MONDAY, 7:41pm: Enrique Rojas of ESPN Deportes reports that Delgado has not received any offers yet (on Twitter). He'll likely have to prove he's healthy before teams show interest.
SUNDAY, 9:03pm: Veteran slugger Carlos Delgado is still recovering from surgery on his left hip but hopes to return to the majors this year, writes Jesse Sanchez of MLB.com. The 38-year-old has not played in a Major League game since May 10, 2009.
"If I am healthy, I will find a way," said Delgado, who is 27 home runs shy of reaching 500. "I know how to play. I don't want to retire. The reason why I put myself through three surgeries in 18 months is because I want to play. Otherwise, I would have just hung it up."
Delgado went under the knife last September for the third hip surgery of his career. A month prior to that he signed a minor league deal with the BoSox that would have paid him a prorated portion of $3MM upon reaching the majors.
Before he signed with Boston, the White Sox, Rockies, and Mariners were among the clubs known to have interest. The two-time All-Star said last November that he was still waiting for a call from a major league club and had no preference as to where he signs.
EdinsonPickle
Good luck, Delgado. I always liked watching this guy hit, and I hope he finds his way back to the Majors at some point during the season.
pastlives
i just looked up his stats, his 2000 season is just ridiculous. .334/.470 (!!!!)/.664. cant believe he only made 2 AS teams
tacko
He was overshadowed by the fact that he played with the Blue Jays and the presence of big-time juicers like Giambi or A-Rod at the time. Not saying Delgado might not have been part of the dark side of baseball though.
BVHjays
If he’s willing to take a minor league contract, I’d have to think the Jays would have some interest. If Adam Lind can’t adapt to first base, or if Edwin Encarnacion hits horribly as the team’s DH, it would at least be fun for the fans if Delgado was brought in to take one of those roles.
nestorpistor
The powers that be need to get it done
guydavis
It would almost certainly have to be DH, Delgado was horrible at 1B before the surgeries. If healthy I’d rather see a shadow of Delgado at the plate than EE though. Good luck to the man, hope he reaches that plateau.
deere5800
On the one hand I’d love to see him in a Jays uni once again. But it’d sure suck if the Jays signed him and he struggled badly. It’s nice to remember him as a dominant hitter with the Jays.
sourbob
It’s tough out there finding work for a guy with his skills and injury history. But given that he’s such a class act and that he seems more inclined to be grateful for a job than to haggle over a paycheck or a uniform, maybe there is hope after all.
nestorpistor
Carlos need to retire as a Jay. Come home Carlos.
BVHjays
Even as a bench bat, Delgado makes sense for the Jays. As of now, their bench looks like it will be Jose Molina, John McDonald, and Corey Patterson… All of those guys are fine for what they are, but it sure wouldn’t hurt to have someone who could come off the bench late in a game and actually get a hit.
sadp
Three hip surgeries dude. Three.
Green_Monster
I hope the Red Sox look into him. Give him a minor league contact ( If he wants one ). Have him play DH if Ortiz gets injured
Karkat
I suspect he would take a deal elsewhere. Most any other team could offer him a better shot at actual playing time. He’d certainly be nice depth to have, though.
Pete
Just as long as he doesn’t Jermaine Dye/Kenny Lofton himself and takes a sensible incentive-laden minor league deal, he would definitely be the best DH option for Seattle, Toronto, Cleveland or KC and I’d rather him over Loney in LAD.
William Weitzel
1. Sigh… Kenny Lofton. Still probably had 3 decent seasons left in him.
2. I fail to see how Delgado would be a better DH option than a healthy Hafner or Jack Cust.
InLeylandWeTrust
Is there such a thing anymore as a “healthy Hafner”?
The_Silver_Stacker
The guy only 3 times in his carerr played 130 or more games a season
Guest
Id like to see the nats get him, not that we exactly need him, i just want to see him play, oh and possibly boost ticket sales, maybe?
guydavis
I think you’re on the rebound.
Karkat
I’d be stunned if he can’t find a nice little incentive-laden minor league deal. Low risk, really high reward. I wonder if the Rays are interested? They could benefit from some depth at first, and a working Carlos Delgado could make that a really threatening lineup.
grownice
just what they need, another retiree lol
Karkat
What a better place to retire than Florida?
I am Urban Legend
I believe he still has his home in the Tampa Bay area…interesting fit
The_Silver_Stacker
not a fit though, with Manny TB’s DH
jaysal
San Diego would be a good spot if Hawpe flops this year.
Karkat
Yeah, I was thinking the same thing (haha, Brad Flawpe). As an added bonus, Delgado could give some nice mentoring in sppring training/the minors to Anthony Rizzo, since he’s their future at first.
iheartyourfart
i like the idea, but SD only needs about a half-season out of hawpe (blanks should be up by may or june… ASB if they’re careful with him). If hawpe continues his poor play (doubtful), they probably wouldn’t be able to judge that until blanks is back… by the time you got delgado some AB’s, rizzo will be ready too. It would be a logjam.
guydavis
I just don’t see him playing first base.
unvme7
I’d take a chance with this guy on a minor league deal for sure. Let him get his swing back in triple A for a while and call him up when hes ready. Cheap and definitely worth seeing what he still has left. And you know hes just aching to get to 500 HR’s.
tacko
I used to love watching Delgado’s swing. His power-swing made the baseball just completely rocket off his bat when he made contact.
guydavis
Enter Ike Davis
Vossome93
Hey. Maybe The Cardinals Could Sign Him To Play 2nd…TLR Loves Him Some Veterans.
phoenix2042
or maybe the giants! for the same reason… side note: what’s with capitalizing every word?
Vossome93
I Don’t Know…Guess That’s Just How I Roll.
phoenix2042
makes up for my lack of capitalization. for that i thank you!
Kris Noble
Maybe he’s an official Title Come-Up-With’er for a book publishing company and he loves his job.
BVHjays
Another thing to love about Delgado on a minor league deal: that is one guy I’d be thrilled for my team’s prospects to be hanging out with.
The thought of Delgado on the bench chatting with Brett Lawrie about not being a total douchebag almost brings a tear to my eye.
Scott Littlefield
wouldnt be surprised if the Yanks get him to
I am Urban Legend
i was thinking the same thing
YanksFanSince78
Where would the Yanks put him, even if he were to have a good spring training? We are loaded at 1B and DH.
AKates10
J.P Ricciardi would rather have Lyle Overbay.
Jaysfan724
Delgado still is my favorite baseball player no matter what people say, and just to see him get one last chance and reach 500 would be a dream come true. A 2nd stint with the Jays would be the icing on the cake.
metsman
Delgado is a great leader and a stand-up guy. my favorite Mets first baseman of my era, and I hope he gets to 500 as a Jay.
Braydon
Anthopolous…please sign Carlos. He needs to come home. And we don’t know how Lind will do at 1B and I just hate Edwin Encarnacion with a burning damn passion.
sadp
Thankfully baseball is not a democracy, and the team is not run by people who care about nostalgia. I’d wager Adam Lind will do better than a 38-year-old coming off his third hip surgery.
AKates10
He couldn’t hurt off the bench. The Jays need Lefty bats and leadership. I wonder where Delgado would fit.
East Coast Bias
Maybe some Mets fans on this site can help me remember… but wasn’t Delgado looked at as the “problem” in the locker room when he was in NY? Personally, I loved watching him play, and take notes on every pitcher in that book. He can probably be a great batting coach after his career ends.
I am Urban Legend
that was Adam Rubin trying to sell some papers. Remember all the non-sense about Delgado purposely not hitting b/c he didnt like Willie Randolph lol…and Adam neglected to say that Delgado was recovering from a broken bone in his wrist…
Adam Rubin is a racist ambulance chaser/sports journalist.
East Coast Bias
You know who’s a racist? That bald guy on SNY, not the overweight one. I remember him talking about how the two Carlos’ were ruining the “chemistry” of the team.
But yeah, Rubin’s had his credibility damaged a few times.
metsman
the fox news watching jingoists with ten flags flying from their chevys didn’t like that Delgado sat down for one god bless America song the day we invaded Iraq. Nothing worse than an athlete with principles, some people prefer a dancing bear.
Sean Matrai
He will be on the Mets before you know it.He had surgery and he will come at low cost.This is Sandy’s idea of Albert .a very cheap one.Carlos was my favorite Met but I think hes through though
ritz
I hope someone signs Delgado. I’d love to see him get to 500.
AKates10
It goes against everything the Jays are doing. Come on Anthopolous stray a little and bring back a Toronto icon.
sadp
Thankfully your two sentences cancel each other out.
inleylandwetrust
Wait in line behind Dye, Carlos.
Tko11
Why did MLBTR tell me this morning on facebook that Delgado signed with the Red Sox again? I am subscribed to the Red Sox MLBTR…
Kickme Inthenads
Sorry to interrupt the love fest, but the only reason this guy is coming back is to reach 500 HR’s. The only reason why he’s close is because he and his old pal Shawn Green got a hold of the best juice their Canadian dollars could buy.
Right. It hasn’t been proven. Just offering another perspective.
HerbertAnchovy
Well, that tops the stupidist comment list of the day. On a technical note, all players get paid in US Currency regardless, rendering your comment even more pointless.
buchachan
Disagree. Somebody implying Pujols was/is using roids was even more ridiculous. This comes in a close second though. And thanks for the tid-bit of information on the currency, I learn something new everyday.
Gurvir Nijjar
minor league deal with the jays would be nice to see
Bob George
Let’s be realistic. He’s 38, hasn’t played in the majors in 2 years, has only played a total of 5 games in that time and struck out 6 times in 13 ab’s last Fall in the minors before needing another hip surgery. He was a fun player years ago, but the odds of him doing anything in the majors again are minuscule.
JohnBoy
Hey Cubbies – are you listening? You have no first-baseman. Low risk – high reward – left-handed power bat. Invite this next potential member of the 500 club and let’s all take a kick at “Kickme Inthenads” above.
101andcounting
While I totally agree that the Cubs would be wise to take a flier on Delgado (a bench bat would be nice), we did sign Carlos Pena, remember?
Alex Kozaris
I was in school in Toronto about 15 years ago and my dad got two tickets to an afternoon game at the last minute. He literally came to school and pulled me out, and we hit the subway to get down to what I will continue to refer to as SkyDome.
Imagine my excitement when we ran into Delgado greeting fans as they entered the stadium. I said, “hey!” He asked me what my name was, and why I wasn’t in school.
“He played hookey to come see you guys!” my dad offered, likely as excited as I was.
Carlos wasn’t as pleased with the answer as I thought he would. He asked if I played baseball, and I told him I did. He then told me that baseball is important, but not as important as it is to stay in school and get an education. My dad told him I had excellent grades, and he smiled and wished us a good afternoon.
I’ll never forget the first time I met one of my idols… and got a lecture about applying myself in school. Thank you, Carlos. I was always a good student, but hearing one of my favourite baseball players tell me that motivated this kid a lot more than my parents and teachers telling me the same.
I hope Delgado finds a home in baseball this year, but if he doesn’t, I’m sure he’ll shine off the field just as much as he did on it.
101andcounting
“favourite”
Dirty Canuck.
Ha, but seriously – cool story. It’s such a great feeling to know that someone you looked up to as a kid was actually an awesome dude. I met Ryne Sandberg in 2004 at O’Hare airport and he was the nicest guy. Scottie Pippen, on the other hand, was an assclown and a half.
Lunchbox45
awesome story dude, always fun to meet an idol and not end up disappointed..
I met Robbie Alomar at a nite club last year, after I told him he was the reason I’m a die hard baseball and Jays fan and the reason I played second base growing up.. He said thanks so much.. do you know any girls to introduce me to….
Thats a true story.
dl_mcalpine
Your story would be more believable if you said Alomar asked you to introduce him to some of your male friends or was hitting on you.
dl_mcalpine
Turn me over because I am Done. It will be too difficult for a 39 year old and being out of the game for a couple years, and numerous surgeries to play at that level.