Walsh's Word: Flying Fish?

by Pat Walsh

There’s a potential perfect storm on the horizon in Los Angeles. Carlos Ruiz -- he of 81 career MLS goals -- will soon escape the trainer’s room and rejoin the duo of David Beckham and Landon Donovan, who have combined for 11 goals and seven assists in seven games this season.

With that type of offense, the Galaxy’s scoring output could mirror another L.A.-based team, the Loyola Marymount men’s basketball team of the late 1980s. Those high-scoring teams, led by Bo Kimble and the late Hank Gathers ran a freewheeling, attack-first game. It was exciting to watch.

But it never wound up winning much.

As everyone knows, defense wins championships. And right now, the “D” in Los Angeles Galaxy is no where near the level of the “O.” Which means, no trophies come November.

So maybe, now that the Little Fish is ready to swim again, Galaxy GM Alexi Lalas and coach Ruud Gullit would be better off trading him and bolstering the team’s backline and overall depth.

Of course, it might seem odd to trade a player who was brought in the offseason and played a total of 90 minutes so far this year. But Ruiz’s acquisition came before anyone knew that Beckham and Donovan would explode. Factor in Alan Gordon’s surprise contributions and Edson Buddle, who will do in a pinch, and Ruiz becomes a luxury the team cannot afford.

Furthermore, Ruiz has a history of becoming a locker-room cancer. Though reports out of Dallas last year claimed Ruiz was a model citizen, Steve Morrow didn’t hesitate in sending the Guatemalan striker on his way. And let’s face it, rare is the time Lalas has seen a trade he has not liked. Having gone nearly three weeks without making a roster move, the redheaded GM’s trigger finger must be getting antsy.

It comes down to this: The Galaxy need more depth. As New England and Houston have shown in recent seasons, depth is the key to winning in MLS. Columbus and Chicago are proving this truism this season, specifically in the defense. In the salary cap world of the American top flight, several role players are often more effective than a singular star player.

Or two star players. Or three. Come the end of the month, Ruud Gullit will lose Beckham and Donovan to international duty for the first of several times this season. Ruiz would be an excellent stopgap, but then he will most likely be called in by Guatemala.

Trading Ruiz would not alter the Galaxy’s win-now mentality. It would, instead, be the first step toward righting a few wrongs, namely, trading away modestly priced talents like Nathan Sturgis and Robbie Findley and cutting Kelly Gray and Kyle Martino.

The question then becomes: Who would take on Ruiz, with his exorbitant salary and potential off the field problems?

Several teams are out automatically. Dallas is a non-starter for obvious reasons. Chivas USA doesn’t have the necessary defensive pieces, especially in their current injury fix, to make a deal work. Same goes for D.C. United, who have defensive issues of their own. San Jose is built strongly in the back, but any defensive trade would undermine coach Frank Yallop’s planning. Kansas City, New York, and New England might be able to make something work, but they each already have high-priced strikers. Columbus is in a similar boat as they have several youngsters that would draw interest from the Galaxy, but even a potential reunion with his former striker wouldn’t be enough to sway Sigi Schmid from screwing the chemistry at Crew Stadium.

That leaves five potential suitors. I’ve listed them in descending order, from least likely to most likely—if anything were to happen, that is. There are, or course, salary-cap issues, but MLS has a history of playing with numbers to make things happen, therefore, I’ve ignored that, to some extent.

5. Colorado Rapids
A tandem of Christian Gomez and Ruiz would make any manager drool. But it’s hardly the best potential pairing for Ruiz. In return, Los Angeles could “get the band back together” with former players Herculez Gomez, Kelly Gray, and Ugo Ihemelu all heading back to the Home Depot Center. Though the Gals would get depth at all three outfield positions, Lalas and Gullit would certainly want more in return for Ruiz.

4. Real Salt Lake
Ruiz would pair well with the brawny Kenny Deuchar in front of Javier Morales. Toss Kyle Beckerman into the mix and, baby, you’ve got a zesty stew going. Also, RSL could use a marquee player like Ruiz as a draw to their new stadium, set to open this fall. However, they don’t have the players to send in the other direction. Any trade would probably center on young reserve goalkeeper Chris Seitz, who would be an immediate upgrade for L.A. Other options include native Californian Ian Joy, and, possibly, a reacquisition of Sturgis. However, again, Lalas and Gullit would likely want more.

3. Toronto FC
Mo Johnston has also rarely seen a trade offer he didn’t like. His search for a legitimate striker would be complete with Ruiz who would work well with Danny Dichio. In addition, midfielder creatives Laurent Robert and Amado Guevara would have a field day with one of the league’s most talented goal-scorers. Young wingback Julius James would key the deal, and perhaps striker Jeff Cunningham, who would be cheaper than Ruiz for the Galaxy. However, even tossing in another former Galaxy defender, Todd Dunivant, would likely not swing the deal between the two GM’s most likely to become car salesman upon retirement.

2. Houston Dynamo
A “magic triangle” of Ruiz, Dwayne De Rosario and Brian Ching would be something to behold. Adding the mercurial Ruiz would kickstart Houston’s struggling offense. Though Dominic Kinnear would have to contend with international absences, Houston has more depth on hand to deal with these. The Dynamo have a centerback to spare between Patrick Ianni and Bobby Boswell, though neither one would be a significant upgrade over the current crop for the Galaxy. There are midfield options, though, such as Corey Ashe and the oft-injured Brad Davis. But Kinnear would likely give pause to breaking up the depth that has led his team to the past two MLS Cups, especially if it were to help a fellow Western Conference foe.

1. Chicago Fire
Sure, the Fire have a plethora of forwards—and possibly Brian McBride on the way. But if nothing happens with McBride now that Fulham have avoided relegation, Ruiz would be an instant upgrade at striker. A combo of Ruiz and Cuauhtémoc Blanco would keep opposing defenders on their heels for 90 minutes.

Wilman Conde, who is on the block right now--to a Western Conference team, only, according to the Fire-- would improve the Galaxy’s backline just by lacing up his boots. Young, technical midfielder Stephen King would add depth to an overall weak midfield and give Gullit a playmaking option during international breaks. The final piece to the puzzle would be striker Chad Barrett, who makes a fraction of Ruiz’s salary. Greatly improving defense while not losing much from the offense would certainly make Lalas and Gullit happy. The question then would be whether or not Chicago would want to roll the dice in trying to improve their club by adding the temperamental Ruiz to a team with several other strong personalities.