Baseball executives seem divided on the Marlins' plans for Josh Johnson, but it's clear the right-hander is drawing considerable interest as the trade deadline approaches. One official told Jayson Stark there's a 95% chance the 28-year-old stays put. But other executives told Joel Sherman they'd be shocked if the Marlins don't trade him. The Rangers, Angels, Orioles and Blue Jays appear to have interest in Johnson, who earns $13.75MM per season through 2013. Here’s the latest on Johnson, with the most recent rumors up top:
- The Blue Jays are undeterred by their series loss to the A's and are still pursuing Johnson, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.
- Johnson would prefer to be near his home in Oklahoma or his wife's home in Orange County, California, ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick reports (on Twitter).
- The Marlins are seeking a Mark Teixeira-like package for Johnson, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports. Miami seeks at least three good young pieces for Johnson, Heyman writes. The Rangers, of course, obtained Elvis Andrus, Neftali Feliz, Matt Harrison and Jarrod Saltalamacchia when they traded Teixeira five years ago.
BrickTops
Pretty obvious that the Braves got Fleeced on that deal.
not_brooks
Braves…
Wellington Lizardo Ricart
why did u have to remind him about the worst trade in Brave’s History?
rundmc1981
Thanks, John Schuerholz. You really went out with a bang. I really hope you didn’t advise Wren to trade Tex for Marek/Kotchman and forfeit the draft picks coming your way when Tex bolted for NYY because that would have meant you gave up on the chance to have Mike Trout in a Braves uniform. I think Schuerholz wanted to top his bad rental of Wainwright for JD Drew…and he did a heck of a job doing that.
blank_38
But the Yankees never traded for Teixeira…
BrickTops
DOH… Lol I was thinking Braves, but typed Yanks
Richard Gilboy
yeah they’re not getting that… lol
the_show
Well I’m gonna guess Josh Johnson stays put
not_brooks
Even though there’s no chance they’ll get a package like that, it always makes sense to ask for the moon.
Rangers4Life
Welp. Good luck on that Marlins.
oz10 2
Poor Beau Jones never gets mentioned in that trade……..
JasonM
He is the only one not to make it to Arlington.
oz10 2
it was meant tongue in cheek
Devon Henry
Three good prospects for an injury prone pitcher with an ERA at 4.14 in a pitchers park. He can be beast at times but not worth three good prospects (im assuming good is B or better rated prospects)
Richard Janvrin
At home he’s 5-4 with a 3.35 ERA and in his winning starts an ERA under 2. JJ is really good.
Lefty
First of all the Marlin must be smokin some really good stuff if they think they can get a “Tex Package” for Johnson. Its not that he isn’t an excellent pitcher, he just can’t stay healthy! Also, I bet if you ask Wren, if he could do it all over again, he wouldn’t!
Neither would the GM for the O’s Mariners Bedard trade.
not_brooks
Bavasi would probably make the Bedard trade again, because he was a monumentally terrible General Manager.
melonis_rex
Wren didn’t make the Teixeira trade with Texas. Schuerholz did.
User 4245925809
I doubt Atlanta wants JJ that badly for one thing and as far as anyone else? If JJ was on top of his game this year from start to start.. A possibility, but he just hasn’t been consistent enough.
The one team that is hanging around the fringes and might have been desperate enough has someone in charge (Orioles/Duquette) that is just not goofy enough to pull the trigger on a trade like that.
Orioles fans can rest on that. Duke might make a move on a SP, but he isn’t going to blow the system on a guy, even as good as JJ.
go_jays_go
I can imagine the Braves targeting JJ if Dempster refuses to leave Chicago…
sdsny
That would be Mark Teixeira all over again. They’d send the Marlins the farm, and get JJ for a couple of years, and yes I know Teixeira was only a season. It doesn’t make sense for the Braves, who have good pitching prospects who combined would cost way less than a Josh Johnson contract.
jjs91
Anyone want to look up where does guys were ranked prospect wise at the time of the trade?
Patrick Beliveau
Going into 2007, Baseball America had Salty, Andrus, Harrison as the top 3 prospects in the Braves system…
Top 100, Salty was 36, Andrus was 65 and Harrison was 90…
So it was a pretty good haul for Texas
notsureifsrs
not as good as it looks in retrospect, though. “andrus, feliz, harrison, and salty” sounds a lot, lot better than #36, #65, #90 and unranked
all of those players turned into productive regulars or stars – including the unranked feliz. that’s very unusual
JasonM
I cant recall but Salty was the “prized” prospect of the group at that time. Harrison was a throw in due to a medical concern with Beau Jones’s shoulder/elbow.
oz10 2
Andrus was the prized prospect, Salty was to get an MLB ready piece as he was alread yin the bigs. We wouldn’t do the deal without Nefti though
JasonM
Thats not the way that i recall it… I thought it was the young switch hitting catcher w/ power….. Andrus was said to be a defensive wiz with concerns over his ability to hit. But eitherway, it was a steal for the rangers…
ElasticSyntax 2
This also created some hubbub around who the “catcher of future” would be in Texas since they had Salty, Laird and Teagarden.
Bennie
Feliz and Andrus were the cornerstones of the trade.
JasonM
Not according to Baseball America at the time…. See Patrick Beliveau post from above. He has already done the research.
txftw
Ok a JJ deal that comps to the Tex deal:
Feliz=Harrison at that point. Matt had some experience but Feliz has way more (such as being an All-Star closer) therefore is way more valuable.
Sardinas/Garcia=Andrus. Elvis was extremely young when he was traded and these two are a little further along with lower ceilings.
Moreland=Saltalamacchia. Salty had immense potential at the time of the trade and Moreland has shown flashes of excellence (2010 WS) but has had struggles as well, like Salty did in his time in Texas.
Mendez=Feliz. A high powered arm that needs seasoning to become something great. Feliz at the time of the Tex trade was just a 100mph thrower but was able to harness it.
Kirkman=Jones. The forgotten piece of that deal. Lefty with some promise was the idea, but Kirkman has pitched in the bigs a fair amount while Jones at that time was in the lower minors.
To me, the value of Feliz is extremely high and offsets some of the faults the other pieces have.
Thoughts?
Bryan 15
Mark Teixeira-like package. I’d give you Casey Kotchman and Stephen Marek for him…
JasonM
What a difference a year makes!!!
Ben Gonzalez
They may have hurt themselves by deciding to announce that the Rangers were ready to part with Olt for him to start a bidding war. This franchise is so backwards it almost hurts. Almost.
go_jays_go
When did the Rangers ever declare Olt was available?
OptimisticMarlinsFan
I’m not sure that’s the only way they should deal him. If they can get a package like they should jump on it. I highly doubt they will, though. I don’t think they should only deal if a package like that comes along. They need to trade him and it doesn’t necessarily have to reach that type of return, but it better be a damn good one.
RiosFan
White Sox get:
RHP Josh Jhonson
Marlins get:
RHP Adisson Reed
RHP Nestor Molina
RHP Gavin Floyd
C Tyler Flowers
UTIL Eduardo Escobar
Jaysfan724
Isn’t Nestor Molina hurt?
M.Kit
Rangers to JJ: “As you may know, Arlington is very close to Oklahoma”
sdsny
That might work in a FA pitch. JJ has no say in where he ends up right now.
ARod's Ring
Here we go with the “request” and preferences from the player. handcuffing their teams in the process.
Encarnacion's Parrot
Since JJ doesn’t have a no-trade clause, his opinions are rendered moot. In any case, if he really cared where he played, I don’t think he would have signed an extension with the Marlins to be begin with.
Rangers4Life
“Johnson would prefer to be near his home in Oklahoma or his wife’s home in Orange County, California, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick reports”
So that means JJ (or maybe the Marlins) wants a deal with either the Angels or the Rangers if the trade ever happens.
greg porco
JJ lives in Henderson Nevada, Jerry. Nice home too…google it. JJ is not going anywhere. By the way, his wifes home is in Cali? She has a separate home from him? Seriously?? Worst comment i’ve ever seen here.
Encarnacion's Parrot
To be fair, he grew up in Jenks, Oklahoma. Maybe that’s where his parents reside.
karkat
What you do is trade Andrus, Harrison, and Feliz for Johnson, making the trade ultimately Johnson and Mendez for Teixiera, excellent trade!
(I kid, of course.)
Kurisu Rg
You forgot Beau Jones!!
Bennie
They won’t get anything near that for Josh Johnson.
nwh2787
Texas Rangers or L.A. Angels, Dodgers
Jeffrey Wright 2
JJ for olt, perez? would the rangers do this?
baseballz
So even after JP broke his hand and Romero has shown obvious signs of some sort of hidden injury ( I call Labrum! ) what will it take for AA to realize that this year is over ? Im just worried im gonna see a Casey Blake for Carlos Santana like deal or worse a Texiera sized package in order for us to finish 3rd again in the AL East. Very slowly all of the Toronto franchises are becoming increasingly delusional.
rikersbeard
obviously the deal is not focused on this year so much as next (and maybe beyond).
baseballz
I see what you mean, but a guy who wants to play near his home and wife sounds like a guy who will only be here for two years if the trade were to happen. So you assume the salary and the significant risk of injury all in the hope that this year we might get into the second wild car ? I just don’t buy it, sounds like the Bedard trade all over again.
Who are the Jays gonna start in a playoff series ? Johnson, Laffey, Villaneuva ? If the Jays were healthy then heck yahz, but were not, so this just doesn’t make sense.
Encarnacion's Parrot
Morrow should be back in 2-3 weeks.
rikersbeard
Presumably every player wants to play near their family or their home. Many players though are willing to sign contracts anyways if they like the money and the situation enough.
rikersbeard
Do you see what I mean though? Because you again just pointed to facts about this year (minus your forgetting Morrow).
cyberboo
Who cares about 2012. The Blue Jays slowly add players to the roster that can help them compete the next season. If the Jays acquire Johnson, 2013 will have Morrow, Romero, Johnson, Hutchison, and Alvarez, unless another pitcher is acquired in the off season. That rotation would match any in the majors and it adds wins to the team. Factor in that Santos will be healthy with Janseen, Oliver, Frasor in the back end of the pen and 2013 will surprise a lot of people. Just an FYI, but Carter, Alomar, etc were added in 89, not 92, allowing the team to address other needs. One question mark at a time is being eliminated, which isn’t done all at once.
cookmeister
Teixiera-like package for a guy that has thrown 200 innings only once? he is good, but not worth that at all
David Ridenour
A possible Josh Johnson trade is going to be exactly like Ubaldo Jimenez– We aren’t “actively” trading him, but if you want to blow us away and overpay, then we will gladly trade him. And people can say what they want– When it comes to SP at the trade deadline, the value is ALWAYS high!
Robert William Nason
Marlins are also seeking crack cocaine in the package because they have smoked all of theirs
Bennie
The Rangers need to hang on to Olt. They need him to play 1B next year if not sooner. If the Rangers trade for anything it needs to be a hitter.
go_jays_go
I don’t understand why fans thinks prospects are always ‘blocked’.
John Olerud was not blocked by Fred McGriff.
Ryan Howard was not blocked by Jim Thome.
If Beltre is still capable of playing 3B, then your suggestion to put Olt at 1B temporarily is good. Otherwise, TRADE Beltre for an area of need and use Olt to fill the void.
JasonM
I agree. Good/Great prospects dont get blocked. If anything, they are not rushed to the big leagues before they are ready to play. But you can always have that prospect change positions (not always easy) or trade the aging/more expensive player that is so-called “blocking” the prospect.
When it is all said and done the Rangers infeild could look like this fairly soon:
1B – Olt
2B – Andrus
SS – Profair
3B – Beltre
Kinsler to the OF.
Encarnacion's Parrot
The Blue Jays are undeterred by their series loss to the A’s and are still pursuing Johnson
As they should be. The Jays have a few redundant great prospects in their system such as CF Jake Marisnick – ranked 37 by BA mid-season, 32 by Keith law – or Gose. All I know is the Marlins need a CF of the future, among the many other things.
If they do make a move for JJ before August 1st, at least they can see how he does for 2 months in the AL East. If he succeeds, give him an extension. If not, you can move him again, or go for it anyway in 2013 and take the picks. Lots of options.
go_jays_go
If JJ keeps up his performance, do you think he will be worthy of a qualifying offer for draft pick compensation after the 2013 season?
If yes, then I can justifiably understand why the Blue Jays would target him.
bravesfansince1990
It sucks being a Braves fan and having to live this trade over and over again….
gizmo12688
Cabrera-Miller/Maybin trade for us, lol
gothamgator
The Marlins don’t know how to get good players in trades, so I don’t believe Jon Heyman for a second… (ok, there was that one time they got Hanley from the Red sox, but that was 7 years ago)
Jaysfan724
Is Harden and Ibaka too much for Johnson?
RobM
Mark Teixeira-like packages just don’t happen anymore because of, well, teams now realize how bad it is to trade away that much young talent for a single player.