Insanity

There are rumors that Hiroki Kuroda is already up to three years, $45 million. $15 million a year, I'm thinking Johnny Damon might be tradable.

Soriano to the ChiSox?

Now this would be something. The White Sox already have an incredible 3-4-5 in their lineup; adding Soriano (and subtracting Brian Anderson) only makes them more ferocious. You'd have to think that their pitching is going to settle down and get better, and if they can off-set the loss of McCarthy with MacDougal, even better.

Kenny Williams is making a pretty gutsy move here. Not a whole lot of teams have a chance to win back-to-back titles, and he's going for it. It might hurt in a few years, but that second banner at U.S. Cellular would soften the blow a little bit.

And even thought we don't know all of the particulars, this looks like a pretty good deal for the Nationals, too. I didn't think Bowden would be able to get a prospect as good as McCarthy for a Soriano rental at this point, especially a pitching prospect. McCarthy can slide straight into their rotation, and in that park, in that league, and without a whole lot of innings on his arm yet this year, he could have some success right away.

Of course, it may not happen at all. But that's what makes deadline season so awesome.

Watch out Johnny Damon...

Johnny Damon has missed two games this season. In both of those contests, Melky Cabrera took his place in the leadoff spot (not centerfield though). In those two games that Melky batted leadoff, he reached base 8 times, with 6 hits and 2 walks. That's a table-setter.

There continue to be rumors about the Yankees looking for an outfielder. I have mixed feelings on this.

The most recent rumor is a three-way trade with the Marlins and Phillies, in which the Phillies get Dontrelle Willis and the Yankees get Pat Burrell. There was no indication what the Yankees would be giving up in the trade. The Marlins have completely denied this deal.

The part I don't like is that Melky has earned Hideki Matsui's at bats while Matsui is on the DL. His defense is even looking better now. He's earned the right to keep this job.

However, considering Sheffield might be headed back to the DL, and the Yankees haven't ruled out putting Damon on the DL too, Melky might not lose at bats. It would allow the Yankees to put Damon on the DL and let his foot get better, and when Sheffield and Damon finally get back, it could still keep Melky in the lineup a lot by giving days off to Sheffield, Damon, and Bernie.

If they were to get Burrell. The playoff lineup would look something like this (if everybody is healthy then):

CF- Johnny Damon (Lefty)
SS- Derek Jeter (Righty)
RF- Gary Sheffield (Righty)
1B- Jason Giambi (Lefty)
3B- Alex Rodriguez (Righty)
LF- Hideki Matsui (Lefty)
DH- Pat Burrell (Righty)
C - Jorge Posada (Switch)
2B- Robinson Cano (Lefty)

That's a lineup I could live with. If the Yankees were to make the World Series, having pinch hitters in necessary, and Bernie Williams and Melky Cabrera, are perfect for that role as they are both switch hitters.

There is no real way of telling what the Yankees chances of getting Burrell are at this point (probably not very good). However, the possibility of all three of their starting outfielders being on the DL at the same time, sort of forces the team into thinking about making a deal.

Clemens back to Houston?

WFAN is reporting that Clemens has agreed to pitch for the Astros for the rest of the season, for the low, low price of $10 million. No word on when he'll be officially activated. I'll post a link when I find one.

Now, Red Sox fans, was that silly two-month tease worth it?

EDIT: Found a link - I guess it was Newsday that broke the story.

EDIT #2: The Astros and Clemens' agent are denying the report now. Damn.

Outfield Trade Options

Unless they determine that Gary Sheffield will be out for more than a month, I'd rather the Yankees not entertain trades for an outfielder. I'm very comfortable with Melky out there (and Bubba Crosby as his personal late inning defensive replacement). They have a deep enough lineup to handle a few weeks without Sheffield without making a trade.

If they do decide to make a trade, I would just hope that it would not include them giving up any legitimate prospects. This is a possibility, as players in the last year of a big contract on a team that has no chance, the team may just want to dump the salary. Let's look at the possibilities:

Alfonso Soriano, Washington Nationals: This makes so much sense, but Jim Bowden would hate to get nothing in return for Soriano. The fact that Wilkerson has been terrible with the Rangers could help him not feel as bad trading Soriano for nothing of substance (they're more than welcome to Tanyon Sturtze). It still may make sense for them to take marginal prospects to get rid of his $10 million salary, that they could use in the future. From the Yankee perspective, Soriano loves playing in New York and can handle the stage. Since so many players flop when they come to New York, Soriano is very safe from that stand point.

Reggie Sanders, Kansas City Royals: Sanders has a 2-year deal, which is the only reason he doesn't make so much sense. He's 38 years old and 11 years removed from his All-Star year. However, he'd be a cheap option and the Yankees could then try to trade him at the trading deadline to somebody else. He's a decent short-term solution.

Jeromy Burnitz, Pittsburgh Pirates: The Pirates would most likely be willing to give away Burnitz for nothing. The Pirates aren't going anywhere, Burnitz is on a one-year deal and the 37-year old is batting just .188 so far this season. Burnitz is a decent option for the Yankees if Sheffield will be back within a couple of weeks, since they won't have to give anything up to get him. When Sheffield comes back, if he does well, they can trade him. If he doesn't do well, they can release him. Burnitz has a large upside in Yankee Stadium, as he has a good swing to take advantage of the short porch (he does have 6 home runs this season despite only having 24 hits).

Carl Everett, Seattle Mariners: Like Burnitz, the Yankees could probably get Everett for nothing. He makes $4 million on a team going nowhere, and he's batting .230 (with a team-high 5 home runs). Everett was the Yankees first round draft pick in 1990, but they left him available to the expansion draft after the 1992 season because they realized he's a head case. This is probably the same reason they would not want him back. However, he didn't prevent the White Sox from winning the World Series last season. He would also benefit from the short porch.

Clearly, Soriano is the only impactful player on the list. All the others would be purely a stop-gap measure and an easy player to get as their teams may be happy to let them go. However, a stop gap like Everett or Burnitz, may still hit significantly better than a platoon of Andy Phillips and Bubba Crosby.

Mets Need a Pitcher. How about Zito?

The Mets need pitching, there's no question about that. There is also no question that the Mets have a legitimate chance of playing baseball in October.

However, they already have 2 of their 5 starters hurt. One of the worst pitchers ever in their roation now. Pedro is always a little bit of an injury risk and Glavine is quite old (although I don't see that as a disadvantage).

The A's are only one game out of first place, but the fact is that they do not look like a good team or a team going anywhere in October. They always start slowly, so they don't need to give up, however they also aren't going to be resigning Zito after this season, as he becomes a free agent.

This is why dealing him to the Mets makes so much sense. The A's would obviously ask for either Mike Pelfrey or Lastings Milledge in a deal for Zito.

I will propose the deal (to whomever would like to accept it or reject it from either side) of Lastings Milledge and Carlos Gomez for Barry Zito. Gomez was ranked the 6th best prospect by Baseball America, but has not performed well at all this season. This gives the A's the chance to get one of the top outfield prospects in baseball for a player they are going to lose.

Zito has had mixed results this season. In his 7 starts he has allowed either zero or one run in four of them, and five or more runs in the other three.

However, the National League hasn't seen Zito so he should have a large advantage by switching leagues. The upgrade for the Mets is huge, as it's an upgrade from Jose Lima to Barry Zito. As far as giving up the prospects, that's what you do when you're close, and there is extra reason for the Mets to do it this time.

It's commonly assumed throughout baseball that Zito wants to sign this offseason with either the Yankees or the Mets. He wants to come to New York. He's good friends with Jason Giambi and of course was teammates with Johnny Damon as well. If the Yankees and Mets both went after Zito (and we don't know if the Yankees are interested), the Yankees would get him. However, if the Mets trade for him, they would have no problem getting him signed before free agency. He wants to be in New York, they could keep him there. So for the Mets, it's not trading for just a hired gun.

They would have a rotation headed by Pedro, Glavine, and Zito, and that's formidable. If the Mets can get a deal done, without it involving Pelfrey or a Major Leaguer, I think they have to find any way possible to get it done.

The 4-team Race, and they're off....

This will be the only time the Yankees and Red Sox are involved in a race with the Astros and Rangers. Yes, it is now May 1st, which means the race has begun. The Astros are finally allowed at the starting line, and Clemens now has full negotiating power. All we know for sure in handicapping this thing is to put the Astros first, but I'll do my best on the rest of it. Of course in a perfect scenario for Clemens, all of the teams would be very much in a divisonal race, and the Yankees and Red Sox would be playing each other a lot so at least one if not both teams feel they need to make a move on the other. And we have a perfect scenario for Clemens. The Ranger have a half-game lead in the AL West, the Yankees and Red Sox are tied for 1st in the AL East, and the Astros who are in 3rd place, a half game behind two teams, have the best record of the four teams. The Yankees and Red Sox will play each other 12 times in the next 39 days, starting today, the same day the Clemens race begins.

#1 Houston Astros: They do have a big advantage. They are the hometown team. Andy Pettitte is his best friend in baseball. The Astros let Clemens do whatever he wants, as long as he shows up at the ballpark at least one out of every five days. With a 16-8 record, and only in 3rd place, last season's ERA leader could give them the edge in the NL Central race. They have the money to afford Roger Clemens, because they didn't spend the money this offseason that they saved by not bringing back Roger Clemens.

#2 Texas Rangers: Tom Hicks is the biggest factor for the Rangers. This is a guy who can be convinced to spend. His team is located in Arlington, and he was convinced to give Alex Rodriguez a deal for more than a quarter of a billion dollars. He can get Clemens for less 1/12 of that, and a better chance to make the playoffs than he ever had with ARod. Clemens can take Rangers money without losing face of being close to his family that he would have to endure if he signed with the Yankees or Red Sox. For as long as anybody can remember, the Rangers need pitching. The Rangers may be a very close second here. Closer than people think, and if not for Andy Pettitte being on the Astros roster, I would put them first, especially with the presense of Nolan Ryan.

#3 Boston Red Sox: Boston's long-lost son returns home? I'm surprising even myself by putting the Red Sox ahead of the Yankees, but as long as Lenny DiNardo is in the Red Sox rotation, you can see the Red Sox making the move. The Red Sox remade their team on pitching and defense and have a team ERA that is a run higher per game than the Yankees. It seems owner Henry is very intrigued by the story-line of Clemens coming back, and it would allow them to keep Papelbon in the closer role for the time being where he's been lights-out.

#4 New York Yankees: The Yankees still have their 7-starters. They are still looking for the right combination of them, but the team's pitching is rolling right now. However, the Yankees not only like big names, the need them. While the Yankees were just valued as baseball's first "Billion Dollar Franchise," many believe the YES Network is also now valued at about $1 billion. Anything that gets rating for the YES Network is important to the Yankees, and Clemens will get that. The Yankees are still in fourth though because they are the least likely to give Clemens the freedom to show up when he wants. However, there are two factors that can move the Yankees up quickly, if it comes down to a bidding war between the Yankees and Red Sox, it's hard to imagine Steinbrenner losing it. And if the Yankees kick out 3 or 4 bad pitching performances in a row, especially against Boston, Steinbrenner may order the signing of Clemens.

With the Astros and Rangers in the thick of their divisional races, the Yankees and Red Sox are probably pretty distantly behind the two Texas teams. When all is said and done, if he doesn't pitch well for either of the Texas teams, it will be forgotten quickly. If he comes back into the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry, there will be massive amounts of pressure, and his performance will be remembered good or bad. It's one thing for him high-pressure AL East if it's his only ticket to the postseason, but if he can stay in Texas and make the postseason, get the money, show up at the ballpark only when he feels like it, and all in a low-pressure situation...Roger Clemens will be pitching in Texas sometime in June.