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Daisuke Matzusaka Follow-Up

By faketeams

According to the NY Post Jose Valentin's option kicks in for the 2008 season based on 400 plate appearances.  The contract is for $3.8MM.

Within in the same article, it is reported the Mets have resigned themselves to not getting Dasuke Matzusaka and turned their attention to Barry Zito.  They recognize he will command money in the Roy Oswalt area (5YR/$73MM) and expect to be players if Zito's market stays in that area.

Dream on!  SI.com's Jon Heyman reports Barry Zito's asking price is seven-years/$105MM - the exact number I have been prognosticating for several days!

Within the same column, Mr. Heyman says a rumor making the rounds is the Matzusaka posting fee was $51.  I listened to Baseball This AM on MLB 175 on XM Radio, and Orestes Destrade did not back-off his report of a posting fee in excess of $50MM.  This morning's NY Times hedges:

One of the executives said that people in baseball and in Japan had acknowledged that the winning bid was in the $45 million range.

The NY Post's Joel Sherman follows-up on last week's Indians/Padres trade.  Mr Sherman reports:

Before trading Gary Sheffield to the Tigers, the Yanks were very close to dealing him to the Indians for a package headed by prospect Kevin Kouzmanoff. The Yanks were then either going to keep Kouzmanoff to play first base or spin him to the Padres for reliever Scott Linebrink. Instead, Kouzmanoff wound up in San Diego for second baseman Josh Barfield.

If true, the Padres goofed.  They could have had Kouzmanoff and kept Barfield for the price of Scott Linebrink and the releiver received from the Tribe, Andrew Brown.

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