Alfonso Soriano to nowhere

by Yakker on Jul 31, 2006 4:59 PM EDT

Well, the Nats just issued a statement saying they were not dealing Soriano anywhere:

"We felt the best deal we could make is no deal for the franchise," general manager Jim Bowden said.

Now, this can't be about making the playoffs this year and probably isn't about draft picks, so I guess this is just Bowden sticking his finger in the other GMs' eyes and proving he's willing to go down with the ship to spite them.

Unless he's got some inkling he'll be able to sign Soriano to an extension?

Seems to me, with all the buzz, Bowden could have dealt Sori somehwere and made the team better for the future, but maybe the offers just weren't there.

What do people think? Do you hold Trader Jim's non-action against him? Even without the offers of McCarthy and Fields, surely the team is worse off in the future with Soriano leaving at the end of the season than they would have been had he been dealt.

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i guess

it depends on whether we hear what was offered or not.

My thinking was maybe the alleged negotiations between the nats and the twins held him out. Bowden probably wanted Garza, baker, ect but the twins had made up their mind they wouldn't let them go. If they were smart they probably kept bowden on the phone until the last second and then said no to prevent any last second deals with other AL central teams.

by Team Moneyball on Jul 31, 2006 5:04 PM EDT reply actions

Value

It depends on what was on the table, but something's got to be better than nothing. Maybe Bowden backed himself into a corner from a reputation standpoint by asking for too much early. But it seems like 2+ months of Soriano doesn't do much for the Nats from 07-09.

by Yakker on Jul 31, 2006 5:22 PM EDT up reply actions

My opinion

the kind of stuff that you heard people talking about in relation to Soriano isn't anywhere close to what the Nats could actually get. If I were a Nats fan, I would have been rooting for whatever the best deal was, rather than keeping him. But I suspect it would have been tough on Bowden's ego to take that.

by Brett Perryman on Jul 31, 2006 5:39 PM EDT reply actions

Offers

Some of the potential offers are starting to come out now. According to Will Carroll, Washington apparently turned down E Santana/E Aybar from LAA, and apparently also Kubel/Baker from Minnesota.

While neither of these is as good as the apparently-fabricated McCarthy/Fields/somebody else deal from a few days back, each is considerably better in my view than the alternative, which is letting Soriano play on as a lame duck. Personally, I would have jumped at the Minnesota deal.

by Yakker on Jul 31, 2006 6:11 PM EDT reply actions

See

I just can't fathom how he could have turned down Santana/Aybar. My mind can wrap around that report being wrong easier than that he's dumb enough to turn that down.

by Brett Perryman on Jul 31, 2006 6:22 PM EDT up reply actions

I heard that same Santana/Aybar...

... about Tejada, so maybe the wires got crossed.

and boom goes the dynamite.

by Mean Dean on Aug 1, 2006 1:37 AM EDT up reply actions

I heard that same Santana/Aybar...

... about Tejada, so maybe the wires got crossed.

and boom goes the dynamite.

by Mean Dean on Aug 1, 2006 1:38 AM EDT up reply actions

as they apparently did

on that post.

and boom goes the dynamite.

by Mean Dean on Aug 1, 2006 1:38 AM EDT up reply actions

Carroll's incorrect

I think Will Carroll is incorrect. The local beat writers who cover the Angels reported that the Angels were not willing to offer a starting pitcher in a package for Soriano.

by Crows Landing on Jul 31, 2006 6:45 PM EDT up reply actions

I'd rather have Kubel/Baker

Than 2 months of Soriano and no playoffs! I don't know what Washington could be thinking.

by BIgMax on Jul 31, 2006 6:55 PM EDT up reply actions

Translation:

"We felt the best deal we could make is no deal for the franchise," general manager Jim Bowden said.

In other words: "We failed in our gambit to wrest multiple tier I talenst by playing other franchises against each other in a run for a two month rent, now we'll pretend our intent all along was to secure him long-term."

OTOH, someone in the Nats organization must have explained a rather clandestine rule within baseball: if the pitcher doesn't throw strikes, and you don't swing, eventually you get first base for free!

I find it a curious twist of fate that Soriano moves to a pitcher's park, learns about the base on balls, and puts up numbers congruent with an elite offensive player. Is this repeatable?

by steve johnson on Jul 31, 2006 6:25 PM EDT reply actions

re: repeatable

It might be repeatable if you could get Soriano to play on a one year deal every year. This season had salary drive written all over it. He was trending downward several years in a row before this season.

"When I read about the evils of drinking, I gave up reading." - Henny Youngman

by TINSTAAPP on Jul 31, 2006 6:36 PM EDT up reply actions

remember

The nats will get 2 draft picks becuase they kept him.

Not saying that makes it worth it, but it's not nothing.

by DeisJJ on Jul 31, 2006 7:00 PM EDT reply actions

True

If they offer him arbitration, which is likely but not guaranteed since the Maddux thing with the Braves a few years back. Course, a first-round pick and a supplemental pick will cost them a couple mil in signing bonuses too.

by Yakker on Jul 31, 2006 7:29 PM EDT up reply actions

Aribration,

Given his performance this season, it looks like they'd better be serious if they offer his arbitration, cause it's going to be expensive!

by steve johnson on Jul 31, 2006 7:39 PM EDT up reply actions

Lugo

Tampa got Joel Guzman for a rental of Lugo, you're telling me Bowden couldn't get more than that for Soriano?

Rios is the next Juan Gonzales, thats right, I said it.

by KaoticKlown on Jul 31, 2006 7:17 PM EDT reply actions

Re: Guzman

I think Guzman is more likely to pan out than the draft picks the Nats will not end up getting. But I'm not a Guzman fan. I'd rather have Joe Saunders.

by im not new on Jul 31, 2006 7:59 PM EDT up reply actions

Twins

Given his performance this season, it looks like they'd better be serious if they offer his arbitration, cause it's going to be expensive!

I don't think arbitation is an issue. There isn't much chance of Soriano accepting arbitration. And if he does, Washington will likely be willing to pay whatever he wins on a one year contract.

If the Twins did offer Kubel and Baker to rent him for two months, which I doubt, As a Twins fan I'm glad the Nats turned them down.

by TT @ Minor League Ball on Jul 31, 2006 7:56 PM EDT reply actions

long-term deal

I dunno, I'd been reading for a couple weeks not only that the Nats were trying to sign him up long-term but also that Soriano was looking for a long-term deal there. Not saying either is gospel, but this isn't entirely a CYA by Bowden (or else it's an elaborate one, and good for him).

Carroll's sources were steering him wrong a lot this year. I wouldn't be so trusting about those rumors.

by whichthat on Jul 31, 2006 10:33 PM EDT reply actions

Extension

If the Nats sign Sori to an extension, it could make things even worse, depending on the dollars. The guy's a terrific player sometimes, but I wonder if he can sustain it. Plus, his production, while great, means a lot less in LF than it did at 2B.

by Yakker on Aug 1, 2006 12:50 PM EDT up reply actions