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Health & Fitness

Hot Stove: 12/18

Huge trade between the Reds and Padres. Five players switch sides. Find out who in today's update.

Record of the Day

Most games played by a Cuban born player: Tony Perez, 2,777 (1964-1986). 

The Ciego de Avila, Cuba native, Tony Perez, played in almost 3,000 games for the Reds (1964-1976, 1984-1986), Expos (1977-1979), Red Sox (1980-1982), and Phillies (1983), hitting 379 home runs and collecting seven All Star appearances over his 23 year career. He played in more than 155 games six times from 1967-1974, reaching 160 games in back to back years from 1968-1969.

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Free Agent Signings

Phillies agreed to terms to bring back Jimmy Rollins (16 HR, 63 RBI, .268 AVG, 30 SB, 2012 age: 33) on a three-year, $33 million contract ($11 million per season).

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Giants resigned Eli Whiteside (4 HR, 17 RBI, .197 AVG, 2 SB, 2012 age: 32) to a minor league deal.

Marlins signed Nick Green (missed 2011 season, 16 career HR, .237 AVG, 2012 age: 33) to a minor league deal.

Phillies fans can exhale. Twelve-year Phillie Jimmy Rollins has agreed to a deal to bring him back to Philly until at least 2014. The 5'8" shortstop has spent his entire career with the Phillies, collecting three Gold Gloves, a Silver Slugger, three All Star appearances, an MVP, and most importantly, a World Series championship. His best season came in 2007 as a 28-year-old, as he hit 30 home runs, knocked in 94 runs, batted .296, stole 41 bases, tripled 20 times, scored 139 runs, and had 212 hits in an all-time record 716 at bats in 162 games en route to his MVP award. Though he has never matched those numbers, he has long been a catalyst for the Phillies, scoring at least 115 runs in four straight seasons from 2004-2007. Since his first full year in 2001, he has averaged over 97 runs per season, totaling 1,080, including five in 2000. Over his 12-year career, he hit 170 home runs, batted .272, stole 373 bases, and scored 1,080 runs in 1,636 games over 12 years in the City of Brotherly Love.

Trades
Padres traded Mat Latos (9-14, 3.47 ERA, .233 AVG, 2012 age: 24) to the Redsfor Yonder Alonso (5 HR, 15 RBI, .330 AVG, 0 SB, 2012 age: 25), Edinson Volquez (5-7, 5.71 ERA, .259 BAA, 2012 age: 28-29), and minor leaguers Yasmani Grandal (14 HR, 68 RBI, .305 AVG, 0 SB at High Class A, AA, and AAA, 2012 age: 23) and Brad Boxberger (2-4, 2.03 ERA, .152 BAA, 11 saves at AA Carolina and AAA Louisville, 2012 age: 24).

Complicated trade. A lot to take in. To sum it up, the Padres traded their young ace, Mat Latos, to the Reds for Edinson Volquez and three top prospects. In my opinion, San Diego win this trade. Mat Latos is a prized young gun, but the two Havana natives, Alonso and Grandal, both have high potential and Boxberger is a future back end reliever. Volquez's prime is behind him, back when he took steroids. Focusing on Mat Latos, he has the potential to be a league ace, already having a couple of stellar seasons under his belt before his 24th birthday. San Diego called up the Alexandria native in 2009 at 21 years old after he absolutely dominated the minors with an 8-1 record, 1.37 ERA, and .168 BAA, and he performed up to par, going 4-5 with a 4.62 in 10 starts for the Friars. He saw his best season the next year, at just 22, going 14-10 with a 2.92 ERA and .217 BAA in 31 starts. He tapered off a bit last season, but still went 9-14 with a 3.47 ERA and .233 BAA in 31 starts. In three years in SoCal, he was 27-29 with a 3.37 ERA and .226 BAA in 72 starts.

Cincinnati's haul didn't really center around any one player, but Edinson Volquez was the only the only veteran of the group. Traded for Josh Hamilton after the 2007 season, his career took off with the Reds, as he was 17-6 with a 3.21 ERA through 33 games (32 starts) in his first season there in 2008. He was especially dominant on the road, going 9-3 with a 2.43 ERA on the road away from the hitters' park that is Great American Ballpark. The Dominican had to have Tommy John surgery just nine starts into 2009, where he was 4-2 with a 4.35 ERA. While on the DL, he was found guilty of PED (Performance Enhancing Drugs) usage, and was forced to serve 50-game suspension. He was lucky enough to get to serve the suspension while on the DL, so he didn't have to miss any games. Once back in 2010, he was 4-3 with a 4.31 ERA in 12 starts. He saw his worst season in 2011, going just 5-7 with a 5.71 ERA in 20 starts. Over his seven-year career, he was 33-29 with a 4.65 ERA in 94 games (90 starts) for the Rangers and Reds. If he can regain his 2008 form, Volquez could lead the San Diego staff. 

The Padres also acquired a couple of Havana, Cuba natives, one of which has already played 69 games in the major leagues. Mainly a pinch hitter in that span, Yonder Alonso has batted .299 with five home runs. Most of his production came in 2011, when he hit all five of home runs and batted .330 in 47 games. Just 24, he is regarded as a high end prospect. Yasmani Grandal is a professionally inexperienced catcher who was drafted 12th overall in the 2010 draft by the Reds. In just 113 games since then, he has jumped all the way from the AZL to High Class A to AA and AAA. Last year, he hit 14 home runs and batted .305 across three minor league levels. He is now considered San Diego's catcher of the future. 

The last player that the Padres received is 23-year-old Brad Boxberger, a 2009 draft pick. Boxberger pitched well at Class A Lynchberg in 2010, going 4-6 with a 3.19 ERA in 14 games (13 starts). He could not adjust to the level of play at AA Carolina, posting an 8.49 ERA in 22 appearances. He turned that all around in 2011, starting off with Carolina and posting a 1.31 ERA and .139 BAA in 30 appearances. He was promoted to AAA Louisville, where he posted a 2.93 ERA and a .167 BAA in 25 appearances. He will try to breach the San Diego bullpen in 2012.

Other News

The Brewers won the bidding for exclusive negotiating rights with Japanese outfielder Norichika Aoki. Aoki is a contact hitter with minor power. Resembles Ichiro.

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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

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