I think we're all a bit underwhelmed by our progress so far this winter in building the squad back into contention. It's nice that we plugged a hole in Left Field, vacant since Moises Alou's departure, but the press all remind us of Bay's lack of defense and questions about whether his power numbers will hold up at Citifield. We all know we need a reliable starter (or two) and I question whether Escobar can be thus described. We know that Omar has been unsuccessful at shopping Castillo at the time when his value is the highest that it's ever going to be, thus we are stuck praying that his knees can be patched togetherfor another season. We're making burnt offerings to the baseball gods in the hopes that Reyes and Beltran will have made full recoveries by the spring. We shrug at Molina being touted as our blue-sky option behind the plate, wondering if closing that deal will indeed make much of a difference. So yes, there are plenty of worries and it's hard to know how to prioritize them But there is one glaring hole that I have not seen much print space at all yet devoted to, and that is First Base.

We were of course crestfallen that Delgado's option year was spent riding the DL last season, in what could have been the follow-up to his near-MVP performance in 2008. But I just shake my head at the idea that Murphy is anything but a stopgap in that role. I give the guy credit for a great attitude and wilingness to play out of position for the past two seasons. I liked how he looked at the plate his rookie season (.313 in 49 games) but I expect that '09s numbers (.266, 12 HR in 155 games) are about what we are going to see from him. He's not a speed demon and is a defensive liability in that position.  So what are the choices? Trade for a first baseman would be best, but nobody thinks we have the personnel to get anyone decent. Promote an untested farm hand? Nobody seriously thinks Ike Davis is ready for the role yet, and we've all seen the harm in promoting too soon. I see some talk about platoons with Murphy, but even if Murph does maintain his low .300 numbers against righties, his low power numbers simply don't justify giving him half of that role. Delgado hit for similar average against both righties and lefties in his short stint last season and was a power threat who gave us some clutch dingers. Can you see hoping for Murphy to step up to the plate in a late-game situation with runners on?

I wish there was a better option but for now I think we gotta put our chips on Delgado. He's feeling healthy and playing winter ball, but it seems that Baltimore is the only interested team. If we pick him up for cash and see our season collapse around us again, he would make a good candidate for a mid-summer trade to an AL contender.