Before the baseball season starts, and you begin scrambling to make up for your injured and inadequate players, come on down to Sapphire Tom’s Fantasy Pawn $ Exchange. We’re taking the league’s worst players and turning them into GREAT VALUES for you! We’ve got a player to suit any need, and cheap!
Here’s a sneak preview on some of our inventory for the 2013 MLB season, and don’t forget to check back each week for hot new deals and weekly specials! Enjoy!
2013 Inventory Preview
Brandon Inge (PIT – IF) It’s amazing someone is taking a chance on Inge, given his struggles last year, the year before that, and all of the other years before that. Inge managed one good offensive season in baseball. In 2004, he hit .284 with 15 HR and 64 RBI. Since then, he’s mostly been a nuisance. Last year, the Tigers let him go after he showed he couldn’t hit anymore. The A’s picked him up, and he had a nice stint in Oakland that lasted about two weeks. Now, he’s swinging away in Pirates spring-training facilities, hoping to revive a career that wasn’t very good to begin with. If the look on his face in his first picture with the Pirates is any indication of where Inge is psychologically, he won’t be around very long in the 2013 season. I suggest buying Inge now, worry about the consequences later. You have to spend money to make money.
Carlos Pena (HOU – 1B) What are the Astros supposed to do? They can’t field an entire team of minor-leaguers. Instead, they will field a team of mostly minor-leaguers, Jose Altuve and Carlos Pena. The Astros front office knew they needed a veteran on the infield or they wouldn’t be taken seriously at all. Unluckily for them, they still won’t be taken seriously at all. Pena’s numbers aren’t worth mentioning here. What I can tell you is that he will hit some home runs, and bat somewhere well below the Mendoza line (.225). Take it or leave it.
Jemile Weeks (OAK – 2B) Somehow, Weeks was still on the A’s roster at the end of the 2012 season. Weeks nearly lost the the Triple Crown last year, batting .221 with 20 RBI and 2 HR. Keep in mind, he had enough at-bats to qualify for leaderboards. Reason number one for keeping him on the roster: he wasn’t bad in 2011. Reason number two: the A’s don’t have anybody else. Reason number three: I’m not sure if there is another reason. If I were Billy Beane, I might have endured the corpse of Brandon Inge at second base for the upcoming season. This is a Moneyball pick. He comes as-is, and if he is sent down to the minors, Sapphire Tom’s is not responsible for your loss.
Ricky Romero (TOR – SP) This is a real deal. This guy has all the luster of a superstar arm, and he comes at an incredibly low price. As my cousin Felipe often says at his sunglasses kiosk, “Almost Free!” Luckily for Romero, the pressure is off. He’s the Jays’ fifth starter this year. If he has another painful season, it will most likely go unnoticed with R.A. Dickey, Josh Johnson and Brandon Morrow filling out the rotation. Romero was the worst starting pitcher in baseball with a 5.77 ERA. If he struggles early, look for him to be moved to the bullpen, or to section 131 at the Canada-Dome or whatever they’re calling it now; rumor has it there is a need for a candied-almond vendor.
Ervin Santana (KC – SP) Santana gave up the most home runs last year (39), but for some reason, the Royals thought it would be wise to pay him $12MM to appear in their rotation (the other $1MM will be picked up by the Angels). There are no signs that his bloated ERA will come down in 2013, and if anything, he will provide photographers with plenty of shots of him sipping Gatorade on the bench after an early exit. Like Romero, you’d be a fool not to take advantage of this former All-Star’s incredibly low price.
Alfredo Aceves (BOS – RP) Rumors are that Aceves is already being a childish distraction in the Red Sox camp. This, however, says nothing about his ability (or inability) to get runners out. He was never a closer, (something Red Sox GM Ben Cherington found out the hard way), and his league-worst 8 blown saves in 2012 was just the cherry on top of the turd sundae he laid on Fenway Park. The mystery of where he will end up just makes Aceves an even better deal. He might close some games. He might be a middle reliever. Who knows, he might even get a start. Sapphire Tom’s doesn’t offer returns on on this pitcher.
Stay tuned for weekly updates! Baseball Season is right around the corner!
Other Amazing Deals – Check out these Lustrous Bargains!
Daisuke Matsuzaka (CLE – SP) In 2012, Dice-K went 1-7 with an 8.28 ERA.
Ubaldo Jimenez (CLE – SP) 19-30 over the last two seasons, with an ERA of 5.04
Luke Hochevar (KC – SP) 8-16, 5.73 ERA in 2012.
