MIL signs Gabe Kapler (1yr/$800K, non-guaranteed)

[Fatter than Joey]

My only guess is that melvin hasn't completed his big deal yet and the Journal needed a story. so he gave them one

 

Well -- I suspect the Red Sox would have offered Kapler a ST invite. I think DM was extending an old buddy a favor.

[JJHardy7]

If Kapler doesn't make the team I wouldn't mind seeing us sign him to coach in the minors.

 

I'd rather see him in Nashville. If we need an extra OF due to injury, etc., I'd much rather see Kapler than Anderson. And if Kapler performs well there or another team is in a bind he'd have some trade value -- albeit it not much, but just a thought.

[colbyjack]

What's the big deal? It's not like he was signed to play LF everyday. As a platoon player he hits lefties better than righties, plays good defense, is a good team player and has handled the strike zone throughout his career. He basically provides the team with more than his stick at a fraction of the cost Mench was getting paid. And, if they determine they don't want him it's easy enough for them to be off the hook.

 

I am a little surprised by the 40-man inclusion, but that's probably a goodwill gesture.

[Fatter than Joey]

What's the big deal?

 

I think once people saw him on the 40man, (which I really still don't understand), and the first reports didn't indicate that the salary was not guaranteed, people got a little freaked out.

 

I suppose if the first thing people read was "Brewers extend Kapler a ST invitation" no one would have thought twice.

 

Of course we could exercise patience and all of that -- but where is the sport in that?

[JohnBriggs12]

"Doing an old buddy a favor", "goodwill gesture", etc.

 

Those are the moves you make a week before spring training opens, not before you've filled the most glaring need on the team. I take this signing a little more seriously than that. It's unfathomable that a guy who's been out of baseball for a year, hasn't been a starter in almost 5 years gets a job before a guy like Shannon Stewart who was a full time player just last year.

 

The concern is that Kapler's signing and taking up a roster spot will preclude getting a better player. Now it could be a sign that Dillon is being considered for the 3B job and they need a right handed bat on the bench. Or that they don't feel Braun can handle the OF defensively and they need a late inning replacement. But they don't want to have to pay for a better one to handle either role.

[Tbadder]

I will say this:

 

First, Kapler's signing is amusing; therefore, it is a good move.

 

Second, if Kapler makes the comeback, and makes a significant contribution next year, Milwaukee will finish in 3rd place behind the Cubs and Reds, which is amusing but more in a tragic sense

[chuckiehacks]

Now it could be a sign that Dillon is being considered for the 3B job

I don't think this is even a remote possibility.

[Brian the Automator]

"Doing an old buddy a favor", "goodwill gesture", etc.

 

Those are the moves you make a week before spring training opens, not before you've filled the most glaring need on the team. I take this signing a little more seriously than that. It's unfathomable that a guy who's been out of baseball for a year, hasn't been a starter in almost 5 years gets a job before a guy like Shannon Stewart who was a full time player just last year.

 

The concern is that Kapler's signing and taking up a roster spot will preclude getting a better player. Now it could be a sign that Dillon is being considered for the 3B job and they need a right handed bat on the bench. Or that they don't feel Braun can handle the OF defensively and they need a late inning replacement. But they don't want to have to pay for a better one to handle either role.

The roster concern could be alleviated easily by pulling a 2-for-1 trade, and I think there are other players on the 40-man roster that could probably be flipped for lower-level prospects that don't require a roster space.

 

As the free-agent pool dwindles (and it's pretty empty right now), the number of players that will be passing through waivers will pretty much halt, so honestly, I don't think it's a big deal at all.

 

[naivin]

Why would anyone be against this? A non-guaranteed contract amounts to little more than a ST invite. What's the big deal? If it doesn't work out, or you find a better alternative, you turn him lose. If he gets back on HGH and can play a little, maybe he helps the team. I say...

 

Welcome Back!

 

Sorry.

[joepepsi]

My buddy out east who's a Red Sox fan say Kapler can't hit an American Legion curveball.

[MJLiverock]

What's the big deal? It's not like he was signed to play LF everyday. As a platoon player he hits lefties better than righties, plays good defense, is a good team player and has handled the strike zone throughout his career. He basically provides the team with more than his stick at a fraction of the cost Mench was getting paid. And, if they determine they don't want him it's easy enough for them to be off the hook.

 

I am a little surprised by the 40-man inclusion, but that's probably a goodwill gesture.

That is the second reference in this thread (Pogokat being the other) to Kapler being a better option than Mench. I understand you hate Mench but come on. Mench is a true lefty masher who has career numbers that trounce anything anything Kapler has ever done. Mench is at least 100 points better on OPS than Kapler vs. LH pitching and he actually played MLB last year. The difference in price would be a couple million dollars not that much in the realm of baseball. Even Gross and Gwynn are better options than Kapler at this point. I pray the Brewers aren't so desperate to break spring training with Kapler on their 25 man roster.

 

[TooLiveBrew]

Guys that are likely to break ST on the 25-man don't get non-guaranteed contracts. This seems to be a position-player version of the deal we gave Choate, except that Choate's got the minor-league portion of his contract guaranteed, iirc. I like having him to float from AAA to MLB if needed.

[Brian the Automator]

That is the second reference in this thread (Pogokat being the other) to Kapler being a better option than Mench. I understand you hate Mench but come on. Mench is a true lefty masher who has career numbers that trounce anything anything Kapler has ever done. Mench is at least 100 points better on OPS than Kapler vs. LH pitching and he actually played MLB last year. The difference in price would be a couple million dollars not that much in the realm of baseball. Even Gross and Gwynn are better options than Kapler at this point. I pray the Brewers aren't so desperate to break spring training with Kapler on their 25 man roster.

 

Factor in defense and salary, and I think Kapler vs. Mench is a wash. In arbitration, Mench would have made far, far more than he was worth.

 

[MJLiverock]

It is LF, not exactly SS so I don't think the defense really means all that much. Kapler's best offensive years are still 100 points lower than Mench's average vs. LH's. Just because Kapler is cheaper doesn't win games, actual on field production does and nobody felt Kapler was worthy of playing at all last year. Thankfully this isn't guaranteed.

[Brian the Automator]

It is LF, not exactly SS so I don't think the defense really means all that much. Kapler's best offensive years are still 100 points lower than Mench's average vs. LH's. Just because Kapler is cheaper doesn't win games, actual on field production does and nobody felt Kapler was worthy of playing at all last year. Thankfully this isn't guaranteed.

Kapler can play all 3 outfield positions, so that's why I mean he's a defensive upgrade over Mench. And no, of course the fact that Kapler could make about 20% of what Mench would have made in arbitration doesn't mean that the club will win... However, given that you'd be paying Mench probably 4-5M to be the short end of a L/R platoon, I think it's money better spent elsewhere.

 

[colbyjack]

I understand you hate Mench but come on.

 

I don't hate Mench, never did. At no point did I try to even diss Mench in my post, I was just pointing out that Kapler could have some value, as he does a few things better than Mench, and the signing is relatively risk-free. It's not that I'm in love with, but I certainly don't hate it either.

[Thurston Fluff]

Well, if he was tested for steroids - especially in 2004, he could've been using HGH and it would've come back negative.

 

True but players who are taking illegal substances generally don't voluntarily test themselves or be vocal about their desire to have testing. They do what Bonds and Clemens do. Either talk through their lawyer or agent with some scripted speech generally mentioning they haven't fialed any test ect.

I'm all about passing judgement on guys who have some amount of valid evidence agianst them (other than a good build). I'm also more than willing to assume people who no link what so ever to PED's are not taking them.

 

Given it's non garunteed I don't mind this signing. Melvin is doing what he has to to shore up a position that has very few vialbe options available to him. I'd like to see something more along the lines of a bona fide starter but in the mean time keep accumulating guys that might have some value with little downside contract wise.

[JohnBriggs12]

Isn't what everyone is saying basically that we now have Brady Clark back except his name is Gabe Kapler?

[dvoiss]

This is my take. Melvin signs him and invites him to spring training. He comes to Arizona for a couple weeks, gets cut and goes home. By Memorial Day most people forgot he was ever signed. End of story. No big deal.

[Brian the Automator]

Isn't what everyone is saying basically that we now have Brady Clark back except his name is Gabe Kapler?

Yeah, but cheaper.

The swimsuit calendar sales alone will exceed 800k.

[Thats Freakin Sweet]

I think this is a nothing of a transaction, but to speak to the apparent sticking point of a major league deal v. a minor league one, I highly doubt Dougie was able to get Kapler to bite at a minor league deal, it was just a bigger worm on the hook. It's not guaranteed, it's a non-issue.

[RightFieldCoder]

My only probablem with the deal is the inclusion on the 40-man roster. It will probably not effect the Brewers, but there is always the chance that it could handcuff us from making another move. But I suppose since it's not-garunteed we could cut him from the 40-man tomorrow.

 

I think we're just all anxious for the "blockbuster" Rolen or Blalock trade to happen.

[Brawndo the Thirst Mutilat]

I'll back off my freak-out stance from yesterday. At the end of the day, Kapler probably won't make the team and there's little harm in having an extra body around during spring training. As far as I'm concerned, his upside is replacement level, so even at $800,000 he's hardly a bargain, but it's tough to sweat a non-guaranteed $800,000 a few weeks after dropping $10 mil on Gagne. So I'll agree that this isn't such a big deal. Having said that, there are some basic things not to like about this signing that I feel it's difficult to ignore:

 

1) I reserve the right to resume complaining if further acquisitions result in further 40 man issues and even more Wise / Aquino / Sarfate style losses of potentially useful players.

 

2) There's at least a small chance Kapler pushes a vastly superior player off the team. I don't think that's an overstatement. I know people look at Dillon and see "30+ year old journeyman, 4A guy", but I look at Dillon and see 2 more seasons of starter-caliber hitting off the bench for the league minimum. ZiPs (generally the most conservative of the projection systems) has him at 280 / 338 / 449. CHONE projects 280 / 356 / 492. These projections are not, incidentally, based primarily on Dillon's brief MLB success at the end of last season. The bulk of the weight is given to MLEs generated from his extensive minor league track record. In his entire career, Kapler has had exactly one season better than Dillon's ZiPs projection (way back in 2000) and once you adjust for park factor and run-scoring environment, I'm not even sure that one's better. Kapler's never even approached Dillon's CHONE projection. Thus, realistic expectations for Dillon > pie in the sky fantasizing for Kapler.

 

3) Attanasio really has to put a stop to Melvin's ex-Ranger fetish, like right now. One of the many things that blows my mind about this society is that companies know enough not to tolerate this kind of garbage from low and mid-level employees, but when the people in charge do it, no one bats an eye at the hypocrisy. Ask yourself this - if it was obvious to everyone that you hired someone who was pretty clearly not a qualified candidate due to a previous relationship/friendship, would your company discipline / fire you ("conflict of interest")? I'm pretty sure mine would fire me. But for the people that actually run companies and get paid vast sums of money to make the really important decisions, this is commonplace, accepted behavior. Why? Shouldn't CEOs and baseball GMs have to operate by the same rules as the rest of us? Why are these people permitted to do things that aren't in their company's best interest? For what it's worth, I still think Melvin is better than at least half of the GMs in baseball. But he's certainly got his flaws, none more obvious than this one.

 

I promise, I'm done now. Happy holidays to everyone, including Doug Melvin and Gabe Kapler.

[Brian the Automator]

3) Attanasio really has to put a stop to Melvin's ex-Ranger fetish, like right now. One of the many things that blows my mind about this society is that companies know enough not to tolerate this kind of garbage from low and mid-level employees, but when the people in charge do it, no one bats an eye at the hypocrisy. Ask yourself this - if it was obvious to everyone that you hired someone who was pretty clearly not a qualified candidate due to a previous relationship/friendship, would your company discipline / fire you ("conflict of interest")? I'm pretty sure mine would fire me. But for the people that actually run companies and get paid vast sums of money to make the really important decisions, this is commonplace, accepted behavior. Why? Shouldn't CEOs and baseball GMs have to operate by the same rules as the rest of us? Why are these people permitted to do things that aren't in their company's best interest? For what it's worth, I still think Melvin is better than at least half of the GMs in baseball. But he's certainly got his flaws, none more obvious than this one.

Melvin's not in business to lose. This is something GM's do all the time because they think they can either use a player in a way which they haven't, or think there's something specifically that a coach can work with him on.

 

Doug Davis, Scott Podsednik, Danny Kolb.... Those low-risk signings worked out tremendously well for the Brewers. I'm not saying Kapler's the next great reclamation, but some of his former Ranger signings have worked out really well.

[Invader3K]

Eh...I still say people are just getting worked up because they're anxious for a bigger move from the Brewers. This contract is going to be quickly forgotten the moment a Rolen/Blalock/Lofton type of acquisition is announced.