Ex-Charger Kiel Dead at 27

This is a really sad story out of San Diego that unfolded in the evening hours of July 4th. Shortly after leaving a party, former Chargers safety Terrence Kiel smashed his Chevy Suburban into a wall and was thrown from the car. By the time ambulances arrived, Kiel was barely breathing. About an hour later, Kiel was pronounced dead.

The Associated Press has reported that friends of Kiel urged him not to drive himself home from the party. We can only assume that the reason for his friend’s request for him not to drive was based on Kiel’s consumption of a substance that would affect his ability to drive. Whether that be alcohol or drugs, we do not know and an autopsy report is still weeks away.

That leads me to my point. If you have a friend that you believe should not be driving, it is not enough to simply ask that they do not drive. You have to do something to make them not drive. Take their keys. Call them a cab and put $20 in their pocket. Find them a ride home with someone at the party who is capable of driving safely. I remember a Budweiser commercial where the guy (some NASCAR driver) parks his car outside the party, locks the doors and then slashes his tires. He then pulls out his six-pack of Bud and the party begins. That is obviously not what I suggest you do, since that would be way more expensive than the aforementioned cab ride. You get the point, though. If you have a friend who shouldn’t be driving, don’t let them. A day after this accident, there is one thing we can be sure of – Terrence Kiel’s friends wish they would have taken my advice.

AP Report on Terrence Kiel

Time Up for C.C.?

On June 29th C.C. Sabathia celebrated the 10 year anniversary of the day he became a member of the Cleveland Indians. Ten years previously, the Tribe made the California high-schooler a millionaire by selecting him 20th overall in the MLB Amateur Draft. Sabathia made his debut in 2001, going 17-5 and helping lead the Indians to a division title. Though the Indians have only made one other playoff appearance during Sabathia’s time in Cleveland, C.C. has become an elite starter and unquestioned ace.

Fresh off a Cy Young winning 2007 campaign, it appears as that Sabathia’s days with the team that drafted him are numbered. You see, the Indians are 12 games back of the AL Central leading Chicago White Sox and Sabathia is in the final year of his contract with the Tribe. It has been reported that C.C. is seeking Johan Santana-type money (6 years, $137.5 million) – an amount that the Indians simply cannot offer their homegrown star. The Indians, meanwhile, maintain that they would have to receive a substantial offer to part ways with Sabathia. Since the Indians would received two prospects in the event that Sabathia left following the season as a free agent (the 1st round pick of the team that signs Sabathia and a supplemental 1st round pick before the start of the 2nd round), General Manager Mark Shapiro would have to receive at least three top prospects in any exchange. This situation is much like the one in 2002, when Shapiro sent ace Bartolo Colon to the Montreal Expos for 1B Lee Stevens, and prospects 2B Brandon Phillips, CF Grady Sizemore, and SP Cliff Lee. Sizemore and Lee have been two of the only bright spots for the Tribe this season, and Phillips is an All-Star with the Cincinnati Reds.

That leads me to speculate where C.C. could wind up. The potential trading partner must have a good farm system with several high-ceiling players. This eliminates the Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox. After some analysis, there appears to only be a few teams in position to make a run at the post-season and offer top prospects to help acquire one more gun for the stretch run. These teams are the New York Yankees, Tampa Bay Rays, Milwaukee Brewers, Los Angeles Dodgers and Boston Red Sox.

New York Yankees: Currently 8 games back of division leading Tampa in the AL East, the Yanks are in dire need of a starting pitcher, especially with ace Chin Ming-Wang out until September after straining his foot. Without a move for Sabathia, it is possible that the Evil Empire could missed the post-season for the first time since 1994. The Yanks have the goods to pull off a deal with several top prospects in their system. A potential package might include OF Austin Jackson (.274 AVG, 8 HRs, 49 RBIs, 13 SBs in 82 games for the AA Trenton Thunder), SP Ian Kennedy, and SP Alan Horne (originally selected by the Indians before he decided to go to college). There is also a rumor that the Indians are interested in current Yankees 2B Robinson Cano. Cano, 26, would potentially be a vital cog near the top of the Indians line-up. The Yankees, however, maintain that Cano would not be included in a deal. This looks like an interesting situation to keep an eye on…

Milwaukee Brewers: Along with the Tampa Bay Rays, the Brewers have the best collection of minor league talent to select from. The stars of the current Brewers team are nearly all home-grown (Ryan Braun, Prince Fielder, Rickie Weeks, Corey Hart, J.J. Hardy) and are all relatively young. That means there is a glut of talent in the Brewers system that simply has nowhere to go. I suggest Cleveland as a possible destination. The top prospect in the system is likely OF Matt LaPorta. LaPorta has been tearing up AA Southern League pitching all season, batting .291 with 23 doubles, 20 HRs, and 66 RBIs in just 82 games. He is the prototypical corner outfielder who would be a feared bat in the middle of the Tribe line-up. Another Brewers prospect to watch is SS Alcides Escobar, also playing with LaPorta for the Huntsville Stars. Escobar is batting .331 with 7 HRs, 52 RBIs and 22 SBs in 84 games this year. Not to be outdone by his Huntsville teammates, 3B Mat Gamel is batting .381 with 31 doubles, 15 HRs and 75 RBIs in 84 games. Gamel, however, has a very shaky glove at 3B and his future may be in the outfield. Though most of the Brewers most coveted arms have graduated to the top club (Yovani Gallardo and Manny Parra), the Tribe would likely require at least one arm to help replace C.C. One pitcher from the Brewers organization to keep an eye on is SP Jeremy Jeffress.

Tampa Bay Rays: The Tampa Bay farm system has been responsible for the development of several highly talented youngsters in recent years. Players like 3B Evan Longoria and CF B.J. Upton have helped Tampa register the best record in baseball to this point. The Rays also seem to have a knack for picking up other team’s castoffs via trades and free agency (SP Scott Kazmir, SP Matt Garza, SP Edwin Jackson, RP J.P. Howell, 1B Carlos Pena). The Rays farm system is stocked with young arms like SP David Price (6-0, 1.74 ERA in stops at two levels so far this season), SP Wade Davis and SP Jake McGee who are all with the Montgomery Biscuits of the AA Southern League. The top position players in Tampa Bay’s farm system are SS Reid Brignac (.265 AVG, 24 doubles, 7 HRs, 35 RBIs in 78 games) of the AAA Durham Bulls and OFs Desmond Jennings and Ryan Royster of the A Vero Beach Devil Rays.

Boston Red Sox: This is another team that has re-tooled by incorporating home-grown players into the existing team. They have a need for Sabathia due to the recent news that SP Curt Schilling will not be joining them for a post-season run, as he underwent potentially career-ending surgery on his shoulder weeks ago. CF Jacoby Ellsbury, SP Clay Buchholz, 2B Dustin Pedroia, and CL Jon Papelbon are all products of General Manager Theo Epstein’s vaunted farm system. The cupboard is not bare, as SP Justin Masterson is looking good at AAA Pawtucket after failing to stick with the Red Sox despite going 4-2 with a 3.75 ERA in 8 starts this season. SP Michael Bowden of the Portland Sea Dogs is tearing up the Eastern League, going 7-4 with a 2.48 ERA in 17 starts thus far. The top hitting prospect in the Red Sox system is 1B Lars Anderson who plays with the A Lancaster JetHawks. Anderson is hitting .313 with 10 HRs and 41 RBIs in 68 games with the JetHawks. SS Jed Lowrie in AAA Pawtucket and OF Josh Reddick (.347 AVG, 14 HRs, 60 RBIs and 7 SBs) of A Lancaster are two other prospects to keep on your radar screen.

Los Angeles Dodgers: The Dodgers are another team in need of a big arm with ace SP Brad Penny on the DL. Although the Dodgers are not .500, they are in the surprisingly mediocre and wide-open NL West. The Dodgers also have some MLB-ready prospects like SP Clayton Kershaw, 3Bs Andy LaRoche and Blake DeWitt, and SS Chin-Lung Hu. A deal would likely include Kershaw, LaRoche or DeWitt and another prospects who is slightly less regarded than the guys previously mentioned. Pitchers James McDonald and Chris Withrow are possibilities.

So there you have it, the four most likely zip codes to use when sending C.C. Sabathia’s fanmail for the next few months. I would like to see Sabathia wind up with Milwaukee or Tampa Bay for several reasons. First, and maybe most important to me, I would prefer the Yankees and Red Sox not win Sabathia’s services for the simple reason that it would make those teams much better. Along with the White Sox, these are the teams I hate the most and I want them both to lose in a particularly pain-staking manner. For the Yanks, that would mean missing the playoffs entirely. For the Red Sox, a playoff upset to Tampa would be the way I want to see them go. Secondly, if Sabathia goes to Milwaukee or Tampa Bay, there is a chance for the “little-guy” to win it all. I love seeing the small market teams trump their high-payrolled brethren. Lastly, I believe that Tampa Bay and Milwaukee have the best combination of young talent available to offer to the Tribe in exchange for C.C. Ultimately, Sabathia will head into free agency this off-season and receive a deal somewhere (by not quite) in the neighborhood of Johan Santana. As one scout said, “for Sabathia to get Santana-type money, he needs to get in Santana-type shape.” Since I can’t envision Sabathia dropping the weight of a horse jockey in the next 4 months, I think it is safe to say that Santana will remain the game’s highest paid pitcher come Spring Training 2009. I can only hope that C.C. eventually signs his long term deal with a National League team – this way I can avoid the agony of watching him start consistently against the Tribe and I so could enjoy future SportsCenter highlights of him jacking more 440 foot home runs.

Here are some links to other articles about C.C. Sabathia:
San Francisco Gate Baseball Notes

Cleveland Plain Dealer Indians Insider