Buzz: The Value of Matt Holliday
Jayson Stark of ESPN.com wonders how the A’s will handle OF Matt Holliday, who hit his first home run of the season last night.
The popular belief is Oakland acquired Holliday in the off-season with the intention of either keeping him to contend in 2009, or trading him at the deadline in July.
Holliday is eligible to be a free agent at the end of this season, and is batting .236 with 11 extra base hits in the 165 at bats since September 1 of last season.
Stark quotes a league executive who believes Holliday’s price will continue to drop, be it as a free agent, or in a trade, with every day that goes by in which he does not turn his season around.
“He’s a guy who has already turned down $86 million over four years, and now he’s going to have to take a one-year deal,” the same executive told Stark. “I just don’t see what team would be willing to open its wallet and commit to a guy who has just come out of Coors Field and now, in his first year out of Coors, he does this.”
Stark also writes about the better-than-expected attendance in MLB, the Royals effort to trade for a bat, and whether Zach Greinke can be had, the Marlins search for bullpen help, and the list of potential arms who could be available.
