Friend of the blog, Darren Smith's Facebook Status:
Heath Bell has appeared in ONE game since August 23rd. He's the highest paid player on the team and has pitched one inning in 15 days. Makes no business sense whatsoever.
Oh I dunno about that. I'm sure there's a bunch of ways it makes business sense.
Let's say the Padres did their darndest to try to trade Heath Bell. Obviously, with the way the Mike Adams thing boiled down, they couldn't get what they wanted for Heath Bell in a trade, so for it to make business sense, they have to be making money off of Heath Bell in other ways.
If Heath Bell isn't playing, then he isn't helping the Padres win. But let's face facts, are the Padres going to lose that much if they don't manage to win any more games this season? Are there people who are on the fence about season tickets right now who would be swayed if the Padres went above .500 the rest of the way? We're still looking at a losing season.
So if we can't make money off of Heath Bell right now, then he must be an investment. My guess? They either know on the down low that he's going to sign for less than he's worth... OR they're going to offer him arbitration, expecting him to refuse and then end up getting picks when he signs with the Diamondbacks... OR they're going to offer him arbitration, settle for some contract and then trade him next season, hoping that a playoff contender will overpay.
In the meantime... There's Heath Bell... Chillin'...