Jim Edmonds? Ehh, Whatever…

I dismissed the rumor out of St. Louis when travwood81 posted it on Brew Crew Ball this morning.

But it’s true. The Brewers have signed Jim Edmonds…

My initial reaction was something like: “Jim Freaking Edmonds? Why? The guy didn’t even play last year. He’s 40. And I hate him. He’s a Cardinal. Or at least an older, less-talented version of a dude that was once a Cardinal.”

But an hour or so has passed and I’ve convinced myself to try to withhold my disgust for the move. At least for now.

First of all, I thought Doug Melvin was drunk when he signed an aging Gabe Kapler away from a managing gig in the Red Sox minor-league system a couple of offseasons ago. And that worked out better than even Melvin could’ve dreamed. So, I’ll cut him some slack.

Secondly, it sounds like it’s a minor-league contract with a chance to win a major-league job at the veteran minimum. There’s really no risk. If he sucks in spring training, the team cuts ties and the team is no worse off. If he legitimately wins a spot and can still play, the team will be better off.

But does Edmonds have anything left in the tank? Hard to say. He was actually a good reserve on the Cubs in his last go-around, hitting .256 with 19 home runs and 49 RBIs in 85 games. But that was 2008. He sat out all of last season. So, who knows how good of shape he’s in or if his body can withstand another season of baseball? At the least though, we do know Edmonds will be motivated to earn an opportunity to stack up some at bats. He’s just 18 home runs shy of 400 for his career and 119 hits short of 2,000. And if he can stick it to the Cardinals a few times for not giving him another shot, all the better, right? *Still holding back disgust while thinking of Edmonds in a Brewers uniform*

It wasn’t like the Brewers passed up great free-agent options to get him. Aside from Gabe Gross, who I would’ve like to have seen back in Milwaukee, the remaining back-up outfield options are pretty uninspiring. Johnny Damon and Jermaine Dye (who teams seem to be looking at as more of a DH than an outfielder) are looking for starting roles. Eric Byrnes, Reed Johnson and Marcus Thames would be options, but none of them stand out as head and shoulders above Edmonds. And Edmonds bats lefthanded and plays centerfield, two qualities that I’m sure weren’t lost on Melvin.

So, I withhold the right to hate this move in a couple months, but for now, I’ll live with it.

Jim Edmonds? Ehh, whatever…