Comments on: Burke Re-Signed

By: pmbaseball7

pmbaseball7 — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 03:19:59 +0000

But remember Burke can pitch haha.

By: Jon Shields

Jon Shields — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 23:59:02 +0000

It’s easy to say that Burke is a “no-risk signing,” but he offers up no real reward, either. Unless a Rob Johnson deal is imminent, I don’t really see any reason to retain Burke. I like the guy, but what’s the point?

They say they want to give Johnson more consistent playing time, but why? He’s a solid backup. That’s been his upside for a few years now. If the team is going to go with three catchers, Johnson should be the third. He is more versatile on a limited bench than Burke. Johnson can pinch run and can play a little bit of outfield.

The bench role is pretty unimportant anyway, so it doesn’t really matter, but I’m just sayin…

By: Librarian

Librarian — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 22:55:05 +0000

Burke’s really a no-risk signing, but it would certainly appear to be a precursor to another move. I’d love to see Clement’s bat mature in Seattle, but the picture of how he fits with this team is getting a little fuzzier. If Moore is likely to be more a more balanced catcher, more adept at handling the pitching staff, than I’d like to see them trade Clement if they can get fair value. As you said navychief, this won’t be a repeat of the Varitek trade–because we wouldn’t be trading Clement for a veteran, we’d be trading him for another young piece who’s a better fit with this club.

By: pmbaseball7

pmbaseball7 — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 21:28:34 +0000

Yeah he would be a good pickup he could play SS, 3B, and 2B. James predicts .276 10 Hrs and 83 rbis in 544 at-bats. Marcel predicts .268 6 Hrs 49 rbis in 306 at-bats. At SS UZR of 4.9 and UZR/150 of 21 in 49 games, at 3B UZR 1.5 & UZR/150 of 7.7 in 45 games also in 3 games at 2B he had 0.2 UZR and a UZR/150 of 23.1. Not to mention he’s from Salem, Oregon and he’s a switch hitter.

By: Jon Shields

Jon Shields — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 21:08:24 +0000

I have no idea. Probably not, but who knows?

By: pmbaseball7

pmbaseball7 — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 20:59:08 +0000

Do you think they would deal Lowrie straight up for Clement?

By: Jon Shields

Jon Shields — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 20:43:12 +0000

I would agree that dealing Clement to the Sox wouldn’t be so bad if there’s a possibility of getting Masterson, Bowden, Anderson or Lowrie. All would be tough to get from them, but if any of them could be had the deal could be worth while.

By: navychief2004

navychief2004 — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 20:31:58 +0000

Jon,
The more I think about it, and believe me, I have been thinking about it quite a bit since the rumors started, I don’t necessarily see trading Clement to the Red Sox negatively. I don’t see a repeat of the 90′s, when we gave away Varitek. Also, we have more catching depth this time around. We would be okay letting Johjima and Burke handle catching duties until Moore and Johnson are completely ready.

By: ernier

ernier — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 19:58:22 +0000

I think this is another very solid move by the organization. It’s a small move and isn’t a move that will bring us the AL West title, but it is a smart move.

I do beleive this means that Rob Johnson will be traded before Spring Training. I think the catching situation will most likely be Johjima getting the higher number of starts at catcher to see if he can get back on track; with Clement getting a couple of starts a week at catcher and the rest of the time he’ll DH. Either Burke will make the team or Shelton will make the team and be the emergency catcher.

It would not be a bad scenario to have Burke start the season in Tacoma to help tutor Adam Moore from a defensive standpoint. Having Burke in Seattle or Tacoma to start the season is a solid move either way by the organization.