A.j. Burnett To Boston?

[SchillingIsTheNatural]

According to the Palm Beach Post, the Marlins have spoken with seven teams interested in Burnett: the A's, Red Sox, Yankees, Cardinals, Tigers, Diamondbacks and Orioles. One proposal involving the Red Sox had right-hander Bronson Arroyo coming to Florida, with Burnett helping fill a rotation void with Pedro Martinez's departure for the New York Mets.

 

I think Burnett would be awesome once fully recovered from that injury. He was throwing around 97 at the end of last year. If healthy I would have no problem adding Burnett over Pedro. But moving Arroyo would leave us with only 4 starters. That could mean looking into Matt Clement, but am I the only one who thinks he would get killed in Fenway?

[ahhchon]

clement would get destroyed, i'de take bronson over him anyday. we know what clements limit is, we have a good idea of bronsons and it's in the 3.5-4 era. keep bronson and find other stuff to trade for burnett.

 

any offer losing bronson is not a good idea imo. he's a good starter, that's why people want him. AND CHEAP. 300k this year.

 

john

[soxonfox]

i like the idea of getting burnett or clement, but i dont like the idea of giving up bronson. he is gonna be really good in a liitle while. just wait.

[ahhchon]

boston fans speak too highly of bronson. he's a #3 starter at best on a championship staff.. i love him to death but he only has that breaking ball pitch. if that's not on he's in trouble. just like lowes sinker that cuts back against left handers. if that's not on he's in major trouble.

 

john

[Joeroafan]

Burnett get hurt alot man i rather them just resgin lowe he was good man

[SchillingIsTheNatural]

You would take Derek Lowe over AJ Burnett? Burnett has one of the best young arms in baseball and could be dominate. If there were no injuries he would be the best pitcher on that staff which included Pavano, Beckett, and Willis. Let the Yanks get Pavano and I'll take Burnett to start against him anyday.

 

I do like Bronson and we might not have seen everything from him. That was his first year starting and I would like to keep him. But again, if I had to choose between Burnett and Arroyo I am taking Burnett everyday of the week.

[Soxfan1]

Red sox signed clement so this is probably not happening.

[DOrtiz4prez]

If we got him it would be great but a lot of starting pitchers, so a lot of middle relievers.

[yankeessuck013]

so where does everyone think burnett will end up this offseason (yeah yeah I know its early), IMO its either New York or Boston...

 

god I hope boston...we could use him

[SchillingIsTheNatural]

Well, NY got Pavano....I think it would be great if Boston got Burnett who is better. I always believed he had the best stuff out of Beckett, Willis, Pavano, and Penny. His record isnt great thus far but its not his fault. The guy throws nasty stuff and I RARELY see him get crushed. Every now and then Beckett falls apart. Burnett is good to go 6-9 innings every time and give up 1-2 earned runs.

 

Wade Miller, AJ Burnett, Bronson Arroyo, Matt Clement...and that other guy named Curt Schilling.....good god....yay for NL pitching

[riverside sluggers]

aj burnett would be a great asset to the pitchin rotation which so far, **knock on wood**, has gotten 4 consecutive great starts from our boys. aside from that, couple of players of the sox that havent been cutting it consistently would be mark bellhorn whos batting average has dropped to 235, and now stands at 73 strikeouts for the season, again leadin the majors. i respect fully what embree and bellhorn did last season to get the big win. however im sure theo is noticing is the same thing, come august we could be seein a new 2nd baseman, rumors bret boone ((step up from bellhorn)) could be traded off, and a new relief picther...

[yankeessuck013]

is he a free agent at the end of the year?

[stocker323]

is he a free agent at the end of the year?

Yes.

[yankeessuck013]

rumor on fox sports is that we would package hanley and bronson to get him, I say no, wait until the off- season, and fight the yankees for him.......ahhhhhhhhhh

[soxie thefangirl]

I don't want to lose Bronson, no way.

[Soxfan1]

Burnett to O's?

 

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/3720056

 

I could see this happening. They would also get encarcion. I think it depends on where they are in the division around the trade deadline because they would have to talk extensions.

[riverside sluggers]

and now we have indeed the most sought after player during the trading period: Orioles I sure want expecting, but the Yankees I was of course expecting. Pitching is obstacle for them halfway through the season. Heres the article that includes yankees could possibly trade Chine Mine Wang but even "Flash" Tom Gordon, wow

 

Inside Dish: Marlins put Burnett on trading block

 

The Florida Marlins are considering trading righthander A.J. Burnett in a blockbuster move that would alter the pennant races in both leagues, Sporting News has learned. The Marlins are engaged in preliminary discussions about Burnett with the Orioles and a second, unidentified American League club. Their goal in trading Burnett, who will be a free agent at the end of the season, would be to obtain three major league parts -- a young starting pitcher, a quality reliever and a lefthanded hitting outfielder.

 

Few teams would be willing to pay such a steep price. The Red Sox, awaiting the return of righthander Curt Schilling, are not currently pursuing a trade for a starting pitcher, be it Burnett or Giants righthander Jason Schmidt. The Yankees could get involved for Burnett if they were willing to trade setup man Tom Gordon and righthander Chien-Ming Wang, but that move could do more harm than good. The Tigers have had past interest in Burnett. The Angels, White Sox and Twins are not believed to be currently interested. Any team that acquires Burnett, 28, would need to be confident that it could sign him long-term. The Marlins, unlikely to retain Burnett, would prefer to trade him for immediate help than receive only draft picks if he departs as a free agent. Burnett threw a two-hit shutout Sunday against the Devil Rays, but for all his talent, he's only 5-5 with a 3.14 ERA this season, 41-43 with a 3.78 ERA lifetime.

 

The Orioles, a team in search of a No. 1 starter, could prove a match for the Marlins if they are willing to give up either righthander Daniel Cabrera or Hayden Penn, reliever Jorge Julio and outfielder Larry Bigbie, with the Marlins likely sending them outfielder Juan Encarnacion -- another potential free agent -- along with Burnett. In recent years, however, the Orioles have shown great reluctance at acquiring potential free agents, passing on deals for first baseman Derrek Lee and righthander Tim Hudson because they could not sign them to contract extensions before making the trades. ...

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other trade news

 

Here's how the Reds can trade beleaguered lefthander Eric Milton: By offering to pay half of his remaining salary to a team that plays in a pitcher-friendly park. The Nationals, Giants or Tigers might be willing to take a chance on Milton if they were paying him $4.25 million per season instead of $8.5 million.

 

The price will be high for Rockies lefthanded reliever Brian Fuentes, who continues to draw significant interest from the Marlins and other clubs. Fuentes, 29, is 8-for-10 in save opportunities, opponents are batting only .202 against him and he is earning only $328,000; he becomes eligible for arbitration after this season.

 

Brewers rookie second baseman Rickie Weeks drew nine walks in his first 59 plate appearances for an on-base percentage of .441, and his bat speed is something to behold. Weeks got down 0-2 in his first at-bat against Cubs RHP Carlos Zambrano, then fouled off a pitch and took a ball before hitting an RBI single to give the Brewers a 1-0 lead. ...

 

The Cubs rejected the Rockies' offer of outfielder Preston Wilson for a package of three prospects. Wilson, who turns 31 in July, is only about 18 months older than A's center fielder Mark Kotsay but offers more power. Both can be free agents after this season. ... undefined

[stocker323]

Red Sox related rumors from Gammons' column, not that much news about the Sox this week.

- Rockies have contacted the Sox about Shoppach, Red Sox weren't interested in either first baseman Ryan Shealy or pitcher Joe Kennedy.

-Doesn't think that Pedroia will be brought up this year since he's not on the 40 man roster. He thinks that they would more likely bring up Hanley if something happened to Pedroia

[DirtDog]

We already have one too many starters. We do not need to address a strength while giving up minor leaguers. That is just dumb. Our bullpen should be addressed above all.

[riverside sluggers]

players i see as tradeable that will help the sox right now is embree of course, mantei ((lets face it, the guy is not getting control so far and walking and hitting high number of batters so far)), and kelly shoppach ((varitek will eb around thru 2008, and mirabelli till next season)) think it would be best to trade him off so he can get a major league starting chance--agree with you dirtdog, all sox need to focus is strengthening their bullpen, that rockies pitcher i think be a good fit as a 7th/8th inning setup pitcher

[Soxfan1]

Mirabelli isnt going anywhere.

[riverside sluggers]

i know that i said hes here in boston next season, cuz thanksgiving he signed a 2 year contract thru 2006 season

[Sizzlin22]

because.... be f***ing cause. Is it really that hard?.... Anyways we don't need AJ but I would like to see the Sox try to get Fuentes from the Rockies.

[curse reversed]

he'd do well as a #3 or 4 starter. they could slide aroyo down a slot and send the other guy packing or send him to the pen as a long reliever

[SchillingIsTheNatural]

You guys are crazy for not wanting Burnett. You need to understand that when we get Schilling back our bullpen gets better because one of the starters moves over. If you get another ace like Burnett...another player moves to the bullpen. THAT WAY YOU INCREASE YOUR BULLPEN STRENGTH AND STARTING ROTATION. Forget this crap about adding a reliever.....there are starters out there available who are more valuable. If we added Burnett or Schmidt to the rotation we have the best starters in the league.

 

AND you can move Wake and/or Arroyo to the bullpen....how would you like to face Burnett (nasty mid-high 90s stuff) then get relieved by Wake (knuckle) and shut down by Foulke (changeup).....NO team could handle that

[Sox fan in Tex]

Why is pitching being discussed? I was watching Comcast Sports for the Orioles game yesterday and they were bringing up AGAIN the fact that Schmidt (sp?) could be coming to Boston. Why? I've been watching every game possible this year (probably about 90% of them) and I don't know why we would consider bringing in another pitcher. We already have one too many.

[elsrbueno]

Why is pitching being discussed? I was watching Comcast Sports for the Orioles game yesterday and they were bringing up AGAIN the fact that Schmidt (sp?) could be coming to Boston. Why? I've been watching every game possible this year (probably about 90% of them) and I don't know why we would consider bringing in another pitcher. We already have one too many.

 

You can never have too much pitching. The team's bullpen is really a weakness. Timlin has been the only consistent reliever on the team. Sure, Mantei, Embree, and even Foulke have shown flashes of dominance, but this is hardly the bullpen of a World Series contender. Some folks believe getting a guy like Schmidt would allow us to shift another starter to the bullpen. While I can see Arroyo strengthening the bullpen (which he will probably do when Schilling comes back), I'd be satisfied with a rotation of Schilling, Wells, Clement, Wakefield, Miller.

 

That being said, the asking price on Schmidt is going to be WAY too much. If the Giants decide to move him, they'll have a bunch of teams interested. Anaheim (Sorry, I can't call them by their other name), Baltimore, New York Yankees, Texas are all teams with playoff hopes who could be in a position to add salary, and need pitching more than the Red Sox do. Of course, if any of those other teams are seriously interested, the Yankees won't have enough talent to get it done, and the Red Sox SHOULDN'T give up the kind of talent it would take to get it done. Then again, since he's signed through next year, the Giants shouldn't be under pressure to trade him, since it's not like they'd be letting him go for a draft pick.

 

What the Red Sox should look into is another good bullpen arm-- but if it looks like they're getting ripped off (because it's absolutely a seller's market), I say the best move is no move. The pitching staff as-is is good enough to get to the playoffs, and in the playoffs you only need 4 starters anyway-- thus adding a Wade Miller-type arm to the bullpen anyway.

[Tek4pres]

You're very likely to hear the Red Sox name linked to several guys in the next few months, but I can't see too many of them actually coming. Theo and Brian Cashman call about every guy who is available just to find out what is going on and then some source at that club leaks that the Red Sox and Yankees are interested in acquiring that pitcher because they know that the media in both those cities will run with it and an instant market will be created. In the case of Burnett, I think it can only help the Red Sox to explore Burnett coming in because you don't need him and therefore won't be extorted into overpaying for him if you do get him. At the same time, you make sure that if the Orioles, who really could use Burnett to anchor a young and at the moment injury prone staff, pay top dollar in terms of prospects and therefore have less chips in reserve to go out and get other guys that you may really be interested in.

 

Comparing last year to this one, I would say the Red Sox are in a much better position entering the trade market. They only have one glaring hole on their team in the bullpen. They don't have to deal with the idea that four of their biggest stars are slated to become free agents at the end of the season. And they have some slack with the fan base that is still euphoric about last year.

[Soxfan1]

If we got shmidt we'd have to give up arroyo anyways so we'd be fine moving wake to the pen. However I really don't want to give up hanley. Does anyone know how many years matheny is signed for? maybe they'll take shoppach.

[SchillingIsTheNatural]

After another great start by Wade Miller....anyone think our rotation is still ok?? Now I won't lie....I'm a huge AJ Burnett fan. Have been since I saw his no-hitter couple years ago. To be honest the guy has the makeup to be a dominate player on the Red Sox. I don't want to add him just to make a run....I want to sign him to a long term deal so he can be an ace on the Red Sox for years to come. Clement has done a great job coming in to Boston and BURNETT HAS BETTER STUFF THAN HIM. At his age I think it would almost be worth it to give up something.