The 35 Year Old And Over Team

If I've learned anything from blogging, it's that people love lists. So I'm going to run out some lineups that fall in line with the arbitrary parameters that I have set. Yesterday we looked at the 25-year-old and younger team. Today's lineup consists of players who are 35-years-old or older by April 1st, 2011. The 2011 forecasts are courtesy of Bill James. Now, allow me to present to you the 2011 New York Yankees.

Catcher - Jorge Posada 8/17/1971
2010: 18 HR, .248/.357/.454, .357 wOBA, 2.4 WAR
2011: 16 HR, .260/.363/.454, .375 wOBA

Posada only started 78 games behind the dish in 2010 and will see considerably less time there in 2011 with the signing of Russell Martin and prospect Jesus Montero's already ready bat for the bigs. But my other choices were Rod Barajas and Bengie Molina. And I'd rather play one of those catch screens over Molina both for defense and offense. And base running.

First Base - Paul Konerko 3/5/1976
2010: 39 HR, .312/.393/.548, .425 wOBA, 4.2 WAR
2011: 32 HR, .273/.361/.496, .372 wOBA

Konerko turns 35 just before this season starts and turned in the second best season (per WAR) of his career in 2010. Konerko parlayed that season into a fresh 3-year, $37.5 million contract with the White Sox. I don't have a joke about the White Sox captain so I suggest you follow @OneyGullien for a good laugh.

Had Konerko not barely qualified, Derek Lee would have made the list since we share a birthday. Also born on September 6th, porn star Raven Riley.

Second Base - Adam Kennedy 1/10/1976
2010: 3 HR, .249/.327/.327, .303 wOBA, 1.0 WAR
2011: 4 HR, .264/.334/.354, .307 wOBA

Bill James might be a little generous with his projection here considering Kennedy only signed a minor league contract with the Mariners this off-season. I'll give Kennedy the nod here unless Joe Morgan is looking to fill his newly acquired free time. Kennedy ended up as the everyday second bagger in Washington after the Nats traded Christian Guzman to Texas before the deadline. He would flail away to that .303 wOBA which only Brandon Wood was in awe of.

Others receiving votes include Omar Vizquel (from The Golden Sombrero) and Tony Lazzeri (from our own Derwood). Lazzeri hit .273/.361/.417 in 1935 and I'm starting to think Derwood didn't understand the question.

Short Stop - Derek Jeter 6/26/1974
2009: 18 HR, .334/.406/.465, .390 wOBA, 7.1 WAR
2010: 10 HR, .270/.340/.370, .320 wOBA, 2.5 WAR
2011: 13 HR, .295/.365/.410, .344 wOBA

Jeter followed the second best season of his career in 2009 with his worst season in 2010. That earned him a new 3-year deal worth $51 million. Jeter will make roughly around $33 million more than Evan Longoria will make over the 6-year deal he signed in 2008. That seems just.

If you think I come off as a little bitter towards Jeter for no apparent reason, I present Exhibit A, B and C. I hate that guy.

Third Base - Alex Rodriguez 7/27/1975
2010: 30 HR, .270/.341/.506, .363 wOBA, 3.9 WAR
2011: 35 HR, .284/.381/.530, .393 wOBA

I assume you've heard of A-Rod by now. He's a pretty good baseball player when he's not yelling at cameramen for filming him eating popcorn at the Super Bowl.

The over 35-year-old third base club is pretty impressive with Chipper Jones and Scott Rolen rounding out this particular Hall of Fame bunch.

Right Field - Ichiro 10/22/1973
2010: 6 HR, 42 SB, .315/.359/.394, .338 wOBA, 4.8 WAR
2011: 7 HR, 30 SB, .316/.361/.391, .339 wOBA

Ichiro isn't showing any signs of slowing down as a 37-year-old and, compared to the other outfielders on this list, can still field his position.

Center Field - Torii Hunter 7/18/1973
2010: 23 HR, .281/.354/.464, .350 wOBA, 3.5 WAR
2011: 23 HR, .272/.340/.457, .346 wOBA

Hunter started 97 games in center in 2010 before being jettisoned to right field for Peter Bourjos' plus glove. Hunter could still man center if push came to shove but the Angels crapped on common sense by trading for Vernon Wells who would probably get the first shot at center if Bourjos' bat doesn't play.

Left Field - Manny Ramirez 5/30/1972
2010: 9 HR, .298/.409/.460, .382 wOBA, 1.6 WAR
2011: 23 HR, .290/.401/.503, .393 wOBA

Manny only played 46 games in left for the Dodgers in 2010 and will spend most of his time as the designated hitter for the Rays in 2011. But I'd rather deal with his drunken-hobo wandering in the outfield to get his bat in the lineup compared to whatever it is that Bobby Abreu does nowadays.

DH - Jim Thome 8/27/1970
2010: 25 HR, .283/.412/.627, .437 wOBA, 3.6 WAR
2011: 17 HR, .245/.384/.498, .384 wOBA

Every time I look up Thome's career stats, I'm stunned. This guy seems to have hit the quietest 589 home runs, .278 AVG, .404 OBP, .559 SLG, .407 wOBA and 73.5 WAR in baseball history.

My boy Vladimir Guerrero is the other option here but despite his resurgent 2010, he's still crippled from the waist down from playing on the painted concrete in Montreal.

Staff Ace - Chris Carpenter 4/27/1975
2010: 3.22 ERA, 3.69 FIP, 3.84 xFIP, 3.7 WAR
2011: 3.06 ERA, 3.27 FIP

Carpenter missed most of 2002 and then almost all (if not all) of 2003, 2007 and 2008. But when he is pitching, he's been fantastic. Carpenter would have been my pick here even if Andy Pettitte didn't retire. But I was really tempted to put Pettitte here and Scott Brosius at third and Chuck Knoblauch at second.

Closer - Mariano Rivera 11/29/1969
2010: 1.80 ERA, 2.81 FIP, 3.65 xFIP, 1.7 WAR
2011: 1.89 ERA, 2.52 FIP

At this point, I'm convinced that Mo Rivera will outlive us all and still be closing for the Yankees in the 2132 Galactic World Series. Strangely enough, Barry Bonds and Ted Williams' frozen head are also on that Yankee team.

Manny Jettisoned From Mannywood

The Dodgers have agreed to send Manny Ramirez to the White Sox for a player to be named later or not. From what I understand, the Dodgers might kick in some cash to cover the $3.825 million due to Manny over the remainder of the season to receive a prospect in return or they might just allow Manny to go to Chicago on a straight waiver claim. John Heyman (via Twitter) seems to think the latter is the more likely outcome. This appears to be the Dodgers waiving the white flag on the season as they are 10 games back of division leading San Diego. What a bunch of jerks San Diego is with all of their perfect weather and winning record.

Manny is in the stretch drive of a 2-year, $45 million contract. When healthy, Manny is still among the best hitters in the league with a .311/.405/.510 line. Unfortunately, playing in the National League forced him to strap on the leather and attempt to field. UZR/150 has him at his usual comical rate of -19.1 but he shouldn't have to play much outfield in Chicago.

This is the typical bold move Kenny Williams makes for the White Sox as they make their push for the playoffs. Last year Williams traded for Jake Peavy's massive contract on the wrong side of his production level. Peavy had season-ending surgery in July. Williams made a similar waiver claim last year picking up Alex Rios' ridiculous contract. The Rios deal doesn't look as insane this year. He's hitting .288/.335/.463 and his 2.9 WAR makes him worth around $11.7 million compared to the $10.2 million he's making. Of course, that contract just gets worse over the next four years so the jury is still out on that one.

Manny will be a free agent at the end of the year and is usually at his best behavior when he first arrives to a new team. This should be a good move for the White Sox as they're only 4.5 games back from the Twins. If they're only just picking up the remaining salary, the deal looks even better.