Since erstwhile Phillies closer Ryan Madson signed with the Reds earlier this month, coverage has focused primarily on the great bargain Cincinnati got, and secondarily on how dumb the Phils were to sign Jonathan Papelbon to an eight-figure deal soon after the free agent market opened for business. Lost in the argument over their respective contracts and the back-and-forth over Ruben Amaro’s learning curve in the GM chair are a couple simple facts: in terms of both performance and season-over-season consistency, Madson has a strong case as the greatest reliever in Phillies history, and he delivered the team astonishing value above and beyond what he was paid for in his eight seasons with the team. In fact, by one analysis at least, the Phillies could have doubled Madson’s compensation over that span and he still would have been a significant bargain.

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The Phillies and left-hander Cole Hamels agreed to a one-year, $15 million contract today, avoiding salary arbitration and kicking the can down the road on efforts to keep the homegrown 28 year old in Philadelphia beyond 2012. Per Todd Zolecki of MLB.com, the agreement was reached prior to the Phillies and Hamels' camp exchanging arbitration figures, something of a good sign that there's communication and a good faith meeting of the minds, which may bode well for future negotiations. Hamels earned $9.5 million in 2011.

Hamels is coming off the best season of his Major League career. His 2.79 ERA was eighth best in the National League, and his 4.41 strikeout-to-walk ratio was fifth. His 3.03 SIERA was also fifth in the league, behind only teammates Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee, Cy Young Award winning Clayton Kershaw, and former Cy Young winner Zack Greinke.

The agreement leaves only Hunter Pence and Wilson Valdez as the Phillies' outstanding arbitration cases.

ESPN's Jayson Stark reports that the Phillies have signed right-handed starting pitcher Joel Pineiro to a minor league contract, with an invitation to Spring Training. (FanShot from Trev223 here)

Pineiro, 33, pitched the last two season for the Angels and was awful in 2011 after a solid 2010. Under the tutelage of Cardinals pitching guru Dave Duncan, Pineiro posted a 15-12 record in 2009, with a 3.49 ERA, and a league-leading 1.1 walks per nine innings, despite only striking out 105 batters in 214 innings.

In all likelihood, this move is a hedge against injury to one of the current starting five of Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels, Joe Blanton, and Vance Worley. After Kyle Kendrick, next on the starting pitching depth chart is Austin Hyatt, who has underwhelmed scouts and the organization with his stuff despite terrific minor league numbers. There's upside to this move, and it's curious that Pineiro couldn't get a big league deal from someone, but hey, their loss is our (or Lehigh Valley's) gain.

Or maybe a trade is on the horizon? Hold me.

Joel Pineiro

#35 / Los Angeles Angels

Height: 6-1

Weight: 200

Born: Sep 25, 1978

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It began innocently enough. A so-so, ho-hum game tied through nine innings. "Oh, cool. Free baseball!" was your first thought. A few innings later, you're wondering if maybe they could speed it up. Once the game hits the 15th inning, you're beginning to regret not going to bed back in the 12th, because now you're committed. You're in it for the long haul. There's no going to bed until the game is over and someone has won, dammit. The next morning, exhausted and bleary, you wonder if you hallucinated the end of the game.

Everything about this game was epic. Its length (six hours and eleven minutes). Ryan Howard's game tying solo shot. Danys Baez pitching five scoreless innings. Carlos Ruiz at third base. Wilson Valdez pitching the 19th. There were also long stretches of epically boring baseball. Innings in which nothing would happen, just the sounds of two not-so-great relievers exceeding expectations and keeping the game scoreless for 5 innings.

Despite the fact that Raul Ibanez actually sacrificed home the winning run, this game will be remembered for Wilson Valdez's exciting and adorable turn on the mound. And it should be, because let's face facts, it was one of the coolest things to happen all year. But Danys Baez's turn on the mound shouldn't be overlooked. I expected nothing but disaster when he came into the game, but he proved me (and I'm assuming nearly everyone with a functioning brain) wrong. He tossed five shutout innings, allowing just one hit and one walk. It was unexpected to say the least, and one of the main reasons the Phillies eventually beat the Reds 5-4 in 19 innings.

That unbelievable outing from Baez was pretty much the last good thing he'd do in Philadelphia. His ERA was 3.33 after the 5/25 game, but would balloon to 6.25 by mid-July. He allowed at least one run in seven of his last ten appearances. He was designated for assignment on July 22, and released on August 1. I won't lie -- I was happy when he was let go. But now there will be one very good memory of his time with the Phillies. Yup, just the one.

Random Notes:

-- Seeing Chooch at third base was delightful. He made a heroic but ultimately unsuccessful run for a foul ball that nearly landed him in the seats, and he kept walking over to the mound to meet with Valdez and Sardinha. He was going to get Wilson through that inning if it was the last thing he'd ever do.

-- Also delightful? Seeing the Phillies watch Valdez from the dugout. You could tell that everyone thought it was a total riot.

-- Scott Franzke got hilariously bitchy as the night went on. When David Herndon came in during the 11th inning, this is what he said: "David Herndon, who by the way hasn't exactly pounded the strike zone this season, seven walks in 13 1/3..." I love it when Franzke gets feisty.

-- Regrettable Larry Anderson Quote of the Game: "I've never passed a bar."

It’s several days late, but I thought I'd do something here I've done elsewhere on the interwebs in my other life. I encourage you to join in and post your own below in the comments.

Here I’m going to give you four headlines for the upcoming year, all related to the Phillies. They fall in the bolded categories below.

Headline I’m most fearful of seeing in 2012: Cole Hamels Signs 5 Year, $100 Million Contract Extension; Suffers Dave Dravecky-esque Injury Hours Later

Headline I most want to see in 2012: Aging Phillies Roster Has Fewest Days Lost to Injury of All MLB Teams

Headline I most expect to see in 2012: Phillies Win NL East for Sixth Consecutive Year

Headline I least expect to see in 2012: New York Mets Challenge Phillies for First Place Down the Stretch

May all your Phillies dreams come true in 2012! (And all your Phillies nightmares be avoided!)

Happy New Year!