Rookie of the Year Candidates

As seen on Phillies Nation.

Tomorrow, the 2009 National League Rookie of the Year will be announced. Here are some of the top candidates for the award:

J.A Happ (PHI): 12-4, 166 IP, 2.93 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 119 SO, .244 AVG

There is no clear cut favorite. However, Happ has the numbers to make him a top Rookie of the Year choice.

Tommy Hanson (ATL): 11-4, 127.2 IP, 2.83 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 116 SO, .225 AVG

Happ's advantage in innings may give him the edge over Hanson.

Randy Wells (CHC): 12-10, 165.1 IP, 3.05 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 104 SO, .261 AVG

The Cubs didn't give Wells much run support this year. In some cases, the voters take a team's performance in account, and the Cubs aren't helping Wells' campaign.

Chris Coghlan (FLA): 128 G, .321 AVG, 9 HR, .850 OPS

Phillies fans know enough about this guy. The question is whether his offensive numbers compete with the pitchers' stats

Garrett Jones (PIT): 82 G, .293 AVG, 21 HR, .938 OPS

Jones did not play in many games, so that may hurt his campaign. However, the 28-year old has showed his power in his limited major league experience.

Andrew McCutchen (PIT): 108 G, .286 AVG, 22 SB, .836 OPS

He's the future of the Pittsburgh Pirates. But he is in the same boat as Jones. Does he have enough playing time to get enough votes?

Colby Rasmus (STL): 147 G, .251 AVG, 16 HR, .717 OPS

Rasmus doesn't matchup with the other candidates. His batting average and on-base plus slugging percentage are mediocre at best.

Casey McGehee (MIL): 116 G, .301 AVG, 16 HR, .859 OPS

McGehee has put up some solid offensive numbers, but his defense may factor in. He spent the majority at third base, where he had a .916 fielding percentage.

Ryan Howard was the last Phillie to win the Rookie of the Year award. Will Happ follow his footsteps?

Free Agents Find Homes

Former Phillie Bobby Abreu and the Los Angeles Angels have agreed to a one year deal. The deal is reportedly worth $5 million, including incentives.

Abreu, who turns 35 in March, earned $16 million with the Yankees last season where he batted .296 with 20 HR and 100 RBI. He also scored 100 runs and stole 22 bases.

The Nationals signed Adam Dunn to a 2 year deal. Terms were not disclosed. Dunn, 28, hit at least 40 HR for five years in a row.

Dunn has a career .247 AVG, striking out 1,256 times in his career, but he also has a career .900 OPS.

The Texas Rangers signed Andruw Jones to a minor league deal. The deal is worth $500,000, but includes bonuses.

Jones, 31, batted .222 in 2007 and in 75 games in 2008, .158. He has 371 career home runs in 13 Major League seasons.

Not only is he trying to revive his career, Jones will be competing for a spot in the outfield with David Murphy, Nelson Cruz, Frank Catalanotto and Marlon Byrd.

MLB Notes

Spring Training is less than a month away, and the free agent market is shrinking. It's all quiet on the Manny front, and other free agents like Bobby Abreu and Adam Dunn are still available.

It is being reported that Ryan Madson turned down a 3 year, $12 million offer. Madson is eligible for arbitration, along with Ryan Howard, Cole Hamels and others. Madson has spent time as a starter and reliever in his career. Most of his success has been as a reliever, and in 2008 was known as "the bridge to Lidge" in his time as a setup man.

Madson was 4-2 in 2008 with a 3.05 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 67 SO in 82.2 IP.

In my opinion, the offer by the Phillies was reasonable. Any more than $4 million for a reliever who has had his struggles is ridiculous. However, with Scott Boras his agent, $4 million a year is an insult. Madson a Phillie beyond 2009 could be a question mark.

The Phillies also avoided arbitration with Greg Dobbs, signing him to a 2 year, $2.5 million deal. Last year, Dobbs set a Phillies record for most pinch hits (22) in a season.

The Los Angeles Dodgers officially cut ties with Andruw Jones, releasing him. A disappointing Jones was the franchises' highest paid player in their history. Jones batted just .158 in 75 games before having knee surgery in 2008.

The Cubs have signed former Phillie So Taguchi to a minor league deal. The Cubs also signed Ronny Cedeno to a one year, $822,000 contract.

The San Diego Padres signed David Eckstein to a one year, $850,000 contract. The hard nosed Eckstein batted .265 with 2 HR with the Toronto Blue Jays and Arizona Diamondbacks in 2008.

Also, MLB changed their ruling so that all postseason games will be played in its entirety. Also, one game playoffs will not be based on coin flips, but head to head matchups.