The Eventually Expendable Julian Tavarez

Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe speculates that when Jon Lester finishes a satisfactory stint at Tripe A Pawtucket, it will be necessary to move a Red Sox pitcher either through waivers or a trade.  "The affected pitchers could be Julian Tavarez, Joel Piñeiro, J.C. Romero, or Kyle Snyder… Tavarez would have value to several teams, particularly National League clubs looking for a middle reliever or a starter. The Mets, Cardinals, Phillies, Rockies, Marlins, and Reds would all be candidates."

I am with Matthew Cerrone of MetsBlog.com, who cites December 2005 pieces from the New York Daily News and the New Jersey Star-Ledger that discussed the Mets’ negotiations with Tavarez when he was a free agent.  Just because the Mets were once interested, does not mean they still are.

However, with Aaron Heilman struggling, it’s likely that Omar Minaya (or some other GM) might dream of restoring the 34-year old Tavarez to his 1995, 2000 and 2003-2005 form.  His biggest problem right now is that he has been starting, a role he is definitely not suited for.

By John Peterson