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Steal of a deal In Floyd, the Red Sox added the best player availablePosted: Wednesday July 31, 2002 6:01 PM
The Boston Red Sox remain a big player in the AL pennant chase, thanks to their huge pickup on Tuesday of Cliff Floyd from the Expos for two minor league pitchers with decent potential. Floyd is a significant upgrade over both Brian Daubach and Tony Clark, a pair of players who figure to lose some at-bats as a result of the deal. Don't expect Floyd to tear up the American League immediately; history tells us that the transition from the NL to the AL is a difficult one. But Floyd is a lineup presence who offers protection for Manny Ramirez and, even when he's not locked in, the 29-year-old outfielder seems to get on base with walks or crush mistakes for home runs. He was the best bat available and the Red Sox got him. The question now: Is anybody home in Seattle? The Mariners have been notoriously cautious when it comes to making big in-season trades. Two years ago manager Lou Piniella pleaded for a hitter, and after Seattle passed on David Justice, it traded for Al Martin, a complete bust. This season the Mariners watched Bartolo Colon go to Montreal. Said one scout, "Colon was the perfect fit for the M's and they had the pieces to get the deal done. With the team they've had the past few years, they've needed to blow it open just once, and Colon was worth it." The Yankees, Red Sox and Athletics all have made major moves. Now the Mariners are under the gun to rent Paul Byrd from Kansas City, a guy on a terrific hot streak, but hardly a pitcher battle-tested in big games. The ball is in Seattle's court. On to this week's 'bag ... Jeff Weaver looks like Ed Whitson Jr. Ted Lilly, whom New York dealt for
Weaver, is left-handed and seems to be coming into his own. Why do you think
Weaver is stinking up the joint? And what possessed the Yanks to make this trade
after Lilly started to pitch
well?
I think Weaver is trying too hard to show New York what he has. The guy has never pitched a big game in the majors and seems to be pressing. The Yankees made the move as insurance against the ages of Roger Clemens, Mike Mussina, David Wells and Orlando Hernandez. It was a trade more about 2003 and 2004 than this year. The Yanks believe Weaver can be a No 1 or a No. 2 starter by then, while they thought Lilly maxed out at a No. 3, if everything broke right for him. By the way, both pitch with unusual mechanics that have "breakdown'' written all over them, especially Weaver, who threw so many pitches in Detroit at such a young age. All this talk about Alfonso Soriano as MVP has made me wonder about Nomar
Garciaparra. The Red Sox shortstop has driven in 20 more runs, is hitting for
the same average and has not had the lineup around him that the Yankees second
baseman does. Even with Manny Ramirez sidelined for about eight weeks, Nomar has
consistently put up the numbers. Where would Boston be without him? New York has
approximately eight other All-Star caliber players in its lineup. Nomar is the
MVP, at least in the AL
East.
Right now the Red Sox aren't even in the playoffs. That's a huge consideration for me when it comes to choosing an MVP. Four of the 14 teams in the league make the postseason. Surely you can find somebody who helped his team play into October. Nomar picks up more support if the Red Sox make it to October. Tom, it's no secret that all winning teams need more than just one or two
stars to find their way to the postseason. Many argue that you must have a
couple of "role players." That said, would you name your All Role
Player Team, and offer your opinion on which club has the best group of role
players?
My top role players (assuming you mean starters and bench guys) would include Mark McLemore, Eli Marrero, David Eckstein, Ramiro Mendoza, Raul Ibanez, Erubiel Durazo, Miguel Batista, Mike Remlinger and Brad Ausmus. I think the Yankees, because they can spend so much money on their bench and bullpen, have the best mix of role players. Why do the players have a say in how revenue is shared? All that should
matter to them is getting paid in the way they are accustomed to. I don't
understand why this is a point for negotiation between the union and
management.
Weird, huh? Do any owners have a say in how the players spend their money? Fact is, revenue sharing is subject to collective bargaining because it can have a direct impact on salaries. The players have a right to protest if the owners decide to share so much of their revenue that teams don't see any incentive to increase profits -- the theory being, why make more money if I have to turn it over to other teams? Further, player salaries are tied to one important element: no, not ticket prices -- revenues. If revenues go up, salaries go up. If revenues go down, salaries go down, as happened in 1995. Who do you think deserves to be Comeback Player of the Year? I think it
should be Roy Halladay. Look at his record last year; he was sent to Class AAA,
and now he's having a sensational
season.
Actually, Halladay started last season in Class A ball, so it will be hard to top that comeback: from Class A Dunedin to the All-Star Game. But don't forget to consider Darin Erstad and Nomar Garciaparra for the award. Sports Illustrated senior writer Tom Verducci covers the baseball beat for the magazine and is a regular contributor to CNNSI.com. Click here to send a question to his Mailbag |
