SB Nation - Andruw Jones

Thinking about Mike Lowell and Ryan Garko

Adam J. Morris — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 22:17:52 -0000

Ryan Garko was non-tendered by the Giants yesterday.

This was surprising to me, because the Giants sent a pretty decent prospect to the Indians for him in July.

Back in July, when the Rangers were desperate for a righty bat who could DH and play some first base, I thought Garko was the best target out there for Texas.

T.R. Sullivan writes that the Rangers were interested in him at the trade deadline last year, before he was dealt to San Fran, and suggests that he could be a target now.

Of course, if the Rangers had interest in him, it would be as a righty-hitting DH/1B option, and as we all know, Max Ramirez is supposedly heading to Boston so that we can pay Mike Lowell $3 million for the privilege of filling that role.

Garko has been about as productive as Lowell the past few years, doesn't come with the injury issues that Lowell does, will probably cost less on a one year deal than $3 million, and, of course, wouldn't cost the Rangers Max Ramirez. Garko also has a career .313/.392/.495 line against LHPs, and if you are looking for someone to fill a platoon role, that's pretty impressive.

Lowell, on the other hand, has a longer track record, can play third base, and has gotten praise from the Rangers for his leadership, experience, and role on a championship club.

Max Ramirez, coming off a lost season in 2009, has seen his value drop significantly...he's going to be out of options after the 2010 season, and I think the Rangers -- and most other clubs -- don't view him as a catcher on the major league level, other than as a very short-term or emergency option. And he doesn't really have another position, so he's either going to stick as a DH or he's a minor league lifer. How much value you think he has is going to depend on how likely you think he is to hit well enough to be a decent DH for at least a few years.

More telling to me, though, is the targeting of Lowell by the Rangers, and their willingness to apply a pretty big chunk of their very limited resources this offseason to acquiring him. Lowell isn't much of an offensive threat at this point...he's benefited from the Monster (he had a 932 OPS at home last year, 713 away, and 993/767 in 2007, although he was a little better on the road than at home in 2008), and while he's probably better than, say, Andruw Jones, he's not likely to be a good DH in 2009.

And yet, he's clearly someone the Rangers have zeroed in on, even with Garko and Jonny Gomes coming available at the non-tender deadline, and Vlad Guerrero and Fernando Tatis, among others, already on the free agent market.

Really, I struggle to understand what you get with Lowell that you can't get with Tatis, who is a free agent righty hitter who can play the four corners and who is likely going to cost less than $3 million per year, who appears to be a fair bet to be as productive with the bat as Lowell and who wouldn't take Max Ramirez out of your farm system.

There's a couple of possibilities. One is that the Rangers, having viewed the free agent landscape and determined that the utility infielder choices are scarce, have decided that Michael Young will back up Elvis Andrus this year. And since Elvis isn't going to start 162 games, they want someone who can give them 30 games a year at third base and acquit himself well there. That means that you could have Esteban German or Joe Inglett in a bench role, along with a backup catcher and David Murphy, and leave your 25th spot for someone like Craig Gentry or Brian Anderson or Jeremy Reed, a true backup centerfielder who can spell Julio Borbon when he needs a day off and who can pinch run late in a game. Presumably, you don't want Murphy or Nelson Cruz or Josh Hamilton to be your backup plan in center

The other possibility -- one that doesn't necessarily preclude the first one -- is that the Rangers feel leadership and championship experience is more of a need than offense, and Lowell is this year's Brian Jordan, the pretty much washed-up, broken down veteran who the team hopes to squeeze a productive season out of, but who is primarily here to provide intangibles to a young team.

I don't know Lowell, and can't say what he brings to the table in terms of the off-the-field intangibles. But I do know that an inability to score runs is what kept the Rangers out of the postseason in 2009, and I find it troubling that the team seems committed to go to the well once more with the well-worn veteran retread/bounceback candidate, after seeing Jordan, Brad Fullmer, Phil Nevin, Andruw Jones, Greg Colbrunn, Richard Hidalgo, and Sammy Sosa all provide mediocre at best performance when brought in under similar circumstances.

Andruw Jones For $500K Is Good Deal

Satchel Price — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:38:11 -0000

More photos » by Chris Carlson - AP

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I know the move happened a bit ago, but in a move reminiscent to GM Kenny Williams' previous acquisitions of aging stars Roberto Alomar and Carl Everett (although those were trades), the White Sox added formerly elite center fielder Andruw Jones.

While Jones, who turns 33 in April, will likely never again be the player that posted WAR's over 5.0 seven times from 1997 to 2006, making him the best center fielder in the game during that period, he still appears to have some left in the tank after a solid rebound season in Texas. In relatively limited playing time, spent mostly as a designated hitter, Jones posted a .214/.323/.459 line and a .338 wOBA. Not exactly near his previous marks, but Jones showed that he's still far better than he showed the Dodgers in 2008, with much improved contact, line drive and HR/FB rates. In his very limited playing time in the field in 2009, he posted a +3.0 UZR, and while his declining athleticism and lack of experience in the playing field definitely indicate that he'll never be the defensive monster that he once was, there's reason to believe that, given his track record, he could be a solid defender, at least in a corner outfield spot.

While Jones was certainly helped by hitting in Arlington, a ballpark very condusive to offense, he was also held back by a very low .224 BABIP. Given Jones' extreme tendency to hit the ball in the air, low BABIP's certainly aren't new to him. From 2005-2009, he's posted these BABIP marks: .243, .270, .248, .231, and the lowly .224 mark from this season. Jones was definitely unlucky in 2009, but not nearly to the extent that one would generally expect. Using the brilliant Expected BABIP calculator provided by The Hardball Times, which uses a variety of result-driven statistics (K, AB, HR, BB, SB/CS, batted ball numbers provided by Baseball Info Solutions) to determine what a players BABIP *should* be, Jones' expected BABIP comes out to .299, right at the league average, and substantially higher than the .224 mark that he actually posted. Factoring in some improved luck from Jones in 2010 and he could very well be a solid everyday player if his defense hasn't declined substantially from his final days in Atlanta, although his declining athleticism and lack of playing time certainly puts that into question.

So for only $500,000, the White Sox have made another very astute move on the free agent market, adding a solid piece with some upside at a very low cost. Presumably Jones won't be expected to be more than Chicago's fourth outfielder and part-time designated hitter, and he definitely has the upside to offer far more than that given his power potential and ability to get on base. Considering Chicago's obvious need for some additional pop and outfield help, retaining Mark Kotsay didn't exactly add a big bopper to the lineup, this appears to have been a very solid addition for the White Sox.

Beyond the Hot Stove: Opening Edition

SFiercex4 — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 15:52:20 -0000

More photos » by Tony Gutierrez - AP

In this April 30, 2009 photo, Center fielder Andruw Jones fields a fly out for the Texas Rangers during a baseball game against the Oakland Athletics in Arlington, Texas. If Jones can prove he can still do this, Jones' new emplyer, the Chicago White Sox, should be fairly happy with their investment.. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

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The Hot Stove officially started two Fridays ago with the start of free agency, but here at Beyond the Box Score we have already covered quite a few moves prior to that (check out this, this, and this if you missed them).

Still, we have only so many people, and there are only so many things to say about some moves, so I figured I'd conglomerate a few of these into one big recap each week called Beyond the Hot Stove. Here I'll cover some of the smaller moves of the week that was in the Hot Stove. Since this is the first one, we'll cover moves starting from Friday, November 20th, the start of the free agent period. Links all courtesy of MLB Trade Rumors.

- The first Hot Stove happening was Omar Vizquel's one-year deal with the Chicago White Sox. Vizquel has never been much with the bat, but my guess is that is not why he was brought to the South Side. Even in limited playing time the last few seasons, Vizquel has shown a decent glove, putting up around 30 runs above average the last three seasons at shortstop according to UZR. Granted, most of that happened in 2007, but it would seem as if Vizquel's golden glove has not yet fallen off with advanced age.

As for the White Sox? They look like they will be shuffling the infield once again with the departure of incumbent second baseman Chris Getz. Vizquel could likely work as a serviceable part-time player at shortstop and third base (he played a little third with the Texas Rangers last year), but I highly doubt they'll stick with him for more than the playing time he saw last year.

- The Milwaukee Brewers signed Chris Capuano and continue to search for more starting pitching after throwing the majors' worst rotation last season. Capuano is a Brewers product, but has not pitched in the majors for two seasons since undergoing a second Tommy John surgery and rehabbing. Capuano was a solid middle-of-the-rotation guy before the injuries set in, so he has a shot at being decent if he gets a chance this season.

- Speaking of injury issues, the Oakland A's signed Dallas McPherson to a minor league deal. McPherson has massive home run power and struggles with mostly everything else, particularly strikeouts and staying on the field. He might get some time at third base as filler until Brett Wallace or someone else in the A's organization steps in, or he may linger in the minors once again.

- The Toronto Blue Jays made two interesting moves to shore up their infield, resigning John McDonald and signing Alex Gonzalez. The McDonald move is a head-scratcher, as McDonald has no bat (career wOBA .264, Bill James projected .254 for 2010) and will be playing the role of defensive backup for $1.5M a year. He does seem to be a solid defender, both at shortstop and at second base, and the Jays do have an awful third baseman in Edwin Encarnacion, so the thought may be to replace Encarnacion with the more sure-handed McDonald in the late innings. Is that worth 0.3 WAR and $1.5M?

As for Gonzalez, he is just one season removed from a 2.5 WAR campaign in 2008. However, that came on a career high .340 wOBA that he has never come close to prior to or since that season, so don't count on that happening again. Gonzalez has always been a solid shortstop (career UZR/150 of +7), and a combination of him and Aaron Hill up the middle may vacuum a few more batted balls for Toronto's pitchers. Gonzalez will give most of that value back with his awful bat, however. Bill James has him projected at a .296 wOBA, and if Gonzalez starts all season, he would have to be a +10 glove to approach being an average player. Then again, he's being paid $2.75M, so no one's expecting average production from him.

- By far the most intriguing move to me was the White Sox signing of Andruw Jones to a one year, $500K deal. Jones had a comeback year after a hellish 2008, batting .214/.323/.459 in 331 PA, good for a .338 wOBA and 1.5 park-adjusted batting runs above average. I don't think I need to show the 2008 numbers to tell you that this was a massive improvement over '08. He did all this with one of the lowest BABIP's in baseball (BABIP of .220). For a player who had such trouble with contact (72% contact rate) and swung so much out of the zone (24.0% out-of-zone swing rate), his walk rate was surprising (12.7% UIBB%) but typical of the old Jones from his Atlanta years. He also posted a promising .246 ISO.

Bill James projects a similar wOBA for 2010 of .335, and Jones will be moving into another hitter's haven in U.S. Cellular Field. Jones only played 145 innings in the outfield in 2009, but he is only two seasons removed from a typical Jones-esque season of 21 runs above average in center field in 2007. Jones has not played center field regularly since 2007, and given his physique it may be wise to keep him in the corners. However, it seems plausible that Jones can still contribute positively in the outfield for the White Sox, which is exactly what the Sox need. If he can play a decent corner outfield (on the order of +2 to +5 runs over a full season) and be an average hitter like he was last season, he would be worth a lot more than what the White Sox would be paying him, even after his incentives bump him up to $1M. A good deal for both player and team involved.

Wednesday's Late and Brief Frosty Mug

KLSnow — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 22:15:03 -0000

More photos » by Eric Risberg - AP

Justin Duchscherer is a potential 2010 Brewer. That means I probably need to learn to spell his name...or assign him a clever nickname that catches on. Suggestions?

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Some things to read while finding eternal life.

Thanks for bearing with me this week. The Mug will return to its normal format and schedule on Friday. In the meantime, here's the crash-course version of today's notes:

Adam McCalvy has two more names for you to consider as the Brewers head into hot stove season: Justin Duchscherer and Kevin Correia. Meanwhile, ESPN has a story about clinical depression that Duchscherer has battled in the past. I don't think the depression has anything to do with the fact that his name is impossible to spell.
Caitlin Moyer has a look at the offseason work of Brewer Grounds Crew leader Gary Vanden Berg, who recently finished putting Miller Park's field to bed for 2009.
Mike Cameron might be one of the best free agent position players on the market this offseason, but Bleed Cubbie Blue is comparing him to Marlon Byrd.
In the minors, Baseball America used Pitch F/x to gather average and max fastball speeds for pitchers that appeared in the Arizona Fall League. Zach Braddock, Mark Rogers, Josh Butler and Omar Aguilar all check in somewhere in the low-mid 90's.
In transactions: the Padres claimed starting pitcher Radhames Liz off waivers from the Orioles.
The White Sox signed Andruw Jones to a one year deal.
Shelley Duncan elected for free agency after the Yankees outrighted him off their 40-man roster.
I'm still hoping the Brewers will sign Yorvit Torrealba, but the Blue Jays are also rumored to have interest.
Today's Faces feature over at Lookout Landing features another former Brewer: Ben Ford.
Yesterday I mentioned a few of them, but Royals Review has a look at the five dumbest NL MVP votes.
Speaking of awards: on this day in 1969, Lou Piniella won the AL Rookie of the Year. Piniella started the season as a Seattle Pilot, but was traded on April 1 for pitcher John Gelnar and OF Steve Whitaker. Gelnar posted a 3.78 ERA over three seasons as a Pilot and Brewer. Whitaker spent one season with the Piolts and was done in the majors by 1971.
On this day in 1981, Rollie Fingers became the first relief pitcher ever to win the AL MVP. Fingers picked up 15 of the 28 first place votes and edged out Rickey Henderson by 11 points.
I wasn't able to find a Brewer birthday today, so we'll have to settle for wishing a happy birthday to Tony Brewer, who turns 52.
Oh, and if you're looking for something to do tonight, Keith Law has updated his list of the top ten board games.

Drink up.

White Sox sign Andruw Jones

Eli Greenspan — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 22:00:30 -0000

More photos » by Tony Gutierrez - AP

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The White Sox and Andruw Jones have agreed to a one year deal worth 500,000 dollars. Jones, 33, is certainly an example of a player who peaked early. After winning 10 Gold Gloves and appearing in 5 All-Star games, Jones is with his fourth team in as many years.

Jones appeared in 82 games for the Rangers last season, mostly in the DH spot, hitting .214 with 17 home runs and 43 RBI. He should make for an above average bench player for Ozzie Guillen.

White Sox Add Andruw Jones to Crowded Veteran Bench

The Cheat — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 20:23:10 -0000

More photos » by Tony Gutierrez - AP

Jones is here to help you fill your quota of fat jokes

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The White Sox seem to be going about their off-season in reverse. They're lining up their bench pieces to a team that still lacks two (or three) legitimate full-time major league position players.

Today, they've reportedly signed Andruw Jones to a 1-year, $500K incentive-laden deal to fill out the bench with Vizquel and Kotsay.

"This is an opportunity to add a power bat to the roster while improving our outfield depth," Williams said. "With the addition of Andruw, Mark Kotsay and Omar Vizquel, we feel our bench is taking shape to be a strong asset heading into the 2010 season."

Jones looked to have a halted his precipitous career free fall by joining up with Rudy Jaramillo in Texas last season, putting up an .850 OPS in the first-half, but not even Jaramillo could stop Jones descent in the second half when he hit just .185/.310/.333. You could easily write off that performance as simply 100 bad at-bats. But that line is closer to Jones norm of the last few years than was his resurgent first half.

At this price, Jones is certainly a gamble worth taking. He can still catch the ball all over the outfield, and can put a charge into one every now an then. But it would be foolish to think of him as anything more than an outfield version of Juan Uribe going forward.

Edit by larry: One interesting thing to note is that Jones is represented by Scott Boras.

Frustrations and Celebrations

Phil Gurnee — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 17:48:43 -0000

Time for a quick fluff piece while we wait for the winter meetings. The Dodgers have had substantial success over the last two seasons but that success was mitigated by failure to advance past the NLCS. Normally we at TBLA are a positive group but this November I'm feeling disgruntled about our future. So for every irritation I have with the team I'll try to counter with a positive.

Irriations	Celebrations
James Loney going backward instead of forward. After his 2007 we had every reason to believe that Loney was going to be an impact player, instead over the last two years his offensive production has him ranked with the bottom feeders as this position.	He is a kick ass post season player, fun guy to root for, still has one more year to turn it around before he's gets to expensive for his production.
Our All-Star 2nd baseman not getting the time of day from the great communicator to explain why he sat most of Sept and the complete post-season.	Trading for Ronny Belliard who inexplicably has been one of my favorite players to watch over the last few years, and then have him kick Kensai ass with a spectacular Sept performance.
Rafy Furcal playing just about every game and making Juan Pierre look like a great lead off hitter.	At least he was healthy and played somewhat good defense.
Ivan DeJesus breaking his leg.	The Beard putting up his best complete season of his career at age 35
Russel Martin turning into the bad Jason Kendall just 1 1/2 years after I picked him as a possible MVP in 2008. Now he's going to be expensive, his offense blows, and as ~~Tripon~~ Seanny Rotten noted in a fanshot, by some metrics his defense also blows. This is a particular irritation for me because one of the Dodgers huge advantages had been the big boost from the catching position. Without that advantage, it will be harder as the competition gets better and cheaper at the position while we get worse and expensive.	Other then fact he's young and might turn it around I got nothing good to say about Martin other then his middle name.
Manny's deffered contract is going to be a pain in the ass for several years unless the owner increases payroll to make up for it.	At least we should still have an above average LF for one more year, and Manny is always fun to watch.
Juan Pierre is still on the team, not because he can't be a decent players but because his salary is such an anchor on a team with what appears to be a very limited ability to spend money. My particular irritation is not with Pierre but with those who point to his time when he filled in for Manny and talk about how great he was. He was great, but it was for one month and they seem to incredibly forget he played two months and his suckitude in the 2nd month seems to have been completely forgotten.	Beast Mode in May was one of the highlights of 2009.
Deferred contracts in general - I hate them.
After several years of TBLA telling everyone how good Billingsley is, he decides to become a five inning pitcher and sometimes not even that. You won't see any comparisons this year to Chad and the best of the historical Dodger pitchers 25 years and younger.	All-Star Chad was quite a pitcher for the first few months of the year.
That Charlie Haeger didn't get more of a chance.	Padilla took Lima time and doubled down.
That Scott Elbert didn't get one start this year.
That McDonald totally blew during his brief stint in the rotation possibly poisoning management from giving other kids a shot.	Coming back into the bullpen and showing he still has big league stuff.
That Broxton didn't erase the ghost of Matt Stairs.	What a regular season.Other then the stretch with the bad toe that was one of the best non enhanced steroid relief seasons in Dodger history.
Matt Kemp's 2nd half performance	Matt Kemps complete season performance. He is already one of the best CF in the game. Please keep improving, you are a big reason to watch the Dodgers right now.
Kuo's fragile arm	Kuo's incredible arm
That Carlos Santana is not a Dodger
That Josh Bell is not a Dodger
That Tony Abreu is not a Dodger
That other then Matt Kemp, and the younger version of the current Dodger catcher, Logan White has not provided the Dodgers with an impact bat during he reign.	The plethora of pitchers that Logan White has provided for the Dodgers during his reign.
Jamie and Frank McCourt	Josh Rawitch
The Divorce
Ned Colletti	Ned Colleti
Drunken bad behavior Dodger Fans	Drunken fun as hell Dodger fans
Rick Monday	Vin Scully
Bil Plaschke	Jon Weisman & Eric Stephen
Lambo's 2009 mediocre season	Chris Withrow's excellent season
The fact that because Frank couldn't bite the bullet we will be paying Andruw Jones for years
Mark Loretta taking the Mark Sweeney route to retirement	one at bat in the post season goes a long way toward forgiveness.
Manny's 50 game suspension still irks the hell out of me	The future with Kershaw, Billingsley, Broxton, Andre, and Kemp.

The Atlanta Braves Weekly Wrap

gondeee — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 17:34:49 -0000

More photos » by John Bazemore - AP

Atlanta Braves relief pitcher Mike Gonzalez may be harder to re-sign now that Scott Boras is his agent.

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Here's a look at the major stories in the world of the Atlanta Braves for the week ending November 22nd:

In the Press...

Tommy Hanson finished a disappointing third in the NL Rookie of the Year balloting.
Pitcher Buddy Carlyle signed with the Nippon Ham Fighters to play in Japan next year.
Mike Gonzalez changed agents to Scott Boras.
We learned through a couple of different sources that the Braves are indeed trying to move Derek Lowe, but are having difficulty doing so.
The Braves added five pitchers to their 40-man roster, protecting them from the Rule 5 draft next month.
The Royals signed former Braves pitcher Jorge Campillo.

At Talking Chop...

I took a look at the choice the Braves made with Andruw Jones and the choice the Blue Jays made with Vernon Wells.
We were the first to report on the Braves minor league free agents.
We reviewed the 2009 seasons of relievers Rafael Soriano, Mike Gonzalez, and the rest of the Braves relievers.
We took a look at some of the top free agents and how they affect the Braves.
Matt and CB reviewed the Braves top-10 minor league relievers here and here.
The bloggers at TC did a round table on the relievers in the Braves system.

Notable FanPosts and FanShots...

Dave_D shared some professional looking photos of some Gwinnett Braves players.
Mgomez4closer wants us to take a look at some minor league free agents.
'hawkchop is concerned about relying too heavily on an ETA for Freddie Freeman.
alligatorimpersonator wants the Braves to bring back Andruw Jones.
Dutch Braves Fan thinks we should re-sign Adam LaRoche.
Doghnut shares a link with us to a good explanation of BABIP.

The Case of Jones v. Wells

gondeee — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 20:52:16 -0000

More photos » by Tony Gutierrez - AP

Andruw never misses a meal.

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At the end of the 2006 season, Andruw Jones had just completed his second consecutive 40+ homerun 125+ RBI season at only 29-years of age, and he looked like he might have finally become the powerful force in the middle of the Braves order... but would he remain there for the rest of his career? He was likely to demand a huge contract of many years with many zeros behind some pretty big numbers when he became a free agent a year later.

At the end of the 2006 season, Vernon Wells had just posted another 30 homer 100+ RBI season, and at 27-years of age he looked like the next coming of the great outfielders of our era. He was a year away from free agency, and like Jones, was also sure to demand a huge contract of many years with many zeros behind some pretty big numbers.

This is where two roads diverged in a wood, and each team took a different path. The Braves chose to ride out the rest of Andruw's contract, and seeing his performance decline, opted to let him walk away via free agency. The Blue Jays chose to sign their young star to a huge ball-busting contract of 7-years and $126 million. A contract that was so ridiculously back-loaded that the Jays are still on the hook for $105 million over the next 5 years.

Sometimes its the moves that a team doesn't make which determines their fate for years to come. Had the Braves signed Jones to a similar contract, we'd be talking about who has baseball's worse contract, Atlanta or Toronto. As it is, the winner is clearly Toronto and the money yet owed to the pedestrian Vernon Wells.

MLBTR has a great look back at the Wells contract and what the baseball pundits said about that contract at the time. That piece got me thinking about the choice we made versus the choice that Toronto made. This is why we very rarely see the Braves commit so many years and so much money to any one player.

That also got me thinking about this article by Ken Rosenthal, in which he thinks the Tigers should trade Miguel Cabrera. Miggy has an equally monstrous amount of money left on his deal, and if it weren't for that I would say let's make a play for him. But I just can't see the Braves ponying up $20 million a year for a guy (not after they got burned by the Mike Hampton trade). If the price were right though, say Vazquez, Freeman, and another prospect (not named Heyward), and the Tigers could pick up some of the tab, then I'd have to seriously think the Braves would make a run at Cabrera, assuming of course that he's available. Even with the monster contract. Okay, now I'm rosterbating, and drooling a bit.

A Modest Proposal: Bradley For Burrell For Millwood

Al — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 14:25:48 -0000

More photos » by Ted S. Warren - AP

Kevin Millwood would look good in a Cubs uniform in 2010.

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I can't take credit for this one -- it was first suggested in this comment in the Pat Burrell Fanshot last night -- but I think it's worth investigating, as a deal sending Milton Bradley to Tampa Bay, Pat Burrell to the Rangers, and Kevin Millwood to the Cubs would help all three teams.

The Rays were one of the suitors for Bradley last offseason and a Bradley-for-Burrell deal has apparently been on and off the table between the Cubs and Rays since the middle of the 2009 season. Thus, we know they still have interest in him, and given the fact that Bradley has said he doesn't like to be in the spotlight, Tampa, a low-key baseball environment, might be very good for him.

Here's the problem with Burrell as a Cub, though: he's a DH. Last year, he played only two games in the outfield, starting one (in RF) and playing two innings in LF in the other. He wasn't a very good outfielder when he was with the Phillies; he played 1B, his "best" natural fielding position, in his first full major league season, then moved to the outfield because the Phillies acquired players (Travis Lee and then Jim Thome) who would have been even worse in the outfield than Burrell.

Since the National League doesn't have the DH rule -- yet; I still expect that having the DH in the NL will be a bargaining chip in the next round of player/owner labor negotiations -- Burrell would be useless to the Cubs, even as a backup. You wouldn't want him in the outfield, and he'd be an expensive piece to sit on the bench and pinch-hit twice a week and maybe spell Derrek Lee at 1B once a month.

Ah, but the Texas Rangers do need a designated hitter. About half of the DH duty in Arlington in 2009 was handled by Andruw Jones, who wasn't much better than Burrell last year, and who is a free agent. Burrell's decline with the Rays last year is mystifying -- he was coming off a .875 OPS season in Philadelphia in 2008 where he had 33 HR and 102 walks, which ranked third in the NL. You'd have to think he'd rebound in 2010, playing in the launching pad which is Rangers Ballpark.

The primary reason for making this deal, of course, is the Cubs' desire to be rid of Bradley, and thus you'd have to equalize the contract money between the three teams, or at least come close to doing so. The Cubs know they are not dealing from a position of strength and will probably have to take on extra money, so let's look at what's left on the contracts of each of these players. All numbers are, as usual, from Cot's Baseball Contracts.

Milton Bradley is due $9 million in 2010 and $12 million in 2011.

Pat Burrell is due $9.2 million in 2010 ($9 million salary and $200,000 if traded).

Kevin Millwood is due $12 million in 2010 -- and a $15 million signing bonus that's payable over a five-year period from 2011 to 2015, presumably $3 million a year (though that's not made clear at Cot's).

If the deal were made straight-up -- each team taking on the contract of the player they're acquiring -- the Rangers make out like bandits, because they'd be losing a $27 million obligation (Millwood) and taking on a $9.2 million obligation (Burrell). The Cubs would be taking on some extra money in that scenario, $27 million (Millwood) compared to $21 million (Bradley). The total money owed to all three players in all three of these deals is $57.2 million.

We know, from numerous reports, that the Cubs are willing to eat some salary to make Bradley disappear from the roster. So how about something like this:

The Rays pay Bradley the $9 million he's owed this year, and $3 million (one-third) of what Bradley's owed in 2011 -- total of $12 million.

The Cubs pay Millwood the $12 million he is owed this year, two-thirds of what Bradley's owed in 2011 ($9 million) and half ($7.5 million) of Millwood's signing bonus over the five-year period -- total of $28.5 million, but spread out over a longer timeframe.

The Rangers pay Burrell the $9.2 million he's owed this year, and half ($7.5 million) of Millwood's signing bonus over the five-year period -- total of $16.7 million.

That, to me, would make the deal financially workable, and also make baseball sense, for all three teams -- the Rays get a player they have apparently sought for a while at an under-market price; the Cubs pay a few more total dollars, but can spread it out over a longer time period; and the Rangers get a useful player and more than $10 million of financial relief. This would also possibly free up enough 2010 dollars for the Cubs to offer Rich Harden arbitration, if they wanted to; if they didn't, they'd at least have an experienced major league arm in Millwood to replace him.

As we often say here: GETITDON EJIM!