Here's the hot trade rumor of the day, per Jayson Stark at ESPN (sorry, no link):
I'll grant that I don't have the hatred for the Mets that many Phillies phans share--and I'd kind of like to see Abreu get on a national stage that would show the world how great he is. So that aspect of a potential deal doesn't bother me. But it's the prospect of acquiring Milledge that's really exciting here. Check out his pre-2005 minor league numbers: at age 20, he was getting on base at nearly a .400 clip and hitting for some power in the Eastern League, and his BB/K numbers improved significantly as he moved up the chain.
Then this year, with Triple-A Norfolk, he's raised his game another level: 36/49 BB/K, with 29 extra-base hits. Remember, he's 21; it's a fairly safe bet that some of those doubles will grow up into homers. And he parked three during his brief callup with the Mets. (A 1-for-17 skid in his last five games with the big club depressed his overall MLB numbers; don't sweat that.)
The maturity question is a legitimate one. Milledge raised some eyebrows (and pissed off Willie Randolph) when he high-fived fans in the outfield after hitting his first big-league home run, and he committed some defensive lapses. Perhaps more of a concern for some is that Milledge was involved in off-field shenanigans that probably depressed his draft status in 2003:
As a result of his misconduct issues, Milledge was passed over in the 2003 amateur draft until the Mets selected him as the twelfth overall pick in the first round. The Mets began contract negotiations with Milledge, but the talks were interrupted in early August, 2003, when the Mets learned of allegations of additional sexual misconduct against Milledge during his time at Northside. [2] The Mets completed a private investigation of the matter and, satisified with the results, signed Milledge to a contract with a $1.9 million bonus.
Given that the Phils obviously have issues with Brett Myers and, possibly, 2006 top pick Kyle Drabek, the organization is right to look into this. But Milledge's off-field problems have the whiff of ancient history, a kid's dumb mistake. I'm assuming they know more than I do, and if they're satisfied, I'm satisfied.
Mets GM Omar Minaya is a "go for it" kind of guy. He'll more readily trade prospects than many GMs, especially this year with the Yankees in a fight just to make the playoffs and the Mets looking like the best team in the NL. If the Phils have an opportunity to move Abreu, and most or all of his salary, for Milledge plus a young arm or two, they probably should take it.