Hot Stove Musings

The White Sox appear intent on spending my tax dollars on a new outfielder, so let’s consider the possibilities—Yoenis Cespedes, Alex Gordon and Justin Upton.  The good news is we’re not choosing between a poke in the eye and a punch in the stomach, I think.

Cespedes hit 35 home runs for the Tigers and Mets last season; the past four years, he’s hit 106.  That’s nice power to go with 508 strikeouts over a career that’s included four different teams over the last two seasons.  Would you give a 30-year old left fielder a six-year deal worth $100 million?

Or what about a soon-to-be 32-year old left fielder?  Alex Gordon might be had at five years and $100 million, or four years at $80 million.  Gordon doesn’t have Cespedes’s power but does own four Gold Gloves in left field, and he has a higher career on-base percentage, .348 vs. .319 for Cespedes.  Still, $20 million—and remember, some of that coming from yours truly—for a player who’s never done better than 101 runs or 87 rbi’s?  I’m not so sure.

Which leaves us with Justin Upton, who won’t turn 29 till next August.  Upton has hit 55 homers the last two seasons, though he’s never cracked 100 rbi’s.  He’s been in the bigs since the age of 19, has hit .300 once and scored 100+ runs twice.  Does a career .271 hitter with a .352 obp and more errors than assists in the outfield deserve Cespedes/Gordon/Jason Heyward money?

You tell me.