2010 Options: St. Louis Cardinals
The Cardinals' lone 2010 option is for closer Ryan Franklin. It's a $2.75MM club option with a $250K buyout. Franklin has done a fine job this year, and the option is likely to be exercised.
The Cards have several players who will be eligible for free agency after this season:
- Troy Glaus. We'll learn more about Glaus' prognosis next week; he could be out for the season. The third base picture in 2010 could involve a player the Cardinals acquire this summer, or top prospect Brett Wallace.
- Joel Pineiro. Pineiro owes his success this year to the highest groundball rate in the game. His strikeout rate is terribly low, but so is his walk rate. He's earning $7.5MM this year on a contract signed in a different economic climate.
- Khalil Greene. Greene's having another lost season, dealing with anxiety issues.
- Todd Wellemeyer. He's been unable to duplicate last year's control, and has been dealt a .348 BABIP as well.
- Rick Ankiel. He's been plagued by a sore shoulder and side this year, playing in just 25 games. Colby Rasmus will be entrenched in center field by 2010. Ankiel still has time to become a decent trade chip for the Cards.
- Others: Trever Miller, Jason LaRue.
Odds & Ends: DeRosa, Bruney, Cooper
Let's kick it off today with some odds and ends.
- RotoAuthority discusses responding to lame trade offers in your fantasy league.
- Reliever Mike MacDougal will join the Nationals tomorrow, according to MLB.com's Bill Ladson. Who knows, he could be closing for them by next week.
- Talking to Fred Mitchell of the Chicago Tribune, Cubs GM Jim Hendry defended the Mark DeRosa trade. Here is my problem with it: it was a financially-motivated deal made by a big-market team, and did not bring back players who could help in 2009.
- According to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the White Sox acquired journeyman minor league infielder Anderson Machado from the Pirates for a player to be named later.
- Padres exec Paul DePodesta explains the Jody Gerut for Tony Gwynn Jr. swap. DePodesta's third bullet point, money, had to be the overriding factor given Gwynn's negligible value around the league.
- Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle sees Bobby Crosby as perhaps a more pressing trade situation for the A's than Matt Holliday.
- Dr. James Andrews found no structural damage in Brian Bruney's elbow, according to Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News. Given the uncertainty, though, a bullpen acquisition would still make sense.
- It looks like the writing is on the wall for Astros manager Cecil Cooper. Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle lists his offenses.
- Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch is skeptical the Cardinals will make a big move.
- Kiley McDaniel of Baseball Prospectus agrees that the Pirates are the favorite for Dominican talent Miguel Angel Sano, and says the Rays, Cubs, A's, Blue Jays, Yankees, Rangers, and Twins are also after him. It's speculated by McDaniel and elsewhere that the Pirates could budget less toward their fourth overall pick in June to compensate for Sano. John Perrotto of Inside Pittsburgh Sports says they like Kyle Gibson, Aaron Crow, Bobby Borchering, and Wil Myers. Tanner Scheppers did not give the Bucs permission to redraft him.
Glaus May Not Play; Cards Seeking Bat
Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch spoke to Cardinals GM John Mozeliak, who has a gut feeling that it's less than 50-50 that third baseman Troy Glaus will play in 2009. Glaus is trying to come back from January shoulder surgery. He'll be a free agent after the season.
According to Strauss, the Cardinals will scour the trade market for a righthanded-hitting third baseman or outfielder. Strauss names Mark DeRosa (.267/.332/.450) and Garrett Atkins (.192/.272/.291) as candidates. I found some more players who could fit the bill: Melvin Mora, Kevin Kouzmanoff, Adrian Beltre, Scott Hairston, Jermaine Dye, Jose Guillen, Josh Willingham, Matt Holliday, Marlon Byrd, Austin Kearns, Eric Byrnes, and Ben Francisco.
Rosenthal On Rockies, Cain, Pirates
Another column from Ken Rosenthal at FOX Sports? Sure, why not.
- The Rockies, 12 games out in the NL West, "appear headed for a selloff." Garrett Atkins isn't popular (although deep in today's chat, Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch suggested there could be a match with the Cardinals), and Todd Helton is too pricey. But Brad Hawpe, who has $12MM coming to him from now through 2010, could be an appealing trade chip. Hawpe has a 2011 club option for $10MM, but he can void it if traded. Rosenthal likes the Rays; the Braves would also be a nice fit for Hawpe in my opinion.
- Rosenthal believes it would be hard for the Giants to find a young slugger who would be equal value for Matt Cain, who can be controlled cheaply through 2011. We learned earlier this week that Cain is not being dangled.
- The Pirates have no financial need to dump veteran contracts, an idea we've read in the past. They're getting calls on Jack Wilson, but teams are reluctant to take on all the $5.8MM he still has coming. They have the same problem for Adam LaRoche. And Rosenthal says the Bucs are "philosophically opposed to the idea of a low-revenue team sending money to a high-revenue team to secure better prospects in a trade, the way the Indians did last season when they moved third baseman Casey Blake to the Dodgers."
Cardinals Shopping Greene
Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe mentions the Cardinals are trying to trade Khalil Greene, who is struggling mightily in a contract year as a result of reported anxiety problems. Whenever a shortstop hits the block, it seems the Boston media has to consider the possibility. The position has been a black hole for the team since 2004. Cafardo says:
While a change of scenery may be what Greene needs, Boston may not be the best fit given the anxiety problems. Still, Cafardo explores the option because "frustration is beginning to build among other Sox players" due to poor defense from Julio Lugo and Nick Green. With his struggles, the Cardinals will have to eat some of his $6.5MM salary.
Jed Lowrie is expected back from wrist surgery after the All Star break.
Gammons On Peavy, Greene, Holliday
More rumors from ESPN.com's Peter Gammons in his latest column:
- Gammons says it made sense for Kenny Williams to try to deal for Jake Peavy because the AL Central is winnable and Gordon Beckham wasn't part of the deal.
- Gammons expects teams to be wary of no-trade clauses after seeing Peavy thwart the Padres' plans to deal him.
- Nats GM Mike Rizzo wants to deal now, while more teams are in the pennant race and remain possible buyers.
- Rizzo would like to improve his bullpen, which has an ERA nearing 7.00.
- The Red Sox want to wait on David Ortiz and plan on giving him the chance to start hitting. He finally homered this week, but has struck out in seven of his last 20 plate appearances.
- Gammons believes it makes sense for the Cardinals to see if the Red Sox have interest in Khalil Greene.
- Billy Beane may face a limited market for Matt Holliday if he decides to trade the left fielder in July.
Cardinals Waiting For Glaus, Could Deal Later
According to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch the Cardinals are waiting to see how much Troy Glaus can contribute to the team before deciding whether to deal for a third baseman or rely on the current roster. Brian Barden, Tyler Greene, Brendan Ryan and Joe Thurston are all options for the Cards at third. Brett Wallace, last year's first round draft pick, just started at Triple A and isn't about to be called up soon.
Cardinals Could Acquire A Third Baseman
Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch talked to Cardinals GM John Mozeliak, who said the Cardinals could look outside the organization for a third baseman if they get bad news about Troy Glaus next month. The team's current third basemen, mainly Brian Barden and Joe Thurston, have provided a .243/.323/.357 line. Mozeliak says top prospect Brett Wallace is not under consideration.
Who might be available for trade? Mark DeRosa, Garrett Atkins, Melvin Mora, and Adrian Beltre seem like possibilities.
Miguel Angel Sano Drawing Attention
Miguel Angel Sano, a 15 year-old shortstop from the Dominican Republic, is coveted by all 30 teams according to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. He'll turn 16 in May. The signing period for international free agents begins July 2nd. Kovacevic says Sano could command a bonus of $3MM.
Kovacevic says the Pirates are one of the favorites for Sano. GlobalPost has an informative video about the kid. In the clip, Sano wears apparel representing the Blue Jays, Cubs, and Cardinals at various times, for what it's worth. He was wearing an A's jersey when ESPN's Jorge Arangure Jr. and Luke Cyphers saw him. Sano is not worried about proving he's 15 years old, saying in the video, "Let them investigate me." To read a bit about his personality, check out this blog post.
Rosenthal On Yankees, Acta, Pedro
The latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports…
- The Yankees' bullpen ranks 12th in the AL with a 6.47 ERA in 64 innings. Rosenthal learned that GM Brian Cashman isn't interested in any of the available relievers, and the plan seems to be to let them pitch their way out of the funk. Early offenders include Jose Veras, Edwar Ramirez, and Damaso Marte. Plus, Brian Bruney is out with an elbow injury.
- Rosenthal explains some of the criticisms of Nationals manager Manny Acta. He does not think a firing is imminent, but Acta may not make it through the year.
- David Ortiz on Pedro Martinez: "When I saw him pitch, I had hot flashes of when he was here."
- Rosenthal notes the team-friendly nature of Albert Pujols' current seven-year, $100MM contract.