Jays missed a chance
Ted Lilly is getting some tremendous attention at the Winter Meetings. I agree with the comments over at MLB Trade Rumors: the market for pitching this off-season is ludicrous. Lilly is good, but he's not worth $12 million/year. I am kind of hoping that J.P. loses out on Lilly and then pursues another arm. There's something flat about Lilly's pitching that I don't like.
One commenter suggested that the Jays should forget about Lilly and "give the money to Wells", but I disagree. Nothing against Wells–he's a great player at his prime–but the Jays need pitching desperately.
I feel the Jays missed a chance when the Angels acquired Gary Matthews Jr. I would have liked to see the Jays sign Matthews, then turn around and trade Wells for pitching and perhaps a promising SS prospect. Matthews is not exactly Vernon's equal, but sometimes it's necessary to take a hit on offence to improve a team's defense. Of course, these are easy decisions when the risk is only a comment flame!
The Winter Meetings aren't over yet–there's still a chance that J.P. will move Wells. The White Sox, with their surplus of arms and lack of a superstar at CF, could be a good suitor.
UPDATE: Jays out of Lilly Sweepstakes
[...] Earlier this week, Ricciardi mentioned Jeff Suppan and Mark Redman as alternatives to Lilly and Meche. The Rockies' Jason Jennings and LA's Brad Penny may also figure into a trade. There's also talk that the Jays and White Sox might work out a swap involving Vernon Wells for pitching, a notion I can get behind. [...]
[...] Earlier this week, Ricciardi mentioned Jeff Suppan and Mark Redman as alternatives to Lilly and Meche. The Rockies' Jason Jennings and LA's Brad Penny may also figure into a trade. In addition, there's talk that the Jays and White Sox might work out a swap involving Vernon Wells for pitching, a notion I can get behind. [...]