Night Owl 9/Night Owl CD-ROM (NOPV9) (Night Owl Publisher) (1993).ISO/032a/1993prvw.zip/CHANGES.TXT

Text File | 1993-04-04 | 10KB | 219 lines

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SPORTSTICKER 1993 BASEBALL PREVIEW
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OLD FACES IN NEW PLACES
BY IGOR ZASLAVSKY
STAFF WRITER

It was a green winter for baseball players. All the old faces in
new places were smiling about the riches they found in the free
agent market.

Despite complaining about the financial state of the game and
their teams, baseball owners continued to shell out millions in
cash in trying to get a quick fix.

Barry Bonds got fixed up better than anyone else. Bonds had the
good timing and fortune to put up the best numbers of his career
in the final year of his contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Bonds led the Pirates to a National League East title with an
M-V-P performance. The 28-year-old slugger hit .311 last season
with 34 home runs and 103 R-B-I. Those numbers were good enough
to initiate a bidding war between several of the wealthiest
temas in baseball.

In the end, Bonds opted for a familiar place. He signed with the
San Francisco Giants, where his father Bobby played, for $43
million dollars over six years.

Baseball's $7 million man will try to lead the Giants to their
first World Series in over three decades.

The Giants also brought in free agents Dave Martinez and Todd
Benzinger, hoping they will aid Bonds in improving on last
year's .244 team batting average, which was 11th in the league.

The New York Yankees were one of the teams that Bonds spurned
before signing with San Francisco. In fact, the Yankees were
rejected by at least five prominent free agents, including
pitchers Greg Maddux and David Cone. But they finally managed to
attract three new faces.

After unsuccesfully courting Maddux, Cone, Doug Drabek and Jose
Guzman, the Yankees settled on Jimmy Key. The veteran lefty fits
well in Yankee Stadium and has a history of success there. Key
was 13-13 with a 3.53 E-R-A with the World Champion Toronto Blue
Jays last season and earned two victories in the World Series.

The Yankees also signed long-time Boston star Wade Boggs to fill
their hole at third base. Boggs has a .345 lifetime average but
hit only .259 last season. New York continued to revamp its
infield with the signing of Spike Owen, who had been with
Montreal.

New York also made two major trades in the winter to bring in
Paul O'Neill and Jim Abbott.

The Yanks sent Roberto Kelly to Cincinnati for O'Neill, a lefty
slugger with a patented Yankees Stadium swing and a history of
problems against southpaw pitchers.

Abbott, obtained for three prospects, had a 2.77 E-R-A last
season but managed only seven victories for the light-hitting
California Angels. Abbott could develop into an ace with more
run support from the Bronx Bombers.

The Atlanta Braves made only one major move in the off-season,
but it was a blockbuster. The Braves all but clinched another
E-R-A title and perhaps another pennant by signing Maddux. The
prize pitcher of the free agent market won the Cy Young Award
last season with the Chicago Cubs with a 20-11 record and a 2.18
E-R-A. He joins a staff that already inlcudes Tom Glavine, John
Smoltz and Steve Avery.

The Houston Astros look to imrove on their surprising 81-81
finish in 1992. Greg Swindell (12-8, 2.70) and Doug Drabek
(15-11, 2.77), both Texas natives, come home in 1993 and give
the Astros a chance to stay in the race with pitching-rich
Atlanta and Cincinnati.

The Reds further improved their pitching staff by signing John
Smiley (16-9, 3.21) and rebuilt their outfield with Kevin
Mitchell and Roberto Kelly. Mitchell, obtained from Seattle, is
a genuine slugger when he's healthy and relatively thin. Kelly,
obtained from the Yankees for O'Neill, could flourish away from
the New York spotlight.

The only thing worse than the bullpen in Boston last season was
the Red Sox' lineup. Boston, a perrenial hitting power in the
American League, finished 12th in the league with only 84 homers
and 13th with a .246 batting average in 1992.

The Red Sox hope Andre Dawson and Ivan Calderon can help revive
the Boston hitting tradition. Both Dawson, a free agent from
Chicago, and Calderon, obtained in a trade with Montreal, have
plenty of power. But Calderon is injury-prone and Dawson (.277,
22 homers, 90 R-B-I) is 38.

Boston filled out its weak bullpen by acquiring Scott Bankhead
(2.93), Jose Melendez (2.92) and Jeff Russell (1.63, 30 saves).

The Chicago Cubs knew they were going to lose Maddux, so they
answered by signing former Texas Ranger Jose Guzman (16-5,
2.64). Guzman will bear a heavy burden in trying to replace a Cy
Young winner and heading a mediocre starting staff.

The Cubs also signed Randy Myers and Dan Plesac for their
bullpen and Candy Maldonado and Willie Wilson for their
outfield.

David Cone comes back home to the Kansas City Royals after
earning a World Series ring with the Toronto Blue Jays.

Cone (17-10, 2.81) was brought up in the Kansas City system
before being dealt to the New York Mets. The righty led the
major leagues in strikeouts last season with 261. Mark Gardner,
who won 12 games for Monteal last season, joins Cone and
incumbents Kevin Appier and Mark Gubicza in Kansas City's
rotation.

Infielders Greg Gagne and Jose Lind also join the Royals to form
a formidable double-play combo.

The Rangers lost their best starter (Guzman) but solidified
their bullpen by signing Tom Henke (2.26, 34 saves). Texas
further improved its pitching by acquiring Craig Lefferts,
Charlie Liebrandt and Bob Patterson.

After winning the World Series, the Blue Jays lost eight
players, including Cone and outfielder Dave Winfield, who went
back home and signed with the Minnesota Twins. The Jays hope the
aging Dave Stewart (12-10, 3.66), who left the Oakland Athletics
to sign them, will help a starting rotation that lost three
members to free agency. Toronto also picked up Paul Molitor to
replace Winfield's R-B-I. Molitor drove in 89 runs last season
for Milwaukee and is a .303 lifetime hitter.

The Seattle Mariners did something different over the winter.
Instead of trading away good pitching, they obtained some. Norm
Charlton (2.99, 26 saves) comes from Cincinnati for the
enigmatic Mitchell. The Mariners further improved their staff by
signing Chris Bosio (16-6, 3.62) from Milwaukee.

After bombing last year with free agents Hubie Brooks and Von
Hayes, California's Whitey Herzog acquired third baseman Kelly
Gruber from the Blue Jays.

It looks like Herzog has judged poorly again this season as
Gruber had shoulder surgery and will miss the start of the
season. Herzog also signed aging designated hitter Chili Davis
and got young first base prospect J.T. Snow from the Yankees as
part of the package for Jim Abbott.

A pair of "Harolded" free agents come to Baltimore this season
to aid the Orioles' lineup. Harold Baines, a Maryland native,
arrived from Oakland and second baseman Harold Reynolds signed
from Seattle. Baines had 16 homers and 76 R-B-I last season and
Reynolds is a marked improvement from Bill Ripken at second
base.

The Milwaukee Brewers and the Pittsburgh Pirates are a pair of
teams playing in small markets that watched as their rosters
were depleted over the winter. Both teams opted for cheaper
replacements for their missing free agents. It's hard to
believe, however, that Bill Doran can replace Molitor in
Milwaukee. Likewise, Lonnie Smith is at least a few steps down
from Barry Bonds in Pittsburgh.

Tony Fernandez has a chance to be the best hitting shortstop the
New York Mets have ever had after coming from San Diego in a
trade for pitcher Wally Whitehurst and outfielder D.J. Dozier.
The Mets also signed two other free agents -- pitcher Frank
Tanana and outfielder Joe Orsulak

The Chicago White Sox hope to get off to a decent start after
last season's brutal beginning with the acquisition of Dave
Steib, who is coming off an injury-riddled season. Ellis Burks
also changes Sox, going from Boston to Chicago to join Bo
Jackson as the other new faces in Chicago.

The Detroit Tigers picked up Bill Kreuger and Mike Moore in
hopes of improving on their league-worst 4.60 E-R-A.

The Philadelphia Phillies added more offense to an impressive
lineup by signing outfielders Milt Thompson and Pete Incaviglia.
Philadelphia also obtained Danny Jackson to help their young
pitching staff.

The Los Angeles Dodgers committed a league-high 174 errors last
season, 43 more than the second worst fielding team in the N-L.
Tim Wallach and Jody Reed come in this season to straighten out
the Dodgers' porous defense.

Everybody's face is new in Colorado and Florida, where the two
newest members of the National League, the Rockies and Marlins,
start their exapnsion seasons.

David Nied, a highly touted pitching prospect from the Atlanta
organization, will be the ace of the staff in Colorado. The
24-year-old Nied was a combined 17-9 for the Braves and A-A-A
Richmond last season.

First baseman Andres Galarraga is coming off a terrible season
but could suddenly regain his power in the thin air of Denver.

Catcher Benito Santiago left the cost-concious San Diego Padres
to join the Marlins. Santiago has an impressive arm and good
hitting skills, but wore out his welcome with the Padres. He
could become the first star in Florida.

If Santiago continues his decline, Nigel Wilson could step in as
the Big Fish among the Marlins. Wilson was drafted out of the
Toronto organization. He hit 26 homers and drove in 69 runs in
137 games with A-A Knoxville last season.