Go ahead and take any rumors regarding Todd Helton hitting behind David Ortiz and throw them out the window. The Rockies have reported that any talks with the Red Sox about the All-Star first baseman are off and that Helton will spend another year in the hitting heaven of Coors Field.
The deal that was being rumored earlier in the week involved Helton going to Boston in exchange for chowders Mike Lowell, Julian Tavarez, and top prospects in the Red Sox organization with the Rockies volunteering to take up to $40 million of Helton’s $90 million contract. There was a reported dispute over the involved prospects, with the Rockies wanting top notch relievers Craig Hansen and Manny Declarmen. The Red Sox, of course, weren’t willing to part with Hansen and Declarmen.
Would this have been a good deal for both sides? We will never know. Helton would add another big bat to that Red Sox lineup that has already added JD Drew this offseason. One issue that Boston would have faced would have been during the few interleague guames, when either Helton or Papi would have to sit due to the lack of a designated hitter.
The Rockies, in my opinion, would have been getting owned in the deal. Yes, the prospects are nice. An aging and inconsistent Mike Lowell and a temperamental Julian Tavarez, however, throw up a red flag on this deal. What would Colorado do with these guys? They still can’t pitch for crap and their lineup still needs a big bat to coincide with Matt Holliday. To take on the $40 million of Helton’s contract while giving away one of the cornerstones of the franchise would have been an absolutely ignorant decision.
The fact that this deal didn’t go through is better for baseball. It’s the Red Sox, not the Yankees, who are the big spenders in the free market nowadays. Who’s the evil empire now chowder heads?
