No, you did not read that correctly. Literally it reads that Lidge and Graves ARE better, but only by a small margin. What I meant to imply was that the difference between any one from either group is not worth the investment it would take to acquire Lidge or Graves.

 

Your 'stat' on Mota is wholly unfair to setup men. Mota, as a setup man, has only been given opportunities to blow saves (which can happen any inning), not save them (which can only can happen in the 9th or final inning). Once you add Holds, which are saves for non-closing relievers, Mota compares favorably with the four you mentioned:

 

Lidge: 38 saves, 45 holds, 11 blown saves, 88.3% success rate

Mota: 7, 67, 11, 87.1%

Jones: 193, 100, 56, 84%

Graves: 182, 7, 40, 82.5%

No, you did not read that correctly. Literally it reads that Lidge and Graves ARE better, but only by a small margin. What I meant to imply was that the difference between any one from either group is not worth the investment it would take to acquire Lidge or Graves.

 

Your 'stat' on Mota is wholly unfair to setup men. Mota, as a setup man, has only been given opportunities to blow saves (which can happen any inning), not save them (which can only can happen in the 9th or final inning). Once you add Holds, which are saves for non-closing relievers, Mota compares favorably with the four you mentioned:

 

Lidge: 38 saves, 45 holds, 11 blown saves, 88.3% success rate

Mota: 7, 67, 11, 87.1%

Jones: 193, 100, 56, 84%

Graves: 182, 7, 40, 82.5%

785529[/snapback]

 

OK, granted. We might say both groups are almost equivalent. Which doesn't mean we would not be making this team better (at least statistically speaking) if we add Graves or Lidge to both Jones and Mota.

If you think we need relief help, you should take a look at the roster, and amount of leads this relief corps has blown (2).

 

Might I remind you that we have no room for another pitcher! Mota will be back Friday, leaving Castillo or Bazardo as our 7th-best reliever and prime candidate to be sent down when Spooneybarger finishes his rehab in a week or two. There's 6 guys ahead of them - you know the same number most teams can get by with, even with saddled with a guy or two worst than our 6. Who are our worst among those 6? Reidling and Perisho? Know what they have in common? Guaranteed major league contracts, well over three-quarter-million each, that the front office would like to stay and pitch effectively on the major league roster. Nate Bump is the only ones that could be sent to the Marlins without being exposed to waivers, and I'm not entirely sure he can. And guess who comes back in July? Two more pitchers, Valdez and Alfonseca.

 

Now if you can come up with a way to keep a 13+ man pitching staff fresh, happy and productive while not crippling the bench... go ahead, pick up a reliever.

Zee-Toe in teal?

I think Clemens could want to come to Florida if he feels they have a legitimate shot at the championship.

785172[/snapback]

 

Sure and take over his 1 year $18M contract. We have enough problems trying to get a stadium, and besides the only team that he said he play for is either the Astros or the Yankees.

If Lidge is on the block, you have to believe that it would cost us Vargas, Olsen, or Hermida, or maybe a combination of two of those three...that's just too much for my liking. I'd love to have him, but I just don't see any way...

Shooting for the stars (both literally and figuratvely) in trying to acquire Clemens makes little sense to me, but were it to pass, I wouldn't put up much of stink.

 

Rather, and I'm assuming Valdez really isn't ready to pitch much before August, I'm not sure what is to be accomplished. I'd rather (and this is for illustration purposes only) trade AJ to a team like Boston, getting Wade Miller (or dare I say it, Arroyo) in exchange where our financial options are more favorable. Clemens is such a longshot no matter how one looks at it that I'm more interested in discussing something that is plausible than something that from every account is out of reach.

The way Lieter is pitching I'd take Joe noBody if I had to, can't be any worse than a 7 something ERA!! Brad Lidge I'd welcome before Danny Graves who I'd also take a risk for at a low cost!

Take the Lowell rumor with a grain of salt especially if Bob Nightengale is the source at USA Today. He hates the Marlins. His buzz section has run items every year since 2002 saying Lowell was on the trading block, and he went so far as to proclaim Lowell gone twice in 2003. The other Baseball Weekly writers (published by USA Today) are fairly evenhanded (some even like the Marlins), but Nightengale goes out of his way to put rumors out there just to mess with Marlins fans. He's bitter about us beating his beloved Giants and Cubs.