Alex Anthopoulos likes what he sees on the trade market.
That’s the impression the Toronto Blue Jays general manager gave during an appearance Thursday on the Jeff Blair Show on Sportsnet Radio Fan 590.
When asked if there is a team need he is more likely to fill via the trade route or free agency, Anthopoulos didn’t get into specifics other than to say he is busy on both fronts but trades remain his preferred avenue.
“There’s some trades we can make, or we can spend some money on free agents,” he told Blair. “It’s always easier to spend money than give up players (in a trade), but sometimes you spend the money and just don’t feel like the vlaue is there.
“There’s also some very appealing players in trades. We’re looking at both.”
In recent weeks, the Jays have been linked in trade talks involving a pair of closers-Andrew Bailey of the Oakland Athletics and Huston Street of the Colorado Rockies.
Blue Jays manager John Farrell told the Sportsnet Radio Fan 590 earlier this week that establishing a defined closer was his personal “No. 1 priroity,” this off-season.
Listen: Alex Anthopoulos on Sportsnet Radio
On Thursday, Ken Rosenthal of foxsports.com reported the Jays, Marlins and one other club are pursuing free agent closer Heath Bell.
On Tuesday, Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun also reported the Jays interest in Bell and that the team had pursued free agent closer Jonathan Papelbon before the latter signed a four-year, $50 million contract with the Philadelphia Phillies.
“Our preferred route is going to be the trade market just because the trade market for us-in the two years that I’ve been in the GM’s chair-you rarely find value in free agent deals,” said Anthopoulos.
Here’s what else we learned from Anthopoulos Thursday…
The winter meetings are fun for fans. Him? Not so much.
Anthopoulos explained that much of his time during the winter meetings is spent holed up in his room from morning to late night waiting to see if anything is going to happen.
“I can’t tell you that I necessarily enjoy it,” he said.
His inner-circle is small. Super small.
Anthopoulos said the Jays bring a much smaller group of people to the meetings (some teams have 10-20 people in a room) so staffers don’t get offended if someone is asked to leave the room during a meeting with an agent, or another team’s GM. He added he prefers one-on-one meetings, but has no problem involving assistant GM Tony LaCava the “clear-cut No. 2 in the organization behind me,” said Anthopoulos.
The Jays aren’t philosophically opposed to bidding for Yu Darvish.
When asked to respond to a report earlier this week that Jays president and CEO Paul Beeston isn’t a fan of the Japanese posting system that requires teams to submit blind bids for the negotiaitng rights for players, Anthopoulos said although it’s not perfect, it simply comes down how much a team believes the player is worth.
Anthopoulos pointed to the case of Daisuke Matsuzaka, who cost the Red Sox $50 million to win his negotiating rights and then another $50 million to sign him to a contract.
“Ultimately, the Red Sox felt that Dice-K was a $100 million player,” he said.
Translation: If they Jays think Darvish’s value is equal to the combined cost of the bid and a contract, they’ll pursue him. If not, they won’t.
The Jays want players with high on-base percentages
Nothing particularly new here, especially if you remember back in September when John Farrell spoke glowingly of the “relentless” approach of Red Sox hitters, their discipline and their ability to chase starters early and get to team’s bullpens.
Anthopoulos reiterated the same on Thursday, pointing out that Yankees hitters employ a similar tactic.
In other words, get used to more, not less four-plus hour A.L. East games in the future.
Arencibia will carry a heavy load in 2012
When asked what the team is looking for in a backup catcher now that Jose Molina has signed with the Tampa Bay Rays, Anthopoulos said the team will merely look for the “best fit” since they are confident J.P. Arencibia can catch 130+ games next season.
“There are lots (of options) in free agency, a few in trades as well,” he explained. “We’re not concerned with the durability of our backup.”