At least one division series per league is going to a full five games this year, with the first elimination game taking place in the Bronx tomorrow night. Here are some links to read in the meantime…
- A's GM Billy Beane and MLB.com's Peter Gammons reflect on the decision Beane made in 2002, when he nearly joined the Red Sox before realizing he wanted to remain in Oakland. Gammons compares Beane to Red Sox GM Theo Epstein, who is at a similar career crossroads now that Boston missed the playoffs and the Cubs are interested in him as their next GM.
- The Angels are also looking for a new general manager and former GM Jim Bowden compiles a list of candidates at ESPN.com. Kim Ng of MLB, Jason McLeod of the Padres and Bill Geivett of the Rockies are among the names on Bowden's list (MLBTR's list of GM Candidates offers some more candidates to consider).
- Though the Rangers wanted Cliff Lee last offseason, they have many reasons to celebrate the near-miss, Jon Paul Morosi writes at FOX Sports. Texas signed Adrian Beltre, whose three-homer game sent them back to the ALCS, instead.
- Jim Margalus of South Side Sox looks back at Mark Buehrle's last contract and determines that it was a good one for the White Sox because the left-hander didn't really age.
- Carlos Zambrano knows his future with the Cubs is undetermined until they hire a GM, but he says he is talking with new Marlins manager Ozzie Guillen on a near-daily basis, according to Ormúz Jesús Sojo of Líder en Deportes (translation via MLBTR's Nick Collias).
- Check out Rumores de Béisbol for all of the latest rumors in Spanish.
Aren’t there tampering rules against talking to a player on another team?
I know, right?
We’ll be ok with voiding Zambrano’s contract. Ozzie should talk to Soriano while he’s at it.
That would be so very very awesome if the cubs could void Z’s and soriano’s contracts and not be penalized. Heck I would be fine with giving them each 5 mil per year left on their contracts to just walk away with no legal battles with the players union.
Im surprised the cubs are not trying to get Z’s contract voided with the whole ozzie and Z conversations thing going on daily.
Not unless Ozzie tells Zambrano to throw a temper tantrum to bring down his trade value… then again even if he did no one would notice the difference.
I think that the Cubs would have to prove the tampering. Right now, I am sure that they would both just say that they are friends and the talking is not baseball relevant. That said, if Z can be traded to the Marlins, the Cubs should use a possible tampering charge as a negotiation tactic in making the deal.
Ozzie, you can have him.
You know, until recently, there hasn’t been much buzz about Buehrle in the FA… or maybe I am missing something… any ideas why?
This might be totally unrealistic, but what about swapping Vernon Wells for Johan Santana? Again, just a thought, but they’re both owed a similar amount of money…the Mets get an OF who is still young enough to have a couple of bounce-back seasons left in the tank, and the Angels get a starter who, if healthy, could make things very interesting… I dunno, just trying to be creative…
If the first decision the new GM makes is NOT non-tendering Jeff Mathis, we know we have a problem!
Seriously, I just hope that it’s someone who focuses on the farm and player development, with the ability to add the right free agents and make the right trades when necessary. Sounds simple, I know, but as we’ve seen not all GMs have those abilities…
OH, and someone who can actually NEGOTIATE with agents and other GMs, rather than “oh, here’s our offer of 5/70, take it or leave it”…or “yes, we really want that outfielder with the big contract; we’ll pick up the whole thing, and here’s a good-hitting catcher while you’re at it!”
‘Wells at DH’
Hug?
Sell high on Jeremy Moore? How do you figure his stock is that high? I think he is a good player but unproven, and his name hasn’t been mentioned in any kind of trade scenario.
I think they should go big on the starting pitcher front…try for CJ or Yu Darvish… Also, what about signing Rod Barajas to a 1-year deal? Insert his 2010 avg and home runs into the line-up in place of Mathis, and suddenly the batting order looks exponentially better… Give Conger 1-2 starts a week until he’s ready, and that alone could be a huge jolt for the offense…