Spring Fever

Happy start of spring training!

For the next couple of months I’m going to focus most of my attention on the run up to baseball season. I think it’s important for me to briefly define a lot of the things I’ll be referring to during the season.

For the diehard fan, the information will be a bit of a refresher. For the casual fan, the info may answer some questions you did not know you had. For non-fans, read and join the ranks of the baseball cranks.

Terms to know:
Pitchers and catchers: No professional sport has a preseason quite like baseball. In 1886 the White Stockings headed to Hot Springs, Ark., for what may be the first instance of spring training. Around the middle of February, teams compel their batteries (a battery is the combo of the pitcher and catcher) to show up before the rest of the team to prepare for the coming season. Teams also set an early reporting date for position players soon after pitchers and catchers report. The mandatory reporting date for all players is usually during the week following the pitchers and catchers' reporting date.

Grapefruit and Cactus leagues: Since Spring Training begins in the middle of winter, teams set up their spring headquarters in either Florida or Arizona. Florida has been the most popular destination, especially for East Coast teams. Arizona has gained popularity in recent years because teams are often closer together and weather is more stable. Currently, 18 teams make up the Grapefruit League (Florida citrus), and 12 headquarter in the Cactus League (Arizona flora). Grapefruit teams play other Grapefruit teams and Cactus teams do the same.

MLB Draft (AKA Rule 4): Major League Baseball takes two days in June to run through at least 50 rounds of first-year player selection. Draft order is compiled according to the previous year's won-loss records. The draft often includes sandwich rounds between the first few rounds. During this time, teams may select newly graduated high school seniors or juniors and seniors from the college ranks. Foreign players are usually signed outside of the draft. The MLB Draft is not nearly as highly regarded as those of the NBA and NFL. This is because it takes even the highest draft picks years to break into the majors. The draft may not be as exciting, but the MLB minor league system is the stuff of dreams for the NFL and NBA. After players are drafted, they will sign a bonus and report to a rookie-level team or they will refuse to sign and enter or return to college and maintain their amateur designation. First-round picks can expect signing bonuses in excess of $2 million.

Rule 5 Draft: The Rule 5 draft is held each year in during baseball's Winter Meetings. The Rule 5 was established in order to allow more movement among players. The Rule 5 helps good players see playing time when they’re stuck in the minor leagues behind stars on their original team’s depth chart. The Rule 5 consists of one round in which teams can select one player from any other team’s minor league system. The players cannot be on the team’s 40-man roster. To protect their best players, teams will often add their best up-and-coming players to the roster just before the Rule 5. After the teams make their selections from the other teams, they have to pay $50k for the player and keep him on their 25-man roster for the entire season. If the player doesn’t stay with the major league team, they team that selected him must offer him back to his original team at a discounted rate. If the original team doesn’t want the player back, the new team can add him to their minor league rosters. The most successful recent Rule 5 draftee was multiple Cy Young winner Johan Santana, whom the Marlins drafted from the Houston Astros and traded to the Twins. It's also worth mentioning that the Dodgers lost farmhand Roberto Clemente through the very same system.

Player compensation: Major League Baseball assigns free agents value each offseason and places them in two types (A and B). If a player signs with a new team in the offseason, his old team gets compensation from the player’s new team in the form of a draft pick. If the player is quality, his departure will leave the team a Type-A draft pick. Click here for a list of this year's Type A and B players. If the player’s new team finished outside of the bottom 15, the old team gets that team’s first-round pick. If the new team was among the 15 worst teams in the previous season, the team is given a sandwich pick. The sandwich pick comes after the first round and before the second, hence sandwich. In order to get compensation for their free agents, teams must offer the exiting player arbitration. Arbitration takes place before the new season begins. A player who is elligible for arbitration asks for a certain dollar figure he thinks his services are worth and his team counters with an offer of its own. An arbitrator settles the matter. If you want a more in-depth review of the process, click here.

Hot Stove League: Hot Stove refers the offseason moves and rumors of moves (trades, free agent signees).

40-Man roster: The 40-man roster protects players from selection in the Rule 5 Draft. The 40-man roster is made up of the 25-man rosters that make up each major league team. On top of their major league squads, teams select their 15 best, most major league-ready players. In September, all teams can expand their rosters to 40 players. These players, usually blue-chip prospects, must be added to the 40-man roster. Rosters expand after the minor league season ends.

Service clock: I may talk about this more in the future, but service time is the reason you don't want to call up any of your blue chips until they are ready to contribute. You have them for six years before they can bolt for free agency. Time starts the moment they hit the bigs, even when rosters expand in September.

Defensive Spectrum: Creditied to Bill James, the defensive spectrum ranks the positions on (and off) the baseball diamond according to their degree of difficulty. The DS is a good way to build your team. While it would be nice to have power along with great fielding at every position, chances are this isn't going to happen. Specialized fielders (to the left of the spectrum) tend to have their defensive prowess honored above their offensive abilities. If you look around the league, specialized positions such as shortstop (the No. 6 fielding position) and catcher (the No. 2 fielding position) are often the weakest links in a batting order. Finding power players at these positions frees up (so to speak) your need for power at less demanding defensive positions generally considered power positions. For example, when the Dodgers signed power-hitting Jeff Kent to play second base (traditionally a defense-first position) they could theoretically be forgiven for having a weaker first baseman. Some teams (see the Yankees) can buy it all. The Defensive Spectrum (minus the designated hitter abomination) listed from most specialized to least using scoring fielder designations. The idea is that it is easier for a poor defensive player to move from left to right rather than the reverse.

1(Pitcher)>2(catcher)>6(shortstop)>4(second baseman)>8(center fielder)>
5(third baseman)>9(right fielder)>7(left fielder)>3(first baseman)
or
1>2>6>4>8>5>9>7>3

I plan on doing a few more definitions before the season begins, and I'd like to do a little post about scorekeeping, which could keep you more interested in your next game.