La Esquina: The numbers show that Jose Contreras might be a valuable closer. - ESPN
Jose Contreras won't be pitching in Japan, but is starting to narrow down his options on where to pitch next season. Contreras still wants to start, but according to his agent he may be willing to pitch out of the 'pen. I'm hoping the Rockies find themselves in the mix for "The Bronze Titan," as he would be of great value to any team's bullpen - especially if he's still able to continue throwing in the upper 90's.
Rincon returning to Rockies | MLB.com: News
The Rox re-signed Satan Josh Fogg Juan Rincon to a minor league deal yesterday. Yippee.
Sources: Jamey Carroll has agreed to terms with the Los Angeles Dodgers on a two-year deal - ESPN
The former Rocktober hero has agreed to terms with the enemy - at two years and just under $4MM.
Rob Neyer: Selecting the top 100 players of the decade - ESPN
I didn't see anybody post this during the week, but I could have overlooked it (if so, my apologies). Anyway, ESPN.com's Rob Neyer has Todd Helton as the 8th-best player of the decade. I'm surprised the Toddfather was placed this high, but he put up some pretty gaudy numbers in pretty much every year of the 00's (with the exception of 2008), particularly in the OBP department.
MLB -- Baseball Prospectus: Hanley Ramirez, Justin Upton, Joe Mauer and Tim Lincecum project as brightest MLB stars of 2010 through 2019 - ESPN
In a related piece, Troy Tulowitzki falls under the "Honorable Mention" section for players who will shape the next decade in Major League Baseball. I may be a homer, but I think it's a crime that Tulo doesn't fall in the Top 20 on this list. It may be an even bigger crime that Clayton Kershaw doesn't, either.
LVBP.com - Liga Venezolana de Beisbol Profesional
The statistics page for the Venezuelan Winter League. Players of note:
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Carlos Gonzalez is hitting .289/.325/.526 in 114 at-bats with 7 home runs and 21 RBI's.
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Yorvit Torrealba is hitting .314/.419/.471 in 51 at-bats.
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Jhoulys Chacin went 1-2 with a 4.73 ERA, allowing 39 hits in 32.1 innings. He struck out 24 and walked 12.
- Edgmer Escalona has posted a 2.70 ERA in 6.2 innings, striking out 7 and walking 5
- Franklin Morales has walked six batters in four innings of relief.
Oh, and there should be no stock put into any of the above stats, whatsoever.