Wednesday's Frosty Mug

So the morning after election day used to be a huge hangover day for me. This year, I didn't drink and I'm still sick. That's just not fair.

Let's start with awards today. We all know Jason Kendall had a pretty good season defensively, but would you have guessed he was the second best catcher in all of baseball? The Fielding Bible Awards ranked Kendall second at catcher.

They also ranked J.J. Hardy second at shortstop, which fits in nicely with Beyond the Box Score ranking him as the fourth best shortstop overall.

Some other rankings, while I'm on the subject:

• Walk Like a Sabermetrician ranks Brewer leadoff hitters (mainly Rickie Weeks) 20th in all of baseball in 2008.
• Baseball Musings' Probabilistic Model of Range ranked the Brewers as the 8th best team in baseball defensively.
• Want further proof that all free agents cost more than you think they should? Beyond the Box Score rates Ray Durham as the 20th most valuable free agent this offseason...and says he's worth $10 million.

Marc Hulet of FanGraphs has a review of the Brewer minor leagues in 2009. Players featured include Manny Parra, Jonathan Lucroy, Brent Brewer, Jake Odorizzi and Efrain Nieves.

Here's a quick walk around Rumorville: Bleeding Blue and Teal lists the Brewers as one of the four teams most likely to acquire Mariners closer J.J. Putz. There's also whispers out there about a trade involving Braves 2B Kelly Johnson and Ryan Ludwick, which Al thinks could evolve into conversations about Corey Hart.

Speaking of rumors, Jon Heyman of SI.com has one you almost certainly haven't heard every day for two weeks: the Yankees are interested in CC Sabathia.

He's not getting as much of an opportunity to play in the AFL as I'd like, but The Official Site has a nice profile on Lorenzo Cain and his efforts to be more patient at the plate.

If you're excited about the new MLB Network in January, here's reason to be even more excited: the lead studio host for MLB Network will be former Brewer TV guy Matt Vasgersian. Also, while I haven't seen this confirmed anywhere, Al says Trenni will be there too.

No Brewers filed for free agency Tuesday, but here are some players that did generate hot stove news:

Blue Jay A.J. Burnett officially opted out of his contract Tuesday, leaving him free to seek more than 2 years, $24 million on the open market.
Cardinal Mark Mulder filed for free agency.
Dodgers declined their option on C Gary Bennett and also may be willing to make Russell Martin available.
Marlin Luis Gonzalez filed for free agency.
National Dmitri Young was outrighted to AAA. He accepted the move and is due $5 million in salary in 2009 anyway. He could be eligible for the Rule 5 Draft.
Padre Jake Peavy is reportedly down to three potential teams for next season: the Braves, Cubs and Dodgers.
Yankees Jason Giambi and Carl Pavano both had their option declined for 2009.

Oh, and after three straight nights of waking me up in the middle of the night, I'm about ready to offer Gorman up as a tester for AirDog Hover Vests.

Drink up.