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As the off season began, 2B Orlando Hudson looked to be in a good position to cash in on two productive seasons with the Diamondbacks. Hudson was by far the best second baseman available on the free agent market and seemed to have a laundry list of teams preparing to go after him.However, almost two months into free agency, Hudson remains unsigned with no suitors in sight. It now seems unlikely that Hudson will receive the lucrative long term deal that he seemed certain to receive when free agency began,
So where have all the suitors gone?
Mets: Still have Luis Castillo. Until they move Castillo, Hudson will remain a pipe dream
Yankees: Showed interest at the beginning of free agency, but shied away after acquiring Nick Swisher and Mark Teixeira.
Indians: Acquired Mark DeRosa instead. No need for Hudson.
Nationals: The wild card in the Hudson sweepstakes. After losing Teixeira, the Nationals could use a splash to start building a winner in DC. They have the money to spend, but are they interested?
Cardinals: Have a glaring hole at second base, but I doubt they have the money to make a push for Hudson.
Giants: Another team with a glaring hole at second base, but once again, do they have the money to spend? Hudson would be a good fit here, but the Giants need more pop than Hudson can provide.
So as you can see folks, the list of suitors for Hudson has diminished. There is no team with a glaring need for Hudson who also has a boatload of money to spend. Hudson still needs to remain patient and wait for potential opportunities to arise, but taking a one year deal should not be out of the question at this point.
And finally, I think that Nationals have to make a move on Hudson. He is a high character guy, is a solid hitter, plays gold glove defense, and will come at an affordable rate. The Nationals could probably come to terms with Hudson on a two or three year deal for roughly $18-$30 million, which would be perfect for the rebuilding Nationals. They need to find a leader who can help shape their identity and start bringing wins to the District before fans completely forget that the Nationals exist.
That guy is Orlando Hudson.
8 comments:
what about the dodgers? They have Blake Dewitt but an infield of Casey Blake, Furcal, Hudson, and Loney would be one of the best in the NL
orlando is up the hudson river ... he's got no teams interested, no buzz ... why would anyone pay him 9M - 10M on a multi-year contract?? he's going to have to settle for way less than that
Anonymous: I think the Dodgers are focused on Manny Ramirez right now. they need a power bat in the middle of the order if they are going to compete in the NL West this season.
Can't hit: He might have too. I still think he'll wind up with a deal somewhere in the $6-$8 million dollar range, but a team like Washington would probably have to pay extra for Hudson to take their offer seriously.
thanks for the comments guys.
You're missing someone in your list of suitors...Atlanta. Sign Hudson and move Kelly Johnson, who is barely passable at 2B defensively, to LF. Seriously, if you're going to overpay for Lowe, don't you want to put a great infield defense behind the sinkerballer?
Nice work, Josh. Lead subject by Neyer, too. Excellent!
Anonymous: Atlanta would be a great fit for Hudson, but I'm not sure they have the funds to make a serious run at him. I like the idea though.
Jason: Thanks so much, I really do appreciate it. Nothing better than waking up and being linked on ESPN!
thanks for the comments.
The White Sox are still the most obvious fit for Hudson. Chris Getz and Jayson Nix don't scare anybody.
There's also the fact that Kenny Williams has wanted Hudson for a few years now.
JD: It remains to be seen if the White Sox will actually spend the money to go after Hudson. They have been awfully quiet this off season and seem content to lower payroll.
With that said, Hudson would be a fine fit for the White Sox, but I don't think it'll happen at this point.
thanks for the comment.
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