Offseaon Update
The hot stove season is heating up with Jake Peavy rumors running rampant around the NL, and speculation of what big names the Yankees and Red Sox will acquire this offseason. Did anyone really think the Dodgers would part with Russell Martin? Is that just another example of Red Sox fans assuming they can have any good young players they want?
As far as the Twins go, things have been relatively quiet compared to last year. Garrett Atkins name has come up often, but I’m not really sold on that. Gleeman wrote a piece today on why it wouldn’t be in the Twins best interest to acquire this slugger. The three main points I got out of it were a) he has decline every year since 2006, b)his home-road splits are quite drastic, and c) his defense is sub-par. All viable reasons, but Twins “fans” are clamoring for him because he is a big name and hits a fair amount of homers. All terrible reasons to want someone, especially since the price will be high.
Another name that keeps popping up is JJ Hardy. I like the idea of getting Hardy, but again I think the price will be too high. It will take at least one of our 2008 starting pitchers, plus 1-2 decent prospects. Casey Blake is a viable option to play third base for a few years. However, I do not think he is much of an upgrade of a Buscher-Harris platoon, and he will be drastically overpaid for some reason. He is 35 and has been released by the Twins twice. Outisde of Hardy I’m not sure who is available on the SS market. I’ve always been a fan of moving Casilla to short, but I doubt Gardy will do that. Another option for the left side of the infield is moving Cuddyer back to third. I don’t mind this move. Its risky, and Cuddyer will have to be 100% willing to do it. Any hesitation and you don’t do it. My biggest fear is that Gardy won’t just plant him at third and leave him there. If one of the outfielders needs a day off I can really see Gardy throwing cuddyer out there as a fill-in, this would be a terrible idea.
If both of the moves abve are made, is Busher then your backup corner infielder and DH? That seems like a fine role for him. Who then plays second? Punto? Harris? If casilla stays at second is Punto the full-time shortstop, with Harris getting some reps? If Cuddyer stays in the outfield do we have Buscher/Harris at third and Punto at short? Gardy and the front office have lots of decisions to make, and hopefully we’ll be busy at the winter meetings.
If I had my way I would test the waters of moving Cuddyer to third, check the market for Hardy (and any other SS). I don’t think we should acquire a 3B, Cuddyer or Buscher/Harris (we will need to come up with a clever nickname for them) are both decent options. SS is where we should look into getting a fresh body. Punto shouldn’t be allowed the be the everyday starter.
Thoughts?
14 comments14 Comments so far
Leave a reply
Harris proved himself in 2008 to be an awful second baseman; if he gets playing time, it’ll be on the left side of the infield.
You’re right about Casey Blake being overpriced — everyone suddenly decided to think of him as a good player after the Indians got rid of him. He’s just an elderly, average baseball player. And though he does have a prodigious beard, he’s still not worth a multi-year deal to any team with a brain connected to its wallet.
I liked Atkins more two years ago than I do now — and his home/road splits really worry me. In the Dome he’ll just be Brendan Harris. Do we really want to give up MORE value to get ANOTHER Brendan Harris?
Take a flyer on Dayan Viciedo. He’ll be young and overpriced. He’ll be cheaper than Hardy though…why not?
You can’t take a “flyer” on someone like that. There will most certainly be a bidding war, assuming he defects. A “flyer” is defined as basically offering a minor league contract to someone. Taking a risk on a hyped up Cuban player could get pricey.
My bad, he already has defected. Thats what I get for jumping to conclusions. Might as well throw our hat into the ring, but I can see some of the big market clubs throwing lots of money at him. The part about him being out of shape worries me since he is 19. How long will he be able to play third? Will he be strictly a DH-type by 22? These mysterious Cuban defectors always worry me, they are all labled as “can’t miss” get a huge contract and then it turns out they can’t get a hit off of livan hernandez (or in the case of pitchers, get Nick Punto out) I feel the same way about Japanese players. Maybe the problem is it seems like these higly touted foreign players never seem to spend time in the minors.
It’s definitely not a flier, given that he’s a high end prospect and won’t be cheap. But it’s an intriguing possibility given that even in the article they put the price in the $5-10M range for a multi-year deal. And that he considers playing third base more important than getting the most possible money (ie, the Yankees aren’t guaranteed to get him, since he won’t be replacing A-Rod).
But I agree with FunBobby on the physicality issue. I don’t like it that he’s out of shape. 230 pounds at age 19? That’s a pretty big dude, and he managed to do it in a starving third world nation. What’s going to happen when he can have McDonald’s and Chipotle every day?
Then again — if we can get him for $10M for four years — and he’s on the the Miguel Cabrera track, we can take those first three great years and trade him right before he goes Montezuma and becomes a lumbering first baseman. We’ll see.
Most of all, I hope the Twins are at least looking at him.
Personally, if we’re going to spend dollars on a free agent, I’d actually like to try the youth route instead of the aging veteran players we’ve brought in over the last couple of years. Crossing your fingers and hoping for the best hasn’t exactly worked the last couple years.
It’s only 10 pounds a year, besides Bobby Bonilla was 240 pounds.
I think we’re looking at Viciedo all wrong. If we get him, fans won’t lament how big Delmon looks.
I also agree with the youth route. but signing a casey blake type (againg player who has shown major league ability) is really not much different thant a Viciedo type (talent but no proven ability at the major league level). Both have high risks, but I guess if I had to choose between these two types I’d take the Viciendo just because of the upside. Ideally I’d like a young player who has proven himself at the major league level, i.e. JJ Hardy. but that might be a pipe dream, since I’m sure the asking price is really high.
I just don’t think it’s in the Twins philosophical make-up to go after a Hardy-like player. Unfortunately, Viciedo is probably not that guy either.
It may not be in the Twins’ philosophical makeup to go after Hardy because his defense is suspect at best and he hits for power … but when the alternative is Brendan Harris, it’s an upgrade both offensively and defensively. Given what the left side of our infield was defensively in 2008, just about anything is an upgrade.
Isn’t Delmon Young a hardy-like player? Or at least in scouting reports he is. That Young for Garza swap really threw a lot of how I view the Twins as an organization out the window.
Smith is clearly willing to trade away part of a surplus in order to fill a hole. Where as Terry Ryan would see a hole, take a piss in it, and say it was filled. Thats right, I just equated Tony Batista, Juan Castro, Sidney Ponson, and Ramon Ortiz to urine.
Don’t insult urine like that. It’s a necessary function of life. Tony Batista, Juan Castro, Sidney Ponson, Ramon Ortiz, Rondell White, Mike Lamb, and Adam Everett are NOT.
It’s not just the scouting reports that are down on Delmon’s defensive abilities. Delmon scored a -25 in Dewan’s Plus/Minus rating in 2008. That’s the WORST rating for any left fielder, and the 5th worst of any fielder in baseball. That’s … not good. I mean, it doesn’t get much worse than the worst at your position.
Good point, good point. I’m still willing to consider Delmon an anomaly. Let’s see how he does in year four…
When I say anomaly, I mean that he was a Hardy-like player (in theory).
[...] few days ago, we were talking about the young Cuban third baseman, Dayan Viciedo. Huge power bat. 19 years old. Apparently available for a cheap [...]