Melky Cabrera PED suspension could impact Phillies offseason
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Melky Cabrera PED suspension could impact Phillies offseason
David Murphy, Daily News Staff Writer
Melky Cabrera of the Giants has been suspended 50 games for testing positive for a banned substance. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
While Major League Baseball's announcement that it had suspended Melky Cabrera for 50 games for elevated levels of testosterone has more immediate impact on the Giants, who entered the day tied with the Dodgers atop the National League, the move could also have an effect on the Phillies' offseason decision making.
Cabrera will be a free agent after the season, and while he has spent 2012 as a corner outfielder, the majority of his time in the majors has been spent in center field, where the Phillies have a clear need. The Phillies kicked the tires on Cabrera before acquiring Hunter Pence last July, and he had done nothing since to lower his stock, hitting .346 with a .390 on base percentage, .516 slugging percentage and 11 home runs before the suspension.
A switch-hitter, Cabrera has eight home runs in 129 at-bats from the right side of the plate, where the Phillies are clearly in need of some power.
Comments (63)
Poor Ruf ! I guess all the home runs he hits are a mirage because he is 26 years old.
What a handicap to have when playing for the Phillies. Maybe Amaro can work out a deal for a much older non performer, after all we wouldn't want a healthy first baseman in the wings to upset Howard. He could also be a threat to "Slugger Mayberry'' or "Dazzling Domonic."
Move him to AAA, and if he has the talent , bring him up next season to replace one of the sacred cows on the team.
— phineas- Take a deep breath and recite the name "Matt Rizzotti" a few times. Another power hitting 1B the Phillies had. His AA numbers in 2010-2011 were similar to Ruf's (better in some regards but fewer HRs). The other difference is Rizzotti was a questionable fielder even at 1B. There was no real shot at converting him to an outfielder ... I think they may have tried though. Rizzotti came back down to earth when he hit AAA after he was traded. He's now in AA with Oakland and hitting well again. He's also 26 years old. Maybe his ceiling is AA/AAA. He wouldn't be the first.
And with a guaranteed contract no 1B in the wings is going to bother Howard. There's no place to send RH unless be somehow becomes tradeable. Good luck unloading that contract.
One thing Looper said that every armchair GM should consider: He discussed the yin/yang of baseball, how for every strikeout there's a positive on the other side of that (the pitcher in that case) and perspective is all about which side you're riding. But he then extended that to the roster: For every guy you want to add, someone else has to come off. They're certainly not going to rush a AA guy like Ruf to the 40 man roster in that regard. Let him show he can continue what's he done this year and his ascent will take care of itself.— s - As for Melky, I never was a fan. When two great organizations like the Atlanta Braves and New York Yankees gave up on a promising young player and the player has been traded so many times before his 28 birthday and before being eligible for FA, something has to be wrong with him. His revelation this year that he takes advice from his good friend A-Rod was not good either.— EL Zorro
- They should only sign guys ready to better them self by juicing!! It is so much fun watching a team of meat head juicers smash the ball all over the field... Tell me 1993 wasn't fun?? That whole team was juicers.. Dykstra, Hollins, Daulton, Incavilia, Eisenrich, D. Jackson, T. Greene, & Mitch Williams... ALL JUICERS :)— FetchDixon
- Since this is a first offense, I would show a little forgiveness and take a run at him with a strong drug clause in the contract voiding it if there is another infraction. He has been a good solid player since his early days with the Yankees. Unless he is a clubhouse cancer, he might even come at a slightly less cost because of the damage he has done to his reputation. The way the Phillies are going, they need something different to fill a very big hole in their lineup in one of the outfield spots. I could see Brown in right, Cabrera in Center and a platoon of Pierre and a righty in left. I do not believe that they should take a run at Hamilton who has a high pricetag a high upside but a higher drug risk than anyone because of the nature of his addiction. Andm I would suspect that he is an "old" 31 because of his long and deep drug history.— gotedge
- Where is Freddy Galvis now? I know he was suspended but isn't that over? There should be enought time this season to see if he could handfle third base.
North Jersey fan— CarlCW - Without the soup how much pop will he lose? Sign Shane on the cheap and sign a big bat plus Pierre.— Mystified
- Phils should get Mike Young(2B/3B), Cody Ross and Torii Hunter for outfield, and bring Ryan Madson back for setup. Release Ryan Howard and replace him with Ruf. Bring up Jake Fox for bench and use him at 3b when Young is filling in for Utley at 2B. That would be a much improved offensive team with some power and a shutdown bullpen.— fafink
- I think the Giants should vacate the wins that they accumulated with Cabrera.— skolman
- cabrera is a loser. he'll probably test positive again. These guys never stay away from the juice— phoenix phlash
- Wait. The Phillies could use a right handed power hitting lst baseman. Our present lst baseman has trouble hitting , sliders, sinkers, curves and some fastballs.— tulsaphil
- If anything, this drives his price down. Now maybe Rube won't have overpay him as much as he otherwise would have.— Only in Philly...
- Duh! So he misses the first month of the season...how long did we wait for Utley and Howard, Galvis, etc. Frankly, this should lower his value. He's a juicer.— ngfs66
- Ruf. A 26 yr old tearing up AA. Wow. A real stud for sure.— JodyMac
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David Murphy
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