The Boston Herald has a very intriguing piece today about the Red Sox potentially getting involved in the Jake Peavy sweepstakes.
A quick recap: Jake Peavy, a Cy Young winner for the San Diego Padres, is being put on the block by the team after a disappointing 2008 campaign. While it is no sure thing that the Padres will move Peavy, it looks as if they indeed will. Peavy is signed through 2012 with a 2013 club option. The yearly salaries through 2013 starting with 2009 are: $8M, $15M, $16M, $17M, $22M.
The Red Sox have a lot of depth in pitching to make such a trade, and for a player of Peavy’s caliber, I would trade some of our youngsters for the 27-year old.
The Padres are requesting two young pitchers and a close to major league ready outfielder or middle infielder.
First, the Sox would have to satisfy the Padres’ demands. It stands
to reason the Padres would want two of the team’s three best young arms
– Clay Buchholz, Michael Bowden and Justin Masterson – plus another
position player.If the Sox were to include highly regarded first baseman Lars
Anderson in a package with two of their best pitching prospects, talks
between the clubs would certainly become interesting. But officials
with other clubs believe the Sox consider Anderson to be virtually
untouchable. (Boston Herald)
That may seem like a steep price — Bowden, Masterson and Anderson for Peavy — but for a 27-year old who is as immensely talented as he is, it’s completely logical.
I would be comfortable surrendering Michael Bowden and Justin Masterson as the two pitchers in any trade. Why not Buchholz?
We have seen the talent of Buchholz. Bowden is still in the minor leagues and even though he is a great talent, he hasn’t seen extensive time in the majors yet. As for Masterson over Buchholz, my reasoning is simply that Masterson has been considered by many to be a long-term reliever, and I feel that a long-term starter in Buchholz is inherently more valuable than Masterson.
As for Anderson, I agree with the Sox sentiment that he is untouchable and should not be surrendered. So who should the third piece be?
How about Coco Crisp or Jacoby Ellsbury? The Red Sox have to make a decision this off-season — I don’t think they can repeat the status quo another year no matter how successfully it worked out this year. The Padres would covet Ellsbury more, so if the Sox were to dangle Crisp, they would likely have to add another piece, but it may be enough to get a deal done.
The Sox could also explore trading Jed Lowrie and handing the starting job back to Julio Lugo, but if you poll fans on if they would prefer a Lugo/Ellsbury tandem over a Lowrie/Crisp tandem, I think you’ll find more fans are comfortable with trading away Jacoby, as heretical as it may sound.
Look, we love our young players, and rightfully so, but for someone of Peavy’s talent, we’re going to have to let go of some of that talent. The Sox may be able to convince the Padres to take on Josh Reddick, Ryan Kalish or other players instead of Lowrie or Ellsbury, and if so, we should move quickly.
The Red Sox are in a great position to win the Peavy sweepstakes due to their depth and the Padres’ asking price.
One stumbling block: Peavy wants to stay in the National League and may not want to go to the American League. To waive his no-trade clause, he would likely request that his 2013 option become guaranteed.
One other thing to keep in mind is that the Sox were not willing to surrender Lester, Buchholz or Ellsbury for Johan Santana, so why would they for Peavy?
Other factors that may mitigate that question are Peavy’s age and contract situation.
What do you think? Do you want to see Jake Peavy in a Red Sox uniform for the price that would have to be surrendered?
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