The latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports…
- Brewers center fielder Carlos Gomez is attracting interest from contenders and non-contenders alike. The Rangers and Indians have reached out, while the Giants and Astros find Gomez appealing. Rosenthal notes that the Giants may not have the prospects required, while the Astros “appear more focused on bullpen help.” Gomez is under contract next year for just $9MM, after which he’ll reach free agency as a 30-year-old. In a June 1st poll, 80% of MLBTR readers said the Brewers should trade Gomez this summer. He would appeal to many teams beyond the four listed by Rosenthal.
- The Rangers are “acting aggressively as both buyers and sellers,” according to Rosenthal. That explains the interest in Gomez and Cole Hamels and their willingness to listen on pitchers Yovani Gallardo and Wandy Rodriguez, who will be free agents after the season. I should note that Colby Lewis will also be a free agent after the season, but he’s chosen to stay with Texas multiple times when given the opportunity to shop around. On Friday, Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram had quotes from Rangers GM Jon Daniels about the team’s deadline stance.
- Rosenthal says the Indians are similarly looking at both additions and subtractions this week, “exploring deals for players who could fit for next season and beyond while listening to proposals for their starting pitchers and corner players such as David Murphy and Ryan Raburn.” Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca wrote yesterday that the Indians came close to trading pitcher Carlos Carrasco to the Blue Jays, but the deal fell apart for unknown reasons and is no longer on the table.
- The Rangers are expected to trade Shin-Soo Choo this offseason, Rosenthal writes. I imagine that may require some kind of bad contract swap, as Choo recently turned 33, can block deals to ten teams, and is owed $102MM from 2016-20.
- The Padres are shopping second baseman Jedd Gyorko hard, tweets Rosenthal. The 26-year-old signed an extension under the previous Padres regime, and at the deadline he’ll be owed more than $33MM through 2019. MLBTR’s Steve Adams wrote about Gyorko and all the other second base trade candidates last week. Rosenthal suggests the Padres could rid themselves of Gyorko’s contract by attaching him to a more desirable player, pitcher Tyson Ross for example. The Braves employed this tactic in April, pairing Melvin Upton with Craig Kimbrel.
If the Rangers plan to trade Choo this offseason, I would imagine they are listening to offers and making offers on him right now?
So pretty much every Padre has been listed as far as the Padres trying hard to trade them.
Yonder Alonso, Will Myers and Matt Kemp (most due to the fact no one wants him) haven’t been mention as trade bait. Everyone else seems to be available.
Can add Spangenberg to that. Norris is thought to be a core piece as well but Hedges really needs to get more playing time. Not much has been said whether Hedges or Norris is the future. Love the grit and example Norris has been showing but Hedges has to be the future.
Hedges has yet to hit well enough to be more than a backup catcher. If he can learn to hit better then I imagine they trade Norris because Hedges has 3 more years of control than Norris does.
I can’t imagine Choo getting much in return. Who would be a trade partner?
Choo not worth what Texas is paying him. Would have to eat a lot of his contract, I’m guessing…
Absolutely I’m just trying to figure out who theoretically would have a need that desperate and/or have an awful contract to come back to my Rangers?
I’m not sure if the need or playing time would be there, but Choo would be a good fit in Yankee Stadium. A swap of Choo + money + 10-15 prospect in the Rangers system for Kemp. The Choo for Verlander trade mentioned below would be interesting, although I’m not sure how the deals compare.
Probably more like Choo for CC to the yankees.
I wonder about a Choo for CarGo trade with the Rox getting back more than just Choo.
Rangers would do that in a heartbeat. Yankees would be fools though. C.C’s contract only has one more year left on it.
CC has a vesting option for 2017 that is easily achievable if he stays off the DL in 2016..
That is definitely a bad contract for bad contract scenario…and not a bad fit for Choo.
I don’t even think NY would take that, CC’s contract expires sooner and they can at least hide him in the bullpen.
Just for fun…how about trading Choo to the Tigers for Verlander?
That would be very interesting but I have more faith of Verlander turning it around than Choo.
Wouldn’t be the first time Dombrowski and Daniels swapped bad contracts.
The more I think about it though the less I like it from the Rangers end. You can hide a bad contract/production in your lineup much easier than you can in your rotation. If you have Verlander you have no choice but to run him out there every 5th day whether he sucks or not.
The tactic of adding an albatross K (Gyorko/Melvin Upton) + a legit player/prospect is really interesting. D’backs did it with Arroyo/Toussiant as well. Basically its GMs balancing the benefit of clearing payroll v. the potential of the prospect they’re giving away. I wonder if this will encourage more smaller market teams to risk signing FAs with the possibility of doing something like this in the instance they can’t subsequently pay the remainder on the K?
What would a package of Cashner, Kimbrel & Gyorko to Toronto cost the Blue Jays?
Assuming the package includes Devon Travis who is looking like a very valuable contributor for league minimum, how much else would San Diego want?
Travis would be a great get for San Diego, but do you think AA would move him? Seems like the Jays want to acquire cheaper, cost-controlled pieces, not give them away. In the instance AA would be willing to move him, I’d imagine a return that included Travis for the above three would probably involve Travis + Hoffman or Pompey + a lesser prospect, maybe two. Again, Travis would be great value for the Friars.
If Travis wasn’t in it, I can see AJ asking for Hoffman + Pompey plus two or three lesser prospects. Dwight Smith Jr. or D.J. Davis maybe? Gotta think Preller is looking to beef up the middle of the field and Smith gave 2B a shot in the AFL.
You’d almost have to include Travis to free up somewhere for Gyorko to play. AA wants cheap, cost controlled players and he gets one in Cashner. Kimbrel nails down the bullpen and Gyorko is a cost of doing business. With contracts coming off the books next year Toronto has about $50M to spend but Martin plus arb raises leaves enough room for Cashner, Kimbrel and Gyorko with another $10M to spend (this is without picking up Dickey’s option) so AA is really tying his hands for next year.
I could see AA doing Travis plus Pompey but he’s really painting himself into a corner. 2016 rotation would be Stroman, Cashner, Hutchison, Sanchez plus Dickey/someone else. Line-up is fine except Gyorko and Pillar look weak. Bullpen has Kimbrel, Osuna and Cecil – no obvious weakness. But also no money to be able to change it if it doesn’t work.
I don’t see why that tactic would work for small market teams. The nature of the revenue they generate makes their prospects critical to future success – they can have cheap productive players if the prospects mature. Signing free agents over 30 to long-term obscene contracts is a risk I think less and less teams will be taking. I like Scott Boras, but who can justify the Choo contract? Verlander. And the worst is Cleveland – Swisher and Borne are eating up 1/3 of the payroll (as I just heard on the radio) this year and next. How does a mid-small market team work around that? Preller did with Shields the same thing the same thing the Indians did – thought that if the guy didn’t work out they could easily trade him. Sue you can – for a like contract in a like situation. And to backload those contracts – whew……
If the Braves could sign him to a 2 or 3 year extension…I would really like Gomez to be in Atlanta. Maybe a package of Peraza, Hursh, & Grosser gets it done?
I imagine Gomez and Boras are thinking 8-10 years on his next contract. A lifetime, blockbuster deal.
Yeah, you’re probably right. Totally forgot Boras is the agent here
I’m wondering if he can get quite that many years though? I personally would be skeptical to give a guy like him an 8-10 year deal. I think his production will fall off a cliff in 3-4 years.
That’s how these giant contracts work.
I doubt that package would do it. Peraza would be a nice piece but the other two are just throw-ins. MIL should be looking for 2 Peraza-type prospects in a return. You have to remember if Gomez is traded before next season he will be eligible for a QO which means the team could recoup a late first round pick in 2017.
That is laughable, Peraza alone is a higher value than Gomez. Guess that is why he has not been moved.
Maybe higher potential value, as in “cheaper for more years with the potential to maybe produce at half the rate”?
Otherwise, I’m not sure what you’re talking about. There are maybe 15 guys in the league more valuable than Gomez on the field. Factor in his ridiculously cheap salary and there’s really not an argument that he’s one of the most valuable commodities on the trade market right now.
I would say the Heyward trade is a close comparable to a potential Gomez return. Granted ATL threw in a decent RP too but they received a top 100 prospect + a quality controllable big league starter for 1 year of a comparable LF’er. So you are saying Gomez, a CF’er for 1.4 years is worth maybe 1 top 100 prospect who is basically glove and speed only? That is ‘laughable’. Braves fans want it both ways I guess.
I agree with you that the Gomez trade should mirror the Heyward trade, perhaps beating it by a bit but Peraza is more than a top 100.. He is a top 30 prospect..
The QO is not worth an additional Peraza type prospect.. I can’t figure out why people put so much value into them..
Preller’s Padres are looking more and more like the 2012 Marlins.
Makes for a lot of salty Padres fans 🙁
As an Astro fan, I have zero desire to acquire Gomez. The outfield is already deep within the system, especially when Springer returns. Their real position of need is at 1B, where Carter has been dreadfully bad and Singleton has not shown he is ready for the big leagues. I’m pretty surprised we’ve heard no rumors about a 1B.
How is your OF looking like in the next 1.5 years? That is what matters…who cares what could become something down the line in years.
Exactly. Gomez would thrive in Houston and I think he’d be a great influence on the younger guys. His style of play also seems to fit well with that clubhouse, and there’s no doubt he’d be an immediate upgrade for the next year and a half.
He likes Tal’s Hill
Interested in Fielder or Moreland? Doubt the Stros would take Prince’s contract but I could see them being very interested in Moreland. Would you give up Josh Hader and A.J. Reed?
Lind for Redd/?
How about a deal of Chris Johnson, Jonny Gomes and Bronson Arroyo for Jedd Gyorko and Austin Hedges.
I seriously doubt Preller would be interested in any those guys.
Why? Taking on Johnson and Arroyo would offset any gain from moving Gyorko’s contract. No reason for the Padres to part with Hedges just to take on more bad contracts.
Trademeister proposes bad deals to try to get your goat.. Just ignore him and a guy named Scannton plus another guy named Bob Melvin I think.. The Melvin guy is the biggest jerk.. There is a decent poster on here named Bob Mevin or something like that and Bob Melvin pirated his name..
stop trolling
stop trolling
Hello All, I think the Giants will end up with Gomez they have more then enough for him and BrewCrew should do it.. Duffy should be in the deal Brewers have no one to play 3b next yr and FA market is light also look at Crick, Heston, Osich, Mejia as names in the deal it will be done/should be done Duvall is sitting in AAA with 23HR and they have an old OF
Why would the Giants trade Duffy? Who would play 3rd for them?
Giants dont have enough
How about Choo, Gallardo and Chi Chi to the Dodgers for Ethier?
Wouldn’t help the Dodgers logjam.. Perhaps, Choo and Gallardo for Either and Crawford..
Overpay by the Rangers by a massive margin.
What about Choo for Kemp and M. Upton? AJ gets rid of payroll and Rangers get right handed bats. Kemp plays everyday and Upton platoons with Hamilton.
I’d like to know what teams Choo can block a trade too. Hopefully he wants to leave as bad as we want him gone.
Rangers sure do like overpaying for S.Koreans.
Yeah you think they would have learned from the Park deal.. Perhaps, they will chase Refsnyder when he hits free agency down the road.. Although, they didn’t chase Kang so maybe they have learned from the past..
Maybe they could send Choo to the Angels for the rest of Hamilton’s contract..
No way the Angels would go for that. They’re better off paying Hamilton to play for us.