I've been weighing this issue a lot lately, and I think for 2010,
the Brewers should seriously court Cameron. They should absolutely
offer him arbitration, which he will likely turn down in order to test
the market, and they should also offer him a contract.
It just
seems that no matter how you spin this team -- rebuilding for
2011-2012, or competitive-but-hit-a-snag-in-2009, or whatever -- the
Brewers need someone in CF, and it's not going to be Weeks, it's not
going to be Hart, and it's not going to be Braun. I think if everyone
is honest with themselves, they will admit that each of those
transitions probably will not work for 2010, for different reasons.
Moreover,
if the pitching staff needs to be improved, how are the Brewers going
to continue to improve on BIP with an inferior or inexperienced CF out
there?
People like to cite the obvious instances of Cameron
screwing up out there, but in some cases that's simply an outgrowth of
the way he plays, and frankly, you've got to take the good with the bad
in cases where defensive players record more putouts and assists than
the norm, and cover more of their defensive zone than the norm.
I
think that Cameron could be had for a reasonable price, and I highly
doubt that he'll want anything longer than a couple of years. For a
team that cannot honestly claim to have any better option, I think
re-signing Cam would be a very good idea.