Odds and Ends: Let it Snow

Stuck inside the house here in the Philadelphia region because of the big snowstorm? Well, if your not outside making snowmen or eating yellow snow, consider these topics and talk amongst yourselves.

• Jimmy Rollins contract situation:  Paul Hagen of the Philadelphia Inquirer wrote today that we should keep an eye on 2012.  J-Roll will certainly want an upgrade on the below-market-value five-year, $40 million deal he signed in ’06.  For ’12, the Phils have $43 million locked up in three players, so the money is available at this point, but how much will remain to be seen.  Is next year the end of the line for Rollins?  And do you believe Ruben Amaro is prepared for ’11 and ’12 and how this could shape the team for the next decade?
• The Cliff Lee scenario has been hashed and rehashed thousands of times since the trade was finalized a few days ago.  But I still cant get past the fact of how crushed Lee was.  He genuinely believed that he would spend the rest of his career in red pinstripes, and was blindsided by the trade to Seattle.
• With that said, I get why the trades were made.  Amaro was afraid he would not get Halladay if he waited too long, so the deal needed to be done asap.  On top of that, he realized that the team would not budge on the payroll to accommodate both Lee and Doc.  Knowing that, he had to trade Lee before the Halladay deal was made – taking less than he should have – so that the fans would not revolt  when realizing that Lee and Halladay were on the team together.  He just couldn’t trade Lee after Halladay was already a Phillie.  So that part I get.
• On the other hand, I have to believe that they could have gotten some decent prospects in a Blanton deal and then taken draft picks in a year when Lee became a free agent.  Would that have been almost the same as the three prospects they received from Seattle?  I say yes, it could have been a similar haul in both scenarios.
• The Phillies still need to look at some cheap options for the fifth starter, since currently, it’s down to Moyer and Kendrick.  Take your pick and tell us why: Duchscherer, Smoltz, Bedrard, Sheets or Mulder?

If your situated in the Northeast part of the country, enjoy the snow!