Winter Meetings Rumor Mill Thread (1st of ???)

by clark on Dec 7, 2008 2:52 PM CST Comment 34 comments

As many of you know, the Nationals have joined the Tigers and Reds in the pursuit of Gerald Laird. Could this guy be on the Rangers' radar? But that is hardly the only significant rumor mill fodder to come out recently.

JD Sullivan adds that the Giants and Rangers will discuss Big Bank Hank and Jonathan (Dirty) Sanchez. Sanchez and the Giants have been tied to Cantu and the Marlins and Encarnacion and the Reds, and both of those players have been healthier, more productive, and are under control longer, making it seem like the Rangers would need to significantly sweeten the pot to make such a trade happen.It is worth noting that the Giants could use some middle infield talent, an area in which the Rangers enjoy some depth. Still, the Giants have been tied to Blalock for a while now, so their interest seems legit. They have Sandoval, who profiles better defensively as a 1B, so a lot could hang on how confident the Giants are that Blalock can return to third, his previously stated preference.

Also, there are reports leaking that Jason Varitek will reject arbitration, which seemingly takes away a little of the leverage from the Red Sox should they and the Rangers continue to discuss a young catcher for pitcher swap. It seems that many around here have grown to like the idea of keeping both Teagarden and Salty and continuing to let both high-upside players develop, but I still think dealing one of these two for a significant young pitching return would be ideal, as the market will probably only become more saturated with young catchers as the glut of minor league talent works its way up to the major league level. Perhaps this is a good place to note Salty's continued domination of Dominican Winter Ball.

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hmm

well id love to come away from the winter meetings with a haul of Sanchez and Bailey for Laird and Blalock +… That would have me jumping out of my shoes.

by blalock84 on Dec 7, 2008 2:56 PM CST reply actions 0 recs

Then trade Salty or Tea to Boston

For one of their pitchers.

Miami bound...

by boomer1 on Dec 7, 2008 3:06 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

im just not that impressed by the 2 they seemingly want to trade

sanchez to me > bowden or masterson

Scout: He was a first-round pick right? Got a huge bonus?
KG: Oh yeah.
Scout: Well, he spent a lot of it on milkshakes.

by knockoutking on Dec 7, 2008 3:07 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

I'm not

so sure of that.

G G G E-flat_______ F F F D__________....

by t ball on Dec 7, 2008 3:15 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

how would you rank the three going forward?

by clark on Dec 7, 2008 3:16 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

I have no idea

though I’m not as high on Sanchez as some are. Based on the chatter over the last few months I might rank them Masterson, Bowden, then Sanchez. But I don’t know enough about any of them to say for sure.

G G G E-flat_______ F F F D__________....

by t ball on Dec 7, 2008 5:45 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

My guess is

You’d get split opinions on Bowden and Sanchez. Just a guess though.

by Brett Perryman on Dec 7, 2008 6:03 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

I would definitley not

do the deal tricer is suggesting. If Sanchez is worth more than Bowden, it sure as hell ain’t Blalock more.

G G G E-flat_______ F F F D__________....

by t ball on Dec 7, 2008 9:19 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

huh?

you think the upgrade from middle of the rotation prospect to a guy w/ ML experience and TORG potential isn’t worth giving up one season of Hank Blalock?

Don't believe the hype about sloppy seconds. They ain't bad.

by tricer on Dec 8, 2008 9:17 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

I'm more than fine

giving up Blalock, it’s Blalock in addition to someone with Bowden’s value I’m not sure about. Who in the Rangers system do you view as most similar to Bowden in value, and able to be added to Blalock for Sanchez? I think Bowden would be in the top 10 of the Rangers system and I would hate to add someone like that to Blalock for Sanchez.

I am optimistic about Sanchez being a good SP, and I know he was much better in 2008 than his ERA indicated this year. But I’m just not sure that in the long run he’s going to be better than Bowden or Masterson. I’ll happily eat crow if I’m wrong.

G G G E-flat_______ F F F D__________....

by t ball on Dec 8, 2008 11:52 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

I'd prefer Sanchez

by a large margin. I’d give up either Bowden or Masterson, plus something else (like Blalock) to get Sanchez.

Don't believe the hype about sloppy seconds. They ain't bad.

by tricer on Dec 7, 2008 6:37 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

That would be pretty nice

Trade a catcher (I’m still hoping its Teagarden) for Bowden, Bard, and someone else, then flip Bowden and Blalock to get Sanchez.

By 2028, Mark Teixeira will be in the HOF.
-The Outlaw

by Gdawg on Dec 7, 2008 7:45 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

im a fan of that

Scout: He was a first-round pick right? Got a huge bonus?
KG: Oh yeah.
Scout: Well, he spent a lot of it on milkshakes.

by knockoutking on Dec 7, 2008 8:56 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

honestly

if we got bailey/Sanchez i dont know if we’d even need to deal another catcher to Boston… I guess it would give us some good leverage though, and i could see us holding out for a while b4 another deal happened

by blalock84 on Dec 7, 2008 3:29 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Varitek

I think that would be a colossal mistake for him to decline arbitration

Bryan Smith (12:17:17 PM PT): Justin Smoak and Josh Hamilton. The AL West might just have found their Bash Brothers, v. 2.0.

by bigsteve on Dec 7, 2008 3:04 PM CST reply actions 0 recs

Maybe so but I hope he does

Miami bound...

by boomer1 on Dec 7, 2008 3:05 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

+1

i see no way he actually declines it

Scout: He was a first-round pick right? Got a huge bonus?
KG: Oh yeah.
Scout: Well, he spent a lot of it on milkshakes.

by knockoutking on Dec 7, 2008 3:07 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

10 million garaunteed if he accepts

with the possibility of more. I don’t see any reason he wouldn’t accept either. He wouldn’t get offered 10 mil for 3 years let alone 1.

Wait 'til the year after next

by NothinG on Dec 7, 2008 3:11 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Concur...

There is now way in hell he will get a multi-year deal at what he wants annually after putting up the #’s that he put up last year. He should accept arbitration and run with it.

Again I suppose it wouldn’t hurt the Rangers if he turns it down, but we need to remember that the BoSox don’t have to come to the Rangers for catching help. There will be less expensive options out there for them as well.

"The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance."-Socrates

by slc ranger on Dec 7, 2008 3:21 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

If he does decline.

..you better believe he has a deal already lined up that may not pay him as much for one year, but is a deal that will be equivalent in terms of playing time, money and a location that he would like to be in.

Sometimes, when you have some money, and you are getting older, you might still want to play another couple years. In Boston, he is finished playing, for all intents and purposes.

I miss 1989. I miss 1996. Please make me miss another season in 2008.

by Chaim Witz on Dec 7, 2008 4:19 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Some stuff from Mlbtr...

The Mets are desperately trying to unload Luis Castillo so they can make a run at Orlando Hudson. They’re having no luck though, even in trying to swap him for another bad contract. The Rangers rejected a swap of Castillo for Vicente Padilla.

Jermaine Dye, Mike Cameron, Marcus Thames, and Marlon Byrd are all available via the trade market, for teams needing a right-handed hitting outfielder. Rosenthal still feels Cameron could still end up in pinstripes.

The full text on the Padilla to Mets in the parent article was…

The Mets are desperate to move second baseman Luis Castillo to create a spot for free agent Orlando Hudson. The only way to do it would be to exchange Castillo’s contract for another of similar value, but lots of luck. When the Mets asked the Rangers about a Castillo-for-Vicente Padilla — a swap that would require the Rangers to move Ian Kinsler to left field — they were told, “No thank you.” …

by laxtonto on Dec 7, 2008 3:41 PM CST reply actions 0 recs

Fucking Minaya...

That’s just lazy.

meet me at the mawwl... it's goin dowwn...

by oc on Dec 7, 2008 3:45 PM CST up reply actions 2 recs

+1

" He throws it where he wants it, his breaking ball kept getting better and better and of course God gave him that special arm. He's great." ~ Neftali Feliz on Derek Holland.

by Kinslerhomer on Dec 7, 2008 3:50 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

+2

"Somewhere out there, between 14-32 BBWAA NL MVP voters are trying to get cheaper winter heating by drilling a hole in the microwave." - Jeff at LoL

by lonestarJon on Dec 7, 2008 8:39 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Thank goodness

If we are going to trade one of our starters, even Padilla or Millwood, it better be for something we really need. Castillo? Not the kind of deal that works for the Rangers, by having to move Kinsler and at the same time, weaken our starting rotation even more?

Like I said, thank goodness.

PS: I we would be moving Kinsler out of 2B, like the Mets, I would prefer to land Hudson over Castillo also.

I miss 1989. I miss 1996. Please make me miss another season in 2008.

by Chaim Witz on Dec 7, 2008 4:22 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

That sounds like a trade a poster on the internet would propose

by BEW on Dec 7, 2008 4:57 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Wouldn’t that be awesome? I’d love to be the one to tell Kinsler and his .393 wOBA and -3.9 UZR he is moving off second base to accommodate Luis Castillo, with his .315 wOBA and -5.2 UZR. I’m sure he’d be thrilled. In the meantime, let’s move Davis off first to make room for Kevin Millar.

by Stephen Rushin on Dec 7, 2008 7:49 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Ha ha

I laughed at this one.

-- Micah
Baseball Is My Boyfriend
"Football is like having a fling once a week. Baseball is a relationship." - oc

by baseballismyboyfriend on Dec 7, 2008 9:13 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Millwood and Padilla...

…If they are in fact being shopped, it’s a good bet that Daniels is talking with a National League club.

All three divisions are very much winnable (though the Cubs have the best chance of running their respective table)… But the West is absolute dogshit, and the Phils aren’t going to own the East…

Kevin and Vinny aren’t going to bring back much… but, pit a couple of division rivals against each other and you might be able to steal something.

meet me at the mawwl... it's goin dowwn...

by oc on Dec 7, 2008 3:58 PM CST reply actions 0 recs

Jonathan Sanchez

He is a great pitching target.

His value might not be as high as other starters available via trade (because of injury concerns and his 5.01 ERA last year) but he posted a 111 tRA+, 4.23 tRA, and 3.90 FIP. He throws hard, is left-handed, has top of the rotation potential, and he is projected to post an ERA of 3.90 next season by Bill James, which is lower than Volquez, Danks, or Lester (who are all projected to be at or above 4.00).

Sure he is a risk, but he is exactly the kind of pitcher we should consider.

With all that said, we aren’t gonna get him for Blalock. That would be ridiculous. I’d imagine they might have interest in something like Blalock, Ramirez and another player for Sanchez, and a reliever, or something like that.

by Stephen Rushin on Dec 7, 2008 7:44 PM CST reply actions 0 recs

+1

"Somewhere out there, between 14-32 BBWAA NL MVP voters are trying to get cheaper winter heating by drilling a hole in the microwave." - Jeff at LoL

by lonestarJon on Dec 7, 2008 8:40 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

can you explain tra+?

thx

Scout: He was a first-round pick right? Got a huge bonus?
KG: Oh yeah.
Scout: Well, he spent a lot of it on milkshakes.

by knockoutking on Dec 7, 2008 8:57 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs

From StatCorner.com

tRA+

Like wOBA+, tRA+ is equal to [((lgTRA – tRA) / lgTRA) + 1] * 100. This formula puts tRA+ on the same scale as wOBA+. A tRA+ of 150 represents that the pitcher’s tRA was 50% better than league average. A tRA+ of 75 means the pitcher’s tRA was 25% worse than average.

What is wOBA you ask?

wOBA

wOBA or weighted on base average is a statistic developed by and used with the permission of Tom Tango. He gives a detailed rundown of it here. In a nutshell, wOBA uses linear weights on certain batting events to come up with a metric that is more statistically sound than OPS and is scaled onto an OBP scale. According to Tango “An average hitter is around 0.340 or so, a great hitter is 0.400 or higher, and a poor hitter would be under 0.300.”

wOBA+

Like OPS+, wOBA+ is a percentage better or worse than league average with 100 representing average. wOBA+ is equal to wOBA* / lgWOBA * 100.

meet me at the mawwl... it's goin dowwn...

by oc on Dec 7, 2008 9:19 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs