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Looking for Lead-Off Options?
The Cincinnati Reds’ #1 need is a reliable lead-off man, suggests John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer. He believes Juan Pierre of the Philadelphia Phillies and Minnesota Twins outfielder Denard Span could be logical targets for the club:
The question is who’s available. Philadelphia’s Juan Pierre apparently is. He’s having a decent year. He’s a rental player, which works well for the Reds since Billy Hamilton will likely be ready by 2014.
Minnesota’s Denard Span likely is available too. He’s hitting .270 with a .334 on-base this year. His career numbers are .282/.357. He under contract the next two years at $4.75 million and $6.5 million with a club option for 2015.
Even if the Phillies don’t decide to engage in a complete fire-sale this summer, they could still elect to trade Pierre. Philadelphia signed the 34-year-old to a minor league deal this off-season, and he’s hit at a productive clip of .307/.344/.378 over his 241 at-bats.
The Twins are reportedly willing to trade Span this year, but he’s going to cost more than Pierre. The 28-year-old’s contract runs through the 2014 season and includes an option for 2015. While he owns a career OPS of .742, his production has been down over the past few seasons. He’s pushed his OPS back north of .700, and on the year he’s posted a line of .270/.334/.375 with 20 doubles and 39 runs scored.