Roy Oswalt an X-Factor for 2012 MLB Season
We don’t know where, we don’t know when, but Roy Oswalt is going to pitch somewhere in 2012.
We think.
The only thing that’s clear at this point is if the 34-year-old plays this season, it will be with a contender. Oswalt isn’t the pitcher he was in his glory days with the Houston Astros, but there are a handful of teams with glaring needs in their rotations.
Even if Oswalt wants a deal in excess of $10 million, it would still make more sense for a team to sign him to a one-year deal rather than give up a bevy of prospects to acquire pitching help via trade.
Did you see how much the Cincinnati Reds, Washington Nationals and Arizona Diamondbacks had to give up to acquire pitching this offseason?
Right now, it looks like the New York Yankees have seven starting pitchers and the Boston Red Sox have three, maybe four if Daniel Bard can stick in the rotation. Throw in the Tampa Bay Rays and their impressive pitching depth, and it looks pretty clear the Red Sox are a distant third in the American League East terms of rotation strength.
Today, St. Louis Cardinals’ ace Chris Carpenter is seeing a nerve specialist. He’s expected to start the year on the disabled list. The Cardinals’ second-best pitcher, Adam Wainwright, is coming off Tommy John Surgery. The team already was going to have a tough time replacing Albert Pujols, Tony LaRussa and Dave Duncan. Losing Carpenter could be the finishing blow to their hopes of defending the World Series championship.
Boston and St. Louis are the most obvious destinations, but there isn’t a team in baseball that thinks they have enough pitching. Oswalt did have a down year for his standards in 2011, posting a career-worst 1.34 WHIP, 9.9 H/9 and 6.0 K/9. He was still a middle of the rotation pitcher with a 3.69 ERA over 23 starts with the Philadelphia Phillies.
Jeff Gordon of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported today Lance Berkman would love to be reunited with his former Astros teammate and could play the role of recruiter. Red Sox general manager Ben Cherington told Nick Cafardo of the Boston Glode last week they were going to keep looking for pitching help.
Two weeks ago, Jerry Crasnick reported Oswalt was open to pitching anywhere, but might not be motivated to reurn until June.
March 8, 2012 3:37 pm via webReplyRetweetFavorite
March 8, 2012 3:38 pm via webReplyRetweetFavorite
If that’s the case, he and his agent can expect their phones to be ringing off the hook all spring. I’m still a big believer in Oswalt’s ability, so much so that I’m refraining from making any 2012 predictions until he signs.
That’s if he signs.
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