In today's blog post at ESPN (Insider req'd), Buster Olney notes that something has changed in the relationship between Michael Young and Rangers, possibly because of trade talk this winter. He speculates that the Athletics and Blue Jays could be fits in a deal. Let's keep tabs on the latest regarding Texas and their third baseman here throughout the day…
- MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan says the Dodgers are interested in Young, but their unstable ownership situation is standing in the way.
- A well placed source told Renck (via Twitter) that he doesn't think the Rockies will get Young. Renck also hears (via Twitter) that the Rockies would need Texas to eat $20MM or more in a deal.
- A source tells Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports that talks between the Rangers and Rockies have reached an "advanced stage," and a trade could come as soon as Monday. Texas is not talking to any other club, and a source confirmed that Jose Lopez is in the latest offer.
- Renck says it's "very, very unlikely" that Dexter Fowler would be involved (on Twitter).
- Troy Renck of The Denver Post reports that the Rangers have not reached out to Rockies as of Friday, contradicting what we heard yesterday.
- Renck notes (on Twitter) that Colorado would be willing to give up Lopez in a trade, but not Aaron Cook. That is subject to change, however. The Rox are understandably leery of surrendering big league starting pitching.
The Blue Jays are a fit if the Rangers will take on half of his salary and ask for almost nothing in return. Otherwise, no thank you.
do the jays really want to pay young 8 mil for the next 3 seasons and block lawrie(at 3b or blocking a move of hill from 2b to 3b). what the jays need is a 1yr stop gap at 3b, not a 3 yr block.
I agree, there is not much upside with Young at this point. I think he is about a year away from becoming Hank Blalock. What the Rangers should be doing is seeing if Young and some money could would be enough to get Blanton from the Phillies.
Would be a perfect fit for Mets too, only if they could spin Castillo, Beltran or K-Rod in that deal.
If they are willing to talk with in the division, the Angela best jump in….. they are delusional if they think they have the answers at 3rd.
How about as the new Red Sox SS?
Sure, if the Rangers eat 3/4 of his salary and take Scutaro. Other than that, I don’t know where you think all this money is coming from.
That was my thought as well. Is Young worth three times what Scutaro is going to earn this year? Even if he is, are you willing to pay him that again for the next two seasons? I don’t think any team without a massive gap would pick up that contract, especially if they have to sacrifice organizational depth in a trade to do it.
I agree. I think Scutaro is a great fit for us and he played very well last year. I’m not quite sure why everyone is so against him.
You guys are right. Over the last three years, the only major difference in numbers between the two guys is about 5 homers/year and about .025 batting avg. Not really worth the extra millions. Thanks for setting me straight.
Might have come off a little strong, and if I did I’m sorry about that. Just thought Scutaro was getting the short end of the stick again.
I hope your kidding. The Red Sox have Lowrie, Scutero, and Iglisias. No need for Michael Young.
i dont know if i want young playing SS… and they already have 2 SS in scutaro and lawrie (sp?). they don’t really have a need for him.
Lowrie, and no I don’t think the Sox ever even considered it. For that money I think they would bring Lugo back first.
lol julio lugo
“The Rangers told Young he was staying put last month and president Nolan Ryan has since said he expects Young to be with the club Opening Day.”
When did the Rangers lose class, or have they ever had any?
I’m pretty sure that this is Young’s doing, not the Rangers front office. From the info in the post, it sounds like Young changed his mind about his role, probably because he doesn’t feel comfortable with the Napoli acquisition.
Oakland? I doubt that since it inside the division unless it is a free give away by both sides. There is no place for him to play in Oakland since Beane loves 3b defense and Young doesn’t give that to you.
I’m wondering how Oakland could be involves too. Young makes zero sense for the A’s. Maybe a three team deal…?
I would give up Jose Lopez and Aaron Cook in a heart beat. Aaron Cook?!? Are you kidding?
for the Jays I don’t think the money is an issue its the 3 years they would have to have him for
Cubs dangit!
You read my mind
We are finally getting some contract relief over the next 2 years. Why would we want to add another bad contract? Id rather give Barney/DeWitt a fair shot at 2B then to trade for a guy who is owed 48M over the next 3 years and who is 34 and hasnt been a very good defender for the past few years. I love what he can bring offensively. But not at the price of adding another aging veteran who is substandard defensively.
Young instantly loses value by leaving Arlington Stadium, or whatever that sandbox is called
Moving into Coors’ Field and out of the other AL West ballparks won’t hurt his numbers too bad though…
sandbox? sabermetrics and fangraphs showed their stadium is the 6th best hitters park in the AL…barely above average.
Could the Cubs and Rangers work out a swap of Young and a prospect for Zambrano and Baker? The money is almost even, the Rangers need pitchers, and Young would make a much better everyday second baseman than a platoon of DeWitt and Baker…
you my friend are a freaking mind reader and that is exactly my thoughts. Or they could try to unload Silva or Fukudome.
That would be interesting. I think it would be more a midseason type trade, though. Texas would probably want to see what Big Z is capable of still.
Wow the Rangers are such a different team for the 2011 season no Vlad.. huge loss.. lost out on the Lee Sweepstakes.. bigger loss there.. and it seems as if they signed a 3rd baseman when they didn’t need one who is nearly the same player as Michael Young.. Who has has 2 good years his entire career in Beltre his last with LA and last year he had a good yr in BOS. He did nothing to earn 80mil.. Young is the face of the Rangers they keep giving him a big F U to his face..if he was about 3 yrs younger i’d trade Ramirez for him straight up but Aramis Ramirez isn’t worth more then a Low A ball player..a few years ago he would be worth a straight up trade for Young its too late now
HAHAHAHAA…HAHAHAHAHAHA…haha…AHAHAHAHAHAAHAHA
did you just say Beltre is nearly the same player as MY?
yes
exactly what numbers are you expecting from beltre this year?
275/333/450 sounds reasonable to me. beltre is a contract year player.
but his defense is awesome as opposed to young…
Please think before you make your observations with Ramirez. He battled a thumb injury the first half which is why he had an sub.200 batting average with about 6 homeruns. He finished with a .241 AVG and 25HRs not awful especially considering from July and after he hit .288.
Ok, so you’re going to ignore the fact that Beltre is widely considered one of the top 3 defensive third basemen in baseball whereas Young was considered a poor defensive third baseman. Also I suppose you’re going to ignore the fact that a good chuck of his career Beltre was playing in a pitchers park surrounded by a subpar offense whereas Young has spent his entire career in a park where he’s basically hitting a superball.
Yeah, good job on your analysis.
Addendum, so I don’t have to make another post: I’ve been arguing this all offseason, Lee is not a major loss for the Rangers for the regular season. Yes, he was a major driving force that helped them reach the World Series while in the playoffs but during the regular the Rangers as a team actually had a losing record on the days when Lee took the mound. Without Lee the Rangers pitching staff is above average and has decent potential.
Big Z has a no trade clause and already said that he isnt going anywhere.. why dont the Yanks get involved in MY..I mean theres a good chance Arod will be out some, he always is, Jeter is getting older and may need some days off… teix and cano have had minor injurys that kept them out a week or 2 or the last two yrs and their DH is a 40 year old man who could get hurt at any moment.. I say Yanks trade for Young!!!!! There looking for a utli guy there he is
So….they should trade for Michael Young and his monster salary to be a bench player in case someone gets hurt? What kind of fantasy land is this?
Its called the “Evil Empire”.. Yanks can afford anybody they want.. Young is a washed up infielder at best.. so why not become the best utli player in the game
The Yankees are starting to show that they are going to have to be more cost effective. They know that at the end of A-Rod’s and even Jeter’s contract they aren’t going to be worth near as much as their contracts. If they can “afford anybody they want” they would have giving Lee a deal he couldn’t resist and they certainly would have a better bullpen and pitching staff then they do. Cashman knows that They can’t just keep spending loads of money and make it work forever and he is showing that he is taking prospects and youngsters very serious now.
7yr and 165 million seems like a deal he couldnt resist… he took 5yr 120mill… they went over 45 million dollars…
He decided he wanted a chance to win, and with the phillies its a much larger chance with that rotation… some people cant be swayed by money especially when hes making 100+ million either way.
they can afford anyone.
He actually took more money per year so if they can afford anyone why not make it 7 yrs 180 or even 200? They obviously wanted him and obviously need him so if they so can afford anything make him an actual offer that is better then everyone else per year? Cashman has said that he doesn’t want to play the spending game for the rest of his career that is why you see him putting more emphasis on his minor league prospects and drafts.
Are you saying the Yanks offered 7/$165 mil, because if so, you’re wrong. The top offer was for 6/$132 + a $16 mil player option which would be a grand total of 7/$148. The Rangers offered 6/$138 with a vesting option of $23 mil for a total of 7/$161 mil.
this has to be a troll. No way can a fan be this stupid
Have you NOT been posting on this site long? Lots of stupid fans…. That said, the majority of the folks here are far smarter than your average ESPN comment thread, but still…
how the hell am i troll because I said that the yanks can afford anybody they wont? they could pay your if your werent worthless… if the yanks wanted young they would have him… but i guess you think rockies and dodgers can make moves with less prospects and less money… sounds like your a troll.. n Lee took less money to go to Philli.. in his press conference he said that it didnt matter how much you paid him, he wasnt going to NY…
If they paid Lee 200 mil he would be there right now. The thing that the Rockies have that the Yankees don’t is mid level over paid players that they are willing to give up to get Young which is exactly what it would take. It isn’t going to take any prospects or a ton of money because the money will be going back the other way in another over paid player or cold hard cash. The Yankee’s have no room and no need for Young at the moment and Cashman has enough salary troubles in the next 3 years with out 16 mil from Young.
A) theres NO chance that any team takes MY without taking some of his salary and B) 200M for lee is CRAZY!!! They were overpaying for him to began with at 160M… I understand that this new age and time is all about money but not just every pitcher who can throw strikes can get 200M… Rangers dont need mid level over paid player they have a whole team full of those.. they want young arms and guys to step in and play.. they need a CF, Hamiliton prolly want be there after this year so why not give up an outfielder like Heathcott and an arm n youll get Young for about 10-11 million a year
You said that they can spend as much money on anyone they want so technically there is no such thing for over paying for anyone for them. And if they trade Young they will either have to take a mid level over paid player or pay some of his salary either one works for a team that would be taking him. Texas does have Bourbon to play centre if he ever shows that he can hit and if not Hamilton will do for another year, it worked out alright last year.
Young for 10-11 MM is still stupid, bordering insanity
not really…check out the salaries of comperable players with 5/10 rights. that’s how the 10M figure was calculated.
The Yanks COULD afford to give Lee but I’m sure the question woulkd be “why”? That would be a huge overpay and I assume that would be stretched over 8 years @ $25 mil for a guy who is already 32. Giving Arod that contract he has was bad enough. Would Lee be worth $25 mil @ age 40?
That is the exact point I am trying to make. Scott here is saying they can buy whoever they want and money doesn’t seem to matter. If they wanted Lee they would pay him enough to come there thats all that I am saying. Cashman is taking a different, more cost effective approach now because he knows that the money game can’t last forever.
Can he pitch?
– B. Cashman
None of this update makes me feel any bit better about a trade, so I hope it doesn’t happen.
Seriously, what is the Rangers’ beef with Michael Young? The guy has been the face of the franchise ever since A-Rod bounced, has done everything asked of him, and still continues to swing a potent bat. Rangers might be the winners of the worst off-season award. First they lose out on Cliff Lee, then they don’t take notes from the Mariners about what happens when you give Adrian Beltre a long term deal, and now they’re trying to unload a guy with a career .300/.347/.448 line. Great job, John Hart I mean Jon Daniels.
It’s called trying to make your team better. Young has been a great company man for years but he’s a defensive liability and if he can be moved to acquire pitching help or help at other areas of need then it needs to be done. Beltre is our 3B. Napoli is our DH(and backup C and possibly backup 1B). Since rumors still say Rangers want to trade Young it also tells me Moreland is our 1B(after the playoff season he had, he’s got every right to that bag). Thus, Young is now an expensive luxury that may be more valuable as a trade piece. I am fine if he’s moved for the right player(s) in return.
But, I am also fine if Young stays and is a super-sub/DH. He can still hit for average and if he’s mainly a DH maybe he could have one of the best hitting seasons of his career(by not wilting in the Texas heat and concentrating on hitting only).
except that worst offseason goes to the angels… i mean missing out on lee, beltre, soriano… taking on wells’ whole contract. excuse me, his whole contract minus 5mil. the rangers should not be so sad. they got napoli and beltre, while missing out on lee. not too bad.
No real “beef” per se, but there is this:
Salaries:
2011: $16 million
2012: $16 million
2013: $16 million
That and an iron glove and bat that really fell off last year.
OMG, his bat fell off?
yup. straight off of his hands
I agree with “LonFree33” below that you have to treat it as a business but I guess the only thing that makes me smh is that they seem to be saying one thing to him and then doing another behind the scenes and are obviously doing a poor job of keeping it secret. There is something to be said about mainting a guys confidence level going into the season. If you want to move him, then they should’ve gotten a deal done with the Rocs a month ago.
So if the Rangers said we’ll give you Young, half of his salary, Julio Borbon, and a solid pitching prospect for Dexter Fowler, would the Rockies think about it? Or is Fowler too valuable?
Rockies were only planning to carry 4 OF including Fowler, so that would create a major problem both short and long term. So, don’t see that happening at all.
This.
Mostly the short term issue..but it’s a big issue
i dont think the rangers would do that. thats quite a lot for him. im not saying that fowler isnt valuable, but borbon and fowler, in my eyes at least, are fairly similar and giving up young, borbon, AND another solid pitching prospect is far too much in my book.
The Jays are absolutely not a fit unless he loses 10 years in age, 6 million a year in salary and becomes a lefty or a switch hitter.
Sure, Ranger fans overvalue MY. But that’s because he was the only bright spot on what was a bush league organization for years. That gains a player a lot of credibility with the dedicated fan base. But if the trade happens, which looks like a necessity now, I hope they somehow get rid of the salary or the bulk of it. The Vernon Wells trade proves anything is possible. They don’t need anything in return and Lopez qualifies as that, but at least get payroll flexibility.
Regardless, amateur hour for the Rangers front office and this being allowed to play out in the media. Maybe its the new TMZ, “gotta be first” style sports reporting, all this getting out is inevitable, but this just reeks of something Tom Hicks would’ve had his slimy fingerprints all over. Instead of insisting to MY and fans he will be here Opening Day, how bout a simple “we’re looking into anything that’ll make us better.” The Ryan Express Group and JD need a Crash Davis session in cliches.
I’ve always really liked Michael Young, one of my friends is a huge Rangers fan and when I told her about them wanting to trade Young she almost started crying. As a Giants fan, he’s the type of guy I’d want on my team, he could be an expensive alternative to Pablo if he ends up being terrible again. Not sure what the Giants would have to give up for him though.
I’d only be interested in Young if the Rangers were willing to pay close to half of his salary, even then he would be blocking Lawrie for a few years (which might not be a terrible thing, since Lawrie is still very young and could easily regress in AAA next year, hope not though). Young @ 16mil per season would be a terrible deal for any team, especially if they got talked into giving up assets in return. If the Rangers can sucker someone into taking all of salary AND giving up a player of some value, then we’d have to lump Texas’ GM in with AA as guys who worked some nice magic this off-season.
Looking ahead as a Rockies’ fan I don’t see Michael Young as the 3-year solution at 2B, even with significant help from Texas on his salary. Even if the Rangers paid half the freight I am sure the Rockies could spend $8 million per season on more pressing needs over that span.
I’ll say it again… The angels got nothing at third. But I bet the rangers would be dumb enough to ask for trout, and that’s not gonna happen.
Callipso, and a pitching prospect, in exchange for young and cash?
The Angels really do need help at third .. Bad .. Really Bad.
the angels can have no power DeWitt Washed-Up Ramirez and Soto as a throw in… the only problem is the owner likes 95% of his team to be Mexican or non American.. Wells and Hunter are the only non Mexicans.. so DeWitt doesn’t fit.. but yea Anaheim can have them for a 1 free year pass to go to DisneyLand for the first 25,000 Cubs fans who sign up nationwide
NOT BORN IN HISPANIC COUNTRY: Trevor Bell; Jason Bulgar; Bobby Cassevah; Scott Downs; Dan Harren; Kevin Jepsen; Scott Kazmeir; Michael Kohn; Matt Palmer; Hisanori Takahashi; Rich Thompson; Loek Van Mil; Jordan Walden; Jered Weaver; Hank Conger; Jeff Mathis; Bobby Willson; Howard Kendrick; Andrew Romine; Mark Trumbo; Brandon Wood; Peter Bourjos; Torii Hunter; Jeremy Moore; Chris Pettit; Vernon Wells; Reggie Willits
PLAYERS BORN IN HISPANIC COUNTRY: Yesmael Carmona; Anthony Ortega; Joel Pineiro; Fernando Rodney; Francisco Rodriguez; Ervin Santana; Erick Aybar; Alberto Callaspo; Maizer Izturez; Kendrey Morales; Freddy Sandavol; Bobby Abreau
That is 27 non-hispanic players and 12 hispanic players. your statment hold absolutely no weight whats so ever. just thought i would point that out to you.
Nice…you could have also mentionedd that this doesn’t bode well for Mike Trout taking over in CF any time soon. Guess the Angels would have to trade a white guy like Jered Weaver to balance the 95% ratio.
You’re going to “throw in” a 28 year-old catcher with an .830 career OPS?
Jim Hendry, is that you?
yes, because Soto sucks, plain and simple. On MLB network they counted down the top 10 catcher right now and not only was Soto not on the top 10 but he wasn’t on the 4 or 5 that didn’t make the cut.. at best Soto is #50 in the top 56 catchers… Mark my words.. Soto hits no better then .230 this year.. with 5 HR if he’s lucky.. FYI his career OPS is nowhere near .830 just cut it in half then divide by 4
Yes the Rangers would be asking for Trout when they are asking for Jose Lopez from the Rockies. Makes perfect sense…
It’s just a theory for why the Orioles signed Vladimir Guerrero, but I believe that the Rangers are looking to trade Michael Young. If they were to do so that would free up their DH spot. My theory is that they were in contact with Vlad and the Orioles offered him the 8 million before they did trade him and offered him a contract to fill that DH spot. Just a theory but makes a little bit of sense to me…
Huh?
He was implying trade young and sign vlad, but the orioles already signed him
I understood. It’s just that that could have been worded better.
Forgive me if I have my facts wrong, but the Rangers were going to move Michael Young to DH, which he was not happy about and spurred trade talks correct? Now if the Rangers did trade Michael Young this would free up their DH spot in their lineup and allow them to slot Guerrero in that spot and give him the at bats that he wants. I believe that the Orioles saw this as a possibility, and gave him the 8 million that he wanted before the events stated above took place. Sorry if you still don’t understand, I can’t explain myself any better…
Napoli/Murphy platoon is more effective than Vlad…
Guerrero had no real chance in coming back to Texas after he faded so much in the second half.
who is the starting catcher in texas?
Yorvit Torrealba with Treanor as the backup and Napoli getting a game or so a week.
thanks. was wondering how much napoli gets to catch. he might be hard pressed to find consistent at bats.
I think my SF Giants should look into this. How about Zito and F. Sanchez for Young and Feldman? The dollars would be pretty even. The Rangers improve their rotation with Barry Zito and get a very usable infield super utility player in Freddie Sanchez. The Giants upgrade their offense with Micheal Young instead of Freddie Sanchez at 2B at the cost of downgrading their 5th starter with Scott Feldman instead of Barry Zito.
An extreme flyball pitcher in Arlington. Yeah that might not work out so well.
Did you know that his HR/FB ratio for his career is actually substantially better on the road then at home? For his career he has a very low 8.5% HR/FB ratio. This should be sustainable anywhere as his career home road splits show park effects have not been a factor.
Interesting, but much of that is due to the last 2 years. In 2007-2008 that certainly was not the case. You could certainly do worse in a No. 5 starter and the Rangers need pitching, so who knows.
“Dodgers are interested in Young, but their unstable ownership situation is standing in the way” That statement alone should be enough evidence to force McCourt to sell the team. C’mon Dodgers! Get in on this! Especially since its seeming as though the Rockies are the main suitors. Blake and Paul and Texas eats the $$$ difference between Blake’s and Young’s contracts. Dodger’s get another 2B/3B/SS and Texas gets their 3B/1B left handed hitter off the bench which is all Young would be if he doesn’t get traded. Just makes too much sense..
I wish. Young is owed $48 million. Blake $7.25 million. Plus, Blake and Paul would do what for Texas besides ride the pine?
Probably should have looked further into the player’s contracts before putting together a trade lol
I like the idea of Young to LA. He fits a big need as a guy who can play 3B and also be a table setter in the 2 spot in the order. The players in the proposal from above dont fit though. How about Young, $$, and one young ML ready starter (either Holland, Kirkman, or Hunter) for Chad Billingsley and Casey Blake.
Billz isn’t going to happen, maybe a pitching prospect who isn’t too far away from the majors. Young and $$$ for Blake, Paul (just to unload him), and Withrow or Ely
no doubt the worst trade in Blue Jays history, but at this point I would be content to call him the ‘one that got away’, and leave it there. I like the path that the Jays are on, keeping some veterans around but not at the expense of developing younger players. My hope is that Lawrie is ready and that the Jays keep developing their high draft picks.
Texas is thinking Vernon Wells #2 is going to happen. Wherefore the Angels gave Toronto a gift and took on all of that salary. The Phillies can’t get rid of a decent pitcher (Blanton) who is owed 16 million for 2 years.
Ya I think that there is buzz around this because of the Wells trade. If the Wells trade didn’t happen I don’t think there is nearly as much of a story as there is. Unfortunately for Texas is that I don’t believe any team is willing to make a trade like that especially with the whiplash that the Angel’s took after the trade.
Still think the Braves are the Best option. Derek Lowe straight up for Michael Young. They then have a 1st baseman to give Freeman more seasoning, third baseman for when Chipper gets hurt and after he retires, or even SS if Alex Gonzalez sucks again. The Rangers add a veteran starter to their otherwise young staff and get one year more of salary relief.
Braves Lineup
LF Prado
1b Young
RF Heyward
2b Uggla
C McCann
3b Chipper
CF McClouth/Schafer
SS Gonzalez
P
I’m against the Rangers trading Mike Young, for many reasons (being as I’m a big big Rangers fan); however, if they do trade Young, this scenario seems like a very good fit.
I think that a Young to ATL is possible but i dont think that ATL would be looking to move a front of the rotation starter for someone who isnt an impact guy. Not that im saying Young isnt a guy who can make an impact i just dont think he can on that team.
A deal that i wouldnt mind seeing for both teams is Young and some cash to LA for Chad Billingsley and Casey Blake. Yes the money is a major hurdle but the players make sense. LA can trade Bills who could benefit from a change in scenery and still have a solid rotation of Kershaw, Kuroda, Lilly, Garland, and Padilla. Blake would give TEX the RH platoon for Moreland at 1st plus be a capable backup at a couple positions and Bills would give them a young front of the rotation guy to go along with Wilson and put them firmly in the favorites seat in the AL West.
I cannot fathom the Dodgers trading Billingsley at all, much less for a guy who would only improve their team marginally (if at all).
I think ATL is more likely than LA. As for Derek Lowe, he is not a front of the rotation starter anymore. The Braves already have a great rotation without him with Hudson, Hanson, Jurrgens, Minor, and Beachy/Venters, and they also have Teheran ready to go in the minors. Additionally, the Braves don’t really have a 3b prospect to replace Chipper when he retires and there isn’t going to be one with Michael Young’s skills for the next 2-3 years to hit the free agent market. Basically they’d be paying Michael Young what they have been paying Chipper over the next 3 years for a player with a similar skillset at this point.
Billz benefitting from a change of scenery..? Last I saw he was a solid #2 in LA
I hate the a player like Young spent most of his career on a crappy team, even when he was a elite ss, he would be the best hitter in baseball if not for ichiro, and now the Rangers are finally good they decide to ship out there most loyal player. If they do i don’t think I’ll have the will power to root for them this year
“he would be the best hitter in baseball if not for ichiro”
wat.
yeah idk about the best, maybe top 5 position wise? i mean young has always been a very good hitter as an infielder, but you cant say the best in baseball
Oh god! I hope he doesn’t come to toronto…