Richie Sexson to be released
by Trumanroyal on Jun 18, 2008 12:25 PM EDT
91 comments
According to MLBTR, Richie Sexson is soon to be released. I personally feel that signing Sexson would be a good move. Not that Sexson is a great player, but I do think that he would be a step above Gload. If Sexson could show even flashes of his power that he's had in the past, it could help our offense. Give me your thoughts.
His defense is not as good as Gload's, but I think he could make up the difference with his bat. If we could also offload Gload (and his salary) in a trade, it could save some money.
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Oh no!
Now we’re back to being the team with the worst first baseman situation in the AL!
And we absolutely should not sign Richie Sexson. Once Butler is recalled from Omaha, he should represent that step up from Gload you’re looking for. If we signed Sexson, all he would do would block Butler from getting more practice as a defensive first baseman. And with the way Olivo has been hitting for us this year (his current 0-fer streak notwithstanding), I’d be hesitant to sign Sexson as a DH.
Even if it is for the league minimum, I’d probably pass, unless we were in win-now mode and were utterly convinced that Butler could not play first base (neither of which are true). Renting Sexson for the league minimum for four months does not make us that much of a better baseball team.
I think Shealy has more of a chance at being useful
There’s no way we could dump Gload off on anyone in a trade. No way I would want to take on Sexson’s salary. If he was free, I’d at least consider it. He has a .868 OPS on the road. But even then, isn’t he pretty much a short term option? I’d rather see if Shealy is worth anything.
Relive Royals History at royalsretro.blogspot.com
FWIW
Shealy’s power has really tapered off in Omaha lately. He has had only one HR since April, and is barely slugging .400 for the month of June. His OPS this year is down to the .760 range. Things don’t seem to be going particularly well for him right now.
Hmmm
I’m starting to come around on this idea. Sexson’s road OPS is good. He hits lefties well. Might be worth a flyer if he’s free.
One other consideration. He barely missed being a Type B free agent last year. If he can rebound with a good second half, we could get a draft pick when he leaves.
Relive Royals History at royalsretro.blogspot.com
Even if it means we rid ourselves of Gload
I think that signing Sexson would probably mean his AB’s would be coming at the expense of Butler and/or Olivo, which I am not sure we want to do. If we could platoon Sexson, I might be a little more amenable to the idea, but I’m not sure who his platoon partner would be (Olivo likewise murders left-handed pitching, and Butler does as well, to a lesser extent, but both are noticeably less effective against righties).
Injury
Shealy was injured and out of the lineup for most of May (recurring Hamstring problems, I think). Although his power isn’t coming back too quickly, he seems to be hitting for a better average since coming off the DL… slight consolation.
"Greinke and the Brain" (R) (C) TM
by SittinByTheFoulPole on Jun 18, 2008 2:58 PM EDT up reply actions
PLEASE
Richie Sexson is TPJ with more power. His approach at the plate is terrible. If KC needs a 1b he is in Omaha. Wouldn’t you have to take on Sexson’s gigantic salary too?
Billy at worst will be Sean Casey jr.
We wouldn't have to take on Sexson's salary
If a player is released by a team, they are on the hook for that player’s salary. If the player re-signs with another team, the first team is still on the hook for the prorated amount of the salary (that is, the salary minus whatever this new team is paying the player).
Sailorfan Is Royally
Pissed at the money Sexson is making and his lack of production. Since they dumped Broussard, I wonder who’s going to man 1B. Willie Bloomquist? Vidro? This team is truly screwed.
I used to be an A's fan until they left town and got good.
by philofthenorth on Jun 18, 2008 3:17 PM EDT up reply actions
I recently read about how they love the "spark" Miguel Cairo gives them at first...
I think we all miss Bavasi already. Gload would be on the plane…
OMG Banny. FWIW I am only crdtng u w/3 runs allwd bc of DDJ OMFG
by Matt Klaassen on Jun 18, 2008 7:32 PM EDT up reply actions
Gload Is A
Sailor in waiting.
I used to be an A's fan until they left town and got good.
by philofthenorth on Jun 18, 2008 7:40 PM EDT up reply actions
League minimum
Usually when players are released, they can be picked up for league minimum. I think we should package German and Gload, and trade them to anyone that will take them for anything. Neither are in the future of this team, and German’s value will not get any prospects at this point anyways. From here, we should sign Sexson, bring up Butler, and rotate the Olivo, Butler, and Sexson around DH. I think Sexson is a low risk- high reward player. Royalsretro is right, he easily could become a Type B free agent if he has a solid second half of the season. Olivo has gone cold lately, and he is falling quickly back toward his career averages.
It would be worth paying a prorated league minimum for the sandwich pick.
We would have to assume he would hit well enough to qualify as a type b free agent however. Currently his OPS is 678 in over 200 at bats. Seems like a stretch. I’d probably pass.
No draft pick unless the Royals offer arbitration
A team cannot offer a player less than something like a 20% paycut in arbitration. Sexson’s base salary this year is $14 million. The lowest a team could offer Sexson in arbitration is something like $11.2 million. Not even Chuck LaMar would offer Sexson arbitration next year.
No
The last CBA eliminated the rule that a team could not re-sign a player to whom it declined to offer arbitration until May 1 of the upcoming season (technically, the team could still sign the player, but he would be ineligible to play in a major league game until May 1).
Well
As others have suggested, we could work out an arrangement where Sexson pledges not to accept arbitration as other players have done.
Relive Royals History at royalsretro.blogspot.com
Sexson would have zero incentive to do so
and giving him an incentive to do so under the new rules would lead to the commissioner’s office voiding the deal (like the CO did when some team tried to pay off the Rays to claim a player on waivers for them and then immediately trade him to them).
I was under the impression
It happens quite a bit.
Relive Royals History at royalsretro.blogspot.com
A player is only going to do it if it is in his interest to do so
The only exception to that rule might be if the player has been with the team for a long time and he feels a certain affinity for the team and is thus willing to do them a solid.
This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.
It used to happen under the old rule mentioned above
so that the team and player would have additional time to negotiate a new contract when there was mutual interest in the player returning to that team. When that rule was abolished, the practice ended (as that was one of the purposes of abolishing the rule).
Correction
The 20% paycut rule only applies to pre-free-agency-eligible players, so a team could offer Sexson less than $11.2 million in arbitration. But offering less and convincing the arbitrator (where service time counts as much as performance) are two different things. No team is going to risk arbitration with Sexson when he might be available for near the league minimum or as a minor league free agent.
Exactly
If you low-ball Sexson and he puts up a reasonable number, you run the serious risk that the arbitrator will overvalue Sexson and give him what he asked for (which would be much more than he’s worth). And you never know what an arbitrator is going to do.
This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.
God please no....
I really don't know what to say... Did the post above this signature make sense? Probably not.
by RoyalsFanInMarinerTown on Jun 18, 2008 2:33 PM EDT reply actions
Tell me
How slow is his bat again?
Guess I'll have to change my name now...damn
by MileHighKCfan on Jun 18, 2008 2:41 PM EDT up reply actions
Shealy Thinks It's
Slow.
I used to be an A's fan until they left town and got good.
by philofthenorth on Jun 18, 2008 4:24 PM EDT up reply actions
He's impressive to watch in BP
I get down to the stadium for BP probably 20 games a year. He can hit the crap out of it during BP.
Unfortunately, he hasn’t been impressive to watch in a game for many years now.
I really don't know what to say... Did the post above this signature make sense? Probably not.
by RoyalsFanInMarinerTown on Jun 18, 2008 5:58 PM EDT up reply actions
Sexson has a hole in his swing the size of the Grand Canyon
+ KC doesn’t need help against Right Handers.
Billy at worst will be Sean Casey jr.
Odalis Perez-type trade?
Probably far-fetched, but this could be one of those opportunities where DM pulls off a “we’ll take your crap if you give us two prospects”
Relive Royals History at royalsretro.blogspot.com
Ideas?
What kind of guys do they have in the low minors that we may be interested in?
Guess I'll have to change my name now...damn
by MileHighKCfan on Jun 18, 2008 3:00 PM EDT up reply actions
No
I really dislike the idea of taking fliers on washed up guys, hoping they put up a few months of work that is loads better than anything they’ve done in the last 2 or 3 years. I’ve heard a lot of that lately with Sosa, Edmonds, and now Sexson. If I’m taking guys off the scrap heap, I’d like to have a little mystery in there instead of just grabbing a famous guy that sucks.
"Sometimes I wonder whether the world is being run by smart people who are putting us on or by imbeciles who really mean it." - Mark Twain
Sexson has fallen so far, and over 3 years
He took a step backwards in 2006. Then he took a huge leap backwards in 2007. This year, he’s managed to be even a little worse than last year. This looks like a classic case of the big, power-only slugger who peaks early and deteriorates fast. I wouldn’t want to pick up the $7M left on his contract unless it would have absolutely zero impact on the budget for FA signings (both foreign and domestic) as well as draft signings. And, Sexson would have to agree to not accept our arbitration offer (and I don’t know why that would be in his interest). In short, too many negatives, too many conditions, and too little chance that he suddenly reverts back to a decent 1B. We’re not going to rebuild this team by acquiring players who have clearly gone over the hill.
This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.
his "step back" in 2006 would be about the high end of what we could expect from
anyone on the roster right now.
And while I agree that we don’t rebuild by acquiring players who are over the hill, I think the easiest way to win is by picking up high upside guys and rock bottom prices. Then you can shore up the rest of your roster with more expensive sure things.
If we were looking at Sexson at the beginning of the 2009 season, I’d agree – it wouldn’t make a whole lot of sense to acquire him (unless the alternative is Ross Gload). But there’s no reason not to give him a try out right now when we know the season’s already over.
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I understand that, but it is a clear, consistent trend in a horrible direction
...that has gone to amazing depths. And I don’t think the fact that he was once very good makes him a “high upside guy.”
This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.
he was very good a mere 610 at bats ago
I don’t think it’s a huge trend. It was more like regression to the mean in 2006. He was bad in 2007 and bad again to start off the year, but he’s also hit 30 homeruns during that time, and he’s had really fluky BABIP against righties (.179 ish).
Maybe all he can muster is weak pop ups to first against righthanders, or maybe he’s been on the unfortunate side of an anomalous phenomenon. I’m sure someone who is an ardent Seattle follower could say if its the former or the latter. If he’s hitting a ton of dribblers to second base, then maybe it’s not worth it.
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Regression to the mean
If that “regression to the mean” were followed by more of the mean, then I might be inclined to agree with you. But it was followed by a much worse season, which was followed by an even worse season. All coincidence? I can’t believe that. Just two fluky down years? No way. His bat speed has slowed. Power is his only tool and he’s not drawing enough walks or making enough contact to make that tool useful.
This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.
If that "regression to the mean" were followed by more of the mean
true, true
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He's Back Already?
I used to be an A's fan until they left town and got good.
by philofthenorth on Jun 18, 2008 4:27 PM EDT up reply actions
is he really that bad?
Looking at this year and last, he’s compiled essentially a season’s worth of at bats. Granted, he’s been pretty terrible at the plate, but he’s also hit 30 homeruns during that time, in one of the toughest ballparks to play in. And as Retro mentioned, he’s still hitting very well away from Safeco, so maybe all he needs is a change of venue.
If anything, these are exactly the sort of moves the Royals should be taking right now. After all, whose roster spot is he going to take, Gload’s?
Pick him up on the cheap. If he doesn’t work out, well, maybe we finish dead last instead of second to last on the season. If he does work out, then we may have found a solution at 1B or DH over the next two to three seasons. He’s still only a season removed from an .842 OPS and 34 homeruns.
Remember when Frank Thomas was thought to be washed up at age 33? Or Jason Giambi at age 33?
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He's pretty bad.
I’m less concerned with how bad he is though and more concerned with him blocking Butler/Shealy. Butler should be up soon, and the Gload effect will be minimized.
Butler > Sexson
yeah, but we're not sacrificing Butler
we’re sacrificing Ross, who is arguably the worst position player in the league after TPJ.
Unless there’s a way to have Butler simultaneously play 1B and DH, we’re going to have a huge void in that spot. And while there’s a fair chance that Richie won’t ever post a .900 OPS again, there is NO chance that Ross Gload will.
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Do you think acquiring him wouldn't mean sacrificing some Butler AB's?
Granted if you or I were the manager and we acquired Sexson, he wouldn’t take any games or AB’s away from Butler. But we’re not. Hillman is. And I think they’d end up sharing 1B/DH time with some other players getting DH time as well. More Sexson means less Butler.
This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.
I don't see a reason why that would be the case
Unless Hillman is just a terrible, terrible manager.
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When Butler was with the team earlier, was he playing everyday?
He was competing for playing time with Gload. So if Gload was taking AB’s and games from Butler, why wouldn’t Sexson?
This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.
yeah, but then it doesn't matter who we have on the roster
so let’s have sexson instead of gload
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I'm not saying Butler would be riding the pine most of the time...
....but a vet who was once good and who the team is hoping will turn it around would be playing a lot. The player whose PT would suffer from that would be Butler. It would mean at least 10% less PT than he would otherwise have gotten (that’s just a guess).
This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.
i'm not saying you're wrong
i’m just saying that it’s unlikely that would happen more so than before. unless hillman is an idiot. which he may be.
and i’m with you re: the $7 million. he’s not worth that sort of gamble, but I thought that the mariners were on the hook for that, if they release him rather than put him on waivers.
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"unlikely that would happen more so than before"
Don’t you think Hillman would value Sexson more than Gload? Don’t you think Hillman would be eager to give PT to Sexson in the hopes that he can turn things around? There’s more incentive to give a lot of PT to Sexson than there has been for Gload. A lot more? I don’t know. But definitely more.
and i’m with you re: the $7 million. he’s not worth that sort of gamble, but I thought that the mariners were on the hook for that, if they release him rather than put him on waivers.
They are on the hook for that. There are at least 3 ways to acquire Sexson: trade, waiver claim, FA signing (after release). In the first two, the money is an issue. In those cases, I’m not interested in paying him more than league minimum. In the third, the money is not an issue. But if we’re talking league minimum, I’m not sure why Sexson would choose to sign for the Royals instead of another team. Wouldn’t he want some assurances that he’d be the everyday 1B? I don’t like the sounds of that.
This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.
More of an opportunity to play here than anywhere else
Would be a compelling reason for him to play here.
Relive Royals History at royalsretro.blogspot.com
The reason he'd sign with us is because there's an opening
If we’re reluctant to sign him because we have Ross Gload and prospect in AAA who may or may not be up again with the team this season, imagine what teams with real first basemen must be going through.
I agree with you that Sexson would get a lot of PT—are you concerned with him cutting Butler’s playing time at 1B or just in general? If Sexson turns his career around, I don’t really care which of the two mans 1B or DH. I don’t see who would be taking more than the occassionally at bat at those positions.
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my last line made no sense
I meant, I would think the majority of at bats at 1B and DH would be given to the Sexson/Butler combo.
All we’d have to worry about would be German or Callaspo or someone sneaking in there every 10th game.
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Concerned about Butler's PT, period
If Sexson were acquired, I don’t think that they’d both play almost everyday. I think they’d both play much of the time, with other players getting more than a little time at DH as well (particularly Olivo against lefties and Guillen when he’s tweaked something or needs a rest). I think adding Sexson and substracting Gload would mean a net decrease in Butler’s PT.
This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.
that's certainly possible
but like i said, the problem would be with the manager, then.
as a franchise, we shouldn’t be afraid to improve the organizational talent because we think the manager is going to screw up player development.
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Our manager doesn't exactly do everything right
And when you bring in a vet who once was very good, you have to expect many (perhaps most) managers to give that player more PT than he deserves. Managers often take veterans over young, developing players.
This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.
Maybe, I am misunderstanding you...
but Sexson gets the salary that Seattle is paying him no matter what. If he is released, and that is the only way that we should consider him, there will be no bidding war because the only way his paycheck will change is if someone wants to pay over his current salary.
I could see it work if they did this:
CF DJ
2B Grit
3B Gordon
LF Guillen
C Olivo
DH Butler
RF Teahen
1B Sexson
SS Aviles
You could argue they’re taking ABs away from Buck, but I don’t think that’s a huge loss – and that’s only until we trade Olivo, if we do.
Relive Royals History at royalsretro.blogspot.com
Olivo is starting to go cold.
I know a lot of people dislike Buck now, but at least he has decent patience.
A mind without purpose will walk in dark places.
Yeah, Olivo's stats have really leveled off
If you take a look at his monthly splits, it’s clear that Olivo’s uncharacteristic hitting has evaporated this month. Buck was better than Olivo going into the season and he might be better right now. And he’s part of the Royals future, while Olivo is not. Play Buck.
This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.
I don't think Buck is so good
that an extension should be in the cards, but he still looks to me like our best catching option.
A mind without purpose will walk in dark places.
Yes, he's that bad
He might even be worse than that. Despite the one counting stat you mentioned, His OBP and SLG are both in the toilet, and I don’t think it is just a Safeco thing. He didn’t show such significant home/away splits in 2007. I think he’s lost it.
This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.
Yup
And Sexson’s list of comparable players according to PECOTA is a who’s who of sluggers who fell off a cliff by their mid-30s (Cecil Fielder, Dale Murphy, Boog Powell, Larry Parrish, John Mayberry, Eric Karros among the more notable names).
Thomas and Giambi are poor comps, as both were well-rounded hitters who hit for high average and walked more (Thomas) or as much as (Giambi) they struck out. Thomas, in particular, was one of the best hitters of his generation, and not just among power hitters. They have declined, but their overall skills started so far ahead of Sexson that they could deteriorate and still remain productive into their late 30s.
good points.
hard to argue with that. but if he comes cheaply, i’d still rather roll the dice on him for 2008
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Sexson isn't worth spending money on
But I don’t think I’d be against the idea of this trade:
Sexson + $7 million
for
Gload/Pena
If the Mariners want to get rid of him and get something back in return, fine. But if they want to save money at the expense of the Royals, pass. He’s not worth $7M. He’s not worth $1M.
This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.
I'd like the idea of this trade...
Gload/Pena
for
Two empty beer cans, one used condom, and my mom’s old dentures.
The guy they would call up to replace Sexson
Has a 700 OPS in AAA, so its not like they have a ton of options at 1B. Miguel Cairo has been playing there. So maybe they could use a Ross and his power of explosion, at least until they find a better option.
Relive Royals History at royalsretro.blogspot.com
Why spend 7 million or even the league minimum
when we have a better all around hitter in Omaha. Is $350k-7M worth a at best .240/.330/.400. Those numbers are highly unlikely. I think KC would be better off bringing Butler up and letting him try to attain a 400 SLG. The chances of him doing it are better than Sexson at this point in his career.
Billy at worst will be Sean Casey jr.
don't think of it as Sexson vs. Butler
think of it as Sexson vs. whoever will be manning the other spot in the lineup (i.e. 1B or DH). Right now, it’s the Bossman.
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And how it would affect Butler's PT and development
And the risk that Sexson hits a little better with the Royals and then Moore goes with Sexson as the 2009 1B if he can’t sign Dunn or Tex. I don’t want Moore to feel like the utterly washed up Sexson is an option for 2009.
This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.
if Butler doesn't play 90% of the time with Sexson on the squad
he’s not going to play 90% of the time anyway. And if that’s the case, we need to fire Hillman.
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Maybe
Butler was a “regular” but not an everyday starter earlier in the season. I think he’d continue that, but actually with a little less PT if Sexson were on the roster. But maybe I’m giving Hillman too little credit.
This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.
I really don't want Richie Sexson
on this team. It sounds like a move that Chuck Lamar would’ve made in the old days when the Devil Rays were a haven for washed-up, overpaid bums.
A mind without purpose will walk in dark places.
*COUGH* Boggs *COUGH*
I really don't know what to say... Did the post above this signature make sense? Probably not.
by RoyalsFanInMarinerTown on Jun 18, 2008 5:59 PM EDT up reply actions
You guys haven't even mentioned the biggest Devil Ray bust of all
Juan Guzman – two years, $12.5 million: 1 2/3 innings in his Devil Rays career.
Relive Royals History at royalsretro.blogspot.com
by RoyalsRetro on Jun 19, 2008 12:45 AM EDT up reply actions
Uh... no. No, sir, no.
The biggest D-Ray bust of all, by definition, has to be Kevin Stocker, especially considering how he was acquired.
Sarcasm™. It's the new gravy.
(Did You Know)
(Juan Guzman pitched exactly 1/3 of an inning more as a D-Ray than Wade Boggs?)
Sarcasm™. It's the new gravy.
Give me Sexon
He’s a DH and you can DFA Gload (please God). He doesn’t have to be a forever solution. The guy is just 10 X better than Ross “The Boss” Gload. Even if he was 65, he’d be better than Gload. We have the worst starting 1B in the bigs. It wouldn’t hurt anything to see if a change of scenery (sp?) would do him some good.
"We should've gotten a live chicken"
- Willie Mays Hays
This may all be a moot point, anyway
http://www.sportingnews.com/blog/FantasySourceFastball/156389
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Maybe The New
Management realized they literally have no one to take his place for now. Of course, that didn’t stop them from firing everyone but the bench coach.
I used to be an A's fan until they left town and got good.
by philofthenorth on Jun 20, 2008 12:28 PM EDT up reply actions
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