Kazmir

[moebarguy]

Do you guys think there is any chance that Kazmir is dealt? I say this for two reasons: (1) I, as a Mets fan, am still very pissed off about the trade, and (2) isn't he up for arbitration this season?

[Eddiey]

No way the Rays trade him. The Rays biggest weakness is pitching, so moving Kazmir makes no sense.

[raysnbran]

I have no idea of his contract situation, but he's only been in the big league since August of 2004, so I doubt he's eligible for arbitration yet. And the Rays are looking for starting pitching not looking to get rid of their #1 SP.

[PJ-34]

well since theyve stared the re building fase i think it would be good for him to go, for a couple of prospects or a good young player

[TheKingofKings]

At the age he has , you practically have no negotiation rights anyways .

[Eddiey]

well since theyve stared the re building fase i think it would be good for him to go, for a couple of prospects or a good young player

The Rays already have a ton of "prospects". Now job 1 is developing that talent.
Kazmir is 23 years old and has proven he can pitch at the major league level.
No way I'd trade a proven 23 year old youngster for 2 other young kids who are unproven.

[PJ-34]

well just because he is young doesnt mean hes automaticly a prospect, hes 23 and has pitched in the majors for quite a while now and he would be good trade bait

[moebarguy]

I mean, if I were the Devil Rays, I wouldn't trade him in a million years...

[Dalkowski110]

"he would be good trade bait"

We'll give ya Shawn Green, Carlos Gomez, and Brian Bannister for him. Whaddya say? :laugh The Devil Rays would be out of their minds to trade Kazmir...

[EvanAparra]

well just because he is young doesnt mean hes automaticly a prospect, hes 23 and has pitched in the majors for quite a while now and he would be good trade bait

Yeah, what 23 year old that was on pace for Cy Young votes before he got hurt WOULDN'T be good trade bait. It would be incredibly stupid to trade him. They have enough prospects, they need to start winning sooner or later.

[Mad Guru]

Do you guys think there is any chance that Kazmir is dealt? I say this for two reasons: (1) I, as a Mets fan, am still very pissed off about the trade, and (2) isn't he up for arbitration this season?

I know if my team was in the National League Championship Series, I'd be completely focused on fretting about a trade completed two and a half years ago. I bet you're still steamed over that whole Fregosi debacle, too.

As far as Kazmir's contract situation goes, it is possible, but unlikely, that he will be salary arbitration eligible. He has 2.042 years of service time. He needs to be in the top 17% of service time for those with more than 2 and less than three years of service. His particular number is probably going to be too low.

If you're the Devil Rays, unless Kazmir has some serious arm issues, I cannot think of a scenario where they don't try to sign him to a long-term contract before the end of next season when he will be eligible for arbitration.

[moebarguy]

I know if my team was in the National League Championship Series, I'd be completely focused on fretting about a trade completed two and a half years ago. I bet you're still steamed over that whole Fregosi debacle, too.

(1) It is relevant because if my Mets still had Mr. Kazmir, I wouldn't be worried about playing an AL team in a 7 game series...
(2) If I was old enough to be alive for the Fregosi trade, I would still be steamed about it :D

[Mad Guru]

(1) It is relevant because if my Mets still had Mr. Kazmir, I wouldn't be worried about playing an AL team in a 7 game series...

But the Kazmir of 2006 has arm troubles and would be making up a heck of a non-rotation with El Duque and Pedro. Oh, and Victor Zambrano. You remember him...the guy who used to be Tampa's best pitcher.

(2) If I was old enough to be alive for the Fregosi trade, I would still be steamed about it :D

A true Mets fan would have the pain of the Fregosi-Ryan trade genetically burned into them. A DNA branding if you will.

But thinking of retroactive trade cancellations Devil Rays fans....if you could undo the Stocker-Abreu trade by undoing the Kazmir-Zambrano trade, would you? What would the fortunes of the Devil Rays have been like with Abreu as a cornerstone? 85 losses a season or would the team have used him as a centerpiece and built a winning team around him? Thought?

[Dalkowski110]

"the guy who used to be Tampa's best pitcher."

You forgot to finish the sentence "...and was lousy anyway."

Kazmir has a minor arm problem and El Duque has the calf issue. He's not going to be out half of next season like Pedro Martinez. And btw, Zambrano was never considered for a fifth starter role in Spring Training. I'll admit it's the worst trade since Fregosi-Ryan, but being the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, if you guys don't come up with some serious money, you're losing your ace in three or four years.

[raysnbran]

But the Kazmir of 2006 has arm troubles and would be making up a heck of a non-rotation with El Duque and Pedro. Oh, and Victor Zambrano. You remember him...the guy who used to be Tampa's best pitcher.



A true Mets fan would have the pain of the Fregosi-Ryan trade genetically burned into them. A DNA branding if you will.

But thinking of retroactive trade cancellations Devil Rays fans....if you could undo the Stocker-Abreu trade by undoing the Kazmir-Zambrano trade, would you? What would the fortunes of the Devil Rays have been like with Abreu as a cornerstone? 85 losses a season or would the team have used him as a centerpiece and built a winning team around him? Thought?

From what we were told, the Abreu-Stocker "deal" wasn't a trade in the true sense of the word. The Phillies had made one of those under the table agreements with Lamar, that "if you take Abreu for us, we'll send you Stocker in return, that way you won't have to draft a SS". Blame the Astros too for giving up too soon on Abreu, as well as the Rays for not using Abreu as a RF cornerstone. Stocker was a weak hitting good fielding SS and was out of baseball in 3 years.

They wouldn't have "built a team around him" because the previous regime had no intention of spending money to be competitive. The new ownership needs to prove to us that they are not of the same cloth. :grouchy

[Eddiey]

From what we were told, the Abreu-Stocker "deal" wasn't a trade in the true sense of the word. The Phillies had made one of those under the table agreements with Lamar, that "if you take Abreu for us, we'll send you Stocker in return, that way you won't have to draft a SS". Blame the Astros too for giving up too soon on Abreu, as well as the Rays for not using Abreu as a RF cornerstone. Stocker was a weak hitting good fielding SS and was out of baseball in 3 years.

They wouldn't have "built a team around him" because the previous regime had no intention of spending money to be competitive. The new ownership needs to prove to us that they are not of the same cloth. :grouchy

I agree, the new ownership does need to prove to the fans that they will spend a few bucks on improving the team. The A's and the Twins to name a couple have proven that money spent wisely can produce very competitive teams. The Yankees prove the other side of the coin. All the money in the world, if NOT spent judiciously, is not a panacea for bad management. Lets face it, with the resources the Yanks have there is no excuse for going this long without a championship.

[brooklynboy]

In order to spend judiciously, you gotta know whata the hell you're doing..This immediately rules out the D'Rays...

:)

[Mattingly]

I don't follow the D-Rays much, despite their being in my division. However, it's been said that they primarily do trades which greatly benefit themselves and won't if it's not leaned heavily in their favor. Is this true?

I have no idea of what kind of deal it would take for them to deal Scott Kazmir. Would someone need to blow them away with several top players that are cheap?

[raysnbran]

The Rays decide on trades based more on salary than talent. It remains to be seen what they got for Lugo, but in the Huff deal, they got Zobrist, who is an adequate fielder and scrappy singles hitter, but the key guy might be Mitch Talbot, who was dominating in the playoffs for their AA team. For Lugo, they got Pedroza and Riggiano (sp?), Pedroza sounds like a taller version of Gomes, a tall guy who either HRs or Ks. We got a starting catcher in Navarro in the Hall/Hendrickson deal, as well as a SP in Seo. That trade was kind of a wash.

Kazmir would require a major league ready SP and a top prospect in my opinion in any deal. But with his late season arm trouble, teams won't do that deal. The Rays need to see if he can come back strong, then commit to him next offseason, at least to show the fans they are serious about holding onto some of their young talent.