How to solve the Soriano dilemma?

[NCCubFan]

If he had 2 or 3 years remaining on his contract I could see somebody claiming him. With 5 years remaining the only way I could see it is if Hendry were to suddenly resign and immediately be hired as GM by another team.

[hossdriver]

Von Joshua needs to get the guy a smaller bat that he can control through the zone...

[E.J.]

Von Joshua needs to get the guy a smaller bat that he can control through the zone...

 

 

Piniella added he has been patient with all his veterans but that patience goes only so far. The Cubs tried to get Soriano to use a lighter bat, but he feels more comfortable with the heavy one he has used since coming to the big leagues.

 

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/chi-22-cubs-bits-chicago-aug22,0,372797.story

[NCCubFan]

Von Joshua needs to get the guy a smaller bat that he can control through the zone...

 

 

Piniella added he has been patient with all his veterans but that patience goes only so far. The Cubs tried to get Soriano to use a lighter bat, but he feels more comfortable with the heavy one he has used since coming to the big leagues.

Then Lou should tell Soriano that he'll return to the starting lineup as soon as he agrees to use a lighter bat.

[Burtonbell]

Von Joshua needs to get the guy a smaller bat that he can control through the zone...

 

 

Piniella added he has been patient with all his veterans but that patience goes only so far. The Cubs tried to get Soriano to use a lighter bat, but he feels more comfortable with the heavy one he has used since coming to the big leagues.

Then Lou should tell Soriano that he'll return to the starting lineup as soon as he agrees to use a lighter bat.

 

Agreed, his terrible looking swings at sliders (or offspeed) pitches down and away are whats killing him, IMO. His bat speed is so off right now it's laughably bad.

 

It's as if Soriano went to the Shawon Dunston school of swinging in the offseason.

[UMFan83]

Ive said this before and Ill say it again. Try the same thing that the Blue Jays did with Rios. If someones foolish enough to claim him, let them enjoy him and his albatross of a contract.

 

Do you honestly think someone would claim him?

 

You never know. The Jays probably didnt think that Rios would be claimed. The best bet would be a contending team atempting to block the team aboove them. I could see the Red Sox claiming him to block the Yankees or the Giants to block the Dodgers.

 

Whatever happens, Sorianos on his way to being the most hated man in Chicago since Gacy.

WSR listen to me. There is absolutely zero chance that any gm in baseball that would ever even consider claiming Soriano. Why would a contending team try to block Soriano from going to another contending team?you see how bad Sorianos hurting us, why wouldn't another team care if their rivals had his miserable bat in the lineup for the next 5 seasons at 18m per. Plus any team that sees Soriano on waivers knows what a miserable contract he has and claiming him is a really really bad risk. Not going to happen, plus I'd be pretty certain he's already been through and cleared waivers.

[RynoRules]

I wonder whether you get an AL team that is desperate for hitting - Royals or A's as examples - would take Soriano in a salary dump situation. We send Soriano over, receive a couple of mid-level prospects, and agree to pay half of his remaining contract.

 

EDIT: And this scenario only plays out in the offseason.

[Moises a loo]

I still love the Zito for Soriano trade suggestion. I feel like Zito could hurt us less by pitching as a 5th starter or long reliever than Soriano could playing 150 games in Left Field. We're gonna have to pay all or most of the contract anyways if we do trade him elsewhere so whatever, just clear the LF position for an upgrade.

 

I still love this idea too, but my problem is this: I can imagine the Cubs wanting to do it. I can imagine the Giants wanting to do it (sort of). I can even imagine Soriano waiving his NTC after getting a taste of the bench. What I can't figure out is why Zito would waive his NTC.

 

Face it, they're stuck with the guy. He'll probably start hitting again eventually.

 

I bet the Reds would take Bradley for Cordero though.

[GlassCow]

I wonder whether you get an AL team that is desperate for hitting - Royals or A's as examples - would take Soriano in a salary dump situation. We send Soriano over, receive a couple of mid-level prospects, and agree to pay half of his remaining contract.

 

EDIT: And this scenario only plays out in the offseason.

 

The teams you cite have such little payroll flexibility that we would have to pick up at least 90% of the contract. Probably closer to the full 100%. At that point, the albatross is still on our back.

[Monco]

Hendry dumping Soriano would mean admitting the signing was a mistake. I don't see him doing that. He signed a 40/40 guy who eliminated the second 40 permanently after pulling his hamstring in 2007. Piniella won't sit him too long because he insists that his slump can't last too much longer. They're both in denial.

If they can dump the salary,they need to. They need the money elsewhere. Until then, he should sit because they have others who perform better. Hes getting the money whether he plays or not.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

Soriano's reputation as a 40-HR guy continues to baffle me. He's reached that total once.

[Monco]

Soriano's reputation as a 40-HR guy continues to baffle me. He's reached that total once.

 

In his contract year,probably a coincidence.

[DivineBovine]

We're stuck with him. Giving him away and eating his contract isn't going to solve anything. Just hope he goes back to hitting .270 with 30 home runs and keep him out of leadoff.

[Monco]

We're stuck with him. Giving him away and eating his contract isn't going to solve anything. Just hope he goes back to hitting .270 with 30 home runs and keep him out of leadoff.

 

If they can move him,eating a part of the contract,they should.That money can be spent elsewhere. Even if he got back to 2007-08 levels, hes not worth the 5/100 that is due.

 

For now,they need to keep him out of the lineup. If Fox or Fuld are playing well, let them play.

[dew1679666265]

Would anyone do this hypothetical trade:

 

Soriano for Vernon Wells.

 

Both are signed through 2014. Soriano is due $18 million a year from 2010 to 2014. Wells is due this: 10:$12.5M, 11:$23M, 12:$21M, 13:$21M, 14:$21M. That would save the Cubs $5.5 million next year, but then they'd have $5 million less in 2011 and $3 million less in each of 2012-2014.

 

Soriano is 33, Wells is 30. Soriano has consistently been better than Wells throughout his career, but with Wells being younger, could he have a chance to be better than Soriano from here on out? Could a change of scenery (or more specifically, working with Von Joshua) help Wells?

 

For those who care, UZR/150 has them as similar defensive players, though Soriano is a right fielder and Wells is a left fielder.

 

I'm not sure I'd be in favor of this, but it was something I thought about and figured I'd toss it out for popular consumption.

[chopsx9]

Would anyone do this hypothetical trade:

 

Soriano for Vernon Wells.

 

Both are signed through 2014. Soriano is due $18 million a year from 2010 to 2014. Wells is due this: 10:$12.5M, 11:$23M, 12:$21M, 13:$21M, 14:$21M. That would save the Cubs $5.5 million next year, but then they'd have $5 million less in 2011 and $3 million less in each of 2012-2014.

 

Soriano is 33, Wells is 30. Soriano has consistently been better than Wells throughout his career, but with Wells being younger, could he have a chance to be better than Soriano from here on out? Could a change of scenery (or more specifically, working with Von Joshua) help Wells?

 

For those who care, UZR/150 has them as similar defensive players, though Soriano is a right fielder and Wells is a left fielder.

 

I'm not sure I'd be in favor of this, but it was something I thought about and figured I'd toss it out for popular consumption.

 

 

Soriano is a LF and Wells is a CF Wells is a fair bit better defensively, at least by reputation - he's won a couple of Gold Gloves - which I know isn't the be all and end all but I would assume he's not Adam Dunn out there - I also assume he wouldn't still be playing CF if his defense was a question mark.

 

That said I'd consider it at least - Wells is younger and a change of scenery has done wonders for some players - Cobs are stuck between a rock and a hard place right now.

[Monco]

Wells has limited range in center, less power, and has injury problems. But,he strikes out less. Both have poor on base percentages.

 

The Jays would have to chip in some money to consider it. Wells probably has a no trade clause like Soriano that would have to be waived.

[dew1679666265]

Wells has limited range in center, less power, and has injury problems. But,he strikes out less. Both have poor on base percentages.

 

The Jays would have to chip in some money to consider it. Wells probably has a no trade clause like Soriano that would have to be waived.

 

Wells does have an NTC. Wells in center field is a little worse defensively (according to UZR) than Soriano in left.

 

Soriano has been a better hitter overall than Wells to this point, but part of making this trade would be on the belief that a 30-year-old Wells is more likely to be productive than a 33-year-old Soriano. That would be the Cubs' reason for doing the trade. The reason the Jays would do the trade is that they save a few million from 2012 to 2014. It would sweeten the pot if they thought Soriano projected to be better, but it's not necessary.

[Moises a loo]

Wells has limited range in center, less power, and has injury problems. But,he strikes out less. Both have poor on base percentages.

 

The Jays would have to chip in some money to consider it. Wells probably has a no trade clause like Soriano that would have to be waived.

 

Wells does have an NTC. Wells in center field is a little worse defensively (according to UZR) than Soriano in left.

 

Soriano has been a better hitter overall than Wells to this point, but part of making this trade would be on the belief that a 30-year-old Wells is more likely to be productive than a 33-year-old Soriano. That would be the Cubs' reason for doing the trade. The reason the Jays would do the trade is that they save a few million from 2012 to 2014. It would sweeten the pot if they thought Soriano projected to be better, but it's not necessary.

 

I think getting that production from CF rather than left would also be a motivating factor. One of the reasons they threw so much money at Soriano was they thought he'd be able to play any OF spot; having him blocking LF for 8 years is killing them. If this trade magically happened, they could put Wells in center, move Fukudome back to right, and put Bradley in left where someone like Fox could easily fill in when he misses time. My unparalleled expertise tells me this has almost no chance of happening, for a number of reasons.

[dew1679666265]

Wells has limited range in center, less power, and has injury problems. But,he strikes out less. Both have poor on base percentages.

 

The Jays would have to chip in some money to consider it. Wells probably has a no trade clause like Soriano that would have to be waived.

 

Wells does have an NTC. Wells in center field is a little worse defensively (according to UZR) than Soriano in left.

 

Soriano has been a better hitter overall than Wells to this point, but part of making this trade would be on the belief that a 30-year-old Wells is more likely to be productive than a 33-year-old Soriano. That would be the Cubs' reason for doing the trade. The reason the Jays would do the trade is that they save a few million from 2012 to 2014. It would sweeten the pot if they thought Soriano projected to be better, but it's not necessary.

 

I think getting that production from CF rather than left would also be a motivating factor. One of the reasons they threw so much money at Soriano was they thought he'd be able to play any OF spot; having him blocking LF for 8 years is killing them. If this trade magically happened, they could put Wells in center, move Fukudome back to right, and put Bradley in left where someone like Fox could easily fill in when he misses time. My unparalleled expertise tells me this has almost no chance of happening, for a number of reasons.

 

Yeah, I don't know if it could happen, but it's certainly a deal that would make some level of sense for both sides.

 

And that's a good point about transferring Wells' production to center. You hurt Kosuke's offensive production value a bit by moving him to right, but he's also better defensively there - perhaps offsetting the difference in offensive value.

[Derwood]

Soriano's reputation as a 40-HR guy continues to baffle me. He's reached that total once.

 

In his contract year,probably a coincidence.

 

He was on a terrible Nationals team so pitching to him wasn't that damaging. He had 46 HR and only 96 RBI.

[SouthSideRyan]

Soriano's reputation as a 40-HR guy continues to baffle me. He's reached that total once.

 

In his contract year,probably a coincidence.

 

He was on a terrible Nationals team so pitching to him wasn't that damaging. He had 46 HR and only 96 RBI.

 

That makes no sense. If he's on a terrible team, you wouldn't want to ever pitch to him.

[apete6]

Soriano's reputation as a 40-HR guy continues to baffle me. He's reached that total once.

 

In his contract year,probably a coincidence.

 

He was on a terrible Nationals team so pitching to him wasn't that damaging. He had 46 HR and only 96 RBI.

 

That makes no sense. If he's on a terrible team, you wouldn't want to ever pitch to him.

 

You do if you're up 7-0 every game. I would imagine a lot of those HRs came in garbage time.

[SouthSideRyan]

Soriano's reputation as a 40-HR guy continues to baffle me. He's reached that total once.

 

In his contract year,probably a coincidence.

 

He was on a terrible Nationals team so pitching to him wasn't that damaging. He had 46 HR and only 96 RBI.

 

That makes no sense. If he's on a terrible team, you wouldn't want to ever pitch to him.

 

You do if you're up 7-0 every game. I would imagine a lot of those HRs came in garbage time.

 

Nope.

[apete6]

 

You do if you're up 7-0 every game. I would imagine a lot of those HRs came in garbage time.

 

Nope.

 

I wouldn't say there's anything distinctive in that sample size based off of a quick glance. Either way, a lot of dumb managing going on out there.

 

By the way, he hasn't had a HR since 7/29. I hope he's just hiding a real bad injury because if not, he is just terrible.