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McCarthy's Musings: Garcia Moves as Trade Winds Blow
Nick Garcia is en route to Canada as San Jose, Toronto FC and Houston all made moves on a busy Tuesday. Kyle McCarthy breaks down the deals and previews tonight's key Western Conference tilt between Houston and Chivas USA.
Jun 10, 2009 2:09:08 AM
By Kyle McCarthy
Trade winds swept through the league yesterday as San Jose and Toronto FC swapped players in an attempt to propel both sides towards the correct end of the table.
In the most notable move of the day, the Earthquakes sent Nick Garcia to the Great White North along with the discovery rights to Canadian international forward Ali Gerba in exchange for a third-round draft pick. Garcia, 30, signed a new, pricey deal ($190,000 base/$198,750 guaranteed compensation, according to players union documents) during the offseason and had played every minute this season for San Jose before he was shipped off to Canada.
In order to make room for Garcia in its salary budget, TFC released former starting goalkeeper Greg Sutton ($157,500/$165,062). In a separate move, San Jose shipped Cam Weaver ($64,980/$73,230) to Houston in a deal that netted them Chris Wondolowski ($34,650/$34,650) and a conditional draft pick.
With the moves now in the books, let's take a look at how these deals shook out for the three teams involved:
San Jose
The two deals are all about cap space for the Earthquakes. Given the terms of the deal with TFC and Garcia's outsized salary in comparison with his 2009 production, it's safe to say San Jose has to carry a portion of Garcia's paycheck on its salary budget. Even if the Quakes carry a portion of the charge, they still created ample room – likely in the $150,000-$200,000 range – in the salary budget to make a significant move or two. The shopping list likely includes a central midfielder and a central defender, with the preference in that order. Obtaining local product Wondolowski as a bench option and acquiring the draft picks add value without detracting from the overall goal.
Toronto FC
The Reds needed to make a move to shore up a lackluster central defense. Mo Johnston is hoping that former teammate Garcia will provide a substantial improvement alongside Adrian Serioux. Garcia will have to improve his form to do so, but it's not a bad gamble considering the likelihood that Johnston made the deal revenue-neutral by cutting Sutton and asking San Jose to pick up some of Garcia's cap charge. The key to the deal could be acquiring the discovery rights to Gerba, who is out of contract after being released by English League One side MK Dons and represents a possible acquisition once the transfer window opens. Gerba scored ten goals for MK Dons last season, but the former Miami Fusion forward is a bit of a nomad who isn't a sure thing to succeed at the MLS level given his erratic track record.
Houston
Weaver, in the words of one source contacted after the deal went down, could turn into “another Dominic Kinnear reclamation project.” The former USL top scorer didn't get much of a chance in San Jose, but has enough pedigree to indicate that Kinnear has something to work with here. One has to wonder whether Brian Ching's left hamstring injury and played a role in this move; the Dynamo picked up Dominic Oduro and Ade Akinbiyi over the past few months, so adding another striker appears curious at first glance. Then again, the Dynamo may have the extra cap room and didn't give up much in return for a chance to take a punt on a player who has scored consistently at lower levels.
Around the League
- The one midweek game this week is a huge one: Western Conference leaders Chivas USA travel to Houston to face the Dynamo tonight (ESPN2, 8:30p.m.).
- Houston is unbeaten in its past eight matches (6-0-2) and could close to within three points in the West with a win. The Dynamo also has two matches in hand on the Goats.
- Both sides are stripped of key players. Ching (hamstring) misses out through injury, Mariano Trujillo is suspended for yellow card accumulation and Sacha Kljestan and Jonathan Bornstein are with the U.S. national team at the Confederations Cup.
- Preki will also hope that concussed duo Justin Braun and Shavar Thomas will be able to recover in time to start for the Goats and that the trio of Atiba Harris, Eduardo Lillingston and Jesse Marsch will avoid a suspension-inducing yellow card.
- History favors the home side. The Goats haven't scored in Houston in over six hours of league play, a streak that dates all the way back to a 3-1 loss in the Lone Star State on July 8, 2006. Houston also went 2-0-1 in the series last season.
- Though it will probably have little bearing on the team selection for tonight's match, Chivas USA activated Ante Jazic from the Disabled List on Tuesday. Jazic, 33, has missed the entire season to date after suffering a concussion before the start of the season. It could be a timely boost at left back for the Goats with Bornstein unavailable.
- With all of those statistical indicators, the Forecast would take Houston in this one. After last week's prognostication performance, that might not be a good thing for the Dynamo.
- Veteran Chicago defender Brandon Prideaux will retire at the end of the season. Prideaux, in the midst of his 12th season, has two MLS Cups (2000 with K.C. and 2004 with D.C.) to his name and hopes to add a third this season with the Fire. Prideaux was a key part of Chicago's stingy defense last season, but lost his place at right back to Tim Ward prior to the start of this campaign.
- Prideaux and his teammates will get a VIP tour of the White House on Friday prior to Saturday's match at D.C. United, according to the Chicago Tribune.
- Columbus defender Frankie Hejduk (groin) resumed running on Friday, but isn't sure if he'll be ready for Sunday's match against Chivas USA, according to the Columbus Dispatch.
- Real Salt Lake striker Robbie Findley is an injury doubt ahead of Saturday's trip to Los Angeles. Findley is struggling with an ankle injury suffered in the 1-1 draw against Colorado and didn't train on Tuesday, according to the Salt Lake Tribune.
- D.C. United midfielder Ben Olsen has been upgraded to questionable ahead of Saturday's game against Chicago.
- Los Angeles has three trialists in camp this week: South African midfielder Mark Haskins (Moroka Swallows), Irish defender Fred Murray (ex-Exeter City) and Danish-American midfielder Jamil Fearrington (Frem). Haskins started in Tuesday night's friendly with CS Herediano. Fearrington, incidentally, was on trial with RSL last week and once tried to land a roster spot with D.C. United.
- The Costa Rican giants left Los Angeles right after the friendly ended in order to prepare for a friendly against FC Dallas at Pizza Hut Park on Wednesday night.
- Seattle draft pick Michael Fucito has joined the team on a two-week trial. Fucito, who played his collegiate ball at Harvard, trained with New England while finishing his degree. Former New York keeper Terry Boss was also spotted in the Pacific Northwest this week.
- As a parting note, I couldn't help but include a quote cited in The Guardian's review of the Bundesliga season. “Klinsmann's only idea for strengthening the squad in January was Landon Donovan,” Bayern Munich svengali Uli Hoeness said. “Hermann Gerland [the youth team coach] told me the guy wasn't fit to play for his reserves.” If Gerland's statement is true, MLS teams should start importing Bayern Munich reserve players en masse. It is far more likely that Hoeness hammered Donovan as another way to tweak Klinsi after a disappointing stint with the Bavarian giants.
Kyle McCarthy writes the Monday MLS Breakdown and frequently writes opinion pieces during the week for Goal.com. He also covers the New England Revolution for the Boston Herald and MLSnet.com. Contact him with your questions or comments at kyle.mccarthy@goal.com and follow him on Twitter by clicking here.
For more on Major League Soccer, visit Goal.com’s MLS page.
Trade winds swept through the league yesterday as San Jose and Toronto FC swapped players in an attempt to propel both sides towards the correct end of the table.
In the most notable move of the day, the Earthquakes sent Nick Garcia to the Great White North along with the discovery rights to Canadian international forward Ali Gerba in exchange for a third-round draft pick. Garcia, 30, signed a new, pricey deal ($190,000 base/$198,750 guaranteed compensation, according to players union documents) during the offseason and had played every minute this season for San Jose before he was shipped off to Canada.
In order to make room for Garcia in its salary budget, TFC released former starting goalkeeper Greg Sutton ($157,500/$165,062). In a separate move, San Jose shipped Cam Weaver ($64,980/$73,230) to Houston in a deal that netted them Chris Wondolowski ($34,650/$34,650) and a conditional draft pick.
With the moves now in the books, let's take a look at how these deals shook out for the three teams involved:
San Jose
The two deals are all about cap space for the Earthquakes. Given the terms of the deal with TFC and Garcia's outsized salary in comparison with his 2009 production, it's safe to say San Jose has to carry a portion of Garcia's paycheck on its salary budget. Even if the Quakes carry a portion of the charge, they still created ample room – likely in the $150,000-$200,000 range – in the salary budget to make a significant move or two. The shopping list likely includes a central midfielder and a central defender, with the preference in that order. Obtaining local product Wondolowski as a bench option and acquiring the draft picks add value without detracting from the overall goal.
Toronto FC
The Reds needed to make a move to shore up a lackluster central defense. Mo Johnston is hoping that former teammate Garcia will provide a substantial improvement alongside Adrian Serioux. Garcia will have to improve his form to do so, but it's not a bad gamble considering the likelihood that Johnston made the deal revenue-neutral by cutting Sutton and asking San Jose to pick up some of Garcia's cap charge. The key to the deal could be acquiring the discovery rights to Gerba, who is out of contract after being released by English League One side MK Dons and represents a possible acquisition once the transfer window opens. Gerba scored ten goals for MK Dons last season, but the former Miami Fusion forward is a bit of a nomad who isn't a sure thing to succeed at the MLS level given his erratic track record.
Houston
Weaver, in the words of one source contacted after the deal went down, could turn into “another Dominic Kinnear reclamation project.” The former USL top scorer didn't get much of a chance in San Jose, but has enough pedigree to indicate that Kinnear has something to work with here. One has to wonder whether Brian Ching's left hamstring injury and played a role in this move; the Dynamo picked up Dominic Oduro and Ade Akinbiyi over the past few months, so adding another striker appears curious at first glance. Then again, the Dynamo may have the extra cap room and didn't give up much in return for a chance to take a punt on a player who has scored consistently at lower levels.
Around the League
- The one midweek game this week is a huge one: Western Conference leaders Chivas USA travel to Houston to face the Dynamo tonight (ESPN2, 8:30p.m.).
- Houston is unbeaten in its past eight matches (6-0-2) and could close to within three points in the West with a win. The Dynamo also has two matches in hand on the Goats.
- Both sides are stripped of key players. Ching (hamstring) misses out through injury, Mariano Trujillo is suspended for yellow card accumulation and Sacha Kljestan and Jonathan Bornstein are with the U.S. national team at the Confederations Cup.
- Preki will also hope that concussed duo Justin Braun and Shavar Thomas will be able to recover in time to start for the Goats and that the trio of Atiba Harris, Eduardo Lillingston and Jesse Marsch will avoid a suspension-inducing yellow card.
- History favors the home side. The Goats haven't scored in Houston in over six hours of league play, a streak that dates all the way back to a 3-1 loss in the Lone Star State on July 8, 2006. Houston also went 2-0-1 in the series last season.
- Though it will probably have little bearing on the team selection for tonight's match, Chivas USA activated Ante Jazic from the Disabled List on Tuesday. Jazic, 33, has missed the entire season to date after suffering a concussion before the start of the season. It could be a timely boost at left back for the Goats with Bornstein unavailable.
- With all of those statistical indicators, the Forecast would take Houston in this one. After last week's prognostication performance, that might not be a good thing for the Dynamo.
- Veteran Chicago defender Brandon Prideaux will retire at the end of the season. Prideaux, in the midst of his 12th season, has two MLS Cups (2000 with K.C. and 2004 with D.C.) to his name and hopes to add a third this season with the Fire. Prideaux was a key part of Chicago's stingy defense last season, but lost his place at right back to Tim Ward prior to the start of this campaign.
- Prideaux and his teammates will get a VIP tour of the White House on Friday prior to Saturday's match at D.C. United, according to the Chicago Tribune.
- Columbus defender Frankie Hejduk (groin) resumed running on Friday, but isn't sure if he'll be ready for Sunday's match against Chivas USA, according to the Columbus Dispatch.
- Real Salt Lake striker Robbie Findley is an injury doubt ahead of Saturday's trip to Los Angeles. Findley is struggling with an ankle injury suffered in the 1-1 draw against Colorado and didn't train on Tuesday, according to the Salt Lake Tribune.
- D.C. United midfielder Ben Olsen has been upgraded to questionable ahead of Saturday's game against Chicago.
- Los Angeles has three trialists in camp this week: South African midfielder Mark Haskins (Moroka Swallows), Irish defender Fred Murray (ex-Exeter City) and Danish-American midfielder Jamil Fearrington (Frem). Haskins started in Tuesday night's friendly with CS Herediano. Fearrington, incidentally, was on trial with RSL last week and once tried to land a roster spot with D.C. United.
- The Costa Rican giants left Los Angeles right after the friendly ended in order to prepare for a friendly against FC Dallas at Pizza Hut Park on Wednesday night.
- Seattle draft pick Michael Fucito has joined the team on a two-week trial. Fucito, who played his collegiate ball at Harvard, trained with New England while finishing his degree. Former New York keeper Terry Boss was also spotted in the Pacific Northwest this week.
- As a parting note, I couldn't help but include a quote cited in The Guardian's review of the Bundesliga season. “Klinsmann's only idea for strengthening the squad in January was Landon Donovan,” Bayern Munich svengali Uli Hoeness said. “Hermann Gerland [the youth team coach] told me the guy wasn't fit to play for his reserves.” If Gerland's statement is true, MLS teams should start importing Bayern Munich reserve players en masse. It is far more likely that Hoeness hammered Donovan as another way to tweak Klinsi after a disappointing stint with the Bavarian giants.
Kyle McCarthy writes the Monday MLS Breakdown and frequently writes opinion pieces during the week for Goal.com. He also covers the New England Revolution for the Boston Herald and MLSnet.com. Contact him with your questions or comments at kyle.mccarthy@goal.com and follow him on Twitter by clicking here.
For more on Major League Soccer, visit Goal.com’s MLS page.
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