White Sox Obtain Javier Vazquez
In a move that took both me and Mark Gonzales by surprise, the White Sox acquired starter Javier Vazquez for center fielder Chris Young (plus the unwanted salaries of Orlando Hernandez and Luis Vizcaino). Whenever a defending World Champion makes a couple of major trades, the GM is inevitably described as "bold" in the media. I'm not sure whether I count as a member of the media, but "bold" is getting cliche. Check out some of these synonyms: spunky, audacious, gritty. I think I'll call Kenny Williams spunky when referencing the Vazquez and Thome deals.
If you're a Sox fan, you can't possibly dislike this trade. It's a classic Williams "win now" move. He's been doing this for years, dealing can't-miss prospects for all sorts of players. And why not? The White Sox have raised tons of failed #1 prospects through the years. Remember Scott Ruffcorn, Chris Snopek, Mike Caruso, Jon Rauch, and Joe Borchard?
Williams was dealing from a position of strength in center field. The 22 year-old Young was ranked #7 among White Sox prospects by Baseball America entering the 2005 season. (If you're curious, Gio Gonzalez and Daniel Haigwood, who were used in the Thome deal, ranked #8 and #19, respectively). Young is a skinny, speedy athletic guy with good power. He hit .277/.377/.545 in Double A this year and plays a mean center field. Baseball America compares him to Mike Cameron and says he'll be ready by 2007. By that time, the D-Backs' young outfield should be in full force, boasting Carlos Quentin, Young, and maybe Conor Jackson.
But the White Sox have no reason to worry about 2007. In Vazquez, the club has added a durable innings eater with solid peripheral stats. By that I mean he strikes people out and keeps the walks down. Home runs have been an issue for the last couple of years, and it ain't gettin' better at U.S. Cellular. In fact, the Cell will exacerbate the problem. Still, Vazquez can be counted on for 400 innings of at least league average pitching for the next two years, which is plenty valuable. The fact that Arizona took the washed-up Orlando Hernandez and might give the Sox some cash makes the deal look even better for Chicago.
I'll probably break out a RotoAuthority projection for Vazquez later today, but for now let's see what Bill James's minions came up with. They expect Vazquez to go 12-11 with a 3.85 ERA over 211 innings in '06. Projected WHIP is 1.25, and a 7.8 K/9 is predicted. Of course, the effects of U.S. Cellular and the AL aren't factored into that projection.
Javier Vazquez Trade Close?
With a Javier Vazquez trade supposedly close to complete, it’s been unusually hard to dig up information about the deal. Here’s the situation so far:
Adam Rubin of the New York Daily News addressed Vazquez today with just this blurb:
"Javier Vazquez, who has piqued the Mets’ interest, may be on the verge of getting shipped to the Windy City. A baseball insider suggested the White Sox are the most likely destination for the Diamondbacks pitcher, possibly leading to a trade involving Jon Garland (a free agent after the 2006 season) or Jose Contreras."
Ken Rosenthal is on the same page:
"The White Sox are making a ‘strong, under the radar’ bid to trade for Diamondbacks right-hander Javier Vazquez, according to a source with knowledge of the negotiations. The package of players that the Diamondbacks would receive is not known, though it could include a major-league starting pitcher — perhaps right-hander Jon Garland or Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez — and an outfield prospect such as Chris Young."
The Mets have long been mentioned as another suitor for Vazquez, and the Nationals are a dark horse.
I hate to be a wet blanket, but it doesn’t look like Vazquez will end up with either major market club.
I spoke to Chicago Tribune White Sox beat writer Mark Gonzales for his take on the rumor:
"Don’t think it’s going to happen. They had a brief chat, and nothing is on the front burner as of late last week. Garland has become a bigger concern because of the free agent market."
The takeaway? The Sox probably won’t chase Vazquez, but they’re not going to pay Garland A.J. Burnett money after this season. Look for Garland to be dealt before the trading deadline, and possibly this winter.
How about the Mets? My source close to the team tells me that some in the front office are privately scared of how Vazquez fared in the Bronx. Omar likes him, but there is a split opinion. The club is in wait and see mode, so they won’t aggressively pursue Vazquez.
One thing’s for sure – the Diamondbacks are being tight-lipped about details of the Vazquez deal. I know that Jack Magruder of the East Valley Tribune, who is close to Josh Byrnes, still doesn’t know where the righty starter is headed. Perhaps an unexpected team will emerge with the best offer, like the Tigers for example.
Diamondbacks After Corey Patterson
Several different sources have recently mentioned the Dimaondbacks’ interest in Corey Patterson. The rumor first surfaced in my inbox Thursday morning, and I put in a word to Jack Magruder of the East Valley Tribune. Magruder confirmed the rumor, saying that it might happen depending on who the Cubs would take.
After further inquiries, Magruder revealed that the D’backs were reluctant to part with relievers after the Johnny Estrada trade thinned their ‘pen. He also mentioned that Arizona will not part with Carlos Quentin, Conor Jackson, Stephen Drew, or other top prospects, which makes sense.
Some have floated the idea of the Cubs attempting to acquire Des Plaines native Shawn Green for their right field vacancy. Green, the game’s 7th best right fielder in 2005, won’t be coming to the Cubs. Green’s contract calls for a limited no-trade clause for 2006 and 2007 that allows trades only to the Angels, Dodgers, and Padres. Apparently his wife prefers to stay in California.
Today, Bleed Cubbie Blue pointed us in the direction of an article on this same topic. John Gambadoro, in an article special to AZCentral.com, adds some new information about the D’Backs interest in Patterson. According to Gambadoro:
"Last season after the trade deadline had passed, Arizona put a claim in on Patterson after the Cubs had tried to slip him through waivers. The Cubs pulled the offer back."
I’ve dropped a line to "Gambo" in attempt to get a few names that Arizona would be willing to offer. This is pure speculation, but maybe the D’Backs would part with a struggling outfielder of their own, Josh Kroeger. A former wide receiver, Kroeger took a step backward by posting a .261/.316/.422 line in Triple A this year. He’s only 22, and had been successful up to this point. I figure it wouldn’t be bad to add a slugging outfield prospect to the stable if he’s available.
Don’t Expect Luis Gonzalez Return For Cubs
Thinking a Luis Gonzalez homecoming to the Cubs might be an adequate solution? The Cubs don’t. I recently spoke to Daily Herald writer Bruce Miles, who told me that the Cubs have "no interest."
Apparently, the Cubs are turned off by Gonzalez’s weak arm being a part of their outfield defense. While a notch above Jeromy Burnitz, the 38 year-old Gonzalez is slipping offensively. His .459 SLG in 2005 was his worst since 1997. Gonzalez is known to be on the trading block along with Javier Vazquez and Shawn Green.
Gonzalez is most notable for his face, which makes it look like he’s always smiling. A close second would be his ridiculous, almost Ruthian 2001. That year, Gonzo hit .325 with 57 HR and 142 RBI. He posted an OPS of 1117 (69th all time). If you’re curious, the all-time record for on-base plus slugging percentage was Barry Bonds‘s 2004 (1421). Bonds got on base more than 3 out of 5 times that year, easily a record.
Braves Deal Estrada For Cormier And Villarreal
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports continues to scoop the vast majority of trades going on at the Winter Meetings. This time, he's telling us that the Braves sent Johnny Estrada to the Diamondbacks for Lance Cormier and Oscar Villarreal.
The Braves were dealing from a position of strength since Brian McCann is more than ready to take over full-time catching duty. The 21 year-old skipped Triple A and held up nicely in 180 Major League at-bats this year. He's not the defensive catcher that Estrada is, but he's not bad with the glove. Estrada won a Silver Slugger award for catchers and was named to the All-Star team after his 2004, but is unlikely to approach that level offensively again.
Lance Cormier is a 25 year-old right-handed reliever. He's been lousy through 124 Major League innings – 6.21 ERA, lots of homers, weak strikeout rate, and tons of baserunners allowed. He showed potential with a nice run at Triple A Tucson in 2004.
Born in Mexico, Oscar Villarreal is a 24 year-old righty reliever. Despite high walk totals, Villarreal had a spectacular 2003 in relief for the Diamondbacks, pitching 98 innings of 2.57 ERA ball. He'll be representing Mexico in the World Baseball Classic in March if the Braves allow it. Villarreal has suffered some major injuries in his career, undergoing nerve transposition surgery in his arm as well as suffering through rotator cuff problems and a strained hip flexor.
It'd be a stretch to say that this deal improves the Braves' bullpen, especially without Leo Mazzone there to work his magic on the two relievers.
Mets Considering Javier Vazquez
All sorts of trade rumors coming from my source close to the Mets’ front office. While it is well-known that the Mets are interested in Arizona righthander Javier Vazquez, my source names a pitching prospect contrary to published reports.
According to my source, the Mets are considering dealing Kris Benson and 19 year-old blue chip pitcher Gaby Hernandez for Vazquez. Up to this point, published reports have named the polished 24 year-old Brian Bannister as the prospect in the deal.
While Hernandez has not pitched above A ball, he has a much higher ceiling than Bannister. Bannister did impress in 45 Triple A innings in 2005, however.
Vazquez’s problem lately has been the long ball. His HR/9 rate has hovered above 1.4 while his strikeout and walk rates were superb last season. Unfortunately for the Mets, Vazquez carried his home run woes with him on the road in ’05. It will troublesome if he continues to do so, but there’ s no doubt that Shea Stadium suppresses home runs (by 16%) and Chase Field inflates them (by 13%).
Even if Vazquez continues to surrender home runs, he’s a marked improvement over Kris Benson. Benson managed a 4.13 ERA in 2005 to Vazquez’s 4.45, but consider:
He’s two years older than Vazquez.
He was much worse away from Shea Stadium.
He hasn’t pitched 200 innings in a season since 2000.
His 2005 strikeout rate was a career low.
Considering that the Mets appear to be entering extreme "win now" mode, the Vazquez trade is a good move even if Gaby Hernandez pans out in 2007.