Your "ideal" scenario has a couple of very large "ifs" that aren't within our control (or anyone's)..in Burke going to SS and handling the job, and Bagwell coming back strong. No way we can assume that or do anything to help that. Also, who's on the bench now? Not Bagwell, not lane, not burke...viz and palmeiro and chavez? ick
Yet another article in the Philly press that doesn't mention the Stros as bidding on Abreu ... but does mention other bidders. Is anyone besides ESPN reporting that we're in the Abreu sweepstakes? Also, it's pretty clear the Phillies are only doing this if they get starting pitching. I think the Lane/Qualls rumor is BS. Lastly, the article confirms something I heard (I think) on ESPN the other day -- namely, that D-Train and Cabrera are the only Marlins not on the market. http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/sports/13345026.htm Phillies, Dodgers discussing deals Bobby Abreu, Derek Lowe and Brad Penny were mentioned. But major obstacles remain. By Todd Zolecki Inquirer Staff Writer DALLAS - Pat Gillick expected more movement at the winter meetings this week, and remains optimistic there will be. He might even be part of it. The Phillies and Los Angeles Dodgers have met at least twice this week at the Wyndham Anatole Hotel, and are expected to meet again today. The teams have discussed a deal that would send rightfielder Bobby Abreu and possibly third baseman David Bell to the Dodgers for Derek Lowe or Brad Penny, both pitchers. "We've got one trade talk going that could be a higher-level guy" for the rotation, but most of the deals "would be lower-level," the Phils' general manager said. There are hurdles to clear before the trade with the Dodgers could happen. First, Lowe and Penny are at the beginning of lucrative multiyear contracts, and the salaries might be too high for the Phillies to afford. Second, Gillick indicated it was unlikely Abreu would be traded, because the Phils couldn't get enough in return. And third, any trade would be subject to Abreu's approval. The Dodgers had been preoccupied with their managerial search until last night, when they announced they had hired Grady Little. That should allow them to turn their attention to trades. At Little's introductory news conference, general manager Ned Colletti said the Dodgers were looking for an outfielder, a third baseman and a lefthanded relief pitcher. The Phillies have three outfielders available: Abreu, Pat Burrell and Jason Michaels. One agent said the Phils had been "trying like crazy" to trade Bell, and another source said the Phillies might be willing to take on some of the $4.5 million Bell will make next season to make that happen. The Phils also have lefthanded arms in the bullpen in Rheal Cormier, Aaron Fultz and Eude Brito. Cormier, however, has the right to refuse any trade because he is a 10-year veteran who has been with the Phillies for five seasons. The Dodgers would trade lefthander Odalis Perez, but the Phillies might not be interested. Gillick said he was not willing to take a substantial hit in his lineup to acquire a pitcher. "I wouldn't think that we'd take that hit right now," Gillick said of the effect Abreu's departure would have. "If you look at the numbers that Abreu puts up, if you do a deal involving him, you really have got to get a lot back. And there are clubs that just don't have much to give back." The Phillies would prefer to move Burrell, but there isn't much of a market for him. Michaels also remains in play. Abreu and Burrell have no-trade clauses. There are other potential fits for the Phillies as they search for pitching, including the San Diego Padres and Toronto Blue Jays. The Padres would be willing to move righthander Adam Eaton, a former first-round pick of the Phillies. The Blue Jays suddenly have a surplus of starting pitching, having signed righthander A.J. Burnett. Possibilities include Ted Lilly, Miguel Batista, Dave Bush and Gustavo Chacin. How about Chicago Cubs righthander Mark Prior? No way. Reports yesterday that the Cubs were at least considering a Prior-for-Abreu trade were untrue. General manager Jim Hendry told reporters Monday that he had "no intention of trading Prior or [Carlos] Zambrano, and Kerry Wood has a full no-trade clause." The Baltimore Orioles seemed unwilling to part with lefthander Erik Bedard. Gillick said he wasn't sure the Phils would make any moves before the winter meetings conclude tomorrow after the Rule 5 draft, but said they didn't want to start spring training without upgrading their rotation. "It's tough to make a deal if you don't have excess pitching," Gillick said. "There are very few clubs that I know have excess pitching. The major problem is who they want back. We don't have the inventory of people that we can give back." Hamels update. Gillick said team doctors believe lefthander Cole Hamels will be ready to pitch by spring training. But it looks as if Hamels, who missed the second half of last season in double-A Reading with lower back problems, will have to monitor his back through the remainder of his baseball career. "I don't think it will work itself out," Gillick said. "I think from what I've gathered, it's maybe something that's controllable. But as long as he's playing baseball, it'll be there. You can't do a [surgical] procedure and have it go away." Extra bases. The Phillies had interest in former Florida Marlins righthander Josh Beckett, but weren't interested in taking on the remaining $18 million on Mike Lowell's contract to make it happen. Florida's Dontrelle Willis and Miguel Cabrera aren't on the market.
Ramon Hernandez off the market? Estrada traded by Atlanta? Lo Duca gone? Molina eying another city? Uh, Timmy, catcher IS a priority, y'know. You're not in Dallas to hang out in Deep Ellum. Get to work.
WTF??? All this talk about the Rangers needing pitching and they trade Soriano for 2 crappy outfielders and a minor leaguer to be named later?
Now Soriano? Geez. It's a friggin feeding frenzy at the Winter Meetings, as GMs are going batsh*t and trading hot commodities for peanuts. So, where's Timmy, you ask? Probably at the buffet. I've seen like 5 trades go down today with some decent names thrown around. GET OFF YOUR ASS, PURPURA.
Looks like no gains or losses from Rule 5 this year. http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/...ontent_id=1279039&vkey=hotstove2005&fext=.jsp
Are the Stros considering a Taveras for Javier Vazquez deal? http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/index.php?sty=54801
Who really cares? It's not like this is the only time trades can be made. I seem to remember how "bad" last year's offseason was as well. Signing players and making trades are fun to talk about, but how the regular season plays out is based on the actual games played. I'll wait until September 2006 to judge this year's offseason.
Well, I hate whining as much as anybody, but last year's offseason was bad no matter *how* you stack it. The SEASON, on the other hand, ROCKED. I guess it all goes back to Mr. Andujar: "¡juneberno!"
Although the Astros didn't really acquire anyone last offseason, they did sign Oswalt to a 2 year deal (avoiding any problems getting him signed for 2006), they signed Berkman to a long term deal and they got Clemens signed. They also didn't panic and make moves that would have caused problems during the 2005 season. Sometimes the best deals are the ones you don't make. Teams should not make deals simply to make a deal.
The Marlins had a fire sale and the Astros were the last to know. The Cubbies pick up Juan Pierre for a pack of gum and what has our GM done to make our team better? Tim Purpura expects a miracle next season if he thinks the Astros are going to repeat as NL champs.
Juan Pierre does not make the Astros better, and we already have a player like him on our roster, his name is Willy Taveras. The only marlins the Astros might have had some interest in were Delgado and Beckett.
Yep... and Delgado plays the same position as Bagwell, who unfortunately prevents us from doing anything as far as first-base is concerned (and that's without realizing that we also already have Berkman and Lamb). Beckett being packaged with Lowell had a lot to do with why that move went down... I doubt the Astros could have taken Lowell with Ensberg around, but that's the only one I really fault them for not going in on (and even had they got in, the Red Sox still offered a package that was tough to beat... a top flight MLB-ready position-player prospect, and the ability to pay all of Lowell's salary).
Well, it looks like the big bat could be Kevin Mench. I just can't get excited about this. How is he better than Jason Lane? The intriguing name in this article is Jarrod Washburn. I like the idea of getting another lefty in the rotation. Plus he's not carrying a huge price tag. Just say no to Scott Elarton! And the other interesting thing is that everyone without no-trade or veto power is available but Oswalt. I wonder who exactly is in that group? http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/bb/3513450.html Mench becomes focus Astros pursue Rangers outfielder, re-sign Palmeiro By BRIAN MCTAGGART Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle DALLAS - As baseball's annual winter meetings came to a close Thursday, the Astros made news by re-signing free-agent outfielder Orlando Palmeiro to a two-year contract worth $1.9 million plus award bonuses. The Astros, according to sources with knowledge of the situation, have also had talks with the Texas Rangers about acquiring left fielder Kevin Mench, who would fill the club's desire for a righthanded bat. Palmeiro, 36, hit .284 with a career-high-tying three homers and 20 RBIs in 114 games for the Astros last season, his second with the Astros. He had a .288 average as a pinch hitter. "That was a nice commitment on (owner) Drayton's (McLane) part to lock up a guy who's been a nice part of our ballclub and a key contributor and is great with young players and a great role model," Astros general manager Tim Purpura said. "He fits with our mold pretty well." The Astros also appear to be close to reaching a two-year contract agreement with free-agent catcher Brad Ausmus. Purpura said a deal could be worked out in the "next several days." "We keep narrowing the gap, and everybody's working together," he said. Mench hit .264 with 25 homers and 73 RBIs in 150 games for the Rangers in 2005. He made just $345,000, but is arbitration eligible for the first time and will get a substantial raise. Mench, 27, has been on the Astros' radar for some time, but the Rangers want premium relief pitching or a starter. With Roger Clemens likely gone, the Astros probably will have to offer a relief pitcher instead of a starter in any trade. The Rangers, who have been shopping Mench to several clubs, have a surplus of outfielders after trading Alfonso Soriano to Washington on Wednesday for outfielders Brad Wilkerson and Terrmel Sledge. "There was interest in our outfielders before this deal, and it's probably increased since then," Rangers general manager Jon Daniels said. Purpura said every player on the Astros' roster has been asked about by other clubs at some point this offseason. It appears the only untouchable player among those without trade clauses or trade veto power is pitcher Roy Oswalt. Purpura said since the club announced it would not offer arbitration to Clemens, a lot of teams have made contact with the Astros about trades. "They've come up with some provocative ideas ... but nonetheless they're things worth looking at," Purpura said. "The hitters are really coveted by those clubs that have them and they're trying to extract the highest price they can, and that's a GM's job to do that. "I'm not sure where we're going to add offense from, whether trade or free agency, but there are still quite a few good free agents that could help our ballclub." With the winter meetings over, the Astros spent part of Thursday working on fresh rankings of free agents. Purpura said free-agent pitchers Jarrod Washburn and Scott Elarton, who will become a free agent if he declines the Cleveland Indians' arbitration offer, could be of interest. "Things could happen, but this week in particular we'll probably talk more with the free agents that are out there and try to gauge their interest in the Astros and what kind of demands they might have," Purpura said. Meanwhile, Daniels said the Rangers have an interest in Clemens, but he will be respectful of his timetable. Clemens' agents said Monday he wouldn't have a decision on whether he will pitch next year until late January, prompting the Astros to not tender him arbitration. "At this point, it's been communicated to us he wants to take some time to decide whether he's going to retire or not and whether he's going to play again, and we're certainly going to go on planning our club," Daniels said. "At some point, if he makes it known he's interested in coming back and potentially interested in the Rangers, there would be interest on our end. I think it's a long shot."
Mench in left and Washburn as a third or fourth starter would not be bad at all. If Clemens then comes back in May, you'd have a pretty kickass starting rotation in Oswalt Pettitte Clemens Washburn Backe Mench isn't a big name, but he'd be better than what we were throwing out in LF (except when Lance was there) most of last regular season. If Nomar wasn't too expensive, sign him for SS. CF-Taveras 2B-Biggio 1B-Berkman 3B-Ensberg SS-Nomar LF-Mench RF-Lane C-Ausmus That's a lineup with six potential 25+ HR hitters.
