Twins make offer to Blake
by Chuck Tweedy on Dec 3, 2008 9:03 PM EST
21 comments
From Joe C.
The meat: "The Twins have offered free agent third baseman Casey Blake a two-year contract worth about $6 million per season with an option for 2011, but Blake wants the third year guaranteed, a person with knowledge of the negotiations told the Star Tribune today."
Anyone think that third year is worth it?
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If they actually wanted him, why not include the third year if that’s what he really wants it? If we have a superior internal replacement for him by then we could always trade him for something. Besides they’ll have plenty of money in 3 years…
by ianmader on Dec 3, 2008 10:43 PM EST reply actions 0 recs
Interesting point
I was wondering how much of a deal-breaker that would be for both sides – Blake wanting it and the Twins not willing to go there.
by Chuck Tweedy on Dec 3, 2008 10:56 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
No
3 years is a long time for a guy that is aging and when you have 2 soild prospects getting ready to make a splash.
by Piranah14 on Dec 3, 2008 10:47 PM EST reply actions 0 recs
Yeah
On the other hand, they signed Lamb for two years and were perfectly willing to eat his second year to make the club better. If Blake gets too old even to be a bench guy, they’ll eat his contract or trade him for spare parts.
"You're thinking too much. Just have fun." -- Bennie "The Jet" Rodriguez in Sandlot
by cmathewson on Dec 3, 2008 11:40 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Blake
Blake’s contract will be twice as expensive as Lamb’s. Also, I don’t htink the Twins were very happy about eating that contract.
Secondly, if he’s still playing well in two years, then obviously he could be traded easily to make room. However, the reason that no-one wants to pay for the 3rd year is that people aren’t confident he will still be playing well. This means he will be tough to trade, too.
by snolls on Dec 4, 2008 9:56 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
in the air
i like blake and i think he brings another needed veteran to a young team. but i say stack the 3rd year option LA doesnt seem to want to give him a 3 year deal why should we. on a off subject did anyone see the post about the rays wanting to trade back bartlett for delmon?
this was off mlbtraderumors.com
Rays Index points us to a Danny Knobler report that indicates the Rays are willing to trade shortstop Jason Bartlett. Not only that, but the Rays had brief talks with the Twins about acquiring Delmon Young or Denard Span.
by nickl on Dec 3, 2008 11:46 PM EST reply actions 0 recs
Why would they be trading their supposed ’’mvp’’ of their team? Why would we ever trade the main part of last years trade for half of what we traded for? seems pretty unlikely.
What do you think denard would fetch? It wont happen, but either way it’d most likely never be worth it.
by ianmader on Dec 4, 2008 12:12 AM EST reply actions 0 recs
How so?
He’s probably the top shortstop prospect in AAA.
"You're thinking too much. Just have fun." -- Bennie "The Jet" Rodriguez in Sandlot
by cmathewson on Dec 4, 2008 2:10 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
I think what Cryogenic Ted meant was...
…Brignac isn’t good other than the fact that he will be starting in Tampa no later than June.
by Johnny Safron on Dec 4, 2008 7:14 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
No
he won’t his worse than Bartlett on both sides of the dimond.
1941 .406
by FrozenTed9 on Dec 6, 2008 11:03 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Maybe but
there aren’t many good SS’s in AAA. I would rated the Phillies SS prospect Donold a head of him the rangers kid too and the Brewers Escobar.
250 /.290/.412 711 Is not very good and He’s either below average or average on D that’s not a good prospect in my mind. Yeah He’s 22 but I’ve made my position on ARL clear.
Basically I think Pluoffe will put out those numbers offensively next year.
I’m not high on him at all the Lack of SS prospects at AAA doesn’t mean he’s good.
1941 .406
by FrozenTed9 on Dec 6, 2008 11:02 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
and yes I know those guys aren't in AAA
1941 .406
by FrozenTed9 on Dec 6, 2008 11:10 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
I don't get it
Even the most pessimistic pojection for a Buscher/Harris platoon at 3rd would be something around .280/.350/.420. Blake’s 2009 Marcel projection is .261/.329/.430, and neither the quantitative fielding systems nor the fans (1, 2) see him as more than an average fielder. Why are we considering this signing?
by PhoenixV on Dec 4, 2008 11:09 AM EST reply actions 0 recs
I would say that's optimistic
Harris 2008: .265/.327 /.394
Buscher 2008: .294/.340/.390
These guys don’t have much more upside than they showed in 2008. So I would project something like .275/.330/.392/.722 for the platoon. That’s below league average for a third baseman and is particularly short on power on a team that needs its third baseman to provide some power. If you go by Blake’s Marcel projection, you get 40 additional points of slugging out of one position. That’s significant. Add in that Blake is a better defender than the platoon and it’s a net gain, perhaps not $6 million worth, but the Twins have money to burn, so why not?
"You're thinking too much. Just have fun." -- Bennie "The Jet" Rodriguez in Sandlot
by cmathewson on Dec 4, 2008 11:23 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Those aren't platoon numbers
Buscher was .316/.362/.437 against righties last year, and while Harris had virtually no platoon split last year, his career line against lefties is .295/.360/.440. I don’t think Phoenix’s prediction seems at all unreasonable. There is the risk that if one of them gets injured, Gardy will make the other one the full-time starter, and neither are any great shakes without a platoon advantage – Blake is clearly superior in that case.
"There are only two things that are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former." - Albert Einstein
by BeefMaster on Dec 4, 2008 3:12 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Splits
Yes, I was looking at their platoon splits when stating my projection (though obviously platoon splits have to be regressed a lot towards the mean). It’s true that there’s always the risk of injury. However, people here seem to be forgetting that if the Twins had hit at an expected clip with RISP last year, they wouldn’t have been more than a .500 club.
We’re not just 10 runs away from the playoffs. Either you get a real impact player like Beltre or you stay away and keep your options open (and pray for Danny Valencia to mature quickly).
by PhoenixV on Dec 4, 2008 4:44 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
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