Cubs Sign Jason Hammel

In News And Rumors, Transactions by GW122 Comments

hammelThe Cubs appear finally made their move to acquire a starting pitcher, agreeing in principle with Jason Hammel on Friday. Hammel pitched for the Orioles in 2012 and 2013 after spending three years in Colorado. Jeff Passan has the details.

The deal isn't very expensive, as the Cubs appear to have bought into the evidence that free agent prices tend to go down near the end of the offseason. While he isn't a great pitcher, at least we don't have to worry about Ubaldo Jimenez imploding early-on in a long-term deal or watch 30 starts from Chris Rusin. And, as SVB points out, he can't possibly be any worse than Scott Baker was last year. At the same time, I'm not sure I prefer Hammel to someone like Chris Capuano, whose asking price appears to be almost identical to Hammel's.

Performance and Pitch Repertoire

Hammel has had a pretty bland career. In 2009 and 2010, he was a reliable option for the Rockies, posting average-ish strikeouts and excellent walk rates. In 2011, for whatever reason, his peripherals dropped off the map. In 2012, he bounced back in a big way, posting a 3.43 ERA for the O's. He appears to have adopted a sinker that season which generated a ton of groundballs (53% vs. 45% career). He also started mixing his pitches more, the slider in particular, and his K-rate was also a career high. Unfortunately, he had right knee problems, and only made 20 starts. In 2013, his velocity was down from 2012 levels, he stopped missing bats, and he used his sinker progressively less over the course of the season, possibly because it was hurting his elbow. He missed a few starts, but an MRI showed only inflammationThe Cubs have to be hoping that the elbow is OK, and that he can get back to what made him successful in 2012.

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  1. Edwin

    At this point, why not sign Capuano as well. It’s not like the Cubs need to hold a spot for Arreita, and I’d rather have either Arreita or Capuano as the “6th” starter than that guy with the mustache.

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  2. Rice Cube

    @ GW:
    Currently, yes, but I think he could’ve been had for two-to-three years if they’d just waited a bit. I get that he’s old but he seems to be an iron man when it comes to eating innings and that could help out a bunch once they trade F7.

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  3. Suburban kid

    Alvin Yellon wrote:

    I’m going to start this review at the end, and by that I mean I’m going to recommend highly that you buy this DVD — and not just because I make a cameo appearance. More on that anon.

    Ugh. I was intrigued to see Al’s headline about a new documentary about Wrigley Field, only to see it’s all about him.

    Then I scanned the end of the post and saw this:

    Oh, about me. There’s a section on “Wind” as it affects play at Wrigley Field; after Fergie and others discuss how they dealt with Wrigley’s winds, you’ll see the shot of me wrestling with my umbrella on that windy day last May against the White Sox. Hey, it’s my 15 seconds — just about literally — of fame. I’ll take it.

    (dying laughing)
    (dying laughing)
    (dying laughing)

    Didn’t someone here once post a gif of that?

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  4. Nate

    @ dmick89, Sweatpants Guru:

    Some of us get away from the shame and meaninglessness of life by getting high on drugs. Some of us get away from the shame and meaninglessness of life by getting high on criticizing others. Same sickness, different symptoms.

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  5. Myles

    dmick89, Sweatpants Guru wrote:

    @ Berselius, Cubs #12 prospect:
    Gotta shame the addict. Don’t you know, all non-addicts are perfect people? They’re all so beautiful, full of joy, honest to the bone people.

    This reminds me, who’s the guy who said there is no such thing as an addict? I feel like there was a pundit you were pissed at a few months ago who said that there is no such thing as addiction.

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  6. dmick89, Sweatpants Guru

    @ Nate:
    Criticism doesn’t much bother me. If someone criticized me for using drugs, I think that’s OK. It’s a criticism I made of myself many, many times and a valid one. It’s the people that think they’re better than an addict. Those are the ones that get on my nerves. Those are the same people who actually believe they are perfect or that their problems are lesser than others.

    It’s not just addiction either. I’m also an epileptic though medicine has thankfully controlled my seizures for a long time. It’s similar with that, too, and a lot of other things. If I don’t like someone I can just tell them I’m an epileptic drug addict and they’ll scream and run away. Problem solved.

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  7. dmick89, Sweatpants Guru

    Apparently epileptic is no longer the politically correct term, but I’ve had a seizure disorder since I was 12 years old and find nothing wrong with it. In fact, I think it describes the condition quite well and find “seizure disorder” to be more offensive. I think all seizures are a disorder of some kind. It’s redundantly redundant to refer to it seizures as a disorder. It’s like saying someone has a disorderly disorder.

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  8. dmick89, Sweatpants Guru

    Myles wrote:

    This reminds me, who’s the guy who said there is no such thing as an addict? I feel like there was a pundit you were pissed at a few months ago who said that there is no such thing as addiction.

    This is really going to bug me. I can remember it, but don’t remember who it was.

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  9. BVS, not sure if coming or going

    So I read (learned?) from the comments in the Reddit threads that WaLi posted that the effect of shooting herion is so fast that folks frequently pass out with the needle in their arm. Having no experience in this area, I assumed that it took at least a few minutes to ramp up. The “needle in the arm” sentence in the news reports generated that discussion, so it might have served a broader purpose than pure sensationalism, assuming what was said was true.

    I didn’t find the news reports I read on CNN to be particularly sensationalist in terms of details, including the needle in the arm. They could report that PSH died of a herion overdose and left it at that, I suppose. But I think the media have some responsibility to report details that educate and provide context. It’s a fine line. It will certainly be crossed by Nancy Grace or someone, but so far I think the major outlets have been OK. (I do not think it was necessary to know that Whitney Houston was naked, for example.)

    I’m not trying to pick a fight here, nor do I wish to disparage anyone’s personal experiences with addiction. The few recovering addicts I know, and comments here, have all stated that addiction is a hard, hard thing. Frankly, I don’t know where the line is in reporting this responsibly so as to provide detail and context vs shame.

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  10. Like You Care

    @ BVS, not sure if coming or going:

    Media should include details that are news-worthy and relevant to the story. Saying he was found with a syringe in his arm is superfluous if you have a police representative saying he died as a result of a heroin overdose.

    If the police representative said he died from something else but you have a source saying he was found with a syringe in his arm, then the detail should be included.

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  11. dmick89, Sweatpants Guru

    BVS, not sure if coming or going wrote:

    I didn’t find the news reports I read on CNN to be particularly sensationalist in terms of details, including the needle in the arm. They could report that PSH died of a herion overdose and left it at that, I suppose. But I think the media have some responsibility to report details that educate and provide context. It’s a fine line. It will certainly be crossed by Nancy Grace or someone, but so far I think the major outlets have been OK. (I do not think it was necessary to know that Whitney Houston was naked, for example.)

    “died with a needle in his arm” sounds much dirtier than “died of OD.” There has been some forward progress in this country in understanding addiction and overdose. However, needle usage is not in that group. More people are sympathetic to addicts than ever before, but I doubt any more people are sympathetic to those who use needles than before.

    The reason a person says “died with a needle in his arm” is due to ignorance IMO. It’s common. Alcoholism is treated almost like a rite of passage in some groups. Tobacco addiction is treated like it’s the plague. Alcoholism is something that can be laughed at. Crack addiction is some serious fucking shit. Alcoholism is acceptable (it can happen to the best of ’em). Heroin addicts are scumbags and always have been. And hey, this heroin addict even died with a fucking needle in his arm. He did it to himself. Now let’s go have a drink and play drunkest drives.

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  12. dmick89, Sweatpants Guru

    Here are some reactions from the general public to various statements.

    Phillip Seymour Hoffman dies at 46

    Holy Shit. That sucks. I really liked that guy in that one movie I can’t think of. I was even in the same city as him one time. Wow.

    Phillip Seymour Hoffman dies of overdose at 46

    Holy shit. Too bad he got mixed up in that stuff, but I really liked that one movie. I even wish he was in more movies. Could have been a good actor.

    Phillip Seymour Hoffman dies with needle in his arm

    Fuck him. Sucked at acting anyway.

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  13. Rizzo the Rat

    dmick89, Sweatpants Guru wrote:

    “died with a needle in his arm” sounds much dirtier than “died of OD.”

    I think this is just journalists sticking to verified facts. That he had a needle in his arm was officially confirmed by investigators. That he died of an OD is not (yet) confirmed by an autopsy.

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  14. dmick89, Sweatpants Guru

    @ Suburban kid:
    (dying laughing) the worst thing about that gif is that I now have to get a new hat. It looks like Alvin has the same exact kind of Cubs hat I’ve been wearing for several years. Fuck. I love that hat. I’m not sure I’ve ever liked a hat as much as that one. There was this Hawkeyes hat I wore for a long time way back when, but I like this hat.

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  15. Recalcitrant Blogger Nate

    Anyone else catch that quick pat on the head from Alvin’s lady friend to the dude in front of them? (dying laughing)

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  16. BVS, not sure if coming or going

    @ dmick89, Sweatpants Guru:
    Surely not helped by Trainspotting

    And from the film’s wikipedia page:

    Irvine Welsh … explained in a Q&A that the title is also a reference to people thinking that the hobby of trainspotting makes no sense to non-participants. Likewise, the same applies to heroin addiction: to non-addicts the act seems completely pointless whereas, to someone hooked on heroin, it makes absolute sense.

    I guess that sums up a lot of addictions.

    Umbrella-spotting, on the other hand….

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  17. dmick89, Sweatpants Guru

    GBTS wrote:

    Berselius, Cubs #12 prospect wrote:
    @ WaLi:
    Maybe I should just pull a gun on anyone who walks past my house, just in case.

    While that guy was loose it became perfectly legal to murder any passerby in Florida.

    So that’s why the cop didn’t ask any questions about the dead guy in the trunk. I thought that was odd.

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  18. Suburban kid

    The quadruple-murderer who escaped from jail has been caught. The caption on the ABC News video said it was a after a “wild manhunt”. More like a mild manhunt, if you listen to the report. The hostage’s 911 call was so laid back it must have been fake, or a re-creation.

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  19. Suburban kid

    Myles wrote:

    Suburban kid wrote:
    Someone post that on BCB and make OV relevant again.

    We were relevant once?

    Yeah, back when we needed a blog lawyer to defend ourselves. OK, maybe it was ACB (which was the Cheers to OV’s Frasier). That was awesome. Now that we have a lawyer, we don’t need one.

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  20. dmick89, Sweatpants Guru

    @ Suburban kid:
    I think OV is a much better blog and I blame a number of things for the relative inactivity here over the last 12-18 months. I used to write 3-4 articles per day and hang around the comments a lot more, but I’ve felt like complete shit over the last year, year and a half. The Cubs are more boring than ever. It’s even difficult to make fun of them at this point. They’re doing absolutely nothing. There are probably minor league teams who have been more proactive in improving than the Cubs have been.

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  21. Myles

    dmick89, Sweatpants Guru wrote:

    @ Suburban kid:
    I think OV is a much better blog and I blame a number of things for the relative inactivity here over the last 12-18 months. I used to write 3-4 articles per day and hang around the comments a lot more, but I’ve felt like complete shit over the last year, year and a half. The Cubs are more boring than ever. It’s even difficult to make fun of them at this point. They’re doing absolutely nothing. There are probably minor league teams who have been more proactive in improving than the Cubs have been.

    Looks like SOMEONE missed the Chris Coghlan pickup.

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  22. dmick89, Sweatpants Guru

    @ Suburban kid:
    I didn’t think you were. There were good reasons to enjoy ACB more and good ones to enjoy this one more. I enjoy having more authors taking part and having a smaller part to do with it.

    Since I started this bloggy thingy, I can think of 3 times that stand out as more fun than others. The first was when I first started getting into it. Ryno and I (along with this guy Rusty) had a shitload of fun. I learned a hell of a lot about the game of baseball. The next was 2007-2008. ACB was its best then. We were getting 500 comments per day or more from a lot of people and the Cubs were super fun from the end of June 2007 through the end of 2008. Good times. Then there’s the first year this place was here. The Cubs sucked, but it was something new and we were building a new blog. This place was awfully busy (more than ACB of course) and it was just nice taking a step back.

    The last year and a half has been the worst. I’ve either been in constant pain or been lucky enough to get some mild relief for a month or so before it comes back full strength. The Cubs have been less interesting than ever.

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  23. Myles

    dmick89, Sweatpants Guru wrote:

    @ Myles:
    They’ve been way down on him for awhile. They keep giving him a lot of innings as a reliever. I think when they publish the Depth Charts you’ll see a more realistic projection for him.

    Thought so too, but they predict 195 IP for him.

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  24. Myles

    It’s been harder than usual to get me excited about this season. We really have nothing at the major-league level. I’ll probably watch five times more milb.tv this season than Cubs games. In fact, I guarantee it.

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  25. Myles

    Top TAv improvers, BP:
    1. Starlin Castro, .264 from .230
    3. Darwin Barney, .235 from .204
    6. Anthony Rizzo, .288 from .267

    Top ERA improvers, BP:
    6. Edwin Jackson, 4.15 from 4.98

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  26. Myles

    Edwin wrote:

    They probably wouldn’t even have beer due to some stupid contract they signed with Aquafina years ago.

    How the FUCK did Crane Kenney negotiate a 20-year contract with Hamm’s

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  27. Like You Care

    I was about to post a tweet by College Football 24/7, but then I saw this;

    DT + stretch-field WR to complement Boldin, Crabtree. RT @23Jperez: @NFL_CFB What pos do you think the 49ers need most ? Thanks In advance— CollegeFootball 24/7 (@NFL_CFB) February 4, 2014

    The second part is right, but DT is absolutely wrong. I don’t think there’s a position SF needs LESS than DT. MAYBE RB. Awful…

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  28. EnricoPallazzo

    Edwin wrote:

    I still really enjoy this blog, even though the Cubs are about as exciting as a beer league softball team these days.

    man, you must have played for some really boring beer league softball teams.

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  29. akabari

    Company trying to get me to move to Minneapolis for a job. From one shitty baseball team to the next. At least MN has food trucks.

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  30. uncle dave

    The A’s just signed Sam Fuld. Apparently, scrappy white guys are the new market inefficiency, or something. Also, he’s somehow 32.

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  31. uncle dave

    @ Suburban kid:
    Down in Urbana. We didn’t get cable until 1984 (specifically, my dad wanted to watch the Cubs pennant race and gave in) but we did get some games on one of the local TV stations on weekends. Still remember the end credits, they played “Hey Hey! Holy Mackerel!” and I thought it was a pretty swingin’ tune back then. Mostly, I was a rare C-U Cubs fan because my folks grew up near the Quad Cities (i.e. above the Mason-Dixon, as far as the Cubs-Cards thing goes).

    Fucking hell of a family legacy, really.

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  32. BVS, my dad drank Hamms

    Except Akabari, looks like the moves are gravitating toward TN. Is that the center of the Cubs Universe? (YES, this year). Only 7 hours to the beach.

    In two years, everyone will have to move back toward Chicago.

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