What to do with Manny?
There are two schools of thought on Manny now that Damon is gone. One is that the Sox cannot afford to let him go because they've already lost too much offense. The other is that moving Manny may be the only way to begin to recoup some of their losses. I'm split between the two.
The New York Post claims that Manny is surely angry with the Sox. He (or rather his wife) was tired of the rock star status he had in Boston and he wanted out. Now with all his homies gone from the clubhouse his frustrations are mounting. If this is the case I'd move in favor of moving Manny. I'm not sure they'll get fair value in return but an unhappy Manny has shown himself to be nearly meaningless.
A few interesting possibilities have already been thrown out for Manny that help the Sox fill some of their holes. Lastings Milledge's name has resurfaced considering the Sox need at CF and the Mets long term commitment to Beltran. Package him with Kaz Matsui (I'm not wild about him but he fills a need) and the Sox might be onto something.
A second potential deal would be with the Halos. The latest iteration has the Sox sending Manny to the Angels for gold glove CF Darin Erstad and SS Orlando Cabrera. Again the Sox fill two holes and the money is an even swap. This might make sense for LAA, too, since they already have high prospects who could step in at both 1B (currently manned by Erstad) and SS.
Potentially the most intriguing deal is one thrown around by Ken Rosenthal. He reports that the Cubbies are feverishly working on a deal for Tejada but the deal is hitting snags because both sides are reluctant to throw in young talent. Enter the Red Sox in a potential three-way deal. In this scenario the Sox send Manny to the O's and Tejada goes to the Cubs. In return the Sox get pitching (possibly Prior), CF Corey Patterson, and SS Ronny Cedeno. If Prior is part of the deal I'd take this in a heartbeat. Admittedly there's some question about his health but his credentials are amazing. Doing a deal like this would give the Sox four solid young arms upon which to build for the future (Beckett, Prior, Papelbon, Lester), half of which have solid MLB experience that suggests they'd payoff this year. Also, this deal would make both Arroyo and Clement expendable or allow the Sox the flexibility to send Papelbon to the bullpen for more seasoning at the MLB level.
In an unrelated note, the Sox appear to be going after Kevin Millwood. I have mixed feelings on this. He lead the league in ERA while pitching in CLE. BUT a deal for him is said to be in the "AJ Burnett" area ($55M/5yr). Oh, yeah, his agent is Scott Boras who coveniently omits the fact that Millwood is four or five years older than Burnett and no longer eating innings the way he did three years ago. He'd be a good stablemate but is probably too expensive considering the length of contract he wants. Three years with an option? Maybe. I'd still be worried that the Sox rotation would be all RHP.
The New York Post claims that Manny is surely angry with the Sox. He (or rather his wife) was tired of the rock star status he had in Boston and he wanted out. Now with all his homies gone from the clubhouse his frustrations are mounting. If this is the case I'd move in favor of moving Manny. I'm not sure they'll get fair value in return but an unhappy Manny has shown himself to be nearly meaningless.
A few interesting possibilities have already been thrown out for Manny that help the Sox fill some of their holes. Lastings Milledge's name has resurfaced considering the Sox need at CF and the Mets long term commitment to Beltran. Package him with Kaz Matsui (I'm not wild about him but he fills a need) and the Sox might be onto something.
A second potential deal would be with the Halos. The latest iteration has the Sox sending Manny to the Angels for gold glove CF Darin Erstad and SS Orlando Cabrera. Again the Sox fill two holes and the money is an even swap. This might make sense for LAA, too, since they already have high prospects who could step in at both 1B (currently manned by Erstad) and SS.
Potentially the most intriguing deal is one thrown around by Ken Rosenthal. He reports that the Cubbies are feverishly working on a deal for Tejada but the deal is hitting snags because both sides are reluctant to throw in young talent. Enter the Red Sox in a potential three-way deal. In this scenario the Sox send Manny to the O's and Tejada goes to the Cubs. In return the Sox get pitching (possibly Prior), CF Corey Patterson, and SS Ronny Cedeno. If Prior is part of the deal I'd take this in a heartbeat. Admittedly there's some question about his health but his credentials are amazing. Doing a deal like this would give the Sox four solid young arms upon which to build for the future (Beckett, Prior, Papelbon, Lester), half of which have solid MLB experience that suggests they'd payoff this year. Also, this deal would make both Arroyo and Clement expendable or allow the Sox the flexibility to send Papelbon to the bullpen for more seasoning at the MLB level.
In an unrelated note, the Sox appear to be going after Kevin Millwood. I have mixed feelings on this. He lead the league in ERA while pitching in CLE. BUT a deal for him is said to be in the "AJ Burnett" area ($55M/5yr). Oh, yeah, his agent is Scott Boras who coveniently omits the fact that Millwood is four or five years older than Burnett and no longer eating innings the way he did three years ago. He'd be a good stablemate but is probably too expensive considering the length of contract he wants. Three years with an option? Maybe. I'd still be worried that the Sox rotation would be all RHP.
posted by Andy Vanasse at 6:02 AM
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