News
Trade bait: Plenty of talent could be on move
Padres may deal Gonzalez; other big names also out there
By John Schlegel / MLB.com
02/09/10 12:00 AM EST
When players make themselves at home in their respective clubhouses in a couple of weeks, some will be trying on new uniforms, while most will be putting on the same ones they've worn for years.A few might not want to get too comfortable in this spring's colors, though.
Trades will happen. Some will happen soon, some might not happen until summer as the July 31 Trade Deadline approaches. But they'll happen.
It might be something we've heard about for months, like Adrian Gonzalez to the Red Sox. It might be one that could make sense even with the ink barely dried on a player's contract, like Ben Sheets with the A's. And you can pretty much bank on there being a doozy or two nobody had any idea was coming.
Plus, with an impressive list of possible free agents for 2011, the trade possibilities figure to expand, if not just in number than in quality of player. Stars such as Josh Beckett, Carl Crawford, Cliff Lee, Derrek Lee, Carlos Pena and Brandon Webb are heading into 2010 with nothing set for 2011 and others such as Aramis Ramirez, Jose Reyes and Jimmy Rollins have club options pending. So depending on circumstances surrounding those and others, some big names could be part of the rumblings this summer.
Whatever the case, the atmosphere appears to be ripe for trades in 2010.
For anyone who thinks things can't change between those giddy early days of Spring Training, full of handshakes and welcoming backslaps, and the tension of the Trade Deadline, one name should ring a bell: Matt Holliday. Acquired to hold down the middle of the A's order last winter, Holliday was shipped off to the Cardinals in July, along with about $4 million of his $13.25 million salary for three prospects.
Which of course made Oakland's signing last week of Sheets to a one-year, $10 million deal one of the first new, and perhaps at the moment unfounded, trade rumors of 2010.
Not that the A's signed the big right-hander who missed all of 2009 just to trade him. But GM Billy Beane certainly showed (again) he can turn a high-priced veteran into prospects last year when he picked up prospect Brett Wallace (No. 16 on MLB.com's Top 50 prospects list) and two other Minor Leaguers from St. Louis, later flipping Wallace to Toronto for outfield prospect Michael Taylor (No. 35).
And not that Sheets, who still has to prove he's healthy for the long term, signed with the A's in hopes of playing somewhere else -- he made that much clear upon signing.
"I told Casey (Close, his agent), 'I like where this A's team is going, and I like how confident they are in their organization.' This is where it worked out," Sheets said.
And for anyone who thinks trade rumors that go on and on forever and then seem dead don't come true, another name should ring a bell: Jake Peavy. The right-hander was reported to be traded about eight months before he actually was sent from the Padres to the White Sox last summer.
Which of course makes the Gonzalez trade possibility a real one, whether it's before Opening Day or into the season.
Especially after the way Padres CEO Jeff Moorad summed things up in a recent interview.
"While I'd be thrilled to have him part of the organization for the long term, the early signals indicate his cost will be greater than our ability to pay," Moorad told the San Diego Union-Tribune last week, discussing the possibility of extending Gonzalez beyond 2010.
The Red Sox-Gonzalez rumors have centered on starter Clay Buchholz and possibly outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury, with the general rules of engagement being that any team wanting Gonzalez will have to bring a truck to drop off the bounty. He's not only the team's far-and-away star, but he's making $4.75 million this year and $5.25 million on a club option for 2011 -- one of the most valuable contracts in the game right now, certainly for an All-Star.
One school of thought gaining some steam is that one big trade could beget another for the Red Sox, with a Beckett deal -- assuming the two sides determine early on that they're likely to part ways after the season -- being a possible precursor to a Gonzalez deal.
But, with the Red Sox also likely to move Mike Lowell with Adrian Beltre in as the team's new third baseman, we may be getting a trade or two ahead of ourselves.
One thing is certain: Having scouted Gonzalez as a high schooler and like many others admired how he has developed as a pro, Epstein has Gonzalez in his sights.
"It depends if he becomes available. Obviously we love Adrian Gonzalez. Everyone loves Adrian Gonzalez," Epstein told Boston radio station 98.5 The Sports Hub recently.
Everyone loves big trades, too. Sounds like a win-win could be in the works. Or maybe a few.
John Schlegel is a national reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
