Michael Young Rumors

Odds and Ends: Ellis, Patterson, Sweeney

Rounding up today's links... Willie Bloomquist may have played his last game with the Mariners. The Rays feel they can be consistent contenders with a new stadium, as they could raise their payroll to the $80MM range. Former Dodgers GM Fred Claire takes a look at the free agent market. Athletics Nation notes the price on second baseman Mark Ellis has dropped. MLB.com's Mark Bowman explains the Braves' working agreement with the Hanshin Tigers. The Tigers don't have any of the big name free agents, but Frank Wren could still consider adding Koji Uehara or Kenshin Kawakami to his rotation....   Continue Reading

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Dodgers Inquire On Michael Young

From Dan Graziano of the Newark Star-Ledger: The Dodgers continue to look everywhere for a shortstop, and tons of names have come up in connection with their search. They don't seem likely to land the Pirates' Jack Wilson, but they're scouring other organizations for options, having touched base with Toronto about John McDonald, the Yankees about Alberto Gonzales, the Twins about Adam Everett and even the Rangers about Michael Young, though it's unclear whether or why Young would be available. Young is new to the discussion. The 31 year-old shortstop is hitting .298/.345/.421 in 469 plate appearances this year. He's...   Continue Reading

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Rosenthal's Latest: Lidge, Daniel Cabrera, Bonds, Edmonds

Ken Rosenthal has a new column up. I put the Griffey info in a separate post; let's discuss the rest. Rosenthal suggests that Brad Lidge would be harder to replace than Pat Burrell, and for that reason the Phillies will make a bigger effort to re-sign him. I imagine Phillies fans would prefer that course of action. The problem? The Phillies have little chance of offering four years, according to Jayson Stark. The Rangers will face a delicate situation in coming years: moving Michael Young to a different position. The chain reaction could make Hank Blalock available. Blalock has a...   Continue Reading

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Comparing Carlos Guillen and Michael Young

Michael Young's recent contract extension, which 56.6% of you liked, could inform negotiations for Carlos Guillen's next deal. Guillen is among the ten best free agents available after the 2007 season. Let's compare the two shortstops. They have nearly identical body types, though Guillen is a year older. Guillen's got a touch more power; both consistently hit for a high average. Guillen draws more walks, so he's in better shape if the batting average starts to decline. Both have questions about their ability to stay at shortstop in the long term. Both are significantly underpaid this year. The largest difference..   Continue Reading

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Today's Poll: Michael Young

We're trying something new here at MLBTradeRumors.com, a reader poll. Today's question: Was Michael Young's contract extension a smart move by the Rangers? Click here to take the poll; you can also view the results   Continue Reading

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Michael Young Gets $80MM Deal

Rangers shortstop Michael Young finalized his five-year, $80MM contract extension today. The deal runs from 2009-13. Granted, Young is a huge bargain for 2007-08. The Rangers basically erased that advantage by overpaying him past his peak. I will have more thoughts on this later tonight, but I have a feeling that this contract will not be well-received by analysts. Lone Star Ball has a poll up about the signing; most Rangers fans responding feel that it is an "Okay deal for the Rangers - they overpaid, but not by enough to make it a bad deal."   Continue Reading

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Rangers Close To Michael Young Extension

According to T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com, the Rangers are making progress on a long-term deal with shortstop Michael Young and may have something completed this week. Young is already under contract through '08; the extension would run through 2013, buying out five years of free agency. The model for the contract is Chase Utley's deal, where each potential year of free agency was worth $15MM. Baseball Prospectus's valuations only run through 2011, but indicate that the Rangers will come out just fine. Young will be locked in as the face of the franchise through age 36. Mark Teixeira, on the..   Continue Reading

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