Some things to read before rediscovering the greatness of the Swedish Chef.

In honor of the Chef, let's open today with a Sabathia Smorgasbord. Jimmy Rollins (via Jon Heyman) thinks Sabathia won't be able to resist the money the Yankees will offer. In-Between Hops sounds like he's trying to convince himself that 4 years, $100 million would be a good idea, either for the team or for Sabathia. And Sabathia's pending payday has led Jake Peavy's agent to see dollar signs as well.

Also worth noting in the Heyman piece above: he cites sources claiming Ken Macha is the frontrunner for the managerial job, which we've heard before, but he also says Bob Brenly's interview did not go well. It's the first time I've heard that.

Once a manager has been hired there's two more vacancies to fill in the front office, as Tony Blengino and Tom McNamara are following Jack Zduriencik to Seattle. Blengino was Zduriencik's top assistant, and McNamara was an East Coast cross-checker.

Also in that link, Tom H. says Taylor Green suffered a broken nose being hit by a bad hop on a ground ball and will require surgery. I'm not sure that's right...if it is, that would mean Taylor Green broke his nose being hit by a pitch AND on a ground ball within about two weeks of each other. At any rate, Taylor Green's fall season is likely over.

MetsBlog has started a conversation about the possibility of trading for Prince Fielder. The post itself isn't anything exceptionally notable, but the comments are a virtual buffet of unintentional comedy. Take this one, for example:

So if you could have either Ryan Braun or Matt Holliday (complete with 89 OPS+ away from home) in left field, which would you take? Beyond the Box Score rates Braun as the third best left fielder in 2008, behind Holliday and Manny Ramirez.

UPDATE: There are some stats out there that I understand just well enough to misuse. Holliday actually has a 89 tOPS+ away from home. That compares his home stats to his away stats. His power diminishes on the road (his slugging drops 100 points), but his OBP stays about the same (just over .400), so his home/road differential isn't as staggering as I thought.

Also, Beyond the Box Score ranks Jason Kendall as the 12th best catcher in baseball, crediting him with 0 runs added as a hitter but 12 saved defensively. Sky Kalkman says he "might just have been the most valuable player to hit like a shlub."

Ever wonder what it's like to be an MLB Executive once the season's over? If so, Paul DePodesta has a story for you.

Only one notable piece of hot stove news today: the Angels have declined their option on Garret Anderson. Not a likely fit as a Brewer, unless he's willing to take a cut in playing time.

I'm really not interested in talking politics in this space, but I did recently find out that Mark Attanasio is a big donor to Democrat candidates.

Oh, and can a sports blog save a marriage? No, probably not.

Drink up.