Pedro Astacio In The Mix, Pending MRI

Pedro Astacio. Apparently a history of shoulder problems is a prerequisite for consideration for 3-4-5 slots in the rotation.

Robinson rips the club for not giving Lawrence an MRI:

"That's our bad...We chose not to give him an MRI. The physicals should cover everything...I would think that would be something to get our attention for the future, at least. Why not? [An MRI is] the only way you're going to be able to look at someone. But I don't make policy around here." (Frank Robinson, via Washington Post, 2/28/2006)

"It's expensive to do MRIs on every single transaction...In the case of Brian, he had made every single start the last four or five years. We saw him throw a three-hit shutout [in his final start of 2005]. We were trading a player [Castilla] with a bad knee. We felt that there was MRI risk on both sides if the deal was made, and we made a decision not to." (Jim Bowden, via Washington Times, 2/28/2006)

Meanwhile, in Boston, Red Sox deny rumors of an impending deal with the Nats, and Bronson Arroyo weighs in:

"Anything can happen, but I don't find it as being that valid...What's the worst-case scenario? We have seven [starters], right? Well, if I still think I'm one of the 12 best guys, I can still be on the club and pitch. Defensively, I don't think we need anybody else. [Unless] they want to go get somebody for me that's an unbelievable arm out of the pen, I don't see any other reason to make any other moves." (Bronson Arroyo, via Boston Globe, 2/28/2006)

Comments

[SomeGuy]

Bronson should stick to releasing new albums and not opining on trade rumors. He's from Key West, so is he going to play for the Conch Republic in the WBC?

I gotta say, while Jim Bowden is most certainly a self-aggrandizing egomaniac, all this hub-bub about Brian Lawrence is nuts. The guy passed the physical with flying colors. Is it industry practice in professional baseball to do MRI's on every trade? On ever pitcher? On starting pitchers? On starting pitchers who have recently thrown over 200 innings?

The answers are no, no, no, and no. The answers should be no, no, no and yes; and then add in other players who have histories of injuries or are suspect on physicals. Everyone is looking at the Lawrence of "abrasia" deal knowing that he has a bum arm. Everyone who lambasted this trade last year please step forward...

No one came forward, because NO ONE criticized this deal based on his physical health. We dumped Castilla because the cartilage in his knees looked like pulled pork BBQ (I prefer St Louis style myself), and he was getting overpaid. We dumped salary, made room for our phenom, and brought in another arm that would hopefully eat up innings.

Everyone get off their soap box, we didn't do an MRI on the wood and it might be brittle from termites.

[ck]

SomeGuy - you make a bunch of valid points -I can't remember which ones specifically, but I know they're in there somewhere. The one small detail is that the trade was not a salary dump by the Nats as you said - it was pretty much a financial wash - both teams are on the hook for about $3 mil in salary in '06. So now the Nats are stuck with Lawrence and his bum labrum (which wasn't known at the time) and Padres are on stuck with Vinny Castilla, his bad knees, and his hockey hair. Overall, I agree with you on MRI-gate. It's just another opportunity for people to poop all over Bowden - he deserves a lot of the crap he's been getting from people for some of his moves this offseason, but it's hard to fault him on the MRI/Lawrence situation. Think of it this way: If Bowden/Nationals had asked for the MRI for Lawrence (even though there was no reason to believe he was damaged goods), it is a lock that the Padres would have turned around and asked for an MRI for Vinny. And the deal would have been killed, and the Nats would have been stuck with Vinny Castilla and his bad knees and hockey hair for another year, and the Zimmerman experiment would have probably been set back another year, because it's not very likely you would have found another suitor for Castilla.