Andrew Friedman Plays GM "Small Ball"

We have all heard the term "small ball" used in baseball for years, generally meaning is that of a team placing a premium on playing for one run in an inning rather than waiting for an extra-base hit or string of hits to impact a game.  The premise is that if a team that continues to win the battles (innings), it will ultimately lead to victory in the long-term (game).

This week the Rays officially signed four free agents, Johnny Damon, Manny Ramirez, Casey Kotchman & Felipe Lopez.  The combined salary of the four players last season was over $30 million,and in 2009 their combined salary was over $45 milion.  The Rays signed all four players for under $10 million, quite an accomplishment in its own right, but the Rays getting solid players for below market value is nothing new.  This is where the "small ball" comes into play.

The Rays signed one Type A, and two Type B free agents without the previous team receiving a single draft pick.  This off-season season the Rays have focused on gaining picks for the upcoming draft, and as has been noted many places they have picked up 12 additional picks in the top 90 picks in the 2011 draft.  With the season approaching and needing some veteran depth, the Rays could have signed players which would award compensation to their previous team, but the Rays instead signed players who were not offered arbitration (Damon, Manny, Kotchman) and signed Felipe Lopez to a minor league contract with incentives to be paid if he makes the ML team. 

The Lopez deal vividly illustrates the concept of "GM Small Ball" since Felipe's former team is a division rival, the Boston Red Sox.  In essence the Rays not only added the player, but also kept the Red Sox from receiving compensation for his Type B status.. Had any tean signed Lopez to a major league contract, the Sox would have gotten a sandwich pick between the first and second round, with the Rays moving down a spot in the draft.  So by signing him to a mnor league contract they kept the Red Sox from obtaining a pick and solidified their own spots in the top 90. And if Lopez helps the team at all this year it will have been an unknown masterpice of a move by Friedman and the front office. Not a front page story in many sports sections, but the type of GM Small Ball that teams must play to compete with high finance.