Prior: Ultimate Bargain

Who would've guessed when Mark Prior first came up that he would be non-tendered. I mean, if people had heard that Gil Meche would get 11 million per in '06 , with Prior reaching free agency in '07, he wouldn't get more than 5 million per. In fact, if you told them what the contracts were nowadays, people would've believed Prior could get 22-28 million per, over seven years. However, overuse by Dusty Baker and years of injury have cost Prior more money than most people can even fathom.
Still, even though he won't return until May, I believe he could still be worth close to 20 million. A change of scenery is clearly all he needs. I could honestly see him winning 8-10 games in the second half of this year. More astonishingly, I believe, barring injury, he is a legit candidate for 20 games and a Cy-Young Award in '09. So, as a word of advice to all GM's out there, don't spend your farm on a Johan Santana or Erik Bedard unless you're ready to contend this year (That means you Cincinnati Reds). Instead, focus on obtaining equal value for less than 5 million dollars. Consider it trading Johan Santana for your own farm system, Mark Prior, and a gargantuan amount of money!