Braden Looper signed: 1 year w/mutual option, worth between $5.5 mil and $12.25 mil; Rottino DFA'd (replies #150/151), will report as long as he isn't claimed (reply #181)

[lisheran]

Rottino designated for assignment http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/sports/39523567.html

[And That]

Rather than try to summarize the deal, I'll let Troy Renck tell the story:

 

He signed a one-year deal for $4.75-million with a $750,000 buyout on a $6 million club option for 2010. Even if the Brewers exercise the club option, Looper can void it and still walk. His buyout increases to $1 million if he starts 30 games or 180 innings this season.

He can make an additional $750,000 in incentives for games started this year, beginning at 19 starts and finishing at 30. Looper also got some trade protection. He will receive $750,000 if traded this season and $250,000 if dealt in 2010.

By my estimate, that means he'll receive $62,500 per start between starts 19-30, inclusive. This all means the deal could be worth as much as $12.25 million over two years, or as little as $5.5 mil for one year.

[JJHardy7]

Dumb question here...if the Brewers pick up the club option and Looper voids it, are they still on the hook for the buyout? I would assume they wouldn't be.

[BrewCrewForever]

I'm glad Rottino was the one DFA. I guess I would have preferred Gwynn but I'm glad they didn't give up on Mark Rogers. He was one of the guys rumored.

[bobskube]

I want to wish Vinny the best of luck first of all.

 

However, I am so glad that I will not have to hear people pine for Rottino anymore. Thank god.

[jimmyjeromehardy7]

Dumb question here...if the Brewers pick up the club option and Looper voids it, are they still on the hook for the buyout? I would assume they wouldn't be.

My understanding from what I read yesterday is that the buyout is only if Looper exercises the option and the Brewers decline it. If Looper declines the option, he is a free agent regardless of what the Brewers do and no buyout needed.

[endaround]

I want to wish Vinny the best of luck first of all.

 

However, I am so glad that I will not have to hear people pine for Rottino anymore. Thank god.

 

Has anyone ever pined for Rottino? I mean there was some discussion of Rottino being more useful than Magruder or Trent Durrington but that isn't exactly pining

[davego]

Just from Vinny's perspective this might be to his advantage as there seemed to be a pretty good roadblock(s) for him in Milwaukee. Given the right team and need, he should have a better shot at that #25th roster spot someplace else.

 

He is a local kid, so lot's of fans around here ( LAX) do pine for him.

[bcf5575]

Has anyone ever pined for Rottino? I mean there was some discussion of Rottino being more useful than Magruder or Trent Durrington but that isn't exactly pining

theres been pining. my first thought when I heard that he had been dfa'd was that we finally can stop with the vinny rottino love affair...

[Tbadder]

I prefer to think of Vinny Rottino as Milwaukee's version of Minneapolis' Joe Mauer.

[yoyo49]

i don't know why on earth he would do this, but if looper declines the option and fails to meet any of his incentives, would the contract total be 4.75 million?

[JJHardy7]

I prefer to think of Vinny Rottino as Milwaukee's version of Minneapolis' Joe Mauer.

 

If you want a 'hometown guy', you have Counsell. I've never been high on Rottino and if he ends up taking a minor league deal with the Brewers that's fine by me. The 'catcher of the future' business never made sense last off-season IMO.

[djoctagone]

I prefer to think of Vinny Rottino as Milwaukee's version of Minneapolis' Joe Mauer.

for the record, vinny rottino grew up in and still resides (i believe) in racine. joe mauer grew up in and still resides (i believe) in st. paul.

[BrewerBrent]

So how does the mutual option work with compensation picks. Looper was a type B this year. So if he pitches well this year and decides not to excercise his side of the options, andthe brewers do exercise theirs, would we receive compensation picks for him (assuming he's type B again)?

[davego]

...and played @ UW-Lacrosse.

[Mass Haas]

You have a right to your opinion, but c'mon, nobody who has posted regularly on the forums here has indicated a "pining" for Vinny Rottino to be the everyday catcher of the Milwaukee Brewers. You've probably read your share of articles linked here. Why? Because he's a good story. That doesn't qualify as "pining" or "love affair". No Brewer minor leaguer has ever driven in more runs in a single season than the undrafted Rottino -- Vinny's name will be in the record book in that regard for quite some time, you'd think.

 

Here's another article for ya http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/wink.gif

 

Link while active, text follows:

 

Numbers game pinches Rottino

Racine native designated for assignment after Looper signing

By Susan Shemanske

Racine Journal Times sports editor

Until he hears otherwise, Vinny Rottino will go about his business as usual in preparing for the 2009 baseball season.

 

The former St. Catherine's High School and UW-La Crosse standout will report to the Milwaukee Brewers' spring training camp in the Maryvale neighborhood of Phoenix, Ariz., today to begin working out with the other pitchers and catchers.

 

Rottino was removed from the Brewers' 40-man roster Thursday and designated for assignment when the team signed free-agent pitcher Braden Looper and added him to the 40-man roster.

 

By designating the 28-year-old Rottino for assignment, the Brewers have 10 days to try to work out a trade for him, release him or put him on waivers.

 

If another team claims Rottino off waivers and signs him, that would end Rottino's six-year run in the Brewers' minor-league organization.

 

"I feel like it's actually a positive thing," Rottino said Thursday night in a telephone interview from Phoenix, where he's been for the last week and a half taking part in the Brewers' optional workouts. "Any of the other 29 teams has the option of picking me up. If another team wants to pick me up, then obviously they think I can help them somewhere in the big leagues so that would be a good opportunity for me."

 

Rottino looks at it as a win-win situation. If he clears waivers, he'll stay in the Brewers' major-league camp and be given the same opportunity to compete for a spot on the Brewers.

 

"Gord (Ash, the Brewers' assistant general manager) assured me that it doesn't make any difference if I'm on the 40-man roster or not," Rottino said. "I'm still in the same situation. It's not that the Brewers don't think I can help them. It just came down to a numbers thing. I'm still going to compete for a spot on the team."

 

Since signing with the Brewers as a non-drafted free agent in February 2003, Rottino has progressed through the minor-league system while playing in the infield, outfield and most recently catching. He earned the Brewers' Minor League Player of the Year honors in 2004 when he hit .304 with 17 home runs and a team-record 124 RBIs in 140 games for the Class A Beloit Snappers and worked his way up to Class AAA Nashville by the end of the 2005 season.

 

In six minor-league seasons, Rottino hit .295 with 51 home runs and 348 RBIs in 674 games.

 

The versatile and always optimistic Rottino has been part of the Brewers' September callups the last three seasons. In 18 games, he has five hits and four RBIs and a .208 batting average. In recent years, Rottino has worked hard on developing his catching skills and has taken part in the Brewers' fall Arizona instructional league.

 

"There's opportunities out there, so I'll just keep grinding it out as I've always done," Rottino said. "Sure I'm staying positive. Why would you not?"

[rousieboy]

I am happy to learn from you. What do you suggest a GM should use when considering a midseason trade or off season pickup? What is the better alternative? Something must be used, no?

 

I would doubt in my mind, though I have no way to be certain-not that that has stopped any opinions from flowing here-that MLB doesn't have a true value chart like the NFL does for trades. Scouting takes up the lions share…I am sure some stats are thrown around…but not as much as someone seeing something. The Narron brothers looking at Josh Hamilton and thinking he needs a shot…MMaddux staring at Turnbow and thinking, "I can do something with that."

 

Meterologists, Statistical engineers, and economists…I would add psychologists and some teachers/professors are smart enough to throw out the confounding variables and confounding is the word you should have highlighted KegStand81. Can't fire 'em…they are too good at what they do.

 

I know I am unpopular for coming to this post (because this part of the site is the baseball trekkie convention portion of the show) and raining on the parade of true believers, but sorry, it doesn't add up…I say that from a real world perspective…that is all I will say on that. Tear me down for being rational. I will add that I will think of you fondly the next time a Joakim Soria breaks out after changing a grip on a changeup or someone gets traded and the change of scenery and opportunity to work with different coaches makes all the difference in the world.

 

PS…All Wisconsinites are pined for on this site and it is embarrassing to hear about trade ideas for Taschner and Washburn so they can pitch to Rottino…nice battery.

[PKBadger]

I guess all I can say in response is that the point I made is the same regardless of what word is highlighted in bold.

 

You are correct, the many different random & confounding & confusing aspects of life are what make it hard to say that Player X will hit Y #of home runs and steal Z bases. That level of uncertainty is why the projection models were developed in the first place. The computer runs a simulation thousands and thousands of times. Sometimes Bill Hall hits .380. Sometimes he misses 100 games after getting arrested for mopery (subsequently acquitted and returning for the tail end of the pennant chase). The projection that is published is the average of all of those thousands of simulations.

 

Nobody is pretending that the projection is gospel (or they shouldn't be, at least). It's just a "best guess" - which is why I think it's weird that so many people get bent out of shape about them.

 

My friends would be the first to tell you that I have a lot of theories about baseball that most stat-heads would consider inane - that hitting coaches do matter, that clubhouse morale does count for something, and that grit does have (marginal) value. I completely agree with you that a guy using a different grip, or a different arm slot, could make the projections look silly by comparison. But to completely dismiss the predictive qualities of data analysis really irks me.

[TooLiveBrew]

I know I am unpopular for coming to this post (because this part of the site is the baseball trekkie convention portion of the show)

 

No, you're unpopular for snarky crud like that.

 

 

Scouting takes up the lions share…I am sure some stats are thrown around…but not as much as someone seeing something.

 

Yeah, I mean, we didn't need projections to know that Fielder would hit 50 HR again, right? We seen it with our own eyes, so he clearly is a 50-HR hitter! I mean, you can continue to live in a dream world where statistical work hasn't become roughly 50% of the game's analysis, but I just don't know why you'd pretend that's not the case.

 

 

Nobody is pretending that the projection is gospel (or they shouldn't be, at least). It's just a "best guess" - which is why I think it's weird that so many people get bent out of shape about them.

 

Agreed, KegStand. I think the reason this non-argument gets thrown around because otherwise it would sound exceedingly silly to harp on people using an objective analysis of both stats & scouting.

[Fatter than Joey]

All Wisconsinites are pined for on this site and it is embarrassing to hear about trade ideas for Taschner and Washburn so they can pitch to Rottino…nice battery.

 

Honestly -- Has anyone ever actually said this?

[bobskube]

Has anyone ever pined for Rottino? I mean there was some discussion of Rottino being more useful than Magruder or Trent Durrington but that isn't exactly pining

True, was not as bad last year. I am too lazy to look back and find proof but there were more than a few comments about Rottino's so-called value to the team that made me cringe. Now I'm waiting for people to try to get Joe Dillon back and try to justify his value.

 

 

(fixed code --1992)

[Ennder]

Scouting is also why Weeks is going to the Hall of Fame and Marte is going to be a stud. Scouts are wrong just as often as stats, they aren't the gospel. You need a balanced approach.

[wcswimmer712]

Anyone know what kind of stuff this guy throws?

[mothershipconnection]

Except with the most basic principles in the hardest of sciences, a decent prediction predicts a range of possibilities. You can't build a strawman of these predictions claiming laser guided precision and cheer when they fail, because that's not what's being offered.

[Ennder]

Fastball in the very low 90's, occassional slider in the mid 80's, split finger in the low 80's. Sinkers are counted as fastballs and that is his money pitch as far as I know.