Jim Salisbury says the Phillies might have taken Rocco Baldelli 15th in the 2000 draft instead of Chase Utley, if they'd had the chance. Would the Mets or Dodgers have taken Utley, then?
I wonder what Johnson could get in return if he were traded? It would seem better for Barton to have a veteran like Sweeney around for his ROY candidacy.
If Jim Hendry is in search of a right handed batter who can play center and would not mind a platoon or bench role Reed Johnson would be perfect for them.
The Jays are searching for pitching and Ryan Dempster (who is canadian) seems to be losing his job to Kerry Wood as closer and does not seem like he will crack the rotation as he wanted to.
Perhaps a Ryan Dempster for Reed Johnson and give or take a mid level prospect could work well for both clubs?
I think that Dempster is a little more valuable, since he is a proven bullpen guy but could start as well. I don't think it would take too much though, Reed and low to mid level prospect for Demp would be great for both teams in my eyes.
I’m really almost shocked at how poorly this situation has been handled by Hendry. He makes his wants/needs as public as possible, and that will only lead to teams asking for top dollar on the pieces they hold when they are in short supply. Shoot, many GMs don’t even want to make a deal if its handled through the media… Yet Hendry wants to also make sure he holds onto so many pieces, and apparently has restrictions on others he can deal (ie, so many guys off-limits and the rumored “cant trade Wilkens picks” thing). So he is really putting himself into a situation where everyone knows exactly who and what he wants while knowing what little he is willing/able to talk about. If the Cubs had a surplus of great looking prospects, maybe it would fly ~ but…
Now the team is apparently suffering because of all the trade rumors, and who knows the short-term (and possibly long-term as well) affects they will have. Its affecting everyone from DeRosa (possible loss of starting job) to Soriano (move in batting order) to Fukudome (possible back-up CFer) to Pie (still not announced starter, and possibly on bench if Crisp is their guy) to Cedeno (out of options anyway, and looks like out of Chicago almost no matter what) to the Rotation (who knows if one of them is included as a salary dump for Payton, or if both Gallagher and Marshall will be packing their bags) to the young kids (Veal esp is almost a certainty to move to Balt now if it ever takes place, with Ceda and Colvin also being mentioned often) and probably countless others in some way or another.
Many Cubs fans have stated that they think Hendry is working to keep his job this year; this type of thing really cant be helping his cause at all…
They are looking to move Sori down anyway, and Theriot might lead off. This doesn't have everything to do with the trade rumors, it needed to be done anyway.
Veal is no certainty, and Colvin hasn't been mentioned all that often as guys like Gallagher and Cedeno, who we know are in. I think Veal has been mentioned even less than Colvin, and we already know the last report that included Veal (Saying they offered Ceda) was just plain wrong.
I don't think Hendry is looking to trade prospects for a backup outfielder, I think he is looking to trade ML surplus. Guys like Cedeno, Murton, Marshall etc. He has been pretty quiet on the Roberts front. I think he might be telling teams if they have a right handed CF that doesn't get all the playing time, he is willing to talk. I'm not sure it hurts him all that much here, although its probably not the way I would go. Reed Johnson would be just fine, and I'm sure the Jays would take any of those ML surplus guys I mentioned besides maybe Cedeno.
Yet, Soriano doent know if he will be hitting 2nd with Theriot or Roberts in front of him, or 3rd or 5th or even 6th with Roberts & Theriot in the 1 & 2. Roberts being LH and possibly in the 1 spot means the lineup they are talking about today changes rather dramatically if he is added. Same thing holds true if its Crisp that is brought in, well depending on if he is the starter or backup which is still up in the air. Is Fukudome hitting 2nd, or 3rd, or 5th or 6th? The batting order has yet to be set; and because of the needs/desires of the club, everyone in the order is really in limbo. Blanco may just be the only hitter not affected in some way by the uncertainty with Roberts/CFer.
Then, there are 3-4 RH CFers who are really avail. Byrd was a public target. Crisp seems to have been a public target. Payton is one of the options. Johnson I guess now could be a 4th. Each comes at a rather different cost, and some have a rather different affect on the club. Will Pie be sitting quite often in favor of Crisp? Or even Byrd? Will Payton or Johnson be brought in as nothing more than depth, but still spell the end of Murtons career with the Cubs? The 25-man roster restraints kind of make it the case. Fontenot/Cedeno/Cintron/Patterson are in limbo because of the DeRosa/Roberts thing. Ward could be losing time if DeRosa is the main corner-OF replacement & DH. Then you begin thinking about all the names you mention as ideally moved and start to realize that these guys have probably made friendships with the other kids, I know things like that had affects on the Indians early on in their rebuild…
And its all been going on since like December (!) ~ its not like this stuff is just starting… Its been probably about 20-30 guys having little to no clue what the future holds in some capacity or another for something like 3-4 months now… Its pretty much a disaster of a situation, and the fact that there is still no end in site is even more troubling and worrisome…
cubs blah blah blah. dan johnson should have a job somewhere. with sweeney, barton, and cust he certainly doesnt have one with the as. mike sweeney is a great guy by the way. i dont even like the royals but going to the ballpark u can tell how much they appreciate him. i hope he retires a royal. he really is a great guy. as far as the phillies possibly taking baldelli, sure but geez loook at those other picks from that year. picks 2-5? almost every team made a bad pick that year. when baldelli was healthy he was the best pick in the first, besides utley. i just dont see the point in that article.
Theriot would drop way down in the order if Roberts was aquired. The 2-6 or 7 would stay the same...at least thats what they would tell you. The reality is that Lou tinkers with the lineup all the time and will continue to do so...with or without Roberts, and with or without trade rumors. Thats just lou. By the way, Fukudome is hitting 5th...again, thats what they would tell you right now.
'Mike Sweeney' and 'Healthy' should never be used in the same sentence.
If the A's think they're going to get a full year of productivity out of him they're insane. They better not let too many people go if they're banking on that.
Dan Johnson would be a welcome addition to the Mets if he was right-handed.
Posted by: stellar | March 17, 2008 at 10:55 AM
Oh, and Utley on the Mets would be sweet.
Much sweeter than Billy friggin Traber.
Posted by: stellar | March 17, 2008 at 10:56 AM
Wasn't there also a story a year or so back that the Devil Rays tried to trade Baldelli for Howard?
Posted by: start_wearing_purple | March 17, 2008 at 10:59 AM
I wonder what Johnson could get in return if he were traded? It would seem better for Barton to have a veteran like Sweeney around for his ROY candidacy.
Posted by: green_and_gold | March 17, 2008 at 11:00 AM
Interesting that Hendry said he wanted a right-hander on the bench. Thus, Pie has the starting job?
Posted by: jrfukudome | March 17, 2008 at 11:37 AM
Take Jay Payton + $3 mil and give us R.Cedeno since you do not have room for him and I think he is out of options.
Posted by: XD23 | March 17, 2008 at 11:56 AM
If Jim Hendry is in search of a right handed batter who can play center and would not mind a platoon or bench role Reed Johnson would be perfect for them.
The Jays are searching for pitching and Ryan Dempster (who is canadian) seems to be losing his job to Kerry Wood as closer and does not seem like he will crack the rotation as he wanted to.
Perhaps a Ryan Dempster for Reed Johnson and give or take a mid level prospect could work well for both clubs?
Posted by: BJays Fan! | March 17, 2008 at 12:06 PM
BJays Fan, I think that would work rather well...
Posted by: jrfukudome | March 17, 2008 at 12:32 PM
Is Johnson healthy? His stats don't look so good...
Posted by: jrfukudome | March 17, 2008 at 12:49 PM
I think that Dempster is a little more valuable, since he is a proven bullpen guy but could start as well. I don't think it would take too much though, Reed and low to mid level prospect for Demp would be great for both teams in my eyes.
Posted by: Aduncaroo | March 17, 2008 at 12:50 PM
Aha! I was just demanding a Dan Johnson rumor yesterday, and here it is.
Posted by: asm | March 17, 2008 at 12:56 PM
I’m really almost shocked at how poorly this situation has been handled by Hendry. He makes his wants/needs as public as possible, and that will only lead to teams asking for top dollar on the pieces they hold when they are in short supply. Shoot, many GMs don’t even want to make a deal if its handled through the media… Yet Hendry wants to also make sure he holds onto so many pieces, and apparently has restrictions on others he can deal (ie, so many guys off-limits and the rumored “cant trade Wilkens picks” thing). So he is really putting himself into a situation where everyone knows exactly who and what he wants while knowing what little he is willing/able to talk about. If the Cubs had a surplus of great looking prospects, maybe it would fly ~ but…
Now the team is apparently suffering because of all the trade rumors, and who knows the short-term (and possibly long-term as well) affects they will have. Its affecting everyone from DeRosa (possible loss of starting job) to Soriano (move in batting order) to Fukudome (possible back-up CFer) to Pie (still not announced starter, and possibly on bench if Crisp is their guy) to Cedeno (out of options anyway, and looks like out of Chicago almost no matter what) to the Rotation (who knows if one of them is included as a salary dump for Payton, or if both Gallagher and Marshall will be packing their bags) to the young kids (Veal esp is almost a certainty to move to Balt now if it ever takes place, with Ceda and Colvin also being mentioned often) and probably countless others in some way or another.
Many Cubs fans have stated that they think Hendry is working to keep his job this year; this type of thing really cant be helping his cause at all…
Posted by: darkstar1661 | March 17, 2008 at 01:14 PM
Amen darkstar!
Posted by: INOK | March 17, 2008 at 01:23 PM
"to Soriano (move in batting order) "
They are looking to move Sori down anyway, and Theriot might lead off. This doesn't have everything to do with the trade rumors, it needed to be done anyway.
Veal is no certainty, and Colvin hasn't been mentioned all that often as guys like Gallagher and Cedeno, who we know are in. I think Veal has been mentioned even less than Colvin, and we already know the last report that included Veal (Saying they offered Ceda) was just plain wrong.
I don't think Hendry is looking to trade prospects for a backup outfielder, I think he is looking to trade ML surplus. Guys like Cedeno, Murton, Marshall etc. He has been pretty quiet on the Roberts front. I think he might be telling teams if they have a right handed CF that doesn't get all the playing time, he is willing to talk. I'm not sure it hurts him all that much here, although its probably not the way I would go. Reed Johnson would be just fine, and I'm sure the Jays would take any of those ML surplus guys I mentioned besides maybe Cedeno.
Posted by: Aduncaroo | March 17, 2008 at 01:38 PM
Yet, Soriano doent know if he will be hitting 2nd with Theriot or Roberts in front of him, or 3rd or 5th or even 6th with Roberts & Theriot in the 1 & 2. Roberts being LH and possibly in the 1 spot means the lineup they are talking about today changes rather dramatically if he is added. Same thing holds true if its Crisp that is brought in, well depending on if he is the starter or backup which is still up in the air. Is Fukudome hitting 2nd, or 3rd, or 5th or 6th? The batting order has yet to be set; and because of the needs/desires of the club, everyone in the order is really in limbo. Blanco may just be the only hitter not affected in some way by the uncertainty with Roberts/CFer.
Then, there are 3-4 RH CFers who are really avail. Byrd was a public target. Crisp seems to have been a public target. Payton is one of the options. Johnson I guess now could be a 4th. Each comes at a rather different cost, and some have a rather different affect on the club. Will Pie be sitting quite often in favor of Crisp? Or even Byrd? Will Payton or Johnson be brought in as nothing more than depth, but still spell the end of Murtons career with the Cubs? The 25-man roster restraints kind of make it the case. Fontenot/Cedeno/Cintron/Patterson are in limbo because of the DeRosa/Roberts thing. Ward could be losing time if DeRosa is the main corner-OF replacement & DH. Then you begin thinking about all the names you mention as ideally moved and start to realize that these guys have probably made friendships with the other kids, I know things like that had affects on the Indians early on in their rebuild…
And its all been going on since like December (!) ~ its not like this stuff is just starting… Its been probably about 20-30 guys having little to no clue what the future holds in some capacity or another for something like 3-4 months now… Its pretty much a disaster of a situation, and the fact that there is still no end in site is even more troubling and worrisome…
Posted by: darkstar1661 | March 17, 2008 at 02:56 PM
cubs blah blah blah. dan johnson should have a job somewhere. with sweeney, barton, and cust he certainly doesnt have one with the as. mike sweeney is a great guy by the way. i dont even like the royals but going to the ballpark u can tell how much they appreciate him. i hope he retires a royal. he really is a great guy. as far as the phillies possibly taking baldelli, sure but geez loook at those other picks from that year. picks 2-5? almost every team made a bad pick that year. when baldelli was healthy he was the best pick in the first, besides utley. i just dont see the point in that article.
Posted by: Joelcards | March 17, 2008 at 03:11 PM
Dark,
Theriot would drop way down in the order if Roberts was aquired. The 2-6 or 7 would stay the same...at least thats what they would tell you. The reality is that Lou tinkers with the lineup all the time and will continue to do so...with or without Roberts, and with or without trade rumors. Thats just lou. By the way, Fukudome is hitting 5th...again, thats what they would tell you right now.
Posted by: Aduncaroo | March 17, 2008 at 06:16 PM
The Cubs lineup seems set to me?
with B.Roberts:
2B-Roberts
LF-Soriano
1B-Lee
3B-Ramirez
RF-Fukudome
C-Soto
SS-Theriot
CF-Pie
without:
SS-Theriot
LF-Soriano
1B-Lee
3B-Ramirez
RF-Fukudome
2B-DeRosa
C-Soto
CF-Pie
Posted by: maximumpotential | March 18, 2008 at 07:27 AM
'Mike Sweeney' and 'Healthy' should never be used in the same sentence.
If the A's think they're going to get a full year of productivity out of him they're insane. They better not let too many people go if they're banking on that.
Posted by: Otis26 | March 18, 2008 at 08:51 AM