Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Twins Interested in Russ Springer?
When
I was doing my
Live Chat last night, someone asked me about available relievers still
on the market, and if I thought the Twins should be interested in any of them.
Here is one part of my response to that question, “Russ Springer had a great year, but he's over 40 and would cost a
draft pick, so that makes no sense...”
A
couple of things… found with very minimal research, I found that he turned 40
in November, so will be 40 throughout the 2009 season. And more important, I
found that although he is a Type A free agent, the St.
Louis Cardinals chose not to offer him arbitration, so it would not cost the
team that signs him a draft pick.
That
completely changes my thoughts on this topic. You see, rumors indicate that
because of his age, Springer will likely have to sign a one year contract.
Secondly, the value of that contract could be between $2 and $3.5 million. If
that is the case, he may be the perfect guy for the Twins for 2009!
Springer
made his major league debut way back in 1992 with the Yankees, and since then,
he has also pitched for the Angels, the Phillies, Astros, Braves, Diamondbacks,
Cardinals, Astros (again) and Cardinals (again). In 2007, he threw 66 innings
in 76 appearances and was 8-1 with a 2.18 ERA and a 0.909 WHIP. In 2008, he
pitched in 50.3 innings over 70 games. He went 2-1 with a 2.32 ERA and a 1.13
WHIP. Those are some very impressive numbers. He has pitched in 70 or more
games the last three years, and 62 games in 2005.
Again,
since we are likely talking about a one year deal, his age is not a tremendous
concern. He has been working with acclaimed pitching coach Dave Duncan the last two years in St. Louis, and the Twins are
known for taking care of their pitching staff pretty well under Rick Anderson’s eye. Springer has
somehow found some durability in his late 30s. There still could be incentives
included in such a deal, and if it would take adding a team option for a second
year, with a reasonable buy out, it could be done as well.
I
could fully support the Twins signing Russ
Springer, and if what I am hearing is at all accurate, he is the guy that
the Twins are actually targeting right now.
MORE ON SPRINGER
After posting the above Russ
Springer article, I got an e-mail from our friends at Over the Baggy pointing to an
article from TheTownTalk.com,
in Louisiana. It contains some quotes from Springer that are rather
interesting.
This is obviously regarding teams he is
talking to:
"Some are far enough away, I'm kind of surprised we're
actually considering them," he said. "Kelly and the kids have decided
to come with me for bigger parts of the season after spending hardly any time
with me last season," he said. "So that's kind of allowed me to
spread my area that I'm considering.
"But I've had interest from teams on the West Coast, as far north
about as you can imagine, and Florida," he went on.
"At this point in my career, I want to go somewhere where they have a
chance to win. That's a big part, and certainly where my family would be
comfortable, and the financial part comes in third probably."
Well, Minnesota is pretty
far north, right? The Twins provide a chance to win. The Twin Cities are known
to be family-friendly. And the financial part could be good from the Twins
perspective!
Also from the article:
"I don't think I'll sign a
multi-year contract," he said. "I'll definitely take it year by year,
and I'm not 100 percent playing this year. But I'm leaning definitely toward
playing this year, and I'm not saying that it will be my last. I'll probably
decide something by the end of the week."
Right in time for Twins Fest!! Remember a year ago, the Twins
signed Justin Morneau and Michael
Cuddyer to long-term contracts to start
Twins Fest. Maybe this year, the big news will be the signing of a new Relief
Pitcher.
Any thoughts? Leave
your comments here.