i think some of you guys overanalyze things. Do you think Doug Melvin is looking at VORP and total baserunners per RBI? I really don't think so. Bottom line. If Carlos isn't in the middle of the lineup, splitting Jenks and Overbay, we see every lefty in everybody's pen. To me, the main reason 2004 was as bad as it was. Remember Pods, Spivey, Overbay, Jenkins, Branyan hitting 1-5 that year? YUCK. What the general consensus is is that Carlos is good, but we need more for 8.5 million. How? Look at the money that was thrown at free agents last year (Beltre, Beltran, Delgado, etc.). Carlos had better numbers than any of them, for way less money. Plus, everybody overlooks that Carlos changed leagues last year. Almost everybody has a down year after changing leagues. I look for Carlos to go to .290/35/130 next year. Then you same people that want to move him will be begging him to resign here. Now, if you want to contend next year, you don't trade him. No way. You'd have to stick Hart in left field and would have no cleanup hitter. You have to have a right handed stick between Fielder and Jenkins. Trading Lee would put us in the same place we were in 2004.