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| BEN BADLER |
Brad Radke is one of the few true aces left in Major League Baseball. Radke, Mike Mussina, Orlando Hernandez, and Pedro Martinez are the only genuine number one starters left in the American League. Now imagine having two of the best four pitchers in the American League on the Boston Red Sox.
Radke and his Minneapolis-based agent Ron Simon are dissatisfied with the way the Twins have been handling Radke’s contract negotiations.
Radke has played his whole career in Minnesota, but he is disturbed by Minnesota’s losing ways. Simon, Radke’s agent, has asked the Twins for an out-clause in Radke’s contract that would give Radke the right to demand a trade after the first year of the contract if the Twins were doing poorly. So far, the Twins have not given in to this demand.
"[Twins GM Terry Ryan] said that agreeing to the clause was something he wasn't prepared to do," Simon said. "The big issue is the right to demand a trade. They said that it was a deal-breaker."
Simon had set a deadline for the contract negotiations between the two sides to end – February 20 – but that date has since come and gone.
"I have some feelings I probably should have never tried to make a deal with the Twins," Simon said. "They're such a weak team. I'm not unhappy they're not meeting my demand."
The Twins may be forced to trade Brad Radke, or at least do a sign and trade. Do the Red Sox have a shot at Radke? They sure do.
Who else wants Radke?
Last year, Radke’s 3.75 ERA was the fourth-lowest in the American League. His 12-14 record is deceiving – the Twins gave Radke the second-worst run support in baseball. His strikeout-to-walk ratio last year was better than that of Mike Hampton, the NL Cy Young runner up, and all of the Yankees starting pitchers.
Radke has gotten tired of the Twins losing ways, and management's unwillingness to change them
The main teams in the sweepstakes for Radke at this stage are the Red Sox, Rockies, Mets, Indians, and Phillies. Yes - the Orioles, Yankees, and other teams have been mentioned in rumors, but they’re not serious contenders. The teams that have the most players available to swap out of those five are the Indians and the Red Sox. Radke may not want to pitch in Coors Field for the Rockies, and the Rockies haven’t been offering much in return for Radke. The Mets already have starting pitchers Hampton and Rick Reed available for free agency after this season; its not likely that they would risk it by going after a third. The Phillies have one prized minor league player in first baseman Pat Burrell, but the
Phillies wouldn’t even consider trading him straight up for Radke. The Phillies have a couple of good minor league arms in Brad Baisley and Brett Myers, but the question is, will the Phillies be willing to deal both of them? Probably not.
This leaves the Indians and Red Sox left in the Radke lottery. Which team will give up more to get Radke? The Indians have a handful of young pitchers, and that is precisely what the Twins are looking for. The Indians will not trade away their 6’7” 19 year-old left-handed pitching sensation, C.C. Sabathia, and the Twins likely won’t want Danny Baez’s contract on their hands ($14 million over 4 years for a minor leaguer). The Indians have other good arms of lower caliber on their farm system as well, but the Twins may want some hitters also. If the Indians would be willing to part with young phenom first baseman Richie Sexson, the two sides likely would have a deal. The Indians have hesitated to trade Sexson in the past, even voiding a trade that would have sent him to Philadelphia in a package for pitcher Curt Schilling. Aside from Sexson, the Indians have one other good hitter in their farm system – third baseman Russell Branyan. Branyan’s power is unquestioned (30 homers in 395 at bats last season in AAA), but his overall hitting style is reminiscent of Dave Kingman. He’s an all or nothing hitter at this point in his career, and the Twins may not want a guy who strikes out in half of his at bats. But who knows, maybe they do.
Who can the Sox give up?
Don’t put your money on seeing Pena in a Twins uniform any time soon, because Duquette has fallen in love him. After Duquette witnessed in person Juan Pena’s no-hitter in 1998 in AAA Pawtucket, and then after he went 2-0 for the Red Sox last year with a 0.69 ERA before going down with arm troubles, Duquette realized what he had on his hands. Pena has worked out with Pedro Martinez all this winter, and Duquette doesn’t want to anger Pedro by trading away Pena, to whom Pedro has grown quite close.
The Red Sox have an abundance of players to give up for Radke. Contrary to talk radio caller belief, the Sox will not be able to get Radke for John Wasdin, Jeff Frye, and Scott Hatteberg. But Dan Duquette hasn’t been hesitant to reach into his farm system in the past to deal for star players (see Carl Everett and Pedro Martinez), or even average to good players (see Mike Stanley and Rod Beck). The Red Sox have many young pitchers who will serve them no use by the year 2004. With Pedro Martinez already in place for the next 10 years, there are four remaining spots on the Red Sox rotation of the future. If my calculations are correct, then Juan Pena, Brian Rose, Jin Ho Cho, Tomo Ohka, Jason Sekany, John Curtice, and Sunny Kim cannot all fit into those four spots; someone has got to go. 
Rose also will not be toeing the rubber in the Metrodome in a Twins uniform this year. Although Williams has not officially labeled Rose as the team’s number five starter, he is heavily favoring Rose. Rose has the most Major League experience out of these pitchers, and Williams, bullpen coach Joe Cumberland, and pitching coach Joe Kerrigan have all
been raving about Rose since January. The Twins would also prefer someone a bit younger than Rose, someone like Tomo Ohka.
Enter Ohka, a top candidate on the Twins’ want list in exchange for Radke. Ohka went undefeated last year in minor league play for the Red Sox before being rushed to the Majors, where opposing batters clobbered him. He has very good trade value right now, and with Pena, Rose, and Sunny Kim ahead of him on the Red Sox charts, it might be wise of the Red Sox to trade Ohka.
Sunny Kim is the best pitcher the Red Sox have in their minor league system, according to Duquette. Kim’s fastball has reached 95 mph with good life and trickery. Kim’s one weakness: deciding whether he should throw a straight fastball, his two-seam fastball, his excellent changeup, his curveball, or his slider. Kim’s a keeper.
This leaves out Jin Ho Cho (trade him), Jason Sekany (trade him if necessary), and John Curtice (not even that good). All three are available for the Red Sox to trade, and the Sox would definetely like to trade Cho in a package for a proven veteran who can help the ball club.
Its unclear if the Twins would want a hitter from the Sox if they offered Cho and Ohka, both of who are good AAA starting pitchers, but if they should want a hitter from the farms, the Red Sox have plenty to offer. Michael Coleman and Jim Chamblee are two good prospects that the Red Sox would be willing to trade. However, they would not trade either one of them in a package with Cho and Ohka; it would be too much for them to give up. If you think the Red Sox are going to trade Dernell Stenson for Radke, you’re dead wrong. Stenson is only 21 years-old and is already looking for a chance to break in with Boston this summer, though most likely he will be spending another year in AAA.
The bottom line
With Radke and his agent upset with how the Twins have been handling contract negotiations and questioning the team’s commitment to winning, and with the Red Sox deep farm system, the Red Sox are in a favorable position to get Radke. The Red Sox have the chance to acquire one of the best pitchers in baseball, and if some of their tradable prospects perform well in spring training, the Red Sox just might get him.
The Red Sox would be willing to trade and the Twins would be willing to accept the following players as main players in a possible deal: Cho, Ohka, Coleman, Sekany, Chamblee, and Donnie Sadler. One thing that could be key if the Sox ever want to get Radke is whether Duquette would be willing to give up AAA
catcher Steve Lomasney. If the Sox are willing to give up Lomasney, they likely wouldn’t have to give up one of the better arms in their system, as the Twins are in dire need of a talented young catcher. If Lomasney isn’t part of the deal, its not the end of the world. It just means that the Red Sox would have to send in one of their upper echelon pitchers, such as Jin Ho Cho and/or Tomo Ohka.