Josh Fields Debate, Continued

by ~ January 13th, 2009 at 6:41 pm

Jim Street over at MLB.com has a new article on Seattle’s 2008 first rounder Josh Fields and the ongoing contract negotiations.

There was nothing in the article that convinced me that GM Jack Zduriencik wants Fields, and it was mostly filled with the same old “we’re having discussions with his agent” type of stuff.  It did mention, however, that Zduriencik met with agent Scott Boras a week ago, presumably to talk about Fields.

When it comes to debating whether or not Fields should be signed, Mariner fans couldn’t be more divided.  In a poll we ran on this site a while back, the results came back 50/50; half yes, half no.

I’m on the “No” side for several reasons:

  • Relievers are too easily found in the bargain bin to justify using a first round pick on them.  I would have been much happier if Seattle had picked a starter or position player.
  • As far as I can tell, the main reason Fields was picked was so Brandon Morrow could remain in the starting rotation.  At this point, Morrow is going to be a starter regardless of Fields’ standing.
  • Fields was basically drafted because of his stellar curveball.  His fastball is flat and he has big time control problems.
  • Fields was Bill Bavasi’s pick.  This is Zduriencik’s team now.  Since the option is there, I believe he should pick the type of player he wants.  Mulligan!
  • The possibility of having four first round picks this June is just awesome, and would give Zduriencik a big boost in terms of rebuilding this franchise from the bottom up.
  • Seattle has some young relievers that are getting close to being MLB ready that appear to have what it takes to close in the big leagues.  I also still have faith in Mark Lowe.
  • This new regime appears content fielding a bullpen with loosely defined roles.

Fields can sign with Seattle up until just before the June draft, but I would guess that if he’s not signed by Spring Training he won’t be signed at all.  We’ve only got a few weeks left, so perhaps we’ll know soon.

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  • banton

    Don’t want him. He won’t go that high again if he gets thrown back into the draft. As you say, this is a loosely-defined pen, and I think that we have all the arms we need this year. Best to take the best athletes with our first four picks.

  • Slurve

    He does have a plus, plus curve and mid 90′s FB. And he has the legit closer tag on him!… I am kinda on the no side of this thing and I to still have faith in Mark Lowe.

  • ernier

    I’ve gone back forth on this one. Orginally I said no and then I read some different articles that said this was going to be a weak draft and we also traded JJ, so then I thought it made sense to sign him.

    It just seems that if he really wanted to be in Seattle and we really wanted him then this would be done by now. So for this reason I say don’t sign him and let Jack and his staff find someone better.

  • http://myspace.com/tr1ckz pmbaseball7

    I am also on the NO side. If we don’t sign Fields we end up getting the number 21 pick in the draft again. You can find relievers anywhere, and to use the 21st pick on one and justify it by saying it was to keep Morrow in the rotation is kind of stupid no matter how good Fields is.

  • http://myspace.com/tr1ckz pmbaseball7

    And he obviously doesn’t want to play in Seattle, or else he would have signed already.

  • http://marinermelee.blogspot.com/ Mariner Melee

    No. First of all…what kind of a kid who (supposedly) loves baseball, holds out for $ 500,000, when 1.5 million is undoubtedly more money than he has ever seen in his life?

    Second of all, Fields was drafted in some sort of desperate attempt to save a lost season through the bullpen and we have zero need for him then and now.

    No, no, no. Gmz will no doubt entertain conversations with Boras, so that he doesn’t hurt that relationship. But Fields and Boras will continue to hold out like idiots, and the Mariners will stand their ground, and we will get a re-do of sorts in 2009.

  • Bilbo

    OK, I’ll play devil’s advocate.

    1. We need a closer
    2. Teams “draft” closers in the first round all the time. NYM did it when they acquired FRod, LAA did it when they acquired Fuentes. Every team that signs a Type A FA reliever does it all the time.
    3. As quickly as he will get to the majors, he will be a very valuable commodity (say 1-2 WAR for league minimum is about a $4-9mm value)
    4. We have four other top 50 picks so spending one on a/the top reliever isn’t that big of a loss.

    How did I do? :-) Honestly, I defer to Jack but I definitely can see the value of a player like Fields. Now if he feels Kelley or someone else is just as ready then keep the pick. The beauty is they can also go into spring training and see what they have and then make a quick decision if necessary.

  • http://www.seatownsports.net seatownsports

    Let’s save money and start over. With Boras as his agent, Fields is likely to command a lot of money. It’s just not worth the risk. The Mariners are better off finding the diamond in the rough within the current pitching staff.