Major League Baseball Offseason

The offseason is here for baseball. The San Francisco Giants winning the World Series is already old news. So what comes up next?

The offseason is now, “Hot Stove season.” In other words, what are teams cooking up and planning to do now that they can reassess their ball clubs. Now we can expect releases, signings, and the always intriguing trades.

Top 20 MLB Free Agents

This is another extremely weak free agent class. The top six can be considered perennial All-Star contenders, but after them, the class falls off. There are players that never reached their full potential, aging stars, and players influx.

1. Cliff Lee – LHP – 28 Games Started – 12 Wins – 9 Loses – 185 Strikeouts – 18 Walks – 3.18 Earned Runs Allowed

Did you expect anyone else in the top spot besides Cliff Lee? He is arguably the best pitcher in baseball and the best pitcher on the Free Agent market since the Yankees LHP CC Sabathia. Lee started the year on the DL with the Mariners, but upon his arrival, he started dominating.

But even with Lee and fellow Mariners starter Felix Hernandez dominating, the team crumbled. Thus, Lee was the subject of much trade speculation. It appeared to be the Yankees that snagged the lefty with their prospect catching stud Jesus Montero plus a few other prospects.

At the last second, the Mariners pulled the rug out from under the Yankees and traded Lee to the Texas Rangers for 1B prospect Justin Smoak and an assortment of other prospects.

The afterthought prospects for both teams weren’t all too impressive, but Smoak and Montero were. Apparently though, the Mariners wanted Smoak more. This was Lee’s fourth team in two years.

Lee started off rough with Texas. His worse stats actually were at the Rangers home ballpark. After getting into his groove, Lee again started making opposing batters look absolutely foolish at the plate.

Proving his worth, Lee led the Rangers all the way to the World Series, the first in Rangers franchise history. He again couldn’t prevail. In his second straight World Series appearance, the Rangers lost the series, 4–1.

Now to where Lee has wanted to be for the past three years, free agency.

Everyone in baseball wants to add Cliff Lee to their pitching staff, but there are only two true contenders, the New York Yankees and the Texas Rangers. There will be rumors of teams such as the Boston Red Sox, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim and even possibly a return to the Philadelphia Phillies. Don’t take any of these other rumors seriously.

Why?

The money and other team needs. The three other teams have major needs at other positions, and their payrolls are already at their breaking points.

So why the Rangers and the Yankees?

The Rangers traded their prized 1B prospect and possible future franchise player in Smoak away. They have a loaded system, but he is still a huge hit. If the Rangers don’t re-up the Lee, they will have to trade more prospects, make more radical moves and spend more money to get a viable replacement. Signing Lee alone will cost the team an arm and a leg.

They Yankees have been waiting for three years to get their hands on Lee. Their hope was almost lost when Lee was traded to the Phillies last year, but with the trade to the Mariners, hope was regained. The Yankees need Lee, have the money, and now won’t have to give up any of their top prospects. If they lose out on Lee, they will have to make an insane trade to get another player of Lee’s caliber. With that thought, money will not be an issue in getting him.

Lee could be a slight risk, considering he is 32 years old. But with the way he pitches, more finesse and movement than speed and power, there shouldn’t be much a huge risk in signing him.

Prediction – Yankees, six years for $140 million.

2. Carl Crawford – LF – 154 Games Played – .307 Batting Average – 19 Homeruns – 90 Runs Batted In – 110 Runs – .356 On–Base Percentage

Crawford is by far the longest tenured Tampa Bay Ray in their short history. He is a homegrown talent from the Tampa Bay Rays and they really want to keep him. Problem is the team doesn’t have the money he could be asking for.

It will all come down to dollars with Crawford; he had taken a team friendly deal in the past, now he will be looking for the big pay day.

Crawford is an extraordinary fielder, a great hitter, and one of the fastest players in baseball. All of these abilities will lead to a bidding war for Crawford’s services.

He isn’t the typical power hitter that gets this much money, but all the other things he does make him a great player. But the 19 homeruns he had this year, were a nice surprise.

Before the season there were four teams that would want Crawford, the Rays, Red Sox, Angels, and even the Yankees. Now you can switch out the Yankees and add the Detroit Tigers. With the Yankees out, the price for Crawford might fall slightly, but with an almost auction type setting for him, that might not even happen.

The money will most likely be out of the range for the Rays, leaving the Tigers, Red Sox and Angels left.

At just 29, Crawford is a worthwhile investment for any team. And his speed should stay with him if he goes to a team with real grass instead of turf.

Prediction – Angels, seven years for $115 million.

3. Jayson Werth – RF – 156 GP – .296 AVG – 27 HR – 85 RBI – 106 Runs – .388 OBP

Some could consider Werth a consolation prize for the team(s) that doesn’t get Crawford. But truthfully, Werth was almost my No. 2 free agent. He is a true “five – tool player.” He can hit, field, run, take a walk, or whatever you ask him to do.

He is 31, but he has been healthy for the past few years. It is true that he had health issues in the past (the reason why the Phillies got him in the first place), but since recovering, he hasn’t played less than 134 games since 2008.

The players for Werth are the same for Crawford; Rays, Tigers, Red Sox, but you can add the Phillies in their attempts to re-sign Werth.

It might be difficult for the Phillies to get Werth, with OF prospect Dominic Brown ready now, but they really need him back. He was the right handed power in their lineup. But to get Werth back in Philly, they will need to find a way to get rid of LF Raul Ibanez. If I was in the Phillies front office, I would do anything to get rid of Ibanez to get Werth back.

If the Phillies can’t find a way to get their starting right fielder back, expect him to bolt for the big bucks.

Prediction – Red Sox, six years for $105 million.

4. Adrian Beltre – 3B – 154 GP – .321 AVG – 28 HR – 102 RBI – 84 Runs – .365 OBP

Could he possibly be the smartest player in sports? After years of great defense but a rough time at the plate in Seattle, his market was down last year.

The Oakland A’s made a multiyear offer to Beltre, but the money wasn’t enough for him. Beltre ended agreeing with the Boston Red Sox on a one year $10 million dollar deal.

Beltre had a rough start to his normally excellent defense, but by the end of the year, he considered to be in race for the AL MVP. He showed that his offensive numbers are great. All he needed was to be in a “hitter’s park,” instead of the expansive outfield at Safeco Field.

The Red Sox obviously want the 31 year old back, but he will have other suitors. The Angels and possibly the Athletics could be the Red Sox biggest competition. Problem with re–signing Beltre, the Red Sox are after 1B Adrian Gonzalez. Kevin Youkilis plays 1B now, but with Gonzalez, Youkilis would shift to 3B. It’s seems like a “Catch–22” situation.

Whoever ends up signing Beltre, they will be getting a great hitter who can more than handle the “hot corner.”

Prediction – Angels, five years for $70 million.

5. Adam Dunn – 1B/DH – 158 GP – .260 AVG – 38 HR – 103 RBI – 85 Runs – .356 OBP

He is possibly the most consistent hitter in baseball. He isn’t the best hitter for average, but that’s not what I'm talking about. Since 2004 his homerun numbers are: 46, 40, 40, 40, 40, 38 and 38. He also has had 100+ RBI’s since 2007. Those sound great (even though RBI’s are an overrated stat), but he also has 164+ strikeouts in eight of the nine last seasons.

He is the epitome of all or nothing. He is one of a handful of players in baseball that could hit four homeruns in a game or strikeout four times.

His defense has improved at first base, but his best position is designated hitter. He says he won’t DH, pretty much eliminating any American League in my mind. That takes away half the teams in baseball.

So who in the National League needs a 1B? The Chicago Cubs, San Francisco Giants, and Washington Nationals are the teams in the running for Dunn.

The Giants want to continue their relationship with Aubrey Huff, so take away them.

Dunn obviously doesn’t want to stay in Washington, or else he would have signed an extension already.

That leaves the Cubs. They traded away Derek Lee to the Braves and have no 1B prospect in the farm system ready to step up. That means they have a huge hole there. The Cubs will overpay, they always do, meaning they will have another enormous contract on their hands.

Prediction – Cubs, five years for $70 million.

6. Victor Martinez – C/1B – 127 GP – .302 AVG – 20 HR – 79 RBI – 64 Runs – .351 OBP

Martinez and Dunn are interchangeable spots, meaning you could flip–flop them if you wanted. Personally, Dunn was better despite is below–average defense. Martinez is a terrible catcher so he should be playing 1B.

Some teams view him as an adequate catcher, despite the fact that he couldn’t throw out Betty White trying to steal second. That’s fine, especially since his bat makes him valuable at the position.

There are two teams primarily chasing after Martinez, Detroit and Boston.

Detroit needs more fire power from the catcher position after throwing Gerald Laird and Alex Avila out there every day. Their defense would suffer, but he would make it up in runs.

The Red Sox have a great farm system, but they are lacking a legit catching prospect, unless they believe C Jarrod Saltalamacchia is finally healthy and ready to contribute. That is why they need Martinez back.

Unfortunately for them, he will need to switch to 1B or DH in a few years. This could come back to bite them, especially if they end up trading for San Diego 1B Adrian Gonzalez or even signing him in a year.

Prediction – Tigers, five years for $55 million

7. Jorge De La Rosa – LHP – 20 GS – 8 W – 7 L – 113 K – 66 BB – 4.22 ERA

He is being considered the second best pitcher in free agency after Lee. So you can only imagine how weak this free agent pitching class is.

He is 29 and there is still room to grow. Not to say that he is great and still improving, just that he is okay and hasn’t reached his full potential.

He never can stay healthy and walks a lot of batters, which are two things that are never good for a pitcher. Thankfully for whoever signs De La Rosa, most of his injuries are non–arm related, other than his finger injury this year.

He is considered a power arm, but his best pitch is his changeup according to ESPN’s Keith Law.

The Colorado Rockies really wants him back, but because of the market and other factors, he might be out of their price range. He could easily agree to a four year – $40 million or five year – $50 million deal.

Other than Colorado, the Rangers, Yankees, and possibly a team like the Brewers could sign De La Rosa. Most likely the loser of the Lee sweepstakes picks up De La Rosa.

Prediction – Rangers, four years for $44 million.

8. Carl Pavano – RHP – 32 GS – 17 W – 11 L – 117 K – 37 BB – 3.75 ERA

His problems in New York seem now to be all health related and not mental. In his four years in the spotlight, he went in hurt and left hurt. He finally seemed to be healthy after he was in Cleveland the following year.

Pavano was traded by the Indians last year to Minnesota. He signed a one year extension after last season, meaning he is again a free agent.

He picked a good time to become one. He could be in line for another substantial deal again at the age of 34, but there is definitely one place he isn’t going to, the Yankees.

He did seem to be in a giveaway mood with the long ball, 24 HR’s, but he did throw 221 innings this year. He isn’t going to blow by you with gas, but he gets people out, and that’s what the mold is in the Twins organization.

If you’re the Twins and Pavano, why ruin a good thing?

Prediction – Twins, three years for $27 million.

9. Paul Konerko – 1B – 149 GP – .312 AVG – 39 HR – 111 RBI – 89 Runs – .393 OBP

He is getting a little older, 34, but he arguably had his best season ever. Sadly, if you look at the film, he is starting to “cheat” by starting early on fastballs and other things of the like.

He might have a good year or two left in him, but you will see a rapid decline in production from him.

It seems to be happening to all the “old–time sluggers.”

But because of his great year this season, the market will most likely overpay for Konerko.

There are rumors that Arizona would like to bring Konerko where his home is, but they have little money, so don’t expect that.

Returning to the White Sox is his likely destination, unless crazy deal making General Manager Kenny Williams acquires a guy like Prince Fielder or even signs Adam Dunn.

Prediction – White Sox, three years for $30 million.

10. Andy Pettitte – LHP – 21 GS – 11 W – 3 L – 101 K – 41 BB – 3.28 ERA

Before his midseason injury, there was talk amongst baseball writers that he could possibly win the AL Cy Young. Then he hurt his groin and was eventually placed on the 60 day Disabled List.

He is still a very good pitcher, but there seems to be another Brett Favre in New York. No not with the sexual harassment allegations, but the “I'm retiring, no I’ll come back” talk.

If he was going to retire, the perfect time would have been after winning a fifth World Series. He is 38, but I expect him to stick around at least another year for an attempt at yet another ring.

If there are any other reports of Pettitte going anywhere else but New York, disregard it and laugh at the report.

Prediction – Yankees, one year for $10 million.

11. Aubrey Huff – 1B – 157 GP – .290 AVG – 26 HR – 86 RBI – 100 Runs – .385 OBP

I was an extreme skeptic of the San Francisco Giants signing Huff, but he proved me wrong throughout the year. He had regressed severely and always is a streaky hitter. At the age of 33, he didn’t impress me.

He gave them four months of All–Star type production, but he did regress after the trade deadline. Despite that, he played adequate defense at 1B for most of the year, and was a great guy for San Francisco.

The Giants might want to continue their relationship, but if they can get a guy like Fielder, Dunn or even one of the stellar outfielders, I would let him walk. Then again, I don’t think GM Brian Sabean is that smart.

Prediction – Giants, two years for $15 million

12. Derek Jeter – SS – 157 GP – .270 AVG – 10 HR – 67 RBI – 111 Runs – .340 OBP

The Captain had the worst year of his career, plain and simple. He was 44 points off his career batting average. And most other statistics dropped from last year.

His 2009 numbers were: .334 batting average, 18 homeruns, .406 OBP, .465 SLUG, and 212 hits. This year: .270 batting average, 10 homeruns, .340 OBP, .270 Slug and only 179 hits.

There are a couple rumors saying other teams might lure Jeter away from New York. Read the line in Pettitte’s comments. He is not leaving the Yankees.

That is a drastic decline. Then again, before last season, everyone was saying he was on the decline and then look at his 2009 numbers above.

Had he had a year like 2009, Jeter could be looking at a $100 million deal. He will still get a big deal, but mainly due to respect and because he is a “true Yankee.”

You can say he is on the decline, especially after such a poor year, but do you really want to bet against Jeter, even if he is 36? Yea, me neither.

Prediction – Yankees, five years for $85 million.

13. Jake Westbrook – RHP – 33 GS – 10 W – 11 L – 128 K – 68 BB – 4.22 ERA

He is at best a good No. 3 pitcher. He is a year removed from Tommy John surgery, and he already started opening day for the Cleveland Indians. Not that that’s saying much about the Indians.

He was traded at the deadline to the St. Louis Cardinals when it looked like they would be headed to the postseason. Well that didn’t happen.

He will get a ton of groundballs, but won’t strike many out.

Look for a return to either the Cardinals or the Indians for the 33 year old. A dark horse could be the pitching starved Brewers or even Mets.

Prediction – Cardinals, two years for $16 million.

Update – Westbrook signed a two year $16.5 million deal with the Cardinals.

14. Orlando Hudson – 2B – 126 GP – .268 AVG – 6 HR – 37 RBI – 80 runs – .338 OBP

I really don’t like Hudson here, but this free agent class is so weak that I really didn’t have much of an option.

Hudson has been one of the most overrated players in baseball the past four or five years. He always seems to have a wrist injury and his defense (his best asset besides his speed) has slipped. And even though he has speed, he is a below–average runner on the bases. Yet people still don’t recognize it.

These facts have been obvious for a long time, yet many analysts, writers and especially commentators refuse to acknowledge the facts.

I mean, come on, last year the Dodgers manager Joe Torre benched Hudson late in the season for Ronnie Belliard. Yet everyone still raves about Hudson. It’s sickening.

Despite all the reasoning, I see the Mets being the main team interested in Hudson. The Mets will have to get rid of 2B Luis Castillo somehow, but the Mets have been yearning over Hudson for years. This is their chance.

Prediction – Mets, three years for $20 million.

15. Rafael Soriano – CL – 64 G – 45 Saves – 3 W – 2 L – 57 K – 14 BB – 1.73 ERA

The Tampa Bay Rays solved their closer problem! Well actually just for a year. Soriano made $7.25 million this past year and will be looking for a raise after leading the AL in saves.

Of course Tampa would love to re–sign Soriano, but as mentioned before, they do not have deep pockets.

Soriano and Crawford will only be a couple of the mass exodus from Tampa. They could lose up to five or six player in free agency and then they could trade two or three more players.

Could we have just seen the Rays window close?

Soriano likely is closing somewhere else next year. A big deal is expected, he is electric and still young for a closer, only 30. Angels have a need here. They could be the Yankees of two offseasons ago.

Prediction – Angels, four years for $48 million.

16. Mariano Rivera – CL – 61 G – 33 SV – 3 W – 3 L – 45 K – 11 BB – 1.80 ERA

He would be above Soriano normally but you have to take two factors in consideration. 1. Mariano is not leaving the Yankees. 2. The “Sandman” is 40 years old.

He still dominates baseball with that destructive and bat–shattering cutter.

He is the best postseason closer of all time, and could pitch another four years.

Rivera will be overpaid because of his Yankee status in history.

Prediction – Yankees, three years for $42 million.

17. Juan Uribe – SS/2B/3B – 148 GP – .248 AVG – 24 HR – 85 RBI – 64 Runs – .310 OBP

If you want a guy to compare to Vladimir Guerrero this is the guy. I’m not saying Uribe is going to be a Hall of Famer like Guerrero will be, but in the fact that he crushes fastballs, mistake pitches and has absolutely zero plate discipline.

He doesn’t like taking walks, as evidence by his only 45 walks this year. That’s not likely to change since he isn’t young exactly young, 31.

He is versatile in the field, though doesn’t have great range at any position, and his arm makes up for that.

No one wanted him two years ago and the Giants gave him a chance. Well I don’t think he will get a much better offer than he will from the Giants.

Prediction – Giants, three years for $18 million.

18. Hiroki Kuroda – 31 GS – 11 W – 13 L – 159 K – 48 BB – 3.39 ERA

He could easily be at 11, were Keith Law has him on his list. But his age and the likelihood of him re–signing with the Dodgers drop him a little here for me.

Kuroda strikes out enough guys to not be considered a true groundball pitcher, but not enough to be called a strikeout pitcher. The happy medium and ability to avoid walking a lot of guys, will lead to a few teams looking into him.

He has had some injury scares in the past, but nothing that has been too serious.

He made $15+ million this year, but expect a steep pay cut.

Prediction – Dodgers, two years for $20 million.

Update – Kuroda signed a one year extension with the Dodgers for $12 million,

19. Brad Penny – RHP – 9 GS – 3 W – 4 L – 35 K – 9 BB – 3.23 ERA

Penny was injured shortly into the season. It was a big blow to the Cardinals staff in my opinion. Had he not been injured, there would have been no need to trade for Jake Westbrook.

In the past, Penny had been a guy that tried to intimidate batters. Even though he has good velocity and so–so movement, he wasn’t the most successful pitcher.

Then he joined the Cardinals and pitching guru Dave Duncan. Before he was injured, he had the best groundball ratio of his career and was likely to have a very good season in St. Louis.

I think Penny will want to prove himself in St. Louis, and I'm sure working with Duncan helped. I could see Penny rejoining the Cardinals. A long–term deal isn’t likely, as Penny is 32 and hasn’t always been the healthiest throughout his career.

Prediction – Cardinals, two years for $14 million.

20. Jim Thome – DH – 108 GP – .283 AVG – 25 HR – 59 RBI – 48 Runs – .412 OBP

The 40 year old can still hit. Sure Thome is a DH and has major platoon splits so he has to sit vs. lefthanders, but he can still get on base, and hit the ball out the park.

He says he is willing to continue DHing, take a pay cut and not play every day. Well if you told me that in 108 games Thome would hit 25 homeruns and get on base at a .412 clip, I’d say I would take him.

He is one of baseball’s best endorsers of the game, and a great teammate.

Manny Ramirez and a number of other players could have been here, but Thome was more productive than the others in my opinion.

Look for him having another good season with the Twins.

Prediction – Twins, one year for $2.25 million.

Possible Trades

Last year there was a huge three team trade involving the Tigers, Diamondbacks and Yankees and seven players. There are always talks of “blockbuster” trades like this, but usually nothing materializes besides speculation.

This year, there are a few blockbusters that could actually happen. These eight players are the most speculated movers.

1. Zack Greinke – RHP –Kansas City Royals

The main teams seeking Greinke are the Texas Rangers (if they can’t retain Cliff Lee), New York Yankees (same reason as Texas), and surprisingly the Toronto Blue Jays.

A deal involving Greinke could happen but isn’t necessarily likely. He has a team friendly deal for the next two years, and he says he has no desire in going to a big market.

If there is a deal involving the 2009 AL Cy Young, it will be a heavily prospect laden package.

The Royals are asking for two “can’t–miss” prospects with one or two more really good prospects.

A few years ago that wouldn’t have been a problem, but today with teams hoarding prospects like they are gold bars, it’s difficult to see.

A package from Texas would most certainly involve RHP Neftali Feliz and probably LHP Martin Perez. Other than that, the Rangers are loaded with pitching prospects, but a little lighter on positional prospects. If Kansas City wants pitching exclusively, Texas is a prime choice for a trade.

With Greinke not wanting to go to a big market team, the Yankees might be a long shot to get the talented 27 year old.

If they can work something out with Greinke, a deal would most certainly require prospects like C Jesus Montero, LHP Manny Banuelos and others. That is a lot of talent and certainly tempting, but will Greinke say yes to a deal?

Toronto has been thrown out there as a possible destination. Their package for Greinke would most likely be centered around LF Travis Snider, RHP Kyle Drabek and probably two others.

Snider and Drabek have been hyped to astronomical heights, but are they those “can’t– miss” prospects the Royals yearn for?

2. Prince Fielder – 1B – Milwaukee Brewers

The Brewers are in the same position as the Royals. They don’t have to trade Fielder unless they feel like they can benefit more from doing so. Even if the Brewers lose Fielder to free agency next year, they will get two compensation picks in the draft.

The Brewers might want to make a deal in my opinion. Fielder’s agent is Scott Boras, and will seek the most money. The Brewers bring a ton of people to the stadium, over the million annually, but can they pay the Mark Teixeira money that Fielder will be chasing?

And it benefits Fielder that he is only 26 and will only be 27 when he reaches free agency.

Recently Mark Kotsay of the White Sox says the GM Kenny Williams is lusting after a player like Fielder. But the best piece the Chi Sox have is 3B Gordon Beckham. Fielder is good, but I wouldn’t trade Beckham for him.

Say Williams is crazy enough to try and make a deal. Who would he trade for Fielder? They said they are willing to deal LF Carlos Quentin, but he wouldn’t even be asked for.

The package would need Beckham, CF prospect Jared Mitchell and more. The Brewers need pitching so a deal from Chicago would be hard to accomplish since they have no “legit” pitching prospects.

San Francisco Giants have been rumored to be in on Fielder. Problem is, two of the major guys the Brewers would want, C Buster Posey and LHP Madison Bumgarner, have to be untouchable.

That leaves RHP Zack Wheeler and a handful of positional prospects. Wheeler is a potential No. 1 pitcher (an ace), but it would be difficult for a team to built around pitching to trade their best pitching prospect.

There have been a couple people saying Fielder might be a fit in Boston. That is the farthest thing from the truth in my opinion. Besides, they are focused on Adrian Gonzalez.

In the end, a surprise team might end up dealing for Fielder, unless the Brewers are willing to accept positional prospects.

3. Adrian Gonzalez – 1B – San Diego Padres

There has been major speculation around the Padres first baseman for the past two years. He is a hometown hero, and brings in a big Hispanic audience. He is a big time player, by far San Diego’s best player and most importantly, still relatively young at 28.

That is all fine and dandy, but they will not be able to pay him. He will probably be chasing $180 million, and that would be just too much for the Padres.

There are a couple teams after him, but the two main players for him are the two Sox’s. The Red and White ones.

The Chi Sox are in the same predicament that they would be in if they pursued Fielder. The package from above would most likely be required and then some.

It would be less difficult for Boston to make a trade. San Diego GM Jed Hoyer was a disciple under Boston GM Theo Epstein and knows there system in and out.

The Red Sox are notorious under Epstein in not wanting to part with prospects. But to beat the Yankees, they might have to do it now and not wait till after the season when Gonzalez is a free agent.

Gonzalez would net the Padres prospects RHP Casey Kelly and SS Jose Iglesias. Others such as 1B Lars Anderson, RHP Junichi Tazawa (if recovered from Tommy John surgery), and OF Josh Reddick might also be included.

OF Ryan Westmoreland might be involved too if he has fully recovered from brain surgery in March. That might be a stretch, since there was questions about if he would ever play again.

4. Colby Rasmus – CF – St. Louis Cardinals

It was insane how asinine Cardinals manager Tony La Russa handled Rasmus. Rasmus is considered a “can’t miss” player already at the age of 24. He is a true “five–tool” player.

La Russa didn’t play him all the time, took him out against lefthanders and treated the kid like a dog.

Rasmus responded with numbers of .276 batting average, 23 homeruns, 66 RBI, .361 OBP, a .498 slugging percentage and great defense. Rasmus even admitted to wanting to be traded due to La Russa’s idiocy.

If the Cardinals really did trade Rasmus they should have the franchise forcibly taken away from them.

There are countless teams hoping Rasmus is on the block.

The packages can only be imagined for a second year player, who is already putting up those numbers.

5. Dan Uggla – 2B – Florida Marlins

There was hope the two sides could agree on a contract extension, but when Uggla didn’t like the numbers, the contract was leaked (four years for $48 million).

The Marlins blamed Uggla for releasing the negotiations. Uggla then proceeded by going on record that he did not leak the negotiations and that Florida had to be the culprits.

Ever since, Uggla is reportedly on the block. It shouldn’t be unexpected, as Uggla has been on the block for at least the past two years.

Popular destinations include the Giants and Tigers.

Update – Dan Uggla was surprisingly traded to a division rival, Atlanta Braves for infielder/outfielder Omar Infante and relief pitcher Michael Dunn.

6. Carlos Beltran – OF – New York Mets

Beltran stirred this pot himself when he said that he would be willing to accept a trade or a shirt to RF. Beltran was once considered the best CF in the game. But due to injuries the past two years, he has lost favor with the Mets.

If Beltran was healthy, he could bring a couple nice prospects, but due to his salary and injuries, he might not bring all that much.

Some people might prefer to have Beltran stay on the Mets play somewhere in the OF. Then again, others might want to dump his salary and move on, with whatever they get in a trade as an added bonus.

7. Matt Kemp – CF – Los Angeles Dodgers

Two years ago he was a rising star with a ridiculously bright future. Now he is a character concern who is coming off a poor year at the plate and on the field.

He is also going to start costing the Dodgers a ton of money very soon. Everyone should know already about the Dodgers ownership divorce situation. Anyway that Frank McCourt can cut costs, he will.

There might be a replacement for Kemp in OF prospect Trayvon Robinson, so a deal might not be out of the question.

I wouldn’t let Kemp go easily though. The Dodgers should ask for the sky on this one. Kemp is still young, talented, and full of potential.

8. Jonathon Papelbon – CL – Boston Red Sox

Daniel Bard looks like he is ready to take over for Papelbon. That is the reason for the speculation. Bard is a flamethrower who is filthy, while Papelbon is turning into a one pitch closer.

A one pitch closer might have been ok in the past, but that one pitch isn’t as good as it was a few years ago. He has lost some velocity, movement on his pitches and at times, the inability to throw strikes.

It also doesn’t help that Papelbon feels entitled to enormous sums of money.

Closers are always in need and Papelbon should be able to fool some dummy into trading a nice prospect for a year of Papelbon. That is unless the trading team extends him.

A couple possibilities are the Philadelphia Phillies and the division rival Rays. The Phillies have little left in their farm system after three monster trades in the past year and a half. The Rays are division rivals of the Red Sox. Both cases are roadblocks, but get rid of him while he still has some trade value.

Trade in Review

On Dec. 5, 2007, the Detroit Tigers made a “blockbuster” trade for Miguel Cabrera and LHP Dontrelle Willis. The deal has turned out well for the Tigers in the exception that Dontelle Willis is no longer with them.

Cabrera is a perennial AL MVP candidate and possibly the best 1B in the AL.

At the time of the trade Cabrera was a 24 year old that was already putting up huge numbers for Marlins, but they couldn’t afford to keep him. Typical of the Marlins.

In return for Cabrera and Willis, the Marlins got OF Cameron Maybin, LHP Andrew Miller, catcher Mike Rabelo, relief pitcher Burke Badenhop and two “throw–in” minor league pitchers.

Currently there are is only one player from that trade still on the Marlins. Yep, you guessed it, Badenhop. The reliever that was considered a “throw–in.”

Rabelo was considered a catching prospect that might not be an All-Star, but be a solid player. He is now released and a free agent.

The two gems of the deal for the Marlins were Maybin and Miller. Miller was considered to be a potential No. 1 pitching prospect and was the sixth overall pick in 2006. While Maybin was thought to be the next Ken Griffey Jr. or any other top CF and was the 10th overall pick in the 2005 pick.

In his on the mound, Miller was wild, leading to a massive amount of walks, hits. In 54 games started and 25 relief appearances, Miller’s statistics were: 294.1 innings pitched, 337 hits, 191 earned runs, 28 homeruns, 174 walks, 238 strikeouts, a WHIP (walks and hits per inning) of 1.74 and an ERA of 5.84.

Miller was far from the ace that the Marlins envisioned a little less than three years ago.

On Thursday, Nov. 13 2010, Miller, 25, was traded to the Boston Red Sox for Dustin Richardson, their 27th best prospect according to Baseball America. Florida officially gave up on Miller in less than three years.

Maybin, 23, continually teased everyone with flashes of breaking through and becoming a star. He even had a ridiculous run at the end of the 2009 season when he batted over .400 in the last few weeks of the season. He had arrived.

He followed that by striking out 92 times in 82 games. Okay, maybe we jumped on the band wagon too soon.

In Maybin’s 168 career games his stats are: .246 AVG, 13 HR, 45 RBI, 19 stolen bases, 93 runs, .313 OBP, only 135 hits and 172 K’s. So much for the second coming of Griffey Jr.

Two days after Miller was traded, CF Cameron Maybin was traded to the San Diego Padres for relievers Ryan Webb and Edward Mujica. Again, the Marlins gave up on a player in less than three years.

The pair of former top prospects still have a lot of talent and potential, but due to their lack of development, both were had for pennies on the dollar. Hopefully for their current clubs, they can produce any amount of what their potential could have brought the Marlins.

So while the Tigers boast one of the best players in baseball, the Marlins are left with a bunch of relievers. It looks like the Marlins were just trying to forget the trade ever happened.