Jose Guillen An Oriole?
I caught wind of this in a thread on Orioles Hangout and it was mentioned later this morning on Roch's blog, but it seems the organization has some interest in acquiring Jose Guillen.
Yes, the same guy who was found to have bought HGH recently from a pharmacy, has had problems in the past, and yes, has been with over nine organizations in his career.
Of course, this is all a rumor; however, if the Orioles for some reason sign him, I'll be scratching my head.
A while ago, the Seattle Mariners turned down a $9 million extension for Guillen and bought out his contract for $500,000.
The Kansas City Star has this posted:
"The Royals are dismissing reports from the Dominican Republic that say they are close to an agreement with free-agent outfielder Jose Guillen.
General manager Dayton Moore declined to comment on the matter, but indications suggest the Baltimore Orioles and at least one other team are showing strong interest in Guillen.
The reports linking Guillen to the Royals surfaced after he said he expected to join Licey of the Dominican Winter League in the near future after completing his contract negotiations."
and this is what Roch said on his blog earlier today:
"Jose Guillen is looking for $30 million over three years. He wears steroid allegations like a uniform jersey, with the hGH links a nice accessory. He’s been a headache for more than one manager because of his anger-management issues. He has a short fuse and a shorter shelf life. And ESPN Deportes has the Orioles in the running to sign him.
They must want him in left field – the same place where this rumor came from.
Don’t be shocked if it’s a figment of someone’s imagination.
Guillen, based only on his tools, would be a tremendous upgrade over Jay Payton. The guy hits for average and power, and he has a cannon for an arm. But it would take 27 bellhops to handle all his baggage, and they’d each have to make two trips.
This doesn’t sound like Andy MacPhail’s kind of guy, but it’s worth looking into. Nothing surprises me anymore."
Honestly, Jose Guillen is a good ballplayer, but is he what the Orioles need at this point? No.
From my time seeing him as a Washington National, he is good with the bat, and can definitely be an asset in the outfield, plus can hit for average and power.
The problem is that he's 32 and if the Orioles are serious about the rebuilding, the plan should focus their energy on finding the next star or youngster who can be part of the future, rather than signing a guy to fill a hole.
Guillen's checkered past does not bother me much - he's just not a good fit for the organization at the moment.
In addition, he wants $10 million per year and it's money I'd spend if I knew as GM my team isn't going to compete.
2 comments:
Jose Guillen would be a good signing for anyone in baseball right now. Guillen showed tremendous power at times, ability to hit to all fields and still has a cannon for an arm. Guillen carried the Mariners in 2007 and was the main leader in the clubhouse, not a menace. It may have just been the one season, but it appears that he has grown up a little bit. He didn't have a problem with either of the Mariners' 2007 managers (Hargrove or McLaren). He would have been retained by the Mariners if he had excepted a one year deal, as Seattle's number 1 prospect Adam Jones is begging for a starting spot. As far as the HGH thing goes, it's unfortunate but that's kinda how baseball goes now.
Hey Jon,
Thanks for the comment. With respect to Guillen, he's a good ball player, no doubt; however, in my personal opinion with the Orioles, they need to focus on youth and finding a few players they can build around.
Guillen is not a player the Orioles should consider in their state. Now, if they were coming off as season where they won 81 games, then yes.
However, since I see no light at the end of the tunnel for the losing unless major changes are made, I pass at Guillen for $10 million per year. I just don't think they money should be invested into a player that will not be on a contending team for years to come.
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