Monday Morning Rangers Notes: Unleashing The Rumor Mill
Joey Matschulat
Braves right-hander Javier Vazquez fires a pitch on Sunday, August 16th.It appears to be the consensus of itinerant baseball beat writers everywhere that this week's general managers' meetings won't be nearly as active and/or exciting as those which transpired at a ritzy southern California resort last November ... but judging by the quantity of rumors already swirling around, I don't think we're going to have to worry about not having anything to talk about:
● There are "rumblings" that the Rangers and Braves have discussed right-hander Javier Vazquez, who is coming off a spectacular 2009 campaign in which he amassed 238 strikeouts to just 44 walks; some rival executives "are convinced" that he will be traded in the coming weeks (Buster Olney, ESPN.com)
[Like, the intestinal rumblings you feel after a bad Mexican dinner? I sometimes wonder if future generations -- say, a century or so down the line -- are going to look back and laugh uproariously at the many creative and contrived ways that current-day journalists attempt to protect their sources while simultaneously maintaining an air of credibility. Of course, I've been guilty of engaging in the exact same practice, so I'm hardly one to castigate others -- just sayin'.
And what of these rumblings, you ask? Could be complete and utter garbage, but the underlying point Olney seems to be trying to make is that the Rangers don't intend to allow their financial situation to preclude a potential blockbuster trade -- provided, of course, that it makes the team better. And yes, Vazquez has been a consistently great pitcher that would indeed make Texas better, but (a) his impending $11.5 million salary would consume a substantial portion of the Rangers' remaining 2010 payroll, and (b) barring a contract extension, his post-2010 free agency doesn't really harmonize with the ballclub's long-term plans. So, is now the time to strike?]
● "Though [Nelson] Cruz hit 33 homers and was selected to the All-Star Game this past season, the Rangers are looking to sell high because they feel he had a career year" (John Perrotto, Baseball Prospectus)
[If true, consider me borderline nauseous. Part of the problem with Cruz's sporadic major league playing time over the last four seasons is that it's now relatively hard to nail down his true talent level, so I find the implication that he's being placed on the trading block solely because of a perceived cresting in his performance to be, well, pretty troubling. On the contrary, I think there's even more untapped offensive talent there that is bubbling just below the surface, waiting to be unleashed. And so if by "career year" Perotto means that the Rangers don't believe Cruz is capable of replicating his 2009 numbers, then I'm not buying it. Hell, I can't buy it.]
● One abundantly skeptical -- and conveniently unnamed -- talent evaluator on Josh Hamilton: "He's had one great season and he was hurt most of last season, and when he did play, he wasn't that great" (Olney)
[And now consider me enlightened. Or not. Incidentally, The Record's Bob Klapisch dares to ask that most dreaded and feared of questions ("How would, say, Rangers right fielder Josh Hamilton look in pinstripes?") while suggesting that Hamilton could evoke the Yankees' interest if they were willing to trade Joba Chamberlain. There's been some discourse about whether the "Joba Rules" left Chamberlain ill-prepared for his transition to the starting rotation, as well as the notion that his upside isn't nearly as stratospheric as it was thought to be, but he's still a good young pitcher ... I guess I just don't know what to think about such weird, off-the-wall speculation.
Moreover, if you're confident that Hamilton is safely on the yellow brick road to recovery and is about to re-establish himself as a legitimate .370-.380 wOBA talent, then spinning away the most valuable piece of what is already your weakest link -- that is to say, the offense -- in order to further load up your pitching staff may be a dodgy piece of roster maneuvering. Yeah, a run saved is worth more than a run scored, but in the context of mounting a legitimate challenge for a post-season spot in 2010, Hamilton might well hold enjoy the advantage over Chamberlain.]
Quick Hits: George W. Bush recently admitted that one of his biggest errors in judgment during his tenure as managing general partner of the Rangers was green-lighting the infamous Sosa-for-Baines trade; no word on whether his former ownership group's "sordid and shocking" landgrab has also been retroactively identified as a mistake ... On the heels of Kevin Towers' and Grady Fuson's respective ousters in San Diego comes the Rangers' hiring of Padres national crosschecker Scott Littlefield as a "special assistant," whose name had been in the mix for the Padres' still-vacant scouting director position. Talent poaching, anyone? ... Follow Baseball Time in Arlington on Twitter and/or Facebook.
Reader Comments (12)
Sure hope they are not looking to trade Cruz base on Ron Washington's recommendation. Afterall, he wanted Ben Broussard to be his 1B.
Cruz is a decent defender in the OF and hits what 280 with 30+ HR's? How many teams would he NOT start for?
He's not "Washington's type of player." Good grief, we're in trouble.
I agree with all 3 above. Nor does neither trading low on JH, our only OF who's currently strong against LHPs, makes sense. (I still have hope for Boggs' return to health and Cruz' return to the ability to hit LHPs, to comprise our #4 and #1 OFs respectively by 2011.) The only OFs it makes sense to trade right now are Murphy, Gentry or both, so we can add an LHP-hitting platoon partner for Borbon in CF (eg the Cubs' FA Reed) and an LHP-hitting 5th OF/DH (eg Bradley or our own Moreland).
I wouldn't even mind giving Moreland the shot in RF (with Cruz in LF, JH in CF) against LHPs, and Cruz Borbon, JH vs RHP.
Trading Gentry & Murph for Bradley & $ works for me, too.
Sorry: skip the "neither." I even previewed it!
How about trading for Michael Cuddyer of Minnesota. Rh bat and salary is not to bad for us to take.
The chronic and continued disrespect of Nelson Cruz boggles my mind, especially given the club's decline in offense this season.
I could see a number of reasons Vazquez to Rangers is being rumored.
Laroch may not come back. He's probably the best 1B on the market. The Braves definitely need SLG. They could be interested in Davis or Smoak for that reason. Rangers would be interested in Vazquez if Halladay is a definite no-go, and if they really don't think they can get Sheets at the price they want.
I'd take Vazquez for a year. It appears from pitch F/X that he's pitching differently than in the past, having added a two-seamer and relying a bit more on his curve/change than his four-seamer. I think his performance last season wasn't a fluke but mostly the results of a good pitcher adding some new tricks.
This is definitely the level of "veteran" pitcher the Rangers need to pursue. If Halladay can't be had via trade, and I can't really think of any other TORP that might be speculated as available, I'd be happy to see the Rangers acquire Vazquez, even if it cost one of Davis, Smoak, or Cruz.
Someone of Vazquez's performance and talent level is one of the pieces needed by the Rangers. The other, as we all know, is a rebound by the offense.
Hamilton wasn't very good early in the year, but, after his surgery, he was really on a tear before he got injured in early Sept. His power was down, but that goes along with having a recent abdominal injury. If he continued the production from just before his Sept injury, the Rangers would be satisfied.
I don't think trading Cruz would necessary be such a "nauseating" move. First, I don't think Daniels is looking to unload Cruz unless he could get something of significant value in return. Some people's reaction to Nelson Cruz trade rumors are nothing short of hyperbolic. The Rangers realize that Cruz is an extremely valuable commodity. But, that doesn't mean that he is therefore untouchable. I could envision a lot of trades involving Cruz that would be of benefit to this team.
For instance, let's say the Rangers dealt Nelson Cruz, Brandon McCarthy, and a couple of prospects to Florida for Ricky Nolasco and Dan Meyer. That kind of a deal could give the Rangers a top-of-the-rotation starter, allowing them to start Feliz in the pen or the minors to limit his innings. Nolasco would be significant improvement over McCarthy and Meyer would be a great LOOGY.
Second, there are some very interesting, second-tier hitters available on the free agent market this off-season which could replace Cruz. Mike Cameron, Nick Johnson, Jim Thome, and Troy Glaus all come to mind.
Finally, I think these Nelson Cruz trade rumors speak, more than anything, to the limited financial resources available to the front office right now. Nevertheless, this team will contend in 2010, but it has multiple holes, including a TORP, a couple of patient hitters, and a LOOGY. If this team only has 18 million to spend, it might make sense to deal Cruz to fill a couple of holes on the pitching staff, and sign some second-tier free agents to improve the offense.
The concern/stomach turning with Nelson has to do with the apparent lack of faith in Cruz being a good ballplayer. He was one of if not the best offensive players on the team last year, yet was sat for large amounts of time, and it was done when we needed to win.
If a good trade comes along, i dont think many would mind the trade. But if the rangers are shopping him b/c they want to sell high and dont think he will repeat last year, thats a problem.
Assuming that the Rangers retain Byrd, then a starting outfield of Borbon in left, Byrd in center, and Hamilton in right with Murphy as the 4th outfielder and Boggs/Gentry as the 5th doesn't seem that shabby. I think Nelson Cruz could net a good haul since there's not a lot (see: any) elite bats this offseason (Holliday was hardly that amazing with the A's)... I think you begin to look at trade centerpieces involving the power hitting Cruz... as opposed to trying to deal McCarthy, Harrison, Salty, or whoever else I've seen in trade rumors. Those guy literally have NO trade value coming off either injury and/or ineffectiveness.
The projected rotation looks like this:
Millwood
Feldman
Hunter
Holland
McCarthy/Harrison/Hurley/Feliz/Moscoso/Nippert
Obviously because of who he is, I think everyone will be pulling for Lackey in a Rangers uniform, but I'm not sure how the Rangers come out on top with their current finances. So I'd propose a trade that might well involve a combination of Cruz/Feldman (or Hunter)/Davis (or Smoak)/ and maybe someone like Perez??? for Greinke.