Reviewing Baseball 1/8/15

Good afternoon, Brewers’ fans! Here’s what’s going on around baseball:

John McDonald has officially retired from Major League baseball. The 40 year old appeared in parts of 16 seasons in the majors, mostly with Cleveland and Toronto. He posted a .233/.273/.323 line in 2651 plate appearances while making his name as a strong, versatile defender. Everyone at RtB wishes him well.

The Braves have signed lefty Josh Outman to a one year contract. The reliever has held lefties to a .186 batting average against in his career, and posted a 2.86 ERA last season between the Yankees and Indians, albeit with a 4.83 FIP. The club will reportedly designate infielder Tyler Pastornicky for assignment. The 25 year old has a career .243/.295/.314 line in 268 major league appearances. I wouldn’t mind seeing the Brewers take a chance on seeing if he could be closer to the .297/.347/.386 hitter he is in 186 games in AAA.

The Padres have announced the signing of Josh Johnson to a one year, incentive laden contract. The righty missed all of 2014 after undergoing Tommy John surgery, but has a career 3.40 ERA in 998 innnings. The Padres have designated 27 year old Jake Goebbert for assignment to clear space on the roster. He posted a .630 OPS in 115 plate appearances this season, his first in the bigs.

The Cardinals are reportedly pursuing an ace to add to their rotation. Any of the trio of Max Scherzer, David Price, or Cole Hamels added to the St. Louis staff would certainly deal a significant blow to the Brewers hopes for the division.

The Japanese Rakuten Golden Eagles have reportedly signed Gaby Sanchez to a one year contract. Steven speculated last month that Sanchez could’ve been a fit with the Brewers.

The Orioles have reportedly signed J.P. Arencibia to a minor league contract. The 29 year catcher/first baseman struggled to an OPS+ of 69 last season in 222 plate appearances last year with Texas, which was actually an improvement over his 2013.

The White Sox have designated 28 year old Jordan Danks for assignment in order to clear space for the signing of Emilio Bonifacio. The outfielder and brother of John has posted a .227/.303/.326 in 386 MLB plate appearances.

The Reds have claimed Keyvius Sampson off waivers from San Diego, according to a club official. I thought Sampson would’ve been a nice addition for the Brewers.

Around Milwaukee:

Derek Harvey of Brew Crew Ball thinks the Brewers are unwise in waiting until the last minute to sign relievers.

Adam McCalvy of mlb.com recalls Randy Johnson‘s home run off Doug Davis.

Nicholas Zettel of Disciples of Uecker takes a closer look at some of the players that didn’t get voted into the Hall of Fame.

Around the Site:

Yesterday I posted my thoughts on why Carlos Gomez should hit cleanup for the Brewers.

Steven also posted his 2015 Brewers lineup, and went into further depth about Khris Davis.

Countdowns:

Pitchers and Catchers Report: 43 days

First Spring Training Game: 55 days

Opening Day: 88 days

Drive safe Wisconsinites!