AJC > Sports > Braves > Blog > Archives > 2007 > December > 03
Monday, December 3, 2007
Andruw to Dodgers? Roaming, reporting from Nashvegas
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
There are about 400 laptops opened for business in this cavernous media work room, but only about 100 of them have people tapping at keyboards on this chilly Monday afternoon in Nashville. Other laptops sit lonely, at the ready.
Not that I’d know it was chilly if I hadn’t looked online, since I’m inside seemingly the largest hermetically sealed space in the world, a sprawling hotel with massive glass-roofed atriums over lobbies that contain gardens, water falls, ponds, overpriced restaurants with faux facades, and media.
Many, many members of the media.
Plus hundreds of rosy-cheeked young folks in ill-fitting suits or too-revealing dresses, all trying to get their foot in the door of the baseball business in some capacity, be it the front office, the broadcast booth, etc.
Baseball’s Winter Meetings are not just about signing free agents and making trades. There’s also a massive job fair, equipment trade show, and minor league meetings going on simultaneously, hence baseball’s desire to have this thing in a massive hotel/convention center like this or last year at Dark Star (Disney).
Anyway, we’re here, and working. Or some of us are working. Others are eating. And later, drinking.
Many are work/schmoozing in the various lobbies here — it’s hard to work the lobby here, simply because there are so many lobbies. You might be in the Cascades lobby, while Scott Boras is holding court in the Magnolia lobby.
And then, by the time someone comes running breathlessly past and mentions he or she is on the way to pound out a quick story about something Boras just said, it’s too late and you’ll never make it to the other lobby where Uber Agent is finished speaking.
Anyway, I know, you’re all feeling sorry. Tough gig.
Did I mention I got the George Jones wakeup call today? You can select from a host of country stars to be the voice on the greeting when you set your wakeup call here at Opryland Hotel and Convention Center. Yes, sir. That’s living.
OK, rumors:
It’s been slow so far, but I’m sure that’ll change by the end of the day. We’re all watching the New York and Boston guys try to figure out which of their Empires (or AL East teams) will cave first and give the Twins everything they want for Johan Santana, plus the $140 million or so that Santana wants before he’ll agree to drop his no-trade clause.
Andruw Jones: I can tell you, my hunch last week about Andruw to the Dodgers looks pretty good about now. First team that’s been connected to him so far is the Dodgers, who may or may not have a two- or three-year offer on the table for the 10-time Glove Glove winner who roamed center field for the Braves for a decade.
I’d expect Boras to wait and try driving up the price a little more, because right now we’re probably talking perhaps one-quarter of the overall value Boras once indicated Jones would be worth. I’ve heard about $15-16 mill per year is what Dodgers are talking, and again that’s only for two or possibly three years.
Talked to someone who covers the White Sox and was told they are very reluctant to do business with Boras, and this guy didn’t think they would get involved in the Andruw bidding unless it was a smaller offer for three years at under $10 mill per. My, how quickly the landscape appears to have changed for the man who totaled 92 homers and 257 RBIs during 2005-06.
Obviously there are quite a few GMs who believe Andruw is a very old 30 and is in decline mode. A career-worst season like he had in a contract year made a convincing case.
And not playing that last weekend in Houston … gets curiouser in retrospect. Just never understood why the guy who played hurt day after day after day, would sit out, or be told to sit out and not protest the move, for his last three games in a Braves uniform.
As for contract length and figures, remember it was not long ago when Andruw’s agent was giving every indication his client, as one of the only complete players in baseball, could expect a long-term contract worth $150 mill or thereabouts (must say, Boras never gave the exact figure, but that’s what I got to by fishing for hints).
Not that anyone believed that would happen as the season wore on and Andruw’s batting average hovered between .215-.225.
If I had to guess, I’d bet he’ll end up getting some sort of two-year deal with two or three option years added on, that could potentially be worth $75 mill or so, but which will have some protection built in for the club while also permitting Andruw to opt out after a couple years. But that’s just somewhat-educated guessing.
Center field:So far today I’ve had two writers, a PR official from another team, a broadcaster and a scout ask me if the Braves are interested in (fill in the blank) center fielder.
Two asked me (separately) about Chris Duffy and Darin Erstad. I said I didn’t think Duffy would be a good fit, too much off-field baggage for the Braves, and Erstad, at 33, is a shell of the player he once was.
I think what a lot of folks, including some fans, don’t realize is that the Braves have no doubts whatsoever that they’d get solid defense from Josh Anderson, Jordan Schafer or Gregor Blanco, the three youngsters that Frank Wren has said would compete for the center-field job if the Braves don’t get another before opening day.
And GM Frank Wren has said Bobby Cox believes the Braves have enough offense at other positions to have a defense-first CF if they need to this season, that whatever offense they provide is a plus.
That said, the Braves would probably like to have a guy like a Coco Crisp or David DeJesus to man center until Schafer is truly ready to step in and thrive in the majors. But they’re not going to give up a lot of young talent in order to trade for a player like Crisp or DeJesus, plus pay a multi-million-dollar salary on top of that. Again, they consider this a stopgap need, because they’re pretty certain about Schafer for the future. And if something were to happen to prevent him from realizing his potential, they also have Gorkys Hernandez behind Schafer.
Lefty reliever: We know Ron Mahay wants a longer contract (three years minimum) than the Braves are willing to give a 36-year-old lefty specialist. He’ll get it from someone. Three or four years, probably about $3 mill per.
So where will the Braves turn to fill their lefty need? They’ve got only the relatively unproven and erratic Royce Ring as an incumbent lefty, since Mike Gonzalez is likely to be out until around the All-Star break?
The Braves got Gonzalez from the Pirates last winter, and coincidentally, might look to Pittsburgh for another lefty this winter. Damaso Marte is available. He’s 32 and coming off a career-resurgence season in which he posted a 2.38 ERA and 1.103 WHIP, by far his best since since his career year in 2003.
Marte had 51 strikeouts with only 18 walks and 32 hits allowed in 45-1/3 innings over 65 appearances last season, and has been pretty solid now for six years running, with at least 65 appearances every season.
The bad news is that the Yankees are among the other teams interested. But the Yankees could satisfy their lefty needs by signing Mahay or Jeremy Affeldt, the two prime lefty specialists on the free-agent market. So we’ll see.
Problem for the Braves is that so many teams are looking for bullpen help, and the market for middle relievers and lefties has never spiked higher than now.
Braves bargaining chips: The Braves could have something that plenty of teams want badly - an extra starting pitcher. Even if Mike Hampton is questionable this spring (and of course he will be, always), they’d still have four guys they consider capable of succeeding in the rotation to compete for the last two spots: Rookies Jair Jurrjens and Jo-Jo Reyes, incumbent lefty Chuck James, and Jeff Bennett, who pitched well late last season and this winter in Venezuela.
I know plenty of fans would like to have Dan Haren or another proven stud at the top, but folks, I can’t see any way the Braves do that. Not when they have other needs, and not when they already have a surplus (compared to other teams) of starters and the chance to have a cheap, effective starter like Jurrjens in the rotation. They’re not going to trade away young talent and pay another big salary to get another veteran starter, when they already have three (Smoltz, Hudson, Glavine) they believe can combine for 42-45 wins and about 600 innings.
Meanwhile, whether this week, this winter, or during spring training, you can bet other teams are going to inquire about one or more of the Braves’ “extra” starters. And that’s why I can’t help but think someone is going to make an offer for James that the Braves can’t refuse.
Yes, he’s won 11 games in each of his first two full seasons in the majors. But would anyone be shocked if James had, say, an 8-12 season with a 4.80 ERA? Not predicting it’ll happen. I like James and believe he can be a quality pitcher for some time. But I don’t have a lot of confidence that’s going to happen, either, and his propensity for gopher balls, limited repertoire, and lack of preparation on the mental side lead me to wonder if the Braves might not try to move him to help fill another need if a team makes the right offer.
The Braves might also listen to offers for Matt Diaz, but I’d guess they want to see more from Brandon Jones this spring before making a move like that. Put it this way: Would you want to rely heavily on Willie Harris in left field?
Scott Thorman has finished his winter-ball assignment in Mexico (he wasn’t hurt; Braves said plan all along was for him to play first part of the season), and I’m asked frequently about the Braves’ plans for him.
Right now he’s presumably still their backup 1B. But if they believe Matt Diaz could handle that limited assignment (Teixeira will play almost every day long as he’s healthy, or perhaps that Brayan Pena could handle it and also play some outfield, then maybe the Braves would look to trade Thorman.
Haven’t heard any teams interested yet, or even that it’s being considered. But that means little if anything, since trades for guys like Thorman are often finalized before anything’s every leaked about such relatively minor deals.
OK, I’m gonna go work the lobby. Or lobbies. We’re supposed to meet with Wren later today, and hopefully we’ll have something to tell you then. But like I’ve said, this could be a relatively slow week for the Bravos in Nashvegas.
”NASHVILLE CATS” by John Sebastian (later covered by Steve Earle)
Nashville cats
Play clean as country water
Nashville cats
Play wild as mountain dew
Nashville cats
Been playin’ since they’s babies
Nashville cats
Get work before they’re two
Well, there’s 1,352 guitar pickers in Nashville
And they can pick more notes than the number of ants on a Tennessee ant hill
There’s 1,352 guitar cases in Nashville
And anyone that unpacks his guitar can play twice as better than I will
Nashville cats
Play clean as country water
Nashville cats
Play wild as mountain dew
Nashville cats
Been playin’ since they’s babies
Nashville cats
Get work before they’re two
I was just 13 you might say I was a musical proverbial knee-high
When I heard a couple new sounding tunes on the tube and they blasted me sky high
Then the record man said everyone is a yellin’ send records from Nashville
And up North there ain’t nobody buy ‘em and I said, but I will
Nashville cats
Play clean as country water
Nashville cats
Play wild as mountain dew
Nashville cats
Been playin’ since they’s babies
Nashville cats
Get work before they’re two
Well there’s 16,821 mothers from Nashville
All their friends play music and they ain’t uptight if one of the kids will
Because it’s custom made for any mother’s son to be a guitar picker in Nashville
And I sure am glad I got a chance to say a word about the music and the mothers from Nashville
Nashville cats
Play clean as country water
Nashville cats
Play wild as mountain dew
Nashville cats
Been playin’ since they’s babies
Nashville cats
Get work before they’re two
