Fixer-Uppers: Lieber, Clement, Colon

Mark Prior got his deal with the Padres, a one-year contract with incentives that could push it to $4.5 million. The Padres had the obvious advantage of being close to Prior's home. The Cardinals should have made a run at him, and it seems that they did. That's all we could ask for.

Another fixer-upper, Bartolo Colon, is believed to be close to a deal with the Royals. The Cards were believed to have been interested in the 35 year-old pitcher recently. Now, it's looking like Matt Clement is the fixer-upper the Cardinals have targeted, while other names still in the mix include Kris Benson, Jon Lieber, Jason Jennings, Josh Towers, Freddy Garcia, Josh Fogg, and Livan Hernandez. Surprisingly, Bill James likes Jon Lieber the best of the bunch. His projected line for 2008:

Player	ERA	GS	IP	K/9	HR/9	FIP
Matt Clement	4.17	15	95.0	7.77	0.95	4.42
Jon Lieber	4.04	27	167.0	5.77	1.19	4.22

Lieber's age is the big question, as he will be 38 in April. Matt Clement will be 34 in August. Both present injury risks, but both could really help in 2008. Lieber would be a good arm to bring in on a one-year deal with a team option, maybe similar to the $0.9 million deal Chad Durbin got from the Phillies. Clement would require more but would be more of a longer term solution. Lieber could be a short-term fix that allows financial flexibility in 2009 when the team is expected to have a better shot at contending. Signing both and hoping one sticks wouldn't be too outside the box either.