Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Brian Roberts
It seems as though all the players we thought we would be traded this off-season, have been traded, minus one…Brian Roberts. The oft-rumored deal to send Roberts to the Cubs continues to linger. Ken Rosenthal first suggested that Roberts would be a good fit for the Cubs back in early December and Jeff Zrebiec confirmed the Cubs interest. Then the deal may have been dead, with the O’s asking price too high and by the end of January Gordon Wittenmyer suggested Cubs had turned their focus to Marlon Byrd. Then according to Jon Heyman a deal appeared imminent. Rosenthal thought the O’s insisting on the inclusion of Felix Pie was a deal-breaker. But then Baltimore acquired Adam Jones and Chris De Luca noted the deal might have life. But now Heyman wonders if the proposed package(s) is not enough and if Peter Angelos will nix a deal, as Roberts is one of his favorite players. Now that Spring Training has begun we have to wonder if a deal can still get done. let’s take a look at how the Roberts deal is being handled in the blogosphere.
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- View From the Bleachers sees Roberts as a nice addition but not a necessity as he may only be a slight upgrade from Eric Patterson. They don’t see the deal as a "foregone conclusion" considering the players being offered by the Cubs.
- Camden Chat is not impressed with the Cubs offer, but they wonder if Roberts is worth keeping.
- Another Cubs Blog sees the signing of Alex Cintron by the Cubs as a sign that the Cubs are making progress towards getting a deal done.
- Ivy Chat wonders if the Cubs have enough in the system to obtain both Roberts and Joe Nathan. While they would like both, they would prefer Nathan.
- Crawley’s Cub Kingdom notes that Alfonso Soriano’s legs are not 100% and that he may not be suited to lead off in 2008, increasing the need for Roberts.
- A Hundred Next Years is not sure the upgrade from Mark DeRosa to Roberts is worth the price.
- Wrigleyville23 calls it "The Roberts Rain Delay" and notes that the political process here in the U.S. actually moves faster than trade discussions between the Cubs and the O’s.
- Orioles Fan Base talked to our own Tim Dierkes about this situation.
Crawford To Cubs Rumor Shot Down
ESPN 1000’s Bruce Levine suggested yesterday that the Cubs were preparing an offer for Carl Crawford. However, team officials told Roger Mooney today that there’s nothing brewing. Apparently the rumor was Rich Hill, Eric Patterson, and a prospect for Crawford. That doesn’t seem sufficient anyway. There was even some talk of a three-way deal involving the Brewers and Yankees, which was from Gotham Baseball. According to Mooney, none of it is for real. You be the judge.
In other Rays news, they picked up Al Reyes‘ $2.3MM option and passed on Greg Norton at $1MM. No surprises there. UPDATE: Reyes actually has a $1MM base salary plus $1.3MM in incentives.