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)
never mind melky----what about moving utley to 3rd base next year, and find another 2nd baseman thru FA or leave Galvis there. That way you can have even more money available for a power outfielder— jarjason61- JJ, do you actually follow Phillies baseball? The are maybe three people on Earth, (you are one) that don't know that Utley tried playing 3rd in the minors, and didn't have the arm to make cross the diamond throws to first, and he was terrible, so they ended that experiment quickly. He is a second baseman. He is not going to the AL to DH either. When he signed his last contract 6 years ago, his exact quote was, "I'm going to be a Phillie for life". He will retire before being traded, I'd bet. — laser5
- My man Ben Davis mentioned the same thing about Brown taking a bad route on that ball that was in the air for a long time.— EL Zorro
- Impact number one: his price just dropped significantly. He was looking at a 10 mil/yr payday. no mas, Melky.— scootch
- Melk-A-Roidi..........the San Francisco Treat— NewMick314
- EZ>>>>>both Melk and Brownie took bad routes— NewMick314
- Melky Cabrera was never a real centerfielder; more like a 4th outfielder who could play center in a pinch-like Mayberry. Now, as he's gotten older, he's not even close; Melky is now a decent left fielder who can fill in elsewhere. To even think about playing Melky in center would be inviting disaster.
—The Phils might want to look into picking Michael Taylor back up though. Is back in Triple A for the A's. Had injuries for a couple of years that set him back and now when he comes back to the bigs can't get around on a ML fastball. His swing is messed up, but it's a recent thing(this year); looks like a technical issue; just the kind of thing that Charlie could clean up once they make him him batting coach and manager emeritus.
—Platoon Mayberry and Brown in Left, Schierholtz and Taylor in Right and sign . . I don't know . . .maybe Shane Victorino to play center. If the Dodgers fold in the end—as they most likely will—Shane should be almost affordable.
— aintnorep - Hahaha, NewMick, you're right.
— EL Zorro - Sign Victorino.— ACBaughman
- If Melky Cabrera was to be our answer in 2013, all hope totally is lost, already. Please. I would like to see us sign scrappy ballplayers in the John Kruk and Dave Hollins mold. Cody Ross comes to mind right now. They play baseball -- hard -- and want to win. Give me 4-5 of those guys at $5 million a year and I like my chances. I don't care what outfield position they end up in.— eman
- I would pass on Cabrera now. Funny, I also thought he had lost power with the Yankees then he came on so strong. I guess we know why. His numbers are bound to fall off now. The only positive might be that price/years falls off with this news. But I'd pass even at a discount.— s
- vic. tor. i. yes.— bubba church & granny hamner
- Im hoping they bring back Shane. Still young enough to do well. I always felt hitting him leadoff is a strong option. Also fill need for someone who hits lefthanders.— don whitman
- The great news for the Phillies is that we all found out about this NOW. Can you imagine signing him to a megadeal and then later finding out about his drug problem? We'll find somebody else to play outfield.— nmlawyer
- @ s good posts on Ruff. Can Ruff be another Gregg Luzinski? Problem is the team already gave one spot in the OF to Brown for next season. You can't have two young OF with question marks. Right now, it seems Brown is swinging to make contact instead of driving the ball. His swing is too slow for a young player and still with a big loop. His swing too defensive. He needs to be a little bit more aggressive. Also, if he is happy getting singles and walks, at least try to steal a base. He has been on base 19 times (13 hits, 6 BB) in 15 games and have zero SB attempts. And his defense is still questionable, although improved a little bit. It seems this kid can't put it together and he'll be 25 in a few weeks. There is also 3B to think about and Utley looks like he can't play solid defense anymore. This team has a lot of holes.— EL Zorro
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