Interleague FAAB bids

Today, I thought I'd take a look back at FAAB bids at or near the Major League trading deadline in the A.L. I track and review how well they did (or didn't) work out. I'll start in this post with the American League.

Jarrod Saltalamacchia. Winning bid $17. Other bids $16, $15, $12, $8, $6, $5.

What I said: ...Salty isn't ready yet. He tanked in Double-A in 2006 (putting up a 733 OPS) and was only pressed into action for the Braves due to multiple injuries at catcher earlier in the year. Since a 2 HR game against the Nationals on June 26, Saltalamacchia is 18 for 83 (.217), with a lousy .241 SLG and a .270 OBP....You have to bid aggressively due to the catcher eligibility; you might be upgrading on a total dead spot, and the worst you'll do is hurt your batting average. But don't make a $15+ bid expecting a freeze next year. My money's on Salty going to Triple A while Gerald Laird gets another 200 AB to sink or swim one last time.

What happened: 167 AB, 7 HR, 21 RBI, 0 SB, .251 BA. $4

My take: I'm probably wrong about Laird; it looks like Salty is going to be the starting catcher for the Rangers on Opening Day 2008, barring a catastrophe in Spring Training. But he does look like he's going to struggle. The HR/AB ratio means that Salty could hit 20 HR as a starter in 2008, but he also had a 9/47 BB/SO ratio, which confirms that he's over matched and probably just hitting cripple pitches. Pitchers will adjust and, unless Salty improves his plate discipline, you could be looking at a John Buck-type who will earn $6-8 despite the power.

As a FAAB investment, though, Salty was solid at this price, and perhaps a contender should have paid more. There simply wasn't a free agent catcher who had this kind of impact in the last two months.

Dan Wheeler. Winning bid: $14. Other bids: $13, $4, $2, $2, $1.

What I said: even if the Devil Rays don't move Al Reyes between now and 2008, that Wheeler still might get a clean shot at the closer's role in Spring Training. The downside of Wheeler is that he's moving to the superior hitter's league and I could see him being more of a mediocre closing option than a great one.

What happened: 0 W, 0 SV, 25 IP, 5.76 ERA, 1.52 WHIP, -$3

My take: I wrote this comment only thinking of 2008, since the two significant bids were from non-contenders. What I should have addressed but didn't was whether or not Wheeler was a good play for 2007. He wasn't. He was a fly ball pitcher moving to a hitter's park in a strong division, and the results were unsurprisingly bad. With Troy Percival in the fold and Reyes still in the Rays pen, Wheeler is worth a $1 bid, at best, in 2008. He was unceremoniously waived by the winning bidder later in the year. No one claimed him.

Wilson Betemit. Winning bid: $9. Other bids: $6, $3, $2, $1.

What I said: If Betemit's a super-sub again next year, then he clearly won't be worth freezing at $10. However, I don't think the Yankees are going to keep him in that role. They'll either flip him again in the offseason or slot him in at third base if A-Rod leaves or find another spot in the line-up for him....He's going to cool off, and as long as the Yankees are in a close race for the wild card, I don't think Betemit will get more than three starts a week once Jason Giambi comes back. He's an upgrade for some, in other words, but more likely at MI than at CO.

What happened: 84 AB, 4 HR, 24 RBI, 0 SB, .226 BA.

My take: Betemit could still use a trade, but it doesn't look like the Yankees are shopping him right now. His numbers in New York - albeit in a very limited sample size - continued his career trend of being a low walk, high whiff guy, and he isn't bringing enough to the table to justify making room for him in the line-up. There's some talk of Betemit getting some AB at 1B this year, but it's a crowded infield. At 26 years of age, Betemit is going to need to take a big step forward in 2008, and he definitely does need a change of scenery. If you bid on Betemit hoping for a Roto boost down the stretch, your roll of the dice came up snake eyes.

I'll cover the N.L. tomorrow.