Red Sox Rumors
The Boston Globe’s Gordon Edes has some mild hot stove chatter today.
- Tim Wakefield‘s $4MM option is likely to be exercised. There was some speculation a week ago that it could be declined, but no one really believed it. It’s still a bargain.
- Julian Tavarez‘s $3.85MM option is a borderline call, and Edes seems to think it will be declined.
- Nothing new with Mike Lowell – he wants to return, but the door’s open for the Phillies or Yankees if the Red Sox won’t pony up enough years.
- Most folks expect Curt Schilling to leave. But if he’s still up for one year and $13MM the Sox should do it.
- Mike Timlin will pitch again but it might be elsewhere. Timlin hasn’t been with another club since ’02, when he pitched for the Cardinals and Phillies.
- Matt Clement will depart. If his tryouts and MRIs come up clean and he can hit 90 mph there will definitely be teams offering him incentivized contracts. Here’s one I missed from a few weeks ago: the Padres may make a play for him. Tom Krasovic also throws Mark Prior into the mix for the Friars in that article. Back in December of ’04, Clement talked with the Angels, Dodgers, Diamondbacks, White Sox, Indians, and Blue Jays before signing with Boston.
Odds and Ends: Wakefield, Guillen, Lowell
Some random rumorage not quite worthy of individual posts…
- Jeff Goldberg of the Hartford Courant speculates that Tim Wakefield could be making his final start for Boston tonight. With Wakefield, the Red Sox possess one of the most lopsided contracts in baseball history. They have a perpetual $4MM club option with him, one that never goes away until they decline it. But $4MM is nothing to the Sox, and Wakefield was certainly worth that much in ’07. They’ll exercise it.
- The Mariners were once close to an extension for Jose Guillen, but currently it’s on the backburner. Even if the team exercises his $9MM option, Guillen can and probably will void it. He’s going to want at least three years, $30MM. The Mariners could get by without him.
- Mike Lowell has more Philly connections than I realized. The Phils definitely seem like his second choice if the Red Sox let him go. I think the Phillies should just sign Mike Lamb and spend the excess money on pitching.
- Neal Huntington’s first move: a waiver claim of Kevin Thompson. It’s over now.
- Joel Pineiro gets a $500K signing bonus, $5MM in ’08, and $7.5MM in ’09. Originally he wanted to test the market, but he appreciated the Cardinals giving him a chance.
- John Schuerholz found Scott Boras’ suggestions obnoxious and idiotic. Also, Steve Phillips comments on the A-Rod/Mets situation back in 2000.