Some good background on B.J. Upton, and a guess at his value
News blogs, sports blogs, entertainment blogs, and more from Philly.com, The Philadelphia Inquirer and the Philadelphia Daily News.
Some good background on B.J. Upton, and a guess at his value
David Murphy, Daily News Staff Writer
With eight games left in the regular season, Phillies fans do not have much to look forward to except the offseason, when Ruben Amaro Jr. and the rest of the front office will attempt to retool for 2013. One of the big needs they will address is center field, where Shane Victorino had started from 2008 until the trade that sent him to the Dodgers in July.
One guy we have highlighted as a potential replacement is B.J. Upton, but as Marc Topkin notes in today's St. Petersburg Times, Upton has some issues.
The important paragraph. . .
But he also has been maddening to watch over the years: Getting picked off, throwing to the wrong base, striking out often and snarling at the umpire, and taking an at-times casual approach that at least makes it look like he is not hustling. (And led to him twice getting benched during the 2008 season.)
Topkin ballparks Upton's value at four-to-seven years at $12-to-$14 million per year. That's a hefty sum for a guy whose tools have far exceeded his offensive production over the last few seasons. I still think a guy like Nick Swisher is the ideal offensive fit for this lineup. Of course, Swisher doesn't play center field, and he is five years older than Upton.
Anyway, thought I'd pass along the story, which provides a tidy retrospective on Upton's career in Tampa Bay.
Have the Phillies given any thought to Melky Cabrera? He is not the first player who has been caught up in the drug issue. We will probably have a second baseman who had the same 50 game suspension this year if Utley can play third base. He would come at a discount because he will have his bargaining power eroded by his drug suspension. Everybody (but the Phillies) is talking about bidding for Josh Hamilton despite his far worse history with drugs.— gotedge- The phillies have a dysfunctional lineup that needs to be fixed before adding any new costly externals parts. These outside parts won't make us contenders in 2013. If Utley and Howard are truly redeemable players then i say to Rubin get outta town if your analysis of the situation fails to produce a playoff run in 2013. I certainly don't believe acquiring your playoff talent from free agency is the way to build a pennant winner. What team ever succeeded with this approach . We have too many flaws for a quick fix.— fafink
- @ jimbojones: Trout is in his first full year in the league- He is under club control for at least 4 more years. You know, it's easy to get answers to questions like yours - why don't you try it yourself sometime?— judas_priest
