Keith Law, a senior baseball writer for ESPN.com and former member of the front office with the Toronto Blue Jays, joined today's edition of the Baseball Tonight with Buster Olney podcast to discuss happenings around Major League Baseball.
One of the topics discussed was the trade rumors regarding Philadephia Phillies' second baseman Chase Utley. The following is a transcription of the segment, where Law described the six-time All-Star as 'nobody's regular second baseman'.
Olney: The big name being talked about in trade, and it wouldn't surprise me if it came down today, Chase Utley, who has cleared waivers. The Phillies are talking with the [San Francisco] Giants and the [Chicago] Cubs about possible deals. They have also had conversations with the [New York] Yankees.
You can look at it from a couple of perspectives. First, from the team perspective. Let's look at it from where the Giants are, and where the Cubs are. Give me how you would assess Chase Utley now and how he might help them.
Law:
"I'm bearish on Utley, and that's from talking to a couple of front office [executives] who saw him earlier in the season, before the DL stint. [They] said they 'didn't think he had a whole lot left to offer.'
I think you are primarily looking at a left-handed bat option off the bench. [I'm] very skeptical whether he can provide any kind of capable defense at second base on a regular basis. He might be able to fill in once or twice a week, but he's nobody's regular second baseman.
Look at those clubs though, certainly the Giants believe they are getting Joe Panik back in a week or so. He's supposed to be fine. The injury was supposed to be not very significant.
So, for them I think Utley becomes exactly that. The left-handed bat off the bench, occasionally filling in at second base, but not a starter. Whereas with the Cubs, I guess it's possible they could view him as playing more frequently at second base, but they're fairly defense conscience. So, unless they believe that now that he's off the DL he's going to be able to provide better defense than what he showed earlier in the season, I would be surprised if they were looking at him as more than a part-time option.
So, [Utley] might play more for the Cubs than he would for the Giants, but I don't think he's a regular for either of those teams. That just leads back to the question … is there a lot of value for Utley? The [executives I talked to said] 'there probably isn't'. The Phillies might be able to move some money, but shouldn't be looking for a significant prospect in return."
Olney: It was interesting to hear from some people yesterday that they thought the Phillies' asking price was too high. My reaction was, 'what asking price?' If you save any kind of money, then that's a win. What's the point of having Utley around?
The first question is, what does Chase Utley want, because he controls this process entirely. I throw this into the mix, just because I've seen situations in the past where a player has a back issue, and what the team says and what maybe is reality, there could be a difference. I do wonder if Panik is going to be okay. It's possible he can have another setback, and I don't have any inside information. I just assume the worst.
On the Cubs' side of things, I think that they essentially right now don't have a second baseman they are comfortable with, where Chris Coghlan, as you know, has mostly been an outfielder in recent seasons. He played that position before, and you made the point they are defense conscience. So I think that they probably like Utley more than Starlin Castro, who's never going to be a regular player again for them, unless Addison Russell gets hurt in the next six weeks. So, it wouldn't surprise me if they are the team most motivated to go get Utley.
From the team perspective, I think there's no downside as long as the Phillies don't continue to ask for a lot in return. From their perspective, I think [the Cubs] could say, 'we'll bring him in, we'll play him, and if he stinks, we don't have any emotional ties to him. We can either bury him in the back-end of the bench, or we can just cut him.'
Law:
"Yes. I would expect that to happen.
I would say too, that it's kind of telling that the Cubs, with Javier Baez still available, will say, 'no, we'll go out and get Chase Utley instead.' We've talked about Baez's flaws … and I've always dwelled on the serious issues with contact. I think he's more than a capable defense second baseman. So, the Cubs are essentially saying 'we are still skeptical enough about his ability to make contact going forward, that we would rather roll the dice on Utley than call Baez up.'
Obviously, [Baez] has missed time with injury, and he's missed time with death of a family member earlier this season, so it's not like the stat line this year in Triple-A has been everything you wanted. But the raw skills are still there. You would think he would be a piece going forward that they would want to continue to develop. But, they are saying, 'we'd rather go out and get the veteran without the upside, because we're more confident maybe in the floor of what Utley can provide than in the floor of what Baez can provide.'"
Olney: It's interesting because the [Los Angeles] Dodgers seem to be making the opposite assessment. In other words, they called up a young prospect to play second base, Jose Peraza. They are giving him an opportunity to prove himself, when as you pointed out, there are some questions about whether or not he can play second base.
Law:
"He's only hit for average. [Peraza] does not get on base at all, and he has no power. He's probably never going to have power.
He can certainly develop a better approach at the plate. He's a high-contact hitter, and he hit .290-something in Triple-A. He's a natural shortstop who I think will develop into a plus-defender eventually at second. Although, the Braves were screwing around and had him in center some. So, I think that has hindered his development at any particular position.
Ultimately, I would love to see [Peraza] back at short, but if the Dodgers leave him at second, let him play at second base for a month. He'll probably be fine defensively. I don't think he provides them a whole lot of bat in the short term. I hope I'm wrong, but giving what he did in Triple-A, and what I've seen from him in terms of his approach at the plate, I'm not expecting a lot of offensive upside.
But, [Peraza] was there. He was the option that was already in-house. I'm generally in favor of that. You have a guy there. It's not like you tried him and he failed. Give him the shot before you go out and try to acquire the external veteran who has his own question marks and might cost you something. So, I'd rather see that.
With the Cubs, it's a little different because they did try Baez once, and he did not play well. So, they might know what they have.
With the Giants, if you're right about Panik, their internal options are just not that good. They're all AAAA-type guys or bench players anyway, so Utley would be a small upgrade if Panik doesn't come back. Even if Utley has to play four times a week, and mixes in with Kelby Tomlinson. That's probably better than any of the combinations of internal options they have."
Olney: Utley 7-17 with three doubles since coming off of the disabled list. As I mentioned, he controls this process. Now let's look at it from his perspective.
Which of the two options, Giants, Cubs would you prefer? I think, if I was sitting in Utley's shoes, I'd probably go with the Cubs. With Panik sitting there, you know when [he] comes back he's going to be the Giants' second baseman, and Chase Utley really won't have anything left to do if Panik's healthy and he gets back in the lineup other than pinch-hit.
Law:
"I agree. Unless geography is a factor, because I know Utley went to college in California. If he wanted to get back to the west coast, there's that one option. But you're right. He's got more long-term playing time potential if he goes to the Cubs than if he goes to the Giants.
I'm guessing without looking, their playoff odds are pretty similar at this point. So, if he wants to get back to the postseason, don't think that tips the scale necessarily in favor of one or the other.
Both teams have managers that a lot of players would kill to potentially play for, which is amazing. I don't think we've been able to say that about the Cubs in a very long time."
Matt Rappa (@mattrappasports) is managing editor of Philliedelphia.com.
