Carlos Beltran may choose his next team by the weekend and he has many suitors to consider. The Cardinals, Blue Jays, Red Sox, Rays and Indians are all "seriously in the mix" for Beltran, according to Scott Miller of CBSSports.com. Here’s the latest on Beltran, who’s open to DHing part-time…
- Though the Indians are in the mix for Beltran, they're more likely to obtain a first baseman, tweets Heyman.
- The Cardinals view Beltran as the best, most cost-efficient option, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. The Cardinals are believed to have offered a two-year deal worth at least $8MM per season at one point, Heyman writes.
- Beltran is down to the Cardinals, Indians and Blue Jays, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Miller names the same three teams and says the Beltran talks appear to be coming to a head. (Twitter link).
- The Red Sox are out on Beltran, tweets Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.
- The Cardinals intensified their talks with Beltran last night and into this morning, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes. One of Goold's sources says the Cardinals are the "leading candidate" to sign Beltran.
- MLB.com's Jordan Bastian hears nothing has changed regarding the Indians' projected 2012 payroll (Twitter links). This means adding someone like Beltran would likely require the club to shed payroll elsewhere, but Cleveland’s interest in Beltran is legitimate.
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports explains how Beltran would fit on the Indians' roster. Cleveland jumped into the bidding for the switch-hitting free agent yesterday.
- Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reminds us that Beltran declined to be traded to the Indians in July, when he said he’d only join the Phillies or Giants (Twitter link).
I didn’t want to raise my voice at you but CURSE WORDS you have enough money, Beltran! In Tampa, you can rest your knees, be closer to PR and there isn’t going to be any media pressure around you. CHOOSE TAMPA, CARLOS!
I know it’s a long shot…but, If we could get a good deal on Beltran, I’d be thrilled to see him come to Tampa.
I think Tampa could win the AL with Beltran.
1. Jennings LF
2. Upton CF
3. Longoria 3B
4. Beltran DH
5. Zobrist 2B
6. Joyce RF
7. Kotchman 1B
8. Molina C
9. Rodriguez SS
SP: Shields, Price, Hellickson, Moore, Niemann/Davis/Cobb
Closer: Trade for Bailey
8th: Farnsworth
7th: Peralta
Other relievers: Gomes, Ramos, Howell, McGee, etc.
Still doesn’t look like an AL winning line up to me. They’ll be competitive, but I think they’d be beating the odds if they win.
Won the wild card last year with a terrible offense and a depleted bullpen. How can we not win the East with that?
is there reason to expect better from the bullpen this year? that’s the biggest hole imo
Our brand new bullpen had one of the better era’s in the al….
it was 6th in the AL and that was with every single significant contributor outperforming his FIP by at least half a run
They will continue to out pitch their FIP because the Rays have the best Defense in the AL
Because no team should (could?) win the AL with Molina as a starting C.
I love that team. Wonder what Bailey would take. First things first, we need to find money somewhere for Beltran.
If we got Beltran…Couldn’t we convert Joyce or Fuld into a first baseman???? The Rays prefer a lefty at first too. both of those guys have potential to be great offensive pieces in the lineup if they could get more at bats. As we all know, we have a really crowded outfield as it is. Especially with all the guys We got from the Garza trade.
You wish.
How are the Rays going to pay for Beltran? He is going to at least get 10-12 Million a year. Thats half your playroll!
the rays payroll was $72M in 2010. they can spend a little, they just prefer not to
Yep…2014 & 2015 payroll is their issue. That precludes anything more than 2 years to a vet free agent.
Exaggerate much? Are you a Sox fan?
yup. the red sox AKA the birds
I agree with you 100% except…Is Bailey really that big of an improvement over Farnsworth? With the crowded rotation now, wouldn’t it be better to go ahead and just give Davis or Nieman the 9th inning gig?
I honestly think it’s the best fit. If he takes around $8-9 million per year
8 or 9 million!!! you wish. more like 12 or 13
No state or city tax in Tampa(unlike boston,mass which have both)….12 mil in boston comes down to like 9 mil after taxes…maybe less
So if we offer around 9, I think he’ll bite. Especially since its close to his home in PR which is only like a 1.5 hour flight non stop.
We did pay Pat Burrel a two year 16 million dollar deal. I think it’ll be something like that.
I would love to see that happen.
Sounds like you’re convincing him to come down to Tampa to retire…
Carlos Pena might be in your future. Not so bad.
If we fix the holes with Pena and Damon, good enough.
Price – Shields – Hellickson – Moore – Davis/Neimann/Cobb
Hoping it’s a 1 year deal for Pena and we trade for Rizzo. Wow, I can’t wait for that big 4 to be in action.
I am thinking 1B & DH will be filled by Carlos Pena and Juan Miranda (instead of Damon). Plus, Rays will pursue Rizzo. I also expect BJ Upton to be traded by spring training.
The Indians NEED a bat like Beltran!
C’mon lets get it done!!!!
Anywhere but the home the of the WLB’s
Sounds like:
Cardinals have a 3 year offer
Jays have a 3 year offer
Indians may have 3 year offer but he vetoed a trade there last year
Rays have an offer but at a cheap cheap price but it is close to PR and he wants them to hike up the offer
Bosox no idea
Id say Cardinals or Rays have the best shot, that is if the Rays decide to make a ledgit offer
Have you heard that or are those guesses? I agree with Boston, they seem set on just pitching.
They are guesses
Most reports said he never vetoed a trade to cleveland….simply that his agent said he wouldnt accept. The mets said they never presented an offer to beltran to go to cleveland
Do think cleveland is very unlikely though….
I wish we had some money…*sigh*
I hear ya.
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, in an update a few moments ago, are now saying Cards are “leading candidate” with talks progressing this morning, and a possible deal “well before the weekend.”
Damn you Sabean!!!
I still have no idea why the Jays want Beltran. He used to be my favourite player, during the killer bees, but that was a while ago. The Jays are trying to build their players around youth. Beltran will be taking time away from Snider and Thames.
This just doesn’t make sense, and is probably 100% Jon Heyman garbage aka Scott Boras garbage.
.389 wOBA (2011) switch hitter is not a bad idea for protecting Jose Bautista. He is definitely a middle order hitter, a weakness for Jays last year.
Bautista and Lawrie had wOBAs over .400 last year. EE was in .340s. Everyone else below .340. MLB avg is .333.
I’m not saying he won’t be good, but we don’t need his age.
I would rather trade for protection, we have the depth in pitching prospects to get a hitter. Or sign Fielder, that would be the best option.
I am seeing the Jays being one or two years away from that position. But, once there, your thinking makes perfect sense. AA probably shares your thoughts on what to do. Just not on where they are presently.
I’m not sure the Jays front office is sold on Snider or Thames either.
For Blue Jays and Rays fans out there. Would knowing that Beltran has had surgery on his knee and other knee related issues worry you about him playing a full season especially when your field surface is turf? I know the new turf is much better than the old AstroTurf but for a guy with knee problems he might end up playing the DH role more often than expected. Thoughts?
A solid hitting DH who can spot start in OF is good.
I think in both cases, he would DH, he would get the random starts (probably always on the road) to give the other guys a day off but he’s a DH with Toronto and Tampa.
out on beltran, in on gio gonzalez
off the tobin bridge
Somebody in stats has gotta say, do we really want to give up top prospects for Dice K. 2.0? Please please please, just keep the lines of communication open with either Oswalt or Edwin Jackson.
But it’s Cafardo, so it’s probably more like the opposite of that is true.
I’m not really sure why the Red Sox were in on Beltran. Offense wasn’t the problem last year. If they brought in a solid complementary right handed bat like a Reed Johnson to platoon with one of their younger guys, they wouldn’t be losing much production at the bottom of the order.
Their main problem is closer/#3 starter.
They don’t need offense, but they have an opening in RF and he would be a better option than Reddick.
RF is a bit of a question mark though. Plus could use one (or both) of klish/reddick to get a #3 starter…..
The price on pitching is so steep prospect wise though. There’s plenty of guys like Edwin Jackson, Roy Oswalt, Hiroki Kuroda, that would only cost cash.
The Red Sox are very $$$ conservative this year, I’ve just got to think there’s a better way to spend money than on a bat they really don’t need.
I don’t think there’s anything standing in the Cards way now. I bet what’s holding them up is the years. I can see 2 years with a club option. Hopefully we don’t include a NTC. Because after this year I’d like to deal him to give Craig starting RF. Assuming, of course, that Craig has a productive year.
After this year, first base is also open. Craig can play there.
I’m anticipating Adams being up.
If it’s out of those 3 teams he’ll go to the Cardinals. Beltran has been vocal that he wants to win a championship. I wish the Giants could afford him, but that’s not going to happen.
If he doesn’t go to the Cardinals it will be about the money and not about winning, because he won’t do that on the Indians or Blue Jays. I’d be extremely shocked if the Cards don’t sign him if all reports are true
Sigh, not a shock but still, this is getting incredibly frustrating. Are we gonna find a way to make this offense even worse?!
I think jred is thinking in the right direction. This is likely Berkman’s last year with STL. If Beltran is picked up and Craig continues to produce, well it gets interesting. Matt Adams is promising and wouldn’t be ready till 2013. Oscar Taveras might be ready by 13′. If that’s the case Craig, Adams or even convert Beltran to 1B if Taveras is ready. Taveras is Harper caliber offense.
It’s always nice to just see the Cards roll along…never seem to have a deep farm system…yet they produce valuable talent for the big league roster.
mmmm …. Cardinals do have a deep farm. if you looked at the 011 team, lots of their guys who they drafted helped them get there. Pujols, Molina, Chambers, Descalso, Boggs, Sanchez, Cruz, Motte, Schumaker, Garcia, Lynn, Craig, Jay, McClellan, Greene, and Dickson. All came up through the Cardinals minors as drafted by them in the past. And in the future … they have Miller, Carlos Martinez, Matt Adams, Oscar Taveras, and said to be future ss Ryan Jackson (if he keeps improving). Cards drafted him, knowing he had defense but, won’t sure about his offense. So far, Jackson has hit in the minors.
That’s what I was getting at. They get the “wrap” of having a thin farm, though. What some don’t realize is that it isn’t the job of player development to set out to win minor league championships. While having successful minor league teams can mean there is real talent on the roster, it doesn’t necessarily indicate that any of the players are MLB caliber.
I’ll take 5 top level prospects over a AAA championship any season.
I actually think they only signed Berkman as Pujols insurance this year. If Pujols resigned, Berkman plays the year in right and Adams would have been traded. Without Pujols, Berkman plays the year at first, and the Cardinals judge at the end of the year whether to bring up Adamsor convert Craig.
Berkman’s 2011 production was worth a two year deal, and had he pushed, he could have gotten it. Cards were only looking for one.
I think jred is thinking in the right direction. This is likely Berkman’s last year with STL. If Beltran is picked up and Craig continues to produce, well it gets interesting. Matt Adams is promising and wouldn’t be ready till 2013. Oscar Taveras might be ready by 13′. If that’s the case Craig, Adams or even convert Beltran to 1B if Taveras is ready. Taveras is Harper caliber offense.
2 years for 8M per? And the Giants can’t afford that? Way to spend 9.5 mil on Affeldt and Lopez instead Sabean. Job well done.
2 years for 8M per? And the Giants can’t afford that? Way to spend 9.5 mil on Affeldt and Lopez instead Sabean. Job well done.
If Beltran signs for 2 years at 8 mil per, it’s going to be the first time in a while I will be very upset with Friedman and think he missed a great opportunity. He’s just gonna resign Damon and Kotchman, watch. I want Pena now but he would just be the next let down.
Gotta agree there. When I saw 2 years and only 8 per year, my first thought was “how the **** are the Rays out?”
If he signs for that I hope Brian Sabean gets fired immediately.
If Beltran signs for 2 years at 8 mil per, it’s going to be the first time in a while I will be very upset with Friedman and think he missed a great opportunity. He’s just gonna resign Damon and Kotchman, watch. I want Pena now but he would just be the next let down.
At that price, I’m not sure why Boston is said to be out. They should be drooling for him at around 8M. Maybe they have other things falling into place.
8 over 2 is a good deal for both IMO.
The Cardinals most likely win the NL Central anyway…but signing Beltran would help them a lot. Not to mention they get Wainwright back this year, who I hope will return to form because he was great to watch prior to the injury.
Don’t count out the Reds. Latos could blossom this year.
Latos is a very good young pitcher, there’s little doubt about that. I think they gave up a little too much for him, though. Not sure they have enough offense to win the Central..
This year, Reds Cards & Brewers will be in a dog fight for divisional pennant.
I agree completely. Brewers got worse, Cards are close to the same, and Reds got better. All three look like 90 win teams to me.
Brewers lost the majority of their offense…Fielder is gone and Braun will probably be suspended 50 games. The Reds got a bit better but I dont think they are good enough to beat the Cardinals. The Cardinals got Wainwright back and assuming he returns to form, he was a top 5 pitcher in all of baseball. I see it as Reds vs Cards for the division but the Cards are still highly favored in my opinion.
Typically, you don’t return to form until the year AFTER you return to pitching. Waino is not likely to be a top 5 pitcher this year. He is an improvement over the black hole of 5th starter last year, but he’s probably not going to match his old self quite yet.
Berkman is good, but last year was far better than he should have performed. He is likely to regress, though not to his 2010 level.
You are depending on continued good performance from a host of young players, including Freese (with injury history), Craig, Motte, Garcia, and John Jay (who wasn’t highly rated). While there is no evidence that they won’t continue to perform, there also is no evidence that they will.
I’m a Cardinals fan, and would love to see them win, but “heavily favored” is beyond absurd. They are no better than last year, and they won 90 games last year. While 90 wins has a good shot at the Central, it is far from a guarantee, which “heavily favored” implies.
Well he is returning to pitching…he has been rehabbing since like March and was even contemplating returning for the playoffs. Hes not going to be the 5th starter if thats what you are trying to say. Most of the time pitchers come back just fine from Tommy John. Cincy was 79-83 last season…I dont think by getting Latos they got that much better. They also have no closer as of now…You said it yourself thier young players have no reason to not keep performing well or even better. The Brewers are clearly a worse team, Cincy only really added Latos while the Cards in a sense added Wainwright. Beltran should help relieve the loss of pujols a bit and same with the emergence of Freese.
Beltran can’t handle the pressure of playing in Boston. He’ll fold…
He played fine in New York.
it’s the Mets. nobody cares about them
They will continue to out pitch their FIP’s because we have the best defense in the AL.
8 million a year for a top 15 bat in the Majors? Yes, please. I would consider Beltran a bargain at 10 million.
he is not a bargain until he can stay healthy