The Angels are not going to trade for Mike Lowell, but a couple of their division rivals are interested. Joe McDonald of ESPNBoston.com hears from a Red Sox source that the Mariners, Rangers and White Sox are among the teams that have contacted the Red Sox about Lowell. Nothing is imminent, but if the Red Sox deal Lowell, they will almost certainly pay most of the $8MM or so remaining on his contract.
The 20-31 Mariners have not seen Casey Kotchman and Jose Lopez provide much offense at the corners, though Lopez homered yesterday and has been hitting better recently. Their designated hitters have combined for a .207/.266/.318 line, so Lowell's numbers (.239/.329/.358) look good in comparison, even though his power and on base percentage are lower than usual.
The Rangers, who are in a virtual tie for first place in the AL West, have seen Justin Smoak struggle through 136 plate appearances this year (.190/.301/.353 line). They had interest in Lowell last winter, so it wouldn't be a surprise to see them pursue him once again.
White Sox GM Kenny Williams says he doesn't expect to start making moves, but third baseman Mark Teahen is out with a broken finger, so the Sox are short an infielder. The White Sox could bring Lowell aboard to play third if they aren't comfortable with Jayson Nix, Omar Vizquel and Brent Lillibridge at the hot corner.
I want the Sox to hang on the Lowell unless we get something special, im not talking highly touted prospect or anything, but we really need a late inning reliever to help the diaster area that is the Boston bullpen. I love Lowell, i dont want him to go, but if he gets us a good arm, him going really does help us contend
I agree with your basic sentiment on Mikey. But to be fair to him and free up some money for us, I think we need to let him move on. Where I disagree with you is on the state of our bullpen. I think they’ve been surprisingly excellent lately. Bard is practically unhittable again. Okajima is pretty consistent. Nelson has been brilliant of late, with a low slashing curve that makes idiots out of great hitters. Paps has been pretty good. Even Delcarmen has come into form of late. Our weakest link in the pen has been Atchison. If we could pick up a 5th starter-type, I think that could be helpful because Beckett and Dice-K are very iffy, Lackey has been lackluster, and Wake is either hot or cold.
Who would either of those teams offer for Lowell?
The best the Mariners may offer is Snell maybe? Not much really.
Texas, maybe Nippert? O’Day? Ray? Those are bullpen guys which would make sense. None are really that great though.
White Sox, hmmmm… this would be interesting. What about Jenks for Lowell?
I am reaching here and looking at pen guys for the most part, but those are some names that might work. But, I was only looking active ML roster guys.
The only guy Jenks can strike out at this point in his career is Lowell, if you want to win you don’t want Jenks.
Not saying it is the best deal. I just don’t think they would get much for Lowell all in all.
fyi, I agree that Jenks isn’t too good. But, you never know.
They may be able to get something like Putz, he’s not very good but is better than Jenks and makes half as much on top of that.
The White Sox should be on a straight salary dump soon, if the Red Sox wait they should have what ever they want without paying much for it in terms of talent.
I think you are over valueing Mike Lowell. Remember that he is old, defensively he has regressed (which is why the BoSox’s signed Beltre), stuggled offensively so far this year, and he is injury prone (back, hip, and thumb).
No way Texas parts with any of the 3 relivers mentioned. They are all too valuable to the Rangers, and make very little in terms of $$$.
Jenks??? But that wont happen neither. You dont trade a closer for a 1 year rental, given the negatives he has linked to him (see above).
Maybe a mid-tier prospect, or possibly even a salary swap. Something simialar to the M’s sending Silva to the Cubs for Milton Bradley.
Just hope Red Sox fans dont think that whoever they get in return for Lowell will put them in over the hump. Whoever that player is will not off set the Ray’s and Yankees ability whats so ever. Boston just needs to play better baseball.
I was actually looking at Jenks more like a salary dump than anything. He isn’t holding onto the closer spot in Chicago long with how he is going. That is why I mentioned him. He is a likely non-tender end of year as well (I don’t think he is a FA).
As for the Rangers, I was actually looking at lesser guys on the roster. I don’t know them too well, so I may have undervalued those guys to them. None of them seemed too great all in all though, which is why I mentioned them.
And no, I am not expecting Lowell to bring much return. He may bring a piece that could help a bit more than his spot on the team, but that is about it.
Jenks is interesting due to his struggles. I just think the White Sox’s would be better off spending time trying to get Jenks straighted out, than spending time trying to get Lowell straighted out (who has his fair share of problems).
I think the White Sox’s should look into moving Beckham back to 3B. Maybe it will jump start that kid a bit.
I am a Ranger fan living in Dallas. The Red Sox’s would have to eat 99% of Lowell’s salary given the ownership situation. And they will not trade there young/cheap pitching unless it is for a ace (that is if they could even add $$$ to the payroll).
Mike Lowell just doesnt make them that much better. True a .250-.275 average would be nice to get from Lowell playing 1B. But I think the Rangers would rather stick with Chris Davis and/or Justin Smoak hitting .225 and playing excellent defense.
The Rangers priority is a ace pitcher (Oswalt) and a catcher. Then probably another LHP for the pen and then 1B. An oh, you might want to throw in a CF who can actually get on base. Julio Borbon is not cutting hitting in the 9 hole.
The Rangers have so many needs, Mike Lowell cant even fix.
I think its unrealistic to expect Lowell to fit into the defensive line up on a regular basis. He’s a fill-in on D, at best, and more suited to the DH role. In fact, you may find that you’ll want to pinch run for him every time he gets a hit. Watching him run is an unpleasant experience.
Exactly. Which with Vlad Guerrero at the DH there is no place on the team for Lowell. Surely the Rangers wont trade a key peice of the bullpen for a bench player…..
Exactly. Which with Vlad Guerrero at the DH there is no place on the team for Lowell. Surely the Rangers wont trade a key peice of the bullpen for a bench player…..
I think its unrealistic to expect Lowell to fit into the defensive line up on a regular basis. He’s a fill-in on D, at best, and more suited to the DH role. In fact, you may find that you’ll want to pinch run for him every time he gets a hit. Watching him run is an unpleasant experience.
Exactly right. Lowell is nothing more than a defensive fillin in, who for any acquiring team can be counted on to provide leadership and a decent bat. Poor range at 3B and 1st time playing 1B, plus come off the bench and PH on occasion.
People hammering Mikey for his offensive lines should look and see that his lines were better before he was cut down to 2, maybe 3AB’s a week.
One thing Lowel could always do (except for 2005) is hit and think if he could get 15 or so AB’s a week that he would resume that again this season.
A team with a need, like Texas that actually has a chance to get to the post season for the 1st time in years you would think might actually want a team leader like this and fix a glaring hole on a P/T basis.
But not at the cost of one of our key BP arms ( Ray/O’Day/Nippert as suggested in a earlier post)….
I was actually looking at Jenks more like a salary dump than anything. He isn’t holding onto the closer spot in Chicago long with how he is going. That is why I mentioned him. He is a likely non-tender end of year as well (I don’t think he is a FA).
As for the Rangers, I was actually looking at lesser guys on the roster. I don’t know them too well, so I may have undervalued those guys to them. None of them seemed too great all in all though, which is why I mentioned them.
And no, I am not expecting Lowell to bring much return. He may bring a piece that could help a bit more than his spot on the team, but that is about it.
I think you are over valueing Mike Lowell. Remember that he is old, defensively he has regressed (which is why the BoSox’s signed Beltre), stuggled offensively so far this year, and he is injury prone (back, hip, and thumb).
No way Texas parts with any of the 3 relivers mentioned. They are all too valuable to the Rangers, and make very little in terms of $$$.
Jenks??? But that wont happen neither. You dont trade a closer for a 1 year rental, given the negatives he has linked to him (see above).
Maybe a mid-tier prospect, or possibly even a salary swap. Something simialar to the M’s sending Silva to the Cubs for Milton Bradley.
Just hope Red Sox fans dont think that whoever they get in return for Lowell will put them in over the hump. Whoever that player is will not off set the Ray’s and Yankees ability whats so ever. Boston just needs to play better baseball.
you probably shouldn’t talk about things you don’t know about, like the Rangers bullpen guys
So conjecture looking at statistics isn’t worth doing? So sorry. I said I didn’t know them too well (as I don’t watch a lot of Rangers games living in New England). However, they didn’t seem to be great relievers (ie by their K rates, K/BB, age, etc.).
No you are right. They dont strike out as many batters as you would like (other than Feliz) but in terms of ERA: Nippert 4.85, Ray 3.47, O’Day 2.61, Oliver 1.65, Fransico 3.86 and Feliz 2.84.
Not bad. But then again i am used to everyone in the BP in the past having a ERA in the 4.50 to 7.00 range…..
No you are right. They dont strike out as many batters as you would like (other than Feliz) but in terms of ERA: Nippert 4.85, Ray 3.47, O’Day 2.61, Oliver 1.65, Fransico 3.86 and Feliz 2.84.
Not bad. But then again i am used to everyone in the BP in the past having a ERA in the 4.50 to 7.00 range…..
The Ranger BP is really pretty decent. Minus the Frank Fransico blow ups earlier this year. But even he has turned it around as of late.
Now the Rangers starting pitching is a different story. If a team was willing to pay for a bus ticket, Rich Harden could be theres.
The Ranger BP is really pretty decent. Minus the Frank Fransico blow ups earlier this year. But even he has turned it around as of late.
Now the Rangers starting pitching is a different story. If a team was willing to pay for a bus ticket, Rich Harden could be theres.
you probably shouldn’t talk about things you don’t know about, like the Rangers bullpen guys
Lowell plus 1 high end, 1 low end prospect for Cliff Lee?
if the M’s were to trade for the rest of Lowell’s 1 year contract, it would be because they still wanted to contend this year, which would rule out trading Lee.
Plus Lee would cost more than that.
You people are delusional if you think the Mariners will get more than 2 prospects, only 1 of which is high end, for a deal for 2 months of Lee when he has said he wants to test free agency. Your point about wanting to contend makes sense, but the offer would be that or less than that.
Has Lee said that? It’s possible I just missed it, but all I’ve seen him say about free agency was that when he was in Philly, he had expected to remain a Philly for the rest of his career and was surprised when they traded him right after he gave them a counter-offer for an extension. Possible that he changed his mind somewhere along the way and I haven’t seen it.
I think probably after he got the boot from Philly and went to Seattle, he has decided. He may change his mind if he gets traded to a good club that is always in the mix, i.e. Boston, NYY, Cards, Phils, etc.
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/2957592/cliff_lees_agent_claims_lee_will_test.html
That’s basically what i’ve heard over and over. But again – in a different city, he may want to stay, but I doubt any GM is going to throw the kitchen sink just for the potential of having him.
It will take a LOT more to get Lee than a washed up expensive player like Lowell and one decent prospect. First of all, the offers will get better for Lee as the trade deadline draws near and using an old, injury prone player as the centerpiece of an offer is laughable.
Lowell should have already been dumped and any offer other than the Red Sox paying all of his salary is a steal for Boston
It will take a LOT more to get Lee than a washed up expensive player like Lowell and one decent prospect. First of all, the offers will get better for Lee as the trade deadline draws near and using an old, injury prone player as the centerpiece of an offer is laughable.
Lowell should have already been dumped and any offer other than the Red Sox paying all of his salary is a steal for Boston
The Rangers wont offer anything at all. Max rameriz was about as good as it gets, and the Rangers wont even do that now, guven there catching situation.
Heck, he would have to play 1B with Micheal Young and Vlad Guerrero cemented in the 3B/DH spots.
Soxfan0928- The Mariners would most likely play Lowell at 1B and DFA Kotchman. They have glaring needs at C, 3B, and LF. What prospects would the Mariners be interested in looking at to fill one of those positions?
Sox have a good base. At LF – Kalish or Reddick, at C we haev Luis Expisito, and at 3B we have a guy named Middlebrooks. Those are all top 10 prospects in the Sox system right now. Not sure if it would get a deal done, but it’s good cheap talent. I’d throw Dice-K plus Lowell plus Reddick for Lee plus rights to talk.
You would need more than that. No one really wants to take on Dice-K right now.
Really? For 2 months of Lee? Give me a break what do you expect to get?
He will be a highly in demand guy. Look how much Cleveland got for Sabathia when they dealt him to Milwaukee a couple years back. I am thinking Seattle would want something like that. Not saying they will get that, but that is what they would want right now. Reddick is nice, but he isn’t an A prospect. Dice-K is almost a negative commodity right now as well. I am not saying Casey Kelly would go, but I think you would need to do more for sure.
There is absolutely no way possibly that Theo gives up more than Lowell plus Reddick plus 1 low end prospect for 2 months of Cliff Lee. You can’t even get close to comparing Lee to Sabathia. CC had another year on his contract, Lee hits the free agency pool in November. There’s no comparison to that, you can’t compare the two its apples to oranges. If the Sox got Lee for a year after the trade, sure you can demand more, but absolutely not for 2 months of service. Dice could be a no go, but Kalish plus Lowell plus 1 should do the trick, and that is probably overpaying.
no, Sabathia was traded in July of 08, then hit FA after 08. They’re very comparable.
Aw crap. You’re right. Well, I still don’t see the M’s getting what the Indians got for CC.
Aw crap. You’re right. Well, I still don’t see the M’s getting what the Indians got for CC.
I expect to get more than two prospects. Remember, the team that trades for Cliff Lee also gets TWO first round picks in next years draft (which is very deep from top to bottom). That would be equal to two prospects right there. The M’s would need at least three good prospects for a deal to make sense. If teams try to lowball them in negotiations for Lee, then they’ll just hang onto him and take the draft picks. Lowell is no prospect. And the M’s aren’t gonna trade Lee for Michael Bowden and a used needle from 2004.
A used needle from 2004 and Michael Bowden, eh? Well, sir, get your facts straight before you start throwing out insults. First off – you’re under the assumption that whoever trades for C. Lee does not resign him, and the team that does resign him is not in the top 15 in draft picks, because those are “protected picks”, meaning they can’t be used for Type A free agent compensation. So, lets say the Sox get Cliff Lee, then the Mets sign him (not unreasonable), well then the Sox only get a 2nd round pick. Same thing if the M’s keep him. Your logic is pretty biased in that you will get everything you want. I’d say Zduriencik would take Kalish + Lowell + Bowden for Lee, where his team could improve by 2011 and they would have money off the books to sign someone in free agency next year.
They’re not insults sir. Its fact. I’ve constantly seen sox fans put out these ridiculous trade offers and then ridicule other fans by saying that the sox are actually OVERPAYING. Ha. That’s hilarious. Lowell and Dice K and a bag of doo doo for Cliff Lee??? Really? You guys were putting out the same garbage trade proposals last offseason for Adrian Gonzalez. How many times did I read Michael Bowden and Lars Anderson for A-Gon? Sox fans seem to overvalue your prospects which is understandable because most fans seem to overvalue their teams prospects. And yeah bro, I know about the whole top 15 “protected picks” thing and I was only talking under the assumption that the team that traded for Lee would lose him to free agency. Also, you know as well as I know that Lee is looking to get paid and will probably sign with the Yanks (which would mean the team that traded for him gets two first rounders). Its actually a first rounder and a sandwich pick between round 1 and 2. However, because Lee will likely be the highest ranked free agent in this years class, the pick will more than likely be the first pick after round 1 is finished (which is like #31 which is basically a first round pick). The Sox wouldn’t be getting a second round pick; they’d be getting two first round picks. I’m just saying that I wouldn’t trade these two picks for Kalish, Lowell, and Bowden.
That’s fine, I understand where you’re coming from in valuing a probable extra 1st rounder plus a sandwich pick over 2 of the Sox prospects, and we’ll just have to agree to disagree about that. Kalish was killing it in AA ball, and just got promoted to AAA. I would go Doubront plus Kalish too, and Doubront, also just called up to AAA, was 4-0 with a 2.51 ERA in AA, and so far is 0-1 with a 1.51 ERA in 2 games at AAA level. I’m just saying, these are two young prospects who have extremely high ceilings, and combined with Lowell could be the best offer that the M’s get.
That’s not a bad offer at all. That’s probably more in line with what Jack Z would want as far as prospects and not veterans( minus Lowell, I just don’t think he’s traded in a package for Lee because a Lee trade means the M’s are rebuilding). And I do want to say that I don’t think Lee is worth the haul that was had for CC. That was an absolute fleece job. Though I’d be happy with something close to that package.
That’s not a bad offer at all. That’s probably more in line with what Jack Z would want as far as prospects and not veterans( minus Lowell, I just don’t think he’s traded in a package for Lee because a Lee trade means the M’s are rebuilding). And I do want to say that I don’t think Lee is worth the haul that was had for CC. That was an absolute fleece job. Though I’d be happy with something close to that package.
That’s fine, I understand where you’re coming from in valuing a probable extra 1st rounder plus a sandwich pick over 2 of the Sox prospects, and we’ll just have to agree to disagree about that. Kalish was killing it in AA ball, and just got promoted to AAA. I would go Doubront plus Kalish too, and Doubront, also just called up to AAA, was 4-0 with a 2.51 ERA in AA, and so far is 0-1 with a 1.51 ERA in 2 games at AAA level. I’m just saying, these are two young prospects who have extremely high ceilings, and combined with Lowell could be the best offer that the M’s get.
They’re not insults sir. Its fact. I’ve constantly seen sox fans put out these ridiculous trade offers and then ridicule other fans by saying that the sox are actually OVERPAYING. Ha. That’s hilarious. Lowell and Dice K and a bag of doo doo for Cliff Lee??? Really? You guys were putting out the same garbage trade proposals last offseason for Adrian Gonzalez. How many times did I read Michael Bowden and Lars Anderson for A-Gon? Sox fans seem to overvalue your prospects which is understandable because most fans seem to overvalue their teams prospects. And yeah bro, I know about the whole top 15 “protected picks” thing and I was only talking under the assumption that the team that traded for Lee would lose him to free agency. Also, you know as well as I know that Lee is looking to get paid and will probably sign with the Yanks (which would mean the team that traded for him gets two first rounders). Its actually a first rounder and a sandwich pick between round 1 and 2. However, because Lee will likely be the highest ranked free agent in this years class, the pick will more than likely be the first pick after round 1 is finished (which is like #31 which is basically a first round pick). The Sox wouldn’t be getting a second round pick; they’d be getting two first round picks. I’m just saying that I wouldn’t trade these two picks for Kalish, Lowell, and Bowden.
A used needle from 2004 and Michael Bowden, eh? Well, sir, get your facts straight before you start throwing out insults. First off – you’re under the assumption that whoever trades for C. Lee does not resign him, and the team that does resign him is not in the top 15 in draft picks, because those are “protected picks”, meaning they can’t be used for Type A free agent compensation. So, lets say the Sox get Cliff Lee, then the Mets sign him (not unreasonable), well then the Sox only get a 2nd round pick. Same thing if the M’s keep him. Your logic is pretty biased in that you will get everything you want. I’d say Zduriencik would take Kalish + Lowell + Bowden for Lee, where his team could improve by 2011 and they would have money off the books to sign someone in free agency next year.
I expect to get more than two prospects. Remember, the team that trades for Cliff Lee also gets TWO first round picks in next years draft (which is very deep from top to bottom). That would be equal to two prospects right there. The M’s would need at least three good prospects for a deal to make sense. If teams try to lowball them in negotiations for Lee, then they’ll just hang onto him and take the draft picks. Lowell is no prospect. And the M’s aren’t gonna trade Lee for Michael Bowden and a used needle from 2004.
plus Dice K has a full no trade clause
plus Dice K has a full no trade clause
I guess it all depends on whether the M’s would rather create a bidding war for Lee. If that’s the case, they’d probably look at dealing for Lowell in a stand-alone deal. I would think they’d send cash to Boston to cover a portion of Lowell’s salary along with a lower-level prospect. As bad as Kotchman was for Boston last year, he’s been worse here. Zduriencik was banking on improvement with more AB’s and it backfired.
Lowell, so far, has disappointed in terms of plate performance. Again, I realize that he hasn’t had enough at bats (67 AB’s in 78 PA’s), but these are the numbers that the opposing GM has to work with. So, I’m not expecting anything of much substance in return. If Lowell had performed in line with his batting history, nothing short of a B+ prospect would have been considered, and Max Ramirez is not a B+ prospect. That said, I’m doubtful Mikey can bring us either of a decent arm or a decent prospect, hitting just .239. I think I’d try to go for money instead. I’d try to limit the portion of Mike’s salary we have to pick up for the remainder of the season. But if the Mariners are interested enough to talk trade packages, that might change the landscape some. My thinking is they probably want Lowell as a stand alone to bolster their present cast of characters.
Red Sox, let me introduce you to Scott Linebrink
It’s Jason Nix, not Laynce Nix that’s a possible replacement for Teahen.
Honestly, I wished we had Laynce Nix instead.
Honestly, I wished we had Laynce Nix instead.
No, No, No, and No. Please Kenny, don’t become a BUYER right now and think the Sox actually have a chance at the division. The season is over, time to look for teams to take Konerko, Jenks, Linebrink, AJ, ect.
Why don’t the Sox have a chance at the division??
There offense has been horrible.
I’m assuming you’re joking, so i’ll give you a laugh. haha.
Do you honestly believe our offense has been good?
Outside of Rios and hot starts from Konerko and Jones, who have now cooled off, our offense has been atrocious all season long.
I’m assuming you’re joking, so i’ll give you a laugh. haha.
There offense has been horrible.
Have you seen any games this year? Take out Rios and Danks, and we are probably battling it out w/ the Royals for 4th place. This team is lucky to finish at .500, let alone even come close to winning the division.
Why don’t the Sox have a chance at the division??
No, No, No, and No. Please Kenny, don’t become a BUYER right now and think the Sox actually have a chance at the division. The season is over, time to look for teams to take Konerko, Jenks, Linebrink, AJ, ect.
Is Kenny Williams running a secret MLB medical experiment?
Oh. I thought he was saying the Red Sox, not the Chi-Sox. My bad.