Before I being, congrats to the Kansas City Royals, as they appear to be getting ready to hire former Nippon Ham Fighters Manager Trey Hillman.  Hillman's a good man and will provide a lot of guidance to those players.

Onto the show!

On The Block - Coco Crisp

This is no longer out of the realm of possibility, as the Crisp himself has expressed a near certainty that he could be dealt. 

The Why:  Because Jacoby Ellsbury is bad ####.

Okay, aside from that.

Really, Ellsbury is ready to play now and the Red Sox don't seem too inclined to have him go into the 2008 Season as a supersub (which he'd still get reasonably playing time spotting Manny and Drew and Crisp).  Plus, Crisp is at the height of his value and would net some quality stuff in return for the Red Sox.

The Rumored Asking Price:  Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.......I'd say at least one stud prospect and a couple of B grade prospects, not stars, but good ones.   Or, potentially a third baseman with control left on him and a couple of prospects.  This is guesstimating right now.

Can A Trade Be Done:  Yes.  I should probably eliminate this section.  In all seriousness, Crisp is attractive because of his defense and because of his contract, which pays him $4.75 million in 2008, $5.75 million in 2009 and an $8 million club option for 2010.  That's a sweet deal, especially if you're gunshy about going after some of the centerfielders in the market this year. 

The Good:  Aside from his Gold Glove caliber defense, Crisp has a great deal of talent.  He was probably miscast as the leadoff man last year, but he's got a presence in the back of the order and reasonably could hit in the Number Two Slot if you've got an established leadoff guy already. 

Potential Hang-ups:

• Prospects – It really depends on what you're willing to give up for him.  Boston could easily scare off quite a few teams if they asked for several top prospects, especially in this day and age where prospects are overvalued a bit. Teixiera may have made the market harder for everyone else, as now everyone will be wondering if they could get a bounty of players in exchange for a player again.
• Lack Of Suitors - The quality of a lot of farm systems is down due to graduations or long term need.  As a result, many teams are either set with centerfielders, are playing a guy in center simply because of his contract, or don't have the goods to make a deal.

Potential Suitors – In Alphabetical Order

• Atlanta Braves – This is probably the most obvious one, as Atlanta needs a centerfielder.  Unfortunately, the Bravos are thin in the farm system after dealing prospects
• Florida Marlins – The Marlins could use a centerfielder and have some prospect depth to do it.  The Red Sox could even try to do a deal for Miguel Cabrera, although that likely would result in more being sent back to Florida in return.
• Los Angeles Dodgers - The Dodgers seem to be wanting to build more from other peoples' rosters instead of from their own, which is a shame.  Fortunately, there's a prospect in the Dodgers' minors that would be a solid swap for Crisp, Andy LaRoche, whom the Dodgers seem to have an allergy to playing. 
• Milwaukee Brewers - The Brewers could use a centerfielder and could concievably trade Bill Hall, who'd play third for the Red Sox, along with change elsewhere.
• Minnesota Twins – The Twins need a centerfielder and could part with some of their arms in the minors, but I don't have a feel for how the new regime in Minnesota thinks yet.  Terry Ryan wouldn't deal for anyone, so let's see how things shake out.
• Texas Rangers – Texas could use Crisp, but after restocking the system, I'm not so sure how much they're eager to start spending from it.  It's more likely they stand pat.

If I had To Hazard A Guess...Crisp Stays Put, Leaving Ellsbury to Supersub Duty.

If I Had To Make A Trade...The Boston Red Sox trade CF Coco Crisp to the Minnesota Twins for RHP Matt Garza.

Thoughts?