Monday, December 17, 2012

Here comes another one, just like the other one

Mike Pelfrey made at
least 31 starts each year
from 2008-2011, working
at least 184 innings each
of those four seasons.
The Twins were reported on Sunday to have reached a contract agreement with free-agent pitcher Mike Pelfrey. Pending a physical, no doubt, which in his case will determine that, yes indeed, he had major elbow surgery last May and is still recovering from it.

It's a better idea than signing Kevin Correia, but not by a whole lot.

Both Pelfrey and Correia are right-handers with low strikeout rates and resumes built entirely in the DH-free National League. As such, they're not particularly good bets.

Pelfrey is a few years younger than Correia, and Pelfrey has had better results over the years and been much more a workhorse than Correia, but that latter advantage is probably negated by Pelfrey's current status as a Tommy John rehab project. It's unclear how soon he'll be ready to pitch or how many innings he can be expected to work. Being ready for the start of the season seems like a stretch to me.

The Pelfrey contract is said to be a one-year affair -- $4 million guaranteed, with some incentive bonuses. I'd actually feel better about Pelfrey on a two-year contract, since it would allow some benefit from a rehab season from him. As it is, he'll either be worthless or mid-season trade bait.

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