It will be surprising if we don't pick up Joel Pineiro.  He perfectly fits the model GMDM has been looking for.  

(1)  He's the right age---28 [Perez 29; Meche 28].

(2)  He has been very successful for extended periods before but has recently been inexplicably awful.

Perez remember pitched 222.1 innings in '02 with a sparkling 3.00 ERA.  In '04 he was almost as good with 196.1 IP and a 3.26 ERA.

Similarly, Pineiro threw 194.1 innings in '02 with a 3.24 ERA [AL] and 211.2 with a 3.78 in '03.

Neither has suffered a significant injury.  

There's a reason Perez was due $8.75 million last year and Pineiro $6.8 million.

(3)  He'll be cheap

We're getting Perez for under two mil [Dodgers pick up the rest] and can likely get Pineiro for the same since he was non-tendered by Seattle.

No obvious physical reason either or both of these guys couldn't return to something approximating their former levels which would make them among the best bargains in baseball potentially.

Additionally, somebody is going to give us something for Reggie Sanders.  Take a club like Cincinatti where Sanders first blossomed.  They have legitimate postseason aspirations and need a right handed bat to go between Dunn and Griffey.  Right now they have journeyman Scott Hatteberg playing first and Griffey probably won't be ready for Opening Day [broken hand].  

They can move Freel to center until Griffey gets back and put Sanders in right.  When Griffey's healthy, Freel goes back to the corner OF and Dunn moves to first with Hatteberg on the bench.

Probably a prospect trade, but we'll get something for Sanders.  A 39 year old outfielder making over $5 mil. does not fit in our 2007 plans.

I have to admit I'm pretty disappointed GMDM did not address the SS situation, and apparently does not intend to (?).

Included is this, which has to be the most revealing tidbit regarding Huber thus far...

GS: Now moving to some Royals-specific stuff. Talk about Justin Huber's future, with the team and in the league.

BD: Justin Huber is a great kid who you'd love to see succeed. But his switch to first base was a disaster, which prompted a switch to the outfield. That hasn't gone well either.

There is thought of moving him back to catcher. That's probably his best position, but there were reasons why he was moved to first. He lacks the power desired in a corner position and lacks the speed to compensate for it.

He won the Texas League batting title in 2005 at Wichita, but his swing still has a small hitch that instructors have been unable to fix. Bottom line: It's hard to see where he fits.

He's very entertaining to watch when he's got his curveball going. Assuming he has a decent spring, I hope he gets several starts to prove himself. He certainly has more potential than the Baird crew of Affeldt/Runny/Bautista ever did.