Hot Stove: 1/14

Record of the Day

Most career wins by a Cub: Charlie Root, 201 (1926-1941).  

Root is best remembered as the pitcher who gave up Babe Ruth's "Called Shot" in the 1932 World Series, but the Ohio native pitched in 632 games (605 of which were for the Cubs) over his 18-year career, playing 17 of those for Chicago. He won 201 games in that span, all of which were for the Cubs, pitching to a 201-156 record in Chicago. He set a career high with 26 wins in 1927, finishing 26-15 with a 3.76 ERA in 48 games (36 starts). His best year came in 1933, the year after the '32 called shot, where he was 15-10 with a 2.60 ERA in 35 games (30 starts). Root won at least 15 games eight times, at least 17 four times.

Free Agent Signings

Yankees agreed to terms with Hiroki Kuroda (13-16, 3.07 ERA, .254 BAA, 2012 age: 37) on a one-year, $10 million deal.

Cubs resigned Kerry Wood (3-5, 3.35 ERA, .236 BAA, 1 save, 2012 age: 35) to a one-year, $3 million deal.

Rays signed Luke Scott (9 HR, 22 RBI, .220 AVG, 1 SB, 2012 age: 33-34) to a one-year, $5 million deal.

Braves resigned Jack Wilson (0 HR, 11 RBI, .243 AVG, 5 SB, 2012 age: 34) to a one-year, $1 million deal.

Mets signed Ronny Cedeno (2 HR, 32 RBI, .249 AVG, 2 SB, 2012 age: 29) to a one-year, $1 million deal.

Hiroki Kuroda gives the Yankees much needed pitching depth and should sit right behind ace C.C. Sabathia in the rotation. Kuroda, who has pitched four years in the majors since coming over from Japan, has seen increasing success despite his bad win-loss records. The Osaka native came over in 2008 and posted a 9-10 record with a respectable 3.73 ERA in 31 starts. Missing time in 2009 to injury, Kuroda still managed to go 8-7 with a 3.76 ERA in 21 games (20 starts). It would be his only winning season for Los Angeles. He broke out in 2010 with his best year yet, going 11-13 but with a 3.39 ERA and .243 BAA in 31 starts. Last year was his best, as he was 13-16 with a 3.07 ERA in 32 starts for the Dodgers. He set career bests in wins, ERA, starts, innings (202), and K's (161). Over his four-year career, Kuroda is 41-46 with a 3.45 ERA in 115 games (114 starts).  

After pursuing Scott since the 2010 trade deadline, the Rays finally have him. Already from northern Florida, Scott is coming home as he has already played in places such as Houston ('05-'07) and Baltimore ('08-'11). Scott broke out in 2006 for the Astros, hitting 10 home runs and batting .336 in just 65 games, leading Houston to believe it had a gem. Though his ability to hit for a high average never returned, his power flourished in the coming years. In his final year with Houston in 2007, Scott hit 18 home runs and batted .255 in 132 games. He was traded to Baltimore in the Miguel Tejada trade and immediately entrenched himself in the middle of the order by hitting 23 home runs and batting .257 in 148 games in 2008. Scott pushed his home run total up to 25 in 2009 while also setting a career high with 77 RBI and batting .258. 2010 would be his best season and mark the sixth straight year that he raised his home run total. In 131 games, he hit 27 home runs, knocked in 72, and batted .284 for Baltimore. He struggled to stay healthy in 2011 and wound up with just nine home runs and a .220 average while playing in just 64 games. Over his seven-year career, he hit 112 home runs and batted .264 with 11 stolen bases in 702 games. Some interesting facts about his small hometown of DeLand, Florida: It is also home to Braves great Chipper Jones, it was the first town in Florida to have electricity, and for those who watched Adam Sandler's Waterboy, scenes at South Central Louisiana University were filmed at Stetson University in DeLand.  

Other News

The Yankees and Mariners are close to a four-player deal that includes Jesus Montero and Michael Pineda.

Rays designated Nevin Ashley for assignment. This means they have 10 days to trade, demote or release him.

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Teams followed in this update: Boston Red Sox, Washington Nationals, New York Yankees, Chicago Cubs, Tampa Bay Rays, Los Angeles Dodgers, Philadelphia Phillies, Atlanta Braves

If your team is not included, please leave a comment.

HR: home runs. RBI: runs batted in. AVG: batting average. SB: stolen bases. ERA: earned run average. BAA: batting average against. K's: strikeouts. WPCT: winning percentage

Zack Silverman