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Padres only open to dealing stars for right price

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Ken Rosenthal

Ken Rosenthal has been the senior baseball writer for FOXSports.com since August 2005. He appears weekly on MLB on FOX. Follow him on Twitter.

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Updated Nov 10, 2009 6:17 PM ET
     
 
No player is untouchable, so the Padres might indeed trade first baseman Adrian Gonzalez if they receive a knockout offer. But the Red Sox, the team with the most reported interest in Gonzalez, probably will need to offer major-league pieces to entice the Padres. And really, what is the Pads' rush? Gonzalez is a 40-homer man, Gold Glove-caliber first baseman and Mexican-American native of San Diego. Perhaps best of all from the Padres' low-revenue perspective, he is incredibly affordable at $4.75 million next season and $5.7 million the year after. Of course, the Red Sox want Gonzalez. Twenty-eight other teams probably do as well. But the Sox thinned their list of trade candidates when they sent right-hander Justin Masterson and left-hander Nick Hagadone to the Indians in the Victor Martinez trade. First baseman Lars Anderson, once considered a top prospect, had a .673 OPS at Triple-A last season. Right-hander Michael Bowden is not considered an elite talent by most clubs. Most of the Sox's better young players are either in the majors (Jacoby Ellsbury, Clay Buchholz) or below Double-A, increasing the degree of difficulty for a Gonzalez deal. "I don't see how Boston does it," one rival executive says. Regardless, the Padres should be more open to trading closer Heath Bell, who also will be relatively inexpensive next season but belongs to that volatile species known as "reliever." Third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff also is expendable — Kyle Blanks can take over in left field, with Chase Headley moving to third. Gonzalez, 27, is all but irreplaceable, particularly for a team that finished last season on a 37-25 roll despite losing right-hander Chris Young to a shoulder injury and trading right-hander Jake Peavy to the White Sox. Three NL West teams — the Dodgers, Rockies and Giants — finished with 88 or more wins. The Divorce Court Dodgers are at least a temporary mess, the Rockies forever streaky, the Giants impotent offensively. Realistically, the Padres might not pass any of them. But they would at least stand a chance of competing if they started the season with Gonzalez, placating their fans. GM Jed Hoyer's predecessor, Kevin Towers, obtained seven pitchers in separate trades for Peavy and outfielder Scott Hairston, helping replenish the team's farm system. Clearly, the Padres need to acquire more young talent. But they could continue that process by moving Bell and Kouzmanoff, both of whom could fit with the National League champion Phillies, among other clubs. The only way the Padres should move Gonzalez this winter is if they receive an absolutely killer package in return.

Beckett vs. Burnett

OK, you're Josh Beckett, and the Red Sox want to talk to you about a contract extension. The first words out of your mouth have to be, "A.J. Burnett." Beckett's career ERA-plus — that is, his ERA adjusted to his league and ballpark — is better than Burnett's. He also has a far superior track record in the postseason than Burnett, his former Marlins teammate — and career measuring stick. Burnett landed a five-year, $82.5 million contract from the Yankees as a free agent last winter. Beckett, under contract for $12 million next season, gave the Sox a hometown discount in his last deal. He loves Boston, but is a native Texan who would be a free agent at 30. It's easy to imagine his appeal to the Astros and Rangers. It's also easy to imagine the risk-averse Red Sox balking at deal of longer than three or four years.

The next Oliver Perez? Help!

While the Rockies would love to acquire a No. 2 or No. 3 starter, they also would entertain trade offers for left-hander Jorge De La Rosa, who went 16-9 with a 4.38 ERA last season but is only a year away from free agency. De La Rosa, according to one source, wants to be paid like Mets lefty Oliver Perez, who signed a three-year, $36 million free-agent contract last winter. The problem, of course, is that De La Rosa's track record is about as inconsistent as Perez's. The good news is for the Rockies is that left-hander Jeff Francis is throwing well after missing all of last season while recovering from arthroscopic shoulder on his surgery. Francis, if healthy, can replace right-hander Jason Marquis, a departing free agent. But the Rockies still will need help at some point next season from one or more of their developing pitchers at Triple-A.

Griffey Jr., Big Unit: retiring types?

Ken Griffey Jr., a free agent, is scheduled to talk with the Mariners early next week, according to his agent, Brian Goldberg. Griffey, who turns 40 on Nov. 21, probably will decide shortly thereafter whether he wants to keep playing. Randy Johnson, another free agent, has yet to discuss his future with his agent, Barry Meister. Johnson, 46, won his 300th game last season but did not start after July 5 because of a strained left shoulder. He seems likely to retire.

Twinkies starting to spend

Every move the Twins make this offseason will be scrutinized for its potential effect on the team's efforts to sign catcher Joe Mauer to a contract extension before he hits the open market next offseason. So far, so good. The Twins' trade for shortstop J.J. Hardy and the exercising of right fielder Michael Cuddyer's $10.5 million option for 2011 are signs of a team that seems to be loosening its budget and affirming its commitment to winning. Hardy's salary in arbitration, likely to be in the $5.5 million range next season, will further increase in '11, his last year under club control before he becomes a free agent. Cuddyer will earn $19 million over the next two years — not an unreasonable amount for a player coming off a 32-homer, 94-RBI, .862 OPS season, but still a sizable investment for a low-revenue club. The Twins exercised Cuddyer's option without initiating discussions about a contract extension — an indication they are comfortable with his salaries over the next two years.

Gibson, Fryman wow Indians

Former major leaguers Kirk Gibson and Travis Fryman made strong impressions on Indians general manager Mark Shapiro before the team named Manny Acta its new manager. Gibson, the Diamondbacks' bench coach, "obviously is a tremendous competitor," Shapiro said. "He has a clear passion for managing and a clear, well-articulated vision for the kind of team he would want to manage." Shapiro's discussion with Gibson was by phone. Fryman, the manager of the Indians' Single-A Mahoning Valley affiliate, interviewed in person. "He was a huge surprise — he blew us away," Shapiro said. "He was surprisingly clear in the way he would build a staff and run the team. "The further into the interview he got, the more excited he became by the potential of managing. We left the interview believing he will be an impact major-league manager someday. The timing just wasn't right."

Around the horn

  • If left fielder Johnny Damon wants to remain a Yankee, he should follow the example of former Yankees outfielder Paul O'Neill, who signed a two-year deal with the team at age 36 in 1999 and a one-year deal in 2001. Damon, who turned 36 on Thursday, is represented by Scott Boras, who usually seeks market-driven contracts. Still, it's difficult to imagine another team giving Damon a better deal than the Yankees, if he's willing to accept two years.
  • Mark Teahen was a below-average defender at third base last season according to two advanced defensive metrics, and one rival GM says he does not hit well enough to justify the $5 million-plus the low-revenue Royals would have paid him in salary arbitration. The White Sox can better afford Teahen, but a .749 career OPS at third? Hmmm ...
  • Don't count on the Rockies making the same type of move with third baseman Garrett Atkins that the Royals did with Teahen. Atkins is simply too expensive to trade — he likely would receive a raise from $7.05 million in his final year of arbitration — and is virtually certain to be non-tendered.
  • Phillies second baseman Chase Utley, a former teammate of Atkins' at UCLA, has always wanted his old college buddy to join him in Philadelphia. If Atkins became a free agent, the Phillies almost certainly could get him for less than the $5 million they would pay Pedro Feliz if they exercised his option. The team needs to make that decision by Monday.
  • The thought of free-agent left fielder Matt Holliday signing with the Mets is good for a chuckle. Some who know Holliday say he would prefer not to play in New York. Also, his power to right-center makes him a poor fit for Citi Field. The Mets would not be so desperate to upgrade in left if Fernando Martinez had justified talk that he might be a left-handed Manny Ramirez ...
  • Cliff Lee and A.J. Burnett had an all-Arkansas showdown in Game 5 of the World Series, and Reds minor-league left-hander Travis Wood could be the next pitcher from the state to make good. Wood, 6 feet and 165 pounds, went a combined 13-5 with a 1.77 ERA at Double-A and Triple-A last season after spending the previous winter working out with Lee. He will compete for the Reds' fifth starter's job in spring training.
  • Rockies reliever Rafael Betancourt rejected a two-year offer for between $6.5 million and $7 million, according to a major-league source. The Rockies still could offer Betancourt arbitration, figuring he would receive less than the value of his $5.4 million club option, which the team declined. Betancourt projects as a Type A free agent. It's doubtful another team would sign him and forfeit high picks.
  • Look for the Padres to work out a deal with right-hander Kevin Correia, who went 12-11 with a 3.98 ERA and threw 198 innings last season. Correia's salary could jump from $1.1 million, including incentives, to about $3.5 million in arbitration. He is one year away from free agency, but also is a San Diego native who wants to stay with the club.
  • And finally, my favorite New York subway moment of the postseason: Two teenage boys were break-dancing for money, and one did a walking handstand for nearly the entire length of the car with the train in motion. Several riders, including myself, could not help but smile and reach into their pockets. That, folks, is entertainment!
    • Tagged: J.J. Hardy, Adrian Gonzalez, Jake Peavy, Kevin Correia, Matt Holliday, Chase Headley, Joe Mauer, Justin Masterson, Jason Marquis, Red Sox, White Sox, Rafael Betancourt, Indians, Royals, Reds, Astros, Twins, Kevin Kouzmanoff, Dodgers, Yankees, Mets, Athletics, Phillies, Mariners, Cardinals, Clay Buchholz, Michael Cuddyer, Manny Ramirez, Padres, Chris Young, Giants, Rockies, Marlins, Scott Hairston, Heath Bell, Chase Utley, Kyle Blanks, Josh Beckett, Victor Martinez, Jeff Francis, Lars Anderson, Fernando Martinez, A.J. Burnett, Michael Bowden, Jorge De La Rosa

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