Braves, Boston, Padres Wheeling and Dealing
At least three trades were made in the last 24 hours …
Atlanta acquires slugging, switch-hitting catcher Ryan Doumit from the Twins in return for LHP Sean Gilmartin. Doumit joins Evan Gattis and Gerald Laird in what is shaping up to be an interesting 3-man catching rotation.
The Boston Red Sox swapped LHP Franklin Morales and RHP Chris Martin to the Rockies for infielder Jonathan Herrera. Were the Mets kicking the tires on Herrera, who can capably handle shortstop, second base, and third base? I hadn’t heard anything to that effect, but you never know. The Bosox picked up Herrera as insurance in the event Stephen Drew signs elsewhere — such as with the Mets.
In another deal involving a shortstop, the Astros sent minor leaguer Ryan Jackson to San Diego for Jesus Guzman. Guzman is a 1B/OF who hit over .300 in AAA for the past three seasons. Jackson is a 25-year-old utilityman whose main position is shortstop and who has hit .270 with a .339 OBP in 5 minor league seasons. Jackson was property of the St. Louis Cardinals until the Astros claimed him on waivers in late November. Were the Mets interested in Jackson? Again, who knows? But if they were, it wasn’t strong enough to move them to claim him back in November.
Any comment on these moves?
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Joe Janish began MetsToday in 2005 to provide the unique perspective of a high-level player and coach -- he earned NCAA D-1 All-American honors as a catcher and coached several players who went on to play pro ball. As a result his posts often include mechanical evaluations, scout-like analysis, and opinions that go beyond the numbers. Follow Joe's baseball tips on Twitter at @onbaseball and at the On Baseball Google Plus page.
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Atlanta losing McCann and Hudson should not be underestimated, although when I see the Braves and the Nats make trades, they always look to me to be winners for them, at least initially.
Not sure what the Red Sox SS situation is. To me it seems they have a high potential kid ready to plug in and can get a pick for Drew, so why would they sign him? I would welcome him to the Mets but no way more than 2 years, he is a nice player but nothing special. I’s still prefer a young guy with some potential, but Alderson can’t seem to convince anyone to take his leftovers for that type of player.
Not sure what Alderson is up to these days, since there is still a lot of work to be done. I have no problem with him waiting out the 1B markeet, I just hope he is not on hold with all other moves until this plays out.
They have Middlebroooks at 3B and Boegarts’ value is higher at SS. The smart thing for the Sox to do is acquire a backup/placeholder in case Boegarts struggles.
I raise this because it seems to me that Drew has no market. Everyone is holding fast at SS, and the Red Sox have a top prospect who proved himself on the playoff stage; it just makes no sense to block him with an expensive, good-but-not-great player.
So then, who else besides the Mets desperately needs a SS?
If I’m the Red Sox, I offer Drew a fat 1-year deal, take it or leave it. If I’m Drew, I end up taking a 2-year, $24M deal – from whom? The NY Mets.
Just a thought.
I’m betting they hold to a two-year offer to Drew, which is fair for both sides.
They may be holding off on Drew to inflate Will’s value or something, planning to trade him because they don’t actually want him.
Or, it could be the opposite — they’re committed to Middlebrooks and Bogaerts are just keeping their options open with Drew in case something weird happens.
I see this as a clear sign they are moving on from Stephen Drew, leaving him to the Mets and whoever else sees him as a need or upgrade. Maybe he even takes 1-yr deal to punt til next year.
Improvement of young guys might also offset the expected regression of the 2013 Braves’ ridiculously clutch (in the regular season — nyah nyah) bullpen. Can Minor, Teheran, Simmons et al. get better? If so, this is still a very, very elite team.
Simmons, Freeman, and Heyward would seem to be just scratching the surface, which is a scary thought. Then again, any of the three could go the way of Jeff Francoeur or Ruben Tejada. Personally, I think all three are the real deal, with Simmons the one with the potential to make the largest step forward (that doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll be the best of the three, only that of the three, he seems to be the one furthest from his ceiling).
What happens if B.J. Upton and/or Uggla get anywhere close to what is expected of them? I’m betting on Upton having a bounce-back year — I think the change of leagues and pressure of the contract had a lot to do with his struggles. I also think Atlanta’s pitching will at worst be the same as it was, and betting it will be slightly improved overall. On the other hand, Chris Johnson would have to regress, and Uggla looks as lost as Ike Davis.
Am I alone in kind of hoping the Braves stay good? And that there’s a renewal of that rivalry with the Mets (well, making the rather optimistic assumption the Mets will be a good team in the next year or two)?
The late ’90′s/early 2000′s were kind of a special time to be a Mets fan, and in a way the Braves were part of the reason. I was at the game the first time Rocker came in after his infamous SI interview – I haven’t heard 55,000 New Yorkers let loose like that since. With him and Chipper gone – we need a new Darth Vader.