Training Camp Notes

NFL training camps have been running for over a week now, and there's been plenty of news coming out of the two bay area football camps recently.

We talked in the last post about how the Niners were still in negotiations with their first round pick, receiver Michael Crabtree. At first, it seemed like the #10 overall pick out of Texas Tech would be signed immediately after camp begin, however, that hasn't coming to fruition. In fact, he recently has stated that he has no problem sitting out the 2009 season if the Niners don't meet his contract demands, which are is at least 23.5 million in guaranteed salary, identical to what the Raiders gave Darrius Heyward-Bey. Crabtree was widely speculated to be a top-5 pick, and he wants to be paid like it, regardless of where he was actually drafted. I think Crabtree and his agent aren't handling this thing correctly. I mean, the kid has top-5 talent, but he's already making a bad name for himself with this holdout going on. Who's going to want to take a player who wouldn't sign with the team that drafted him, just because they wouldn't pay him like a player picked 5 spots ahead of him? At the same time, if the Niners let this guy get away from him, it would truly be a shame, and maybe one that really sets the organization back a little bit. I do really hope they can figure this thing out sooner than later though, because Michael Crabtree is definitely an offensive talent that the 49ers desperately need.

Over on the other side of the Bay, the Raiders made some news today as they shipped one of their top defensive veterans and team leader, Derrick Burgess, to the New England Patriots. They also have gotten good news regarding Javon Walker, a guy who they are hoping can become the #1 receiver after a disappointing and injury filled season in '08... Burgess collected 38.5 sacks in 56 games with the Raiders and was by far the team leaders over that span. He has fallen off a bit over the last 2 years though, as he has just 11.5 sacks over that span, but still has tremendous value as a pass rusher. He really wasn't going to fit into the Raiders plans this year though, as he's held out all of training camp waiting for the trade, so it's not like the deal came out of nowhere. The Raiders added Greg Ellis earlier in the spring and he figures to get a lot of the snaps that Burgess would have gotten. Second-year end Grayson Gunheim could also figure into the mix at right-end, opposite of Jay Richardson.

Crabtree Still Unsigned As Camp Begins

NFL Training Camp is in full swing league-wide, but the 49ers are not yet practicing with their top pick from April's draft.

Michael Crabtree and the 49ers are in fact still a ways off in their negotiation for Crabtree's first NFL contract. Apparently Crabtree wants to be paid like a top-5 pick since that's what kind of value he's bringing, while the Niners are trying to ink him to a deal more along the lines of other picks from that part of the draft. It doesn't sound as if this thing is too close to being worked out, so I'd be surprised to see Crabtree suit up for the team's first pre-season game on August 14th. Right now, the Niners have been running Issac Bruce and Josh Morgan with the first team offense and Arnaz Battle, Jason Hill and Brandon Jones all battling to be third on the depth chart. I think the Niners had originally planned to have Crabtree come into the year as the team's number 3 guy, so he doesn't need to be on the field for every single snap, but if this contract situation keeps him out into the exhibition season, then it will certainly effect his place on the depth chart. Coach Mike Singletart keeps saying that he's not worried about Crabtree situation, but I think the Niners should be doing everything in their power to get this guy signed sealed and delivered. Their passing game needs it!

In other news coming out of team headquarters im Santa Clara, Dashon Goldson is taking the reigns of the 49ers starting safety job, and it looks like third year cornerback from Texas, Tarell Brown, is going to give Dre' Bly a tough battle for that starting corner spot opposite of Nate Clements. Singletary raves about both Goldson and Brown's play-making abilities in the secondary, and has already named Goldson the starting free safety. And, although the consensus was for Bly to take Walt Harris' spot after they signed him in April, that's not turning out to be the case. Coach Singletary has stated that Brown has just as good a shot to start at right corner as Bly does, and both will battle throughout camp to determine who will indeed start the year as the teams right cornerback. Brown had a solid sophomore season in the NFL last year, recording 30 tackles, picking off 2 passes and deflecting 3 others. I still think that Bly will ultimately be named the starter to begin the season, but Brown should be one of the better nickle-backs in the league, and will eventually be a starter in the NFL.

Giants Make Trades For Offensive Upgrade

The Giants made two deals this week, adding two solid right-handed bats to an offense that was really struggling to score runs to start the second half.

On Monday afternoon, the Giants dealt one of their better pitching prospects in the minors (Scott Barnes) to the Cleveland Indians for their first basemen, Ryan Garko. They followed that move up by sending their number 2 pitching prospect in the organization, Tim Alderson, to Pittsburgh for oft-injured all-star second basemen, Freddy Sanchez. I do like the Garko move, as it brings the Giants a solid right-handed bat that will hit for a respectable average and has developing power. He's 28 years old, just entering his prime, and is quietly putting together another solid season. He's didn't play full-time at first base with the Indians, as they play Victor Martinez there with regularity, and was hitting .285 with 11 home runs and 39 RBI in just 239 at-bats. Those numbers projected out over the course of a typical 600 at-bat season look pretty good (30 HR, 109 RBI) and I expect him to have a nice second half with the Giants. He's also not scheduled to become free agent until after the 2012 season, so he should be around for a while and won't be too expensive. Garko isn't a game-changing offensive force, but a nice complementary player with a continuously developing offensive game.

Freddy Sanchez is also a nice player, but I just don't think he was worth a guy who potentially could become an ace 5-7 years down the line, and Alderson is that type of talent. I could be wrong, but I think the Giants could have used Alderson to get themselves a really good player, someone like Prince Fielder or maybe Victor Martinez. But the deal is done now, and all we can do is hope for the best with Freddy. He is a solid hitting 2nd basemen who's right at .300 for his career. He's also going to pick it clean at second which will strengthen the Giants up the middle defensively. I did feel that the Giants needed at least two solid bats to add to their lineup for the stretch drive, and the addition of Garko and Sanchez does give them the two more sticks that could make the difference. Sanchez is battling a knee injury right now and may not suit up for the Giants until after the weekend, but when he does, he'll likely slot in to the second spot in the batting order with Garko 3 slots behind him in the 5 hole. Another positive on Sanchez is that he's not going anywhere anytime soon, as he's under contract through the 2010 season. The addition of both Garko and Sanchez will help them for the stretch drive and saves the Giants a couple of moves they'd likely need to have made this winter!

Note: We've talked about the Sanchez deal in length over @ The Giants Baseball Blog, so be sure to check there for more in-depth analysis on the deal. Also, I'm going to be on vacation in Southern California until Monday, August 2nd, and there probably won't be any posts between now and then (barring any big news). So check back in on Monday as we get ready to beging talking NFL training camp!

A's Get Value In Holliday Trade

Most of you are aware by now that Matt Holliday has been dealt to the St. Louis Cardinals for three prospects. However, not everyone is familiar with the guys the A's attained, so today we'll take a look at the three guys coming to Oakland!

First off, Billy Beane did a nice job in getting two of the Cardinals top-10 prospects for Matt Holliday, who kind of sleep walked through the first half of the year and was very mediocre. Add that to the fact that Holliday is a Scott Boras client and a free agent after the 2009 season, and I figured that the 29 year-old left-fielder would not have quite the market the A's had hoped for. However, Billy Beane dealt at the right time (in the midst of a Holliday hot streak) and landed the A's a couple of good youngsters. The top name of the three coming to the A's is the 13th overall pick from the 2008 draft, Brett Wallace. The powerful hitting third-basemen was the Cards' second ranked prospect coming into the year, behind only Colby Rasmus, and could find his way up to Oakland sometime in August. The 22-year old Marin native is hitting .289 with 11 homers and 35 RBI in 356 minor league at-bats this year and very well could be the A's third-baseman of the future.

The other two guys who the A's got in the deal aren't to shabby themselves. They got themselvess a potent right-handed arm in Clayton Mortensen (2007 supplemental pick), the Cards' #6 prospect coming into the season, and top starting pitcher. They also got a speedy, 21 year-old outfielder in Shane Peterson (2nd round pick in 2008). Mortensen wasn't quite dominating in AAA ball when acquired, but he's sporting a respectable 4.37 era to go with a 7-6 record and 82 strikeouts in 105 innings this year. Mortensen will report to Sacramento at first, but he could be the first of the three guys acquired to make their debut in Oakland. Peterson was hitting .296 with 7 home runs, 47 RBI and 12 stolen bases in 95 minor league contests in 2009. He was with the Cardinals AA team at the time of the trade, but also could report with the other two to the A's AAA team in Sacramento.

Matt Holliday Heating Up

The Oakland Athletics' big trade chip of the summer, Matt Holliday, has finally upped his play over the last week, and may end up bringing the A's something back in return at the trade deadline after all.

Just a couple of posts back, I talked about Holliday's disappointing season thus far, and how it's really throwing a wrench into Billy Beane's plan. However, since the start of the second half, Holliday has looked like a completely different ballplayer. In 7 games since the all-star break, Holliday is hitting .407 with 3 big flies and 11 RBI while sporting an OPS over 1.300. The recent hot streak has also put Matt Holliday back on the map as far as premium hitting options who should be available before the July 31st trade deadline. The St. Louis Cardinals, who've been keeping an eye on Holliday for a while know, seem to be the team with the most known interest. They have a bunch of young players who they could send back to Oakland, including Chris Duncan and Colby Rasmus. If I were Beane, I'd try and hold out for Rasmus, who very well could end up being the NL's Rookie of the Year if he keeps up his steady play in the second half. I know he's hitting in front of Albert Pujols, which is probably the best spot in any lineup in baseball to hit in, which has likely helped inflate some numbers. He's the kind of top prospect that the A's need to shoot for if they deal Holliday!

Another team that could have interest in Holliday over the next week are the Atlanta Braves. One guy who comes to mind right away as a guy who'd fit perfectly in Oakland and a guy who could likely be had is Yunel Escobar. The 26 year-old Cuban-defector is quietly becoming one of the best all around shortstops in baseball. As a matter of fact, outside of Hanley Ramirez and Jose Reyes, I don't know that there's another shortstop in the NL who I'd take over Escobar!

UPDATE!!! Matt Holliday has been traded to the St. Louis Cardinals, the team that had the most apparent interest in the former Rockie. Details on the deal coming in Sunday's post!

Positives and Negatives of a Halladay Trade

The Toronto Blue Jays have there own deadline for any potential Roy Halladay trade and the Jays want to move Halladay before the the July 31st non-waiver trade deadline. JP Riccardi said Tuesday that if he isn't offered a proper package of players by July 28th, the American Leagues top pitcher would be staying put.

There has been a ton of fan and media speculation on the Giants front as to what it may cost to add Roy Halladay to Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain in the Giants rotation recently. If the Giants want Toronto's ace, it would probably cost them both Madison Bumgarner and Tim Alderson. I know you never can tell what your going to get with pitching prospects until they actually show up, but I really don't see it being worth it for the Giants to deal away two potential aces for a year and two months of Roy Halladay. If the Giants traded for Holladay with the plan in mind of signing him to an extension, then it would be tying up over 200 million dollars in two pitchers in their 30's (Barry Zito and Halladay) which would also cut into any funds they would have for signing a free agent hitter. Don't get me wrong though, adding Roy Halladay to the Giants rotation would be pretty darn scary, and probably put them in the playoffs this year, but they'd still be a team with some flaws, and wouldn't have the resources available to fix them.

A Halladay/Rios to the Giants deal is a little more intriguing on the Giants part. If they're going to have to part with Bumgarner and Alderson, then they should be able to get some offense in return. Rios hasn't had his greatest offensive showing over the last year and a half, but he's just entering his prime, has that solid combo of speed and power, and is one of the best defensive center fielders in baseball. He's the type of guy they need to get in the middle of this lineup to help out Pablo Sandoval and Bengie Molina. Roy Halladay is a great pitcher and would help out anybodies rotation and probably be enough for this Giants team to make the playoffs in 2009, but in the long-term, the Giants need to save their resources for that bat or two that they're going to eventually need to make them serious contenders.

49ers' Offseason Review

About a week ago, we broke down and reviewed what transpired across the bay with the Raiders this spring and summer, and today we'll do the same for the 49ers.

The 49ers had an overall quiet, uneventful off-season for the most part. They're big move came in the draft, as they selected quite possibly the next San Francisco receiving great in Texas Tech's Michael Crabtree. The Niners aren't going to just hand Crabtree a starting receiving job, but I fully expect to see him on the field more times than not when the Niners are on offense. The team also added some depth to their offensive backfield with the drafting of halfback Glen Coffee (who could end up being the primary back-up to Frank Gore) and quarterback Nate Davis, who team officials believe can be a success at this level. Two other 49ers draftees that didn't get any headlines but may make some noise down the line are former Fresno St. tight end Bear Pascoe and former Pitt. linebacker Scott McKillop. The Mckillop was ranked as the 8th best inside linebacker in the draft, and won Big East defensive player of the year honors. He's a tackling machine (151 tackles in 2007; 137 in 2008) and should learn well behind Patrick Willis and Takeo Spikes. Pascoe played in a high powered offense in college and is a very good blocker with solid hands.

The Niners also made a couple of free agent signings over the last 2 months as well, although none were too earth-shattering. Dre' Bly was added as soon as the team got news that their starting corner from the last 2 seasons, Walt Harris, would likley miss the season with an injury. The Niners shouldn't miss much with Bly taking Harris' spot, as both are very similar style defenders with very good ball instincts. The Niners' also added to their quarterback depth, adding former Chief Damon Huard to back up Alex Smith and Shaun Hill. The two adds that could make the biggest difference for the Niners offense though was the re-signing of full-back Moran Norris and the addition of tackle Marvel Smith. Frank Gore was at his best running behind the path-clearer, and with the Niners reverting back to their power run game behind Mike Singletary, bringing in a bruising full-back was a must. Smith should provide stability to the offensive line if he can stay healthy, as he was a key cog on the Steelers' O-line over the last 9 seasons, which was one of the best O-line's in the game over that period of time. If his back stays strong, the 49ers O-line will be much improved.

Overall, I'd have to deem the 49ers offseason a success. They didn't lose anyone too important to the team, and added some guys that could pay huge dividends. However, they still have some questions, especially on offense, as training camp approaches (less than 2 weeks away). One of which surrounds teams starting quarterback. Will it be the polished game-manager and winner Shaun Hill or the young guy with loads of potential who's yet to pan out in Alex Smith? Also, how will the a Niners receiving corps, which all of the sudden has options, pan out? Youngsters Josh Morgan and Michael Crabtree will likely join Issac Bruce as the teams top 3 guys on the depth chart, but they also have veterans Arnaz Battle and the newly-signed Brandon Jones who will want some time on the field and some passes thrown in their direction. I look forward to seeing how these things transpire throughout camp and into the pre-season!