Lots of stuff here. I assume Rosenthal has been talking to Rizzo -- that's where the VERY specific CF who can bat leadoff (hopefully that means high OBP not high SB) search target comes from.
I'm already on record as saying this is absolutely on point both in terms of identifying a need and trying to fill it with the right combination of skills.
His list of candidates is less than inspiring. B.J. Upton, Colby Rasmus, Denard Span or Michael Bourn. Meh. Upton will be very expensive very soon and is not a leadoff guy. Rasmus isn't a leadoff guy and based on his past year might not be as good as the prospect mavens thought. Bourn's value is his defense and his speed. OBP is marginal but acceptable. However he's a little bit too far along the age curve for his skill set and his salary. Span? Haven't looked at him closely.
I suppose that's why they are all available . . . they all have flaws.
Rosenthal doesn't mention Julio Borbon of the Rangers as a target. Not sure why since the Rangers need short relievers and Borbon is expendable. Would much rather have Leonsys Martin from the Rangers who would be absolutely perfect in terms of skill set, age and salary so I'm not holding my breath.
Interesting discussion of the middle infielders. Are teams really calling about Espinosa? I don't buy that at all. How valuable is Espinosa now . . . a good glove MI with power and cheap? He would fetch ANYONE short of say Mike Trout.
Wonder why they didn't think about Anthony Rendon as the ultimate beneficiary of a middle IF swap? He's more likely to be slotted there long term than Lombardozzi I would think.
I'm sure the Desmond bashers will be outraged about the assertion that Ian would be an upgrade as SS for more than a few contenders. But he would be. He's only 26 and he has really improved defensively and I don't care what the advanced defensive metrics say. If he's one run better than average then Derek Jeter must be costing the Yankees 50 runs a year. DO those metrics take his arm strength into account? How many extra outs has he created turning a double play that with a rag armed SS would have not been close? More than a few and I have to believe his out of area score has to be undercounted.
But with the glut of MIs now in the system . . . Desmond should go. He has present value AND long term value. He should bring back something nice too.
How can they not talk about Jason Marquis as a trade candidate? He's in a gots to go situation. There are plenty of candidates to replace him (Detweiler, Milone, Peacock and oh my gosh I cant believe I'm typing this Wang!) and you could reasonably ask him to start a post season game. What other starter who's really available can you say that about? I doubt Ubaldo is really available -- Wandy R. maybe
Please don't let the current flirtation with .500 stand in the way of deals. Just gather more assets. If you need to, you can use them in the offseason to get veterans if you think you need them for 2012.
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