Official 2009-2010 Hot Stove season thread

[a700hitter]

I know that nobody agrees with me, but if petey goes to SS, I'd like to see Figgins at 2B. He would be the best offensive catalyst for the Red Sox since Damon 2003-2005. He would supercharge the offense.

[Dipre]

I know that nobody agrees with me' date=' but if petey goes to SS, I'd like to see Figgins at 2B. He would be the best offensive catalyst for the Red Sox since Damon 2003-2005. He would supercharge the offense.[/quote']

 

Would you give him four years at 9 per? Considering he's 31?

[Dojji]

I'm worried about Figgins because speedy players with little raw power are prime candidates for early 30's decline and he might wind up an overpaid boondoggle instead of the dynamo we hope he'd be.

 

I could stand a 2-3 year commitment to him at decent money though.

[Dipre]

Anything more than three years raises a warning flag though.

[BoSox21]

You got anything else interesting to keep the board active?

 

meh, I guess I'm just more interested when actual news happens

[example1]

Maybe the fact that Polanco is two years older, and the fact that he's a 34-year-old coming from a sub-400 SLG season?

 

There is no "hate" it's just the fact that he's not that good anymore.

 

So how do you explain his 3.1 WAR, which is higher than every season of Hudson's except one, since 2005?

 

I agree about the age, but it isn't like Hudson is overly young. He's about to be 32.

 

I'd be okay with either (again, given the necessity of having Pedroia move) but I see Polanco having outproduced Hudson pretty consistently, even through Hudson's prime years. 2 years for either is about as long as I'm comfortable with.

[a700hitter]

Would you give him four years at 9 per? Considering he's 31?

I thought he was older. A 4 year $36 million contract is what we gave that puke Lugo. Figgins is 100 times better than Lugo.

[Dipre]

So how do you explain his 3.1 WAR, which is higher than every season of Hudson's except one, since 2005?

 

I agree about the age, but it isn't like Hudson is overly young. He's about to be 32.

 

I'd be okay with either (again, given the necessity of having Pedroia move) but I see Polanco having outproduced Hudson pretty consistently, even through Hudson's prime years. 2 years for either is about as long as I'm comfortable with.

 

Two years between two strictly contact hitters with minimal power is a long time. Not to mention that Hudson's a switch-hitter besides being younger.

[example1]

Two years between two strictly contact hitters with minimal power is a long time. Not to mention that Hudson's a switch-hitter besides being younger.

 

It probably doesn't matter which of these guys we prefer. I'd be shocked if the Sox were really seeking an older 2B.

 

I too think if they were going that direction they should probably look at Figgins. He's a better 3B, but he could shift after Lowell leaves... or they could just get him for 3B. I don't love the cost, but for extra versatility over the length of the contract I think he would be a useful guy to have on the roster.

[riverside sluggers]

I just got this feeling in my gut that Halladay is going to New York

[Dojji]

Funny, because like always with Halladay, I have a hunch that he'll take us all for a ride, again, and wind up not leaving Toronto until his contract expires.

[bsox0407]

Funny' date=' because like always with Halladay, I have a hunch that he'll take us all for a ride, again, and wind up not leaving Toronto until his contract expires.[/quote']

 

ill put my money on that one.

[Lester82]

I just got this feeling in my gut that Halladay is going to New York

 

Seems more like Santana II.

[CoachC.]

Funny' date=' because like always with Halladay, I have a hunch that he'll take us all for a ride, again, and wind up not leaving Toronto until his contract expires.[/quote']

 

Second.

[Lester82]

Although if this were truely Santana II, that would mean that Johan Santana and Roy Halladay are going to pitch together. That would actually be cool if it weren't the Mets. They always manage to screw it up in-season

[Dojji]

Since we're talking 2B's that might be on the market, There's been a rumor or two circulating that the Royals are shopping Alberto Callaspo. Any interest there?

[a700hitter]

Since we're talking 2B's that might be on the market' date=' There's been a rumor or two circulating that the Royals are shopping Alberto Callaspo. Any interest there?[/quote']Lol! You want a Royal. Dipre, what did I tell you.

[Dojji]

Sure I want a Royal, if that Royal bats .300, puts up an .812 OPS. plays second base, switch hits, and is on the upswing of his career. I'll take a freaking Nippon Ham Fighter if he's got a chance to put up those numbers again.

 

This guy has a shot at 20 HR's in Fenway. He doesn't strike out and he takes his share of walks. If he falters at second he can shift to third. He's got Bill Mueller somewhere in his upside comps. Yeah, I'm interested.

[Dipre]

Lol! You want a Royal. Dipre' date=' what did I tell you.[/quote']

 

Callaspo's not that bad, but seriously?

[a700hitter]

Callaspo's not that bad' date=' but seriously?[/quote']We already missed out on Teahen.

[Dipre]

He's solid, and can play multiple positions, but he would cost prospects, and there are solid options who would only cost money. So why trade for him?

[Dojji]

But none of the guys you can get at FA are longterm solutions, and we're in position that we should be on the lookout for potential longterm solutions at all 3 infield positions, including the two Callaspo plays.

 

As for whether to go for Callaspo vs. Hudson or Polanco? Kinda depends on the price. I mean, if Dayton Moore asks for Buchholz, Bard, or Kelly, you obviously hang up. But if the price starts at Bowden, I think you have to look at it seriously. I like Bowden, I think he's underrated, but for a bat like Callaspo at a premium position, I'll pack his bags myself.

 

Callaspo is a kind of player that can be very useful indeed, since there's a lot of different ways to get him into the lineup. If you're willing to try the Pedroia-at-SS experiment, Callaspo might be more useful than Hudson -- since if Pedroia can't hack it and has to move back to 2B himself, Callaspo can play 3B. Hudson's never proven the same. Not above the AA level anyhow.

 

(this is also a decent argument for signing Figgins over Hudson or Polanco, since he can make the same claim plus add LF and CF to the mix)

[Dipre]

But none of the guys you can get at FA are longterm solutions, and we're in position that we should be on the lookout for potential longterm solutions at all 3 infield positions, including the two Callaspo plays.

 

As for whether to go for Callaspo vs. Hudson or Polanco? Kinda depends on the price. I mean, if Dayton Moore asks for Buchholz, Bard, or Kelly, you obviously hang up. But if the price starts at Bowden, I think you have to look at it seriously. I like Bowden, I think he's underrated, but for a bat like Callaspo at a premium position, I'll pack his bags myself.

 

Callaspo is a kind of player that can be very useful indeed, since there's a lot of different ways to get him into the lineup. If you're willing to try the Pedroia-at-SS experiment, Callaspo might be more useful than Hudson -- since if Pedroia can't hack it and has to move back to 2B himself, Callaspo can play 3B. Hudson's never proven the same. Not above the AA level anyhow.

 

(this is also a decent argument for signing Figgins over Hudson or Polanco, since he can make the same claim plus add LF and CF to the mix)

 

The problem is that such a sudden performance spike could spell a flukey season. He's had one good, full season.

[Gom]

I just got this feeling in my gut that Halladay is going to New York

 

Halladay will end up in New York of the NL. You'll see.

 

The Yankees are definitely in win-now mode.

 

With Jeter, Rivera, Posada, and Arod on the wrong side of 32, the Yankees will go into a rebuilding mode after 2012. The addition of Halladay gives the Yankees the best shot at winning it all for the next three years. After that...we shall see.

[Dojji]

Dipre: Not many signs of it, and a breakout year in his age 26 season after starting to really get serious playing time for the first time in his career makes some sense.

 

I thimk most of his uptick is his plate discipline, which he started establishing in earnest in 2008, turning into solid contact at the big league level. Sort of the same process that happened to Kevin Youkilis in other words. All the fundamentals point to it anyway. His BABIP is at .315, which is actually fairly low for a .300 hitter and means he's making a lot of quality contact. That sounds sustainable to me.

 

Personally I don't think his bat will regress much. He might even take another step forward. And if we DO get him, some of those Kauffman doubles are going to turn into Fenway homers -- although I'm not really exactly sure how many. Could hit 15 here, could hit 20, could be less since he's a switch hitter and bats mostly lefty.

[Dojji]

BTW -- the article that started me wondering:

 

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2009/12/as-royals-had-failed-talks-for-callaspo.html

 

WEDNESDAY, 2:46pm: Royals GM Dayton Moore told Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star that the Royals aren't actively pushing any of their players, but they're open-minded with all of them. It seems like Moore will at least listen on Callaspo.

 

TUESDAY, 10:15pm: The A's and Royals held talks for infielder Alberto Callaspo at the GM Meetings, according to Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. The A's would've used Callaspo at third base, but "talks failed to progress."

 

The takeaway is that the Royals appear willing to discuss Callaspo now that they've acquired Chris Getz from the White Sox. Callaspo, 27 in April, hit .300/.356/.457 in 634 plate appearances this year while playing second and third base. His second base defense graded below average using UZR/150, but it's only a 1240-inning sample from 2009. Callaspo is a valuable player, and he's not even arbitration-eligible yet. He's under team control through 2013. Getz appears to be the inferior player, so maybe the Royals should hang on to Callaspo.

 

What I come away from that with is that Beane probably saw a sign that Moore might be underappreciating Callaspo with the acquisition of Getz, made a lowball offer, got countered, and tried and failed to bring Moore off his price. What I don't know is what that price is, and whether the Sox might be in a better position to meet it than the A's are.

 

If the Sox are prepared to play Pedroia at SS if need be, that gives us a potential opening at 2B. Callaspo isn't the best 2B in history, but he hits so that's OK and he might improve a bit in his second full year at the position. If he's too bad though, well, Lowell's contract ends next year, so we can maybe salvage it by sliding Pedroia back over, putting Callaspo at third, and finding another noodlebat SS -- or even promoting Lowrie, if he's had some better news on his health lately, and playing him at 2B or SS with Pedroia at the other position.

 

Point is, after this year we have some possibilities, and Callaspo would be a good fit for a number of options depending on how he performs. arguably a better fit long-term than guys like Polanco and Hudson.

[Lester82]

Halladay to the Angels could make a lot of sense. Although I'd want what BOS or NYY could offer more than the Angels if i'm the TOR general manager. But the Angels could be a darkhorse for sure.

[Dojji]

I'm not sure the Angels have the prospects anymore. Especially with Brandon Wood losing a bit of his luster as he threatens to go the way of Dallas McPherson.

[example1]

 

The Yankees are definitely in win-now mode.

 

With Jeter, Rivera, Posada, and Arod on the wrong side of 32, the Yankees will go into a rebuilding mode after 2012. The addition of Halladay gives the Yankees the best shot at winning it all for the next three years. After that...we shall see.

 

Unfortunately I thnk you're right. It really feels lke the Santana situation all over again. Halladay going elsewhere would be okay, Hallady going to the Red Sox would be okay. Halladay going to NY with the Yankees would be very hard for the Sox to overcome, even if they acquired a guy like Mauer for 2011. Wth Teixera, A-Rod, CC and Halladay it would be an enormous hill to climb.

 

The saving grace--to me at least--is that however much the Jays are reluctant to deal their ace to the Red Sox, I'm sure they're at least as reluctant to deal to the Yankees... probably even more-so.

 

If I'm the Sox I make a strong offer for Halladay. If it seems like the idea of Toronto dealing in the division is reasonable, then they have to make the deal. It it appears that TOR is overvaluing him within the division then let it go.

 

If the Yankees really want to deal something like Hughes, Jackson and Montero for Halladay that's not something the Sox could or would easily match.

 

Underlying all of this is the fact that 2011 is a better FA class. How much would Theo be willing to hold his cards for the next class with guys like Crawford, Halladay, Lee, Mauer and Werth all available?

[yankees228]

I just do not see the Yankees giving up their best prospects. I don't think that's the route they're going to go down anymore, but we'll see.