Brewers Inquire Baltimore About Rodrigo Lopez (now a Rockie)

[mothershipconnection]

He's an innings-eater who has shown the ability to be mediocre (this year and 2003 were pretty brutal, though). If he comes in return for a player of equal negative value - Jenkins or maybe Clark would be acceptable, I'd be OK with it. Nobody worth a darn should be sent over for him, though.

Edit: he made $3.75M this year, and though he could take a pay cut in arby, I wouldn't roll the dice and risk giving him $4M, so nevermind. I had erroneously thought he was going into his second arby year rather than third.

[aracko]

Problem is I would much rather let Jenks have one more shot at a starting gig than this guy trot out there every 5th day.

 

Jenks upside is far bigger than this guy I think.

[aracko]

Now if they could SOMEHOW bring in Daniel Cabrera - I would run around the block naked out of celebration. I have seen few pitchers with that kind of unharnessed talent.

[JohnBriggs12]

I think Lopez is not all that bad. He's certainly a better option than Jason Marquis.

 

His numbers are skewed by pitching in the murderous AL East. Against the 6 strongest offensive AL teams, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, NY and Toronto, he posted a 7.65 ERA in 82 1/3 innings. Against the rest of the AL (which compares more to teams in the NL) plus 3 starts vs. NL he had a 4.55 ERA in 106 2/3 innings.

 

Plus he's shown the ability to bounce back from bad seasons before most notably from 03 to 04 when his ERA dropped over 2 runs (5.82 to 3.59). You also can't discount that he's won 15 games twice and 14 once for a losing team. Ben Sheets has never won that many.

 

He'd be a fine guy to fill that 6th starter, long man role, and a guy who could step in the rotation in case of injury or ineffectiveness. I certainly think he could easily post numbers as good as Davis did in 06.

[endaround]

Yes you can discount that.

[sbrylski]

I certainly think he could easily post numbers as good as Davis did in 06.

 

So he could post numbers next year that would still cause the majority of the fans to want to run him out of town?

 

And endaround is right. You can't just remove his stats against the top offensive teams. Anybody would look better if you did that.

[hauser42]

This more than the bag of balls that I thought we would get for Jenks. I would love this move after last year we should be looking for some arms, never know when our "ace" Ben Sheets is going to down again.

[Brian the Automator]

Three words:

 

Mexican Jimmy Haynes.

[thumperden]

Or Scott Karl or Jaime Navarro. Ho-hum.

[Klements Bratwurst]

Mexican Matt Kinney.

 

Ueucker: "Cardinals six runs, 7 hits, 0 errors, two men left on. After a HALF of an inning, Cardinals 6, Brewers coming up"

 

Enough said for me.....

[mothershipconnection]

This more than the bag of balls that I thought we would get for Jenks. I would love this move after last year we should be looking for some arms, never know when our "ace" Ben Sheets is going to down again.

However, this is an "arm" that would only be here for a year and very likely would be overpaid. You can count on him to eat innings, but I don't know that you could expect him to be much better than a good minor league FA or non-tendered bullpen arm.

Jenkins probably has more positive value than Lopez, honestly. Jenkins can be counted on to at least be mediocre and could bounce back to his previous form.

 

Now, if Roberts or another CF is signed and Clark is overpaid and destined to contribute nothing from the bench, this is the kind of player I would trade him for, as both aren't much more than dead weight, but I'd rather have dead weight that at least could fill a need and see playing time.

[endaround]

The problem is a bag of balls isn't being paid 4 million and taking up a roster spot. Lopez at $4 million makes no sense. He's likely to be released anyway.

[Ennder]

You may not be able to just ignore bad starts but anyone that thinks a pitcher is going to get better moving from the any division in baseball to the AL east is deluding themselves. All of those pitchers are better than they appear on paper because of the teams they have to face. Kind of like how NL west pitchers always look better than they really are recently since its been a really weak division.

[Nader Raider Tim]

msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/6168854

 

Link to an article about the Brewers/Orioles rumored trade. The rumor is Kevin Mench for Rodrigo Lopez. Also talks about how the Brewers would like to stockpile some arms the take offers on Dougie Davis.

 

I would love a Mench for Lopez trade, we need to get rid of an outfielder or two and being able to pick up an arm with upside would be nice.

 

edit: Also says that Baltimore has interest in Jenkins, so for those of you looking to dump his contract there might be some interest out there.

[trwi7]

Quote:

---

Link to an article about the Brewers/Orioles rumored trade. The rumor is Kevin Mench for Rodrigo Lopez. Also talks about how the Brewers would like to stockpile some arms the take offers on Dougie Davis.

---

 

This I the only trade that sends Lopez to the Brewers that I would be okay with.

[danzig6767]

I'd rather cut Mench than trade him for Lopez and pay him

[sbrylski]

Interesting. I wonder what type of return we could be looking at for Davis. He would likely be a main piece of any trade that would bring in our stud bat we covet.

 

I'd also like to aquire another starter other than Lopez if we do trade Davis. Another upside guy preferrably, like a Brad Hennessey or a Vazquez if we dump Jenkins and can take on salary.

 

Sheets

Capuano

Bush

Two of:

(Vazquez, Hennessey, ect.)

Villanueva

Lopez

Eveland

Jackson

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

www.baltimoresun.com/spor...-headlines

 

Lopez won't concede O's spot

He's eager to take on Wright, others, but might be dealt

By Jeff Zrebiec

Baltimore Sun Reporter

 

NAPLES, Fla. -- Rodrigo Lopez was working out at a gym in Arizona yesterday morning when something flashed across the television that drew his attention. For about a month and a half now, the veteran Orioles starting pitcher has tried to "disconnect" himself from baseball as to not conjure up memories of the most trying season of his career.

 

But with the television right in front of him, Lopez couldn't avoid the news. The Orioles had acquired former New York Yankees starter Jaret Wright in a trade for reliever Chris Britton. Lopez thought about it and resumed his workout, determined not to let the latest news, a trade that makes it increasingly likely that Lopez's career as an Oriole is over, bother him.

 

"It probably affects me one way or another with him being a starter," said Lopez, who was 9-18 last season with a 5.90 ERA, tying two other players for the second-most losses in a season in franchise history. "There has to be an effect on the rotation. I want to be a starter. I think I'll probably have to prove myself to them again, earn a spot again."

 

Lopez, 30, who has been the club's Opening Day starter three of the past four years, will have a lot of competition. At the start of baseball's general manager meetings yesterday, the Orioles boasted about having seven potential starters, and both executive vice president Mike Flanagan and vice president Jim Duquette acknowledged that they are still shopping for an additional starter in free agency.

 

"We want to get as much pitching as possible," Flanagan said.

 

Wright joins a group that includes Lopez, Erik Bedard, Daniel Cabrera, Kris Benson, Adam Loewen and Hayden Penn . With Flanagan acknowledging yesterday that Loewen has essentially earned a spot in next year's rotation, Lopez and Penn appear to be the odd men out barring a trade. And Flanagan did say yesterday that in talks with other general managers, "everybody was asking about our pitching."

 

While saying Penn, one of the organization's top pitching prospects, will get a chance to make the rotation, Duquette acknowledged recently that the club also will consider using him out of the bullpen, similar to how the Chicago White Sox used Brandon McCarthy last year. Lopez has had some success as a reliever, but at this point of his career, it's the last thing he wants.

 

"Right now, if they asked me to be in the bullpen, I'd probably have to think about it for a while before I said yes," he said. "What I want is to be a starter."

 

Flanagan, who said that Lopez would likely get a chance to start, acknowledged that the pitcher has a lot of value, pointing to the amount of money some of the middle-tier free-agent pitchers, many of whom lack Lopez's resume, will get on the market this year.

 

According to club sources, the Orioles have received inquiries about Lopez from a handful of teams, including the Arizona Diamondbacks, Milwaukee Brewers and Colorado Rockies. A few weeks ago, the Orioles talked to the Brewers about a Lopez-for-outfielder-Kevin Mench swap, two industry sources confirmed, though the deal was never close to being completed.

 

Mench, 28, who is from Delaware, hit .269 last year with 13 homers and 68 RBIs, though he struggled after the Texas Rangers traded him to Milwaukee in the Carlos Lee deal. However in the previous two seasons, Mench hit a combined 51 home runs and drove in 144 RBIs.

 

Lopez said that despite his disappointing season, which he hopes will motivate him every day, he would prefer to remain an Oriole.

 

"I love Baltimore. I've made great friends on and off the field," he said. "I like the fans. Even after the season I had, they respected me. I'd like to stay there, but if I go somewhere else, I'll keep my head up and leave Baltimore with a good feeling."

[tigerbrew]

Quote:

---

The Brewers and Orioles have discussed a trade that would send outfielder Kevin Mench to Baltimore for right-hander Rodrigo Lopez; the Orioles also have expressed interest in another Brewers outfielder, Geoff Jenkins, but their bigger priority is believed to be free-agent left fielder Carlos Lee.

---

 

Looks like Melvin might be able to get something decent from the Orioles for Jenkins. I think it's unlikely the Orioles can get Carlos Lee.

[sbrylski]

though the deal was never close to being completed.

 

Good. Especially if he'd hate to be in the pen.

[Brian the Automator]

I think Mench has some value to a team, whereas Lopez is the kind of guy who's in danger of being non-tendered.

[pogokat]

Mench would be a fine member of the team if he cost a million, but the right handed half of a platoon should never cost 4 million...and it's beginning to look less likely that we will even need a right handed platoon mate...unless he's going to split time with dave roberts...

[splitterpfj]

I had wondered if the Brewers might field some offers for Davis this winter. They don't really have the depth to part with him just yet (unless you want two rookies in the rotation), but with pitching being so pricey at the moment, I could see getting a decent return for him if they can somehow fill a spot first.

 

I had thought a lower level free agent would be the answer, but maybe those guys are all priced too high for their worth in this market. Still, Rodrigo Lopez? That's not what I wanted to hear. I think he may bounce back somewhat, but looking at his awful numbers from last year, a bad season in '07 would be a significant improvement for him.

[PepsiFanClubAlum]

How can any of us complain about an arm that Doug Melvin thinks is of value....this is what he might be best at, so let him do what he does.

[Nader Raider Tim]

The way I see it is if we were able to pull of a trade for Lopez, our pitching staff would look like this:

 

Bennie Sheets

Chris Capuano

David Bush

Rodrigo Lopez

Carlos Villenueva

 

If Lopez is aquired, or another similar pitcher Davis would be moved as part of a deal for a CF/LF/Bullepen man. Yes then Lopez would be in our rotation, and the possibilites are quite high that he fails. What happens then? I would assume Gallardo would be the fallback plan for the 4/5 spot in the rotation. I wouldn't be to dissapointed with that. Also, it is much easier to dumb a bad pitcher and his contract than a bad outfielder (Kevin Mench).

 

On a side note I don't think Kevin is horrible I just don't think he has a spot on the roster next year.