So this whole Berkman trade thing is causing a little stir in the media, mainly to see if Ed Wade will seize the chance he has been given to bring in prospects. FanHouse has some potential destinations:
The biggest problem for Berkman could be where he'd go in a trade. His contract is reasonable enough for a rental, $14.5 million this year with a $2 million buyout or $15 million option in 2011, but there are other factors. He's coming off of knee surgery and first basemen aren't in tremendous demand among contenders. For teams that do want to add a player at that position, Adrian Gonzalez and, potentially, Prince Fielder are younger options.
They'd cost more in terms of prospects, however, and that might make a team like the Giants interested in seeing what it would take to pry Berkman away from Houston. He's just old enough that Brian Sabean might be interested in buying the next four years of his career. A handful of AL teams come to mind too, but the Red Sox have to figure out what they're doing with David Ortiz and it's a bit too soon to know whether the A's, Rangers or Mariners are in the mix and/or willing/able to pay the freight.
If Berkman's knee proves sound, however, Wade should heed his player's advice and see what's out there in a deal. While he's at it he should see if there's any interest in Carlos Lee and Roy Oswalt because there's just as little reason to keep them around when the team should be focused on building for the future.
It would be interesting to see if the Astros make a team take Carlos Lee, in the same way that Florida made Boston take Mike Lowell in the Beckett trade.
We didn't come out here to play tiddlywinks, son.
-Hal Smith
