How far would you go to move Jeff Suppan?

With the winter meetings running Monday thru Thursday from Indianapolis, I’ve come up with a number of possible avenues to explore for the Brewers.  If I had my way I would do anything in my power to rid myself of Jeff Suppan.  Unless Rick Peterson thinks he can help the veteran starter it’s time to go.  His salary is too high to move without taken another highly paid player in return.  Fixing the starting rotation is priority number one.  The ideas I will present involve players that have a history of behavioral problems that would test the locker room.  The Brewers front office will have to determine if the locker room is strong enough to take on a bad apple to help upgrade the overall talent on the team.  Winning is the best cure-all.  Royals right fielder Jose Guillen is highly paid and in the final year of his deal.  Guillen has burned nearly every bridge so far in his career.  He’s currently rehabbing surgeries on his ankle and back, but expects to be ready for the 2010 campaign.  The toxic outfielder was honked off last year because he didn’t get to play right field and doesn’t want to be a designated hitter.  I’m fully aware of Guillen’s track record of bad behavior, but I would take a year of him to move Suppan.  The Royals rotation is Zack Greinke, Luke Hochevar, Kyle Davies, Brian Bannister, and Robinson Tejada.  Would they like to add a veteran starter to get rid of Guillen?  He could provide some protection behind Braun and Fielder.   

Another possibility is if the Cubs struggle to move Milton Bradley, would the Cubs take Suppan in return?  Trades between division rivals are rare, but Milton Bradley is the craziest player in the game today.  Drastic times call for drastic measures.  The Brewers have strong leadership among the players and I’d talk to Ken Macha and Trevor Hoffman to see what their experiences were with the mercurial outfielder.  You saw how Bradley tore apart the Cubs, but Milwaukee is a less pressure situation.  Ideally, Bradley would provide protection behind Braun and Fiedler.  He has the capability of carrying a team for stretches.  His contract is for another two years and maybe the Cubs will help pay the salary.  The Cubs have depth in the rotation with Carlos Zambrano, Ted Lilly, Ryan Dempster, Randy Wells, Tom Gorzelanny, and Jeff Samardzija.  If other teams decide to pass on Bradley, maybe the Brewers could get in on the bidding.     

One move sets up another, then the Brewers could move Corey Hart in return for a starting pitcher.  Hart has arbitration eligibility left and is a proven commodity.  Edwin Jackson of the Tigers will become a free agent in 2 years, and then the headache of having a Scott Boras client takes over.  Jackson faded in the second half of the last two seasons, but maybe Rick Peterson can help him reach his potential.  Braves starter Javier Vaszuez is rumored to be on the block, but I’d rather have Jair Jurrjens.  Chris Young of the Padres is also someone I would consider looking into.  Another possibility is the Blue Jays with the depth of arms they have at the major league level.  Roy Halladay is the Jays pitcher everyone is talking about but, David Purcey is a player that I would inquire about.     

The Brewers are never going to throw money around like the Yankees, Red Sox, Angels, Dodgers, or Cubs.  Trading is a more viable option for the Brewers than overspending on a bunch of free agents.  General Manager Doug Melvin looks to acquire arbitration eligible players in return to keep the payroll at a manageable level.  Matching salaries can make the trading process take a little longer.  We’ll see what materializes at the winter meetings, it should be interesting.

Tags: Brewers, Jeff Suppan, Jose Guillen, Milton Bradley