NEWS/RUMORS/INJURIES/"CHRIS's CRAZY THOUGHTS" Thread

and if Martin was coming off a season where he was a top 5 hitter in baseball, sure

 

If you are the Dodgers GM, what trade would you put together to get Hamels?

 

Absolutely nothing. Just throw the money at Jon Lester and keep our prospects, seriously.

 

A bag of stale doritos ranch, an open can of Spam lite, a case of Lucky Lager, a Twinkie, six AA batteries, a Fred Claire bobblehead, Davey Lopes' subscription to Big Jugs, The Chinchilla and a punch in the face to Bake McBride.

 

VMart's contract shouldn't have anything to do with what Martin gets. now, Martin and/or his agent can say whatever they like about VMart's deal..it's a free country. but what VMart brings to the table was worth 68M to the Tigers and that's really it.

there was likely a pool of teams that had interest in VMart, one of them reportedly the Mariners -- who with a VMart addition would've been in even better position to grab a playoff spot and that's 1 less playoff spot to go around and that was something to consider for the Tigers. Nelson Cruz isn't the level of hitter that Martinez is nor does Cruz have an existing chemistry with the Tigers, so that was a moot point.

point is, the player's gonna get what teams involved say he should get. if Martin has a number of teams that are willing to drive up his price, then like VMart, he'll get paid a nice amount. but VMart's not setting the bar for Martin. the need for a catcher is what sets the bar for Martin.

 

no thanks to giving up 2 of the big 3 for Hamels, nope

 

How about throwing a truckload of cash at Max Scherzer or Jon Lester and keep our prospects.

 

Dodgers eye Russell Martin, loom as threat to Cubs, Pirates, Jays
PHOENIX -- The Dodgers are looking into bringing back top free agent catcher Russell Martin, league sources said, and they certainly have the spending power to become a formidable obstacle to the Cubs or incumbent Pirates.

The Jays are a fourth team reportedly in the mix for Martin.

Martin is in an enviable position as he's by far the top catcher on the market coming off a superb season in which he posted a .402 on-base percentage, hit .290 and threw out 39 percent of would-be baserunners. Martin is also considered very good at the nuances of catching, including pitch framing, which has become a bigger deal, especially among the teams that stress analytics.

The small-market Pirates are believed to have made a strong bid during the season to keep Martin, but perhaps sensing the competition from deep-pocketed teams, on Wednesday acquired veteran catcher Francisco Cervelli in a trade with the Yankees, with the intention to make Cervelli the starter if they are unable to retain Martin.

The Pirates haven't given up, but they understand the competition is strong. The Cubs, who have payroll flexibility as they endeavor to take a big step in Joe Maddon's first year in Chicago, had a meeting with Martin that is said to have gone well.

The Cubs cite improving on-base abilities as one of the main goals of this offseason, and Martin was one of only four players with 450 plate appearances to have a .400-plus on-base percentage, along with Pirates teammate Andrew McCutchen plus Jose Bautista andVictor Martinez.

The Dodgers are an interesting entry in this mix, as they are said to be trying to pare their record $240 million payroll. They are listening to offers on their veteran outfielders Andre Ethier, Matt Kemp and Carl Crawford in those efforts, but seem willing to spend for Martin, who came up with the Dodgers but refined his game in the interim, especially the last two seasons in Pittsburgh, where he helped get them into the playoffs two straight seasons following 20 losing seasons in a row. Martin's teams have now reached the postseason six of his nine seasons, which is about the same record as the Dodgers in that span (they are five for nine).

New Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman is said to be an admirer of Martin. As Rays GM he never had a chance to pursue a big-time free agent, and in St. Petersburg Pat Burrell on a two-year deal was considered a major signing.

The Dodgers already have well-respected A.J. Ellis in the fold, but Ellis hit .191 last year and could work as a backup potentially. They might have interest in keeping Ellis, like Martin a good clubhouse influence, in part because three-time Cy Young winner Clayton Kershaw loves Ellis.

http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/writer...ye-martin-loom-as-threat-to-cubs-pirates-jays

 

Jon Heyman ‏@JonHeymanCBS 15s15 seconds ago
Andrew miller had 22 teams show interest, but it probably won't be the rumored cubs, who are looking only to lengthen pen