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Report: Sox 'desperate' to trade Lugo

Posted by Chad Finn, Globe Staff  July 16, 2009 04:26 PM
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With shortstop Jed Lowrie and third baseman Mike Lowell set to return from injuries this weekend and pitcher Clay Buchholz coming up from Pawtucket to start tomorrow , the Red Sox will need to make some alterations to their 25-man roster.

Logic suggests that the return of Lowrie spells the end in Boston for disappointing shortstop Julio Lugo, who signed a four-year, $36 million contract before the 2007 season.

This afternoon, FoxSports.com's Ken Rosenthal confirmed the obvious: The Red Sox are thinking the same way.

Writes Rosenthal:

The Red Sox ... are "desperately" trying to trade shortstop Julio Lugo, according to a major-league source.

The Sox can demote first baseman Aaron Bates to clear a spot for Buchholz, then demote Buchholz to clear a spot for Lowell or Lowrie. But under virtually every scenario, Lugo would be the odd man out. If no deal is made, the Sox could release him, the source said.

The Red Sox have been trying to deal the erratic Lugo since last offseason, according to Rosenthal. But he has little appeal to teams in trade because he is due $9 million next season as well as the remainder of his $9 million salary this year.

As Rosenthal points out, while Lugo is batting .284 in limited time this season, the Sox are 11-16 when he starts at short, compared to a 42-15 record when Nick Green is in the lineup.

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56 comments so far...
  1. DUMP LUGO!

    Posted by Bucky July 16, 09 04:40 PM
  1. Trade him for Halladay, baybee!

    Posted by TomD July 16, 09 04:45 PM
  1. This is news??? D'uh!

    Posted by ron July 16, 09 04:49 PM
  1. ciao, Lugo.

    Posted by Ryan Tomorrow July 16, 09 04:51 PM
  1. He sucks..Theo wouldnt know a short stop if one kicked him in the nuts

    Posted by fitz July 16, 09 04:56 PM
  1. Don't let the door hit you...

    Posted by Matt H July 16, 09 04:57 PM
  1. I've been desperate to trade Lugo for quite a while, so I'm glad the Sox are finally getting on board with that.

    Posted by Coulda Beena GM July 16, 09 05:03 PM
  1. Thanks to Ken Rosenthal for providing us with the most obvious trading rumor in all of MLB. Really Ken??? The Sox don't want to have 3 shortstops on their roster?? Thanks for the insight.

    Posted by matt July 16, 09 05:06 PM
  1. It has never been said that he didn't always hustle or play with passion. The problem is that he never hit for power or average. Certainly, we expected the errors but things did not pan out for the team and the player. The Sox may have to eat the monies unless they can trade him and pro rate his salary. Nice try Julio, but it is time to leave. Good luck and bye bye. May the Gods of shortstops of the future give you the abilities to produce under the lesser strain of a smaller market.

    Posted by Ron Boisseau July 16, 09 05:10 PM
  1. This must be from the no sh*t file.....

    Posted by Snafunk July 16, 09 05:11 PM
  1. The Lugo move is long overdue - even a drop would be fine. That way he gets to start fresh with a new team.

    Sox leadership shouldn't demote Buckholtz because when Smoltz has another mediocre performance it's going to be clear that ol' Clay should be one of the Starting Five for the Sox.

    Posted by Ryan July 16, 09 05:12 PM
  1. In Theo We Trust....
    He's brought us two World Series, so it's hard to hang the GM out to dry.
    However, the Lugo acquisition, along with the J.D. Drew signing, are prime examples of what happens when management "falls in love" with a player for reasons not apparent to, well, anyone.
    (BTW, I don't dislike Drew as a player. I just object to how much money he was tendered, whether another team was interested or not. No other organization, publicly at least, ever entered the J.D. sweepstakes. Weird...)

    Posted by Jim Gallant July 16, 09 05:17 PM
  1. Not surprising. Release him and get it over with... He never should've been signed in the first place. At least not with that contract.

    Posted by Edzo July 16, 09 05:20 PM
  1. sox are eating at least 8.5 million in salary. Even if they do trade him.

    Posted by kward July 16, 09 05:38 PM
  1. I'm sure that they will continue to be desperate to unload him, but the idea of any takers is rather remote. Even if the Sox end up paying the majority of his salary (which they would have to do), why would any MLB team want to waste a roster spot with Lugo? Way too large of a defensive liability to trust in the field and what little pop he has in his bat is unlikely to last.

    Release him and cut their losses/end our misery.

    Posted by Late0322 July 16, 09 05:43 PM
  1. Gosh, is anyone else completely shocked by this? Way to go Fox Sports...that really is some in depth reporting and analysis! Kudos as well to the Globe for picking up on this "breaking news".

    Posted by QuigLewis July 16, 09 05:46 PM
  1. Ship him out for a bag of baseballs (i.e - low level minor leauger) and swallow hard on 2/3rds of his remaining salary... Someone might want him as a $3M a year guy...

    Can't WAIT till he's gone.... How did this guy ever hit 20+ bombs in Tampa.... Was it naturally I wonder?

    Posted by JC July 16, 09 05:49 PM
  1. Has anyone ever discussed the possibility of moving Lugo to first base? His bat is not the main problem, and his range would be at least average at first. It seems like he might have some value to either the Sox or another team in a backup role.

    Posted by carl July 16, 09 05:52 PM
  1. What a disaster of an offseason 2006 was. Lugo and Drew. Two stiffs for big money and long term deals. Theo is very fortunate the pitching keeps bailing this team out.

    Posted by John F. July 16, 09 06:07 PM
  1. Ugh.

    I hated that signing when they made it. Never made a lick of sense to me, and now we'll probably have to pay someone to take him off our hands.

    This was a total whiff by Theo and the gang.

    Posted by weezelwords July 16, 09 06:17 PM
  1. Lugo was perhaps Theo's biggest mistake and it's time to admit it and move on. I never understood Theo's lusting after him. If the Sox can get anything in return, such as a low level prospect with some promise, great. If not, pay his salary for some other sucker to take him, or just cut him loose. Jed Lowrie is the shortstop for this team with Green moving to a utility role.

    Posted by JerryR July 16, 09 06:41 PM
  1. As a diehard Red Sox fam..I still can't figure out why Theo has a hard time evaluating Shortstops...Why does he seem to get a pass on the Lugo signing and other bad signings. And tell me how JD Drew warrents 15M per year and they seem reluctant to offer that type of money for Jason Bay...This is the type of stuff that drives me crazy about the organization!!!! They were prepared to pay Teixiaria
    170 - 180M!!! Who do we have in the system that can put up the numbers that Jason Bay puts up....Or worse yet, you don't sign Bay and you trade your best prospcts for a bat....

    Posted by Bingo Bob July 16, 09 06:42 PM
  1. Of course the Sox are looking to trade Lugo as he was a mistake from Day 1. The Lugo and Gagne deals were bad decisions. So at this point in time just cut Lugo loose.

    Posted by RunningRed July 16, 09 06:43 PM
  1. "Desperate?" Now Kenny, isn't that just a bit hyperbolic? What's the worst case? They don't find a partner to accept any of Julio's dough (even the minimums for this year and next ......about 700K in total) and they DFA him on Saturday. Avoiding such an outcome has the Sox acting out of desperation? Helpful hint Ken ......you are a journalist and words matter in your line of work. So next time, try using them a bit more carefully.

    Posted by Bruinsinruins July 16, 09 07:04 PM
  1. He played so badly that he should forgo the rest of his contract......He played good untill he got the money. LOOOOSER!

    Posted by Hymie! July 16, 09 07:15 PM
  1. Bite the bullet!

    Posted by Brendan July 16, 09 07:15 PM
  1. Keep Lugo, as Massarotti notes today, Green is hitting .133 in the past month and dropping.

    Send "Boots" back to the Yankees!

    Posted by Oiste July 16, 09 07:27 PM
  1. This is hands down the worst signing of the last 10 years. Every Sox fan knew this wasn't going to work out, why did management think other wise?? Sometimes I think they're too arrogant for their own good.

    Posted by Brendan July 16, 09 07:29 PM
  1. Does printing this serve any real purpose?
    It can't possible be a secret and it just makes everyone look bad.
    Give the guy and the sox some dignity

    Posted by NoWin situation July 16, 09 07:37 PM
  1. It's a shame that a player cannot not take the extra time or effort to work on their defensive skills. Lugo cannot not stop a ground ball as we have seen and yet, no one ever mentions he stays at the field before and after practice to work on his fielding. He needs someone to teach him all about work ethics and not takign that kind of money for granted.
    He's set for life for being a real bad defensive player who never cared to impove. He got his money. That's why all contract to should have a small base salary with huge incentives.

    That's why all contract should have a

    Posted by Brian O'Keefe July 16, 09 07:38 PM
  1. Theo should understand the concept of 'Sunk Cost', get what you can if anything and eat he money.

    Posted by Jim July 16, 09 07:40 PM
  1. Why not make a DH out of him and get rid of old man Ortiz

    Posted by Boston Braves fan July 16, 09 07:58 PM
  1. IT'S TIME THAT EPSTEIN ADMITS HE MADE A TERRIBLE MISTAKE ON LUGO! HE HAS MADE A FEW OTHERS THAT HE MUST ALSO ADMIT TO, NAMELY, PENNEY,SMOLTZ, NOT BRINNG BUCK UP BUCK . AND A FEW MORE! IT'S TIME TO let the OLD TIMERS GO AND LET THE YOUNG BUCKS PLAY!!!

    Posted by JAKETHE SNAKE July 16, 09 08:11 PM
  1. Wow - they're gonna eat $ 13.5 million - imagine how many teachers that could hire...and I bet a few of them could play short better than Lugo.

    Posted by Lorenzo July 16, 09 08:23 PM
  1. I'd say it's time to cut him loose! Clearly he was Theo's worst FA signing.

    Posted by Eric July 16, 09 08:31 PM
  1. Thanks a lot, Rosenthal. Now we're sure to be able to trade Lugo.

    Posted by Peter July 16, 09 08:59 PM
  1. I know he can't field, but he's still my favorite Sox. I'll never forget how he "willed" a ground out into an infield single at the end of the Mothers Day Miracle. Still, I understand they need to get rid of him. When will Theo have some luck with shortstops? Nomar? Cabreara? Gonzo? Lugo?

    Posted by eric July 16, 09 09:09 PM
  1. Maybe save a little money, try to get someone to eat half his salary. Try the National League, just like Renteria he may be better off in the NL. ANYTHING TO GET A ROSTER SPOT!

    Posted by mollyecaps July 16, 09 09:26 PM
  1. A deal is already in place. Depends on Clay B on Friday. ( He stays) Red Sox will pay Lugo. Deal is with the Indians for Martinez. Manny D goes with Kottaras, 3 way deal using Saito for prospect who then goes to Indians. Other scenerio Lugo is just released.

    Posted by redsoxfan67yrs July 16, 09 09:54 PM
  1. Theo should not get a pass on Short Stops for the past years. Renteria is still playing good por someone, Orlando for the As. Others along the way. the best is in Florida. Green has been great, without any credit. Now that the Sox are stuck with the 36mil man, Theo gets a pass. Make this make sense to me. Ed

    Posted by Ed McIlvaine July 16, 09 09:54 PM
  1. That's not nice

    Posted by Jane X Jones July 16, 09 10:09 PM
  1. Are we sure this wasn't ghost written by "Captain Obvious"???

    Posted by Steve Buckley July 16, 09 10:13 PM
  1. How do I log in?

    Posted by john clarey July 16, 09 10:27 PM
  1. Deal him for...what exactly?

    Posted by Classless July 16, 09 10:34 PM
  1. Pretty desperate to see him go. Not sure what they could get for him in return. Maybe a minor league pitcher or a year's supply of pine tar.

    Posted by $36mill4years July 16, 09 10:42 PM
  1. Keep Bucholz at ml level. We're going to need him.

    Posted by antibody July 16, 09 10:50 PM
  1. Red Sox: "We'll give you Julio Lugo for a bucket of pine tar and 75 scuffed baseballs."

    Unspecified MLB team: "No!"

    Posted by floridadirtdog July 16, 09 10:55 PM
  1. The fans are also desperate for the Sox to trade Lugo. At this point, I'm hoping we can get a pitching machine for him. Or maybe a couple hot dog roasters? Hell, I'll trade him now for a couple of bags of chewing tobacco.

    Posted by Sean July 16, 09 11:15 PM
  1. ken rosenthal is a tool. a yankee tool at that. i have yet to see anything that carnie has stated be true or even near reality.

    Posted by Sox4ever July 16, 09 11:24 PM
  1. This is news? Great job Rosenthal for such a "scoop"!!

    Posted by jingle-ballzw July 16, 09 11:24 PM
  1. If he can be traded. Don't think we'll get a box of rocks for him though.

    Posted by antibody July 16, 09 11:54 PM
  1. This is one of Theo's blunders. Nobody at the time offered Lugo more than $4.5 million. Why did we offer $9 million a year is a mystery?

    Posted by Matt kelley July 17, 09 12:39 AM
  1. No one is going to take on his contract,This is probably Theo's biggest blunder,and will go down in the anals of red sox history as one of the worst moves made.Probably # 3 behind Danny Cater for Sparky Lyle,Bill Lee for Stan Papi.The Red Sox will probably eat the remaining 13.5 or 14 million whatever it is and maybe some one will grab him just for a extra bat and a pinch runner role.
    The one thing I can't understand is why were they so inlove with this guy from the beginning when we had a good shortstop in Orlando Cabrea in 04.

    Posted by Bill July 17, 09 12:49 AM
  1. I feel bad for Lugo. He has maintained a good attitude through very difficult circumstances. I hope he ends up with a second tier club where he's under less pressure and has an opportunity to play every day. I do believe that in that situation, he will perform quite well.

    Posted by Jim Loomis July 17, 09 01:32 AM
  1. It's nice to read an article on one page rather than the same length on 12 pages..

    Posted by Paul Greenwell July 17, 09 02:42 AM
  1. We really need to trade Lugo. And I do feel bad for him. But whoever decided Lowrie was so great? He can't play everyday anymore. and Nick Green isn't a superhero either.

    Posted by TekForev July 20, 09 01:33 PM
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