RHP Felipe Paulino becomes the first significant acquisition during the post-2010 offseason (coverage by Troy Renck and Jim Armstrong of the Denver Post, Steve Foster of Inside the Rockies and Chris Haft of MLB.com). Paulino will be a pet project for the team, out of options and a potential impact in the rotation or in the bullpen. However, Paulino's position on the team, particularly as a RHP, upside aside, is still murky. What I do know is that he is more of a return than we ever expected from future non-tender Clint Barmes.
With Barmes' departure, right on the heels of a sudden but ultimately sensible release of Manuel Corpas, a mere six players remain from the 2006 team. 2006 may seem arbitrary to many Rockies fans, but I often look back to 2006 personally as it was the year I began closely following Major League Baseball. Of those 32 players on the 40 man roster, Todd Helton and Aaron Cook obviously hold seniority. Following them, Ryan Spilborghs, Chris Iannetta, Troy Tulowitzki and Ubaldo Jimenez. It's more than a little strange to think of those latter four players as the most veteran organizational players on the team. But such is the path of an MLB baseball team, over five years, or even just one offseason.
What comes next? The Rockies have been linked to a variety of names, the same names we've heard over and over again. Perhaps the most notable, tangible news is buried in this Renck tweet. This isn't necessarily confirmation that we're out of the Jorge De La Rosa sweepstakes, but it does provide in the slap in the face to remind us of two things we've known for some time: we don't want more than a three year deal, and other teams are "willing to overspend". Paulino is not a replacement for De La Rosa, though some see similarities between Paulino's condition entering the organization to De La Rosa's back in 2008.
The Owner and GM meetings draw to a close as the week ends, and though the majority of the discussion was regarding the new MLB Collective Bargaining Agreement that must be drafted to replace the one expiring at the end of next season, we have seen the "trade talks" appear to eliminate the dull, meaningless rumor mongering that sat as the free agents declared, though more doldrums can be expected during the holidays.
Finally, a couple of odds and ends:
- An interview with Fredi Gonzalez about the acquisition of former Rockies wishful-target of opportunity Dan Uggla. Gonzalez will of course be reuniting with Uggla after managing him with the Marlins.
- Matt Eddy of Baseball America informs us that outbound Rockies MiLB Free Agents Jonnathan Aristil and Jason Van Kooten have re-signed with our organization for 2011.