WOW! please keep us up to date on this Roch, and hopefully all of us O's fans will be served some Felix Pie this Christmas.

The Roberts trade is a hard one for me. I don't think people are clamoring for Roberts to go because of the Mitchell report, I think they are clamoring because of what he could return for us in a trade. He is one of our trading chips that could actually provide a decent return...

Unlike some of our vets like Huff who would probably only get us horses*** in return... (Have we beat that joke dead yet?!?) :)

I can't seem to form an opinion on the Roberts trade...I would be happy to keep him and build around him, or happy to let him go, take a decent return, and thank him for his service while being a Oriole.

Roch,

While I appreciate your insight, I can't take your analysis of any trade or potential trade seriously after you said that the O's should trade Bedard to the Mets for Gomez, Heilman, and Humber.

If the O's get Murton, E. Patterson, and Gallagher, I think it's a good trade. You get a former 1st round draft pick who is a solid outfielder(hitting and defense), you get one of the better pitching prospects in the game, and you get a major league ready 2nd baseman who has upside.

I love Brob, I really do. But 2nd basemen age quickly especially someone who is 30 and will likely lose a step or two in the next few years.

A lot of people want Roberts gone just to prove that MacPhail and not Angelos is in charge. It makes no sense to me. I think Gallagher-Murton-Patterson might be an OK deal if Roberts were demanding a trade, but with the market as it is for second basemen it would make a lot more sense to wait awhile and try, say, the Rockies when they figure out their experiment with Ian Stewart at 2B didn't work. Regardless, Bedard should be traded first. Brian Roberts certainly wouldn't hurt us by staying.

I would absolutely trade Roberts for a reasonable package, just because the team needs to rebuild and Roberts won't be a part of it. However, I'm not sold on anybody in the Cubs system. My initial impressions are that Pie is this generation's Juan Pierre, which is by no means a compliment. These pitchers that we're talking about getting are nothing special and the Cubs continually make trades and signings to avoid putting Murton in the lineup. Not really a great deal as far as I'm concerned. Hold out for at least one piece of the long term puzzle or don't make the trade.

you just don't get it...the o's clubhouse of LOSERS, including roberts, MUST be dismantled. All of the should go....except markakis who is only 22. LOSERS!

Roch- the day Peter Angelos vetoes a trade with McPhail as GM is the day I vow to never buy season tix again (late I know). This trade with Atlanta was in 2006 right?

I'm with Bill A. I don't think he needs to go. In fact I will miss him, despite the Mitchell Report. With the exception of the Steroids issue he's always been a class act on and off the field, and I think that counts for something. Again, I'll miss him, but if we get good pieces for the rebuilding process than I say trade him.

Glad to see you visiting the Orioles Hangout to get your info Roch. Keep it coming so I don't have to go over there anymore because the amount of people over there right now is crazy.

"You get a former 1st round draft pick who is a solid outfielder(hitting and defense)"

The main reason the Cubs have not given Murton a fair shake in the outfield is because he is a TERRIBLE defender. Not sure where you got the idea he was "solid" but that is far from accurate. I think he will be a very productive hitter, but he really can not field.

Don't count me as saying Roberts has to go. On the contrary, I would keep him & Hernandez. There is quite a long list ahead of Roberts on the get out of town list. I don't buy his ...one time... story, but I don't want him dealt for AAA fodder! He is much more appreciated , less offensive, & probably abit more sincere than Gibbons for instance. IF they deal Roberts, I would insist they must take his buddy Gibbons in the deal. No Pie for us, no girlie eye candy for the Cubbies I say. Murton??? For Roberts? Insanity.
Hernandez should be kept, at least until a team arrives needing a C in late July. He is all they have right now at C & with a young staff, he will be needed. He might be motivated to play well to get himself out of here too.

Whose cornflakes did the batting practice P & bullpen C possibly p!ss in? That was far from where they needed to start the purge. Check the Warehouse! Top heavy with useless, no qualifications type VPs. I bet they make alot more than Snider did too.

I am beginning to lump Clemens into the same cheating, denying, drug enhanced pile (guess the type of pile too) as Bonds. He was just found out later , that's all.

Personally, I think he "deserves" to go; because he "deserves" to be on a team that is committed to winning before he retires from baseball. I think Brian has been a wonderful player on the Os, class act (well minus the last little slip up) on and off the field. Yet, it would have to $u@K, if you're 30 and you're playing for a team rebuilding for the 5th time in 10 years. Even with McPhail, the wO's won't compete for at least 3 more seasons. So trade him...in fact he should be demanding the trade!

Same is true for Bedard, trade him too and get another 3 or 4 players that could mature in 2 years.

Matt Murton, Eric Patterson and Sean Gallagher?

let's take a look.

Murton: http://www.baseball-reference.com/m/murtoma01.shtml

he's 26, just coming into his prime. in 830 career Major League at bats, he's hit .296/.365/.455 with 28 homers and 38 doubles. against RHP in 593 plate appearances he's .280/.346/.425 and lefties in 336 PAs he's .326/.399/.510.

his qualitative numbers say he's a right-handed Nick Markakis. look it up.

Eric Patterson: http://minors.baseball-reference.com/players.cgi?pid=11039

he'll be 25 opening day. in 1486 minor league at bats (3 full seasons), he's .298/.366/.462 with 37 homers and 113 steals at a 77% success.

as much as i love Brian Roberts, he wishes he had Patterson's talent.

Sean Gallagher: http://minors.baseball-reference.com/players.cgi?pid=20556

he'll be 22 opening day. in 83 minorleague starts, he's 25-10 with 2.75 ERA and 1.25 WHIP. his K/BB is 452/179, better than 2.5 Ks to BBs.

instead of opining without factual basis ("heart over head"), some of you folks need to learnhow to use baseball-reference.com to look up the stats before you go off half-cocked in here.

if the O's have this deal available and don't take it, they'll only be perpetuating the self-destructive mind-set that has been exhibited over the last 10 years, such as signing 33 year old Melvin Mora to a multi-year extension with a no-trade clause, as many of you clamored for, two off-seasons ago. Pay the man, indeed.

M is for Make the Trade.

If the Roberts to the Cubs, and Bedard to Seattle rumors come to fruition, I like the core and depth we are beginning to assemble.

Roberts for Murton, Gallagher, Patterson

Bedard for Jones, Clement, Sherrill, lesser minor leaguer (not Morrow, Balentin, or Triunfel)

Note: I would prefer the Cinci deal with either Bailey/Cueto, Votto, and Hamilton, if that is offered.

Patterson 2nd
Jones CF
Markakis RF
Scott DH
Clement 1st
Murton LF
Hernandez C
Moore 3rd
Hernandez SS

Cabrera
Guthrie
Loewen
Patton
Penn

Sherrill
FCabrera
Hoey
Beird
Sarfate
Olson
Buress

High Minors, 1st Reserves Up
Gallagher, Liz, Reimold, Albers

Weiters - ML ready with the glove now, up at deadline after RHernandez trade, and 300-400 AB's with a wooden bat.

With the Tejada trade, you have taken $26M off of the books over these next two years.

In trade talks, I would offer to pay the following:

Payton $2M
Millar $1M
Huff $4.44M
Mora $4M
Bradford $2.3M
Walker $2.64M
Gibbons $10M

Some of these players have some value, but their contracts will make them hard to move… and if you get someone to take on the contract, you will get zero back.

I do not anticipate receiving much / any talent back, the main goal would be freeing yourself of the roster space…. But if you are paying some on their contracts, maybe you get some organizational depth with slightly higher ceilings.

Would like to see the Orioles hire a younger Assistant General Manger / VP of Baseball Operations, that MacPhail can groom.

My long-time personal choice has been Paul DePodesta, who is currently working with the Padres.

Perhaps another person to consider would be Peter Woodfork, the Asst GM of the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Typical protocol in baseball prohibits teams from inquiring about competing executives for lateral movements, however this could still be accomplished by stating a succession plan was in place where Mr.
Woodfork would definitively become the GM/VP of Baseball Operations when Mr. MacPhail steps down.

Here are some links to back-ground information on Woodfork.

http://pressbox.mlb.com/pressbox/dow.../ari/execs.pdf

http://mlb-rumors.blogspot.com/2007/...-woodfork.html
ml>

10-18-2007

This evening, I had the opportunity to interview the Assistant General Manager of the Diamondbacks Peter Woodfork. He has been with the Diamondbacks for three years and there is speculation that he will take over the GM spot for the Cardinals. For now however, he is working with the Diamondbacks, getting them ready for the off season. I want to thank Peter Woodfork for donating his time to the site, I really appreciate it.

ELI: How long have you been with the Diamondbacks?

PETER: It will be two years in November.

ELI: What are your day to day duties on the job?

PETER: I basically manage the information, people, and other things like that.

ELI: Do you talk with Josh Byrnes everyday?

PETER: Oh yeah, we talk several times a day.

ELI: Do most of the people in the Front Office have the same philosophy on the team?

PETER: I think we all have different opinions or perspectives, but we work them in to our payroll and how we determine the value of our players and everything. We have to work into our payroll because of the amount of money that goes around in the huge free agent market.

ELI: When Carlos Quentin went down, was there any other options than Justin Upton?

PETER: We looked in house and through trades and felt that Upton was the best option.

ELI: Was Carlos Gonzalez considered?

PETER: Yes, but we felt Upton was farther along than Upton.

ELI: How important was it to sign Eric Byrnes?

PETER: Well we discussed a multi year deal last year when we went through arbitration, so a deal was definitely in sight. We like to sign guys that help our team and he is definitely a leader and comes to play everyday, so he is great to have in the clubhouse.

ELI: Livan Hernandez is set to hit the open market, have you talked with his agent at all?

PETER: Sorry, but I cannot discuss it at this time.

ELI: Is there anything you hope to focus on this off season?

PETER: Like most teams, I think it is pitching. We do not need to fill to many other positions so we will look to pitching.

ELI: Many teams are expanding their scouting to Australia, Japan, and Italy. Have you begun to do that?

PETER: Yeah. We have scouts in Japan and Australia and are looking to get bigger, but we are not as big as other teams.

ELI: Now where did you get your start in baseball?

PETER: I started in the Commissioners Office in the Media Relations department. I think I got more lucky than anything. I had some friends who were connected in baseball and they got my resume out there, so that is how it happened more than anything.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07253/816138-63.stm

Monday, September 10, 2007
By Paul Meyer, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

The list of possible candidates for the Pirates' general manager's job grew by one yesterday.
Peter Woodfork, assistant to Arizona general manager Josh Byrnes, could draw interest from the Pirates -- especially if Frank Coonelly becomes the team's president.
Woodfork, who has a Harvard background, worked with Coonelly in Major League Baseball's New York offices before going to the Arizona Diamondbacks.
It will be at least another couple of days before the Pirates make an announcement concerning their new president, but Coonelly, MLB's chief legal counsel, appears to be the front-runner.
Said one official with a team yesterday: "He knows team's strengths and weaknesses. He deals with each general manager, so he has to know what he's talking about."

http://arizona.diamondbacks.mlb.com/...=.jsp&c_id=ari
nt_id=2212164&vkey=news_ari&fext=.jsp&c_id=ari>

LOS ANGELES -- It probably won't be the Astros and maybe not the Pirates.
But at some point, a team looking for a general manager is going to come calling for D-backs assistant GM Peter Woodfork.
The 1999 graduate of Harvard is well-respected throughout the game for his work first as part of Major League Baseball's Labor Relations Department and then with the Red Sox and D-backs. His name has surfaced as a possible candidate in Pittsburgh, particularly given the fact that Woodfork worked closely with new Pirates team president Frank Coonelly while with the Commissioner's Office.
Arizona GM Josh Byrnes made Woodfork his first hire when he took over the post in November 2005 after the pair had worked together for three years in Boston. Woodfork is involved in all phases of the D-backs'
baseball operations, including scouting, player development and contract negotiations.
"Peter is an invaluable member of our leadership team," Byrnes said. "He is involved in all of our decisions and is a great communicator to players and staff."

The only reason to trade BR is to improve the team. Period. We have to hope that AMac knows more about the players in the Cubs system than do our lying eyes.

Good leadoff hitters are sorely underappreciated commodities. Guys who can work ten-pitch at bats, draw walks, drive mistakes for extra bases, and steal bags are in short supply. They are the ones responsible for middle of the lineup guys cranking out 120 RBI seasons.

I'm unsettled at the steroids issue and whether "only once" is a lie, but I still like Roberts and wouldn't want him traded unless the return was special. During Tejada's tenure here, I'd argue Roberts was the more valuable player. Without him we accept last place in 2008.

i saw felix pie play the entire season at daytona beach (high "a" florida state league). he is going to be a top notch ballplayer in the majors. if the o's make the trade with the cubs, they should insist on felix pie.

I don't know guys, I'm reluctant to let either go - I say let Mcphail get stingy and get more than he deserves for Mora/ payton/ Huff - remember the culprits for a bummer 2007? Bedard won 13 for us in a shortened season. That translates to 20 for a team that knows how to win. Excuse me but I think Brob and Bedard know how to win. We need to keep these guys and deal the others. I mean, we are talking about 3 guys here that we should try and keep around for 4 years. Nick, Brob, EB... these guys are the heart and soul. And they will help to cultivate a winning philosophy...Say what you will about EB, but ALL THREE OF THESE GUYS ARE GAMERS. I KNOW BECAUSE I SEE GAMERS PLAY ON OTHER TEAMS!!!!

Some of the prospects that are mentioned do sound good - I'm hip to that. Let's aggresively use guys other than those 3 mentioned, to acquire them. How about using money? Does anybody have any money that they don't need?

Happy Holidays O's fans!!!

Make Roberts and Elijah Cummings a package deal

I am absolutely torn on the Roberts scenario, as obviously most people here are. We have loved Brian from a fan standpoint for years, he is a great character guy, a genuinely good kid, who made a dumb mistake and admitted to it. Avoiding the speculation on the steroids thing, he is a good kid, one who bought a line of fans all hot chocolate while they were standing in line in 30 degree weather to get autographs outside the stadium.
Yes, I think we should trade him, but not for us, and not for sake of getting better, but as a thank you for all he has done for us in these last years of losing. He deserves a chance to play for something meaningful, a shot at a title. We could get better prospects from other teams, (and Gallagher is the 5th best prospect on their team, let alone NOT one of the best in the game) but if they have a shot at the playoffs, we should do it for Brian, he's a great guy and deserves it. From our point of view, I hope we could get some combination of Pie, Cedeno, Fontenot (another great kid, he was wonderful in Bowie), Hart (gotta love the UMD kids), and Gallagher.

We have better guys in our own system than Pie and Murton.Reimold and Tripp. Why give up one of our few star players for these bums. If they deal Roberts to the Cubs it will be one of the biggest busts in O's history.

Good for Sammy! I thought he got a raw deal.

Are any of the people shooting the trade rumor down "insiders"? The Examiner has a quote from MacPhail saying no deals until after New Year's. You know this is just smoke.

I would hate to see Roberts go --the havoc he causes on the basepaths and the overall good influence he is in the club house is hard to match.-The ONLY way I want to see this trade is if he plans to leave in 09--which right now no one but the warehouse knows

Jones is kinda slim. 6-2 , 200. He'll be 23 on Aug the 1st. NOT a base stealer. They sent him to the VWL where he has played the last 16 games so far. Ba. 333 - 0 hr. The VWL has played 54 or so games so far. Looks like T-Bone. Navy must score 1st.

Excellent post Roch. I agree completely on this. W/o Pie it makes no sense.

Why so conservative Roch...geez. We are rebuilding, that means you trade your chips. Forget about winning & your personal relationships with these guys for one second & think about the long term. You just dont seem to get it ???

I love these people on here saying that we should do the trade for Brian Roberts, not for the O's. I don't think the business of running a baseball team is to further enhance and develop the players benefit before the teams. I understand Brian is a very nice human being and he does a lot of charity work, but if the O's just did the trade for his benefit - then everyone would be bashing them next year when they finish lower than Tampa Bay.

I think Brian Roberts needs to stay.

Careful Steve. People will think it's because of your personal relationship with him.

The O's are better off holding on to Brian, unless you want the Orioles slip into 5th place in the AL East this year. Hang on to him and the fans wont go away as quick. Hang on to him and keep the O's in 4th place. Brian has 3 things the O's cant replace with him gone this year:
Popularity, lead off abilities, and speed.

I agree what the Oiroles are trying to do but they cant go crazy and trade all their veterans. Roberts, Ramon Hernendez, Huff, Millar, and Mora should stay. Its ok if Jay Payton is gone, they need to look for younger outfielders.

Please keep Brian, the O's need him!!

Do your guys have anything on Bedard?

eeek. if they trade b-rob, does that instantly put his "fan demographic" of all the 12-25yr old females in the baltimore metropolitan area on suicide watch? or has that "burden" shifted to markakis? i'm not a local, simply a geographically displaced fan. sucks to be us.