Playing Fact or Fiction with All of MLB's Hottest Buzz
With the free-agent market nearly picked dry—except for a pair of high-priced starters and some role-playing outfielders—teams around baseball have been forced to look to the trade market as a way to plug any holes that remain on their rosters.
It's not really all that surprising, considering that we're just over a month from having pitchers and catchers report to spring training. The rumor mill has taken note of the date as well, offering far more speculation on potential swaps than signings since the calendar flipped to 2015.
But that doesn't mean that there's nothing juicy for baseball fans to chew on and think about. Here's a look at the hottest buzz around at the moment and whether, ultimately, that buzz is based in fact or is nothing more than pure fiction.
Rumor: Colorado Can't Find a Decent Offer for Wilin Rosario
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It wasn't all that long ago that Wilin Rosario looked like a superstar in the making, hitting a combined .282 with 49 home runs, 150 RBI and an .820 OPS over his first two full big league seasons, earning a fourth-place finish in the 2012 National League Rookie of the Year voting along the way.
Even after a down year in 2014 that saw a drop in his numbers across the board, they were far from terrible (.267 BA, 13 HR, 54 RBI, .739 OPS), and given his age (25) and recent history, you'd think that teams would be lining up for a chance to add such a young talent to their rosters.
But that's simply not the case.
General manager Jeff Bridich confirmed to MLB.com's Thomas Harding that the team has, indeed, been talking to teams about potential trades involving Rosario—who, according to Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal, has been on the trade block since early December—but has yet to find a deal that "makes sense."
Part of the problem is that, like many players who call Coors Field home, Rosario's numbers on the road are mediocre at best—enough to give potential suitors pause as to exactly what kind of impact he'd actually make in their lineup.
| Home | .305 | .540 | .885 | 76 (36) | 117 |
| Away | .242 | .424 | .690 | 56 (29) | 95 |
The bigger issue, however, is that Rosario is a major defensive liability behind the plate and hasn't proved that he can handle another position on the field, logging less than 60 innings at the infield corners.
While his lack of experience in the field would be somewhat negated by a move to the American League, where he could serve as a full-time DH, Victor Martinez he's not.
Verdict: Fact
In order for Colorado to get a decent return on its investment, Rosario is going to have to show that he's capable of holding down either first base or a corner outfield spot on a consistent basis. That's something that won't happen until the regular season gets underway.
Look for the team to revisit a Rosario trade as the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline approaches.
Rumor: St. Louis Will Acquire Another Ace
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Despite boasting one of the more talented starting rotations in baseball, the St. Louis Cardinals are on the hunt for another front-line starter and have their sights set on Philadelphia's Cole Hamels, Detroit's David Price and free agent Max Scherzer, sources tell Fox Sports' Jon Paul Morosi and Rosenthal.
Hamels and Price—both southpaws—are believed to be the team's top targets, which makes sense, as the rotation's current configuration doesn't include a left-handed starter. That said, youngsters Marco Gonzalez and Tyler Lyons are waiting in the wings and could both fill that void.
Trading for Hamels or Price would not only cost St. Louis financially, but would further eat into the team's depth, which has already taken a hit this winter with the trade of starters Tyrell Jenkins and Shelby Miller to Atlanta in exchange for Jason Heyward and the untimely passing of outfielder Oscar Taveras.
As Morosi and Rosenthal note, that may not be something that the Cardinals are willing to do—especially when you consider that Heyward, like Price, is set to become a free agent after the season. Neither one is going to be cheap to re-sign, and dealing for a front-line arm would only make replacing one (or both) internally that much more difficult.
Speaking of expensive things, Scherzer's asking price—which Morosi reported last month was in excess of $200 million—is sure to be an issue for a club that has operated with an average payroll around $112 million over the last four years.
While adding Scherzer, a Missouri native, would be a great story, are the Cardinals really going to pay Scherzer significantly more per season than they currently dole out to Adam Wainwright, due $19.5 million a year through 2018?
The answer is a resounding no.
Verdict: Fiction
The only way this changes is if the Cardinals can find a deal like the one the Tigers did to acquire Price last year. Detroit had to part with only a disappointing center fielder (Austin Jackson), a mid-rotation arm (Drew Smyly) and a 19-year-old shortstop (Willy Adames) who is years away from making his MLB debut.
Rumor: A.J. Preller Is Done Making Waves in San Diego
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If GM A.J. Preller had his own reality show, it'd be a hit, for the baseball world has been captivated by the scene unfolding in San Diego this winter. After adding Matt Kemp, Wil Myers, Derek Norris and Justin Upton to the mix, we've been waiting with bated breath to see what he's going to do next.
After being rebuffed by Hiroki Kuroda and passing on Philadelphia's asking price for Cole Hamels, would he convince ownership to make a run at Max Scherzer or James Shields? Would he continue to lessen the team's deep pool of outfielders? Could he possibly add yet another right-handed bat to the mix?
It sounds like we can stop thinking big, for what's next might not be anything that anyone outside of San Diego is interested in, according to Dennis Lin of U-T San Diego, who took to Twitter after a recent chat with the attention-grabbing GM.
"AJ Preller said remaining moves would be 'more likely something around the edges, to continue to add to the depth of what we're building.'"
What kind of move falls around the edges? Signing an experienced backup for Norris, as MLB.com's Corey Brock speculates could be on Preller's agenda, fits the bill. Trading another outfielder, like Cameron Maybin or Carlos Quentin, for a mediocre prospect would be another.
Is Preller for real, or is he just blowing smoke?
Verdict: Fact
Between his big-name additions and less publicized moves (like signing Brandon Morrow and trading for Will Middlebrooks), Preller and the Padres have a wealth of new talent that looks pretty good on paper. Another radical shakeup—and continuing to diminish the talent on the farm—simply isn't necessary.
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Rumor: Trading Ryan Howard Will Be More Difficult Than Imagined
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If you don't believe that things can change in a hurry, look no further than Ryan Howard's situation in Philadelphia as proof that you're wrong.
Here's what GM Ruben Amaro Jr. had to say about Howard upon announcing the five-year, $125 million contract extension that the club signed the slugger to in 2010, via MLB.com's Todd Zolecki: "We decided that he is that good to our organization and to our future."
Here's his take on Howard three years after the extension kicked in, per Dan Toman of TheScore.com: "We've talked to Ryan," Amaro said while a guest on 97.5 The Fanatic earlier in December. "And I told him that in our situation it would probably bode better for the organization not with him but without him. With that said if he's with us, then we'll work around him."
That he's a shell of the player he once was and almost unplayable in the field due to awful defense at first base, coupled with the fact that he's due at least $60 million through the 2016 season, and able to block trades to all but nine teams, would seem to make him as immovable a player as there is in baseball.
ESPN's Jerry Crasnick recently took a look at the nine teams to which Howard could be traded without giving his consent—all American League clubs—and concluded that there wasn't a good fit for him or the Phillies among them, even with Philadelphia picking up the bulk of the money left on his current deal.
It's easy to conclude that, no matter how hard they try, the Phillies are going to be stuck with Howard for the foreseeable future—at least until after the season gets underway.
Verdict: Fiction
If there's one thing Howard can still do, it's hit the ball out of the park and drive in runs. At a cost of only a few million per year, there's not an American League team that wouldn't welcome Howard's ability to provide 20-plus home runs and 80-plus RBI a season into the fold.
Unless otherwise linked/noted, all statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference and FanGraphs. All contract information courtesy of Cot's Contracts.
Find me on Twitter to talk all things baseball: @RickWeinerBR
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