Quote:
Originally posted by moe.ron
I'd say, the following players are gone:
Kevin Brown, Tom Gordon, Esteban Loaiza, Paul Quantrill, El Duque, Felix Heredia, Tony Clark,Kenny Lofton,John Olerud, & Ruben Sierra.
I got a feeling Cashman will be under pressure and he'll get an aging superstar to make the boss happy.
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Cashman won't be fired, probably just emaciated from a power standpoint.
El Duque is a Steinbrenner favorite, and he's cheap - not going anywhere.
Heredia, Clark, Lofton, Olerud, and Sierra are all out of contract, no chance at getting resigned - although Steinbrenner loves guys like Olerud. No idea why.
If they get someone to take the contracts of Loaiza or Brown, I'll pee in someone's mouth - they are both albatrosses at this point, and Loaiza was an obvious 'career year' case. Still, I think he's serviceable if they can get him used to NY (same w/ Vasquez).
Personally, I think they'll keep Gordon and Quantrill but overpay for some other relievers - Torre had to rape the bullpen down the stretch b/c of chaff like Brad Halsey and the injuries to starters etc. Look for Chris Hammonds-style overpaying for dudes like Buddy Groom, etc. Quantrill is hurt, and Gordon threw a billion innings - if they keep their workload down, they're still solid relievers.
My prediction? Unless something insane happens, the Cubs will drive the price up out of the Astros' range for Beltran, driving him into center for the Yanks. They'll make a passing run at Pedro to drive the price up on the sox and angels, but they'll wind up spending the cash on relief pitchers instead. I'd predict they sign a first baseman as a backup plan to Giambi, who is iffy at best right now, and they'll grab a defensive-oriented 2B after Jeter's errors in the postseason. Something along the lines of "NL 2B, Buddy Groom, random japanese reliever taking a flier on, Beltran, then a Daubach-type at first"
Just a thought.