He couldn’t have wished for a better chance to improve his percentage than by being pit against Minnesota and their struggling starting pitcher. Vance Worley was absolutely terrible in the first month but he appears to be finally on the mend, although the recovery process will most likely be long and painful. He is still searching for the first winning decision in April and the odds are stacked against him to get it in Detroit, especially when the hosts start with one of the best pitchers in MLB.

Minnesota is not a team famous for providing its starters with a lot of runs of support, at least not in 2013 when they have split the 22 games. The Twins lost the opening game but the fact that they went down by four runs to three makes that defeat an acceptable one and should boost their morale. A similar performance against Justin Verlander is not desirable but it would surely be regarded as a decent outcome, given the huge imbalance between the starting pitchers.

Vance Worley hasn’t won a game since August 1, 2012 when he was playing for Philadelphia and back then he had one of the best batting units in the MLB, behind him. If there is any good reason for optimism, then this has to be closely related with the slight injury sustained by Justin Verlander. There is nothing that the Tigers should be worried about, as the starting pitcher suffers from a mild skin cut in his finger, but Detroit chose to retire him in the seventh inning immediately after the blister was noticed.

The hosts are leading the central division and they are the overwhelming favorites to win it at the end of the regular season. It is much more important for them to make sure that their star stays unharmed and will be fit to play deep in the playoffs. From a punter’s perspective this particular game is not really exciting, due to the low odds for a home victory and the inexistent value in the odds for Detroit to cover the 1.5 runs spread. Given the uncertainty of Justin pitching deep in the game, it is much better to pass on the opportunity to bet and simply enjoy the match.

It is now time for the Dodgers to win their first game against San Diego at home and they count on Clayton Kershaw to see them through. The young starting pitcher is widely regarded as one of the best in the game, and LA is willing to pay big money for keeping him around. More on this matter can be found at http://www.jackhammerbaseball.com/the-dodgers-are-ready-to-pay-big-money-for-clayton-kershaw/.

Right now the Dodgers need their starting pitcher to contain the red hot batters, as the Padres enjoy a surprisingly prolific offensive. San Diego scored 15 points in the first two games while limiting their opponents to five and the starting pitchers were the Achilles’ heel for the hosts. With Clayton Kershaw on the mound, they will have the upper hand for at least six innings and by then they should be up at least two or three runs to remain favorites.

The bullpen is equally ineffective for both teams, but until recently San Diego was unable to score enough runs to jeopardize even the slightest advantage earned by their opponents. Now that they have regained their posture and fire on all cylinders, the Dodgers need to squeeze every single drop from Clayton if they are to avoid the sweep. The promising starting pitcher will be opposed by Tyson Ross who lost his only start so far and has conceded an average of five runs per game.

As far as punters are concerned, this game doesn’t provide them with too many betting opportunities as the hosts are greatly underpriced. Backing the Dodgers to win will lead to insignificant profits, while counting on them to cover the 1.5 runs handicap is a bit risky and not worth it at odds below evens. The total runs market is equally unattractive, because the Padres are scoring the high number of points but they oppose a stellar pitcher. On the other hand, the Dodgers are struggling to score and they will rely heavily on Clayton Cashel to carry them tonight.

LA will have to stay competitive and offer their best starting pitcher an amount that will revolve around these values, something that nobody anticipated a few weeks ago. Time is quickly running out and with the start of the regular season around the corner, the Dodgers need to act fast and decisive. By now it is obvious that Clayton Kershaw will earn considerably more than his $11 million he made in 2012 but the picture was reluctant to speculate. He will receive the same amount this season, but the Dodgers need to think ahead and make sure that they don’t act too late.

Rumors state that Clayton will receive an offer that would be very similar to the one that Verlander accepted a few days ago, although the $200 million threshold is not going to be surpassed. So far nobody wants to speak numbers and the Dodgers are every bit as secretive as their star pitcher, but what is certain is that negotiations are progressing. Elsewhere, prominent features such as Johan Santana signed for their current clubs and the New York Mets hope that the $137 million they paid for him will be worth it.

LA had its fair share of disappointments and not all the contracts turned out the way the team expected them to go but fortunately for them money is not of the essence. What the Dodgers need is to win the World Series after a lengthy drought and they are willing to pay serious cash to make that happen. Clayton Kershaw is second to none and many think that he is yet to tap into his huge potential and become the next Cliff Lee. Right now, LA they can do nothing more than make him an offer that he can’t refuse and hope that the return on investment will be significant. Check out what LA Times has to say about this looming contract http://www.latimes.com/sports/sportsnow/la-sp-dn-clayton-kershaw-dodgers-justin-verlander-20130329,0,1059629.story.

The match was played at Marlins Park in front on a sold-out stadium and the crowd was ecstatic, something that hasn’t happened in recent editions of the World Baseball Classic. This is great news for a competition that many MLB manager is regard as nothing more than an unnecessary distraction from their spring training. To some extent they are right because many players leave their clubs to play for their countries, which places a huge burden on the managers trying to set up a competitive team.

On the other hand, the event has the full backing of Major League Baseball officials and nobody can afford to strip players of the opportunity to represent their countries. The Dominicans were more passionate about the games and as their country advanced towards the final stage, their enthusiasm grew. A pleasant surprise came from the Americans who no longer treated the competition as irrelevant simply because there are no high paychecks associated to it.

David Wright is perhaps the most iconic player that Team USA had on the pitch these weeks and it was quite a shame that he failed to play the most important match of the tournament. A lingering rib cage pain kept him off the pitch as the Mets were reluctant to risk aggravating the injury and Joe Torre decided not to mess up with his career. For David, this was an event of extraordinary magnitude and he gave his best in each of the games he played, which explains why the audience was so disappointed.

Assuming the nickname of “Captain America”, he honorably led his teammates just a step from winning the WBC, but without him the team fell apart. Now the New York Mets are more concerned about his fitness and hope that the examination will show no reasons to worry, with the regular season set to begin in two weeks. The Dominicans were the better team and the small country has every reason to be proud of the ways players performed in Miami, and look forward for the next World Baseball Classic.

The cash-strapped LA Angels are not going to confirm his theory and instead of offering him a much better deal, Mike Trout would only receive a salary of $510,000 in 2013. Given that this amount is only $20,000 more than the minimum salary paid in MLB, it comes as no surprise that the baseball player and his manager are discontent. While Mike is unwilling to express his frustration with the deal he received, his agent dismissed the contract as insulting and ridiculously low.

As for Trout, he reconfirms his enthusiasm for being a part of the LA Angels and says that money is not the most important thing in the equation. He led the MLB with 129 runs and was only one step away from stealing the MVP award, but this was not enough for the Angels to boost his contract. LA has finalized contracts for more than 20 players this week and all of these salaries revolves around the value of half $1 million. It is Mark Trumbo who got the best deal, although $540,000 is hardly a jackpot for another promising player.

Many rookies do the mistake of comparing their salaries to those of vastly experienced players who performed similarly well in the previous year. If we are to consider the amounts made by their peers, it is crystal clear that Bryce Harper is the one that will make the most money although $750,000 is only a tiny amount if compared to what some of the most prominent players make. As if the unsatisfying salary wasn’t enough, Trout was informed that he will play in left field although he prefers center field.

Some claim that the Yankees star has gained a lot of weight and he is not in the best form, but with more than a month until the regular season kicks off he has plenty of time to rebound. The Yankees are going to start the new season with a very difficult series against archrivals Boston, and they will need to field the best possible team to win. For the time being Derek Jeter is kept mostly on the bench and he only runs on the treadmill but the specialists claim that he will be able to start in early April.

There are some bad news as well, as some rumors state that Derek Jeter is also suffering from a stress fracture which could result in a new injury if not handled properly. Some speculate that if he would’ve been kept on the bench in late September when the first signs of injury appeared, he wouldn’t have suffered from the broken ankle and could’ve powered the Yankees into the finals. The recovery window is narrow and constantly shrinking, so unless Derek stops limping before April 1, the New Yorkers will be pit against a difficult decision.

Another reason of concern is Jeter’s age, because at 39 years he is no longer in his prime and any injury can have devastating consequences. He needs to be careful but at the same time must play his best as a shortstop so he won’t turn from an asset into a liability. The Yankees need him on the pitch so even if the is not 100% recovered, we shouldn’t be surprised to see their inspirational captain playing this spring.

This explains why the management is so keen on signing players that have proven their ability of containing their opponents when at best. Jhoulis Chacin is the latest addition to their roster, but it took the Rockies a lot of time to finally reach an agreement with the starting pitcher. He was reluctant to accept a one-year contract, and eventually got what he wanted, as Colorado offered $6.5 million over two years.

Jhoulis Chacin was subject to arbitration and several rounds of negotiations were carried out, because the Rockies were unwilling to pay the amount he initially requested. They had good reasons to have second thoughts, because the starting pitcher missed for three months last season after suffering from a right shoulder inflammation. His earned run average is not stellar, but still better than Colorado’s ERA, which means that this acquisition should push the team forward. The agreement is still subject to Jhoulis Chacin undergoing a physical, but it is very likely for the deal to be made.

This is exactly what eventually happened, with Boston taking the safe road and only signing a one-year contract worth $9 million. He made 1 million less in 2011, but for a player who was on the bench for the entire first half of the season except for 13 days in April, it was not a bad deal at all. He did a great job when he returned in the rotation in July 13 and this is perhaps the reason for why the Red Sox chose to give him another chance. Despite their impressive budget for transfers, Boston needs to make the right choices because another meltdown similar to the one in 2012 can’t happen.

Among the other players that the Red Sox have signed these months, it is worth mentioning Andrew Bailey, Daniel Bard, Andrew Mueller, Franklin Morales and John Hanrahan. Craig Breslow is still eligible for salary arbitration but although he is without a deal right now, rumors give him as the next signing for Boston. With these new players and a new manager replacing Bobby Valentine, the Red Sox need to achieve a playoffs berth in 2013 if they are to appease both the management and the fans.

Despite the fact that Luis Valbuena made a bit over half of this amount in 2012, many expected him to request a larger sum for extending his contract with the struggling Cubs. After mediocre seasons with Cleveland, he’s obviously on the mend and is exactly the kind of acquisition that Chicago needs to break out of its funk. Another three players that the Cubs are hoping to keep are Matt Garza, Jeff Samardzija and James Russell, which are all eligible for arbitration.

Milwaukee took a leap of faith by signing Chris Narveson for a $840,000, given the fact that he suffered a season-ending surgery back in April after only playing two games. Despite the fact that he only played two games in 2012 he earned half $1 million and the Brewers can only hope that the season they would receive more in exchange of the money they paid the starting pitcher. They’re also giving Kelvim Escobar a chance to prove his worth in the minor leagues, even though he is 36 years old and has only one MLB game in hand over the course of four years.

The slugger played for Japanese clubs as well, which explains why he chose to conduct the news conference announcing his retirement exclusively in Japanese. He said that the Yankees remain his favorite club but since there is no way of returning to his winning ways, he prefers not to extend the agony and quit baseball for good. He was an immensely popular player in Japan by the time he signed a contract with New York, and he is much appreciated by the American audience as well.

Hideki Matsui was one of the most constant players the New York Yankees had and his uncanny ability of performing at the highest level under stressful conditions, recommended him as a great choice for World Series games. He was an All-Star player twice but the injury suffered in 2006 was the turning point in his impressive career. It is uncertain what the former slugger will do right now, and it is quite possible for him to take a job that is intimately linked with the baseball world.