The largest rodent in the world is the capybara, which can grow up to 150 kilos. Rodent. It wouldn’t be quite an infestation! (We have been arguing a lot about rodents because of the hamsters in the house.)
• The Rangers signed with Japanese titleholder Kohei Arihara before his position expired:
Rangers according to the right-handed Japanese Kohei Arihara, the source told The Athletic.
– Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 26, 2020
Arihara’s 2-year contract with Rangers is $ 6.2 million (for him, Nippon receives a 20 percent fee – $ 1.24 million – in addition). @Feinsand and @Evan_P_Grant we are in it
– Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) December 26, 2020
• This business is very much in line with what you see beginning launchers from Japan and Korea getting when they fit into a certain profile: very successful in NPB or KBO, not too old, but debatable whether the material / fleece will be translated into MLB. It’s a relatively low cost bet that you can get for a few years as a solid 4/5 starting pitcher, or maybe a guy who ends up with a swing piece in the bullpen. The downside is that things just don’t work in MLB and the benefits are limited. But it is such a low cost that I like almost all these types of hiring.
• If this provides a lot of context for other international / posted guys this year, I tend to think not. We already expected that a complementary bank like Hiruki Nishikawa would get a very modest deal if he signed, and I don’t think you can say that Arihara’s price level says a lot about top guys like Ha-Seong Kim or Tomoyuki Sugano. They will receive much more.
• Speaking of which, Ha-Seong Kim is getting a lot of interest and I fear the Cubs are screwing up:
According to sources, Ha-seong Kim has several #MLB offers in the 5+ year range. Kim’s posting period ends on January 1st. pic.twitter.com/R2kAH8HdyW
– Daniel Kim 대니얼 김 (@DanielKimW) December 25, 2020
• We know that the Blue Jays have been courting the shortstop for 25 years, but the other teams in the photo are speculative or have not been mentioned publicly in rumors. The Cubs haven’t been mentioned seriously in connection with Kim since he was posted, and I’m pissed. The Cubs’ extreme austerity winter can cost them more than five years if Kim becomes a quality regular.
• Some very big losses in baseball this year:
They changed the lives of countless baseball fans and left their mark forever in the game and in Cooperstown. On Saturday at 8 pm ET, @mlbnetwork recalls the legends we lost this year. pic.twitter.com/EUt3cd11ne
– National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum ⚾ (@baseballhall) December 24, 2020
• Eddy Julio Martinez’s visit to Mexico was very interesting:
Update
Eddy Martinez has 0.298 hitting with 5 HRs and 17 RBI in 21 games in the Mexican Pacific League. Pitcher Juan Gamez is also on the same team as Martinez. He launched 11.2 IP with an ERA 1.54 to go along with 5 Ks and 5 Salvas. pic.twitter.com/YbsoWE4rqa– Todd ⚾️🐻 (@ CubsCentral08) December 24, 2020
• Through 88 PAs (many warnings), Martinez is reaching 0.298 / 0.307 / 0.548. He’s not walking * anything *, but he’s not hitting much either. Usually, when you see so much constant contact, you are concerned that the energy will run out. But instead, Eddy is finally trying to get a lot of power in a very competitive league (AA-ish?). Martinez will be 26 next month, so his window of time to actually translate the tools into production is very short right now. He will have a chance to open wiiiiide this year to show that he deserves regular starts in AA or AAA, and then produce to the point where he can be considered for a 40-player slot. But this could be the last year for the former Cuban bonus player to do this while in the organization of Cubs.
• I make jokes (it’s still true today, too):
On this date in baseball history, the St. Louis Cardinals never won a game. pic.twitter.com/tJsOd9PdZi
– Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) December 26, 2020