Our friend Jayson Stark is back with another Rumblings column, kind of like Peter Gammons' Diamond Notes but without quite as many pulled-from-a-hat trade rumours. Jayson is still pretty pumped about his hometown Phillies, but he had a few words about the Blue Jays:
Blue Jays shortstop Felipe Lopez: "Seems like he's a driven guy down there. Made some outstanding plays -- and made the routine play. There's a lot of interest in him, and with his ability, there's no reason he shouldn't be a premium shortstop. What worries me is that I've seen him during the year, and there are times he really has trouble concentrating."
Best trade rumor bouncing around Puerto Rico lately: Lopez to the Orioles for Sidney Ponson.
Speaking of the Toronto rotation, Chris Carpenter is now a free agent and probably can't pitch again until at least next August after shoulder surgery. But the Blue Jays have made him a multiyear offer. He has until Tuesday to say yes or no.
dp will be happy to hear a good report on F-Lo -- it could well be that Lopez realized his career was this close to going off the rails and decided to do something about it. Still, an anonymous scout is an anonymous scout, and even he concedes Lopez may have concentration issues. I won't rehash the should-they-or-shouldn't-they debate, but good news of any kind is welcome with regard to Felipe: the better he's doing, the better off the Jays are, whether he stays or goes.
Trade rumours are best ignored till verified by at least one other source, but I'll pause long enough to say that this rumour would be better categorized as wishful thinking out of Camden Yards. The Orioles have been offering Ponson up around the league for months now. He just came off his best big-league season: 7-9, 4.09, 176 IP, 172 H, 63 BB, 120 K, 107 ERA+. That says #4 starter to me, maybe #3, and Toronto has plenty of those types, and without a medical or personality history. JP may be down on Felipe, but I seriously doubt he's going to give him away.
It'd be nice to have Chris Carpenter back someday ... but it would've been nice to have Mike Sirotka back too. In my mind, I've now classified both those guys together. That's a little unfair, since Carp's upside was always higher and he hasn't fallen quite so far, but AFAIC Carpenter's return is nothing to mark on your calendar. I'd like to see him signed with Toronto, but that's the last I'll think about him for awhile.
Blue Jays shortstop Felipe Lopez: "Seems like he's a driven guy down there. Made some outstanding plays -- and made the routine play. There's a lot of interest in him, and with his ability, there's no reason he shouldn't be a premium shortstop. What worries me is that I've seen him during the year, and there are times he really has trouble concentrating."
Best trade rumor bouncing around Puerto Rico lately: Lopez to the Orioles for Sidney Ponson.
Speaking of the Toronto rotation, Chris Carpenter is now a free agent and probably can't pitch again until at least next August after shoulder surgery. But the Blue Jays have made him a multiyear offer. He has until Tuesday to say yes or no.
dp will be happy to hear a good report on F-Lo -- it could well be that Lopez realized his career was this close to going off the rails and decided to do something about it. Still, an anonymous scout is an anonymous scout, and even he concedes Lopez may have concentration issues. I won't rehash the should-they-or-shouldn't-they debate, but good news of any kind is welcome with regard to Felipe: the better he's doing, the better off the Jays are, whether he stays or goes.
Trade rumours are best ignored till verified by at least one other source, but I'll pause long enough to say that this rumour would be better categorized as wishful thinking out of Camden Yards. The Orioles have been offering Ponson up around the league for months now. He just came off his best big-league season: 7-9, 4.09, 176 IP, 172 H, 63 BB, 120 K, 107 ERA+. That says #4 starter to me, maybe #3, and Toronto has plenty of those types, and without a medical or personality history. JP may be down on Felipe, but I seriously doubt he's going to give him away.
It'd be nice to have Chris Carpenter back someday ... but it would've been nice to have Mike Sirotka back too. In my mind, I've now classified both those guys together. That's a little unfair, since Carp's upside was always higher and he hasn't fallen quite so far, but AFAIC Carpenter's return is nothing to mark on your calendar. I'd like to see him signed with Toronto, but that's the last I'll think about him for awhile.
