IronBuckI;2277605; said:
But he did suit up for them, which makes me slightly sick to my stomach.
I'll upload a pic when I get a minute.
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But he did suit up for them, which makes me slightly sick to my stomach.
I'll upload a pic when I get a minute.
So, offseason roster moves...
It started at the end of November with the Columbus not exercising the contract options on Cole Grossman, Olman Vargas, and Nemanja Vukovic. Grossman was then promptly picked up by RSL in a waiver draft shortly thereafter (from memory, he was one of one or two people picked up in that draft league-wide).
A few days later, the Crew announce that they decline the options on 7 more: Will Hesmer, Rich Balchan, Julius James, Sebastian Miranda, Chris Birchall, Tony Tchani, and Tommy Heinemann. Not quite the same as that black day a few years ago when we released Guille, Hejduk et al, but pretty damn close when you think about it. When healthy, that's 4-5 players on a starting 11 we released on the same day. Pretty easy to see this was a salary dump and to trim some fat on the roster. Personally, I'm a little shocked they let go of Sebastian Miranda and Rich Balchan. Miranda's been the one consistent force on this defense over the past 2 years and Balchan's dismissal likely has a lot more to do with his injuries than his talent, because he was a valuable asset to this team when he was healthy. The good news on this day was that the Crew announced it had picked up the options on 10 other players: Andy Gruenebaum, Matt Lampson, Eric Gehrig, Josh Williams, Bernardo Anor, Dilly Duka, Ethan Finlay, Kevan George, Justin Meram, and Aaron Schoenfeld.
To further the salary dump thoughts, Columbus re-signed Tony Tchani about a week later before the MLS re-entry draft. In that draft, the Crew were silent, not picking anyone up, though Will Hesmer was picked up in "stage 2" (so they could re-negotiate his contract) to the LA Galaxy. Birchall and James were not selected. About that same time, it was announced that despite receiving a contract offer from the Crew, Carlos Mendes decided to return home and play for the newly formed NY Cosmos of the NASL.
There is a lot of things currently going on within the organization. Both Danny O'Rourke and Emilio Renteria are out of contract, though both are in negotiations to stay with the club. Danny, for sure, will get a deal done. Per my post a few days ago, Wil Trapp signed a Homegrown contract with the club, which gives us a dangerous rookie D-mid even before the MLS Superdraft occurs. The Crew is also apparently reaching out to a few other former Crew Juniors as potential Homegrown signees: UCLA D Matt Wiet, Akron D Chad Barson, and Boston College GK Justin Luthy, all of whom finished their 4-year college careers. All three of these guys would be great additions to the club, though Barson in particular would get me excited. Also, Columbus is supposedly in final negotiations with a starting left back. There's a little more I know about the situation, but I don't want to make it public. Just look for a public announcement on this soon.
The MLS Player Combine for 54 former college players will be from Jan 11-15th, and the Superdraft will be on January 17th. Columbus has the 9th (1st round) and 28th (2nd round) overall picks in what is supposed to be a "light-weight" draft this year, making Wil Trapp just that much more huge of a pick-up for the club. Constant speculation is that Columbus will take a defender in the first round, which at this point seems to be a no-brainer. This is the current roster:
GK: Andy Gruenebaum, Matt Lampson
D: Eric Gehrig, Chad Marshall, Josh Williams
M: Bernardo Anor, Dilly Duka, Ethan Finley, Eddie Gaven, Kevan George, Milovan Mirosevic, Tony Tchani
F: Jairo Arrieta, Federico Higuain, Aaron Horton, Justin Meram, Aaron Schoenfeld, Ben Speas
In negotiations: D/M Danny O?Rourke, F Emilio Renteria, D (name withheld), potential homegrown signees
I know that the Crew FO is working overtime to get players wrapped-up and to get this team looking better than it did the year before, but this team needs to make some more splashes of the Arrieta/Higuain type to keep up with the arms race going on in the Eastern Conference. Sporting KC recently made a big trade for New England?s Benny Feilhaber and some smaller ones bolstering their defense, with rumors they could be adding even more firepower. NYRB parted ways with big-time bust Rafa Marquez to make room for another DP, and as it has been rumored for weeks now, it looks like more and more like this guy will be the one making his way to the club.
One thing is for sure though: the talent level is rising every year in MLS. If you're not getting better every year in this league, you're digging your own grave in the basement on the standings.
It started at the end of November with the Columbus not exercising the contract options on Cole Grossman, Olman Vargas, and Nemanja Vukovic. Grossman was then promptly picked up by RSL in a waiver draft shortly thereafter (from memory, he was one of one or two people picked up in that draft league-wide).
A few days later, the Crew announce that they decline the options on 7 more: Will Hesmer, Rich Balchan, Julius James, Sebastian Miranda, Chris Birchall, Tony Tchani, and Tommy Heinemann. Not quite the same as that black day a few years ago when we released Guille, Hejduk et al, but pretty damn close when you think about it. When healthy, that's 4-5 players on a starting 11 we released on the same day. Pretty easy to see this was a salary dump and to trim some fat on the roster. Personally, I'm a little shocked they let go of Sebastian Miranda and Rich Balchan. Miranda's been the one consistent force on this defense over the past 2 years and Balchan's dismissal likely has a lot more to do with his injuries than his talent, because he was a valuable asset to this team when he was healthy. The good news on this day was that the Crew announced it had picked up the options on 10 other players: Andy Gruenebaum, Matt Lampson, Eric Gehrig, Josh Williams, Bernardo Anor, Dilly Duka, Ethan Finlay, Kevan George, Justin Meram, and Aaron Schoenfeld.
To further the salary dump thoughts, Columbus re-signed Tony Tchani about a week later before the MLS re-entry draft. In that draft, the Crew were silent, not picking anyone up, though Will Hesmer was picked up in "stage 2" (so they could re-negotiate his contract) to the LA Galaxy. Birchall and James were not selected. About that same time, it was announced that despite receiving a contract offer from the Crew, Carlos Mendes decided to return home and play for the newly formed NY Cosmos of the NASL.
There is a lot of things currently going on within the organization. Both Danny O'Rourke and Emilio Renteria are out of contract, though both are in negotiations to stay with the club. Danny, for sure, will get a deal done. Per my post a few days ago, Wil Trapp signed a Homegrown contract with the club, which gives us a dangerous rookie D-mid even before the MLS Superdraft occurs. The Crew is also apparently reaching out to a few other former Crew Juniors as potential Homegrown signees: UCLA D Matt Wiet, Akron D Chad Barson, and Boston College GK Justin Luthy, all of whom finished their 4-year college careers. All three of these guys would be great additions to the club, though Barson in particular would get me excited. Also, Columbus is supposedly in final negotiations with a starting left back. There's a little more I know about the situation, but I don't want to make it public. Just look for a public announcement on this soon.
The MLS Player Combine for 54 former college players will be from Jan 11-15th, and the Superdraft will be on January 17th. Columbus has the 9th (1st round) and 28th (2nd round) overall picks in what is supposed to be a "light-weight" draft this year, making Wil Trapp just that much more huge of a pick-up for the club. Constant speculation is that Columbus will take a defender in the first round, which at this point seems to be a no-brainer. This is the current roster:
GK: Andy Gruenebaum, Matt Lampson
D: Eric Gehrig, Chad Marshall, Josh Williams
M: Bernardo Anor, Dilly Duka, Ethan Finley, Eddie Gaven, Kevan George, Milovan Mirosevic, Tony Tchani
F: Jairo Arrieta, Federico Higuain, Aaron Horton, Justin Meram, Aaron Schoenfeld, Ben Speas
In negotiations: D/M Danny O?Rourke, F Emilio Renteria, D (name withheld), potential homegrown signees
I know that the Crew FO is working overtime to get players wrapped-up and to get this team looking better than it did the year before, but this team needs to make some more splashes of the Arrieta/Higuain type to keep up with the arms race going on in the Eastern Conference. Sporting KC recently made a big trade for New England?s Benny Feilhaber and some smaller ones bolstering their defense, with rumors they could be adding even more firepower. NYRB parted ways with big-time bust Rafa Marquez to make room for another DP, and as it has been rumored for weeks now, it looks like more and more like this guy will be the one making his way to the club.
One thing is for sure though: the talent level is rising every year in MLS. If you're not getting better every year in this league, you're digging your own grave in the basement on the standings.
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TooTallMenardo;2278451; said:
We need some sort of D-Mid on this team. The only true D-Mid we have is the brand new rookie, Wil Trapp. The obvious answer COULD be Danny O'Rourke, but with only 3 defenders on the team right now (which is ridiculous), it looks like we will need him to man the center of the back line with Chad with Mendez and James gone. You might be able to plug Milo into there... possibly Tchani or Kevan George... but we need a true D-Mid with some experience. No matter how you look at it, getting rid of Birchall seems counter-productive unless the FO has another good idea...
Can we trade Philly for Brian Carroll???
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BuckTwenty;2278636; said:
I'd like to avoid playing O'Rourke on the back line at all costs. And why does this organization hate fullbacks (LB and RB) so much? It's like, no matter how good or bad, they aren't satisfied with their performances. I wasn't the biggest Sebastian Miranda fans by any means, but he was a solid (perhaps top 5 in MLS, even) fullback... Same with Vukovic, but he never really got his opportunity to shine, since Warzycha plays lineup favorites. It'll be nice having Williams back next season, but with a full season (could have been 2012) at CB under his belt, he could be the best CB in the MLS. Now he's looking at the starting LB role.
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TooTallMenardo;2278661; said:
Danny O played pretty darn well with Chad back in the day, though that also harkened the days when Danny gave up 3 PK's in a season. I'm cool with Danny in the back... though honestly, I just want to get his ass back on the field consistently. He brings the fight this team needs every game. I was a fan of Miranda because he was just so darn consistent. Hadn't had consistency at that position since Frankie's prime... and before that, you go all the way back to Mike Clark. Getting rid of Miranda makes ZERO sense... unless you're trying to re-sign him and restructure his contract, and there's been no talk of that from the media or Bliss himself... at least yet.
Last year, we looked stacked at center back... Marshall and James starting, with Mendez on the bench. Then all 3 went out with injuries at different times, leading to chaos. And that was at one defensive position we felt confident about going into the season. To go into this year with the left back we're in negotiations with and Williams at right back with NO bench to speak of... except journeyman Gehrig and maybe some rookies and homegrown players... that's pretty damn scary. BIG step backwards. And then Marshall with maybe O'Rourke with rookie back-ups... yikes.
Again, I hope the FO knows what they are doing...
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So Monday, Danny O re-signed with the Crew, Juninho signs with NYRB (no mention of him being a DP in the press release...), and SKC will be announcing a new DP Tuesday. It is widely thought the DP will be Argentine striker Claudio Bieler.
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TooTallMenardo;2281625; said:Took me long enough, but I decided I would post my Crew Christmas gifts!
Bad. Ass.
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BuckTwenty;2281651; said:
I especially love the Meram one since it has the Urso tribute decal on the front, and the Lamar Hunt decal on the back. Now I just need to get my fat ass in shape again so I can wear it!
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Just to update the thread a little, I can't remember what articles I read it from, but according to Brian Bliss, Sebastian Miranda and Emilio Renteria will not be returning to Columbus next season despite both being offered contracts. Both seem to be going back to their respective home countries to play next year. Both players will be greatly missed by the Crew faithful. Those two were two of my favorite players on the team the past couple of years. I really hope we can replace them with players of similar talent...
Also, this past week, Columbus signed Akron D Chad Barson to a homegrown contract. Plays central defense, 2-year captain, and played the most minutes on the team in 2010 the year Akron won the national championship. Likely would have been a low 1st-high 2nd round pick in the upcoming Superdraft. I've not heard yet whether or not Boston College GK Justin Luthy or UCLA D Justin Wiet are in negotiations for homegrown contracts yet, but both would be in places of great need, with the turnover we've had at both positions.
Also, this past week, Columbus signed Akron D Chad Barson to a homegrown contract. Plays central defense, 2-year captain, and played the most minutes on the team in 2010 the year Akron won the national championship. Likely would have been a low 1st-high 2nd round pick in the upcoming Superdraft. I've not heard yet whether or not Boston College GK Justin Luthy or UCLA D Justin Wiet are in negotiations for homegrown contracts yet, but both would be in places of great need, with the turnover we've had at both positions.
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BuckTwenty;2291732; said:
IMO, Renteria has already been replaced by Arrieta and Higuain (behind them, you have Meram, Speas, and Horton). But, losing Miranda could be absolutely brutal for next season.
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IronBuckI;2293723; said:
Dilly Duka for Robbie Findley? I wasn't happy about Duka being shopped, initially. But if that's what the Crew get in return, by all means.
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