Boonie

News at the Twins site: Minnesota has acquired Bret Boone for a player to be named later.

Assuming the player traded will not be anyone significant, the move has some potential to spark both the lineup and Boone's flagging career, without much cost. I'd certainly prefer a faded Boone at 2B to Luis Rivas. However, if Boone does not find new life with a change of scenery, how does he compare to the other in-house options at 2nd base?

Here are some 2005 performance figures to date:

NAME	Batting Line	RC/27	EqA	IsoP	ZR
Boone	.231/.299/.385	3.62	.250	.154	.743
Punto	.274/.341/.408	4.89	.266	.134	.900
Rodriguez	.293/.347/.424	4.86	.272	.130	.947
Cuddyer	.259/.336/.384	3.80	.255	.125	.846
Abernathy	.263/.348/.421	5.21	.278	.158	.778
Rivas	.250/.293/.287	2.96	.211	.037	.786

*Batting line= avg/obp/slg, RC/27= Runs Created per 27 Outs, EqA= Equivalent Average, IsoP= Isolated Power, ZR= Zone Rating (defense).

All stats remaining constant, replacing anybody but Rivas in the lineup with Bret Boone appears to be an offensive downgrade. Boone might add a little punch to the Twins lineup, even at his present levels, but at the cost of playing an out-machine where the team has been getting solid on-base rates from most of its 2nd base candidates.

His .743 Zone Rating on defense represents a downgrade on every in-house alternative, as well. Yes, even Rivas, whose coverage of his position lately has been so like a sieve, I screamed at the set more than a couple times after watching a ball go by his waving glove last week. It may surprise some to read it, but Cuddyer's defense at 2nd base (.846 ZR this season; .800 career) rates better than Boone's play this year by Zone Rating, too.

Maybe, just maybe, getting Boone out of Safeco and away from a last place club will rejuvenate him. Who knows, maybe he'll "inspire" his teammates to go on a hot tear like Stewart was credited with doing in 2003, too. I'm glad to hear that he really wanted to come to Minnesota. But I'm pessimistic. Chances seem more likely that he'll push a better option to the bench, and perhaps send another good alternative back down to AAA. This smells an awful lot like Chicago picking up Roberto Alomar last year--and didn't we snicker at Kenny Williams and those miserable bastards then?

Yes.