The Phillies lost ace right-hander Roy Halladay for 6-8 weeks with a lat strain yesterday, but GM Ruben Amaro told Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports that the injury will not impact contract talks with Cole Hamels (all Twitter links). The team wants to retain Hamels but their urgency hasn’t increased.
“We’ve expressed this enough to Cole,” said Amaro. “He remains a very important part of it regardless of what happens with Roy or any other player. He is still every bit as important to us.”
Hamels, 28, is pitching to career bests in ERA (2.43), strikeout rate (9.2 K/9), and walk rate (1.8 BB/9) this season. He’ll be the most coveted free agent on the market after the season (if he makes it that far), with Johan Santana’s six-year, $137.5MM contract serving as a reasonable reference point in talks.
Amaro has previously said that if the Phillies do not climb back into the race, they could become sellers at the trade deadline. Teams have already inquired about the Hamels’ availability.
He’s as good as gone
Could see Hamels getting 6/137m as a FA. Can also see Boston not paying him that much, not even the NYY. Anaheim is out with their rotation fairly well set. Texas has enough salary issues and Hamilton. Tigers could pair him up with Verlander.. If they could fit his 23m+ salary in between fat boy Fielder and Miggy.
LAD have a new owner and lots of money..Hmmm
Approaching $140MM, huh. Talk about making diamonds out of Cole.
Depends if can find more teams to get involved with payroll flexibility. I do think Philly will go up to 5 and 20mAAV, maybe even go 6y, but no further. Think even the NYY and Boston will be in the peripherals of the “Hamel hunt”, lurking around to see what the years and amount is and NY would gladly take him on if he will go for..Say 5/100-110m and not bother shedding much current payroll.
Boston would take him on at 6/110-115m even am guess-timating. Move Ells over the winter, Youk this year, or over the winter take a flyer on his option, or pick it up and move him should he get hot this season. Sign a cheaper option who plays the OF and is RH. They could possibly fit him easier than NY, but it’s all for nothing as the LAD have tons of room, new owner, dead weight already in Loney coming off of the books.. LA might even make a move towards Morneau also.
I expect the Dodgers to make some powerful moves the winter of 2012-13.. Regardless of how far they go this year.
I would honestly guess boston for hamels, especially if bard ends up back in the pen.
if ryan kalish and will middlebrooks can hold down MLB starting jobs, that fills RF and 3B with cost controlled guys for years to come.
one of Youk or Ortiz probably walks and dice-k and ross are FA, which opens up plenty of payroll space for boston.
They (Boston) actually have more salary move options around than some think.. They can move Salty for Lavarnway. Youk for Middlebrooks, Ells.. Who is set to get outrageous contract after 2013 and probably 10-12m after the season if they settle before arbitration, the team can find a replacement RH bat (that they need more) for what he will make.. Like Ross over a 2 year deal more likely.
They could even retain Youk and let Ortiz walk.. Bring up Iglesais as the SS next season and move the super affordable Aviles. the team has pieces at Pawtucket at just the right places whom are ready.. Except for SP.. Those are further down
if the sox can fill two of RF, SS, 3B, or C with young, cost controlled talent, hamels becomes an even better idea for the sox.
the pitching is further off, and pitching prospects are known to be far more volatile than position prospects. one doesn’t have to be a sox fan to see the obvious fit.
also: ellsbury’s arbitration salaries are still a massive steal at his production level.
I don’t think DET wants to go that route. They have to start worrying about Verlander’s potential free agency in 2 years and Cabrera’s in 3.
He’ll look good in Dodger blue.
“He’ll look great in Nats’ red…”
-Mike Rizzo
He’s not going to be a Dodger… completely overblown. Cole may be from the West Coast but he belongs in New York, Boston, or Philadelphia.
He’s even said he prefers the East Coast and has called out Southern Californian fans as not being passionate. If the offers were close, I think he’d choose Philly over LA… or any East Coast city (over LA) for that matter. Not to mention if he stays here, he is the ACE, instead of having to play second fiddle to Kershaw for the rest of their careers.
He actually has roots in Boston.
I think Cole Hammels is a very good pitcher but I don’t agree when I see him compaired to Johan Santana and CC Sabathia that I have seen before. Johan has won 19 and 20 games in a season and won 2 Cy youngs. CC has won 19 games three times and 20 games once. He has also won one Cy young.
Cole hasn’t won 20 games in a season because the Phillies offense (before this year) has been anemic when he pitches.
He’s every bit the pitcher those two guys are.
Last year, the Phillies averaged 4.96 runs per game for him.
Cole’s run support:
2008: 6.02
2009: 6.97
2010: 5.35
The two best years (2010, 2011) of his career, the Phillies have scored an average of less than 5.5 runs a game.
In 2007, CC Sabathia was given 6.46 runs per game.
6.7 runs per game for Santana in 2006.
6.91 runs per game for Satana in 2004.
CC Sabathia (since signing with New York)
2009: 7.90 Runs Per Game
2010: 7.31 Runs Per Game
2011: 6.98 Runs Per Game
Using wins to measure the value of a pitcher, eh? Have fun, and don’t trip over your spleen on the way out the door…
How about Cy youngs eh? That is when the people who know more compaired to you vote on the pitcher. Also Hammels has never won
“Hamels” never won.
I highly doubt sports writers know that much more than we do. Especially the likes of Jon Heyman, Buster Olney, etc.
“That is when the people who know more compaired to you vote on the pitcher”
And to think I was trying to protect you from a lambasting…
I gather from your spelling skills that you aren’t a fan of “edumacation” and won’t waste my time explaining any fancy-dancy, newfangled stats to you. If you want to use wins or pre-Felix Cy Young votes, I suggest you go by the moniker “Yanksfan1910”.
They also forgot sometimes that a few “unedumactaed” writers seem to do the balloting and a few managers do a few also.. See derek jeter recently getting a GG with his concrete galoshes..
I don’t recall CC winning a Cy Young award yet…. and it doesn’t appear that baseball-reference does either.
2007. Even then, he was:
5th in Strikeouts
17th in Batting Average Against
5th in WHIP
5th in ERA
2nd in Wins
Touche…. Not sure how I missed that…
“Halladay Injury Will Not Impact Talks With Hamels”
I’m guessing Hamels’ agent sees it differently.