Tejada or No Tejada?
Lots of buzz these days about the possibility of Miguel Tejada returning to the Orioles. We had some discussion on it in the comments here already but I think it’s a big enough issue to warrant a post of its own.
My take? No. Don’t do it.
Statistically speaking it might be a fine idea. The guy can still hit — .313 average, .340 OB, .795 OPS, 14 HR and 86 RBI last year with Houston. Not bad. And there’s no reason to think he couldn’t offer serviceable defense at third base. I don’t know that for sure, but it passes the smell test.
Yet, I don’t want him back.
I’ve struggled with that conclusion over the past couple of days. I vividly remember the moment when I found out the O’s had signed him the first time. I was actually at a Redskins game, and I was so stoked that I yelled out to the fans around me that “the Orioles signed Miguel Tejada!” I didn’t care that nobody cared.
For the first few years, particularly the first half of 2005, he was a light. By the time he got traded I was, basically, glad to see him go.
The guy is a great talent, for sure. Someday he’ll probably warrant a spot in the Hall of Very Good. But my enduring memories of him involve jogs to first base, strong rumors about lack of commitment, a Jekyll-and-Hyde attitude, and lost expectations.
I have a hard time seeing him as a guy who’d go all-in on a “team first” concept and play whatever role he was asked to play. I can easily imagine him speaking out in, say, July about how he’s unhappy that Josh Bell is cutting into his playing time (and if it’s not that, it’ll be something else). This team doesn’t need that.
I won’t be upset if they sign him. I’ll welcome him back if that’s how it goes. I know that some of the other players like him, and they know a hell of a lot more than I do. It’s not like we’d be re-signing Kevin Millar.
If the decision was mine, however? Thanks, but no.
I can’t argue with that at all. I was there when the ‘Stros were in town and it would feel really weird to get back on that train when the whole city seemed to so definitively get off of it. On the other hand, I’d guess that Miggy would be coming back knowing full well what his specific role was (if he came back, that is) and you’d hope that he’d be smart enough to keep his head down. But I can’t argue with keeping away from him.
I’m curious though on your hypothetical take on Joe Crede. Yay or nay?
The only problem with Crede is that he needs two seats on the team flight.
One for him.
One for his bad back.
I think the O’s just should go ahead and bite the bullet and sign Chone Figgins. He’s the best free agent third baseman available this off-season.
@Andrew – I’ve kind of felt all along like Crede would be the guy, and I’m OK with it. When he’s healthy he plays well — no doubt about that. Since he’d only be here to keep the seat warm for Josh Bell anyway, why not take the flyer?
Plus, having Atkins, Crede, and Wigginton to mix and mash on a daily basis offers some pretty interesting potential.
Crede is the natural guy to fill the 3B spot.
He’ll play for $55.00 an hour, which is well within the O’s pay scale.
By all means, we can’t sign anyone of quality. We have Josh Bell in the waiting room. Let’s just make the fans wait for him to develop…whenever that might be.
If it’s this August, that’s fine. If not, it will be next April.
By then, the O’s will have passed on 4-5 other quality free agents because we’ll have two other guys in AA who are a year or two away from coming up.
As long as it all revolves around NOT spending any money, the plan in place is the right plan.
Team payroll in 2007 = $93 million.
Team payroll in 2010 = $71 million, roughly.
2010 ticket prices = INCREASED.
Yeah, that makes sense.
Bring on Crede — and let him do what Jay Payton and Kevin Millar did in the October of their respective careers…see how the other half lives.
@neal s – Between those three guys, I don’t see a lot of “mash” going on. Mix, sure. Mash…no way.
@df1570 – Do you have anything besides your standard flawed talking points to say?
It’s like you don’t understand that players under 6 years of service time cost exponentially less than free agents.
@Andrew – So weird that it came out “mix and mash”. In my head I was thinking both “mix and match” and “mash up”.
Crede is my favorite FA to win the third base job, and I stated why in another thread: his defense. He put up a 12 UZR last year, he’d do it for cheap, and he’d do it for a year or less. If Bell is ready, Crede would be easy to stick on a bench. Miggy is none of the things I’ve said, and niether is Delgado at first.
@Greg – As much as it would be fun to see Miggy back (until we [maybe] inevitably get sick of him), it’s hard to argue with what Greg said here. Crede = straight up The Josh Bell Plan. With Tejada, you might have a hard time convincing him to ride the bench. You could probably trade him, though. I’d still rather throw Atkins at 3B and go with a young guy at 1B, though.
@Greg – I actually like Crede. My only concern is that he doesn’t stay on the field — he averages about 90 games per season, and has only played over 100 games in five of 10 seasons. He’s definitely, as Dan points out, the Josh Bell Plan.
Well, Crede can’t hit. At all. If you go with him, you’re looking at being way below average, offensively, at at least 3 positions (third, short, and first) – and you’re making for a very weak bottom third of the lineup (though I’m not sure you don’t have that problem regardless of your choice on the corners). And at any rate, Tejada’s total production is going to be better than Crede’s…but if you don’t want to deal with Miggy then that’s that – and totally understandable.
The question, to me, is if bringing in Joe Crede is worthwhile compared with just going with Michael Aubrey at first and Atkins at third…and I’m saying no. But that’s just me.
Oh, and I won’t be at FanFest unless something changes drastically in the next 4 hours. I’m still in Rochester. But when I make it down for a game (Opening Day?) I’ll still be looking to meeting up with the lot of you.
I might also find my way to Ed Smith Stadium in March – I rather enjoyed Spring Training last year, even if it felt more than a little silly.
@Andrew – Is it that Crede can’t hit or that he hasn’t hit lately? The numbers he put up in ’03, ’05, and ’06 suggest the latter.
I’ll grant that you can’t take three good years out of 10 and assume that, somehow, that’s the guy we’ll get. I do think, though, that saying he can’t hit at all might be going too far.
I get your point though. He probably won’t be better than average offensively, and in some categories will probably be below average.
All I’d want out of him is that he play strong defense and put in yeoman’s work at the plate — be generally average at the plate and above average in the field. I don’t think that’s unrealistic.
Like I said, though, if the decision of the guys who make their living making it is that Tejada’s the man, OK. I’ll definitely take his bat.
Regardless of who it is, the point everyone should keep in mind is that we traded for Bell for a reason. He’s a legit prospect at third with (from what I’ve read) improving defense and a way better than average bat. That’s better for this team than Figgins or Beltre would have been. We just need a year to make sure he’s ready or — and this would suck — find out he’s not. Either way, it makes sense to find a solid-if-unspectacular option to keep the bag warm in the meantime. That’s smart strategy.
Tejada it is.
The Orioles just bought the ticket, let’s take the ride.