Fire Brand turns five

It’s not often that a baseball blog turns five years old, but we did it. Back on December 31, 2003, I was still stinging from the Aaron Bleeping Boone Game and I had to vent somewhere. Five years later, look where we are. We’ve come a long way.

Of course, the readers (you!) and commenters (some of you) are the sole reason why we’re still blogging up a stream today. You are what makes this enjoyable.

Fire Brand would not exist if it wasn’t for the people reading this, so I’d like to take a bit of time and say: Thank you. Thank you for visiting. Thank you for giving me the privilege of being read and discussed.

Fourth Outfielder Candidates: Eric Byrnes

Concluding our series on the fourth outfielder today is Eric Byrnes, the erstwhile outfielder for the Arizona Diamondbacks. Unlike the first two candidates, Byrnes is not a free agent, but Arizona has given indications he would be available for a team willing to take his contract. Let’s take a look at Byrnes as a fourth outfielder candidate. First off, why would an up and rising team like Arizona want to unload a 32 year old outfielder who can play all three positions and just two years ago finished 11th in MVP voting? Clearly, it’s because the Diamondbacks are run by the United States Congress.

Fenway Park: Improvements over the years

I’m sure most of you are just killing time today waiting for the third part of our series on the fourth outfielders, right? Or you’ve already started drinking in the new year. Either way, in case you haven’t seen it yet, the Boston Globe has put together a cool feature on the improvements to Fenway Park since John Henry, et al purchased the club in 2002. Check out the link after the jump.

Fourth Outfielder Candidates: Brad Wilkerson

Brad Wilkerson will turn 32 next season, and is attempting to rebound from one of his worst statistical seasons of his career. Wilkerson was designated for assignment by the Seattle Mariners on April 30th and signed by Toronto on May 9th after they lost Frank Thomas. A career 2.47 hitter, his numbers have not been the same since leaving the National League, where, from 2002-2005, he averaged 20 homeruns playing for the Montreal Expos and Washington Nationals. Considering his offensive ability, versatility in the outfield and first base, plus a little personal bias, I think Brad Wilkerson could be a great sign as a fourth outfielder for the Boston Red Sox in 2009.

Checking in with Rob Neyer

Rob Neyer was gracious enough to answer a few questions for Fire Brand of the American League. Check out his answers below, as he seems to agree with Peter Gammons in an earlier Fire Brand interview that David Ortiz is not done, and he stands by his contention that Jim Rice is not a Hall of Famer. After hearing his thoughts on these two subjects, I offer up my own rebuttals.

Yankee Ways & Means . . . Baseball is skewed.

Baseball is skewed, so we’re all skewed.

Mark Teixeira’s new annual average contract with the Yankees is comparable to the entire 2008 payroll of the Florida Marlins. (A-Rod’s is more.)

CC’s & AJ’s combined new annual average contracts with the Yankees are comparable to the entire 2008 payroll of the AMERICAN LEAGUE CHAMPION Tampa Bay Rays.

Their three combined annual average salaries, so appropriate for the Evil Empire, total $66.6M. Just kidding, it’s actually more than that; and is more than the combined payrolls of 1/3 of all baseball, ten (10) MLB teams. Add A-Rod’s $28M average and these four players make more than the entire payroll of seventeen (17) teams with $95M payroll or less.

That these four players make more than the payrolls of more than half the teams in baseball is stunning. OK, you can say there is a big difference between the big market teams and the small market teams, and the ballyhooed Luxury Tax compensates. True as far as it goes, but this imbalance also applies to the Yankees vs. “Big Market” teams.

Sox inquire about Hanley Ramirez

Quick update from MLBRumors, quoting SI, after losing out on Teix, the Sox made a run at bringing back Hanley Ramirez, which many of us hoped for but none of [...]

Fenway’s Futures: Miguel Gonzalez

In the aftermath of the Winter Meetings, its time to look toward the bright future of the organization, and one of the newest members via the Rule-5 Draft, Miguel Gonzalez.

Fireside Chats #30: Where Paul is thrown into fits of Yankee antagonism by the news that Mark Teixeira will wear pinstripes

We spent the holiday season hoping to numb ourselves from the stark reality that the New York Yankees not only stole the one player that would have made waves in Boston this offseason, but in doing so secured the top three free agents on the Hot Stove. Listen to the show and you’ll see which one of us succeeded and which one of us is still spitting fire. Trust me, Brad Penny and Josh Bard didn’t do anything to calm him down.

Fourth Outfielder Candidates: Rocco Baldelli

This is part one of a three part series about the fourth outfield spot for the 2009 season. Let’s begin with Rocco Baldelli, the former Tampa Bay Ray golden boy who mysterious medical situation has turned up more false hope and dead ends than the search for Natalie Holloway. Currently, the Reds, Pirates, Rays, and Red Sox are interested in signing the 27 year old outfielder. There have been recent reports indicating his condition has been upgraded and is “more treatable” than thought before. There is a good chance his fatigue could have been a reaction to medication given based on a misdiagnosis.