SELL SELL SELL

TomRicardo

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Seriously who is packing Peavy's bag.
 
Miller? Gone
 
Gomes? Gone
 
Who else should be shipping out?
 

Pilgrim

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The Lester extension looks FUBAR. If they aren't going to pay him now, they aren't going to pay him later. It pains me to say it, but not trading him just exacerbates the mistake.
 

Snodgrass'Muff

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John Marzano Olympic Hero said:
Drew definitely.
 
See what you can get for Uehara and Lester.
 
Lester should definitely be traded if they feel that they can't have him at a price they will pay and that there is no chance this will change by the end of the season.  If they are willing to come up to market rate or at least close enough that they still think they can persuade him, they should look to trade Lackey instead.  One of those two needs to be in Boston next year for the team to have any chance at fielding a competitive team, though.  And, of course, the Red Sox coming to the conclusion that they can still get a deal done with Lester could well be a miscalculation on their part, but we don't know enough about the internal discussions to make a good guess there, so we'll have to wait and see.
 

vadertime

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In the right deal(s) Baddenhop and Breslow.  Baddenhop is a FA after the year and their is an option on Breslow, so they may not be around anyway.
 
Possibly find a taker on Victorino, if you believe his injury troubles this year are the beginning of the end.
 

Yaz4Ever

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Sell:  Lester, Buchholz, Uehara, Drew, Miller, Breslow, Victorino, Napoli, Gomes, Carp, and Ross  (edit: forgot Peavy)
Give away:  Mujica (we may need to send more than the remaining balance of his contract, though)
 
Season's over.  Get as many prospects as you can, play the kids, get good draft picks next year.
 

SouthernBoSox

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Drew
Peavy
Ross
Gomes
Miller
Badenhop
Carp
 
Are all guys who should net some very interesting returns and who have little future with the club.
 
Lester
Uehara
 
Guys you throw out there and try to hit a homerun with.
 

Dogman

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Peavy, Drew, Badenhop, Breslow, Gomes, Middlebrooks, Mujica, Carp, Ross.
 
Extend Lester, Miller, Koji. 
 

Laser Show

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Dogman2 said:
Peavy, Drew, Badenhop, Breslow, Gomes, Middlebrooks, Mujica, Carp, Ross.
 
Extend Lester, Miller, Koji. 
Seconded. The last 3 can contribute/hard to replace for next year.
 

Dogman

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Laser Show said:
Seconded. The last 3 can contribute/hard to replace for next year.
 
 
It also signals the team knows it can compete with those guys as part of their core. 
 

StuckOnYouk

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So is there a team in the playoff hunt with a good farm system and in need of a closer who could use a Lester/Uehara package?
I'd imagine we'd get a very nice package for that, even if it's just 3 month rental.
 
Not that it will ever happen, these things only usually happen on sites like this.
 

TomRicardo

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John Marzano Olympic Hero said:
Drew definitely.
 
See what you can get for Uehara and Lester.
 
See Drew is someone I probably wait until August to do.  Hope someone foolishly puts a waiver claim on him and let him go for free.
 

Dewy4PrezII

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Peavy, Drew, Bradenhop, Breslow, Gomes, Mujica, Carp and Ross are all guys who should be traded without a second thought. 
 
Victorino and Middlebrooks are guys who should be dangled to see if the return would be worth parting ways.
 
Lester, Uehara and Miller should only be traded if they do not believe that they can resign them.
 
I would also see if Buchholz has enough value to warrant a trade but I doubt his current value is high enough given his performance this year that it would be worth trading him.
 
Obviously you won't be able to trade them all
 

TomRicardo

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Dogman2 said:
Peavy, Drew, Badenhop, Breslow, Gomes, Middlebrooks, Mujica, Carp, Ross.
 
Extend Lester, Miller, Koji. 
 
Middlebrooks I would definitely hold on to and try to unload in the offseason.  I think Doubront and him have much more off season value when teams can project an image on them.
 
Ross I hold on to because I don't think there is much of a market and I want Vasquez to be working with an experienced catcher.
 
No one wants Mujica or Drew.  Waiver Wire trade material.
 

Savin Hillbilly

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The wrong side of the bridge....
I would not sell on Ross if we're hoping to extend Lester. In fact I would try to re-up Ross for another year. Obviously Lester knows that if he signs a 6-year deal Ross isn't going to be around for much of it, but bringing him back for 2015 would be a nice we're-serious-about-making-you-happy gesture. And Swihart probably needs one more year in the minors anyway.
 

Yaz4Ever

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InsideTheParker said:
Also, I need a reason to keep watching. I doubt I'm alone.
Watching the kids should be reason enough, imho.  Let them struggle/succeed without looking over their shoulders for the last 50+ games.  We're not winning this year anyhow, so I'd love to see what we've got plus the guys we'd get for the guys we move.  We might be able to put together a pretty solid defensive team with decent or better bats via prospects and call-ups and then spend big money on a rotation for a couple of years until the younger arms completely take over.
 

Buzzkill Pauley

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CLEARANCE!
Peavy
Uehara
Mujica
Breslow 
Badenhop
Gomes
Drew
 
Replaced on 25-man at no net downgrade: Workman, Ranaudo, Webster, Layne, Ely, Hassan, and Middlebrooks.
 

John Marzano Olympic Hero

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TomRicardo said:
 
See Drew is someone I probably wait until August to do.  Hope someone foolishly puts a waiver claim on him and let him go for free.
 
I understand what you're saying, but Drew is starting to hit a little bit now. Maybe you can convince someone that he's primed and ready for a good stretch run. In August he might be back to sucky old Steven Drew. The Sox aren't going to get very much for him now or in August, I just think Xander should be playing short sooner rather than later.
 
And I forgot about Carp. He'd be a good piece for someone who needs a good bench guy.
 
Lester should definitely be traded if they feel that they can't have him at a price they will pay and that there is no chance this will change by the end of the season.  If they are willing to come up to market rate or at least close enough that they still think they can persuade him, they should look to trade Lackey instead.  One of those two needs to be in Boston next year for the team to have any chance at fielding a competitive team, though.  And, of course, the Red Sox coming to the conclusion that they can still get a deal done with Lester could well be a miscalculation on their part, but we don't know enough about the internal discussions to make a good guess there, so we'll have to wait and see.
 
 
I like Lester a lot but I think, as someone said above, his negotiations are FUBAR'ed. I don't want him to go, but I've pretty much resigned myself to thinking that he's going to be in pinstripes next year (and that sucks). You may as well see what you can get for the guy. Lackey stays (especially with his team-friendly contract) and you try to build around him, Buchholz, a free agent pitcher and two kids next year. As much as I loved to hate him sometimes, I'm really going to miss Lester.
 

Remagellan

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That's the first thing I thought of too when I saw the title of this thread!  
 
 
Everyone around here has turned into Randolph and Mortimer Duke.  
 
Lester must not be given up.  Teams with the sort of resources this one has keeps players like that.  We're not the freaking Rays or the Royals.  Get him signed.  
 

Sprowl

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A 40-man roster inventory of trade value:
 
Several trading decisions depend on whether the Red Sox intend to be contenders in 2015. I think they do, so 'gfi 2015' means sign these guys, don't trade them. Lester and Uehara are foremost on this list.
 
The fixer-upper category refers to the things that the Red Sox can do to increase the long-term value of the prospects obtained in return: price means the team should pay most or all of the player's salary (eg, Peavy). Performance means that the Red Sox will need to give these guys playing time prior to the waiver wire deadline, often in spite of merit, in the hopes that they can bust them out of their slumps.
 
Omitting Brentz, Britton, Butler, Layne and Wilson, each of whom might be used to sweeten a package deal, but are largely without value themselves.
 
2014 sellers, keepers and fixer-uppers
Red Sox 40-man roster   age salary keep/sell? trade value fixer-upper
Burke Badenhop RP 31 2.15m gfi 2015 medium  
Craig Breslow RP 33 3.83m SELL! low performance
Clay Buchholz SP 29 7.95m gfi 2015 medium performance
Rubby De La Rosa SP 25   keep    
Felix Doubront SP 26 586K SELL! high performance
John Lackey SP 35 15.95m gfi 2015 high  
Jon Lester SP 30 13m gfi 2015 very high  
Andrew Miller RP 29 1.9m gfi 2015 high  
Edward Mujica RP 30 4.75m available low price, performance
Jake Peavy SP 33 16.1m SELL! medium price
Junichi Tazawa RP 28 1.73m gfi 2015 very high  
Koji Uehara RP 39 5m gfi 2015 high  
             
David Ross C 37 3.1m   low  
Christian Vazquez C 23   keep    
             
Xander Bogaerts SS 21 517K keep    
Mike Carp 1B 28 1.4m available low performance
Stephen Drew SS 31 14m SELL! low price, performance
Brock Holt 3B 26   available medium  
Will Middlebrooks DL15 3B 25 541K SELL! medium performance
Mike Napoli 1B 32 16m gfi 2015 medium price
Dustin Pedroia 2B 30 12.83m keep    
David Ortiz DH 38 15.5m keep    
             
Jackie Bradley Jr. CF 24 502K keep    
Jonny Gomes LF 33 5m SELL! medium  
Daniel Nava OF 31 556K available medium  
Shane Victorino RF 33 13m gfi 2015 medium price
             
Mookie Betts CF 21   available high  
Garin Cecchini 3B 23   available medium  
Alex Hassan RF 26   available low  
Jonathan Herrera SS 29 1.3m   low  
Anthony Ranaudo SP 24   keep    
Allen Webster SP 24   keep    
Brandon Workman SP 25   keep    
Steven Wright SP 29 502K available low  
 

Al Zarilla

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Wah wah wah. Imagine for a minute being a Phillie fan. They are 3rd in payroll this year at 180 million, 17 million more than the Red Sox, and they have very little down on the farm. Most of their salary is in over the hill guys. Who'd want or, really, want to pay anybody from that team except for Cole Hamels ($$$$$$$$$$$$), maybe reliever Antonio Bastardo, or a bat in Marlon Byrd (or will he get caught again). Utley's getting old for a middle infielder. AJ Burnett pitched a great game last night but he's really old. Ryan Howard is a joke now. The Phillies might be mired in last place or nearby for years, just like when I first started watching.
 

Detts

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Badenhop
Breslow
Britton
Miller
Mujica
Peavy
Uehara
Ross (bring up Butler)
Carp
Drew
Gomes
Victorino
Lester (if blown out of the water).
 
And trade for bats.  We need bats.  
 

Yaz4Ever

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Detts said:
Badenhop
Breslow
Britton
Miller
Mujica
Peavy
Uehara
Ross (bring up Butler)
Carp
Drew
Gomes
Victorino
Lester (if blown out of the water).
 
And trade for bats.  We need bats.  
Package what you get for Lester/Peavy/etc without having to clean out the Sox Prospects cupboard for Stanton.  The only guy I'd like to see the Sox go beyond 6 years at this point.  Sign him long-term, put him in RF, and replenish the rotation in the off-season.  We'll be very competitive next year with that combination of young talent.
 

mabrowndog

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In Gammons' latest piece, he points out something that I hadn't really paid attention to -- and I don't think may others have either when it comes to Lester's situation:
 
“What you have to understand is that under Tony Clark, the Players Association has become heavily involved in all contract negotiations. They want players to get what they perceive as their fair market value, which means they would like to see the big players like Lester and Max Scherzer go to the market, get the bidding rolling and help players throughout the industry.”
 
For example, one National League team thought it had longterm deals with pre-arbitration players done, only to have the agents come back and say the union would not accept the deals; they finally reached agreements, but at higher numbers. One AL GM had the same experience. There are several general managers who felt that is why the Indians never reached a deal in March with Justin Masterson.
 
When the Red Sox sat down with Lester in March, he told friends he wanted one dollar more than Homer Bailey’s six year, $105M. Now, $140M doesn’t seem out of reach on the market. “I don’t see anything less than $120M at this point,” says one NL GM. “The union is not accepting hometown discounts.”
 
Pedroia's bargain-basement deal would never have been approved by the MLBPA had Clark been in charge. And despite Lester's stated willingness to take less-than-market in order to remain in Boston, any "discount" is going to be negligible:
 
So not only will any deal Lester might sign with Boston be pretty much market rate, but so will any deal Giancarlo Stanton might sign with the Marlins.
 
This means Stanton's likely more in play for Boston than any of us realize, despite Miami's statements to the contrary. I just don't see them locking him up for the $30M+ annually over 7+ seasons that he (and the union) are likely going to require.
 
It also means the Sox should absolutely trade Lester now, as painful a decision as that might be.
 
So yeah, it's time to start stockpiling any and all talent that Miami might covet (Gammons cites Corey Seager from the Dodgers), while also procuring lower-level prospects that wouldn't immediately require spots on Boston's 40-man roster or need Rule 5 protection this winter.
 
Adios/GTFO to:
 
EXPIRING CONTRACTS
Lester
Drew
Miller
Uehara
Gomes
Badenhop
Carp
Peavy
Breslow
Lavarnway
 
UNDER CONTRACT, BUT I'M SICK OF THEIR SHIT
Mujica
Doubront
 
The only pending free agent I'd retain is Ross, who has pretty much no deadline deal value but is a guy I see as a huge key to the continuing development of Vazquez and the young pitchers -- as well as Swihart when he arrives sometime next season. So I want the Blue Wolf back for another year, assuming he's willing to return, and would love to seem him stay on as a coach once his playing days are done.
 
As for Koji, I believe they'll be able to re-sign him this winter even if they trade him at the deadline. Miller will be a much harder guy to bring back, as someone's going to give him the 3 years/>$25M he's likely to command.
 

benhogan

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Dogman2 said:
Peavy, Drew, Badenhop, Breslow, Gomes, Middlebrooks, Mujica, Carp, Ross.
 
Extend Lester, Miller, Koji. 
this is pretty accurate
 
Small quibble but may want to extend Ross for 1 more year to work with CV and bring along Swihart slowly.
 
Get Drew out of here, the sooner we can get Xander back to SS and restart his development, the better.
 
Peavy next with Workman to rotation.
 
Then unload relievers with youngsters at AAA taking over those innings (come on up Webster, Ranaudo)
 

soxhop411

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mabrowndog said:
In Gammons' latest piece, he points out something that I hadn't really paid attention to -- and I don't think may others have either when it comes to Lester's situation:
 
 
Pedroia's bargain-basement deal would never have been approved by the MLBPA had Clark been in charge. And despite Lester's stated willingness to take less-than-market in order to remain in Boston, any "discount" is going to be negligible:
 
So not only will any deal Lester might sign with Boston be pretty much market rate, but so will any deal Giancarlo Stanton might sign with the Marlins.
 
This means Stanton's likely more in play for Boston than any of us realize, despite Miami's statements to the contrary. I just don't see them locking him up for the $30M+ annually over 7+ seasons that he (and the union) are likely going to require.
 
It also means the Sox should absolutely trade Lester now, as painful a decision as that might be.
 
So yeah, it's time to start stockpiling any and all talent that Miami might covet (Gammons cites Corey Seager from the Dodgers), while also procuring lower-level prospects that wouldn't immediately require spots on Boston's 40-man roster or need Rule 5 protection this winter.
 
Adios/GTFO to:
 
EXPIRING CONTRACTS
Lester
Drew
Miller
Uehara
Gomes
Badenhop
Carp
Peavy
Breslow
Lavarnway
 
UNDER CONTRACT, BUT I'M SICK OF THEIR SHIT
Mujica
Doubront
 
The only pending free agent I'd retain is Ross, who has pretty much no deadline deal value but is a guy I see as a huge key to the continuing development of Vazquez and the young pitchers -- as well as Swihart when he arrives sometime next season. So I want the Blue Wolf back for another year, assuming he's willing to return, and would love to seem him stay on as a coach once his playing days are done.
 
As for Koji, I believe they'll be able to re-sign him this winter even if they trade him at the deadline. Miller will be a much harder guy to bring back, as someone's going to give him the 3 years/>$25M he's likely to command.
So would the MLBPA even allow a Longoria type extension, when a player is years away from FA? or are those type of deals a thing of the past also?
 
Dec 10, 2012
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mabrowndog said:
 
The only pending free agent I'd retain is Ross, who has pretty much no deadline deal value but is a guy I see as a huge key to the continuing development of Vazquez and the young pitchers -- as well as Swihart when he arrives sometime next season. So I want the Blue Wolf back for another year, assuming he's willing to return, and would love to seem him stay on as a coach once his playing days are done.
Is it completely out of the realm of possibility to give him a golden parachute of sorts, overpay him grossly as a coach to retire this offseason, given his age and concussion history?  Would the union care about such a possibility?
 
Edit: for clarity
 

Mighty Joe Young

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mabrowndog said:
In Gammons' latest piece, he points out something that I hadn't really paid attention to -- and I don't think may others have either when it comes to Lester's situation:
 

 
Pedroia's bargain-basement deal would never have been approved by the MLBPA had Clark been in charge. And despite Lester's stated willingness to take less-than-market in order to remain in Boston, any "discount" is going to be negligible:
 
So not only will any deal Lester might sign with Boston be pretty much market rate, but so will any deal Giancarlo Stanton might sign with the Marlins.
 
This means Stanton's likely more in play for Boston than any of us realize, despite Miami's statements to the contrary. I just don't see them locking him up for the $30M+ annually over 7+ seasons that he (and the union) are likely going to require.
 
It also means the Sox should absolutely trade Lester now, as painful a decision as that might be.
 
So yeah, it's time to start stockpiling any and all talent that Miami might covet (Gammons cites Corey Seager from the Dodgers), while also procuring lower-level prospects that wouldn't immediately require spots on Boston's 40-man roster or need Rule 5 protection this winter.
 
Adios/GTFO to:
 
EXPIRING CONTRACTS
Lester
Drew
Miller
Uehara
Gomes
Badenhop
Carp
Peavy
Breslow
Lavarnway
 
UNDER CONTRACT, BUT I'M SICK OF THEIR SHIT
Mujica
Doubront
 
The only pending free agent I'd retain is Ross, who has pretty much no deadline deal value but is a guy I see as a huge key to the continuing development of Vazquez and the young pitchers -- as well as Swihart when he arrives sometime next season. So I want the Blue Wolf back for another year, assuming he's willing to return, and would love to seem him stay on as a coach once his playing days are done.
 
As for Koji, I believe they'll be able to re-sign him this winter even if they trade him at the deadline. Miller will be a much harder guy to bring back, as someone's going to give him the 3 years/>$25M he's likely to command.
The Union may look askance at home town discounts but they have no power to reject the contract. If a player wanted to sign for a Dollar a year they would have to accept it.

[Edit: actually he would have to receive the minimum .. But there's still nothing the Union could do about it]
 

vadertime

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Ross shouldn't be going anywhere.  We need him as a veteran mentor for Vazquez for the rest of the year.  Depending on how they feel about Butler he may stick around as the backup next year.
 

mabrowndog

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BCsMightyJoeYoung said:
The Union may look askance at home town discounts but they have no power to reject the contract. If a player wanted to sign for a Dollar a year they would have to accept it.

[Edit: actually he would have to receive the minimum .. But there's still nothing the Union could do about it]
 
The outright acceptance/rejection of a deal may not be a direct empowerment under the CBA, but it's an accurate depiction of the realistic power and influence held and exerted by the union and its current leadership. I mean, anyone with a job has the right to tell their boss to fuck off and to urinate on their desk while doing so, but how realistic is that scenario ever playing out without consequences?
 
Why else would the agents, as noted in Gammons' piece, be returning to clubs to get them to increase the value of deals already agreed to in principle? If the player really and truly had the "ability" or "right" to agree to those discounted deals, why didn't they do so?
 
Clark is miles above Donald Fehr's peak height on the union totem pole, and he clearly plays harder ball than Michael Weiner did.
 

mabrowndog

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soxhop411 said:
So would the MLBPA even allow a Longoria type extension, when a player is years away from FA? or are those type of deals a thing of the past also?
 
The way I interpret it, the union is going to be looking much harder at such deals to ensure arb year and FA buyouts are more highly valued and more closely in line with their own market projections.
 

dcmissle

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mabrowndog said:
 
The outright acceptance/rejection of a deal may not be a direct empowerment under the CBA, but it's an accurate depiction of the realistic power and influence held and exerted by the union and its current leadership. I mean, anyone with a job has the right to tell their boss to fuck off and to urinate on their desk while doing so, but how realistic is that scenario ever playing out without consequences?
 
Why else would the agents, as noted in Gammons' piece, be returning to clubs to get them to increase the value of deals already agreed to in principle? If the player really and truly had the "ability" or "right" to agree to those discounted deals, why didn't they do so?
 
Clark is miles above Donald Fehr's peak height on the union totem pole, and he clearly plays harder ball than Michael Weiner did.
That then raises again why the RS made a preposterous offer in Feb. if there is no hope of anything in the neighborhood being accepted, why bother?

I offered an explanation for agents running back to teams saying the deals were a no go -- blame the union when you could have done better by your client in the first place.

Also, you have the employment relationship with Clark and the players running in the wrong direction.
 

Plympton91

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Dogman2 said:
Peavy, Drew, Badenhop, Breslow, Gomes, Middlebrooks, Mujica, Carp, Ross.
 
Extend Lester, Miller, Koji. 
I approve this list. I agree with looking for value for Middlebrooks because Bogaerts is the 3B of the future.

As I've said in multiple forums, resigning Miller is almost more important than resigning Koji, given the difference in age. This organization isn't serious about contending in 2015 unless they're going to sign those three players or sign or trade for their functional equivalents.
 

SouthernBoSox

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Plympton91 said:
I approve this list. I agree with looking for value for Middlebrooks because Bogaerts is the 3B of the future.

As I've said in multiple forums, resigning Miller is almost more important than resigning Koji, given the difference in age. This organization isn't serious about contending in 2015 unless they're going to sign those three players or sign or trade for their functional equivalents.
I think that list is obviously best case scenario.
 
But if the FO thinks the chance of signing Lester is null then the move is to trade him. You almost have to.  This type of situation doesn't happen very often and not capitalizing on it could be very costly.
 

bosockboy

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I've come around on moving Lester.  He's pitching lights out, Price is off the market, it's a perfect storm to get a huge haul.
 
Start getting pieces to move for Stanton.
 

Buzzkill Pauley

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Middlebrooks might be a key component needed to acquire one of the prime bats in the offseason.  Either directly or as part of a multi-team deal.
 
He's got an option remaining.  So if Bogaerts isn't going to be moved back to SS, then the Sox may as well keep Drew as a warmish body, while Will destroys AAA pitching.
 
Worst case scenario: Miami won't move Stanton unless Bogaerts is included in the deal.
 

LostinNJ

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First, what's the goal for 2015?
 
If 2015 is a bridge year, sure -- trade everyone whose contract is up this year or next. Position for a 2016 roster built on the young guys. You can field almost a whole 25-man roster with what's already in the system, and fill gaps (first base? right field?) with strategic investments in the FA market.
 
If the goal is to contend in 2015, you have to take a different approach. You keep Lester, Miller, and Uehara with the intention of re-signing them this offseason (because they probably won't re-sign if traded). You keep Victorino and Napoli and Lackey. You use this trading deadline only to clear some space for young guys -- try to trade Peavy, Gomes, Badenhop.
 
Under either scenario, they might as well keep Drew. He's not blocking anyone because Marrero isn't ready yet, and they clearly believe Bogaerts is not a shortstop.
 

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What a brilliant piece of misdirection for both sides. Now when Lester leaves town for the most money, who do we blame? Not the team, and not the player, but Tony Clark and the union. Nobody likes unions, anyway. It was just out of everybody's hands. Team too cheap? Player too greedy? They wanted to work something out, but by god, it's just these darn labor unions. There's nothing in the CBA that specifically details how much money a player can sign for beyond the minimum, but somehow they just twisted our arms and we couldn't get it done. 
 
Mike Trout is making $1 million this year. Carl Crawford is making $20 million. The system sucks. John Henry's right, all of the money in the system is going to players who just peaked. Why are those few individuals the ones privileged by the CBA above all else? Somebody needs to make a chart by age of production vs. salary. Jon Lester should've gotten 6/160 from 2008-2014, and 4/70 this year. 
 

Bone Chips

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Aug 1, 2009
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South Windsor, CT
bosockboy said:
I've come around on moving Lester.  He's pitching lights out, Price is off the market, it's a perfect storm to get a huge haul.
 
Start getting pieces to move for Stanton.
Agree. Every day they wait reduces what they can get. Lester's value is the number of starts he has remaining in 2014, which ain't a lot.
 

lexrageorge

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Jul 31, 2007
18,099
Gammons is not quite the reliable source he was some time ago.  Yes, I could believe Tony Clark and his staff are much more active in reviewing contracts and advising players whether they should accept or reject the deal.  And perhaps Clark is telling players to reject deals that he thinks are too low. 
 
But I'm not aware of the MLBPA having the right to reject a deal that otherwise meets the terms of the CBA.  There is nothing to stop a Lester or a Pedroia or a Longoria from ignoring the union and accepting a below-market deal.  The players are not employees of the union.  The downside is that if a Lester accepted a significant hometown discount, and then later needs the MLBPA to intervene on his behalf on an unrelated matter, he may have a hard time getting his calls returned. 
 

Bone Chips

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Aug 1, 2009
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South Windsor, CT
Rudy Pemberton said:
As bad as they are this year, couldn't the 2015 team be even worse? And the 2016 team...good God. I get the minor league depth and all that, but there's a real scarcity of above average major league ready talent in the system, and I'm struggling to see how they replace all the players potentially leaving in the next year and a half. Hopefully Good Ben shows up this trading deadline and offseason.
I was thinking the exact same thing. This is a last place team that is losing it's #1 pitcher, a guy who if King Felix gets injured will be the Cy Young winner this year. Yeah, just imagine this team without Lester this year.
 

Yelling At Clouds

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Jul 19, 2005
3,405
Rudy Pemberton said:
As bad as they are this year, couldn't the 2015 team be even worse? And the 2016 team...good God. I get the minor league depth and all that, but there's a real scarcity of above average major league ready talent in the system, and I'm struggling to see how they replace all the players potentially leaving in the next year and a half. Hopefully Good Ben shows up this trading deadline and offseason.
 
This is why I am hesitant to jump on the "sell the farm for Stanton" bandwagon - wouldn't they be better off "spreading the wealth" by using their prospect depth to acquire more than one player from the next tier down to fill their many holes? The trading equivalent of what they did after the 2012 season?