On Thursday, we examined what the Padres have and what they need. Now we turn to the question of which teams might make good trade partners and then consider some possible scenarios.
As of this writing, about half the teams in baseball appear to be in contention. Some will fall of the pace, although it’s impossible to know which ones. Others may not be interested in adding payroll despite their hot starts — Oakland, Florida, and Minnesota come to mind. The NL West teams are probably out as well — Kevin Towers has made a total of four trades (one with each team) within the division in 12 1/2 years. That’s out of 139 total trades, at last count.
Almost everyone needs pitching to some degree. Teams that could use help at second base, third base, or right field include Houston, Philadelphia, St. Louis, possibly the Angels (depending on Howie Kendrick’s balky left hamstring), the White Sox, Cleveland, Minnesota, Oakland, and Tampa Bay. Without running through all the particulars (I’ve scoured these teams’ rosters; you are free to do the same), here are a few ideas that I’d be looking to explore if it were my place to do so.
Talk to the Cardinals and White Sox about Iguchi
The Cardinals have Adam Kennedy at second base. He probably isn’t different enough from Tadahito Iguchi in terms of likely overall production to merit serious consideration. If St. Louis feels otherwise, though, I’d be asking about — and this should come as no surprise — right-hander Anthony Reyes.
Meanwhile, back in Chicago, the White Sox have Juan Uribe, who has been awful (.198/.262/.328) while making the switch from shortstop. They also have the untested Alexei Ramirez and might be inclined to bring in a more known quantity to fill the hole. Iguchi played for the Pale Hose as recently as last year and won a championship with them in 2005. As far as I know, he left Chicago on good terms.
Assuming the White Sox have interest, I’d be targeting center fielder Brian Anderson, who hasn’t done much in the big leagues but who has been a decent hitter (.293/.361/.474) in the minors. He is nothing special, but then, neither is Iguchi. We’re not looking for a savior here, just someone who can help plug a hole until Cedric Hunter is ready sometime in 2010.
I suspect the White Sox may be a better fit, although I’d rather find a way to get Reyes.
Talk to the Phillies, Astros, and Twins about Kouzmanoff
Kevin Kouzmanoff is a personal favorite of mine. I love the way he handled his poor start as a rookie and refused to get down on himself when things weren’t going well. That said, if the Padres can improve themselves in other areas, I have no problem moving him, especially with Chase Headley ready at Portland. The big question with Kouz is whether his perceived value might be too low because of his somewhat slow start (as Richard reminds us, his numbers are better now than they were at the same time last year).
The Phillies have Pedro Feliz at third base. He stinks. They also have Shane Victorino in center field. He and Kouzmanoff have similar contracts and should provide similar value. Philadelphia also has been giving Jayson Werth a lot of time in center, and aside from one memorable clank job against the Padres, he’s played well. I’m thinking the Phillies might be willing to fill a hole without creating another. Throw back a spare outfielder for a low-level prospect if needed. Or go bigger and try to include right-hander Carlos Carrasco in the deal.
(After initially coming up with this idea I bounced it off Eric Seidman, who is much more familiar with the Phillies than am I. He seemed to think they would be more interested in dealing Werth — no thanks — and that they aren’t prepared to give up on Feliz, who is signed through 2009. In other words, this may not be as good a fit as I originally thought.)
The Astros have Geoff Blum and Ty Wigginton. As a team, their third baseman are batting .215/.253/.323. There isn’t anyone on Houston’s big-league roster that could help the Padres, but down on the farm, right-handers Fernando Nieve and Bud Morris are somewhat intriguing. I don’t know much about either of these guys, but their numbers look good. According to Ben Badler at Baseball America, Morris throws in the low-90s but needs to refine his secondary pitches and may move to the bullpen. Houston gave up a boatload of prospects to get Miguel Tejada, and the system is a bit thin. I like the concept here, but I’m not sure there’s a good fit.
Up north, the Twins have Mike Lamb at third, but he’s more of a role player. Minnesota probably won’t want to take on salary, which should make Kouzmanoff an appealing option. The Twins have some talented but unproven youngsters at areas where the Padres need help, including right-hander Kevin Slowey (which is the worst name for a pitcher since Bob Walk), shortstop Trevor Plouffe, and center fielders Denard Span and Jason Pridie.
Slowey is a command specialist who probably fits into what the Padres like in a pitcher, though not necessarily what they need. He profiles as a back-end rotation option without much upside. Plouffe, who turns 22 next month, is a strong defensive shortstop whose bat has started to come around (.274/.326/.410 at Double-A in 2007, with slightly better numbers at the same level so far this year). This is a guy the Padres might want to target anyway, regardless of what they decide to do (or not do) with Khalil Greene — Pridie would give San Diego some insurance at the position and options further down the line should the club decide to move Greene or watch him walk away as a free agent after ’09.
As for Span, he’s a toolsy guy who is hitting well (.327/.431/.471) at Triple-A but who hasn’t shown much of a bat in the past. Like Slowey, he is 24 years old. Pridie, who came over from Tampa Bay along with Delmon Young this past winter, is the same age as Span and was more highly regarded coming into the season — Baseball America ranked Pridie #6 among Twins prospects and compared him to ex-Padre Steve Finley — but he’s been brutal (.220/.271/.305 at Triple-A) so far in ’08.
Of these possibilities, I like the way the Padres match up with Minnesota the best. I’m not sure how highly the Twins regard the prospects mentioned (especially Plouffe, who would seem to be the key to any deal), but this might be an area to explore. I’d at least want to be talking with these guys.
Talk to the Indians and Mets about Giles and/or Wolf
Because of Brian Giles‘ contract, any deal involving him is almost certain to include cash passing from the Padres to his new team. That said, there are potential suitors.
The Indians have Franklin Gutierrez in right field. Giles, who got his start in Cleveland, would represent a substantial upgrade. The Indians have several promising young pitchers, including Adam Miller, Ryan Miller, and David Huff. I don’t know how good (or available) they might be, but these are some names that stand out to me based on their numbers. Adam Miller once was considered a top prospect but has been slow to develop.
The Mets have Moises Alou in left field — Giles’ primary position before coming to San Diego. They also have a young left-hander who seems to have fallen out of favor (Oliver Perez), as well as some intriguing minor-league arms (Nicholas Carr, Angel Calero, among others). Perez won arbitration this past winter and is making $6.5 million in 2008. Wolf is cheaper and presumably less of a headache to the likes of Billy Wagner.
I’m guessing that the Padres wouldn’t have to pay as much of Giles’ salary in a deal involving Perez (because the Mets would be unloading a hefty contract of their own). It can be tough to get an accurate read on what’s really going on in New York because there’s always so much drama, but I’ve also heard that the Mets might be looking to move Aaron Heilman. I might suggest expanding a potential deal to include Heilman and Heath Bell, but judging from the latter’s first go-round with the Mets, that would be cruel.
Here, I like the Mets’ potential package a little better.
What I Would Do
Well, it’s really what I would attempt to do. Obviously the other teams involved have a say in all this…
- Trade Iguchi to the White Sox for Anderson (assuming the Cards balk at moving Reyes)
- Trade Kouzmanoff to the Twins for Plouffe, Slowey, and either Span or Pridie — possibly expanding the deal to include more players on both sides (I’m very uncertain of this move; there’s a lot of risk involved)
- Trade Giles, Wolf, and some amount of cash to the Mets for Oliver Perez and a minor-league arm
- Recall Headley and Antonelli (if he’s not ready, then go with Craig Stansberry or Edgar Gonzalez)
- Release Shawn Estes and Justin Germano (in fact, Germano was DFAd during the course of writing this post over several days), recall Josh Geer and Cesar Ramos
- Keep Greene — at least until Plouffe is ready
- Keep Greg Maddux — he won’t bring enough in return to offset the loss of his presence
So we now have a lineup that looks like this:
C: Josh Bard/Michael Barrett
1B: Adrian Gonzalez
2B: Antonelli/Stansberry/E-Gon
3B: Headley
SS: Greene (with Plouffe in minors)
LF: Paul McAnulty/Scott Hairston
CF: Anderson (with Span or Pridie in minors)
RF: Jody Gerut
Maybe one of McAnulty or Hairston emerges, maybe not. Whatever the case, Chad Huffman should be knocking on the door in spring 2009 anyway. Heck, if you’re feeling real crazy, you might even bring him up after the All-Star break.
Here’s the rotation:
Jake Peavy
Chris Young
Maddux
Perez
Geer/Ramos
Geer and Ramos look like marginal big-league pitchers to me, at best, but you might as well run ‘em out there and see what they can do. Once LeBlanc stops tipping his change-up, or whatever the heck his problem is, then you give him a more serious look. Same with Inman when he’s ready, probably mid-2009.
Concluding Thoughts
My suggestions may not be as radical as some people might like, but I don’t see a need to blow up the team based on the quaint notion that “48 games are more important than four seasons worth of games” (thanks to MB at Friar Forecast for expressing this sentiment more eloquently than I can). The important thing is to make incremental improvements and maintain a disciplined approach to whatever moves you end up making.
The problems with this team feel monumental because we’re experiencing them right now, but really this is just part of the cycle — well, unless you’re the Pirates — and things will get better. Not because of some magic pill or because anyone believes it will (ugh, please!), but because the management team in place has a proven track record of success. Does this mean they’ve never stumbled in the process? Well, you really don’t need to look further than the first third of this season to find your answer. But it also doesn’t mean they stumble all the time, or even most of the time.
It will be interesting to see what kinds of changes are in store for this team over the coming weeks and months. That’s the great thing about baseball: Even when the on-field product is scarcely worth mentioning (Thursday night’s power surge being a notable exception), there’s always something happening. Guess that’s why we keep coming back for more…
#45@Dave H: It’s contradictory to say “Look at what Cust has done” and then claim that McAnulty and Huber are clearly worthless. Before he busted out last year, Cust had struggled to establish himself. He started this year very slowly (669 OPS in April). McAnulty and Huber may never be productive major leaguers, but we don’t know that yet. McAnulty hasn’t struggled any more than Kouz did to start last year.
#46@John Conniff: I don’t want to shake things up. I want the 2009-11 Padres to have the best possible chance to succeed. So I’d trade almost anyone who didn’t fit that plan, if they brought back a sufficient reward. We might be better off keeping Giles and picking up his option than trading him. But I wouldn’t rush Inman, and I’d be fine with anyone at 2b. Probably Egone because it makes a nice story.
#48@Coronado Mike: Paint it a matte flesh tone.
#47@Dalton: I thought you’d be bigger. Roadhouse, baby!
#26@Coronado Mike: This
“baseball insider”‘s comment really irks. Agon is 4th in the league in homers and 2nd in the league in RBIs. How’s that for some offense??
#50@Dave H: Nobody’s huge on trading Kouz, but if you get enough for him to make the team better, it’s smart.
We’ve seen what substandard outfield defense can do. I’d much rather have Headley at his best position and let Huffman play LF in 09.
#52@Marsh: I bet a lot of his RBIs consist of Giles scoring.
I really haven’t wanted to trade Kouz regardless because he’s one of the only players we have with the power to really hit the ball. Heck his last two HRs have been to the deepest part of the park, and he did it without too much difficulty. I stated this for a while; a Headley-Gonzo-Kouz-Greene at 3-6 gives us a hell of a lot of power in the middle. So I can take some defensive butchering in return for the ability to take the ball out even in Petco.
As far as deal goes, unless I get something that blows me away, and Geoff’s offer did not, I’m not trading Kouz. I’d still talk with the Yankees about Bard and Maddux, maybe to get one of their 3-4 good outfield prospects (obviously not Tabata but they have some other guys). Wolf is improving his value bit by bit, I wonder if we couldn’t make a trade with Wolf, Hairston and maybe a pitcher (Ramos?) for Shane Victorino. Phils are thinking long and hard about clearing Victorino out and he’d be a vast improvement in CF.
#51@Tom Waits: I agree on making the ’09-’11 Padres the best they can be but I think calling up guys that aren’t ready or players that shouldn’t be there in the first place isn’t the answer.
Right now I’m inclined to keep Giles for another year while hopefully Headley and Huffman develop in their half and full rookie seasons. Part ot me still thinks Antonelli is going to pull out of his slump, but we’ll see.
LeBlanc has the most upside in Portland but right now his problem is trying to throw a change that looks like his two-seamer, which he is having difficulty controlling. When he doesn’t have it, guys sit on it and pound him. I like Geer, but he’s still getting hit pretty hard in AAA.
Couple of thoughts. Trading for Oliver Perez does not make much sense given he will be a free agent at the end of the year and will be demanding too much for the Padres. Seems like there is a little bit of the Giles trade hangover being involved in that scenario, maybe the Padres can work a three way deal and get Jason Bay as well.:-) I would like to see the Padres potentially explore getting a guy like a Jeremy Reed from the Mariners, potentially for Blanks who does not look to have much of a future in SD and could fit into the plans for the Mariners. Reed has the potential to turn into more of a player than Brian Anderson based on his track record.
Also there seems to be a lot of scenarios involving Padres trading position players for pitching, which does not fill the offensive holes the Padres have. The Padres are always going to be able to attract starting pitching so I think the emphasis should be on getting positional players with team control.
I would keep Kouz going into next year playing Headley in left. If Huffman does force the issue and creates a log jam you then have the option of trading one of the Kouz, Headley, or Huffman, ideally at a lot higher value then where they are at now. You don’t lose anything by waiting and holding Kouz, if he emerges and starts putting up big numbers then you have a real chip if you decide to got that route.
#55@Loren: IMO, I think people focus too much on Kouzs power.
274BA, 303 OBP, 398SLG, 90 OPS+, 4BB, 38K
There are a lot of offensive liabilities in his numbers.
#52@Marsh: That could be Stark talking to Steve Phillips.
Huge fan of the Denard Span idea, Geoff. Young, underproducing at the majors but a good minor track record with time and ability to improve.
Those are the risks we need to take.
#58 Parlo
I won’t deny there’s liabilities there but he’s been the second best hitter on the Pads for two years, and though people focus alot of Kouz’s power, its primarily because in Petco we’ve been power starved. He has flaws in his game yes, but I think his potential and what he’s been able to do over the last two years makes him a component you don’t want to trade cheap. But if you want to trade him away I agree with #57; let the prospects force the issue and trade from a place of strength
OK, you all have “nailed” me on this stuff.
Really, I think one thing we can all agree on is that Padres fans should be VERY skeptical about any minor leaguers they claim will come up and make an impact (i.e. Antonelli and Headley). Who have they developed in the past say, 10 years?
1) Peavy (LOL, remember Tankersly was supposed to be better?)
2) Khalil (whom I kind of like, despite the major offensive holes in his game and extreme hot/cold tendencies.)
I can’t think of any others, please help me if I’ve left anybody significant out. Eaton, Yong, Gonzalez, Kouz, all trades from other teams (and pretty good ones, lets give them some credit).
Point is, there must be something going with regards to their poor player development. Arias me once shame on you, Burroughs me twice shame on me…
People who are focusing on Kouz’ prouduction are somewhat missing the point.
We have two hitters who can play third and can probably hit well enough to play third, maybe even be special at it. Moving either to LF weakens their value to the team and in a trade.
Trading one is a good idea if you can get value back at a position of need.
So it’s between Headley and Kouzmanoff. Given KK’s splits, Headley’s accepted status as a better defender, I’d take my chances with Chase and see what I could get for Kouz.
But trading Headley shouldn’t be off the table either.
#55@Loren: Kouz has power, but right now he’s also got Khalil’s strike zone judgment. He walked in the minors, so it’s not necessarily permanent, but runs are directly related to getting on base. I’d take his defense, too, if his OBP was around 330 and his power returned full-time. But it’s not as if Headley lacks power, and he gives you a better eye at the plate and improved defense.
#56@John Conniff: Yeah, I wouldn’t call up anybody who isn’t ready. I’d call up guys I don’t much care about. Geer, Ramos, Venable, Stansberry.
#57@CW: I like Reed. But free agent pitching costs money; even Wolf is set to make 7 million. Besides, we’re not actually that strong in the pitching department. 3 of the last 4 years the lack of depth in the rotation has hurt us badly.
#58@parlo: Those strikeout / walk numbers are the most worrying part. Strikeouts don’t bother me if you’ll take a free pass.
#61@Loren: No, he hasn’t. The second best hitter on the Padres now is Brian Giles, who has been almost as productive as Agon (way more OBP, far less power). Giles was just as good as Kouz last year. Jenga (Bradley) was actually the best overall hitter, but in such a short period it shouldn’t count.
Why do people bring up George Arias? It’s like folks who are skeptical of Headley are only reading press clippings and acting like there isn’t more information out there.
Arias was verbally hyped, but wasn’t any kind of real prospect that I remember. The system was barren and Towers was doing his usual hype job.
Burroughs never developed power. Simple as that — and then began to try to compensate for it and screwed himself up. A valid comment. But Arias isn’t comparable to Headley.
The Chipper Jones comments on Headley are a joke. And people should be concerned about his K rate. But he’s not George Arias.
Alan
Here’s teh problem – I think both are undervalued at this point.
Kouz is undervalued because he plays for the Padres, is somewhat (or is) bad at 3B, and doesn’t have the sexy 3B power numbers
Headley’s undervalued because he’s coming out of the Padres system which hasn’t produced any really good hitters in a long time and because every team that wants him offers to give up crap for him (Nate McLouth, Luke Scott, Coco Crisp)
So yeah we have two guys who can hit at 3B and can be special but since neither have set the world on fire non of them are going to fetch big prospects.
#62@Dave H: Oh, we should absolutely be skeptical. I think you’ll find DSers as a group are fairly wary of the minor league and drafting strategy of the Padres.
#66-Alan
The Chipper Jones comments on Headley are a joke. And people should be concerned about his K rate. But he’s not George Arias.
Agreed, it’s not fair to base our opinions of Headley based on past failures at 3rd base.
Geoff, maybe you can answer this, what kind of numbers project to in the majors? If it’s something like .275 average, 12 homers, .350 OBP then you’ll have forgive me for not doing backflips over the guy…
#62@Dave H: Ollie and X Nady should also be in that list, if memory serves.
#62@Dave H: You can’t just write that because Burroughs didn’t pan out that everyone else will be the same.
Also Burroughs was good at what he did in the minors, he could put the bat on the ball and had exceptional hand eye coordination. The problem was too many pundits were predicting that he would hit for much more power than he ever showed in the minors. If the Padres had realized what they had – a guy with potentially some gap power that could develop into a good #2 hitter behind a leadoff man like Dave Roberts – instead of trying to covert him into a power hitter then a leadoff man, it might have gone better for both parties.
Usually if someone hits at AA or above, they will hit in the majors. Pitching is a little different – but with a club with SD’s resources, you have to build through the minors.
#68 Tom-Oh, we should absolutely be skeptical. I think you’ll find DSers as a group are fairly wary of the minor league and drafting strategy of the Padres.
That’s good to know, as I am fairly new to these boards. It’s just a very frustrating franchise to be a fan of. I mean as bad as the Rays have been they spent time signing good, talented athletes (yes, ATHLETES) and developing them. Fans have gotten to grow with guys like Crawford and Kazmir, and now they are competetive.
SD just has a revolving door of band-aid solutions it seems like (at least Jake, A-Gone, Young and Khalil have/will be mainstays). Plus the uniforms are atrocious.
#64@Tom Waits: No offense Tom and to use a cliche, that is just shuffling deck chairs on the Titanic -especially with Stansberry and Ramos.
I don’t like Venable in CF – but others have told me he’s been playing well out there. I think Geer could develop, but he needs a full year in AAA.
#70 Phantom- Ollie and X Nady should also be in that list, if memory serves.
For sure. Nady I guess served his purpose in us getting Cameron for a bit.
#73@John Conniff: Oh, it is shuffling chairs around, no question. But what’s missing is that by moving the veterans, you’re getting new chairs. Those new chairs might be better than the furniture which is allowed to ride the HMS 2008 San Diego Padres Baseball Season into the cold, dark sea.
If we can get B- pitching prospect for Iguchi, and what it costs us in 2008 is having Edgar Gonzalez play 2b for 75 games, it’s worth it. Iguchi’s not here next year anyway. Kouz and Giles are different because we can keep them if we want, and their trade value may not be high enough to justify a move. Maddux is somewhat in that same lifeboat.
#64@Tom Waits: The K/BB ratio drives me bananas! There are too many players like that on this team.
I dont mind one, maybe two, but this lineup has numerous players with those type of numbers. (granted, not as bad as KK, but KG isnt far behind). I think the entire offensive culture needs to change. If young players are coming in, there shouldnt be a group of established players with such poor discipline.
#60@Alan: Agree on Span. He shouldn’t be the primary return unless the trade doesn’t involve Kouz, but we should try for him.
#74@Dave H: But your entire point was that the system hasn’t produced anyone in the 10 years. Whether or not they benefitted our team or another through trade is irrelevant. The fact remains that there ARE people who have been developed through our system.
This is OT, but does anyone know when Carillo should be going again? I seem to remember thinking that he should start showing up around summer and it’s almost June.
#76@parlo: It’s a hard thing to predict, because Kouz had decent (not great) walk numbers in the minors.
If the org. stresses one thing to its minor league hitters, it’s plate discipline. We’ll have to see if the lessons are sufficient, or if outwaiting minor league pitchers isn’t adequate training for he majors.
Boy you really have to be on this all day to keep pace….wow!
#25 @ Tom Waits: You can’t argue with the numbers, you are absolutely right. KG makes outs. However I disagree that his offense makes him expendable to some degree. My point is his defense covers up some of the faults in his plate appearances and saves runs from being scored. Not to mention, can you name a shortstop that you can plug in for the same money with the same defensive skills and the pop he carries. I have MLB Extra Innings and have to listen to the visiting broadcasts daily (I miss Matty and Mud) and the one player they talk about constantly is KG. Not to mention he is a homer….one the Padres actually got right. I don’t care what any of you say, that makes a difference to me.
Not to be the pessimist but many are hanging the future of third base or left field on a guy that has yet to prove to himself at this level. Before someone mentioned him, I was greatful to have forgotten the name George Arias….ICK. I have no doubt Headley exceeds the actual playing ability of Burroughs and Arias, but lets not let the ‘quick fix’ de-rail the good core team we’ve put together. I should also mention that if they do bring Headley up (which contrary to KT’s belief) I think is a good idea, I hope he plays left and proves the apprehensive side of me wrong.
#31@Dave H: The only rightfielder having a better season than Giles is Ludwick.
#36@Didi: Headley really doesn’t seem ready. His peripherals just aren’t good right now. He’s striking out too much still, isn’t walking enough now, and he seems to have left some of his power in San Antonio.
#46@John Conniff: I honestly don’t get the fascination with the hyperbole of “this team couldn’t compete at [insert minor league level].” Nobody really believes that. Do they?
#53@Tom Waits: I think we should all be against trading anyone if it doesn’t make the team better. I think it’s funny that we feel the need to say, “I only want to trade player x if it makes us better.” Well, duh.
#56@John Conniff: I agree that we’re probably going to be best off not trading Giles. Assuming we plan to compete in ’09, I don’t think we’re going to get anyone likely to be better than Giles next season.
#58@parlo: IMO, it makes some sense to look at this year’s numbers in the context of last year’s splits and realize he’s hitting better this year than last.
#62@Dave H: There’s a new front office in place, so it’s hard to hang the last ten years on them when Headley/Antonelli are really their first draft class.
#65@Tom Waits: The second best hitter on this team is Gonzalez, actually. Giles is our best hitter.
#78@Phantom: Yeah, about 16 players who have played in the Majors this year. That’s four fewer than any other team in baseball and about 27 fewer than th Dodgers.
#80@MinnesotaMo: Greene absolutely saves runs with defense. But that has nothing to do with our ability to “keep the infield together for a long time.” He’s only signed through 2009.
As for SS who can produce at his price range….Jack Wilson had as many Win Shares last year, which was Khalil’s peak so far. Jason Bartlett had almost as many.
Clearly, those two don’t have Greene’s upside. But Greene’s upside may never happen. His peak may be a league-average hitter with good defense at a premium defensive position, and that’s good to have. But it’s not irreplaceable. Jeff Blauser and Geg Gagne weren’t irreplaceable.
If Kouz is traded and Headley goes back to third I have no confidence in this organization’s ability to field a decent left fielder. For a position that’s supposed to be easy to fill with a productive bat, the Padres sure do seem to have a knack for running crappy retreads out there. I could see us with Jay Payton or Shannon Stewart or something out there if Kouz is shipped out.
Actually, at this point why not sign Bonds and just go with the freak show?
I’ve heard a lot of theorizing that Adrian’s batting average has slipped because he’s trying to do too much but I think the pressure could also be affecting Kouz. He may be chasing pitches in an attempt to be more aggressive and avoid the same kind of slump he had last year.
#81@Richard Wade: In regards to your comments about trading someone only if it makes us better.
The FO may not be thinking that way. If they can cut the payroll 30% and still remain a last place team, they may choose to do so. Cutting payroll also frees up money for future endeavors. Then there is the short term gain vs long term gain considerations. What a player could provide in 2011 vs what Giles or Kouz is worth now.
If the FO starts trading, it is not to improve this years team, or even next years. I think this is going to be a rebuilding process of several years.
#81@Richard Wade:
53. But apparently, we do.
65: Yeah, you like wOBA, don’t you? I was just going off OPS+.
#84@parlo: Disagree. I don’t think the front office punts 2009. It’s hard to see them going all-out to win, but they’re going to be hunting for players in AA or AAA, High A if they can’t do better. Their trades seem far more likely to be aimed at:
1. Near-future (2009-10) upside
2. Long-term upside
3. Immediate cost savings
#81 Dick Wade-There’s a new front office in place, so it’s hard to hang the last ten years on them when Headley/Antonelli are really their first draft class.
My statement was more an indicment of their minor league developmental system than the current front office.
Although Alderson and the “new” front office have made quite a case against themselves already, wasting a pick on Nick Schmidt last year.
#83 Anthony-Actually, at this point why not sign Bonds and just go with the freak show?
I like this idea. It would make my 9 dollar Petco beer that much more entertaining and enjoyable.
#78@Phantom: According to DePodesta’s blog, Carillo is pitching in extended spring training.
#81 Wade-The only rightfielder having a better season than Giles is Ludwick.
Actually, there’s a guy who’s hit 7 homers with more runs and RBI than Giles and has a .388 OBP.
X Nady ring a bell? Giles is playing well this year, but let’s face it, nobody else in the majors wants to trade for this guy unless he is on roids.
#89@Field39: Thanks. I was curious to know what’s going on with him. Any chance we see him this year?
#90@Dave H: But you’re leaving out the fact that Giles is having a wonderful year while playing in the vaccum that is Petco Park. PNC is by no means a hitters paradise (pretty neutral, I think), but the numbers Giles has put up this year look damn good in the context of the park he’s playing in.
I think that the Padres should look to trade Khalil to the Angels who have a huge hole at SS. Their bullpen is also a little weak. Maybe Greene and Heath Bell is enough to get Juan Rivera and maybe one of their SS prospects — probably not Brandon Wood but maybe Sean Rodriguez.
Phantom, Giles doesn’t really hit for power anymore anyways; you could argue that Petco actually HELPS him by spreading out the outfielders more to make more room for his singles.
Just a thought, but I do see your logic, and would agree with it in most cases.
#93@Schlom: I’m not sure how much of a hole they really have at SS. If I remember right, they’ve been getting decent production from Izturis and Aybar (who’s currently hurt).
I wouldn’t do Bell & KG for just Rivera and someone else. If I’m doing Bell and KG, I’m expecting a frontline starter in return. Now, I would do Bell and KG for Saunders and Willits. But I don’t know that would ever happen.
Trade Bell now while he has value. Look what happened to Linebrink, we held onto him for too long and got lesser caliber prospects when we finally ended up ditching him…
#46@John Conniff: I’d be okay with Edgar Gonzalez at second base in the short run. Whoever replaces Iguchi in this scenario would be a stopgap until Antonelli is ready. I don’t really care who that stopgap is. Same with Geer and Ramos in the rotation, both of whom are marginal prospects at best. Let the studs continue to develop while lower-ceiling guys fill in at the big-league level.
#55@Loren: We’re probably not going to get an offer Kouz that blows us away, which means we may be better off holding him. As I said, I’m least certain about this idea.
#57@CW: No Giles hangover here. I have defended that deal from Day 1 and continue to do so, thanks.
#66@Alan: Arias actually was a prospect, but not by the time we got him. He flamed out in the Angels organization before coming here.
#83@Anthony: You know, the point about our inability to field a left fielder is fascinating. It should be just about the easiest spot to fill, and yet somehow it never is for us. I wonder why?
#90@Dave H: Actually, several teams should have some interest in the services of Giles.
Also, on a more general note, I think it’s important not to get hung up on the specific names I’ve mentioned but to focus instead on the process. Incremental changes, disciplined approach…
#96@Dave H: No, actually we fleeced the Brewers in that trade.
New guys have a lot of reading to do.
#97@Geoff Young:
Actually, several teams should have some interest in the services of Giles.
Any word on which teams are interested in Giles and what we could potentially get for him?
However we can get longer term solutions to the holes in the field and in the lineup, I’m all for it. If we can get a young player with some experience, that would be ideal.
BTW, nobody has mentioned Bard here yet. He’s a nice semi-regular/backup but it doesn’t seem like he is any kind of a long term solution…
#95@Phantom: Angels SS are hitting 245/259/326 — I’d say that’s a rather large hole.
If you could get Wood and Rivera (or Willits even though Rivera is a lot better) for Greene and Bell I don’t know why you wouldn’t do it.
They have to trade Greene now, the longer they wait the less they will get for him. If the team could actually draft players they could take the chance of letting him walk for a draft pick but with their track, that’s the same as letting him walk for nothing.