Not A Prospect Yet (But Worth Watching): Daniel Camarena

(Courtesy of Perfect Game.org)

If you're a left-handed starting pitcher, you're automatically going to get more attention as a young draft pick/prospect than your right-handed counterparts.  It's why I included Vidal Nuno in this year's AB4AR Top 30 over guys like Jose Ramirez and Branden Pinder, and why Matt Tracy was the focus of the first "Not A Prospect Yet" post this week.  Daniel Camarena, despite not making any kind of noise in this year's Top 30, is an even more intriguing potential prospect than Nuno or Tracy because of his status as a young, high school pitcher.  Camarena is fresh off his 20th birthday in November, and even with an extremely small 2012 sample size to evaluate, is the type of pitcher who could quickly make his way onto next year's Top 30.

Thoughts On The Arbitration Avoidance Contracts

The Yankees and D-Rob each submitted their arbitration salary figures yesterday, starting what could be the only arbitration situation New York enters this offseason.  Their other 3 remaining arbitration-eligible players all signed 1-year deals this week, the final ones they'll sign before all 3 become free agents next offseason.  How do all those deals look?  Glad you asked.

Joba Chamberlain- 1 year/$1.875 million.  Good for Joba getting a raise after 2 straight injury-shortened season, and given his tenure and likely status as the pitcher next in line behind D-Rob for the setup role with Soriano gone, I think it's a fair deal.

Boone Logan- 1 year/$3.15 million.  A significant hike from the $1.875 he made in 2012, but understandable given the very good body of work he's had in a Yankee uniform and the importance the LOOGY role has taken on in the past few seasons.  A jump to over $3 mil in his final arb year should set Logan up nicely for life on the open market in 2014, and I think now the Yanks are much more likely to let him walk than try to bring him back on a multi-year deal for that kind of money.

Phil Hughes- 1 year/$7.15 million.  I'm a little surprised this number was so high for Hughes.  He had 1 slightly above-average year as a starter at league minimum in 2010, 1 below-average year at $2.7 mil in 2011, and another slightly above-average year at $3.2 mil in 2012.  I said I thought Hughes was going to be valuable as the only under-30 starting pitcher on the market next offseason, and the Yankees may have just helped usher him out the door with this $7+ mil deal.  If Hughes pitches better than he did in 2012 this season, he's going to be looking at offers of $10 mil per easily.