Stephen Drew

Jose Iglesias is likely out for the season and immediately the speculation is that the Tigers will turn their attention to free agent Stephen Drew to fill the void. As a Red Sox fan I would like to see Drew signed somewhere and if he signed with Detroit the compensation pick would give Boston the 25th, 32nd, and 33rd picks in the first round of this year's MLB draft. That said - this is hardly a done deal.

First off - Drew isn't the only option for Detroit. Arizona is said to be open to dealing either Didi Gregorius or Chris Owings. Maybe a deal to the Diamondbacks for back-up catcher Bryan Holaday would make it happen? Seattle's Nick Franklin could also be a trade option. Why would the Tigers go the trade route instead of signing Drew? Two words - Scott Boras.

You can be sure that Boras will use this opportunity to start a bidding between Detroit and the Mets and maybe even the Yankees. The Tigers probably want Drew for just one year but that probably won't be enough for Boras who needs to prove he wasn't wrong in having Drew turn down the Red Sox one-year $14.1 million qualifying option.. Two years or more may make the trade route more attractive for the Tigers.

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

Jake Peavy just sounds like the name of a baseball player but Peavy Jake sounds like the name of a character from a Guy Ritchie film like Snatch... 8 people who were banned from baseball other than the Black Sox and Pete Rose. I especially like the Ty Cobb story... The name Manhattan started out being called Manahatchtaniek which is Lenape Indian for "the island where we all became intoxicated" after the Indians were made drunk by the white men...  In the future will sex dolls be available via 3-D printing? If so you may want to invest in printing companies. Also could be bad news for dating sites like Match.com if you think about it... Pawtucket Red Sox manager Gary DiSarcina made a great point, "If you said at the beginning of the season, Jose Iglesias for Jake Peavy, everybody takes it"... I would love to watch a show where a Dalek (from Doctor Who) asks scientists and writers questions in his Dalek voice. That would be awesome...

Jake Peavy Trade

Here's my initial thoughts on the trade that brings Jake Peavy to Boston and sends Jose Iglesias to the Tigers (via the White Sox).

At first glance this trade is a winner for all three teams involved. The Red Sox get a top of the line starter in Jake Peavy (the second best starter available after Cliff Lee); the White Sox get potential future all-star outfielder Avisail Garcia (and they shed Peavy's big salary), while the Tigers get perhaps the best defensive shortstop in the AL.

I do agree that the Red Sox sold high on Jose Iglesias but I would also say that the Tigers probably know exactly what they are getting in Iglesias. And they are pretty happy - Iglesias is just that good with his glove.

My first hope was that the Red Sox would land Cliff Lee but the Phillies asking price was just too high. Reportedly the Phillies wanted three top prospects plus the trading team to pick up all of Lee's massive contract. The Red Sox got Peavy for just one top prospect. How can you argue with that? I do find it ironic that the last time Peavy was on the trade market in 2009 he was viewed as the second best pitcher available after Roy Halladay and this time around he was second to Halladay's teammate Lee.

In regards to Iglesias - Boston has super shortstop prospect Xander Bogaerts waiting in the wings and it must be said that no matter how good Iglesias' glove-work was he would eventually be booed in Boston for not hitting. Iglesias is probably better off in Detroit.

EDIT: I meant to mention both Peavy's age (at 32 - he's basically 2-years older than Jon Lester and 2-years younger than John Lackey) and the effect he might have on the bullpen (Peavy is basically a quality start waiting to happen - helping the bullpen by lightening the load is a bonus that shouldn't be overlooked). Also here were two more good takes on the trade:

Ken Rosenthal and Richard Justice