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The Curious Case of Cardenas
The Cubs claimed infielder Adrian Cardenas off waivers today from the Oakland A's, where he was outrighted to make room for Johnny Gomes. To make room on the 40-man, the Cubs DFA'd Blake DeWitt. Before we get to Cardenas, if I'm reading this correctly, the Cubs most likely cost themselves up to $1.1M? I believe they're on the hook for DeWitt's salary, when they could have just non-tendered him back in December, but of course they didn't know Cardenas was available back then. If DeWitt signs with another team, I believe the Cubs are just on the hook for the dfference in salary, which will likely be the mininum, so a little over $600K. Now a team may also put a claim in or work out a trade and the Cubs will be completely off the hook, but those scenarios seem less likely. Not a big deal overall, as the Cubs have plenty of wiggle room to their payroll, but an odd move nonetheless. Now was it worth it for Cardenas?
The infielder was a supplemental first round pick of the Philies in 2006 (37th overall) out of high school in Florida. He was on the Philles top 10 list in 2008, ranked 2nd behind Carlos Carrasco and ahead of guys like Kyle Drabek and Domonic Brown and #76 among the top 100 overall prospects. In July of that year he was traded along with now-a-Cub Matt Spencer and Josh Outman for Joe Blanton. He was ranked #5 in the A's top 10 list for 2009 and #74 overall. He dropped to #9 in 2010 and out of the top 10 by 2011. I don't have the BA 2012 handbook, but apparently he was ranked #12 although that was before the Gio Gonzalez trade.
As for the player, he seems to be a second basemen for the most part with stints at 3B, SS and even LF. Generally when you're moving around that many positions, you're not particularly good at one of them and from the few scouting reports I've found that seems to be the case.
Baseball America said his “speed, quickness, and range are all fringy,”
It'll be his age 24 season in 2012 and although he hasn't spent a day in the majors yet, he apparently has just 2 minor league options left, but that still leaves some flexibility that the Cubs did not have with DeWitt. Offensively, he does seem to fit more with the Cubs new strategy of making pitchers work, maintaining a walk rate of 9.28% in the minors despite showing almost no power whatsoever. His K rate is just 12.6% so maintaining that .300 batting average is certainly possible. Overall his minor league numbers look decent(303/368/423) considering he reached AAA by the age of 21 and while that level hasn't gone smoothly for him, he's been slowly improving, putting up a .791 OPS last year for Sacramento.
I don't see him overtaking Barney for the full time spot, mostly because of the defense. Offensively, they both seem like guys that can hit around .300, with Cardenas getting on-base a little more. Cardenas doesn't bring much speed though, so it's probably close to a wash offensively, unless there's some untapped power in Cardenas that the Cubs still think may develop, but that seems unlikely. Cardenas does seem like a better utility option than DeWitt, if by just being able to handle shortstop at a level of barely satisfactory which is above DeWitt's level of not-at-all. Regardless of the absurdity of being able to throw $1M out the window like it's nothing, it does seem like the Cubs did make themselves better with the move, if only by the smallest of margins.
Comments
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
damn you hendry.
did dewitt get caught recently with an underage albino midget lesbian doing coke while illegally downloading Moneyball?
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
Hi, Jim Hickmans Bat...
3 tweets from Goldstein
Instead of handing Adrian Cardenas a job in Chicago, maybe we should wonder why he was available. He's a really bad infielder.
Darwin Barney shouldn't play every day, but he's a wonderful defender and 80 makeup guy. He'll still be in MLB when Cardenas is forgotten.
He can hit, but poor secondary skills, no defensive home. RT @A_Kuhn1: @Kevin_Goldstein what's Cardenas' hit tool now? Power?
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
given the mood on twitter as feeds roll by, a good number of fans (esp. yanks/LAD) seem to want dewitt. maybe there's enough interest for a trade or someone will take him at face value and the cubs get nothing except the payroll relief.
*shrug*
My bad
apparently E. Jackson was ranked lower than Pena
http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/prospect...
says Cubs have #6, #43, #54 and I think #65 pick
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
I'm going to say it:More shuffling of the deck chairs...
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
fwiw, I may be wrong about the Cubs losing DeWitt for nothing. I believe they can just outright him to the minors if no one claims him or trade isn't made. He'll just be an expensive minor league with one optional assignment left.
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
MLB Trade Rumors is saying that the Cubs are only on the hook for 1/6th of Dewitt's salary, or about $183,000.
I don't understand this stuff as well as some others, but I don't think they are right. I think Rob is correct that the Cubs are responsible for all but the league minimum if someone else picks him up. Anybody know for sure?
http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2012/02/cubs-de...
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
As I said in the last thread, Jim Hendry got a pile of shit in the return for the best available LH starter at the deadline a couple years back.
Kyle Smit? DeWitt? A bag Famous Amos cookies?
This is HoyStein attempting to erase Hendry's worthless mistake. Cardenas apparently at least knows what the strike zone is.
It is shuffling the chairs, I may agree. Only the chair we have now is newer , better appolstered, and may have more customization available.
The chair we got rid of seemed to have just never fit, and seemed like more of a bent rocker or overstuffed Lazy Boy.
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
if he was reversing mistakes he should have done that before he gave the guy a 1.1m contract a month or so ago...especially with barney/blake around.
roster management this offseason has been very weird and occasionally haphazard.
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
well Phil explained it better, but I'm pretty sure MLB trade rumors was confusing the rules for a player that goes through the full arbitration process vs. a player that agrees to a deal before arbitration.
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
The Cubs now have 10 days to either trade, release, or outright DeWitt to minors.
Since the Cubs could not have anticipated being awarded the Cardenas waiver claim, and since players claimed off waivers must be added to the claiming club's 40-man roster immediately, there was no chance to put DeWitt on Outright Waivers in advance.
The earliest the Cubs could have put him on Outright Waivers would have been 2 PM (EST) this aftermoon, but if they didn't submit the request in time, he would go on Outright Waivers at 2 PM (EST) tomorrow afternoon.
A player remains on waivers for two business days, and then "clears" on the third business day at 1 PM (EST) at which point the MLB office determines if any claims have been made.
If the Cubs do put DeWitt on Outright Waivers and he is claimed, the claiming club gets DeWitt for $20,000 and assumes the contract.
If DeWitt is not claimed, the waivers are good for seven days and the Cubs can outright DeWitt to the minors any time prior to the expiration of the 10-day DFA period.
But because he has 3+ years of MLB Service Time, DeWitt can refuse the Outright Assignment and be a free-agent (he has eight days to decide).
If DeWitt were to get outrighted and chooses to be a free-agent, he can do so immediately, or he can defer free-agency until after the conclusion of the 2012 MLB regular season.
If he opts for free-agency immediately, he becomes an unrestricted free-agent, he receives no termination pay (his 2012 contract is voided), and the Cubs receive no compensation if he signs with another club (just as if he was non-tendered on 12/12).
If he is outrighted to the minors but defers his free-agency until after the conclusion of the MLB regular season, he would be paid at the minor league rate if he has a minor league split salary in his contract, and if he does not have a minor league split, he would be paid $1.1M to play at Iowa, and could be recalled by the Cubs (or traded to another MLB club) at any time prior to the conclusion of the MLB regular season.
If DeWitt is outrighted and then is recalled prior to the conclusion of the MLB regular season and at least 20 days after MLB Opening Day, he burns an option year (his last minor league option), even though he was outrighted (not optioned) to the minors.
If DeWitt is not traded and the Cubs choose not to outright him to the minors, he could be released.
If DeWitt has a guaranteed contract for 2012 with no minor league split, the Cubs would be on the hook for the entire $1.1M salary minus whatever he might receive in salary if he signs with another MLB club.
If DeWitt is released and signs a major league contract with another MLB club, the signing club would be responsible for a pro-rated portion of the MLB minimum salary ($480K) and the Cubs would pay the balance (at least $620K).
But another club could also sign him to a minor league contract for (let's say) $15,000 and the Cubs would be on the hook for the $1.1M minus $15,000 (at least until he is brought up to MLB and starts to get paid the MLB minimum salary)
If DeWitt is released and his 2012 contract is not guaranteed, the Cubs would have to pay him 1/6 of his 2012 salary ($183K) regarless of whether he signs with another club or not.
If DeWitt is released and his 2012 contract is not guaranteed and he has a minor league split salary, the Cubs would have to pay him 1/6 of his minor league split salary regardless of whether he signs with another club or not.
So a lot depends on whether DeWitt signed a guaranteed or non-guaranteed contract, and whether he has a minor league split salary in his contract or not.
Generally speaking, players who are eligible for salary-arbitration who sign prior to going to a hearing get a guaranteed contract with no minor league split, but because DeWitt was a candidate to get non-tendered on 12/12, it's possible the contract is not guaranteed and/or there is a minor league split salary.
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
Phil: Have you seen any/much of Cardenas in AZ? Do you have any impressions, particularly on his defense?
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
Mon, 02/06/2012 - 7:29pm — John Beasley
Phil: Have you seen any/much of Cardenas in AZ? Do you have any impressions, particularly on his defense?
=========================
JOHN B: I saw Adrian Cardenas play in the AFL a few years ago when he was an A's Top 10 Prospect, and I've seen him play versus the Cubs in Minor League Camp in March for about three years. I like Cardenas a lot.
Cardenas would be best described as an "offensive-first" super-sub (2B-3B-SS-LF) who is younger, slightly faster, and a bit more versatile than Blake DeWitt, so this would be a roster upgrade. The only thing DeWitt has over Cardenas is big league experience.
Although he is below-average defensively no matter where he plays (2B is his best spot), Cardenas CAN play SS (DeWitt cannot), and he has more upside than does DeWitt at this point in their respective careers.
I wouldn't want to play Cardenas at SS on a regular basis, but he can be a legitimate short-term replacement there if Sveum wants to give Castro a day off. And I would have no problem playing Cardenas at 2B.
Cardenas has two minor league options left (DeWitt has only one). is a year younger than DeWitt, and is (at least) three years away from arbritration, so this was a good waiver claim.
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
This eye-witness appraisal is a bit in-contrast to the scouting report discussed at the link below where it is opined that while Cardenas can spray the ball all over the park, and hits to contact often, he has zero power, and steals at a clip only moderately better than DeWitt (!). Defensively, however, it was stated that Cardenas is quite good in the infield with the most deference towards 2B.
So the "below average defensively" that you state - I guess we will all have to ascertain in "real-time" then.
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
where did you read that he is quite good defensively? The link you posted is the same one I used for the post and it just says he takes poor routes in the outfield and his "speed, quickness, and range are all fringy".
Goldstein's tweets all say he is pretty poor defensively as well.
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
Actually, my error. Sorry! Indeed, he is no Ozzie Smith.
This is one point I read:
A second baseman by trade, Cardenas also has plenty of experience at shortstop and third base. He also spent a fair amount of time in left field last season. Versatility is always a plus.
But, reading further, this is the highest compliment the writer gave in the entire piece.
Still though, he seems like an upgrade from DeWitt.
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
i don't think people mind the guy...just how it came about and the weird treatment of the roster.
it started with leaving r.flaherty exposed with 2 open slots while giving baker/dewitt contracts to do what he could do given the 2012 outlook, continued with multiple split contracts, then giving an 18 year old a roster spot, and now this.
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
Theo is in a lab somewhere rubbing his hands and laughing maniacally.
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
is manny corpas still a cub, btw?
he got a split contract eating a roster space then he's off the roster a month later in order to add kerry wood.
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
Mon, 02/06/2012 - 9:09pm — crunch New
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
is manny corpas still a cub, btw?
he got a split contract eating a roster space then he's off the roster a month later in order to add kerry wood.
==========================
CRUNCH: Manny Corpas was outrighted on 1/26 and had eight days to decide whether to elect free-agency immediately or accept the Outright Assignment and be an Article XX-D minor league free-agent post-2012 (if he is not brought back to the big leagues prior to the conclusion of the 2012 MLB regular season).
So he had until last Friday (2/3) to elect free-agency (and forfeit his contract), but apparently he chose to accept the Outright Assignment, since there was no report that he elected free-agency.
Therefore he will be at Cubs Spring Training as an NRI, and will be paid his minor league split salary until he is recalled (presuming he is recalled prior to the conclusion of the MLB regular season).
Here's Waldo!
JHB FTW
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
I agree this was not well done keeping DeWitt/Baker and not protecting Flaherty. To paraphrase Bubbles from Trailer Park Boys: "something seems a little fucky" in retrospect.
But honestly it is 20/20 in hindsight and certainly other than costing Ricketts a few $$ no harm done. Maybe they didn't have a full rebuild plan committed at that point...
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
no one wants to believe this, but they probably just didn't really like Flaherty or Gonzalez.
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
Oh, I believe that. They didn't like them and nobody was asking for them, so they let 'em go.
Obviously, they didn't like DeWitt either, but him they thought they could trade. At one time, DeWitt was the guy rumored in a trade for Ian Stewart. (But maybe it was our side that started that rumor.)
I think it's pretty interesting--and mysterious--what the Epstein group thinks of this Cub or that Cub. Soriano? Byrd? Soto? Barney? Brett Jackson? Junior Lake?
The only guys you can be sure about are the ones they just acquired.
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
Can they offer DeWitt to RSox for Theo or SD for Hoy?
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
His WAR isn't high enough...
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
Sure, Jim Hickman's Bat.
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
I heard the Red Sox are holding out for AZ Phil
Re: The Curious Case of Cardenas
For me, I'm willing to watch the whole off-season moves and 2012 season before I make any comment (positive or negative) on Theo, et al.
I can go back to John Holland as GM and I don't remember any front office winning the World Series, and that's my only measuring stick for how good a baseball front office/field manager/player development organization is.
I'm not locked into any player currently in the Cubs organization or out of it.
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