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It's time to tie up added players on our offseason priority chart. This will be the final group of players that are targets for other teams that will discuss for at least a few weeks.
Craig Counsell - Milwaukee Brewers (In Price Range)
Position: Third Base (Need), B/T: L/R
Age: 38, Height: 6'0, Weight: 180
Statistics at Baseball-Reference.com
This is one of two options the Indians can use as a Jensen Lewis-like solution.
Bring in a few guys to compete with Marte.. Go from there..
Counsell has been a lifer in the National League, but if you tell him he has a chance to win the Third Base spot, I'm sure he'd come on the cheap.
Counsell is a left-handed hitter who can also play multiple positions, so it's not like he'd be stuck at third.
This is a last resort type of option along with Loretta, who we will get to.. But it looks as if a last resort may not have to be made.
Mike Lowell - Boston Red Sox (Short Term Solution)
Position: Third Base B/T: R/R
Age: 34, Height: 6'4, Weight: 205
Statistics at Baseball-Reference.com
Pipe dream..
The Red Sox would have to eat some of his salary, but that's if they want to move him. Lowell is also going to be coming off surgery, what would a team give up for him?
It was mentioned that Lowell could be had because the Red Sox are thinking of going after someone like Mark Teixeira and could move Kevin Youkilis back to his original third base position.
If this post is true and the asking price is Scott Baker, that would be the equivilant of a better Aaron Laffey. So it would probably be something like Aaron Laffey and another prospect.
Not happening.
Mark Loretta - Houston Astros (In Price Range)
Position: Third and Second Base (Need), B/T: R/R
Age: 37, Height: 6'0, Weight: 175
Statistics at Baseball-Reference.com
See Craig Counsell, minus the left-handed hitting and national league lifer. He can also play multiple positions on the infield.
I actually like Loretta better, he's started full-time in the American League.
Mark Teahen - Kansas City Royals (Official Target)
Position: Third Base (Need), B/T: L/R
Age: 27, Height: 6'3, Weight: 210
Statistics at Baseball-Reference.com
Talk about perfect timing.
Last night, CastroTurf threw up the story about the report about Mark Teahen.
Talk about perfect solution.
Left-Handed Bat, he hasn't played third full-time since 2006, but he was always touted as a good glove. He has a heck of an arm, he can play outfield and first if need be.
He's JUST entering his prime, he'll be earning a nice cheap amount for the production he brings in arbitration.
He'll strike out, but he can hit for a nice average around .280 and give you at least 15 home runs.
I'd take him in a heartbeat.
Especially if the price is Trevor Crowe.
With Brantley in the fold, we have a BETTER version of Trevor Crowe.
With LaPorta, we don't need three left-fielders.. LaPorta can move to first if Choo develops and Brantley pans out.
It's nice to have options.
Or if we use Ben Francisco? Sure!
I wouldn't trade Franklin Gutierrez for two reasons.
A) I'm not sure if the Royals would take him and B) Gutierrez would be the better option for us as a 4th outfielder.
Mark Teahen was a perfect fit and I'm shocked that the Royals are shopping him. Teahen was drafted by the A's and sent to the Royals as a part of the Octavio Dotel, Carlos Beltran deal. Oddly enough, Gutierrez and Francisco were mentioned in the deal that would have brought Dotel to the Tribe in 2007 before the deadline.
If this deal comes to fruition, boyyyyyy..
We've got our first official target.
Mark Mulder - St. Louis Cardinals (In Price Range)
Position: Starting Pitcher (Need), B/T: L/L
Age: 31, Height: 6'6, Weight: 200
Statistics at Baseball-Reference.com
Mark Mulder was a possibility for the Indians a few years ago when he signed with the St. Louis Cardinals.
Mulder was a target, but chose the Cardinals instead.
Now, the Cardinals have moved on. Mulder is plagued with injuries and he won't be getting much on the market.
Wanna come to Cleveland Mark?
He'll be cheap, he can win a spot in the rotation, and who knows...
He's in that mold of a Freddy Garcia which we discussed earlier.
Carl Pavano - New York Yankees (In Price Range)
Position: Starting Pitcher (Need), B/T: R/R
Age: 33, Height: 6'5, Weight: 230
Statistics at Baseball-Reference.com
Why the hell not?
Once again, this another option that would be a low-risk, high-reward type move.
I'm not gonna spend much time other than to tell you that these moves are very plausible for a team like the Indians.
Guys with something to prove.. Guys who've had success.. Guys that are just looking to latch on for one more contract.
Why the hell not? I say!
Next: We cover our own bases and talk about our own Free Agents and the lone arbitration eligible player we have, Kelly Shoppach. We've already discussed Jamey Carroll, who's option was picked up. We'll look at Sal Fasano, Brendan Donnelly and Juan Rincon.
- As I'm sure you've noticed, the board has been updated. Check it out..
- One update to notify you about. Michael Aubrey's extra option was added to our board, and Zach Jackson received a fix. He definitely has a least one option left, I had him at zero. He's only had two years when he's been called up to the Majors, so I'm going to guess he has one year left.
- New Hey Hoynsie has been up.
- Tony has an un-official list of Rule 5 Eligibles Up at Indians Prospect Insider.
- That's all I guess..
4 comments:
Going after Mark Teahen would be truly horrible idea. He is an above average defender at third and OF with a RF9/lgRF9 of 2.98/2.78 and 2.61/2.30 respectively. But these numbers do not make up for putting a career 268/332/421 at the plate. In addition to this, he would exacerbate the Indians strikeout problem and he has had only one season of an OPS+ above 100 (100 is lg avg.).
Jamey Carroll has a RF9 of 3.06 at 3B and his last year triple-slash is 277/355/346. By trading away one of the Indians young OF prospects they are bringing in an OF defensively comparable to the chip they trade away and bringing in more power, but lower OBP and higher K's at 3B than a guy they already have under control.
Use one of the 4th OF types we have to pair with Shoppach/Garko to bring an impact spec or a better bat at 3B. Also, to say that Brantley (he of the single season at AA) is a complete stop-gap for our needs at leadoff is a stretch. Crowe looked like a sure thing when drafted and when he was on the field early in his career and here we stand ready to deal him... for a 3B/OF with a career OPS+ of 98.
Whoa Charlie.. Stop-gap? Never did I say such a thing. If Brantley is ever our leadoff hitter then it's because he's not only shown he can hit at the major league level, it's because he's shown enough to remove Grady from the spot. When I look at Crowe and Brantley, I see the same type of prospect, only Brantley is younger. What reason do we need Crowe, especially with Francisco, Gutierrez, Choo, LaPorta and eventually Nick Weglarz?
Looks like shoddy journalism won out though and this deal is a complete failed rumor, so you won't have to worry about Teahen.
Thing is, you might not see anything better than Teahen at third available in the trade market that the Indians could bring in. We don't know at this juncture. But if it came down to it, I wouldn't mind Teahen. He's entering his prime years, he's shown he has power and could hit for a decent average in the past. Is he going to hit .300? No probably not. But Teahen has much more potential, in a BETTER LINEUP than say someone that is 32 and has been around with the same numbers and a higher salary.
I'd love to get an impact bat at third. I just don't know if there is one out there for us. Thanks for chiming in.
My argument is only that trading away ANYTHING for Teahen is an unwise thing to do because we already have a player, Carroll, that fills the same role (short-term 3B solution) that he would be filling if he came over.
Francisco, Guttierez, and Crowe are all still just prospects, albeit advanced ones. Francisco has the lowest chance of breakout due to his comps, age, and high-polish coming out of college. his ceiling is the lowest, but his floor is the highest. Crowe hasn't been healthy in a while so his ceiling is harder to read, btu the pedigree is there. Guttierez is the youngest, best defender and has the best power, albeit the worst contact rates and a seemingly apathetic approach (seriously, does he ever get excited at all?). Keeping all 3 provides a better chance at a breakout player and trading away any of them nets little (Teahen) in return.
Also, something I failed to mention in my previous comment: Teahen hasn't played 3B in 2 years...to assume he would revert back to his old skills without any growing pains is a stretch. Also, look at any other player that has had to change positions after an extended layoff, and almost universally do you see a drop in their offensive production while they adjust.
I agree with you, on face value Teahen seems to fit perfectly. He provides a dependable upgrade over Marte, and he looks to be one of the best early options. Certainly better than overpaying for Atkins now or emptying our cupboard for an "established" star at the meetings. But why go after somethign early in the game if it is only marginally better than what you have or what you could get later? Making a "smart" decision now, doesn't mean it is the smart decision over the whole off-season. Thank goodness the rumor was just that!
Perhaps.. Teahen suffered that drop off when he had to move to the outfield. He has played third base, not regularly, but he did play it last year.. I'm just thinking, if it's his natural position, where he played all the way up through the minors, he might feel some comfort moving back there.
I'd much rather have Teahen there than moving Jhonny Peralta there, a position he has never played consistently. Wouldn't you?
I agree. If we can find a better fit, someone with much more production, without giving up an arm and a leg.. I'd take that person over Teahen any day of the week. I just don't know if that option is out there for us.
I also wouldn't be against keeping both Francisco and Gutierrez. I like them both and you are right, you are much more prone to get it to "click" for someone if you keep them all rather than put all your eggs in one basket. If someone like Francisco would help get a deal done for a good third baseman though, I don't know.
Thanks for commenting Charlie.
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