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Brewers Hope To Keep Cordero, Linebrink
A couple of high-priced pieces of Milwaukee's bullpen have reached free agency - Francisco Cordero and Scott Linebrink. According to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the Brewers will make an aggressive offer to Cordero and hope to retain Linebrink as well.
My hunch is that both players leave for greener pastures. Cordero seems likely to earn at least a four-year, $40MM deal. That's elite closer territory. Linebrink should be compensated in the three years, $15-18MM range. While backloading is possible, the Brewers would be looking at adding $15MM per year on average to keep this pair.
My back of the napkin math says the Crew has around $60MM committed for '08. Only Ben Sheets will make more than $10MM. The Brewers' Opening Day '07 payroll was about $71MM, so there is room in the budget for both Cordero and Linebrink. The team's core players are very good and very cheap. The time to strike in free agency is now, so I actually endorse some pricier bullpen/rotation signings to get the team over the hump next year. I might go after Cordero but let Linebrink go. The Brewers could take payroll to a mere $80MM and have the best team in the NL Central.
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I agree completely. Cordero's a top-notch closer, and they have no business letting him go when they can afford him. Linebrink isn't bad, but he shouldn't be a priority over Cordero.
Posted by: FineHamAbounds | October 04, 2007 at 12:10 PM
Linebrink will be an average reliever for the next three seasons. He'd be a terrible free agent signing for anybody.
Posted by: Teetz | October 04, 2007 at 12:36 PM
You really think Linebrink gets that much?
Posted by: jza1218 | October 04, 2007 at 01:04 PM
Baez gets $6MM a year, a guy like Dempster is around $5MM...Linebrink has to get at least $4MM.
Posted by: Tim Dierkes | October 04, 2007 at 01:39 PM
I think the brewers will be contending next season they should have won the NL Central this season if had not been for the bullpen that blew a major league high 25 something leads they need to make it a priority and should possibly go down the trade route for 2 relievers maybe qualls from the astros for capuano and trade maybe resign linebrink at a fair price and try dave bush as the closer..........
sheets
gallardo
suppan
villinueva
parra
a rotation with 3 young arms with lots of potential and 2 veterans one 3 time allstar and another with tons of postseason success
Posted by: RadioJoe | October 04, 2007 at 01:53 PM
I agree that they will pursue Cordero harder than Linebrink. I think that they will sign Cordero for about 4 yrs/38 mil, let Linebrink go, and potentially use their apparent SP surplus to fortify the 7th and 8th inning guys. They could also trade Bill Hall to a team that needs a SS to fortify the bullpen if they don't trade a SP.
Posted by: LuckoftheAmish | October 04, 2007 at 02:11 PM
I can see him getting $4 M, but I just don't see the $14-18 M personally. I just think that those were just bad contracts that those respective teams outbid themselves on.
Like, I think Baltimore HAD to overbid on players like Chad Bradford, Jamie Walker and Baez to convince them to sign with a team that was destined to fail.
I see Linebrink in the $3-4 M/yr rate myself
Posted by: jza1218 | October 04, 2007 at 02:24 PM
they should hold on to bill hall and move him to LF he is signed cheap and has potential he hit 35 home runs 2 years ago and maybe put tony gwynn in CF
weeks
hardy
fielder
braun
hart
estrada
hall
gwynn
not to shabby and I think hall will be a run producer next season and he is batting 7th................. this team has potential I hope they address their bullpen they should put in end to what year in and year out is the worst division in recent memory!!!!!!!
Posted by: RadioJoe | October 04, 2007 at 02:29 PM
Honestly, I would play Hall at 3B and see if Braun can play LF.
What was Braun on pace for error-wise? Like 40?
I say they should let Johnny Estrada go and pick up a better game-caller and defensive-minded player. That's around $4 M a year of empty production IMO. Maybe pair up Mike Rivera with someone like Ramon Castro if he hits the market. You save some money to add to the pitching staff and there is improvement made at the position IMO
Posted by: jza1218 | October 04, 2007 at 02:42 PM
But if the Brewers sign cordero, how are the phillies supposed to?
I think it's a smart move for milwaukee to re-sign him, and I wasn't sure what their budgets or intents were. It was good to read.
Posted by: no funny hats | October 04, 2007 at 03:46 PM
Tim,
what do you think about the Rays and Cordero. They are one of the few teams who really need an established closer and have the money to spend. Although they have set 35 million as their minimum salary, they have said that they have more money to spend if its for the right player, and I can't think of anything they need any more than a dominant closer.
Posted by: delmonmvp | October 04, 2007 at 04:38 PM
Having followed the Brewers all season, I can say with certainty that Cordero is not worth the money he will get in free agency and I hope he doesn't get it from the brewers. I like the idea of trying Bush (or even Vargas) at closer. Cordero's stats to start the season were very impressive, but his road ERA was atrocious. He blew one to many save on the road and got in even more jams for me to want him back. I realize i'm probably just still bitter over losing the division, but I wouldn't mind not seeing him back and would rather spend the money elsewhere. I also like the idea of moving Braun to OF and playing Hall at 3rd.
Posted by: Chorizo5 | October 04, 2007 at 08:58 PM
"Braun is a former SS who is still learning the footwork at 3B."
Alot of guys are former SS. They are FORMER SS for a reason.
Posted by: ArodSucksAtLife | October 04, 2007 at 09:33 PM
"Braun is a former SS who is still learning the footwork at 3B. Once he has that down, he'll be fine defensively. He's got the tools & athleticism to play 3B, he just doesn't have the mechanics down yet. "
Agreed. Once he finds an arm slot he is comfortable with he will be fine. He is quick enough and athletic enough to man the hot corner. Most of his errors are with his arm.
Posted by: nrmax88 | October 04, 2007 at 11:11 PM
Braun could be the next AROD. Its to bad he probably wont win ROY cause of his defense.
Posted by: Lidocaine | October 05, 2007 at 01:06 AM
"Braun is a former SS who is still learning the footwork at 3B. Once he has that down, he'll be fine defensively. He's got the tools & athleticism to play 3B, he just doesn't have the mechanics down yet."
Yeah...he's been playing 3B for three years. If he hasn't found "the footwork" or the "throwing slot" yet, they should just give up on this experiment and move him to a less defensively detrimental position.
And who cares if he was a SS? So was Joe Nathan. Should he play 3B for the Twins?
Posted by: jza1218 | October 05, 2007 at 07:45 AM
They'd probably get more production out of Nathan than Punto.
I'm a Brewers guy, and I don't buy the whole "but Braun is a former SS!" angle. It's not hard to throw the ball across the diamond. However, he slings the ball over to first like he's shy about making the throw, and I think that's led to most of his problems.
Posted by: kgbaseball | October 05, 2007 at 10:12 AM
"Braun could be the next AROD."
Ellsbury could be the next Willy Mays.
Posted by: ArodSucksAtLife | October 05, 2007 at 02:45 PM
As a WHITE SOX FAN I was behind the brewers like millions of other sox fans in the chicago area and analizing the brewers situation their bullpen blew like 25 games and if they had 3 of them back they would have won the division! That was a major league high and the bullpen realy needs to be addressed as is ours! We share the some of the same problems with a bad bullpen so I feel your pain. I think you guys are in a better position with your strongest competition being the cubs so I hope that don't squander an opportunity to do something special with the potential they have in the NL CENTRAL which is at a very bad state right now!!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted by: RadioJoe | October 05, 2007 at 02:47 PM
Ellsbury could be the next Willy Mays.
I would take AROD over Mays any day
Posted by: Lidocaine | October 05, 2007 at 02:50 PM
If Danys Baez can get 3/19, then Linebrink can surely get 3/21.
Posted by: Phillies07 | October 05, 2007 at 10:50 PM
Another Brewer fan here. I don't really see the point in keeping Braun at 3B. The fact that most of his errors were throwing errors is a bad sign -- that's a lot of mental stuff. I'd advocate moving him to LF and playing Billy Hall at 3B, but if that means Gwynn gets a starting job, the forget it. He's not a starter. There should be no interest in a guy whose ceiling is a .650 OPS.
Also, Estrada has to be replaced, either with a better hitting catcher, or a better defensive one. I wouldn't mind Barrett as an example of the former, or Castro as an example of the latter. Either one is a major improvement.
I've never liked the idea of a proven closer signing, but having Coco in place right now means that you have time for the next batch of cheap relievers to emerge you can experiment with some roles. And you can always flip a closer at the deadline.
Posted by: ghosthorn | October 17, 2007 at 11:07 AM