Happy trails, Pete: Phils decline Feliz's $5 million option
Per Scott Lauber from the Wilmington News-Journal.
Probably a good decision by the organization. Fangraphs had Feliz providing $12.4 million in value over the past two years (on an $8.5 million contract), but nearly all of that came from his glove work, which had been slipping a bit in recent years. The nostalgic among us will remember Feliz for his World Series winning RBI last year, while the realists among us will remember his first pitch swinging pop ups.
Best of luck to Pedro, wherever he winds up. It will certainly be interesting to see how Amaro approaches the hot corner situation; Chone Figgins, Adrian Beltre, and Mark DeRosa are among the available free agents; Alex Gordon and Brandon Wood could be available by trade; and on the low end of things, Garrett Atkins is likely to be non-tendered by the Rockies.
about 2 years ago
PhillyFriar
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Yay
but ad from danburymint.com for gold yankees cards – not fun
Don't frack with me or you'll get a punch in the kidneys...you've been warned
by jemagee on Nov 8, 2009 7:05 PM EST reply actions
We could probably get a reasonably cheap deal for Beltre given his struggles this season. Best case scenario he performs somewhere near the average of his last 3 years in what is probably the tail end of his prime, worst case he is not much different than Pedro Feliz.
Repeating myself from below here, but I agree — if we’re going the free agent route, Beltre’s the guy I target. He’s saved 27 runs with his glove the past two years, so he’s actually an upgrade on Feliz defensively. And even with a down offensive year in 2009, the average of his last 3 years (as you allude to) looks like this…
134 games — 576 PA — .269/.318/.444 — 20 HR — 12 SB — 2 CS — 102 OPS+
Not stellar, by any means, but combined with an excellent glove, that’s a vast improvement on Feliz.
My guess is that Figgins will command a high price and the Angels will let him leave, in which case I assume Wood wouldn’t be available either.
Beltre would be alright.
Gordon could be a nice pickup. How much would it cost to get him? (Maybe we could platoon him with someone like that Heether guy.)
If Boston fails to keep Jason Bay, would a trade involving Ibanez and Lowell be possible / desirable? (Yes, I’m gonna keep on beating that drum!) Does the Hermida pickup rule that out?
If Bay falls through wouldn’t they want a right handed bat – and who plays third for the red sox if they trade ibanez for lowell.
Not to mention I think Lowell aged, quickly….
Don't frack with me or you'll get a punch in the kidneys...you've been warned
by jemagee on Nov 8, 2009 7:33 PM EST up reply actions
Lowell had a bad fielding year this year, although he still hit well. I don’t know enough about the situation to know whether that trend is totally irreversible, or whether it can be reversed at least partly by injuries healing. But I believe PF is in New England, so he might have a better idea, so I asked.
I think the Red Sox would certainly prefer a RH bat, all other things being equal. But all other things often are not equal.
As for who plays third for the Red Sox, I thought the idea was that it would be Youkilis, with either Victor Martinez or Adrian Gonzalez (if they can get him) taking over at first. Everything I’ve heard suggests that Boston would definitely like to be rid of Lowell, so I take it that one way or another, they’re not particularly concerned about creating a hole over there.
Youkilis to 3rd is doable but I don’t think it’s their preference especially since they might have a nice open spot for a new DH
Don't frack with me or you'll get a punch in the kidneys...you've been warned
by jemagee on Nov 9, 2009 9:35 AM EST up reply actions
happy trails
for now.. wouldn’t entirely shock me if we brought him back for just less than the option.
Great decision
No reason to have him on the team anymore. In fact, there was no reason to have him on the team in the first place.
I’d love somebody like Scutaro, but I’m not sure how much money he commands. Cot’s has him listed as a potential Type A free agent. He’s quick, he doesn’t strike out much, has a little pop, is versatile. Does the little things that would be very valuable in the bottom of the lineup.
LIke not having one of the worst OPS+ numbers in all of MLB for 3b
Yup. It’s the little things.
Remember the Phitans
by RememberthePhitans on Nov 8, 2009 8:12 PM EST up reply actions
Oh...and do we get a Checkers speech
or a least a “You won’t have Pedro M. Feliz to kick around anymore”?
Remember the Phitans
by RememberthePhitans on Nov 8, 2009 8:17 PM EST reply actions
Pedro is slipping
in both defense and offense this year. Last year he was much better in the D and this year both are hurting. I really love the way our GM is constantly trying to upgrade our team. Willl be interesting to see who will be our 3rd baseman neax year.
Uribe?
Or is San Fran gonna re-sign him?
That ball hit deep! Way back! You can put it on the boooaaaard...YES!
Long drive into deep right center field! This ball is OUTTA HEEERRRREE!
R.I.P. Harry Kalas 4-13-09
Word is the Padres would be willing to part with Kevin Kouzmanoff. He’s like a younger Pedro, what with the promise of power and lack of plate discipline.
Oh, and Adrian Beltre is a boras client. The chane of him coming at a “reasonable price” are pretty slim, methinks, despite his troubles in Seattle.
Possibly working in our favor is that there aren’t that many deep-pocketed teams with clear need at third base. The Yankees, Mets, Cubs, Dodgers, Angels, White Sox, Red Sox and Giants are all pretty much set at that position, or at least have contract obligations that would likely keep them out of the market. The Tigers will be looking, but we’re probably a better destination in just about every way, and likely would have more to spend.
I think Amaro looked at this situation and realized the odds were pretty good that he could get an upgrade at the position without spending too much more than what we would have paid Feliz, at least not next year: I’m sure that if they do get a guy like Beltre, it’ll be on (yet again) a back-loaded deal.
White Sox
Actually, they just traded Fields to KC. Not sure if they’re thinking about Teahan as a third baseman or outfielder, so they could be in.
I’m on board with your take on the situation. Beltre isn’t coming off of a career year by any means, and the market for third basemen looks like a buyer’s one at first glance. I wonder if a two-year deal with a third year team option would be a possibility.
And I’m not sure if the White Sox plan to use Teahan at third or not; their situation is in flux, as Teahan could also wind up in right field (where they just let Dye go), and Beckham could wind up anywhere in the infield (except first, obviously). But if they have a hole at first base, I’d expect them to pursue Figgins pretty hard.
Other teams that come to my mind as potential Beltre suitors: the Angels (if Figgins departs), St. Louis (if they don’t get something done with DeRosa), and maybe Baltimore as a dark horse.
Jon Heyman says that the Angels will definitely be interested in Beltre if Figgins departs.
I doubt Amaro would have the cajones to do it, but if the Angels were to outbid him for Beltre, he should immediately try to swing a deal for Brandon Wood. The kid is just rotting away in Triple-A at this point, and I think working with Manuel and Thompson would only help him become the major league hitter everyone was projecting he’d be a few years ago.
Wow, strange. Why would they do that? It seems so dumb, and the Angels aren’t typically a dumb organization.
On a separate note, what ever happened to that guy Dallas MacPherson?
As I understand it from local radio the angels have been dumb about a couple ready prospects the past couple years….
by jemagee on Nov 9, 2009 4:27 PM EST up reply actions
I think McPherson had back problems — I know he was a minor league free agent last year, think the Marlins had him (where he hit a ton of homers at AAA), and then this year I don’t even think he had any AB anywhere, even in the minors.
*sigh*
The Tigers are on the hook for almost 7M next year for Inge. Also, they have 4 or 5 key players flirting with Free Agency. Their local economy is a disaster, and they have a few big contract already. If they go for a 3B, I think they’ll shoot for somebody who’s more of a utility guy capable of a few positions like Uribe, since both their 2B and SS are up for FA.
If they go for a 3b will they trade inge? I’ve always liked Inge
Don't frack with me or you'll get a punch in the kidneys...you've been warned
by jemagee on Nov 9, 2009 10:40 AM EST up reply actions
Inge is a Feliz clone, only he can also be a backup Catcher.
If the Tigers go for a 3B they’ll have to trade Inge. A 6.6M reserve infielder with a mediocre/streaky bat is a terrible idea for any team.
Wow, you’re right, like I said I always liked him, didn’t realize he wasn’t really that good, a career 699 OPS ick.
Don't frack with me or you'll get a punch in the kidneys...you've been warned
by jemagee on Nov 9, 2009 12:45 PM EST up reply actions
It’s a shame he hates Catching. He’s a very good defensive catcher and his offensive numbers were decent for a catcher, but for a corner infielder his O is awful.
I’m sure Kouzmanoff is somebody on their radar, but I’m not a fan of that move at all for the reasons you’ve stated: he’s basically the same guy as Feliz. Even if he cost us next to nothing in the trade, he’s hitting arbitration now and would only get more expensive each year.
I’m sure he would, but with Kouzmanoff, we’re talking about a guy who actually walks less than Feliz while striking out more. Wrap your head around that for a second; that’s bad, huh?
It would take: (A) a heck of a lot of power; (B) a Zimmerman-esque glove; © a major league minimum salary; or, more likely, (D) some combination of all of the above, in order for me to consider Kouzmanoff as Feliz’s replacement.
I say you have to go after Chone Figgins. Replace him at the top of the lineup and waaalah… You have 1000 runs scored next season!
I don’t think it’s even an argument. But I’ll argue anyways… Figgins will be our next 3B.
If you’re a well run organization then you’ve already forecasted accounting for the possible increases in arbitration salaries next year. In fact, you do this at least 6 months before the next fiscal year (2010 season). Depending on your revenues from the prior season, you can set a budget higher or lower, but there is always a base budget amount that invariably changes based on the current conditions and forecasted conditions. Money is NOT the issue.
This isn’t about saving a couple million. Unless the Phillies have been hiding the greatest 3B no one has ever heard of, it won’t be internally through their system.
Why even decline the option to keep Feliz if you aren’t sure you can get the best available 3rd baseman out there? Feliz is serviceable, has a ring with the team, places excellent defensively, but is suspect batting 7th without any power or speed to make up for the batting average deficiencies. Regardless of his hitting, he’s relatively cheap for vet 3B. Why let him go if money was the issue. You really think you can get a better FA for cheaper?
Feliz has angered us all with his first pitch pop-ups, and 1st pitch swings in general. J-Roll does that already and is the best candidate to replace Feliz in the 7 spot. In fact putting J-Roll 7th makes a ton of sense considering his pop and speed (20 hrs a season). Keeping a guy with the lowest OBP (For a Phillie in 2009) as your leadoff hitter doesn’t make any sense. He was far from being the best in 2008 (5th on the team) and MVP Year 2007 (6th best on the team for starters). Jimmy is a glaring issue at leadoff and Figgins is the best option replace him in the leadoff spot and at 3rd base for Feliz.
Figgins kills 2 birds with 1 stone.
by Phils 2036 World CH on Nov 9, 2009 1:44 PM EST reply actions
You mean Henry Higgins? He’s technically adept, but not much of a singer.
by Wet Luzinski on Nov 10, 2009 10:31 PM EST up reply actions
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