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Wish List: Winston-Salem Green Monsters
The Monsters hope for 3 playoff appearances in 3 years
By Conor Intabedd / The Weekly Reno Rag
Working up to the 2005/2006 EHCC Winter Meetings (Decemeber 11th) we're going to look at each team's plans to improve their roster and compete for the 2006 crown. This is the first installment.
The first team we'll take a look at is a perennial bubble team: Winston-Salem Green Monsters.
They finished with 99 wins in 2005 and 106 in 2004. They've got to do some things in order to change the trend they seem to be going in and push the team in a positive direction if they plan on competing against the elite. I sat down with the GM from Winston-Salem about what hey plan on doing in the off-season.
The team's looking for a young catcher to help their offense. Pudge Rodriguez isn't going to be able to carry the Monsters for much longer and they want to get that position locked down for a long time so they don't have to worry about it every year. As with most team, the Monsters need more solid SP. Some of their young guys came through (Bedard and Myers) but overall they're lacking in that department. They want to solidify another number 1 guy or a few solid starters to help their staff. They're expecting Liriano to help next year and into the future, but one guy isn't going to be able to carry the entire load. They're also looking for a bridge-way SS to fill the gap for the following year or two while they wait for Hanley Ramirez to get into the majors. They're happy with Aaron Hill for now but wouldn't mind a guy with a little bit more power.
The Monsters feel they have a plethora of OF and are looking to unload some of them including former #1 overall pick Rocco Baldelli, Willie Mo Pena, Magglio Ordonez, and Aaron Rowand. Also, although they're looking for more SP, they say they're willing to let go of starters Brad Radke and Kenny Rogers. It has also been said that Eric Chavez is not untouchable as well.
There are a few guys that Winston management feels will never leave the team. Carl Crawford, Brett Myers, and Jorge Cantu are the big three guys with the Monsters. "I picked [Cantu] up because I met the guy and he seemed crazy. It went from joke to a good reality," mentioned Monsters GM Kyle Mitchell. Many of their young guys are said to be untouchable as well including Chacon, Cabrera, Bedard, Liriano, Stauffer, Hill, and Ramirez.
Many critics say the Monsters have a ways to go in order to compete for a title, especially with the power house Markies right on their tail but the Monsters are confident with their team and their management. Watch from them to help their cause, but don't expect them to make a huge move during this off-season. All their players that other teams would want to trade for apparently have no-trade clauses.
Conor Intabedd writes an opinion column for The Weekly Reno Rag. He loves to eat turkey because its good. He loves to eat turkey like a good boy should.
