So, who got offered arbitration by the Red Sox?
Trot Nixon did not get offered arbitration. Mark Loretta, Gabe Kapler and Doug Mirabelli were also not offered arbitration. The lone offer was to Keith Foulke, a near certainty not to return, giving the Red Sox a supplemental first-round pick in the process.
In olden days this would have meant Trot Nixon’s Red Sox career was over. Under the new rules, we can still negotiate with him if we want. What this does rule out however, is the possibility of Nixon and Loretta fetching draft picks in return for their signing elsewhere (which would have depressed their market value) but also prevent them from accepting arbitration at a (likely) raise from their 2006 salary.
Other notable declines: 2B Ronnie Belliard of STL. Not saying he should become the Sox’s new 2B, but we should at least contemplate it. RP Aaron Fultz from the Phillies, who was going to fetch a first-rounder in return for signing elsewhere. Since no club in their right mind (except perhaps Baltimore) would have tossed Fultz dollars to lose their first-round pick, Philadelphia didn’t bother. RP Joe Borowski of the Marlins also was declined arbitration, a nice surprise. Expect Red Sox interest to perk up in him. Ditto David Riske of the White Sox, and Theo could help atone for one of his trading blunders by bringing him back to Boston, although he will never be able to atone for the Cla Meredith/Josh Bard disaster. LaTroy Hawkins of the Orioles had arbitration declined. This is why B-more will never win with Peter Angelos as owner and an unqualified Mike Flanagan as GM, as Hawkins is set to sign with the Rockies. The Orioles lose out on a supplemental first round pick, and the Rockies would have still signed him and not lost a pick. Huh? Barry Bonds, 3B Pedro Feliz, and 1B Shea Hillenbrand were declined by the Giants, which means Shea’s prospects will pick up, while Schmidt, who was offered, will cost his future team a first-round pick.
Notable offers: Chan Ho Park and Ryan Klesko, SD. Why? Julio Lugo was offered by the Dodgers, sure to reduce interest in him by Boston, which values its first round picks highly. Here’s a situation to watch with interest. There were others offered arbitration, but nothing really stands out here.
Players now have until Dec. 7 to accept arbitration.
