Friar Watch

That’s the big question for the off season. Mike Cameron is a free agent, he wants to play for his hometown Atlanta Braves and the Braves have an opening after letting Andruw Jones walk. I’d be shocked if the Padres were able to resign Cameron and our only other remotely viable centerfielder is Milton Bradley and he’s probably going to miss half the season and return with reduced range.

Consensus among most Padre observers is that a good defensive centerfielder is a must given the spacious outfields in Petco and most of the other NL West parks. Fortunately there are several big name centerfielders on the free agent market. Unfortunately, they all have question marks and will likely command salaries that are beyond anything the Padres are willing to pay. With that in mind, lets take a look at some of the other options out there.

Free Agents:
Kenny Lofton - They’ve been calling him Cool Papa Lofton on Fox, that should tell you all you need to know. At age 41 he can still hit a little and seems to have good wheels but is he really an every day centerfielder at this point in his career? I’d love to have him as a 4th outfielder though.

Corey Patterson - Ht .269/.304/.386 for the Orioles. I really don’t know much about him but he has some speed (37 SB, 9 CS) and has shown a little power in the past (24 HR for the Cubs in ‘04). Those are the positives, such as they are. The negatives? This pretty much covers it I think. Oh, and his agent is Scott Boras.

Kosuke Fukudome - See video below. Speculation is that he may put up Hideki Matsui-like numbers. Seems to have a good arm, there are questions about his ability to play CF. It may take upwards of $15 million a year to sign him, and at that point aren’t you better off with Rowand or Hunter?

Trade Targets
Coco Crisp - Had a great year with the glove but not so great with the stick. When he was in Cleveland he looked like he was on the brink of stardom but hurt his wrist after being traded to Boston and hasn’t been the same hitter since. 2008 salary: 4.75 million. 2009 salary: 5.75 mil. Boston has super prospect Jacoby Ellsbury ready to step in and may be looking to dump Crisp so it probably won’t take much to get him.

Jim Edmonds - 2008 salary: 8 million. Looks like he might be washed up, only hit .252/.325/.403 and missed a lot of time with injuries. He’s 38 next year. The new regime in St. Louis might be looking to dump his contract so you could probably get him for next to nothing, which is still too expensive.

Nook Logan - MLBTraderumors.com is reporting that Torii Hunter would like to go to the Nats, which would make Nook expendable. He’s even worse with the stick than Crisp but he’s one of the fastest guys in baseball and has a cool name. He’s another guy who would come cheap but isn’t a guy you want in your lineup.

Elijah Dukes - No thanks

Rocco Baldelli - An intriguing player for sure, Baldelli hit .302/.339/.533 in 92 games in 2006 before going down with an injury and lost most of 2007 as well. If he can stay heathly Baldelli would be one of the top center fielders in the game. Tampa is looking to move him to make room in the outfield and also to save money. He’s scheduled for $2.25 million in 08 but that jumps to $6M option in 09 with a $4M buyout.

Tony Gwynn Jr - The sentimental choice but he hits more like his uncle than his dad.

Felix Pie - big time prospect with the Cubs, has shown power and speed in the minors and has decent on-base skills. If the Cubs decide to go with him in center that means they’ll be looking to move…

Jacque Jones - Everybody loves a local boy coming home, right? Hit .285 in 07 but forgot how to hit homeruns and doesn’t draw walks. Under contract for 08 at $5M.

Adam Jones - Mariners prospect, .314/.382/.586 in AAA last year, Seattle might be looking to trade him but with those kind of numbers he won’t come cheap.

So what would I do? I’d roll the dice and sign Andruw Jones but it’s not my money, is it? Second choice would be to trade for Adam Jones or Felix Pie but I don’t think we have the talent available for that. My third option would be Fukudome but like I said before, with the money he’s going to get we might as well sign Hunter or Rowand. We might be able to get Baldelli for almost nothing due to his injury history and contract. Maybe that’s the best move, along with bringing in Lofton or a guy like Logan as insurance. If none of those work out then go for Crisp or Jacque Jones. KT has traded with Boston and the Cubbies in the past so I think this last option is the most likely, with Fukudome a close second.