Tom Tango, December 5, 2008:

Follow me here: Pedroia, as a free agent, would have commanded a 6/137 deal. Under the slave/arb rules, he would have commanded a 6/86 deal, going year-by-year (on average, including the chance of injury). He locks himself in to a 6/40.5 deal.

When players sign for 30 cents on the free market dollar, that’s something that smart teams will leverage like crazy.

Toronto Star, March 20, 2010:

Tom Tango, one of the Toronto Blue Jays’ latest acquisitions, won’t be pitching, catching or hitting for the club this season.

But he will play a key role in helping management decide which players will execute those functions and how they’ll do it.

The former Montrealer is a self-taught expert in the science of baseball statistics (referred to as sabermetrics), which is gaining authoritative influence in front offices and on the field.

You can forget about divining any Jays-specific intelligence from Tango. His contract with the club includes a “non-disclosure agreement” forbidding such things, says the shadowy Tango, who operates quietly behind the club curtain.

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