MLB Trade Rumors: Teams That Must Target Cliff Lee
July 30, 2012 by Mike Hoag Jr.
Filed under Fan News
Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Cliff Lee is reportedly back on the trade market with the MLB trade deadline looming less than 24 hours away.
Recent developments may have completely changed the landscape of the free agency market in the waning moments leading up to Tuesday’s deadline. Cliff Lee has become the defacto No. 1 pitching option on the market.
This is due to Josh Johnson being unlikely to be traded because of the asking price and his contract and James Shields likely staying put in Tampa Bay.
Johnson was watched by 15 scouts in his most recent start, in which he recorded six walks and four strikeouts over five innings, while allowing three earned runs. Shields, on the other hand, is likely going to stay put because the Rays have found themselves in a good position to make a playoff run in September. They will need their former ace for that run.
Lee has struggled somewhat in 2012, recording a 1-6 record while posting a 3.95 ERA.
Some of Lee’s struggles are due to run support issues. While not reflected in the W-L column, he has stayed consistent and posted a good 112-to-23 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He’s also only allowing 1.8 walks while striking out 8.5 batters per nine innings, according to Baseball-reference.com.
Lee is owed $87 million dollars over the next three seasons, which is left over from his five-year, $120 million contract he signed in 2011 with the Phillies.
The Texas Rangers
The Rangers have a deep and young enough roster to make a move like this. There are a lot of working parts at play in order to get a deal done by tomorrow, but it wouldn’t be impossible.
In Lee, the Rangers know what they’ll be getting. It will be easier for them to gauge how much they should surrender in order to bring him back for a playoff run.
After their divisional rival Anaheim Angels signed Zack Greinke over the weekend, it would be wise for the Rangers to make some type of addition to shore up their rotation as they try to keep the Angels at bay in the division in order to prepare for the playoffs.
Recent tweets from ESPN’s Buster Olney and Jayson Stark indicate that talks may have died between the Rangers and Phillies and that they may again resume during the offseason. Here are those tweets:
Jayson Stark now hearing from a source that PHI’s Lee talks with TEX have all but ended. Complicated, multi-layered, better for offseason.
— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) July 30, 2012
One exec who spoke with #Nationals says: “If I looked up and saw that Washington traded for Ryan Demoster it wouldn’t be a surprise.”
— Jayson Stark (@jaysonst) July 30, 2012
The Dodgers may be actively trying to strike a deal for Chicago Cubs pitcher Ryan Dempster, but they have considered other options if they are unable to come to a deal.
The Dodgers SHOULD consider Lee, but they have shown they are rumored to be unwilling to part with their top prospects in the Dempster negotiations to this point, according to a tweet by ESPN’s Kevin Goldstein.
Lee is a premiere talent and worth the price of admission for a Dodger team with World Series aspirations. If they have any hopes, at all, of landing someone like Lee or Dempster, they are going to have to part with a prospect they value.
Outlook
This recent source reporting from ESPN indicates that a trade is more than likely not going to happen. However, if it does, the Rangers, followed by the Dodgers, have the most to gain by acquiring Lee.
Reports change frequently and people change their minds as the deadline nears. One thing is for certain: at this time tomorrow we’ll finally have some closure.
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