The Cubs are still in a standstill until Milton Bradley is moved, though Bruce Levine did say they are also shopping Aaron Miles and Jake Fox. Obviously getting rid of Miles isn't going to be easy, but I'll bet plenty of AL teams make a call about Fox. Despite his fielding problems, Jake can really hit. In a good AL lineup he could sit fastball and mash 25 homers no problem. Levine mentioned KC and Oakland as possible landing spots, both of which would be ideal for Fox. KC especially would give him an excellent chance to play full time and show what he can do with the bat.

The rest of the NL is getting busy, especially the NL East. The Braves are probably going to lose their two best relief pitchers from last season- Mike Gonzalez and Rafeal Soriano- so to make up for it they signed Billy Wagner to a one year $7 million deal with a vesting option for 2011. Wagner was a Type-A free agent who was offered arbitration meaning the Braves will give their first round pick to the Red Sox as part of the signing. Normally that wouldn't be a big deal, but I have to wonder what the Braves were thinking here. Wagner has the potential to be an elite closer, but he's old and injury prone, I would have guessed he sat around longer before finding a job. At least the Braves went out and filled a need though.

The Mets are going on a catcher collection that includes former Geovany Soto mentor Henry "Hank White" Blanco. They are also looking to get former Giant Bengie Molina. If Blanco and Molina combined their strengths the Mets would actually have a good catcher, but you have to applaud the effort at least. Blanco is a great backup to have because he defense if so good. The random doubles that he produces will probably come less frequently at Citi Field, but still Hank will fit in nicely. Same with Molina, though his inability to walk might frustrate some Mets fans. Bengie is still a good hitter who is used to playing in pitchers parks, while neither is an elite catcher I would have a hard time saying the Mets didn't improve on what they had at catcher last season.

The Phillies are about to make the biggest splash so far by signing Placido Polanco to play third base. The deal is expected to be three years at $18 million, a good bargin for Polanco who has always been a good hitter and fielder. The move to third will be interesting, but this probably makes the Phillies lineup even more dangerous now. Polanco could hit second moving Shane Victorino down into a RBI spot, or Polanco might hit eighth. Heck with Rollins, Victorino, and Polanco I think the LaRussa strategy of hitting the pitcher eighth might actually be a good idea. That is just me spitballing though.

Otherwise things are still pretty quiet. The NL Central appears to be broke across the board, with the exception of St. Louis who can't really make any moves until they know what Matt Holliday is doing.

Comments (1)

Name

Email

Website

Title

Comment

smaller | bigger

Subscribe via email (registered users only)

Add Comment