Offseason Deals and Rumors

[mdccclxix]

Multiple Teams Interested In Nick Franklin
By Mark Polishuk [December 19 at 9:14pm CST]
The Mariners have a "strong" trade market for Nick Franklin, as several teams have shown interest in the young second baseman, FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal and Jon Morosi report (Twitter link). Franklin went from being Seattle's second baseman of the future to an obvious trade candidate following the team's signing of Robinson Cano, and given his pedigree, it's no surprise that teams are looking to acquire a promising, controllable talent.

Franklin, 22, was taken by the Mariners with the 27th overall pick of the 2009 draft and he entered the season ranked as the 47th-best prospect in the game by MLB.com and as the 79th-best by Baseball America. The 2013 Baseball America Prospect Handbook ranked Franklin as the fifth-best prospect in Seattle's system, saying "he profiles as a solid regular who could play in a few All-Star Games." Franklin hit .287/.360/.459 with 46 homers and 63 steals (out of 81 chances) over 1756 minor league PA, and then hit .225/.303/.382 with 12 homers in 412 PA with the Mariners in 2013, his first taste of Major League action.

Since Franklin has a lot of minor league experience at shortstop, the M's could also make him Cano's double play partner and shop incumbent shortstop Brad Miller instead. Miller, however, actually outhit Franklin in both the majors and the minors and (while he isn't a great defender) is better suited to shortstop than Franklin, so Miller could have more value to the Mariners going forward.

With Cano, Omar Infante and even secondary options like Kelly Johnson, Mark Ellis and Brian Roberts off the board, teams looking for second base help have precious little left on the free agent market. The Blue Jays stand out as a would-be contender with a hole at second base, while teams like the Braves and Mets could have a need for a promising young second baseman if they move their current keystone position stalwarts (Dan Uggla and Daniel Murphy, respectively) who have been rumored to be on the trade market themselves.

I ask, is there a darn second baseman NOT available this off season? The one year the team tries to unload their second baseman?

[Edd Roush]

Eric Surkamp? Brett Pill?

Good grief. Things are really getting desperate around here.

Help us, Uncle Walt. You're our only hope!

No reason to knock Surkamp. He is a fellow Moeller alumni and he has done a lot of good things on the diamond.

Surkamp would be a solid insurance plan if a starter gets hurt and Wang replicates last year's performance.

In 22 AA starts in 2011, Surkamp had a 2.02 ERA with a 2.37 FIP (10.43 K/9 and 2.78 BB.9)

Surkamp then had Tommy John and did a good job bouncing back last year.

In AAA last year, he had a 2.78 ERA with a 3.34 FIP.

I would certainly rather have Surkamp on my 40 man than Pedro Beato, Nick Christiani, Logan Ondrusek or Curtis Partch.

[mdccclxix]

David Price Rumors: Thursday
By Mark Polishuk [December 19 at 8:36pm CST]
There has been much speculation about a David Price trade this winter but very little hard information about interested teams. CBS Sports' Jon Heyman explores the seemingly quiet Price trade market in his wrap-up of the latest news about the Rays southpaw...

"Five or six" teams have made offers involving Price but the Rays haven't seen anything that piques their interest. The Rays "seem slightly shocked" that they haven't received better offers and people within the organization are now discussing keeping Price through at least the start of the season.

I tell you what, although the market could shift in ways you can't predict, the Reds aren't getting what some would hope for Homer Bailey when there is such a tepid response to David Price. There is simply too much pitching available and most teams do have at least 2 #3 style pitchers on their team. If they don't they're not looking to contend next year anyway. The smart money is going to one to three year deals with slightly above average vets for around 10 million per.

[RedEye]

No reason to knock Surkamp. He is a fellow Moeller alumni and he has done a lot of good things on the diamond.

Surkamp would be a solid insurance plan if a starter gets hurt and Wang replicates last year's performance.

Not intended as a shot against Surkamp necessarily. I'm sure he's a good pitcher with local ties. But he is a AAA insurance plan who just got designated for assignment. Not exactly the type of "Offseason Deal" or "Rumor" I was hoping for.

[Edd Roush]

Not intended as a shot against Surkamp necessarily. I'm sure he's a good pitcher with local ties. But he is a AAA insurance plan who just got designated for assignment. Not exactly the type of "Offseason Deal" or "Rumor" I was hoping for.

You personally may not be hoping for it, but if added to the Reds, he could play a big role if Arroyo is not brought back. I hope we don't need any AAA insurance, but I definitely want to have it, just in case.

If claimed, he would definitely qualify as a "offseason deal" that is just as worthy of discussion as bringing in Wang.

[RedEye]

You personally may not be hoping for it, but if added to the Reds, he could play a big role if Arroyo is not brought back. I hope we don't need any AAA insurance, but I definitely want to have it, just in case.



If claimed, he would definitely qualify as a "offseason deal" that is just as worthy of discussion as bringing in Wang.

Fair enough. I have no problem with Surkamp. My comment was intended more as a reflection on the overall level of the deals happening. Wang was also not a particularly groundbreaking signing.

[corkedbat]

No reason to knock Surkamp. He is a fellow Moeller alumni and he has done a lot of good things on the diamond.

Surkamp would be a solid insurance plan if a starter gets hurt and Wang replicates last year's performance.

In 22 AA starts in 2011, Surkamp had a 2.02 ERA with a 2.37 FIP (10.43 K/9 and 2.78 BB.9)

Surkamp then had Tommy John and did a good job bouncing back last year.

In AAA last year, he had a 2.78 ERA with a 3.34 FIP.

I would certainly rather have Surkamp on my 40 man than Pedro Beato, Nick Christiani, Logan Ondrusek or Curtis Partch.

Would amend that to Nick Christiani, Logan Ondrusek or Jack Hannahan. I'm willing to give Beato a chance and I wouldn't give up on Partch's arm yet.

[Edd Roush]

Would amend that to Nick Christiani, Logan Ondrusek or Jack Hannahan. I'm willing to give Beato a chance and I wouldn't give up on Partch's arm yet.

I'd be fine with that amendment. My point remains that Surkamp makes sense on the 40-man.

I saw another poster projected a Louisville rotation of: Holmberg, Wang, Stephenson, Corcino and Rogers in another thread, so I wanted to see who Surkamp would replace in that rotation.

With Wang's MLB past, he seems like a lock for AAA.

Holmberg has 0 career AAA starts, but pitched well in 26 AA starts last year (after 15 AA starts in 2012), so it's hard to see the Reds sending Holmberg to Pensacola.

Chad "Sharky" Rogers started in AA last year, but finished the second half up in Lousville with 12 starts, so it's hard to see him in AA next year.

Corcino took a big step back last year in AAA, but pitched all year in AAA. He did get 5 appearances that were not one of his 23 starts, so maybe the Reds would move Corcino to the bullpen?

Stephenson only had 4 AA starts (and no AAA starts) in 2013, so I am actually thinking that it makes sense to start him in Pensacola and then have Surkamp take a spot in Lousville.

Looks like there should be plenty of room for Surkamp in AAA. I really hope the Reds pick him up.

[OneManBand]

Chance we might nab a local boy?

The Giants have designated left-hander Eric Surkamp for assignment, according to the team's transactions page. The move was likely made to clear a roster spot for the recently signed Mike Morse.

The 26-year-old Surkamp made one start for the Giants in 2013, yielding an unsightly seven runs in 2 2/3 innings of work. His work in the minor league was excellent, however, as he pitched to a 2.80 ERA with 7.4 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9 in 86 1/3 innings. Surkamp split the season between Double-A and Triple-A as he recovered from 2012 Tommy John surgery, spending the bulk of his time in Triple-A Fresno.

In his minor league career, Surkamp has a 2.84 ERA with 10.0 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9 in 484 2/3 innings. The former sixth-round pick made his big league debut for the Giants in 2011 and ranked among Baseball America's Top 30 Giants prospects from 2010-13.

[Benihana]

Chance we might nab a local boy?

I'd be fine with giving Surkamp a look.

One local boy we won't be nabbing is Kevin Youkilis, who just signed to play in Japan.

[757690]

I'd be fine with giving Surkamp a look.

One local boy we won't be nabbing is Kevin Youkilis, who just signed to play in Japan.

So should we now call Youkilis, "The Greek God of Wasabi?"

[Benihana]

Orioles just backed out of the deal with Balfour - I wonder if this opens up a window for Walt to trade Chapman?

I wonder what we could extract from Baltimore - Adam Jones? I'd even throw in Billy Hamilton.

Seriously though, would you trade Chapman for Nick Markakis? Would the O's?

Crazy three way proposal du jour:
Chapman to BAL
Bundy to LAD
Kemp and $68M to CIN (meaning Reds would have Kemp for 6/$60M)

[RedEye]

Orioles just backed out of the deal with Balfour - I wonder if this opens up a window for Walt to trade Chapman?

I wonder what we could extract from Baltimore - Adam Jones? I'd even throw in Billy Hamilton.

Seriously though, would you trade Chapman for Nick Markakis? Would the O's?

Crazy three way proposal du jour:
Chapman to BAL
Bundy to LAD
Kemp and $68M to CIN (meaning Reds would have Kemp for 6/$60M)

I think the O's view Jones as part of their core. Markakis... Maybe an idea.

[HeatherC1212]

I think the O's view Jones as part of their core. Markakis... Maybe an idea.

Yeah, we're not getting Jones here and quite frankly, he would add a LOT of strikeouts to an all ready loaded lineup full of them. The Reds did draft Markakis twice though before he eventually was picked and signed with the Orioles so I've always been on board with bringing him onto the Reds because I think he's a great player. I don't know if a deal could be worked out but Markakis plays right field and also has a cannon for an arm which sounds an awful lot like a guy we all ready have playing RF which makes me wonder where Nick would play if we did get him (he's an everyday type of player IMO and shouldn't need to split time with anyone).

[Benihana]

Yeah, we're not getting Jones here and quite frankly, he would add a LOT of strikeouts to an all ready loaded lineup full of them. The Reds did draft Markakis twice though before he eventually was picked and signed with the Orioles so I've always been on board with bringing him onto the Reds because I think he's a great player. I don't know if a deal could be worked out but Markakis plays right field and also has a cannon for an arm which sounds an awful lot like a guy we all ready have playing RF which makes me wonder where Nick would play if we did get him (he's an everyday type of player IMO and shouldn't need to split time with anyone).

I was being faceitious about Jones - they're not moving him.

I wonder how much worse Markakis would be in CF than Choo? If the Reds wanted to exercise Markakis 2015 option, he could slide over to LF once Hamilton is ready (to bridge for an extra year until Winker/Ervin/Y-Rod).