More options declined

The end of Sunday brought important decisions to two teams. The Phillies decline their option on 3B Pedro Feliz and the Red Sox declined their option on Alex Gonzalez. Both moves cause me to question the confidence in Amaro Jr and Epstein as to "upgrading." The Phillies will be scrapping with many teams over Chone Figgins. Adrian Beltre is next on their list and from there it's Crede, Mora, DeRosa, Tejada, etc. My guess is they shoot for Figgins, Beltre, and Tejada or DeRosa. Anything less would totally shock me and any Phillies fan. Rumor has it today from Howard Medgal of mlbtraderumors.com that the Phils are very interested in Mark DeRosa, who graduated from Penn U. Another rumor is the Phils will persue SP Roy Halladay. This deal couldn't get done this year and the Phils acquired Cliff Lee instead. The Jays are looking for something they can build their team around and the Phils farm system is quite depleted after the Lee acquisition. The Red Sox released Gonzalez once, but that was because any Sox fan would've agreed he was horrid at the plate. This 2009 A-Gon was completely different (.284, 5 HRs, 15 RBIs and 2 SB's in 44 games). It's a guess who will be signed by the Sox who clearly don't have faith in Jed Lowrie. They could revive the Miguel Tejada talks from years ago and bring him in. Two Sox almuni are available (Alex Cora and Orlando Cabrera). Other than Jack Wilson and Marco Scutaro, the options are very slim. I'd like to see Cabrera, Cora or Tejada in at SS, but I'm not sure of the range Tejada has left seeing as he hasn't played short much. By any means, both Feliz and A-Gon could return to their teams at a cheaper price, but more than likely that will not happen. The Red Sox today decline C Jason Varitek's (.209) option. I can't say that anyone didn't see this coming. The fact that manager Terry Francona got Tek a standing ovation in the final homestand pretty much summed up the fate of Varitek. Varitek could and is expected to pick up his player option($3Mil) and return. Smartly, the Sox picked up Victor Martinez's option($71.Mil) to return. V-Mart hit .336 with 8 HRs and 41 RBI's after being acquired at the deadline. The Red Sox have finalized a 2 yr/$5M(with incentives) contract with SP Tim Wakefield. Wakefield (11-5; 4.58ERA) did have trouble staying healthy for the second half, but was a pitching strength in the rotation. I'm glad they got it done because Tim has been one of my favorite pitchers in Red Sox history.

The Nationals appear to be the team ready to make a splash. They are interested in persuing reliever Mike Gonzalez in the event of Gonzalez not re-signing with the Braves. The organization is exploring the option of Mike MacDogual (3.60ERA) last season as the next closer. If that's the case MacDougal will have to get more K's this season instead of balancing them with walks. OF Elijah Dukes is finally going to get his shot this season and prove his worth.The Nats are looking to rid themselves of C Wil Nieves(.259, 1HR, 26 RBIs in 72 games). Who they will pick-up is beyond anyone's guess. They may make a run at Rich Harden, but if they get him it's going to cost them.

The Rays picked up OF Carl Crawford's options today($10Mil). Crawford hit .305 with 15 HRs and 68 RBIs.A good move to smooth over the Pat Burrell situation, but with all the money spent on Crawford, what does that mean for B.J. Upton? The Rays declined C Greg Zaun and reliever Brain Shouse options. Shouse definitely will not be returning, but Zaun could if he exercises his player option($2Mil). I'd be surprised if they Rays could find a cheaper, quality back-up catcher below two mil with the OBP and SLG Zaun put up.

The Rockies continue to blow things up as they try to re-sign Rafael Betancourt. C Yorvit Torrealba is definitely gone after declining his option. Garrett Atkins will not be tendered a contract. The team is now listening to trade offers for Brad Hawpe. Doesn't make sense for a team only looking to add reserve players and re-sign Betancourt? I think there's something we're not being told.

The White Sox claim that free agent Chone Figgins will cost them too much and they have a better chance of re-signing Scott Podsednik. So now that the smoke and mirrors has been thwarted by GM Kenny Phillips, what do the White Sox plan to do? They've got a little money to throw since Jermaine Dye is gone.

The Jays are backing off of Chris Snyder because of his back issues, but are said to be negotiating a three team trade with the Cubs and Mets to acquire OF Milton Bradley. They'd be sending 1B Lyle Overbay to the Mets and 2B Luis Castillo to the Cubs. Sounds good for the Jays if Bradley can keep his mouth shut and play the game. I'm not big on Overbay, especially with Mets suffering at 1B with an aged Carlos Delgado and young Daniel Murphy. Overbay is going down the Delgado road only quicker I believe. Castillo would be blocking Ryan Theriot in the Cubbies line-up, and Cubs fans won't be pleased with a declining Castillo. Overbay did slug better than Bradley this season, but is it worth in the long run? This goes against the Jays idea of "building from the ground up." Regardless, Cubs lose this deal.

If a New York team is going to get John Lackey, it will be the Yankees. The Mets are said to be passing on him because of injury problems Lackey has had and concentrating more on Jason Bay and Matt Holliday.

The Mariners appear to want Jarrod Washburn and Erik Bedard back, but will not make the mistake of overpaying them. While Bedard and Washburn had good numbers in their limited role, he will have to find a way to stay healthy. Russell Branyan (.251, 31HRs; 76 RBIs) is another teammate hoping to return after an injury ended his season. ESPN's Buster Olney says Lackey could be a sleeper pick-up for Seattle.

The Giants sent OF Randy Winn packing today. Winn can still play the outfield well. He hit .261 with 2 HRs and 51 RBIs in 149 games. He can be a weapon in a potent line-up on base with 65 runs scored and .300+ OBP. Lastly, the Braves are negotiating an extension with SP Javier Vazquez. Vazquez was serviceable last season going 15-10 with a 2.87 ERA. He struck out 238 batters while giving up just 44 walks. If only his team got him some more wins!