A couple of my players are in the game tonight, but it looks like I'd better get my official trade season opening post out of the way. Surprise bounced back strong from their championship hangover season to quietly go 83-79 in 2008. Looking over the roster, it seems like a playoff run is reasonable enough to attempt. What the heck, I don't like this rebuilding stuff anyway.
The trade possibilities are rather mind-boggling as the Zombies have an extra regular at nearly every position, very few actual holes and a deep group of quality prospects. The main area of need is the bullpen, which will need a major upgrade for this team to seriously contend. However, I'm not going to take complete leave of my senses and trade Wieters or Feliz for a closer, so don't ask.
Here are some of the names who could be leaving town:
1) AJ Pierzynski (C): The loveable White Sox backstop had a fairly typical season, providing a decent lefty bat from the catcher spot. Plus, he just made a nice plate block against the Twins, which should be worth something! On a related note, I feel relieved not to have given up on Chris Iannetta early.
2) Daric Barton (1B): Sure he had a bitterly disappointing season, but the guy is only 23 and has proven his hitting talent in the minors. Trading him is very risky, but I'd rather depend on Adrian Gonzalez at this point.
3) Melky Cabrera (CF): Only 24 years old and has talent, but I'm ready for him to go away.
4) Aubrey Huff (1b/3b): Bounced back with an awesome season and is coming off an A contract. I'm tempted to keep him, but have to at least shop the guy around due to the salary factor.
5) Vicente Padilla (SP) - Started 29 times for the Rangers and wasn't horrible, which qualifies as success. He also has a cheap contract coming off the C.
6) Doug Davis (SP) - Bounced back from cancer to pitch decently in 26 starts.
7) Rhadames Liz (SP) - Tons of potential from this hard thrower, but had a 6.72 ERA this season.
8) Hank Blalock (3B/1B) - Once again tantalized by hitting well while playing less than half of the season. What if he finally stays healthy?
9) Kevin Kouzmanoff (3B) - Improved defensively and vs. RHP, but inexplicably forgot how to hammer LHP. I still like him, but would appreciate an upgrade.
10) Yunieseky Betancourt (SS) - Great defense and maybe adequate offense. I don't have a replacement inhouse, but am shopping for an upgrade.
11) Jose Lopez or Alexi Casilla (2B) - This is a tough one as they both look a lot more appealing than they did a year ago, when I couldn't give them away. On the other hand, do I really trust either of them? Perhaps I'll keep both out of fear.
I'll stop there for now, but others could easily be in the mix. For example, I could definitely afford to deal some prospects as there's little room to draft at this point. Let me know if you see some things you like here and have some quality talent to offer. Our primary areas of interest are relief, ss, 3b, and maybe of.
