Shawn Mitchell has the Crew’s expansion draft protected list. The team protected 11 and Jed Zayner was exempt due to his remaining status as a Generation Adidas player. I was not too far off in my; the usual suspects are there and the Crew obviously took salary concerns when they made their list.
From the upper tier, the Crew protected Schelotto, Rogers, Marshall, Carroll, and O’Rourke. Even though Schelotto is out of contract, he still can be resigned or traded if it comes to that. Mystery still surrounds the contract status of Robbie Rogers, but like Schelotto, he has too much value to the team even if he doesn’t stick around. Marshall, Carroll, and O’Rourke were locks to be protected. All are either too good or too cheap to leave unprotected.
The next tier is a mix of mid tier talent. This included the expensive options like Gaven, Hesmer, and Ekpo. These players are all very talented and are more expensive options. The two wingers make in exess of $100,000 and are under 25 years old; the type of player that you can build a team around. Perhaps Philadelphia isn’t looking for a keeper, but a two year starter making $77,000 a year is valuable trade bait, much like how the Crew got him from Toronto.
The last three are from the cheap talent list. Lenhart, Brunner, and Moffat have upside and don’t cost much against the cap at all. They have been starters and make great cogs to a new roster. This is the valuable depth for the Crew to have, but perhaps may have been sacrificed to protect a veteran back like Gino Padula.
The unprotected list is very interesting. Team captain Frankie Hejduk is available as is valuable left back Gino Padula. 2008 first round draft pick Andy Iro is also available on the defensive side. The Crew also left several strikers available, Ale Moreno, Jason Garey, and Emilio Renteria all provide a certain offensive spark and may be intriguing to the Union. There is value on the Crew’s exposed list.
I expect Padula to get picked and traded. A veteran left back is too valuable of a commodity. I bet some team in MLS will want to trade for him as the final piece of the puzzle. If it isn’t Padula, I could also see the Union picking up one of the Crew’s strikers as an offensive option. Garey and Moreno have proven they can score goals. Garey has always been too low on the pecking order to really get any minutes, but he has produced when he has had a chance.
If the Crew do lose Padula, I can see Zayner starting on the left side. I also could see a back line of Zayner, O’Rourke, Brunner, and Marshall next year as well if Hejduk doesn’t rebound from his injury and poor performance plagued 2009 season. That would mean the Crew are looking to Moffat, Burns, or even Gaven to fill the hole in central midfield. I am intrigued who Philly picks from the Crew and how the team starts to rework the team.
The Crew will be losing someone this week. There is already trouble brewing over Schelotto’s contract situation and Rogers possibly being unhappy in Columbus, but the team is almost sure to lose someone to the Philadelphia Union expansion draft on Wednesday. The Crew brain trust will have to prepare a list that minimizes the impact to the team with a lot of question marks heading into the 2010 season.
While the Crew will be releasing their list tomorrow, but I will try to take a crack now:
Protected:
- Guillermo Barros Schelotto – It’s a risk if he leaves for Argentina, but he is too valuable to protect.
- Chad Marshall – Cornerstone of the team
- Brian Carroll – The backbone of the the team. Injury contributed to an off year.
- Robbie Rogers – Rumors of his discontent doesn’t reduce his value to the Crew, even if it is for a trade.
- Jed Zayner – Youthful defender looked very good in defense.
- Gino Padula – Even older left backs are too valuable to lose.
- Danny O’Rourke – Versatile player who can play 4 defensive positions and in the midfield.
- Eric Brunner – Young defenders as solid as Brunner are very valuable.
- Eddie Gaven – He is a young steady performer. His high salary might scare off teams, but not a risk worth taking.
- Emmanual Ekpo – Much like Gaven, his high salary might scare off Philadelphia, but there is too much possible turnover on offense to lose both Ekpo and Gaven.
- William Hesmer – I think he is a little to valuable to risk losing.
Unprotected: Frankie Hejduk, Alejandro Moreno, Steven Lenhart, Emilio Renteria, Jason Garey, Andy Iro, Adam Moffat, Duncan Oughton, Andy Gruenebaum, Kenny Schoeni, Kevin Burns, Cory Elenio, Alex Grendi
I have ranked the protected list in the order I would protect. 1-8 are pretty solid, but I was on the fence for the final three. Gaven would be a big loss and he had a good year in 09, but I almost left him off my list because of his giant salary number ($173,250). He probably could be left off, but I didn’t want to take the risk. Ekpo wasn’t as steady. That’s worth protecting over the aging Moreno. Hesmer is just better enough than Gruenebaum protect as well.
As far as the unprotected list, I debated over three players, Moreno, Hejduk, and Lenhart. Hejduk is the heart of the Crew and one of the longest serving players, but he has also lost a step. He will be 36 next year and has injury problems. Moreno is out of contract, expensive, and will be 30 next year. Never a clinical striker; he is now losing any of the speed he once had. Lenhart is cheap and young, but is still very rough around the edges. He is a more replaceable talent.
Who do I expect Philly to take, just by talent and salary and not considering tradable value, I expect they take Moreno. His contract can be reworked and he is a proven MLS striker, even if it is as more of a 2nd striker. He is valuable at a reduced cap number. I could see them take cheaper talent like Lenhart, but Hejduk is expensive and aging, two bad combos.
Any way the Crew make their list, it marks the beginning of what looks to be a very tumultuous offseason.
It may have took 120 and then some; neither team was able to settle the game until it went deep into to penalties. Nerves and fatigue took over and it was eventually it was Nick Rimando and Real Salt Lake outlasting the Los Angeles Galaxy.
I hope the Real Salt Lake supporters that made the trip to Seattle enjoy this feeling. Getting to experience the excitement of MLS Cup week and capping it off with a win. There is nothing like celebrating that first MLS Cup.
Congratulations to Real Salt Lake and their fans.
It’s such a big difference between this year and last. Without Columbus in the game, I have only half paid attention to the run up to this year’s Cup. It’s also tough to watch because it’s such a missed opportunity for the Crew. No team in the league stands out, only 9 points separated top from bottom. This was a real chance to do the back to back “Double”.
I have no real rooting interest in the game. Both would be flawed champions; that’s the effect of parity in MLS. It should be an interesting game, the teams are evenly matched. Donovan may play his last game in MLS tonight. Seattle and their fans are hosting a great party. Even if it won’t be a great week for the Crew, it’s a great night for MLS. I hope the game can match the storylines.
I look at Chad Marshall’s and Robbie Rogers time with the U.S. National Team as open auditions to impress European teams. Both are young and talented players with a chance to play with the National team in games against World Cup quality opponents. It’s no secret that both players would like the chance to head back to Europe.
Marshall trialed in Germany before resigning with the Crew last December. He has added a 2nd consecutive MLS Defensive Player of the Year award and has played with the USMNT in qualifiers this year as well. His stock is at a high point and the Crew might cash in on his value before he leaves when his contract ends as soon as next year.
Rogers probably needs to impress in his time with the National Team more. He had an uneven season and had a solid Gold Cup. Another couple good games would renew some of that interest that he had after his Best XI season in 2008. He appeared to hit the wall in his development at times as he did not have the same confidence to dribble past defenders or the keen shooting ability that he has shown in the past.
With a lot riding on a couple of friendlies, I will be closely watching to see how the two Crew stars do. A good couple of games only helps them move into the picture for the 2010 World Cup and possibly an extended stay overseas.
Robbie may be out of contract according to Ives and won’t be protected in the expansion draft according to duNord. I have some emails to try and find out what the story is. Watch my Twitter feed for the quickest updates.
A Disappointing End to '09 for the Crew and Warzycha (Fahmi/Studio79)
From wonder coach to one year wonder, the idea that Robert Warzycha’s position as head coach of the Crew is under question would have been shocking a month ago, but the October swoon, early playoff exit, and some odd personnel choices have focused some of the blame on the rookie head man.
First off, Hunt Sports Group won’t fire Warzycha, have stuck with coaches with far worse records. Barring that, they are too cheap to buy out his contract. He will have time to retool the Crew and prepare them for the 2010 season.
Even if his employment isn’t under real threat, I still have questions about his handling the last quarter of the season and the playoffs. This was a team in awful form the last couple of months. After getting demolished in Mexico by Cruz Azul, they dropped a game against New York, and did not look convincing against Houston and Chicago. There were signs this team was already struggling.
The added games forced him into an aggressive rotation policy. This was vital as the Crew worked their way through a heavy load of games in September, but as October rolled around, Warzycha did not tighten the roster. He believed that there were no set starters and I fully believe that this led to the uneven performances heading towards the playoffs.
I was really confused with his decision to leave star forward Guillemo Barros Schelotto on the bench in Salt Lake. He did not even make a subs appearance. He chose Renteria and Lenhart instead, the same Renteria that wasn’t in the 18 five days later at Crew Stadium. I understand tactics, but that lineup shuffling is much more confusing.
One last thing that troubles me is that Warzycha repeatedly said that the Crew looked the better team in games that they lost. He said it again on Thursday night after Salt Lake came into Crew Stadium and ended Columbus’s season. Even though the Crew outshot RSL, they did not look like the sharper team. Salt Lake controlled the midfield and had a couple of chances early that would have killed off the game before it started. I saw a team that was outplayed (even slightly) on their home field with playoff advancement on the line.
I certainly don’t want to overlook what Warzycha achieved this season. He was able to successfully guide the Crew to a 2nd Supporter’s Shield and passage to the knockout stages of the Champions League. That is something that no other coach in MLS can say this year. I hope that he learns from this dose of failure and retools the team back into Cup contention in 2010.
