Brewers Inquire Baltimore About Rodrigo Lopez (now a Rockie)

[JohnBriggs12]

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

 

That's funny, Brian, I was thinking just the opposite. I fail to see what value Mench has to any team while pitching, even guys coming off of bad years like Lopez, is always in demand to some extent. Besides, with 2 15 win and one 14 win season to his resume, Lopez is arguably the more proven of the two.

[PeaveyFury]

Mench for Lopez? I'd be fine with that. Not thrilled, not unhappy, just ok.

 

After looking at Lopez' stats, he's had two outstanding years (2002, 2004), one mediocre year (2005), and two really bad years (2003 and 2006). If we get anything close to his 02 or 04 efforts, he'd be a total steal.

 

I'd expect a slight adjustment down in his numbers in going from the AL to the NL in the first place.

 

Anyway, sounds like the deal was discussed but never really got to far in the first place, so this might all be a waste of time.

[Blazer25]

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I would assume Gallardo would be the fallback plan for the 4/5 spot in the rotation.

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I would say that's probably a big stretch.

 

So many people on this board want to rush this kid because he's had success.

 

He's 20 years old and has only pitched 77 innings above A ball...he's not ready yet.

 

I'd say at best he's a September call up this year...certainly not in the plans for the 4/5 spot in the MLB rotation.

[RobertR]

Realistically, I'd think Zach Jackson or Dana Eveland would get first crack at filling in. I'm more optimistic than September on Gallardo, but I'd agree that he's probably not an option for the first half of the year.

 

The more I think about Lopez, the less I like the deal. I'm not against bringing in a guy with some upside, but he's not going to be cheap and there are no guarantees of production. I see a lot of downside to bringing him in and at a salary where production is expected. I understand people being frustrated with Davis last year, but Davis was leaps and bounds better than Lopez.

 

Robert

[Cyanogen5]

The only way I am even partially OK with bringing in Lopez is if it is as a reliever. He is not better than any of our starters...like someone else said, if we want a near 6 ERA, we will do it with one of our minor leaguers who would cost the minimum.

[Blazer25]

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I'm more optimistic than September on Gallardo,

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If Yo's here before Sept, it will be because the Brewers have major injuries and probably be in last place.

 

The kid has 77 innings above A ball...be patient with him.

[sbrylski]

From Roch Kubatko's blog today, a reporter for the Baltimore Sun:

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2). As of late last night, the Orioles had no interest in Geoff Jenkins. They're only interesting in knowing where that rumor started. Which brings me to...

 

3). As of last last night, the Orioles hadn't been engaged in a single discussion with the Brewers concerning Derrick Turnbow, according to multiple people who would know.

 

I'm not sure which Turnbow they'd be getting anyway: The one with 57 saves or the 57.00 ERA. Same guy, different years.

 

Gross exaggeration, too. But you get my point.

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[trwi7]

I was looking at a Mets fans blog and one comment regarding Mench was.

 

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Hed be a very similar player to Nady, prob even a little better defensively. Id consider giving up Bannister for him...

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We can only hope that this guy is Omar Minaya.http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

[pogokat]

It's kinda funny that you found that quote---

 

I think if Mench hadn't played for the crew last year, we'd be talking about him as a possible replacement for jenkins...His overall stats for the last few years are pretty good and he's the kind of player the brewers (obviously) go after, he just had a slump with the crew...

 

now, i'm not saying we keep him, but if he wasn't already a brewer, I'm pretty sure we'd be talking about him in the same breath as jose guillen and dave roberts, etc...

 

i'm sure he has more value than we think on the trade market..

[dadofandrew]

Mench's value is the same as it was before he played here...some still don't understand what a small sample is.

[endaround]

And that value is what? A 26 year old AAA player? Maybe we can get Dallas McPherson for him.

[PeaveyFury]

As of late last night, the Orioles had no interest in Geoff Jenkins. They're only interesting in knowing where that rumor started.

 

Maybe they should be more interested in actually putting together a decent team next year, but maybe that's just me.

 

As of last last night, the Orioles hadn't been engaged in a single discussion with the Brewers concerning Derrick Turnbow, according to multiple people who would know.

 

What a very odd thing to 'report'. What's next, reporting about the other 700 Major League players that the Orioles haven't had discussions about?

[endaround]

Note" in a single discussion" Now multiple discussions, yes.

[backup catchers]

Judging from Bush's stats in 2005, he would never have been capable of putting up the strong season he did in 2006.

 

The Bush Lopez comparison can go even further. It shows that guys who have one good year can come back to Earth. As Lopez shows we should not just figure Bush is going to continue to be as good as he was in 06. He may but why just assume he's going to be as good or better? If we don't assume Bush stays the same and the young AAA arms will all pan out then it makes sense to see if we can trade some of our spare parts for what is essentially a spare part from Baltimore. More arms with the versatility to pitch either in the pen or the rotation is a good thing. If it cost $3 million it's still better money spent than on guys Kolb.

It's lot easier to put a puzzle together when you have more interchangable pieces to work with.

[sbrylski]

What a very odd thing to 'report'. What's next, reporting about the other 700 Major League players that the Orioles haven't had discussions about?

 

I'm assuming there was a small rumor about him that managed to escape us here at BF.net.

[PeaveyFury]

Yeah, that's the only thing that makes any sense. I am somewhat surprised that it managed to escape us, though.

[sbrylski]

Found it. Apparently it was Tim Kurkijan on ESPN radio who reported the Turnbow connection. I guess nobody here listens to ESPN radio anymore, and I don't blame them.

 

Here is a post from a Orioles blog:

 

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Tim Kurkijan reported on ESPN Radio this morning that it could Lopez for Derrick Turnbow. If the Orioles can get [Mench, Jenkins, or Turnbow] for Rodrigo, then do it. The trade for Jaret Wright was the official end to the Lopez era in Baltimore. Turnbow would a nice piece to add to a bullpen that has been nothing short of a chamber of horrors, outside Chris Ray. Turnbow had a wretched second half of 2006, but he was on the All-Star team. He has 63 saves in 2 seasons. Bring to Baltimore as a set-up man, and hope he's not the second coming of Dan Kolb. Mench and Jenkins would be plenty welcome as well. If this deal was to happen, I hope that the teams expand it so that we could get Turnbow and Jenkins/Mench. I also think that in the National League, Rodrigo Lopez would be a better pitcher. Now, your good pitchers will adapt to any kind of park, the AL or NL, and what have you. Lopez is a decent pitcher and the move to the NL would probably put his ERA back in the low 4's.

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[Never Outhustled]

Mench's value is the same as it was before he played here...

 

Well at least we've identified the problem. Next we just have to find out how we got stuck with him in the 1st place.

[dpapo]

From the Baltimore Sun,

 

"The Astros, the worst-hitting team in the National League this season, reportedly will pay Lee $11 million in 2007, along with a $3 million signing bonus, $12 million in 2008 and $18.5 million in each of the last four years.

 

"I'm very excited to be here," Lee said during an afternoon news conference in Houston. "I know this is a team where I have a good chance to win a championship. I've always liked this team, they're always very good and I like this ballpark. I like a lot about Houston. That's why I told my agent this was one of the places I'd like to play."

 

The Orioles never made a firm offer to Lee, but they discussed "parameters and concepts" of a deal, according to Duquette.

 

"That's what he was doing with all the teams," Duquette said. "In theory, Houston was the only team that actually made a concrete offer. That's more a matter of semantics, really."

 

The Philadelphia Phillies and San Francisco Giants also had been in contention to sign Lee, who owns a cattle ranch near Houston. The Phillies recently dropped out of the running.

 

"The reality is, Houston was his first choice all along, as we found out at the end," said Duquette, who also noted that Lee won't have to pay state income tax in Texas.

 

"The other two teams were going to have to spend more to get the player. It was going to have to be north of $100 million for us or the Giants to get him. The whole market is crazy numbers, but that one seemed kind of crazy to us."

 

A few players phoned Lee in an attempt to sway him toward Baltimore. Duquette said he doesn't believe the Orioles were used by Katz to drive up Lee's price.

 

"I never got that sense," he said. "I think they were definitely sincere. He was seriously considering here."

 

With a vacancy remaining in left field, the Orioles could turn to Cliff Floyd or Jay Payton. They also could reopen talks with the Brewers, who have offered Kevin Mench for pitcher Rodrigo Lopez . Though they also need a first baseman, it probably won't be Severna Park native Mark Teixeira, since the Rangers made it known during the GM meetings that he's not available.

 

"We've got a couple other ideas. We've been going down parallel roads in case this happened," Duquette said. "Unfortunately, [Lee] and Soriano were the two high-profile guys."

 

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

[trwi7]

Umm wow Houston really should've front loaded that contract. I can't wait to see him making $18.5 million at age 35 and trying to play defense.

 

And yeah Mench for Lopez would be fine with me, Jenkins for Lopez not so much.

[Nader Raider Tim]

Just an FYI, rotoworld.com is reporting that with the Orioles missing out on Lee, they MAY revisit the Lopez/Mench deal.

[thumperden]

Both of the last posts are very interesting. However Lee could still be moved to 1st base in Houston in a year or two, couldn't he? I'm also not too hot on the proposed Lopez/Mench deal, now that Davis is out and Vargas is in. I get a bad feeling that if this trade happens, the bullpen will be in shambles soon from overuse.

[sbrylski]

I'd love to see Carlos trying to field grounders...

[endaround]

Yeah Lee at first could happen, but my guess it would make the Sheffield at first experiment look good.

[thumperden]

Right on gang. I certainly wasn't implying that would be the answer moving Lee to 1B, but he could be hidden there and play it like Frank Thomas. Hey, a guy can dream bad things for the enemy right?! I laugh at the suggestion with you.