Derek Lowe Rumors: Tuesday

Too much has to happen first. Get LH bat and trade Marquis. By the time all taht happens it will be january and the big FA's will be gone. I wouldnt be suprised if the cubs lose Bradley to the Rays and turn to Abreu or trade for a rental like Huff who will put up very solid numbers. We need a solid bullpen arm much more than we need a SP. Theres way to many ifs in the bullpen right now.

"The big difference between Peavy and Lowe was that Peavy is only due $8M in 2009"

Peavy makes $11 million in 2009. Its been stated on these boards so many times.

"I expect hard to be back in 2010. He wont cost too much becuse of the injury concerns. If Ben Sheets is having a hard time finding a good deal Harden wont do much better considering hes a bigger risk"

Look at the 2009 FA SP market. Way, way thinner than the 2008 market, especially if Lackey doesn't hit the FA market (and I think the Angels extend him). There are no other frontline type guys available who aren't injury risks. And, remember that Ben Sheets ended the season with an injury. If Harden pitches most of the season healthy, and ends the season healthy, he should be looking at a big contract.

harden*

And lilly signed a 4 year deal in 06 so he has 2 more seasons.

Wow that was sort of an off-comment.

Yeah Lilly is here through 2010, which alleviates a lot of those concerns. A rotation based around Zambrano, Dempster, Lilly and Marshall should be fine, they just need a big guy to fill the 2/3 spot.

"Peavy makes $11 million in 2009. Its been stated on these boards so many times."

Sorry, I was using Cot's. Didn't see that Peavy's 2009 salary get's boosted from $8M to $11M if he wins a Cy Young in any year from 2005-2007, which he did.

"Look at the 2009 FA SP market. Way, way thinner than the 2008 market, especially if Lackey doesn't hit the FA market (and I think the Angels extend him). There are no other frontline type guys available who aren't injury risks. And, remember that Ben Sheets ended the season with an injury. If Harden pitches most of the season healthy, and ends the season healthy, he should be looking at a big contract."

Quite true. The reason Sheets isn't getting much attention this offseason is because there were other top of the rotation options out there that didn't carry those risks (CC, A.J., Lowe).

The other guys on the market when Harden hits next winter are: Bedard, Duchscherer and Brett Myers, basically. Beckett, Cliff Lee, and Webb all have options that are basically locks to be exercised.

Considering that if you're shopping for an ace next winter, your choices are Harden, Bedard, Duke and Myers, I'm guessing Harden will surely land himself a very fat contract if he can stay healthy this year.

While Lowe would give the Cubs 180+ innings for a few seasons and probably 13+ wins, he is going to cost 15+ million, that is the problem with Marquis eating up an untradeable salary already.

Might be better to hop that Harden can get 25 starts or so in next season and Lilli, or Dempster (1 of them at least) can duplicate the performance that they put up in 2008.

I think the only thing holding the Braves back from Lowe is the age thing. Had they not lost Glavine then they would prob be less reluctant. especially being as how lowe is 2x more expensive. the only reason i said Glavine is because he like Lowe had proven very durable over his career and missed most of the season. i think if the braves go with an older pitcher its going to be Smoltz and thats it I really feel as though they are trying to set up a young rotation to lead them for years kinda like Smoltz, Glavine, and Maddux did when they were all together except they might be looking at. Jair, Hanson, Roughbrogh as the first wave followed by guys like Locke and Teheran.

If by fat you mean 2/20 then yeah. The economy is horrible right now and teams are holding back years on injury risks. Harden would make more than 10 a year if he accepts arbitration, so if he can build up his value and be a FA in the 2010 class i think thats his best option. Plus whos to say he doesnt want to stay in chicago and the cubs wont sign him.

I agree that the Mets are the best fit for Lowe.

They really need a good starter who can eat up innings, and Lowe is perfect for that. He's played in big cities before, and would solidify a great rotation with Johan, Pelfrey, Maine and Niese.

With those four, a now very good bullpen behind K-Rod, Putz, Green, etc., and a lineup built around three of the very best players in baseball (Reyes, Wright, Beltran), I could easily see the Mets contending for a World Series next season.

Prob because they both share the same agent who is trying to wait till the last minute so the dodgers cough up the most money.

He knew the yankees would get CC. and that AJ wouldnt leave to far from his home. so that leaves his client as the highest rated pitcher left for a team that needs a few arms.

sure they could go out and get Garland and Perez and call it a day but i think they might sign him at the end of all the FA chaos.

same for manny

"

If by fat you mean 2/20 then yeah. The economy is horrible right now and teams are holding back years on injury risks. Harden would make more than 10 a year if he accepts arbitration, so if he can build up his value and be a FA in the 2010 class i think thats his best option. Plus whos to say he doesnt want to stay in chicago and the cubs wont sign him."

Harden would likely be able to get more like 3/45 at least on the open market, if he shows some durability next season, after he did somewhat in 2008. The other options on the market are quite poor, and even in this economy, big time pitchers are still getting huge money.

I doubt that Harden will take the risk of staying healthy another year if he does after 2009. If he stays healthy in 2009, he'll likely try to parlay it into a multiyear deal, to ensure that he gets paid just in case his arm blows up, which it seems like it always could.

I think when healthy harden is a top 10 pitcher in baseball and certainly the cubs ace, i just dont think teams are willing to pay 15 a year to risk it. Maybe 10 like i said with incentives and an option. Who knows, I guess nothing would suprise me.

As for Lowe, I think the Mets are need him the most. Putz and K-Rod are no good if they dont have anybody to get them the ball. I know Santana and Pelphry are going to be there but whats going on with Maine? Are they going to get Perez or trade for Marquis? They have 2 big holes in that rotation.

what about the mets trading Delgado and Castillo to the cubs for D.Lee and Marquis and a prospect. That would free up salary for the cubs and the mets would get a good defensive first baseman so they can put Murphy at second

Posted by Metsfan-

"But now we got the Cubs interested. My thoughts on this, after freaking out for a moment (j/k- sort of), was that the Cubs still might get Peavy, which would remove them from Lowe discussions. Also, Lowe has said he wants to play for an East Coast team, a team that has its Spring Training in Fl. (not sure where the Cubs have theirs."

You asked where the Cubs train. The Cubs train in Arizona. There has been talk of the Cubs POSSIBLY getting in on Lowe after the season ended. The Peavy stuff came up, so not much has been mentioned of Lowe. But just as with Peavy, 2010 will be a budget jump that was one of the reasons Hendry decided to back out of the Peavy deal. 2011 and 2012, Hendry felt the budget could handle Peavy. I assume the same is said of Lowe.

While talk of the Cubs MAYBE getting in on Lowe were real after seasons end, I don't think many Cub fans believe this to be real. I, too, do not think there is much to this rumor to the Cubs. Lowe's market is smaller now. You hear Lowe prefers an East Coast team. Randy Johnson, who is a name on several one year contract's list is said to prefer a West Coast team. Yeah, CC wanted to go home, too. I don't count either name as a reality or a 'not gonna happen' thing. But the budget and the fact the Cubs need an everyday (or close to it) lefty right fielder, it does not make sense for Lowe. They still have to try and deal Marquis or have him back for one more year.

I think Lowe to your Mets would be good. He would fit very nice there. How many years Omar can get is another story.

FineHam, how would you feel about Ben Sheets? Sure, he carries the injury risk, but he potentially provides fantastic production (that of a bonafide ace) and the deals that have been rumored for him seem like a more reasonable gamble than what they would've given Burnett.

Posted by: jacklaf | December 16, 2008 at 10:30 PM
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I didn't want Burnett because of the injury risk, and I don't want Sheets for the same reason--our #1 starter should be able to take the ball on schedule, pitch a great game, and give the bullpen a chance to rest like Hudson did before he got hurt. Sheets just won't do that because he WILL miss starts.

I've always said the Braves should sign Lowe, Dunn, and a #3-4 starter type from Japan. Now that we've got Vazquez, I don't see the last one as such a priority, but it's still within the budget. With Furcal onboard, we can afford to trade a middle infielder for that ace if we need to.

While Lowe is EXACTLY the type of guy the Cubs need, it isn;t going to happen. They aren't spending any more significant dollars this offseason. But it would certainly be a strong move for th eCubs, who could use someone who can perform well in the playoffs.

metsluis- I would take that deal, but lee has a no trade claus and i don't think he would let a trade go through unless it is closer to his home in sacramento so he could be closer to his daughter who is sick.

i think the red sox should not resign varitek and move bay to catcher bc he caught in high school