What a day for outfielders. Johnny Damon and Manny Ramirez went to the Rays, Vernon Wells went to the Angels, Vladimir Guerrero could be going to the Orioles and maybe the greatest outfielder of all time went to a New York City public school.
Some news items on a busy Friday in the majors…
- Yankee fans, be warned: SI's Tom Verducci looks at how Mark Teixeira could be headed for a decline.
- The Yankees could probably afford to sign Albert Pujols as a free agent next winter, but Mike Axisa of the River Avenue Blues blog points to Teixeira's presence and the albatross of Alex Rodriguez's giant contract as reasons why Pujols just doesn't fit in the Bronx.
- Geoff Baker and Larry Stone of the Seattle Times agree that a split between Milton Bradley and the Mariners would be beneficial to both the player and the team.
- Jed Hoyer and Bud Black predict the Padres' offense won't suffer much of a dropoff without Adrian Gonzalez, reports MLB.com's Corey Brock. "I think our offense has the potential to be as good as last year," Hoyer said. "We lost our clear best player [Gonzalez], but we have better balance. The positions we were weak last year, we're better at now."
- MLB.com's Mark Bowman profiles Julio Teheran, a 19-year-old right-hander and non-roster invitee to the Braves' Spring Training camp who has drawn comparisons to Pedro Martinez.
- The Reds wanted to bring back Arthur Rhodes, but the Rangers' willingness to give Rhodes a vesting option for 2012 was an offer Cincinnati just couldn't match, says MLB.com's Mark Sheldon as part of a reader mailbag.
“The Yankees could probably afford to sign Albert Pujols as a free agent next winter, but Mike Axisa of the River Avenue Blues blog points to Teixeira’s presence and the albatross of Alex Rodriguez’s giant contract as reasons why Pujols just doesn’t fit in the Bronx.”
That’s about as equal to the chance of seeing Babe Ruth playing again next year in the Bronx.
I dont put anything passed the Yankees brass anymore. Pujols back to left?
Seriously!!! Don’t put the idea of Pujols to the Yankees in anyone’s head!!!
Too late. Can’t wait for next year’s free agency!!1!u =P
pUt Him AT catchur! Montero for (absurd trade demand)!!!1!! Make t happn Cas$!
Dipped into the eggnog I see..
Eggnog…
No thanks.
He’s not leaving St Louis, don’t even worry about that.
The Cleveland Cavalier fans say hi.
already there. Its nice to dream.
Personally I wish we didnt have Tex or ARod. Or Jeter for that matter.
i suppose you dont want any of those rings either
Padres management = delusional
They won’t make up the 30 home runs (not in that ball park), but the 101 runs could be made up for with a more balanced line up. Whether or not they’ll actually have one, we’ll have to see. With that pitching they really don’t need 10 runs a game.
They do still have to score runs to win. Just ask the Mariners.
Since when do you have to outscore the other team to win? sheesh baseball’s changed….
..
I don’t see it right now, but the Red Sox put a serious number of wins in the W column that the Yankees can’t keep up with, I could Hal getting there really fast to match Crawford/A-Gon/Youk.
On another note: I like the Teixeira turning into Giambi theory.
Well it did also compare him to JD Drew you know. Fortunately for you guys, most likely, 2011 is his last year in a Sawx uniform.
I don’t see how the Sox keep Drew next season, everyone’s kinda expecting Kalish to take over in 2012. Maybe Reddick if he breaks out in AAA this year.
That’s what I was expecting too, unless Drew has some kind of breakout year.
I think he will retire after the season. His son probably still has health problems.
Fortunately for us, we got one of the best hitting coaches in Kevin Long. He’s the Dave Duncan of hitting coaches. I have faith in him, and Tex, to turn it back around.
Don’t have faith in Tex having a good April though heh
Every year it seems the Braves have some young stud coming along, i love it! Take notes PHI and NYY, you dont always have to buy a competitive team.
cano, arod , tex is better than crawford , agon , youk
Oooo look, someone’s trying to start a flame war.
Oh jeez. Well I’m about to hit the sack, but I expect this thread to probably have more comments on it than the Vernon Wells trade by the morning/noon lol
Usually tends to happen after the first person drops their drawers and brings out a ruler.
Sleep well.
“Usually tends to happen after the first person drops their drawers and brings out a ruler.”
I’m sure Alex Anthopoulos had that happen to him tonight after that trade haha.
Take care.
You’re only mad because HE’S RIGHT!! bwahahaha
I see the “like” and “reply” buttons, but I just can’t seem to find the “laughed my a$$ off at this lame comment” button.
Sox lineup-Best in baseball and only going to get better!
Yankees Lineup- Very good but rapidly regressing with age!
its comparable at least. and anyone who has ever watched baseball knows that jeter (even at this stage of his career) is far and away better than marco scutaro or any other guy the redsox trot out there. and when that kid inglasis comes up, jeter will be better than him too.
Iglasias is already far better in the field. It remains to be seen how far Jeter will have regressed at the plate by the time the kid comes up.
money and rooting interest aside who would you rather have, jeter or scutaro/lowrie/iglasias? right now not in three years
I would 100% rather have Scutero/Lowrie/Iglasias. Thats not even close to comparing.
If you’re asking if I would trade all three for Jeter – no chance. If you mean is Jeter better than any of them today – yes. Next year – maybe not.
its halarious how reactive a society we are to the moves that are made. the yankees have the best lineup in the game and now the best bullpen. plus 2 really good starters in hughes and cc, aj has one outlier of a year and my guess is he bounces back. so basically the red sox have a better #4 and #5 starter which will be adressed by the yankees with pettitte or someone else in the near future.
Actually the Red Sox have the best lineup in baseball and a better, deeper pen than the anyone else,plus 2 young aces and the best 3-5 starters in baseball! See what I just did!
you may be right but the stories of the yanks demise are a bit premature
B-b-but the Yankees have two really good relievers. That makes them the BEST!!!11!
lester and buchholtz are good. but josh beckett is not only injury prone but the last 2 years for him have not been good. daisuke is aj burnett version 2 and lackey while a solid pitcher is learning the differnce between the al east and al west.
You must really be bored.
A 5.4 WAR is not “good”?
Not only is Lackey adjusting by all accounts his elbow is thought to possibly blow at any given time. Its why the Angels let him go and why the Yankees were not in play to sign him. He was a Yankee killer and put up great numbers and he was as solid as you can be for the Angels yet he was basically told to leave if he wanted a big contract. I think because of this he is a huge question mark.
Beckett has not been good for two years and your on the mark about Dice K. Buchholtz was great last year though and you have to give him proper credit for that.
How was Beckett’s 2009 not good?
Hypothetically the Yankees could move Derel Jeter to left or right, I dont think he hurts them at either position. Arod can shift to shortstop with Nunez playing 3rd or Arod stays at third with Nunez playing short. First base and DH could be split between Pujols and Tex or Tex can shift over to third. Hypothetically Pujols can move to right as the Yankees let Swisher go with Tex staying at first because he is better defensively. Tex could move to right or learn to play third. If the Yankees want to spend the money there are many ways they could make room for him. I think he will sign an extension with the Cardinals but if the Yankees really wanted Pujols there are many ways to make room for him.
There may be reasons to worry about Tex. He is still young so it may be premature but one thing that is certain is the Yankees do need him to hit better than .256.
I do not think Drew is a good comparison to use however. When you look at the numbers Giambi put up in his prime with Oakland and his first year with the Yankees .312 41 homeruns 120 rbi’s- Drew was never that type of player and never put up numbers like that in one year let alone a string of years. The same holds true for Tex, at no point in his career was Drew ever close to being as good as either player.
As I noted above, Giambi remained an effective hitter after the age of 30, posting a 143 OPS+. He was a problem because he was a horrible fielder. Not an issue with Teixeria. Even as he declines, he’ll still remain productive as a hitter and a fielder.
I don’t like the “move Jeter to the corner outfield spots” at all. Why would you ever want a player who’s most likely going to to hit under .300, have limited power and play AT BEST, and this is being very generous, average defense at a position he may not have played since little league, if ever?
Also take into account who your taking out of the lineup/who Jeter is replacing in the field. Let him fake it at SS for as long as he wants if he can still hit. When he can’t, pray he retires. (But… he won’t).
I know you’re being all hypothetical and stuff, but I just wanna add the following:
A-Pu will never be a Yankee.
A-Rod will never play shortstop again for the rest of his life unless Jeter decides to make more Yankees Classics and dive into stands (even then, they’d throw Ramiro Pena out there. Or Enrique Wilson’s ghost).
Eduardo Nunez will never win a starting job at any postion on the Yankees. Ever.
You make a good point about Nunez and I tend to agree which is why I do not understand their unwillingness to part with him in a trade. Some other teams have shown a great deal of interest including the Mariners and Braves. Atlanta is stocked with young arms- Cashman was against signing Soriano, the ownership stated they did not like the in house options why not deal Nunez to Atlanta for a good bullpen arm or two? Atlanta also has a few young left handers who put up great numbers last so why not deal Soriano for one of them in place of Feliciano who is getting up there and threw a million innings with the Mets? When you look at the state of the rotation why not deal Nunez for Lowe? Granted its a big chance but they have always liked him, their is only one year left on his deal and I dont think he represents any greater risk than a Millwood or Bonderman, I think his upside is greater having not thrown as many innings as a normal guy his age and he represents an upgrade over Mitre.
The whole Jeter to the outfield situation comes up because they will have him 3 more years and if they can improve in one area and there is a net gain moving him to the outfield its something that could be considered. Swisher will be a free agent so while it is not the best idea in the world it just represents an option they have based on the state of the team right now. No he is not a the best option but its something that can be considered.
That would be nice if the Yankees could get something for him. I just don’t see it though, unless it were part of a package deal.
Pujols gave up other non-first positions because of his elbow several years back. If he was a pitcher, he’d probably have had TJ surgery by now, but he’s been able to deal with it fine as a hitter, as long as he’s playing first and not making throws from the OF. I don’t see him moving to right or left.
As for A-Rod, the last time he started a season as a SS, he was all of 27 and playing for the Rangers. That was eight years ago for A-Rod, who turns 36 mid-season, has bulked up more with weights over the years since moving to third, and had hip surgery last year, greatly limiting his movements. He was a better defensive SS than Jeter years ago, but I’m afraid if he ever went back to short, he’d make Derek Jeter look like Ozzie Smith with the glove.
I like how Verducci uses RANDY CHOATE, a lefty specialist who had a damn fine season in that roll, as a comparison for set up men.
“4.23 ERA? Randy Choate? Set up men? STORY WRITTEN.” -T.M.
tehren is going to be more beast than Hanson, Medlen and Minor and Beachy COMBINED. 😀
As it was written, so it shall be done.
Hehe, Padres. I agree with Jed Hoyer. Your offense can’t suffer much of a ‘drop off’ when it scored the fewest runs in the NL West last year.
Uh, so Geoff Baker and Larry Stone came to the conclusion that a split between Bradley and the M’s would be good for both parties? Calling Capitan Obvious, come in Capitan Obvious! When wouldn’t a split with Bradley be better for Bradley and the team?
From what I can tell it looks like the M’s have treated him fairly and given him chance after chance in the short time he’s been there. He keeps screwing up and he really needs to continue getting help. At this point however maybe MLB needs to step in. What they would do when they stepped in I don’t know but Bradley’s situation reminds me of lazy parents standing by and watching while their bratty kid terrorizes the babysitter. No matter where Bradley goes it’s going to end badly, MLB needs to force the guy to get some serious professional help, if he’s not getting enough already, and do everything within reason to counsel him and keep him out of trouble. He’s a black eye on the sport, they shouldn’t just sit and watch his antics any longer. And while they’re helping him they need to make clear that he’s already at strike two. Any more blow-ups, run in’s with the police, going after fans or broadcasters etc… is going to mean the end of his career.
Unless someone has a better idea of how to keep this guy out of trouble then this is the path I would take with him. I don’t blame MLB for this situation and they shouldn’t have to treat an adult with kid gloves but unless they do he’s going to keep embarrassing the sport, himself, his team, the commissioner etc etc… Do something to get the situation under control.
It being better for the TEAM to part ways with Bradley is obvious. I wouldn’t say it being better for Bradley is. In fact I’m not sure I’d even call that a good thing much less obvious, considering after all this with the Cubs and Mariners, his lackluster performance the last few years and his past history there’s a fair chance he doesn’t get another job in baseball.
Difference between Giambi and Teix is that Teix probably didn’t take steroids and his glove is worth a lot.
They are very different players. Giambi was a classic slugger where Tex is a better pure hitter. Giambi played first because that was where he could do the least amount of damage with his glove where Tex is a gold glove first baseman who makes infield defense a strength. Tex is a better player all around and the risk in signing him to a long term deal was much less than Giambi. I would compare Giambi to Cecil Fielder where I would compare Tex to Fred McGriff. I can still see Tex being a productive hitter playing the field in the last year of his deal where with Giambi they pretty much new that by the end of the contract they were going to have the player that they did have.
Verducci is a hack.
I meant deal Nunez to Atlanta for a left hander.
A few points. Verducci is spot on with Texeria. This next season is a make or break year for him. If he continues to pound into the shift and his batting average hovers in the .250-.260 range, he’ll be the worst free agent contract the Yankees have signed in recent years. They did not sign up for Giambi the sequel. They thought they were getting a near .300 hitting force, but last season he was a streaky player whose final numbers did not match up with his contract.
If he has another season like last and Pujols hits the market, take it to the bank that the Yankees will go after Pujols and attemtp to force Tex into waiving his no trade clause and moving on somewhere else (with the Yankees picking up significant dollars).
Pujols to the Yankees isn’t crazy to suggest. If he makes it to free agency I expect the Yankees there with their checkbook wide open. If he didn’t replace Tex at first, they would sign him to DH. They do not realistically look at Jeter as a future DH. Arod, on the other hand, should be the future DH but they may get Pujols to cover DH until Arod can no longer play the field.
Next season is a big season in that if Tex regresses or stays the same as last year and Arod proves he can still play the field, Pujols will be on the table.
The Yankees went through watching Giambi pound balls into the shift for 20 million a year and they despised it. They will not settle for a below average Texiera who has lost the ability to hit to all fields in his early 30’s.
After next season Tex will have 5 years guaranteed left on his deal. I think another team would take a chance on him in a trade if the Yankees provided some dollars. St. Louis, Milwaukee, Texas, the Mets, the Nats, the Cubs, the Braves all will be looking for a 1b and I’m certain they’d be in on Tex if he was available in a deal.
Make or break? Dude I think you are completely overreacting. He had a MVP caliber season in 2009. He had his usual bad start in April and he played thru an assortment of injuries in Sept/Oct. Remover those two months and he hit .289 for the rest of the season. To top it off he had a extremely low BaBIP of .268 last year. He still had close to 70 xtra base hits and over 90 walks. Still a productive season. Even if the Yanks wanted to too, he’s not waving the no trade clause and the Yanks aren’t eating his salary just to try and sign Pujols.
Dear Yankees and Phillies fans,
Try not to get upset at baseless comments from Braves fans. We were spoiled with 14 consecutive division titles and now the bulk of us are pretty bitter, and now that they’re fielding a competitive team with a damn good farm backing them, we tend to get a little too optimistic. The Phillies, nor the Yankees have done nothing wrong in my eyes. Both championships are deserved….
Teheran excites me to no end, seen him start a few games and could barely believe what I seen from the 19-year-old. Throw him in the mix with Hanson, Hudson, Lowe, Jurrjens, Minor, Medlen, Beachy, Delgado, and Vizcaino and it’s hard not to get overly excited. Not a big fan of Jurrjens(or Lowe for that matter), and Beachy’s stuff isn’t exactly dominant……but the rest of that pack can flat out pitch. More than likely not all of these guys will pan out and one or two will no doubt be traded for a positional player at some point.
The Phillies obviously have what it takes to win the division for the next 2-3 years, but the Braves should keep seeing improvement with their club. They’re about to have a good chunk of money coming off the books, so they can go out and get a couple of pieces to put them over the top.
As intimidated as I am regarding the Phillies rotation, I still can’t wait to see the Braves face them. Good luck to all clubs involved….
And dickey, the Braves aren’t gonna be in on any 1st baseman for at least a couple of years. Freeman’s gonna get his shot to produce.
giambi was never the hitter at the stadium for just that reason; he abandoned the tactic of going with pitches that made him a consummate threat as an oakland star; his and teix’s skills aren’t all that similar, in the same way verducci’s and solid reporting aren’t; a guy hits points under his lifetime, shoot him? go write another torre expose, crutch seeker