I'll Have You Home By Break of Day / I'm Going Your Way Anyway / And If You Want to Come Along / I'll Be Yours For a Song, Or, Should the Jays Make a Play for J.J. Hardy?

by hugo on Nov 17, 2008 9:50 AM EST in Toronto Blue Jays News

The Jays are once again in the market for a shortstop this offseason and everyone has their favourite choice - should the Jays sign free agents Orlando Cabrera or Rafael Furcal, or should they trade for a shortstop like J.J. Hardy or Khalil Greene? No matter who people like the best, though, everyone seems to agree that Milwaukee SS J.J. Hardy would be a big upgrade over Jay shortstops of the past, and at just 26 years of age in 2009, Hardy could be a long-term solution as well.

Hardy has put up very good lines of .277/.323/.463 and .283/.343/.478 over the past two seasons and has 50 home runs and 66 doubles and triples to show for his hard work. His age means that he's unlikely to decline over the next few seasons and could even get better. Hardy has also earned accolades for his defense.

The reason I bring this up now is that Brewers GM Doug Melvin has stated that the best offer he has yet received for Hardy is a "5th Starter." The Jays can do better than that, can't they? With the Brewers anxious for pitching help to replace C.C. Sabathia and in the pen, and anxious to get top prospect Alcides Escobar into the everyday lineup at shortstop, the Jays have a golden opportunity to put together a package to get Hardy. Is Ryan a better offer than a 5th starter? What if the cost were Litsch and Ryan? Cecil and Ryan? What think we?

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Brewers need a closer badly....

I don’t suppose they’d have some irrational want for Marco Scutaro? Or maybe they have decided they need Overbay back? Maybe we could work out a big trade to get Hardy and Fielder for Ryan, Overbay and a prospect of some sort? Yeah I guess they won’t want Overbay but I’m sure we could work something out….though I’m not sure I want to include Litsch since we are already short a couple of starters, but you do have offer something the other team wants.

He’s not even going to tell me the lyrics are from Kathleen a Josh Ritter song? doesn’t he know I’m old and don’t keep up with new music?

by Tom Dakers on Nov 17, 2008 10:13 AM EST reply actions

actually I bet

the Brewers would love to have Overbay as a defensive replacement, interleague play starter, and lefty bat off the bench, but not at what the Jays are paying him.

"Let us go forth awhile, and get better air in our lungs. Let us leave our closed rooms... The game of ball is glorious." - Walt Whitman

by hugo on Nov 17, 2008 1:21 PM EST up reply actions

I'd think...

Ryan for Hardy might work except the salary might stop Milwaukee from biting because they still need a front of the rotation starter…Maybe they’d be more inclined to do a deal for Downs (or League) and Cecil or something like that, again a better offer then a 5th starter!

I’d lean away from offering up Litsch for Hardy being that we only have 2 proven starters in our rotation right now.

by bunner on Nov 17, 2008 10:35 AM EST reply actions

yeah

I’d prefer not to give up Litsch either, given our dearth of starters, but I was curious as to whether people think that now would be a good time to trade him, notwithstanding our starter issues. He had a great season (though a bit under the radar because of the win-loss record) and has some value on the market, I’d think. His peripherals improved quite a bit from last season, but questions still remain going forward.

I tend to think the Jays should move on Hardy before the free agent shortstops sign, which means pretty soon.

"Let us go forth awhile, and get better air in our lungs. Let us leave our closed rooms... The game of ball is glorious." - Walt Whitman

by hugo on Nov 17, 2008 12:45 PM EST up reply actions