10/13: Wang for Santana?
Posted by: Patrick
Dave and Aziz discuss the possibility of trading Wang for Twins' ace Johan Santana. They note that Peter Gammons reported that 2 hours after our season ended, a call was made to discuss what could be packaged with Wang to get Santana.
I like Wang. He's a good pitcher and he's proven that he can pitch in New York. And while he may not be an ace, he is a very good pitcher. I like how he goes about his business. Quiet, calm, professional. A great fit for New York. He's also under our control for the next 3 seasons.
But, of course, this is Johan Santana we're talking about. He's definitely an ace. He's won the Cy Young twice. And he is only one year older than Wang. He'll be a free agent after the 2008 season and, obviously, any deal for him will result in him signing a new (and large) long term deal. How much will that be? Well, on base salary, Roger Clemens was the highest paid pitcher in baseball this year, making about $17.4 million dollars (the contract was for $28,000,022, but it was prorated from when he actually became a part of the MLB roster). According to USA TODAY, second was a tie between Bartolo Colon and Andy Pettitte at $16 million. Johan is slated to make $13.25 next year.
I'm not very good at predicting this sort of thing, but Carlos Zambrano's recent deal probably gives us a decent point of guidance. He signed a 5 year, $91.5 million dollar extension. That works out to an annual salary average of $18.3 million. Zambrano is not the pitcher that Johan is, in numbers or decoration. It's pretty safe to say that Johan's next deal will make him the highest paid pitcher in the game. So, I'm thinking we may be looking in the $20-$22 million dollar per year neighborhood. Maybe that's conservative, but it seems about right.
For the Santana deal to work, I can't really see us giving up Wang and another premier player or prospect. So, for example, no Wang and Cano/Hughes/Joba/Kennedy. In fact, I don't really want to trade any of those young pitchers or Cano for Santana - at all. Cano is young, under our control and improving. He's already one of the best offensive second basemen in the game. Dave and Aziz float the idea of Wang and Melky, since Torii Hunter is a free agent. Though I like Melky, I could do that as we could find another center fielder. But, would they go for it?
Thoughts?
I like Wang. He's a good pitcher and he's proven that he can pitch in New York. And while he may not be an ace, he is a very good pitcher. I like how he goes about his business. Quiet, calm, professional. A great fit for New York. He's also under our control for the next 3 seasons.
But, of course, this is Johan Santana we're talking about. He's definitely an ace. He's won the Cy Young twice. And he is only one year older than Wang. He'll be a free agent after the 2008 season and, obviously, any deal for him will result in him signing a new (and large) long term deal. How much will that be? Well, on base salary, Roger Clemens was the highest paid pitcher in baseball this year, making about $17.4 million dollars (the contract was for $28,000,022, but it was prorated from when he actually became a part of the MLB roster). According to USA TODAY, second was a tie between Bartolo Colon and Andy Pettitte at $16 million. Johan is slated to make $13.25 next year.
I'm not very good at predicting this sort of thing, but Carlos Zambrano's recent deal probably gives us a decent point of guidance. He signed a 5 year, $91.5 million dollar extension. That works out to an annual salary average of $18.3 million. Zambrano is not the pitcher that Johan is, in numbers or decoration. It's pretty safe to say that Johan's next deal will make him the highest paid pitcher in the game. So, I'm thinking we may be looking in the $20-$22 million dollar per year neighborhood. Maybe that's conservative, but it seems about right.
For the Santana deal to work, I can't really see us giving up Wang and another premier player or prospect. So, for example, no Wang and Cano/Hughes/Joba/Kennedy. In fact, I don't really want to trade any of those young pitchers or Cano for Santana - at all. Cano is young, under our control and improving. He's already one of the best offensive second basemen in the game. Dave and Aziz float the idea of Wang and Melky, since Torii Hunter is a free agent. Though I like Melky, I could do that as we could find another center fielder. But, would they go for it?
Thoughts?
OldYanksFan wrote:
Who are they gonna want for his LEFT arm?