The Republic of Sport

mindbodyspirit

mindbodyspirit's Comments

Posted Monday November 16, 2009, About: Reds may trade Phillips or Arroyo

The Reds learned last year that they still don't have anywhere close to a contending team, with 5 guys that got more than 90 starts hitting under .240 on the year. Though I fail to see how trading their ace and best all-around infielder could possibly make the Reds a better club in 2010, I've seen stranger things in baseball. Phillips would be a good fit for any number of teams, including the Cubs, Mets, Dodgers, and Nationals. Arroyo would be an even bigger enticement for the right club because the FA class of pitchers is so weak, and very few matched Arroyo's 220 innings of work in 2009 or his 15 wins (for a BAD team).

If Jocketty wants to clean up Bowden's mess and hit the "restart" button, he'd be wise to trade Arroyo, Phillips, Rolen, and Cordero now and develop a team over a 3-5 year plan. He could easily add 10-12 worthwhile prospects (including 2-3 "sure thing" kids) that way in fast order. If Uncle Walt isn't wanting to rebuild, he should fight tooth and nail NOT to trade any of those guys and fortify a decent core of guys with support... and add $5-10M to the payroll to add a legitimate RBI threat to the line-up, as wll as some solid depth behind the plate. The Reds aren't that far from being a .500 team, and will see some of their youngster s make steps in the right direction in 2010. If they want to be more than a .500 also-ran, I'd implore the Jock to hit the restart button and get in some kids with game.

Posted Monday November 16, 2009, About: Could M's sign Bay, Lackey?

If the Mariners were serious about trying to contend in the near future instaed of the long-term, signing (or trading for) 2 top-tier free-agents/players would be a smart move. Going after Lackey seems sound, though they don't have a prayer if the Yankees or Mets enter the fray of bidding (as they are expected to do). I think if Seattle were serious, they'd steer away from 1 dimensional guys (Bay, Matsui, Damon) and guys coming off of career years (Byrd, for one example). If they're thinking long-term, the Mariners would be shrewd to go after someone young enough to contribute long-term on both ends of the game. One name being bandied about is Granderson from the Tigers. He's only 28, a plus defender, has the rare combination of speed & power, and is an excellent clubhouse leader. Another guy to look for would be Brad Hawpe, who could be had for an attractive package of prospects, as the Rockies are looking to pare payroll and may be interested in going younger in one OF spot.

Regardless of who and how they go for an ace and an OF, they'd be wise to try to either re-sign Bedard or pursue Rich Harden to ink an incentive-based contract because they can both be an ace when healthy, and are certianly worth the risk if the M's are looking to fortify #3-4 in the rotation with a solid presence.

Bay is a poor defender and is going to be vastly overpaid in a weak FA market. He's going to give you 25 or so HR a year, true, but with liability of a glove in the field. In other words, he's a slightly more athetic version of Pat Burrell or Geoff Jenkins that's going to get Carlos Beltran money. The M's would be smart to pass and let Minaya or Epstein get saddled with another bad contract, opting to avoid the Sexson/Beltre albatross of the last several years. Holliday would be a beetr fit, as would a stop-gap contract with Vlad, Dye, or Cameron. If the M's push hard after Bay, they're only going to be able to blame themselves... and their GM will be able to start to count the days until he is replaced in 2011 due to continued mediocrity.

Posted Monday November 16, 2009, About: Giants don't want Winn

Randy Winn is certainly past his prime in terms of bat speed, but he's still got value as #4 OF. He's a switch~hitter, can play all 3 OF positions, and steal bases with an excellent rate of success. The Giants going toward youth is smart (did someone put Prozac in Sabean's Evian?), and Winn getting a change of scene would likely be good. Winn having only 2 HR in 2009 is an anomoly (only 40 extra-base hits total), and would probably hit better if given a full-time gig in 2010 (though doubtful to get the opportunity). A good fit for Winn could be with the Yankees, the Braves, the Nationals (who are FINALLY getting rid of Kearns), the Rangers (losing Byrd) or even the White Sox (losing Dyein all likelihood). Giving Winn the old heave ho could be better for the Giants and for Winn in the long run. I think at his age he'd be happier to be a role player on a winning team than a starter for a perrenial stinker (Pittsburgh, KC, Baltimore, etc.). I hope he gets a fair shake at playing time somewhere because I've heard he's a great clubhouse guy and a true professional.

Posted Thursday November 05, 2009, About: Cubs GM on hot seat

Jim Hendry has made some absolutely amazing moves as the Cubs GM. He brought in Grudzeilanek and Karros in exchance for a washed up Todd Hundley (!!), D. Lee for Choi Hee Sop, Aramis Ramirez for scraps, Rich Harden for scraps, and Nomar Garciaparra for scraps (Nomar's injuries could not have been foreseen). He's added good players when the team needed it, and he has improved the Cubs farm system since he began his tenure.

Has JH made some blunders? Of course! Most every one of his moves in the last off-season were BIG boo-boo's (Gathright, Miles, Bradley, Gregg, and Heilman were all underachievers in 2009). Were it not for the emergence of Randy Wells out of nowhere, the Cubs would have been the most expensive losing team not in New York.

Mr. Hendry has got to fortify the roster while shedding Bradley. Unlike many teams, the Cubs are strong and deep in young pitching. They have a lot of infield bench depth. The team is also (comparitively) young. Jim Hendry did not cause the simultaneous slumps of Bradley, Soriano, Soto, Miles, and Fontenot. He did not cause Aramis Ramirez to get injured. The Cubs were a VERY expensive underachiever in 2009, and Jim Hendry deserves scrutiny. His overall record as a GM also deserves a fair looking at, as well.

Posted Thursday November 05, 2009, About: Rangers interested in Bradley

First of all, Josh Hamilton turned his life around and is a top 5 CF. You Rangers fans should consider yourselves very, VERY lucky to have him. Compare his production to Beltran, Victorino, Hunter, Sizemore, and McLouth, and you should be extremely gracious about his being on your team. He's faced his drug problem and is living up to his billing when he was drafted. That comment above was just plain ignorant and malicious, clarly made by an IQ 90 trying to sound clever (and failing miserably).

The Rangers have had success with Bradley, and had very little trouble managing him. He put up his best numbers for the team, so a reunion isn't that far-fetched. If the Cubs agree to eat $4-5M per year on his remaining 2 years, he would be an excellent replacement at DH and 4th outfielder. In his off season in Wrigley, he still posted a reasonably high .OBP on the year. There has to be some return, though, so the Rangers would have to offer up something o some value for Jim Hendry to sign on. It's not a bad move for Texas is cash relief is part of the package. The Rangers, though sorely in need of a true ace, are also still hurting from their losses of Teixeira, Bradley, and DeRosa in the last few years. Add Byrd and Blaylock to that list in this off-season, and you've got a team sorely hurting for offense, as well.

Posted Tuesday November 03, 2009, About: Could Bulls lure Wade to Chicago?

Jermaine O'Neal may be past his prime and Richardson is no doubt a streaky player without a well-rounded NBA game, but they are still guys who can contribute. Richardson will give you nights of 15-20 pts, and Jermain O'Neal can still cive you games of 15 pts. 10 reb. if they are handled correctly. Wade has veterans around him, as well as some kidws with upside. The Heat are nobody's choice to contend this year: I don't blame that on O'Neal, Richardson, or Wade... I blame it on the Celtics' depth and the Cavs front 3. Even if the Heat gets the best out of all of their guys, nobody touches a healthy Celtics or Cavaliers team (except the reloaded Lakers).

Posted Tuesday November 03, 2009, About: Gaston wins Jays standoff

What Cito Gaston has been able to accomplish with his mix of tepid veterans (Overbay and Wells being the most tepid among them), youth, lack of speed, and lack of depth is actually pretty admirable. Riccardi was kept on for about 2 years too long, and the franchise will pay for that by aspiring to .500 for the next 2-3 years. Gaston is not as patient as some would like, he's a bit crusty, and he's takes no B S from his players. That doesn't make him a bad manager, anymore than the Jays payroll making them a bad team (or the Mets with their payroll a good team). Just the same, I think Gaston should spend the year developing kids, grooming a successor, and move into the front office. Clearly the Blue Jays front office has been lacking in real baseball people for quite some time.

Posted Tuesday November 03, 2009, About: Will Braves shop Lowe?

Gary Matthews Jr. is a weak-hitting centerfielder, not the corner OF RBI guy the Braves need for their line-up. The Angels were foolish to offer Matthews that contract (much like the Dodgers with Pierre in the same of-season), and now he's a very rich 4th OF. Matthews would be a 4th OF behind McLouth on the Braves depth chart... Lowe is more valuable to them. That trade would never, ever happen.

Posted Tuesday November 03, 2009, About: Hamels' comments surprise Phillies

Hamels is probably dealing with lack of overwhelming success for the first time as a baseball player. It's not like the kid has to be an egomaniac to have his confidence profoundly shaken... he's just human. If it goes to 7 games, I'd expect to see him on the mound and doing his best to win. There's a difference between dejected and quitting on you team (or yourself). He just needs to "climb back on the horse" before he becomes a head case. Promising careers have been extinguished by that sort of thing (ask Rich Hill and other of that ilk).

Posted Sunday November 01, 2009, About: Could Bulls lure Wade to Chicago?

LeBron and Wade aren't going anywhere. I don't care who writes what about it, neither guy is going to walk away from $30M guaranteed extra from their current clubs. Period.

Bosh, Boozer, and Johnson aren't likely to be offered maxed out dollars from their current clubs or on the FA market, so I would have to think one of these three will end up in a Bulls uniform. My bet is that it will be Johnson, since they're going to need his 20+ a game to make up for the loss of Gordon, and because Salmons is likely to exercise an option to be a FA himself. Having a starting 5 of Rose, Johnson, Noah, Thomas, and Deng would be young, fast, high-energy, and has the potential for scoring in clusters. As a life-long Bulls fan, I'd be more than happy with that. They've got an athletic young bench that has a lot of upside, as well as a few veterans to keep it all together. Johnson would be arguably the best fit, anyway, for this club.

Posted Sunday November 01, 2009, About: Will Braves shop Lowe?

If the Braves are serious about trying to move Lowe, they're going to have to eat some $$ (since they foolishly insisted on overpaying for him with minimal competition for his services). In his best days, Lowe was a very, very dependable #2-3 starter. Now that his best days are passing by, he's perhaps one of the 2-3 most expensive #4's in baseball (props to Barry Zito on winning that award now 3 years running!). My guess is that the Braves will eventually move him, but will have to eat around $4M each year on his remaining 2 years. I'd be willing to bet that the Mets, Red Sox, Orioles, and Giants will have an open mind to the notion of adding Lowe, but not in a straight trade alone.

Posted Sunday November 01, 2009, About: Cubs deny Bradley-for-Wells rumor

Since the league started testing for "vitamins" in earnest, Vernon Wells' power numbers and defensive prowess have made a sharp dip. He has 5 years left, HUGE money owed, and is widely viewed as in decline. This is not a player for Jim Hendry; however, Sabean hasn't met an overpriced veteran he didn't want. The Jays should be on the phone to San Francisco, not Wrigley!

Posted Sunday November 01, 2009, About: Damon to White Sox?

Johnny Damon is offensively still a significant player, but defensively he's a liability. The Yankees tried him at 1st base for a reason... If the White Sox seriously believe he's the best DH option for them, it's a solid move; however, if they're looking to replace Dye with Damon, Kenny's out of his mind. At least Dye can throw a baseball to the infield on the fly!

All of this is moot, anyway, because the Yankees are going to keep Damon. They need him in the #2 slot behind Jeter to make sure Jeter gets some good pitches. If the Yankees let anyone go, it will be Matsui (also a colossal defensive liability). For Matsui's salary alone, they can sign a defensively solid veteran OF back-up (like Reed Johnson) and add 2 veteran bullpen arms to take the pressure off of their kids for a year or two. Matsui is wholly expendable in the Bronx, but Damon isn't going anywhere.

Posted Tuesday October 13, 2009, About: Will Mets make play for Lackey?

Lackey will be the Angels #1 priority. If the Mets, Red Sox, Yankees, Dodgers, White Sox, and/or Giants throw their hat into the auction, then he could end up with the highest bidder. The Mets have need at 1b, LF, C, 2 bullpen slots (middle relief), bench utility with a bat, and at least one more starter. If the owners give Minaya the green light to offer Lackey $15-18M/yr. for 4- years, then anything's possible. The Mets don't have a heck of a lot of $$ coming off of the books, beyond Delgado's hefty salary, so I think adding Lackey AND addressing their other needs is not likely. I think the Mets could consider the off-season a success if they can ink Delgado to a 1 yr. contract, add Mark DeRosa, nab either Bengie Molina or Ramon Hernandez, and add any of a dozen #2-3 starters on a flooded market of mid-range guys with some upside. Anything on top of that would be gravy. Signing Lackey would have them starting someone like Tatis in LF full-time, another year of back-ups behind the plate, and have their bench still porous... doubt we'll see it. Then again, when has Minaya done the correct thing?!?

Posted Tuesday October 13, 2009, About: White Sox want Podsednik back

If they bring back Podsednik, it's because Kenny will be wanting his $$ to invest in the bullpen and a DH/RF. Podsednik is a can of worms because he's a below-average defender with a weak arm, no power, marginal baserunning skills (considering his speed) and tepid .OBP skills. So, unless he's hitting .300, his .OBP will be unacceptable for a lead-off guy (which is why he was available for the Sox to pick up when they got him). If they can add a power guy to replace Thome and either pick up Dye's option (or replace him with similar production), then signing Pods is a decent gamble; otherwise, it's a really poor exercise of judgement on Kenny's part.

Posted Tuesday October 13, 2009, About: Sheffield wants to retire as...

If he wants to sign with the Marlins, all he has to do is say 2 words and he'll be a Marlin: "Veterans' Minimum." I think THAT'S a long shot, but stranger things have happened in baseball.

Posted Tuesday October 13, 2009, About: Brewers won't shop Fielder

If the Brewers were to trade Prince Fielder, it would be the equivalent of acknowledging that they intend to use 2010 to rebuild. That would cost the Brew Crew tens of thousands of tickets and lots of viewership (advertising dollars). Look to see the large one traded in July when they are 10-12 games behind the Cubs and St. Louis. Their haul will be less in terms of player return, but it's about the dollars in MLB.

Posted Tuesday October 13, 2009, About: Where will Lackey land?

John Lackey is a top notch starter and would be an asset to ANY team, whoever eventually inks him for the big bucks. That said, the Cubs are likely not even going to consider throwing down a bid due to their other needs, their ownership change, and due to the financial realities of their back-loaded contracts & arbitration-eligible players that WILL be getting raises. The Cubs are rumored to be allowing Rich Harden to walk without an arbitration offer (denying them 2 picks), so I find the likelihood of their adding a starter to the mix of Zambrano, Dempster, Lilly, Wells (a legitimate ROTY candidate), and Goraelanny to be foolish speculation and rumor-mongering baseball punditry.

Posted Wednesday October 07, 2009, About: Giants in market for big bat

If the Giants are smart, they'll trade 3-5 solid prospects to the Marlins for Uugla and Hermida. Hermida and Uugla are still controlable for a few years and could be their LF/RF core for a pretty potent offense. Uugla is a butcher at 2nd, but would be a fine LF (if Soriano can do it, ANYONE can). For the Giants, they get younger and add power to their 25 man. For the Marlins, they'll get some more talented kids that Loria can auction off in 4-5 years when they become arbitration eligible (sigh). Sabean will likely go for veterans with one foot on the grazing pasture, but a trade for Uugla and Hermida would be the smart move.

Posted Wednesday October 07, 2009, About: Owner: Mets will be aggressive in free agency

The Mets have no choice but to be active players in free agency in this off-season. They need to add a solid LF, address 1st base (or re-sign Delgado), add 2 dependable arms to the pen, add at least one (preferrably 2) middle of the rotation starters, add a starting catcher that's not a platooner or a glorified bench back-up, and get a quality utility guy capable of filling in at 3rd, 1st, and/or the OF (Mark DeRosa would be an awesome grab for Minaya if he can sign him away from the Cardinals). The Mets have an incredible core in Reyes Wright, Beltran, & Rodriguez and as good of an ace as anyone in Santana. If Minaya can't put it together in this offseason, he should be sent packing. No team with that kind of payroll should finish as far back as the 2009 Mets, injuries or not. The 2009 club was built with zero room for injury and it cost them up to 25 wins as a result.

Posted Wednesday October 07, 2009, About: Marlins believe owner is unrealistic

Jeffrey Loria is a blight on the game and has been since he blew up his last WS team. He's fielding a team of Ramirez, Uugla, Pinto, Hermida, and a lot of AAA guys. He has kept one guy (Hanley Ramirez) since the blow up, allowing virtually every talented player he's had to leave via trade or free agency. He's an embarrassment to Florida, his fans (the handful left that he hasn't utterly alienated), and to professional baseball. He should be railroaded out of MLB by Selig and his Stooges. I would rather see Japanese or Korean baseball than a Loria team over the last 5 years.