Links for Wednesday…
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says the White Sox and Blue Jays discussed Dan Hudson and Tyler Flowers in a potential Roy Halladay deal, but the Sox weren't on Doc's list.
- The Braves signed J.R. House to a minor league deal, reports Dave O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. House, 30, hit .251/.297/.352 for the Royals' Triple A club in '09 while catching 101 games.
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports explores Felipe Lopez's reputation as a lazy player, something former teammate Mike Rivera denies.
- Baseball America's Ben Badler has four Dominican signings, by the Rockies, Cardinals, Angels, and Rangers.
- Cardinals manager Tony La Russa and GM John Mozeliak are signed only through 2010, but neither seems concerned (Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reporting).
Wren’s building some good depth in AAA. Mitch Jones, Brent Clevelen, Jordan Schafer, Matt Young, one of Joe Thurston and Brooks Conrad, and now JR House gives the Braves some solid AAA depth in case injuries hit.
Agree, Jones, Clevlen, and Young intrigue me.
Agreed with that. House not so much. He seems like a poor man’s Clint Sammons. I concede he may be a great defensive catcher and call a great game and all that, but his offensive stats do little to intrigue.
I’m not quite sure what stats you’re looking at in reference to House. His ’09 numbers were bad, but it was the first time since 2002 that his OPS dipped below .800. The guy is a regular Crash Davis.
I’m looking at the stats Tim posted above along with his .167/.206/.367 major league numbers, albeit in a small sample size of 60 AB’s. I’m not saying he doesn’t add value to the organization as a whole, but if he sees time with the Atlanta club I’d say we are pretty much screwed.
I have a feeling that some team is going to be quite pleasantly surprised by what Lopez gives them. I’m surprised that his reputation has apparently completely overshadowed a track record that includes two 4.6 WAR seasons.
“I’m surprised that his reputation has apparently completely overshadowed”
It really seems like the whole thing is just the media ignoring reality to try and come up with a interesting story. They sure dont say anything about the 20-some-odd infielders on the free-agent market which resulted in guys like Belliard having to settle for less then a million on a bench job. They sure dont say anything about Boras being notorious for pushing for max income off productive seasons and having a bit of a track record in letting his clients get hung out to dry because of it. Sure dont say anything about some GMs just not wanting to even deal with Boras period; and dont mention there were only about 3 starters jobs available to begin with which everyone knows Boras would have been insisting he deserved one no matter what. And said “reputation” sure didnt hurt him last year when he was one of the first middle infielders to sign a free-agent deal. The supposed reputation the media is trying to have us believe sure doesnt jive with two teams that had playoff-run ambition adding him to their rosters the last two seasons either.
And probably most importantly, the supposed reputation goes 100% against the “pride yourself on effort and respect” motto of the Cards who not only were there to sign him just days after he was finally freed from Washingtons grasp, but now want to bring him back for a second go round! One of the teams least likely to bring on a selfish lazy person is about to sign a supposedly lazy and selfish player for a second stint with the club as they prepare for the playoffs? Yeah, right…
As a Cubs fan who has watched him play very well for 3 Central clubs I can fullheartedly agree with you that he will be a bargain for his new club. He has played extremely well his last 5 seasons outside the year and a half being trapped on a Washington club that had no idea what they were doing in their hording of as many middle infielders and corner outfielders as they could get their hands on. I imagine he will probably sign with StL again, they will love him there again, he will again be a thorn in many teams sides and next year when he gets a deal really early everyone will completely forget they ever questioned his reputation to begin with.
You’re excusing his behavior in Washington by saying he was trapped there? Sure he got traded there, but that’s how MLB works. He was being paid a lot of money, was starting, and was dogging it every single game. It was disgusting to watch. Washington tried but couldn’t trade him, so they finally cut him and paid him to go away because it was better than having him around since he had already quit on the team. I agree that the Nats were a mess then, but that’s no justification for his performance. His reputation is richly deserved.
I’m saying there is a reason for the actions there, something he has openly admitted from my understanding. He was begging them to trade or release him and they refused, as they were expecting massive return on any player they were ever asked about. And his reputation seems completely overblown by the media – there is zero evidence it has affected his finding clubs in any way possible. Like I said below, he was the second middle infielder signed last offseason and had two clubs with postseason hopes add him to the roster the last two years. Those things indicate teams are more then open to adding him to a roster and leads to questioning Boras as to why he is still on the market now. Clearly teams dont hold the perceived reputation against him or he wouldnt have been added to the clubs the last year and a half (or be likely to resign with one of them again!)
A lot is being made about López’ character as an explanation for why he is still without work, and for a while I bought into this. However I am starting to see things differently. After all, he is hardly the only player with desirable skills who found himself without a job, on or close to spring training in recent seasons. Last year the notable player in this predicament who really stood out was Orlando Hudson, and he would be practically the last player in the League to have his attitude, passion or team spirit questioned. I don’t know if it is that 2B types are just considered less of a priority the recent economic climate, or perhaps something else, but in the case of López, the sense I am beginning to get is that there is something at work here beyond issues of character, and that the media is substituting opinion and conjecture for what they can’t otherwise explain.
The only reason what I call it is so many teams want to go younger with their clubs and a couple 30 year olds have it a hard time to found work, but there will be spots opening up due to injury and by slumps from these young players that they will show they are not ready. Only a few seem ready for the majors their first year. Pujols is such an example. Even guys with 1 year under their belts go into 2nd year slumps, aka Soto off the Cubs. Older players without contacts will either get them in the final couple of weeks of Spring Training or wait like what Smoltz is reportedly doing, wait tell July or Augest to return.
Last off-season he signed the second earliest ML deal given to a middle infielder. The only ML middle infield contract given out before his was the one to Renteria. Where was this “no one wants him” stuff then? Where was it when the Cards and Brewers acquired him for playoff pushes the last two years? I just don’t see how its arbitrarily the driving force here where it has apparently not been an issue the last year and a half at all. Makes zero sense; but the market depth and Boras aspects on the other hand…
I think Montero deserves a long term deal. He’s solid.
As a Diamondbacks fan, I think so too. He had a great season last year and I think he can only get better defensively. Between Reynolds, Upton, Webb and Montero Arizona better find their way into some cash soon. Or get a deal worked out soon before one of them has a monster season.
The Sox should have traded Hudson, Jo. Danks, Flowers, and Morel for Doc.
Also, I think that Hudson, and not Freddy Garcia should be in the Sox rotation.
The article clearly states that Halladay did not want to go to the White Sox.
Not really, the article acts like the deal never got off the ground enough for them to even ask Holliday if he was interested in going to the White Sox. I doubt this deal ever had enough legs for the Jays to take the idea to Holliday
Agreed on both counts.
But, as skoods said, the article clearly states that it was Halladay who quashed the deal. If the White Sox could land Doc with Hudson/Flowers as the headliners, then that’s gotta be a no-brainer for Chicago.
As for the Hudson/Garcia thing, I think that it’s pretty clear that Hudson is the superior option, but it’s probably worth seeing exactly what Garcia has left in the tank before letting Hudson accumulate more service time.
Well you can bet that Ozzie will pull the plug if his first 5 to 10 starts don’t go well. Hudson is a really good pitcher, could you imagine the White Sox rotation with him #5.
They have plenty of time to make a decision. Seasons are seldom decided by the 5th starter.
replace Doc with Adrian Gonzalez in that deal, and you have White Sox World Series Favorites.
i dont see the point in kenny williams coming out with this talk about almost landing roy halladay or some other stud. Concentrate on what you have now, workouts have already begun, and spring training is in roughly a week. lets just get the season goin!!!
Kenny always “talks” about the guys he almost got. If he wasn’t on Doc’s list, then he wasn’t close to getting him, except in his own mind.
“The White Sox’s exact offer is not known, but right-hander Dan Hudson and catcher Tyler Flowers were two of the players discussed, according to sources.”
I absolutely love it when baseball ‘insiders’ quote a story which was pretty obviously referring to Halladay yet was never mentioned by name by Kenny Williams, and yet sources come out two months later after the deal went down and start relieving pieces of the trade. Pretty obvious speculation to the trade pieces by Rosenthal.
Unfortunately for the Sox, they were never on Doc’s list as a potential landing spot. If there wasn’t a ‘Doc’ list, he would have been a Ranger…probably at last years deadline.
Lucky for the Phils, there were on the list!!!
The Phillies are fortunate to have Halladay, but it was overall a very sub-par move.
I am of the old adage that the team getting the best player generally wins a deal. Yes Lee is gone, but he is no Doc. Also, to extend at 3 yrs/$60 mill is a bargain (as sick as that sounds in ‘rea’ life). When Doc is cheaper and better than Lee next year, it won’t seem as sub par.
The only two things which cause me pause are:
1) Why couldn’t one year of Cliff Lee at 8 mil be kept on the books to then form the hands down best 1-2 since probably Johnson & Schilling in AZ? That doesn’t sit right with me.
2) We don’t know what Halladay can do in the playoffs & Lee was proven under the big lights. Halladay is a stud & it would be a real shock if he folded, but you just never know. We see all the time where guys rake for the regular season & just don’t have it during the post-season.