SB Nation User Blog: Dr Orpheus

Wigginton as tradebait?

Dr Orpheus — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 15:19:17 -0000

Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports is talking about ways in which the Cinncinati Reds could improve their club with a right-handed hitter and has mentioned Ty Wigginton as a target since they lost out on DeRosa to St. Louis. Morosi says Wigginton can slot in at third or second base or first when Votto needs a spell, and can break up their lefties at the middle of their line-up. This seems to make a lot of sense for them if they're interested in making a push, and they seem to be, for first in a wobbly NL Central, given Wigginton's experience in that division and normal second-half surge.

So, the question is, does it make sense to trade Wigginton to the Reds or Giants or other contention team if the price is right?

Keep in mind that Huff and Mora will be gone next season unless offered arbitration, resigned, or Mora's option picked up (unlikely).

And, for funsies, who mans first and third base next season without Wigginton? Outside of Brandon Snyder, the newly acquired Michael Aubrey (12 AB for the Tides, .250/.250/.333/.583) who will be used as organizational depth in the minors and doesn't seem to be in consideration for the majors at this moment, and Oscar Salazar.

Trade Candidates

Dr Orpheus — Thu, 28 May 2009 16:19:54 -0000

The youth of tomorrow are here! ...Today!

As it stands, the Orioles have some solid veteran pieces to be traded sooner-than-later. The rotation is eight guys deep and could use some thinning out (Guthrie and Hendrickson, first and foremost), the bullpen (Baez and Ray) is overcrowded, and Mora, Huff, and Scott are at their peak. Its time to suggest some trades.

As for fill-ins:

Dorta could be brought up to fill-in at third if Mora's traded, even though Dorta was promoted to Triple-A recently and might not be ready. So, with third there's a bit of a problem unless the Os can get a major league ready third baseman in a trade somewhere.
Oscar Salazar can be brought up to play first if Huff's traded. Defense would be sorely lacking, but, again, they could get a major league ready guy in trade to take over.

What options are there?

Reading Between the Lines: Freel Wants Out

Dr Orpheus — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 20:45:00 -0000

MASN's Steve Melewski is reporting that Ryan Freel isn't happy with his situation.

Freel went on the DL April 21st after getting beaned on a throw to second and was hospitalized with a mild concussion.

Since then, he was supposed to go on a rehab assignment at Delmarva but that was called off for precautionary reasons.

I'm sorry Freel feels this way. I really am. But he needs to get over it. He's had several concussions in his career and for the Orioles Front Office to be concerned with this most recent one makes perfect sense. Andy seems to be treating Freel as if he were an investment, protecting him to maximize his time with the team once he's back from the DL, instead of simply as a player.

Freel, unfortunately, doesn't get that. His comments are dripping with inuendo that he wants to be traded, that he doesn't feel appreciated, and that, perhaps, the Orioles are conspiring against his career.

For a guy who has been referred to as a team first player, with less personal motivation, these comments seem entirely selfish. He's more concerned with his career playing time and numbers than the possibilty that he could get hurt again later in the season and hurt the team.

Seriously, calm your britches. You'll be back when you're healthy. You were hit in the head by a baseball! It's not like the team is holding you back after a back spazm.

A reporter asked Freel if he was not happy here, did he think MacPhail would attempt to move him somewhere where he can be happy.

"Yes, I think so. I think Andy and I are on the same page. I wasn't very happy with the situation but what can you do."

Melewski says.

All right, bye. Hope we can get some pieces for you and you don't suffer any perminanent brain damage after your next concussion.

P.S. - What team is looking for a guy like Freel? The Yankees will undoubtably have some injuries in the near future with Matsui and Damon, and with Nady out it seems like a possibilty. Then again, what's Freel worth?

Penn to the Marlins

Dr Orpheus — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 17:02:55 -0000

According to Roch and mlbtraderumors.com, the Os are on the verge of trading Hayden Penn to the Marlins for infielder Robert Andino.

This isn't the kind of trade most of us were hoping for. There have been a lot of fans who have openly complained about how the team should have traded Penn a long time ago, back when he was tearing through the minors, for help. Hoping MacPhail would get a second base or shortstop prospect in return. Then, there were those that believed Penn might "figure it out" this spring. Sadly, those days are long gone.

It is, nevertheless, a realistic trade. One that bolsters this team's bench and allows for Trembley to focus on 12 pitchers instead of 13. Andino played second, short, third, and center in his four years in the majors and was out of options. As a solid defensive-minded guy with a career line of .201/.299/.250 in 144 ABs in 79 games this trade makes sense for the Os who really did need back-up up the middle with some speed. And they got just that.

P.S. - When you search for Andino on mlb.com you'll notice that they have him marked as an Oriole.

Blocked Prospect - Kyle Blanks

Dr Orpheus — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 04:37:56 -0000

Kyle Blanks seems to be the odd man out as Adrian Gonzalez isn't going anywhere, so what should the Padres do?

There's already been some rumblings that the Padres are looking to trade Blanks for pitching, presumably to be used this season, as they're nearly vacuous in that department. Tim Dierkes of mlbtraderumors has compiled a good list in reference to the Tom Krasovic article including several out of option players.

But I guess this all comes down to what Blanks is worth. So, what is he worth? Juan Gutierrez? Hayden Penn and David Pauley?

Out of Option Trade Chips

Dr Orpheus — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 18:52:34 -0000

I'm aware that I and others have posted and talked about this before, but I felt that since Spring Training is fully underway we'd look at it again.

At this point the Os have an overwhelming amount of pitchers at camp that are out of options/might "benefit from a change of scenery"/should just be traded to clear space on the pay roll. Yeah, I'm talking about Pauley, Penn, Brian Bass, Danys Baez, and others. So, the question is which pitchers (or position players) can/should be traded or packaged together and what kind of opportunities are out there.

My #1 target is Kyle Blanks, a blocked 1B prospect in the Padres system that Sickels has at a B+ prospect that "I don’t know where he fits except as trade bait, but I’m convinced that the bat is real. Considered Grade B, but that’s what I gave him last year and he improved in ’08." Here's my thinking:

There's no way the Padres are going to trade Adrian Gonzalez. He's a hometown guy who hits the ball like a mad man, and doesn't cost much. So, it stands to reason that Towers would ship Blanks off for some help with fielding a reasonable team this season. Because, at this point they look like an affiliate with four major leaguers rehabbing. They need pitching, and maybe some help in the outfield (Justin Christian?)
The Orioles need more young options at corner infield spots. At this point it's down to Brandon Synder, Scott Moore, and Billy Rowell, and Synder and Rowell are, for all intents and purposes, DHs. In Blanks the Orioles would have a power hitting first baseman with decent defense.
I can't think of any other teams with blocked prospects at first or third.

MacPhail has continued to trade away or release dead wood and focus on both "failed" and current prospects, helping the team get younger, cheaper, and better. So, what other possibilities are there?

Roberts to the Chicago...White Sox?!

Dr Orpheus — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 01:27:58 -0000

Roch is reporting that the Os might be working on a trade with the White Sox for Gavin Floyd and, possibly, another prospect. This is the kind of deal I've been waiting to hear about. Something believable. Much of the Olson to the Cubs for Pie or whomever really didn't make much sense as the Os would be giving up on a young starter who could still turn it around for a failed prospect or two. It just never made sense. Floyd, however, makes perfect sense. With spots in the rotation open, and Floyd a solid #2 or 3, this just works.

Yes, there's going to be a hole at second, but that's where Freel fits in. The guy can lead off and play second much of the time, with perhaps Murphy or another guy taking over if that doesn't work. So, that hole's not so much a hole as it is a stop gap.

There's going to be much assuming that the White Sox could package Floyd, from Mount St. Joe and a 17-game winner last season, and either Brandon Allen (1B) or Chris Getz (2B). I'm fine with either, and think that trading Roberts for Floyd, straight up, doesn't make much sense for the Os.

What say ye, CC?

Update:
Roch has just explained his rational for believing this trade will take place and the logic behind the Os going after bot Floyd and Getz.

A.J. Burnett signs with the Janks

Dr Orpheus — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 22:00:36 -0000

So, mlbtraderumors has posted that the Yankees have signed A.J. Burnett to a "five-year, $82.5MM" contract. This was to be expected, really. The Yankees needed to continue to build, by throwing money, a new starting rotation, and after the C.C. Sabathia signing I guess they just decided "why not?".

I'm a little surprised, frankly. It seemed like the Braves were hot on him and were prepared to do what they could to sign the guy. I guess his drive to be close to his wife's family and near his offseason home was slightly more important to him. Oh, so slightly.

Obviously, this may also disappoint some Orioles fans as they were hoping to rebuild their own rotation. Hoped that Burnett would join Guthrie as a stabilizer at the top. Oh well. I had hoped for the signing of Koji Uehara and Kenshin Kawakami anyway.

P.S. - The breaking of the story has been linked to ESPN's Jerry Crasnick.

The state of the shortstop

Dr Orpheus — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 22:00:12 -0000

Tom Verducci of SI.com posted a pretty fantastic commentary on the current state of shortstops in baseball.

What it really boils down to is that the day of the heavy hitting shortstop is over. It's rare that a shortstop will both hit and field at a high level.

Why does this relate to the Orioles? Well, the comments by Andy MacPhail and Dave Trembley to look for an offensively minded shortstop are unrealistic. They don't exist in any high numbers. In fact, if you're looking at the position purely by OPS, you'll find that the NL East is a total anomaly. Hanley Ramirez, Jose Reyes and Jimmy Rollins are the exception to the rule that shortstops, given that great defense is so necessary at their position, don't need to have an OPS over 100. Hell, somewhere in the 80s would be fantastic.

They need to change their tune. Finding a slick fielding SS with a BA around .270 would be perfect for this team, given the lineup of the future.

Sidebar:
The article also alludes to the necessary shift, for most shortstops (Omar Vizquel is the largest outlier in the game), to a different position as they age. Is it realistic to say this? I think so. The problem seems to be ego. Players like Tejada, clinging to past glory at shortstop, need to let go and move to a position better reflecting their abilities with the bat instead of inabilities with a glove.

Outside the box thinking: shortstop

Dr Orpheus — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 20:49:41 -0000

So, Tim Dierkes from mlbtraderumors.com has made his predictions for free agent destinations this offseason. It's a fine list. As I skimmed it, looking for whom he thought the Orioles would target, I was surprised by his belief that not only would the Orioles win out on the A.J. Burrnett sweepstakes, they'd also sign Felipe Lopez to fill their vacancy at short. "Huh," I thought, "no, that makes no sense."

While Lopez did, as Dierkes suggests, "mash" last season for the Cardinals, I just don't see that making all that much sense. He seems like a very forced, one-dimensional player. What I mean by that is, like Neifi Perez, he's either a very good defensive player or a very good hitter. When his glove is on, his bat is lacking and vice versa. With that in mind, I don't think it's clear which Lopez the Orioles will get. He'd be an enigma. And this team alrady has Daniel Cabrera to ffill that role.

If Lopez is right out, I'm suggesting looking elsewhere. Elsewhere, like Japan. Tomohiro Nioka is primarily a shortstop - played some third ('03, '06, and '07) and the outfield ('02) - and a free agent this offseason.

Why? It's simple. The guy has a solid, not great, glove at short - 59 errors in his 7-year career - with a fielding precentage of .983 and a career batting average of .285 (being hurt by his first 4 seasons of professional ball). Translated over to the MLB and the batting average drops a bit but it's still quite a bit better then the output from last year's parade of wet noodles.

What's more is he can be shifted to third or the outfield if a younger player can be found and before Billy Rowell, a guy I have little to no faith in at this point, is ready to take over at the hot corner.

And finally, money. Bringing in Japanese players yields instant results in marketing and ad revenue. Money this team dearly needs to continue fostering their farm system.

Thoughts? Am I insane? Other outside the box thoughts?