wagner). Two accepted arbitration (Frasor and Francisco). In other words, being a non-elite reliever attached to Type A status is not always very helpful. Ironically the two relievers who accepted arbitration are now both (for the time being) playing for the Jays.

If Frasor, Rauch, Camp, and Francisco are all Type B's next winter, then we should be OK. Dotel seems like the type who will accept arbitration given his age, ineffective splits, and salary. A pitcher like Downs can get away with being Type A because he is damn good. The others? Not so much.

Bautista as a Type A should not be an issue. Expecting picks for Rivera and EE seems very optimistic, unless they both have very good seasons and even then it is iffy.

WpgPage wrote:Very hard to see EE making it to type B remember hes in the 1B/DH section now not the 3B section. Other than that looks about right but for all we know comp picks could be severely changed in the next CBA

He won't necessarily rate as a 1B/OF/DH. As it's based upon appearances made during the two-year period under consideration, he goes in with a 95-to-1 lead in appearances at 3B...as he'll likely receive some reps at third, especially if we see injuries (and we will likely see injuries), there's a decent chance that he remains under that category. If so, there's a good chance that he ekes out Type B...he finished just seven spots (though nine points) short at 2B/SS/3B this past year despite it counting his rather poor 2009 campaign, where he hit .225/.320/.410 with 13 HRs and 39 RBI in 338 PAs. If he can get 450 PAs with 20ish HRs and decent peripherals, while maintaining his 2B/SS/3B designation, he'll make it.

As for Rivera, yeah...he's going to have to repeat his 2009 year to have much of a shot, and he has only approached that production twice in his career.