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Market For Crede Dries Up

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Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times says the market for Joe Crede has "dried up," as the Dodgers and Giants have little interest.  Tough luck for Josh Fields, who seems headed back to Triple A.  Ozzie Guillen’s explanation for the lack of Crede interest:

This game has gotten to be a bunch of political, a bunch of [expletive] budget, a bunch of [expletive].  They forgot about the talent.

I’m not sure what Ozzie means by that.  Perhaps the "political" comment has something to do with Scott Boras, who represents Crede.  SI.com’s Jon Heyman offers an alternative explanation, quoting a scout who says Crede still looks hurt.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Loretta, Ensberg, Lopez, Ring

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Ken Rosenthal has some Spring Training odds and ends this morning.

  • Rosenthal adds Mark Loretta as a possible third base acquisition for the Dodgers.  Given their desire for a relatively affordable guy who can also handle second, Rosenthal has linked them to Ron Belliard and Esteban German previously.  Loretta shouldn’t be too hard to pry away from the Astros.  Though he can’t play second, Morgan Ensberg could be an option if the Yankees let him leave.
  • The Nats are shopping Felipe Lopez, who’s said he wouldn’t be content on the bench.  Rosenthal says the Nationals have their eye on awful shortstop Angel Berroa as a possible replacement, which is strange on multiple levels.  Not only is Berroa not a Major Leaguer at this point, but the Nats plan to use Cristian Guzman at short.
  • Royce Ring is said to be "perhaps the most available of the Braves’ out of options relievers."  Who needs a lefty?

Inge Unlikely For Dodgers

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It figures that the Dodgers would step up their efforts to bring in a third baseman given news of Nomar’s microfracture.  Jon Paul Morosi says their search has intensified, but Brandon Inge is not a likely target.  The Dodgers don’t want to spend that kind of money. 

This might imply that Joe Crede is the perfect fit, but Morosi also says the Dodgers want a player capable of playing second base.  Given those criteria, the Royals’ Esteban German and the Nationals’ Ron Belliard seem to make the most sense.  Ken Rosenthal wrote on March 9th that both players had attracted the Dodgers’ interest, but Dayton Moore then told Bob Dutton that they Dodgers hadn’t called about German.  Rob Neyer and Jeff Weisman believe Chin-Lung Hu is the cure to the short-term third base problem.

No Crede Trade Imminent

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Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune reports that it’s become "increasingly likely" that Joe Crede will get the Opening Day nod at third base for the White Sox, with Josh Fields heading to Triple A.  It’s an unfortunate situation for the 25 year-old Fields, who doesn’t have much left to learn in the minors.  Gonzales adds that trade talks with the Giants have "all but ceased," and the Dodgers don’t seem all that interested either.

Crede is trying to shake off the rust (his last regular season game was June 4th of last year) and prove he’s an above average third baseman worthy of his $5.1MM salary.  It seems that Crede’s audition will extend into April or May.  If he plays decently and a few teams suffer injuries or ineffectiveness at the hot corner, maybe Kenny Williams will get the return he wants.  Who knows – if Crede has a hot start, maybe the White Sox will decide to let him play out the season and have Fields work on his defense at Charlotte.  Or, Ozzie Guillen could pursue an interesting strategy posed by Sox Machine, where Crede is a defensive replacement.

Pierre’s Days With Dodgers May Be Numbered

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The Orange County Register speculates this morning that Juan Pierre may be on the verge of losing his job after only one season with the Dodgers, which may force a trade. If true, the Dodgers will have received only one year of service for their $44MM investment.

Tony Jackson notes that with center field belonging to Andruw Jones, that leaves two spots for Pierre, Andre Ethier and Matt Kemp. Ethier and Kemp have shown this spring that they may be ready for everyday jobs. Jackson also suggests that Pierre is not an ideal candidate for the bench even if the remaining 4 years and $36.5MM on his contract are discounted.

It was previously mentioned that Pierre may be willing to waive his no-trade clause, which limits the Dodgers to five teams. However the A’s, one rumored destination, are not interested. If Pierre is traded, the Dodgers will most likely have to swallow a good portion of the remaining contract. Would the Mets get involved if talks with the Tigers and Jay fall through? Pierre might only cost them $24MM for the next four years and middling prospect.

Cork Gaines writes for Rays Index and can be reached here.

Odds and Ends: Inge, Salcedo, Corey, Nathan

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I write this odds and ends post with two less wisdom teeth than I had yesterday.  Looks like applesauce for dinner.

  • Jon Heyman says the Dodgers and Tigers haven’t talked lately, and doesn’t see L.A. taking on Brandon Inge’s $19.1MM.  Aside from the standard Giants suggestion, Heyman puts on his speculation cap and wonders whether Inge could catch for Houston.  What is J.R. Towles, chopped liver?
  • This is questionable, but hey, it’s a Friday.  Hi5 is a popular social networking site in Central America.  A reader sent me a link to this page, which may belong to future superstar kid shortstop/Boras client Edward Salcedo.  The owner of the page slapped up a big ol’ Indians logo over a month ago with the caption "my team."  I have to reiterate that I don’t know if this is really Salcedo’s page.  The Tribe said on Tuesday that Salcedo remained unsigned.
  • The Orioles are observing 34 year-old journeyman reliever Bryan Corey.
  • Joe Nathan, still chatting contract with the Twins.  Kelly Thesier noted that it was the Twins reaching out recently.  Nathan’s agent will meet with them Tuesday.
  • Jacob Jackson goes out on a limb and wonders if Justin Upton could be Oakland’s first $100MM player.
  • The new Phils-ville blog is up.

Nats To Pass On Weaver

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Scott Boras found a deal for Kyle Lohse; will he now focus on getting Jeff Weaver a job?  On Monday, Jeff’s brother Jered said the Nationals and Cardinals had expressed interest.  The Cards are surely out of the mix now, and MLB.com’s Bill Ladson says Weaver has seemingly "priced himself out of the Nats’ pay range."  I’ll guess the Nats were thinking $2MM or so.

So if the Nats and Cards are both out, what’s the elder Weaver to do?  Baltimore seems to be his best option.  Toronto could work.  Perhaps the Astros as a long shot.

In a note at the bottom of his article, Ladson also quashes a short-lived Felipe Lopez to the Cubs rumor.  He adds that the Dodgers have legitimate interest in Willie Harris.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Barry Bonds

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The biggest name remaining in the free agent market is one Barry Lamar Bonds. The most recent rumored destinations for the all-time home run champ have been the Rays, Mets and even Japan. The Rays say there was never any serious consideration and the Mets say they are not interested.

The biggest question mark concerning Bonds is whether his production at age 43 is worth the circus that follows, both in the clubhouse and in the media. Yesterday at my home base, Rays Index, I contacted Chone Smith of Anaheim Angels All The Way, and creator of the CHONE projection system.  Smith had used his projection system to predict that the final regular season standings. The Rays are projected to win 89 games and finish third in the AL East, based on a considerable improvement in pitching and defense. The Mets are projected to win 92 games.

In an effort to estimate Bonds’ on-field impact, we asked Smith to substitute Bonds into the Rays and Mets lineups and rerun his projections. With Bonds in the lineup, both the Mets and the Rays improved by 3 games in the standings and approximately 30 net runs (As an Angels fan, Smith kindly refused to run the same projection for the Mariners or the A’s, lest those teams start thinking Bonds is a good idea).

If the Rays are indeed an 87-89 win team (PECOTA projects 88 wins), then Bonds might be a difference-maker. While signing Bonds may indeed be a headache, the difference between 89 wins and 92 wins for the Rays could be the difference between the 2007 Brewers (just missed) and the 2007 Rockies (World Series). And the difference between 92 wins and 95 wins for the Mets could be the difference between the 2007 Mets (one game short) and the 2007 Phillies (one game not short).

To quote one commenter from Rays Index, "Media scrutiny is only hard if you suck.  If you’re good, it’s fun."

Let’s take a look at what else is being said about Bonds in the Blogosphere…

If there is a topic you would like to see covered in "Baseball Blogs Weigh In" please let me know HERE.

  • Squawking Baseball thinks the Angels could be a solid fit for Bonds.
  • Baseball Musings will miss Bonds if he doesn’t play this year, and lists several teams that should consider signing him.
  • Amazin’ Avenue explores "The Bonds Market" and express their desire for the Mets to sign the aging slugger, calling the apparent blackballing "disgraceful".
  • Mike’s Mets doesn’t see Bonds as a clubhouse cancer and thinks he would be good for the Mets, but does not think he will fit from a financial perspective.
  • Bugs & Cranks feels that the Dodgers would have a much better shot at winning the NL West if they signed Bonds.

Cork Gaines writes for Rays Index and can be reached here.

White Sox Not Happy With Crede Offers

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We knew that Joe Crede’s name would be an oft-mentioned this spring. Further, we knew that he’d be connected with the Giants, who have infield needs. It appears the two teams have been discussing possible swaps, but the Sox are less than impressed with what’s been offered thus far.

According to Mark Gonzalez of the Chicago Tribune, the Giants have been offering up the likes of recently-cut Scott Williamson, recently-optioned Randy Messenger, and outfielder Dave Roberts, though not all in the same package. On the other end, GM Ken Williams is looking for "one of the Giants’ top prospects and a serviceable young reliever."

The Sox don’t have to trade Crede, since Josh Fields still has options. However, Crede hasn’t looked so hot this spring — or at least that’s the story his batting average tells, as he’s hitting .081. Of course, numbers mean little at this time of year. The White Sox asked about left-hander Jonathan Sanchez, but given the injury to Noah Lowry, that appears less than likely.

The Dodgers are another team mentioned in connection with Crede, as they sent a scout to watch him earlier this week. However, they do have Nomar Garciaparra at the hot corner, with recently-injured Andy LaRoche scheduled to return sometime in May or June.

Posted by Joe, who you can email here, or visit his Yanks blog

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