Do you want to take a shot at Josh Hamilton?

[2008WFCs]

A haiku for my thoughts on this....

No no no no no

No no no no no no no

No no no no no.

We have big bats already for one. Now he DOES get on base too, but you don't pay the kind of money we would have to pay Hamilton to get on base. He's extremely unreliable, will be 32 early next season, and even if IS productive at first, we'd have to give him WAY too many years to be worth it.

[video=youtube;Axu9gLaT8_8]

[Frobby]

The odds that he flames out are SIGNIFICANTLY higher than your average 5/110 type of guy... and 5/110 likely won't be enough to sign him. No, he isn't going to get a 7/210 type deal either, but I'm guessing he signs somewhere for about 6/150. And we'd be foolish to sign him. We're not one superstar away. We're a couple solid players away. Let's get some guys who are cheaper that get on base. We don't necessarily need more HR bats.

Away from what? We just won 93 games with the team we have.

[isestrex]

He was one of the worst hitters in baseball for 4 months last season.

No thanks.

[TXOriole]

I'm not a psychiatrist, but I really have the feeling that Hammy goes wherever he thinks is the best situation for him. I dont see him going to another big market and I dont see him going to the highest bidder. He seems like a sincere guy and in all honesty, I think happiness is first on his agenda. So, Yes...I could see him turning down 5/120 in NY for 4/80 somewhere else...if he thought it was a better scenario for him and his family personally. The unique thing about Hamilton is he has his demons and he KNOWS what his demons are. Baltimore is a mid market with a good, young team, stadium that suits his swing, rabid fans and a fatherly manager. If we made a reasonable offer, I could see him choosing us.

Granted, this is all speculation based on seeing/reading a million local interviews with him and meeting him twice. That being said...I'd still probably prefer trying to trade for Fowler

[HokieOs]

Away from what? We just won 93 games with the team we have.

While I think we are significantly better than the 100 loss prognostications that we had at the beginning of the season, let's not fool ourselves into thinking that we have even one of the top half teams in baseball. We got a significant amount of luck this season (and yes, luck counts) that IMO, took an 80-85 type win team into a 93 win team. To expect to replicate that, we need to improve. Let's not forget that one of the reasons we're in this boat is because the Mariners had an EXTREMELY lucky season that fooled them into thinking they were "one player away" from the mountaintop. They crashed back to reality the next year.

Let's continue making smart moves. We don't need to make a splash with a Hamilton to get over the mountaintop. We need guys that will get on base. We don't need superstars (though the right situation wouldn't be a bad thing... we could certainly use an ace pitcher).

[Brendan25]

While I think we are significantly better than the 100 loss prognostications that we had at the beginning of the season, let's not fool ourselves into thinking that we have even one of the top half teams in baseball. We got a significant amount of luck this season (and yes, luck counts) that IMO, took an 80-85 type win team into a 93 win team. To expect to replicate that, we need to improve. Let's not forget that one of the reasons we're in this boat is because the Mariners had an EXTREMELY lucky season that fooled them into thinking they were "one player away" from the mountaintop. They crashed back to reality the next year.

Let's continue making smart moves. We don't need to make a splash with a Hamilton to get over the mountaintop. We need guys that will get on base. We don't need superstars (though the right situation wouldn't be a bad thing... we could certainly use an ace pitcher).

So you think that without the luck that we were an 80-85 win team, and we need "multiple" solid players to get from that 80-85 wins to 93-100 wins again?

Having a healthy Nick Markakis, or Nolan Reimold, or a Miguel Gonzalez and Chris Tillman for a full year, or a Manny Machado for a full year doesn't improve the club at all?

[Dipper9]

At first I thought your poll asked "Do you want to take a shot WITH Josh Hamilton?" and I was thinking, sure, I think that would be a lot of fun. Especially if his wife came out too. She pretty easy on the eyes.

When I reread it, I answer Noooooooooooooooooooo. I've said numerous times my feelings on signing big name free agents...ie, I think it rarely works out, and when you add in his issues and tendency to go through long slumps, I just don't think he'd be anywhere near worth the price.

For once, I think I'd be happy if the Yankees got this guy!!!

[HokieOs]

So you think that without the luck that we were an 80-85 win team, and we need "multiple" solid players to get from that 80-85 wins to 93-100 wins again?

Having a healthy Nick Markakis, or Nolan Reimold, or a Miguel Gonzalez and Chris Tillman for a full year, or a Manny Machado for a full year doesn't improve the club at all?

Absolutely it does. But let's not forget that ANY season is going to have injuries with it. That's just what happens in baseball.

Look, it's not like I'm saying that the team sucks. But it has a gaping hole in the department of guys who get on base. We really missed Markakis IMO in that last series. However, my point isn't that we suck and shouldn't have hope. Quite the contrary, I don't think we need to be big spenders to improve our team this season. A couple moderately priced OBP guys (maybe to fill the hole at 2B) should help a lot.

Just curious, does Andino have any options left?

[Can_of_corn]

Absolutely it does. But let's not forget that ANY season is going to have injuries with it. That's just what happens in baseball.

Look, it's not like I'm saying that the team sucks. But it has a gaping hole in the department of guys who get on base. We really missed Markakis IMO in that last series. However, my point isn't that we suck and shouldn't have hope. Quite the contrary, I don't think we need to be big spenders to improve our team this season. A couple moderately priced OBP guys (maybe to fill the hole at 2B) should help a lot.

Just curious, does Andino have any options left?

If Andino had any options left do you think the O's would have gotten him for Hayden Penn?

[HokieOs]

If Andino had any options left do you think the O's would have gotten him for Hayden Penn?

I kind of figured he didn't. Was just a question. My point is, I'd like to see us sign two middle IF guys who get on base.

What I also neglected to mention, we do need more reliable pitching. We have a lot of guys who pitched over their heads this year.... or at least, guys who I don't think deserve full trust yet. I'd like to see us sign another couple moderately priced pitchers. I DO think the addition of Bundy at some point next year could help... depending on the quality he can provide at such a young age.

[Eddie_Murray33]

Kick the tires for due diligence purposes if nothing else... but ultimately- NO.

What I think we need is somebody who could be a "Jim Thome ca. 2009/2010". In other words- a veteran power hitter who though not flashy or elite/premium could at least credibly be MO, punnish mistake pitches and provide some leadership all the while not totally screwing up our built in salary structure (which ideally has your best players in their prime being paid the most). Conceptually- the real Jim Thome was really perfect IMHO- just a couple years too late. Haven't studied this year's FA's closely yet or the rosters of expected 2013 "also-rans" like the Mariners, Twins, Indians, Royals, Cubs, Astros, etc. (i.e. via trade)- but someone in that mold is who I'd be looking for over a high risk/high reward expensive and erratic Hamilton...

[CA-ORIOLE]

I put no (assuming he'd be too expensive), but if the market for him is soft then you have too look at it.

[George]

The O's team chemistry is excellent now. Why take the avoidable risk of ruining the positive chemistry with a major league gamble? O's management today can and does do much better than rolling the dice and hoping for the best outcome.

[HokieOs]

Kick the tires for due diligence purposes if nothing else... but ultimately- NO.

What I think we need is somebody who could be a "Jim Thome ca. 2009/2010". In other words- a veteran power hitter who though not flashy or elite/premium could at least credibly be MO, punnish mistake pitches and provide some leadership all the while not totally screwing up our built in salary structure (which ideally has your best players in their prime being paid the most). Conceptually- the real Jim Thome was really perfect IMHO- just a couple years too late. Haven't studied this year's FA's closely yet or the rosters of expected 2013 "also-rans" like the Mariners, Twins, Indians, Royals, Cubs, Astros, etc. (i.e. via trade)- but someone in that mold is who I'd be looking for over a high risk/high reward expensive and erratic Hamilton...

That wouldn't bother me too much. But we'd need to be careful about what we give up. I don't want to trade half our team (a team with a lot of power hitters) to get a major power hitter. Frankly I'd rather have 3-4 guys who can be relied on to hit about 30 HRs vs a team with 1 50 HR hitter, 1 30 HR hitter, and nothing else. We have those 3-4 guys already (Jones, Davis, Reynolds... and then Hardy/Wieters/Markakis all have the potential to be those kinds of guys as well). What our lineup lacks is OBP guys.

I think there's a chance Machado can develop into one of those OBP guys. We need to upgrade 2B, and if we can get a moderately priced OBP outfielder, I wouldn't mind that either... though I wouldn't mind if we stuck it out with McClouth in a relatively cheap 2 year deal.

[Eddie_Murray33]

The O's team chemistry is excellent now. Why take the avoidable risk of ruining the positive chemistry with a major league gamble? O's management today can and does do much better than rolling the dice and hoping for the best outcome.

Very much agreed with this- and coming off a season where they unearthed Gonzalez, brought Chen into the fold and got McClouth off the scrap heep (among many others)- I imagine they're feeling pretty confident about their pro-scouting and ability to locate hidden gems, etc. There certainly shouldn't be any pressure to sign Hamilton. Now- if there's an extremely limited market for the guy and we're on the short list of teams that could possibly land him at a discount... that's something worth exploring perhaps- but that's about it IMHO.