Drew and Weaver sign
Minutes before the deadline last night, both Stephen Drew and Jared Weaver put their names on the dotted lines with the Diamondbacks and Angels, respectively. As expected, both settled for significantly less than they were demanding.
The interesting thing here, from the Mariners perspective, is that rumors continue to persist that a side aspect to the Drew deal was that Arizona agreed to draft one of Boras’ pitchers, likely Mike Pelfrey, with the number one overall selection. If Arizona passes on Justin Upton, it gives the M’s a shot at one of the two players they covet (Alex Gordon being the other), and significantly upgrades the draft potential for the M’s selection.
They are still just rumors, but the odds of the M’s getting Upton or Gordon went up significantly yesterday.
Comments
25 Responses to “Drew and Weaver sign”
Coupled with the possibility that KC goes cheap, ya gotta like the odds, though still stacked up against one of them falling, especially compared to what it looked like a month ago.
As much as I like Maybin and T2, they aren’t top 3-type talents.
Great news. The DBacks being in first place also helps as they culd use a pitcher to help them in the stretch.
As attractive as Upton sounds it would seem Gordon would be a better fit for M’s.
Given the choice between Upton and Gordon who is your pick?
Why on earth would Arizona want to draft a Boras client with the first pick if they don’t have to? And if they agreed to, couldn’t that be considered some kind of collusion or unfair tampering?
The Times had an article last week saying that the M’s were really focusing on Troy Tulowitzki, but were also looking at Gordon.
Damnit, I want Gordon. He can DH if they’re so concerned about having two 3B.
Gordon is also athletic enough to play LF.
I wonder what Gordon and Upton will be demanding.
Beyond just the Boras factor with Arizona, I would think that adding Drew would have an impact on what type of player that they are looking for. Obviously, no team is going to draft for a specific need that early. However, the Diamondbacks have a glut of position player prospects in their system, with relatively little pitching. Drew and Upton are pretty similar players – both are SSs who some think will play CF, both are polished hitters – so I would imagine that signing Drew would make them much more likely to go for a pitcher. In particular, I wonder if they will go for Hansen, who could help them soon. Pelfrey would be another option.
If that does happen, it would make for an interesting situation for KC. I would imagine that Upton’s price would be higher than Gordon. Thus, it might be more likely that Upton falls to the M’s.
If somehow both players fell, it would be a tough decision. Both players are both so good and so different. It is difficult to compare them. I would tend to think that Upton would be the choice, since he is more likely to be an elite player on defense as well as offense. However, Gordon’s power is definitely impressive. I think that both players could reach the majors quickly, so that isn’t as much of an issue as some people seem to argue. Tough choice, although the Royals or D-Backs will probably make the decision for the M’s. Lets just hope that one of them falls.
I think yer right Jerry. On all accounts.
Weirder things have happened in the draft, thats for sure.
It would be a HUGE get for Seattle to nab Upton or Gordon.
Why would Drew agree to a term in his deal that only benefits his agent? And how could Boras, an attorney, ethically engage in that kind of self-dealing? I question that report.
8 – Exactly my question. Wouldn’t it be a tremendous (& MLB investigation-worthy) ethical violation if an agent based terms and conditions of Client A’s contract on T&C of Client B’s contract?
Hey Dave, is there any credibility to Jim Street’s report on the Mariners website that suggests if Upton and Tulowitzki were gone by the Mariners pick they might take John Mayberry Jr.. Because for those two to be gone by the Mariner’s pick, Alex Gordon would still be available. Also Street asserts that Mayberry is the closest to being big league ready of any of the six or seven players the Mariners might draft.
The M’s still like Mayberry, but he’s a real longshot to go #3. And, to call him the closest to being big league ready is… stupid.
I may not be as über-knowledgeable about the upcoming draft as others around these parts, but even I can see that Street’s out in left field in his column. No mention of Gordon. Uggh.
The real question is — do we trust Fontaine with such a lofty decision?
I like Fontaine. Smart guy, good at what he does. Huge upgrade over Frank Mattox.
The Drew family must be…interesting. Was having kids like playing the lottery for that family, or what?
I don’t think either Upton or Gordon will fall, and I believe we’ll get shafted. Call me a pessimist.
I don’t know if I’d call Tulowitzki getting shafted. If he is, like I suspect, the new Khalil Greene, then we’ll have a SS nearly ready for the big leagues capable of hitting .270/.330/.450 in his prime. Over the course of the season, that’s worth about 3 wins above replacement, and about 5 wins over what the M’s are getting from their SS’s now.
The people i talked with who are crosscheckers who have seen both greene and tulo say he is not as good as player as greene at the same age.They say he will end up as utility player they both have him as #9-12 in draft not 3.I meen 1st round pick 9-12.They both have said Upton is the best Hi school player in the last 5 years.
Still as I’m sure you’ve pointed out, that’s a .780 OPS for a #3 pick.
Upton and Gordon seem to be the only 2 players worth having in the draft. If we can’t get either of them, how come there’s no talk of taking the best pitcher in the draft instead? Are Luke and Mike just not that good or what?
JC, I think you’ve talked to the only few crosscheckers who think that. Whenever I bring up the Greene comparison, the first response is always “no, Troy is better”.
The scouts who have followed him this year really like him.
There’s a ton of players worth having. Because we have the third overall pick, our expectations are raised. If we were picking 15th and ended up with Jeff Clement or Ryan Zimmerman or Ryan Braun, I’d be thrilled. I just don’t want any of those guys at #3.
The Drew family must be…interesting. Was having kids like playing the lottery for that family, or what?
You might ask the Sutters or one of the other great families of hockey. What must it be like to be the one brother who didn’t “win the lottery”?
Right, we don’t want them because they don’t have the star potential you might get with the top pick and money to spend.
Last year the top 2 picks slipped past the top 10 picks, this year it seems like the top 2 picks will actually be taken by the 3rd pick. How often does this happen?
Is it always Boras clients that cause players to drop so far if it’s not the threat of going to college?
Sorry for all the questions, feel free to skip them if they’re rehashed.
I agree with those who say that Giving Boras a benefit for a DIFFERENT client is unethical and probably illegal. It does NOT help Drew, and Boras is required to act in his best interests. Isn’t he?
That said, do I think Boras would do it? He’s been a liar before, but I don’t think that he AND the Diamondbacks would BOTH agree to a shady deal. Oh, wait, the D-backs are run by an ex-agent, aren’t they? Hmmmm…..
That ex-agent was also Boras’ biggest rival in the buiz…could be that bad relations between Moorad and Boras was one factor that helped prolong the negotiations so far with Drew.
I know the 3 guys ive spoken with have a combined 62 years of scouting amatures so i tend to trust there judgement.Im not saying anything bad about the people you have talked with but i will trust the guys ive spoken too.Why in gods green earth would the mariners draft another ss?I hear the cuban at 2A is gonna be real good in about a year and a half.They say he just needs atbats and getting used to being free from castro.