Twins Next CF - Coco Crisp

Friday, November 23, 2007

Now that Torii Hunter has left and the Twins are basically in ruins, they will probably trade Johan Santana. The Red Sox, who not only have the money to spend but seem willing to give up prospects seem to be the most likely. The Twins probably want lefty Jon Lester, so with him, they could send Coco Crisp, Kyle Jackson and a couple other top prospects. I see them doing whatever they can to hold onto Jacoby Ellsbury, but I wouldn't be surprised if he is in the deal. The Red Sox traded top prospect Hanley Ramirez who is now an All-Star in Florida. However, no one seems to miss him, probably because they got Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell in return. The Twins think high of Crisp, and from what I am hearing, are asking for Jacoby Ellsbury, Jon Lester, Michael Bowden, and Lars Anderson in a trade for Johan. Anderson is a first baseman who draws comparisons to Adam LaRoche. He batted .288 with 10 HR and 69 RBI in Singe-A and is just twenty. Bowden, 21, is probably a year away but will be very effective. I fully expect Crisp to be traded, and see the Twins as their best suitor. Other than them, the Cardinals, Cubs, Padres, and Rockies to be other options. Something will probably get done soon after the Winter Meetings. It will allow the Twins to find out who is interested, and then talk with those teams in the weeks following.

UPDATE: The Twins are entertaining the idea of signing either Kenny Lofton or Corey Patterson to play center. I think Patterson would be a great option. Not only does he have speed, but he is a pretty decent fielder with the potential to have a good bat.

6 comments:

Anonymous 4:34 PM CST  

Inadequate fielder? Are you serious? Crisp had 1 error last year and should have made more noise in the Gold Glove voting. The Red Sox do make sense in this trade but I really doubt that they would trade Ellsbury. Yes Hanley Ramirez was another top prospect of theirs but Ellsbury helped them win a world series and could be a member of the Sox outfield for years. Also, as good as Johan is why would the Sox trade BOTH of their centerfielders in one deal?

Anonymous 4:36 PM CST  

I find it hard to see the sox giving up Ellsbury or Buchholz. Lester should stay, but how do you pass up a guy who is a CY award canidate every year. The twins like Coco, if the sox can package three prospects with him, they should be the frontrunner. The Yankees dont have enough to top what the sox have.

Travis 11:42 PM CST  

I think the Soc could get Minn to seriously consider a deal with Jon Lester, Coco Crisp, Justin Masterson, Craig Hansen and their choice of either Manny Delcarmen or Jed Lowrie.

Lester, Hansen, Crisp and Delcarmen are all ready to help the club in April while Masterson and Lowrie could be contributors by the all star break.

Anonymous 9:34 AM CST  

Red Sox fans seriously over-value Coco. He'll make the occasional spectacular catch but he has to because with his wiener of an arm, he has trouble getting the ball back to the infield otherwise. He's got some speed but he's a crappy lead-off hitter and he can't seem to use his speed to steal bases. Crisp is adequate at best and could in no way be the center piece for a Santana trade. I think the Twins are all too familair with Crisp's game (and shortcomings) from his years with the Indians. The Twins are going to be asking for Ellsbury and Buckholtz and that's why I don't think a deal gets done. My money's on a deal with the Dodger's and I don't think it happens until the season is underway. And Yankee fans...forget about Melky Cabrera and Ian Kennedy. That proposition would be just plain insulting to the Twins.

Anonymous 8:27 AM CST  

I agree, any deal with the BSox has to include Ellsbury. The Yankess don't have enough, they want to deal Melky Cabrera, but he's overvalued. I'm betting on the Dodgers too, but before the season starts.

Anonymous 12:36 PM CST  

If you look at Melky Cabrera and Coco Crisp's stats they are very similiar and Coco isn't even known for his hitting. Plus if you add Jon Lester and 3 good other prospects I think this deal can happen