Victor Martinez make Red Sox Extra Offensive
By acquiring All-Star catcher Victor Martinez, the Boston Red Sox are getting the big bat they’ve been seeking by adding the AL’s top offensive catcher.
A three-time All-Star, Martinez is hitting .284 with 15 homers and 67 RBI, but he’s done that in a home park that ranks 28th in scoring (and last in the AL) in scoring, according to ESPN’s Park Factor calculations. Boston’s Fenway Park, on the other hand, ranks ninth overall (and fourth in the AL).
That bodes well for V-Mart’s fantasy owners, who can expect an uptick in production just by moving to a better offensive lineup. However, he also creates a logjam at first base since the Red Sox recently acquired Adam LaRoche from the Pirates. Martinez will also cut into playing time for starting catcher Jason Varitek, who’s probably the biggest loser from a fantasy standpoint. David Ortiz, hitting just .228 this season, also figures to lose at-bats – especially against left-handed pitching.
Perhaps the biggest news is that neither of the top young arms on Boston’s major league roster, Clay Buchholz and Daniel Bard, is part of the deal.
The Indians, who’ve already traded ace Cliff Lee and first baseman Ryan Garko in the past week, will receive 24-year-old right-hander Justin Masterson as the centerpiece of the three-player package. If that’s the case, it’s a huge boost to Masterson’s fantasy value since he’d probably go straight into the Indians’ starting rotation.
Also in the package are minor league pitchers Nick Hagadone and Bryan Price. Hagadone, 23, was a college teammate of NL Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum. He missed most of last season after having Tommy John surgery and has only pitched 25 innings at Class A this year.
Price was drafted 45th overall by the Red Sox in the 2008 draft, but only has a 5-11 record in the minors with a 4.42 ERA.
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Nick Hagadone goes to Cleveland in Victor Martinez Deal
The Boston Globe and other sources are reporting that Victor Martinez has been traded from Cleveland to the Red Sox for minor-league pitchers Justin Masterson, Nick Hagadone and Bryan Price (not the former Mariners’ pitching coach).
The name that jumped out at me was Hagadone, a lefty who has strong local ties. He pitched at Sumner High School and then for the Huskies, where he had a stint as Tim Lincecum’s closer and also started games, making first-team All-Pac 10 in 2007.
The Red Sox picked him in the supplemental first round in 2007 (55th overall), and he was on the fast track until undergoing Tommy John surgery in June of 2008. But he’s come back this season to start nine games at Class AA Greenville of the Southern League. Hagadone has an 0-2 record but a solid 2.86 ERA, with just 13 hits allowed in 22 innings, and 30 strikeouts. The fact that he’s pitched just 22 innings in nine starts tells me he’s on a strict pitch count.
Here are a few links about Hagadone. And one more: A story I did last October on the Red Sox’s Northwest connection.
Here’s the take of ESPN’s Keith Law on Hagadone: Left-hander Nick Hagadone, 23, is just 26 innings into his return from 2009 Tommy John surgery, but has shown most of the velocity he had before his elbow snapped (on a changeup, of all things) last April. As a reliever, Hagadone should sit in the mid-90s with a potential out-pitch slider and a much-improved changeup; he has the pitches to start but lacks starting experience and stretching his arm out so he can handle a full season’s workload in a rotation will take a long time. His command has been mediocre this year, but that’s usually the last thing to return after a pitcher has ligament-replacement surgery. The odds are good that either Price or Hagadone will start for Cleveland down the road, with the other and Masterson becoming impact relievers.
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Yankees acquire Reds Jerry Hairston Jr
The Yankees made a minor move at the trade deadline acquiring utility man Jerry Hairston Jr. from the Cincinnati Reds for minor-league catcher Chase Weems.
Hairston Jr. has been in the majors for a decade, making his debut back in September 1998 with the Orioles. He played second base in Baltimore through 2003, eventually moving to the outfield in 2004 after Brian Roberts established himself as the everyday second baseman.
Hairston hit .261 with 26 homers, 160 RBI and 94 stolen bases in six seasons with the Orioles before being traded to the Cubs in February 2005 for Sammy Sosa. He has bounced around since then, playing parts of two seasons in Chicago before being traded to Texas, where he played for 1 1/2 years with the Rangers. He’s spent the past two seasons in Cincinnati, serving as a jack of all trades for the Reds.
This season, the 33-year-old Hairston has played 33 games at third base, 31 at shortstop, 17 in the outfield and nine at second, so he’ll likely replace Cody Ransom on the roster while giving the Yankees another player to use in the outfield before Brett Gardner returns from the DL. Hairston is hitting .254 with eight homers, 27 RBI and seven steals in 86 games this season.
Weems, 20, was selected by the Yankees in the sixth round of the 2007 First-Year Player Draft. He batted .260 (45-for-173) with 10 doubles, 1 HR and 14 RBI in 55 games with Single-A Charleston this season. Weems made his professional debut in 2008, combining to bat .220 (18-for-82) with 8 runs, 5 doubles, 1 home run and 10 RBI in 33 games with the GCL Yankees and Charleston.
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