We have to at least consider Andruw Jones

[PhilipNelsonFan]

Jones couldn't hit for s**t last year but he's a defensive upgrade over Guillen and Ibanez for sure and he actually gets on base (.340 career OBP). If we could somehow release Jose Vidro (or trade him to the Nationals for Chris Snelling), we could have an outfield of Adam Jones-Ichiro-Andruw Jones, use Wlad the Impaler as a fourth OF, and DH Jose Guillen. That may actually make the lineup a little more potent than it is right now:

1. Ichiro
2. Andruw Jones
3. Beltre
4. Guillen
5. Big Richie
6. Adam Jones
7. Johjima
8. Betancourt
9. F**king Jose Lopez

Jones has IMO three good years left before he completely falls off and can be had closer to market value than any other name position player we could get.

I've been a big fan of his as a Brave, and while sentiment does get in my way a bit, I think he's an upgrade over what we've got at present.

[HeavyP]

Andruw won't sign anywhere that won't let him play CF. That being said, maybe Ichiro could move back over to right. I'm up for the idea at the very least. However, I do think in a year Wlad will be ready to play everyday, then what do we do? Especially since Jones is trying to get Ichiro type money (5 years 100 million) even after his terrible year. I don't hate the idea, but I just don't see how we do it.

ps. Snelling is on the A's, Billy Beane picked him up for peanuts.

[Bulltalk]

Isn't Scott Boras his agent? Do we need that kind of headache? Plus his batting average slumping the way it did scares me after Sexyman.

[Basketball Jesus]

No. We don't.

[b_roy7]

Where would Raul go? He was our most productive player this year.

[Bulltalk]

Where would Raul go? He was our most productive player this year.

Whenever I think of Raul, I never quite know what to say of him. It's like I'm completely neutral on him. I don't like him as our left fielder, or as our DH. I suppose I'd be okay with him at first.

God I hope Clement can be a consistent long ball guy for us someday without a hold-your-nose batting average.

[Sweezo]

Ibanez is a serviceable DH, and Jones will cost far more money than I'd be willing to pay.

[Basketball Jesus]

The thing is, if you move Jones to a corner OF spot, he becomes a mediocre value. He can

[Ex-hippie]

I wonder if Jones might be looking for a one-year deal to reestablish his value, like Weaver did with Boras last year. Whatever, I'm not terribly interested -- he's 30 now and has a lot of mileage, owing to a career that started at a very young age. He's a righty hitter who would be joining a lineup that's already overloaded with righties, in a stadium that's much more favorable to lefties. There's also a widely held belief that his defense is in decline, although, to be fair, there is also some dissent on that point, relating mostly to the quality of zone rating as a defensive metric (Jones' ZR has been declining for a few years and is now below league-average).

[Ex-hippie]

This got me thinking about a slightly unrelated topic. Word out of Atlanta is that they'll be moving Francoeur to CF, which makes sense if he can play the position, since he's a below-average hitter for RF. Atlanta will be looking to bolster its corner outfielders and starting rotation in the offseason. Meanwhile, they have a surplus of middle infielders: Kelly Johnson had a very good year, Edgar Renteria is the shortstop, Yunel Escobar looks great, and Willy Aybar and Martin Prado are more than serviceable as utility guys. They'll definitely be looking to deal. I wonder if we could swing a deal for Johnson (or better yet, Escobar) to play second. I'd think either one of them would be worth Wlad Balentien or, alternatively, Rowland-Smith plus a mid-tier prospect.

[Basketball Jesus]

I wonder if Jones might be looking for a one-year deal to reestablish his value, like Weaver did with Boras last year. Whatever, I'm not terribly interested -- he's 30 now and has a lot of mileage, owing to a career that started at a very young age. He's a righty hitter who would be joining a lineup that's already overloaded with righties, in a stadium that's much more favorable to lefties. There's also a widely held belief that his defense is in decline, although, to be fair, there is also some dissent on that point, relating mostly to the quality of zone rating as a defensive metric (Jones' ZR has been declining for a few years and is now below league-average).

I wonder how much of Jones

[Basketball Jesus]

This got me thinking about a slightly unrelated topic. Word out of Atlanta is that they'll be moving Francoeur to CF, which makes sense if he can play the position, since he's a below-average hitter for RF. Atlanta will be looking to bolster its corner outfielders and starting rotation in the offseason. Meanwhile, they have a surplus of middle infielders: Kelly Johnson had a very good year, Edgar Renteria is the shortstop, Yunel Escobar looks great, and Willy Aybar and Martin Prado are more than serviceable as utility guys. They'll definitely be looking to deal. I wonder if we could swing a deal for Johnson (or better yet, Escobar) to play second. I'd think either one of them would be worth Wlad Balentien or, alternatively, Rowland-Smith plus a mid-tier prospect.

I know the adage is

[Basketball Jesus]

One guy I do like is the Red Sox Dave Pauley. He

[Ex-hippie]

-= original quote snipped =-
I think I