In response to Soxdog67's comment:

The Sox would need to trade for him at this point, but the return should be a mid-tier prospect if they do want this kid.

Keep in mind they'd have to add him to the 40 man roster here which means someone else would be DFA'd on our side or sent to the Mariners in the trade.

The Mariners would be unlikely to take back in trade a player who needs to be placed on the 40-man roster. Mike Carp was DFA'd only to make room for lefthander Joe Saunders on Seattle's 40-man roster (and because Carp is out of options).

Seattle might be interested in a player such as Boston outfield prospects Keury de la Cruz and Manual Margot, who would not need to be placed on the 40-man roster.

In response to hill55's comment:

In response to Soxdog67's comment:

The Sox would need to trade for him at this point, but the return should be a mid-tier prospect if they do want this kid.

Keep in mind they'd have to add him to the 40 man roster here which means someone else would be DFA'd on our side or sent to the Mariners in the trade.

The Mariners would be unlikely to take back in trade a player who needs to be placed on the 40-man roster. Mike Carp was DFA'd only to make room for lefthander Joe Saunders on Seattle's 40-man roster (and because Carp is out of options).

Seattle might be interested in a player such as Boston outfield prospects Keury de la Cruz and Manual Margot, who would not need to be placed on the 40-man roster.

You are not getting De La Cruz for Carp.

Why don't we just trade them Mortenson for Carp and call it a day.

In response to moonslav59's comment:

In response to hill55's comment:

In response to Soxdog67's comment:

The Sox would need to trade for him at this point, but the return should be a mid-tier prospect if they do want this kid.

Keep in mind they'd have to add him to the 40 man roster here which means someone else would be DFA'd on our side or sent to the Mariners in the trade.

The Mariners would be unlikely to take back in trade a player who needs to be placed on the 40-man roster. Mike Carp was DFA'd only to make room for lefthander Joe Saunders on Seattle's 40-man roster (and because Carp is out of options).

Seattle might be interested in a player such as Boston outfield prospects Keury de la Cruz and Manual Margot, who would not need to be placed on the 40-man roster. 

Or, Linares.

Or wait 7 days snd see if Seattle waives him.  At this point in the offseason most teams hsve 40 man roster issues. Boston could always DFA Mauro Gomez, who is a reasonably safe bet to clear waivers. The demand for 28yo AAAA first basemen might make him unlikely for other teams to clear space for him.

In response to softlaw2's comment:

Carp is out of options, has over two yeas, and is approachng the last 3 years of service arbitation, you bugaboo injecting captious stooge. The Mariners have designated him as trash. 

There's a old saying that goes "one person's trash is another man's gold".  This holds true in most flea markets and yard sales.

In respect to Carp, he might be considered trash to the Mariners because they have depth at the 1B/OF position...consider that Justin Smoak is looking for a roster spot there as well.

As for the Red Sox, their lack of depth at the LHH 1B/OF position would make him a good fit here, and also might get him to land a major league job here.

Now the Sox might be able to wait it out and let Carp go on waivers before making a claim, based on their place in the standings last year they'd be at the top of the claim list. They can also trade for the guy and give up a mid-level minor league prospect in case another team is interested and is looking to make a trade.

Personally, I'd like Carp on the ST roster and fighting Nava and Overbay for the backup 1B/OF job. If he doesn't beat these guys out, they can also follow the DFA process again with him.

The key question is this, does Carp have more potential to make the team than one of the other guys on the 40 man roster, like Alex Hassan for example?

In response to hill55's comment:

In response to notin's comment:

Carp is better vs. RHP than his stat line suggests and is an upgrade,  but not someone you break the bank for.

The Sox could offer something questionable but not worthless like Derrick Gibson and see who tops it.  Chances are no one will...

Seattle can't expect a great return for four years of Mike Carp (the AL Rookie of the Month in August 2011), but in outfielder Abraham Almonte the Mariners got a better return than outfielder Derrik Gibson for just three years of reliever Shawn Kelley.

Before the Mariners traded for Almonte on Wednesday, I had suggested that the Red Sox trade Keury de la Cruz or Manuel Margot for Carp because Seattle lacks outfield depth in the minors.

Pete Hissey then.

You might be overvaluing the appeal of Carp, much like you did with Trayvon Robinson when you suggedted Garin Cecchini as adequate return..

Why don't we just trade them Mortenson for Carp and call it a day.

Because Mortensen has options.

The main idea behind Carp is to platoon him at 1st and LF. His reverse splits kind of kill that idea. I would not trade anything of value for him. That would include anybody in the Sox top 30 prospects. Not sure I even claim him off waivers.

If he clears waivers I might sign him to a similar deal that Overbay has. Personally, I am for eventually trading for a good young guy like Morrison.

In response to BMav's comment:

The main idea behind Carp is to platoon him at 1st and LF. His reverse splits kind of kill that idea. I would not trade anything of value for him. That would include anybody in the Sox top 30 prospects. Not sure I even claim him off waivers.

If he clears waivers I might sign him to a similar deal that Overbay has. Personally, I am for eventually trading for a good young guy like Morrison.

For what it's worth, Mike Carp and Logan Morrison, who is only 13 months younger than Carp, each remain under team control for four years. Baseball Reference has Carp with 0.6 WAR in 173 career games and Morrison with 0.1 WAR in 278 careers, although FanGraphs has Carp with a career WAR of 1.1 and Morrison a career WAR of 2.4.

In response to hill55's comment:

In response to BMav's comment:

The main idea behind Carp is to platoon him at 1st and LF. His reverse splits kind of kill that idea. I would not trade anything of value for him. That would include anybody in the Sox top 30 prospects. Not sure I even claim him off waivers.

If he clears waivers I might sign him to a similar deal that Overbay has. Personally, I am for eventually trading for a good young guy like Morrison.

For what it's worth, Mike Carp and Logan Morrison, who is only 13 months younger than Carp, each remain under team control for four years. Baseball Reference has Carp with 0.6 WAR in 173 career games and Morrison with 0.1 WAR in 278 careers, although FanGraphs has Carp with a career WAR of 1.1 and Morrison a career WAR of 2.4.

this is why i don't rely solely on the WAR stat.

In response to mef429's comment:

In response to hill55's comment:

In response to BMav's comment:

The main idea behind Carp is to platoon him at 1st and LF. His reverse splits kind of kill that idea. I would not trade anything of value for him. That would include anybody in the Sox top 30 prospects. Not sure I even claim him off waivers.

If he clears waivers I might sign him to a similar deal that Overbay has. Personally, I am for eventually trading for a good young guy like Morrison.

For what it's worth, Mike Carp and Logan Morrison, who is only 13 months younger than Carp, each remain under team control for four years. Baseball Reference has Carp with 0.6 WAR in 173 career games and Morrison with 0.1 WAR in 278 careers, although FanGraphs has Carp with a career WAR of 1.1 and Morrison a career WAR of 2.4.

this is why i don't rely solely on the WAR stat.

Here are more career stats that isolate the hitting of Mike Carp and Logan Morrison:

MC 608 PA, .255/.327/.413/.740, OPS +110

LM 1146 PA, .250/.339/.442/.781. OPS+ 110

In response to BMav's comment:

The main idea behind Carp is to platoon him at 1st and LF. His reverse splits kind of kill that idea. I would not trade anything of value for him. That would include anybody in the Sox top 30 prospects. Not sure I even claim him off waivers.

If he clears waivers I might sign him to a similar deal that Overbay has. Personally, I am for eventually trading for a good young guy like Morrison.

For what it's worth, Mike Carp and Logan Morrison, who is only 13 months younger than Carp, each remain under team control for four years. Baseball Reference has Carp with 0.6 WAR in 173 career games and Morrison with 0.1 WAR in 278 careers, although FanGraphs has Carp with a career WAR of 1.1 and Morrison a career WAR of 2.4.

Sox have Overbay.  I don't think Sox getting involved seriously.  

Trade a suspect for a player.

It will  take a decent to good  A or AA or AAA prospect for Carp--and they should ask for a decent player. Carp has been targeted for much of the offseason by the Sox. Now that he's available they need to do what it takes to pick him up. He's better than Nava and better than Kalish. We need a lefthanded bat to platoon at  1 B and LF---let's figure out a way to get him. Don't wait for him to clear waivers; we'll lose him.

DFA Hassan or put Kalish on the 60 day DL.

I suggest holding onto Gomez; we may need him sooner or later depending on Nap's and Ortiiz's health.

Trade a suspect for a player.

It will  take a decent to good  A or AA or AAA prospect for Carp--and they should ask for a decent player. Carp has been targeted for much of the offseason by the Sox. Now that he's available they need to do what it takes to pick him up. He's better than Nava and better than Kalish. We need a lefthanded bat to platoon at  1 B and LF---let's figure out a way to get him. Don't wait for him to clear waivers; we'll lose him.

DFA Hassan or put Kalish on the 60 day DL.

I suggest holding onto Gomez; we may need him sooner or later depending on Nap's and Ortiiz's health.

Well I never expected this much conversation about Carp. Nor did I have any idea how much knowledge most of the folks who responded to this thread  had on the value of Mike Carp. I still don't get the WAR stat but then again I'm an old school kind of talent evaluator. I also don't spend every waking moment on the internet or engrossed in either Fangraphs.com or any other internet publications pertaining to stats. I do appreciate the good intel provided by all of you however so I would say the naysayers are in the lead so according to all of you it wouldn't be prudent for the Sox to persue Mike Carp.

In response to titletownfan's comment:

Why don't we just trade them Mortenson for Carp and call it a day.

Because Mortensen has options.

In response to Drewski5's comment:

In response to titletownfan's comment:

Why don't we just trade them Mortenson for Carp and call it a day.

Because Mortensen has options.

Mortensen has no options remaining according to soxprospects.com.