2014 1B Option: Justin Morneau?

[JohnBriggs12]

Ok, he's a year older than Corey Hart and he's not the threat he was in his MVP season, but he is eligible for FA after this year and he appears to be healthy again. Plus he's a lefty bat (a need on this roster), and there is the Brewer Canadian connection.

[trwi7]

He's probably a .750-.775 OPS guy at this point, Hart is better and younger, so if we wanted/needed to sign a 1st baseman, we should probably just go with the younger, better guy who has expressed interest in signing with the team again.

[RockCoCougars]

Morneau looks to be toast to me. He hasn't been the same player since that concussion issue.

[DHonks]

I thought he was only a DH. Or was that because of the concussion? I'd just re-sign Hart for a nice deal since he wants to be here

[RWeeksFan23]

I'd rather just give 1B to Gamel.

[Roderick]

I thought he was only a DH. Or was that because of the concussion? I'd just re-sign Hart for a nice deal since he wants to be here

 

Your idea of a nice deal is probably different idea than what Hart thinks is a nice deal. He would have to be pretty "cheap" or short term for me to think about signing him. A hometown discount of $100K a year is more than I make a year, but isn't going to be enough for Melvin to sign him (hopefully).

[JohnBriggs12]

Morneau looks to be toast to me. He hasn't been the same player since that concussion issue.

 

He's obviously not the same player (keep in mind he's a former MVP so that's a pretty high bar) nor would he cost anywhere near what he used to command, but he's hitting .302 and already has 28 RBI (more than Ryan Braun). His HR numbers are down though he did hit 19 last year (12 away from Target), and this year the Twins have played a lot of games in very cold weather.

 

Mat Gamel is not a viable option at this point. He will not have played for almost 2 full seasons and has virtually no major league track record. Who knows whether Hart will be the same player when he gets back or what he would command in FA. His injury issues (bad knees) might trump Morneau's post concussion which he seems to have conquered. Plus the difference in age is minimal (10 months) Morris has done little so far at AAA so unless he picks it up, he doesn't seem to yet be an option either.

 

The Brewers are predominantly RH and could use a LH hitter in the middle of the lineup. Morneau could be a nice value. I still think he's a tough, tough out and has a little left. Now if Hart agrees to come back at a reasonable price and is productive over the 2nd half, fine, bring him back, but I think Morneau makes sense.

[monty57]

With Hart's knee issues, I wouldn't make a Qualifying Offer on him much less sign him to a multi-year deal. His magical healing abilities went away as soon as Braun's name appeared on the list in Florida, and the doctor who gave him his second opinion said that he needed a more invasive surgery which would've kept him out all season. To me, he looks like a ticking time bomb that I would steer clear of.

 

First base is a bit of a question mark next year, but we do have Gamel, Halton and Morris to fight it out, so hopefully someone steps up. As to adding someone like Morneau, I don't think we have the money unless we're able to get someone to take another contract off our hands. As long as we have the obligations we have, with most of our payroll going to a handful of players, we are going to have to accept the fact that we are going to have holes that will need to be filled by pre-arby guys or cheap vets.

[ELCABALLO45]

Yeah, not a big Morneau fan. The year he won MVP he probably wasn't the most valuable player on his own team. And as people said, he looks toast.