Sergio Santos Rumors

Cafardo's Latest: Fielder, Pedro, Gagne, Santos

In his latest column, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe ranks baseball's managers, from first (Bobby Cox) to 30th (rookie skipper Brad Mills). He also shares a few hot stove notes:

• Contracts like the eight-year pacts signed by Mark Teixeira and Joe Mauer may indicate what it'll take for the Brewers to lock up Prince Fielder long-term. Milwaukee "would like to seal the deal right now," avoiding the drama that will only increase as Fielder approaches free agency.
• Cafardo wonders if Pedro Martinez could end up pitching for the Dodgers at some point this season.
• Alex Gonzalez said "forget it" this winter when the Red Sox asked him to wait until they had dealt with Jason Bay. Gonzalez adds: "I was going to get a starting job, and in this market, I'm glad I didn't wait."
• Eric Gagne believes he can still succeed at the big league level, but he may have trouble catching on anywhere this late in the spring.
• Sergio Santos would have plenty of teams interested in him if he doesn't break camp with the White Sox. Santos, a former first-round pick as a shortstop, is out of options and competing for a spot in Chicago's bullpen.

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Olney On Santos, Trades, Sheffield

In today's blog post at ESPN.com, Buster Olney writes about White Sox pitcher Sergio Santos, who made the transition from being a flamed-out shortstop prospect to a hard throwing relief candidate. Santos was part of the Troy Glaus-Orlando Hudson swap back in 2005, but moved to the mound in 2008 after hitting .226/.268/.332 in over 1,500 Triple-A plate appearances. Santos is out of options, so he'll have to clear waivers to be sent to the minors. 

Here's some other hot stove topics Olney touched on...

• Some baseball people said that conversations leading to trades haven't really started yet. "I'd say that'll happen in another week or so, like clockwork," said one scout. "Everybody wants to get a sense of their own team and their own needs, and who they're going to move, before they start talking trade."
• Gary Sheffield did not want to settle for a pinch-hitting role, and the feeling was that he did not want to be sent to the minors. Olney doesn't think it would be a surprise if he waited until mid-season to sign, Pedro Martinez-style, but it also wouldn't be a surprise if he never played again. 

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