Here’s the latest from around the league:
- With Chris Davis off the board, Ken Davidoff of the New York Post looks at the market for outfielder Yoenis Cespedes. While Davidoff runs through five of Cespedes’ top suitors, he ultimately concludes that none of them are a perfect fit to offer Cespedes his asking price. Budget or an unwillingness to spend on a right-handed outfielder are barriers with most of the obvious matches. The Tigers are a reasonable dark horse candidate for Cespedes (or Justin Upton) due to owner Mike Illich’s penchant for surprise blockbusters. With his market seemingly growing stale, I wonder if a team like the Phillies could be baited into a bid. They have the money and wouldn’t have to surrender a draft pick to sign him. Preposterous? Probably.
- The 2016-2017 free agent pool is thin in the outfield, making a one-year deal a viable option for Cespedes and Upton, writes AJ Cassavell of MLB.com. Carlos Gomez and Jose Bautista are the top names available, although either player could be re-signed. After the top pair, the market thins out dramatically. Re-entering the market strikes me as an unnecessary risk for Cespedes and Upton. Both players had strong, healthy platform seasons. Cespedes in particular stands to lose out if he’s impatient. He isn’t tied to a qualifying offer, and it’s hard to imagine him improving upon a 6.7 WAR season.
- Speaking of dark horse buyers, the Rays could jump in the market for a player like Upton, Ian Desmond, Pedro Alvarez, or Steve Pearce, writes Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. The Rays are still shopping their starting pitching, but the well-stocked free agent market may prove too tempting. Any free agent addition would require require owner Stuart Sternberg’s approval, but he’s been on board with opportunistic additions in the past. Topkin also lists Marlon Byrd, Justin Morneau, and David Murphy as possible fits. The club would like to get out from under some of the $8MM owed to James Loney.
- The Rockies have three obvious issues, writes Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post. The outfield is crowded by the addition of Gerardo Parra. The club seemingly would like to trade one or more of Carlos Gonzalez, Charlie Blackmon, and Corey Dickerson, presumably to solve their second problem – a lack of pitching depth and talent. The players themselves ask if Saunders if the Rockies will acquire pitching. So far, they’ve sat out the free agent market. The Rays are the most obvious sellers in the trade market. Last but not least, Jose Reyes’ future with the club is completely uncertain. He played poorly after joining the Rockies and currently faces criminal charges and possible jail time in relation to domestic abuse charges. He’s also a suspension candidate under the league’s new domestic violence policy.
Wonder why teams are so reluctant to give the youngest man of the bunch Upton an offer? Age factored a lot in the Heyward deal why shouldn’t it kick in with Upton as well?
Teams are starting to concern themselves with defense. Picks are starting to become important again. NL teams are probably wondering how long he can stay in LF( whether fair or not). Most of the big market teams that would splurge are already capped or not willing to go over taxable territory. Age factored with Heyward because he was 2 years under, capable of playing a premium position in center, and his value is mainly defensively. A lot of team probably felt Heyward has yet to tap into his offensive potential, whether warranted or not. Upton is a streaky hitter who can man only LF and offensively what you see is what you get. There will be a team that jumps but nothing like he probably thought he would get.
Not to mention that u don’t always know what your going to get with him. It’s on and off with him at certain times
Heyward is still relatively young enough that you could argue he has hasn’t fully realized his potential yet. Upton, on the other hand, can’t be argued for that because we (the fans and organizations) have been waiting for him to break out like he was supposed to. He’s had good years, but has never seemed to live up to his potential.
I know it’s not only you, but I just don’t understand this line of thinking at all. Justin Upton is entering his age 28 season and has three straight seasons of 3-4 WAR, 25+ HR and .200+ ISO. He is an above average base runner and average defender in the COF. Who cares if he hasn’t lived up to someone else’s expectations. He is a top 20 OF in MLB who is only now entering his prime. If you truly believe he has untapped potential, it should be even more reason to sign him as very few FA have upside.
Cespedes is a pefect fit for Oakland’s LF for the next 5 years. They won’t pay him 150 mill though.
Oakland won’t fork over a contract for him. Or any big free agent, it’s going to be Crisp in LF, burns in CF and reddick in RF next year
He wouldn’t go back to Oakland
They said that 4 years ago when he signed with them in the first place. Never say never.
Ray Ray like to hear your take on the 3 outfielders.
Who do you think they’ll trade and who do you think is the trade partner?
Also what kind of a package do you think they’ll get for that guy?
Oakland looks pretty good when it’s not Cuba.
To be honest, I would be okay with keeping them all right now. Dickerson is weak defensively, so I think he could move to first. Then you have Parra in left, Blackmon in center, and CarGo in right. You’d have Paulsen and Barnes as the backup outfielders and Paulsen would also serve as the back 1B.
If I had to pick one to trade,it would probably be Blackmon, but I am not confident in any of the other three in Coors’ spacious CF. Dickerson’s value is too low right now after a injury-plagued season. CarGo and Parra were best buddies as kids and is probably the reason Parra signed with the Rox to begin with. Of course that doesn’t prevent a CarGo trade, but why would you want to start off your relationship with your new OF by trading away the reason he signed immediately?
But I am not making the decisions, so my bet for most likely destinations in the event of a trade. I have also listed them in terms of probable prospect cost from lowest to highest.
Blackmon – Angels (Tropeano + a prospect that is not Bedrosian)
Dickerson – Rays (Matt Moore/Drew Smyly + a prospect or two on both sides…maybe take back James Loney too for a better quality prospect)
CarGo – White Sox (Fulmer + Garcia + lottery ticket prospect)
I could also see the Cards liking CarGo (Reyes, Adams, Gonzales) or the Indians liking Dickerson (Danny Salazar/Carlos Carrasco + a prospect or two on both sides).
Some people might scoff at the price, but as I said, I would rather keep them all unless I am overwhelmed.
Hmm interesting. I don’t think the Indians / Rays trade would happen because the Indians don’t seem to be giving in to any offers and the price for even mediocre pitching has sky rocketed but, I can see a scenario i which the White Sox go all in and Blackmon going to the Angels. Thanks for the reply and knowledge!
I immediately thought the same about moving Dickerson to 1st when I heard we had signed Parra. It’s obvious they want some flexibility in the outfield and Parra, CarGo and Blackmon cover that.well. Dickerson can platoon with Paulsen at 1st, PH and spell Parra in LF when needed.
Sure hope we can find some arms….
He would if Oakland made a strong offer. He loved playing for Melvin.
I don’t get why baseball writers think that the Phillies are going to spend big money. That team is like three-four years away from contending.
I disagree. The Phillies had the worst record in the league, but they were relatively hot to end the season. Several times that has carried over. They are one of my sleeper teams for 2016. I look for them to be around 80-82 wins and contend for a wild card for most of the season.
Philly will likely be a 70-92 team. Much more likely than a .500 team.
Hence my term “sleeper.” If they were likely to be a .500 team, then it wouldn’t be a sleeper pick, it would just be a popular pick.
what are you basing your predictions on a 70-92 team?
You’re 100% correct – The Phillies finished the 2nd half going 33-37, and that with Pitchers who are now gone that went 5-20 with an ERA well over 5.00
GONE – Aaron Harang (6-15) 4,86 ERA – Free Agent
Jerome Williams (4-12) 5.80 ERA – Free Agent
Chad Billingsley (2-3) 5.84 ERA – Free Agent
Justin DeFratus (0-2) 5.51 ERA – Free Agent (signed by Mariners)
Kevin Correa (0-3) 6.56 ERA – Free Agent
Jake Diekman (2-1) 5.15 ERA – Traded to Rangers
Severino Gonzalez (3=3) 7.92 ERA – Back to Minors
David Buchannan (2-9) 6.99 ERA – Back to Minors & Injured
Phillippe Aumont (0-1) 13.50 ERA – Released
Sean O’Sullivan (1-6) 6.08 ERA – Released
Dustin McGowen (1-2) 6.94 ERA – Released
Adam Loewen (1-0) 6.98 ERA – Released
Alec Asher (0-6) 9.31 ERA – Back to Minors
I got myself curious so I did more research….
Gone from the 2015 Phillies
10 Starters that went 19=60 in 106 Starts posting a COMBINED 6.19 ERA
7 Relievers that went 4-4 with a COMBINED 5.85 ERA.
17 Pitchers – 23 wins – 64 losses
740.1 IP / 949 HITS / 503 ER / 273 WALKS / 509 K’s / 6.11 ERA
Seriously, that is worse than I even thought.
ANYONE they have Pitching this year cannot do worse….
Phillies went 63-99 – those 17 Pitchers went 23-64, and they are gone.
So basically, what’s left is a staff that went 40-35 plus the additions they have.
Gotta think they are really more looking at a .500 team than not.
Say the replacements go .500 – that would be 43-44 (even giving the extra game a loss) that would be a 83-79 season.
Not saying its gonna happen that way… but its sure more likely than a 92 loss season like you predicted.(EndinStealth)
Yes but the replacements would have to be replacement level and I just don’t see it. Too young to really have any expectations, but on the flip side they could all improve and contend.
I’m not a huge fan of saving money one year for the next, because it so rarely translates, but if anyone wanted to rebuild value it would be in a park like Citizens Bank. I would love to see them sign Upton to a one year 25 mil deal or a front loaded 5/100 with opt outs each year.
I give the phillies one more year to be contenders again
Yeah that’s a sensible thought. There’s no way they are winning season series against the Mets, Nats or Marlins. They might beat the Braves, but them and the Braves are pretty bad. The smartest move they could make this year would be a bottom 5 finish and that high draft pick, then go after Strasburg next winter in FA.
There is no reason to believe that they can’t win the season series against any of those teams. In 2015 the following happened. The Rockies won the season series with the Giants 11-8. The Phillies won the season series with the Cubs 5-2. The Pirates had the second best record in the league and lost the season series against all four teams in their division. Season series wins mean absolutely nothing.
And you are basing that 3-4 years away from contention on???
That team has the money to ramp up the contention period – especially if the price of some of these free agents come down (i.e. Cespedes). Sure, they have some top-shelf prospect talent with little to no MLB experience, but all you need is a few especially in the NL East where there’s no clear favorite year-to-year. As an ATL fan, I envy their fan base and the money they have coming in.
What a mess Reyes has turned into. For his sake I hope he figures things out.
Very much so. From a top tier talent, to the bottom of the pile in less than a half season
I actually think the Phillies could be in on Upton more than Cespedes… but neither would be bad for the much needed offense for the Phillies.
Are they still rebuilding, yes… But why not start earlier than later?
Everyone is saying they will wait til 2018 to go deep into free agency, which I agree to a point. Most people also agree the Phillies will start to contend again come 2018.
Bringing in an Upton or Cespedes I think would move the process quicker and when 2018 comes and Free Agents are being pursued, already having a Cespedes or Upton would actually help attract more Free Agents.
Anyone that follows the Phillies know that this is the last year for Ryan Howard and Carlos Ruiz. And Hellickson with Morton are on 1 year contracts and will be flipped come July, opening the door for any number of rookies that should be ready by then, namely Appel / Thompson / Eflin / Lively and so on… That JP Crawford will be 2017’s starting SS, – Alfaro and Knapp as their Catchers / Roman Quinn, Nick Williams in the OF.
Starting THIS year, the Phillies have $125 Million coming in from their new TV deal and Revenue Sharing – that’s $125 Million GIFT Money every year ($100 million for the next 25 Years from Comcast)
The Phillies will have ZERO multi year contracts after 2017 (Harrison is on the books and unless he actually pitches, he’s insured for 80% of that contract)
So…. Let’s look ahead to 2017. Phillies go after Strasburg and any one of the closers (Chapman / Jansen / Storen / Melancon)
Again – The Phillies will be able to outbid all other teams.
Then 2018 Free Agents come – Bryce Harper, Josh Donaldson, Andrew McCutchen, David Price, Jose Fernandez, Manny Machado, Jason Heyward, Dallas Keuchel, Clayton Kershaw and Matt Harvey will all be Free Agents (Heyward, Price and Kershaw on opt-outs) – and I just named the cream of the crop, It goes far deeper than this. Let’s add Adam Jones, Nelson Cruz, AJ Pollock, Charlie Blackmon, Dee Gordon, Brian Dozier, Garrett Richards, Adam Wainwright, Shelby Miller, Patrick Corbin, Drew Smyly as well… Closers Rosenthal, Britton, A. Miller, Ramos, Familia, Capps, Perkins and Robertson.
I’ll say it again… the Phillies will have ZERO payroll by then (all players would be on arbitration deals as it stands right now)
How good would the Phillies be if they signed Machado to play 3B as Franco moves to 1B? Cespedes would only be 32, or Upton just 30 if they signed with the Phillies in 2016.
Imagine this team:
1B) M. Franco
2B) D. Sweeney
SS) JP Crawford
3B) M. Machado
C) J. Alfaro & A. Knapp
LF) Cespedes or J. Upton
CF) R. Quinn
RF) N. Williams
OF) O. Herrera / A. Altherr
SP) Strasburg – Wainwright – Thompson – Nola – Eickhoff – Appel
Closer – Chapman or Jansen
Frankly, the possibilities are endless as the Phillies have as of right now, the 5th best Minor League Prospects with 2016’s #1 overall pick to yet add. They have a $100 million a year TV contract that just started this year… add in an average of $25 Million for Revenue Sharing. – A team that will not go over the luxury tax threshold, but will go to its edge… and its estimated that it will go from the current $189 Million to around $220 Million with the next CBA come next year.
The Future is bright for the Phillies… and they can start that “future” right now by signing Cespedes or Upton!
To say the Phillies can outspend anyone fails to take into account all the money coming off the books for both the yanks and Dodgers. True the final two you mentioned on that list the Phillies can by far outbid. It’s interesting to note what both teams have done and get off the books. Every team knows what 18 will look like so no one is going surprise anyone. Yankees have about what 50 mill committed for 19. Dodgers 13 mill committed if Kershaw opts out. Plus that list will be cut in half by that times as agents and players understand that list. That list is already starting to dwindle.
I understand that teams such as the Yanks and Dodgers will have plenty to spend as well…. of course the needs of each team will be different as well as the players to go after. The fact is, there are so many high profile players available, that there will be plenty of each to go around.
I didn’t name the Phillies even bidding for the likes of Price, Kershaw, Harper, Donaldson, Harvey, Fernandez and McCutchen.
You also have to add in the up and coming prospects that teams have to replace those coming off the books…
Pretty sure Aaron Judge will replace Carlos Beltran & Bird replaces Teixeira.
McCann can move to DH replacing A-Rod and they have Stewart at Catcher.
I think they go hard after a Starter when CC Sabathia is gone.
Dodgers have so much young Pitching and have dipped into the International Signings, that they are covered if Kershaw isn’t re-signed. (Urias / DeLeon / Holmes / Montas) – Bellinger to replace Adrian Gonzalez – Verdugo in LF and Micah Johnson at 2B.
Red Sox have Devers to replace Sandoval / Moncada for Pedroia / Benintendi in the OF – Owens, Johnson as SP – Shaw and Travis at 1B to replace Ramirez, as he goes to DH after Ortiz retires after this year.
and the lists go on and on.
The fact that the Phillies have a ton of prospects also reduces how much they will seek in FA’s – and that’s where teams like the Cubs have succeeded by having such rookies as Bryant, Russell, Schwarber and Soler all come up last year, then they added Lester last year, and Lackey this year to their pitching staff, as well as signing Heyward and Zobrist.
I really think the Phillies have the same type of plan/players coming up to follow what the Cubs did/are doing. – Astros a good example as well
Not sold on Sweeney as an every day player. It struggled at the plate in his time in the majors last season. I’m also not sure the Phillies are going to play him much at 2nd base going forward. Hernandez is going to start there this season. Also, I think the Phillies will wait a season or two before they jump in & sign a big offensive player. I could be proven wrong, but it seems like they are concerned with developing their young pitching first & then adding bats later
Well… Sweeney won the Gold Glove in AAA while his stats were:
116 G / 472 AB / 69 R / 128 H / 9 HR / 49 RBI / 32 SB / .271 AVG in AAA
37 G / 85 AB / 9 R / 15 H / 3 HR / 11 RBI / 0 SB / .176 AVG for Phillies
Combined stats for 2015:
153 G / 557 AB / 78 R / 143 H / 12 HR / 60 RBI / 32 SB / .257 AVG
You cannot judge his mere 85 AB’s as to whether or not being sold on him.
Cesar Hernandez is better suited as a super Utility player as he plays 2b/ss/3b/of and has speed, but no power… and Sweeney has pop and better speed than Hernandez. And as stated before, he won the GG in AAA last year.
He’s also the 11th ranked best Philly prospect in their farm system.
Cesar is who is is… Just like Galvis is their starting SS, just until JP Crawford is ready. Hernandez was just the bridge between Utley and Sweeney…
The best part of Philly’s infielders is their capability of playing multi positions.
Franco can play 3B and 1B.
Galvis can play SS, 2B and 3B
Hernandez can play 2B, SS, 3B and the OF
Sweeney can play 2B and the OF
Blanco can play 3B, SS, and 2B
Franco bats right-handed, but the other 4 are all switch-hitters.
Not all of the prospects will actually work out. Biggest offers don’t always sign the FA. Making the Biggest offer isn’t always the smartest thing. How far will the money go if they exceed the Grienke or Davis contracts? (To be top bidder) Enjoy your dream.
If the Phillies were going to jump into the FA pool it should have been with pitchers, not hitters. And signing Upton makes no sense to me. He’s not that good. He’s had one very good year, some decent years, but overall he’s not a franchise-type player. He’s extremely inconsistent, and while he has all the tools in the world to be a superstar there isn’t anything he does very well. He’s a very good “decent” player. He’s not now, nor will he ever be, a star to build a team around. No reason to waste mega dollars on him.
Over the last 3 years Upton ranks 40th in WAR, 33rd in wRC+ and 17th in HR among all MLB players and just now entering his prime. He might not be a franchise player in the mold of Trout, Cutch or Goldy, but he is a far cry from only being decent. Just because he’s not Mickey Mantle doesn’t mean you should scoff at Dave Winfield.
WAR is almost a useless stat because those who throw it around as if it’s the be-all, end-all have absolutely no idea how it’s computed. And since it’s computed differently by different people/organizations it lacks much validity. And saying Upton is the 40th best player (according to your source of WAR) isn’t much in an offensive-starved era. You’re saying you can build almost two teams full of players better than Upton. That’s not much of an endorsement.
“17th in HR among all MLB players and just now entering his prime.”
So the one thing he does very well—hit home runs (although he hits them in bunches, might have 10 one month, 1 the next, etc.)—he’s barely in the top 20 in baseball?
And he’s “now” entering his prime? Based on what? His age? Yes, most players “prime years” are 28-34, but that is based on a player typically entering the league at 23-24, and then taking a few years to adjust. Upton has been in the league for almost a decade. He should have already reached his “prime”, so what you see is what you get.
He’s a very good decent player. Nothing overly special, and definitely not someone worth north of $120M. He wants to—and likely will—get paid like he’s Mickey Mantle when he’s not, and he’s not Dave Winfield either. He’s more Preston Wilson than Dave Winfield.
Sweeney is an interesting player to say the least. He’s a boom or bust type player. Defensively he has his issue at 2nd and doesn’t have the strongest arm. He’s probably suited for cf due to his speed. Its all complicated but he’s probably a utility guy. His swing from the right side is iffy. Mostly everything plays from his left side. The power the K’s. To say that he’s a for sure everyday player is probably overrating him as a prospect. Sweeney is a wait and see guy.
That still leaves pjs like a 70 win team!
That still looks like a 70 win team!
Dee Gordon signed a five year extension with Miami. That makes him a free agent in the 2020-21 offseason.
Does anyone know if a team can sign a player to a 1 year contract and agree not to extend him a qualifying offer for the next. If so that may make it easier for say the Mets to sign Cespedes to around a $20 mill 1 year deal and let him be a FA again in next year’s weaker market without the QO.
Yeah they agree to that in the contract, but you’re thinking like a fan not like an FO. The mets are looking for the something to fall in their hands which won’t happen. Someone will be dumb enough to sign Ces to something close to his demands.
Actually, I don’t think that can be in the contract at all based on the CBA that teams be allowed to offer the QO so that if they lose the player, they get compensation with a draft pick. They may have a “verbal” hidden deal that way, but I don’t see why a team would give up its right to be compensated with what are now more than ever valued draft picks.
Was supposed to read “yeah like they would agree to that in the contract.” It’s against the cba.
Didn’t Cespedes have that provision in his contract? With that said I highly doubt a team signing Upton would lose the draft pick for one year without gaining another.
Unless it’s the Mets, but they would rather sign Cespedes
Cespedes’ deal was strange because in all reality he should not be a FA yet…he has not played 6 years in the majors, but because of the way his deal with Oakland was originally structured he becomes a free agent now, and somehow got out of receiving a QO. Lucky him, although it hasn’t paid off yet.
I don’t know, but I’m guessing Cespedes was able to negotiate around the QO with Oakland because at the time he signed it, he was not a member of the Players Union, coming straight out of Cuba, instead of the minors. If this is wrong, please explain why he was able to circumvent the QO.
He was able to circumvent the QO simply because he was traded. The clause in the CBA states if a player is traded mid season the team that trades for him is unable to extend a QO. Because of his age he wasnt considered a regular international free agent though and therefore service time didn’t matter.
Don’t know if they have the money but shouldn’t the Blue Jays go after him as well? Yes their power bats are still productive but Jose and Edwin are getting up there in age and could fall off at any minute. Just a thought but what do you guys think?
They traded Ben Revere because they have too many OF’s. Neither Bautista or Encarnacion show any signs of declining and the Blue Jays even want to extend them both.
Saunders is 100% healthy and will be the LF / Pillar in CF / Bautista in RF and they have Pompey almost ready to be an everyday player.
If they had the money, they would have gone after Chris Davis instead, even though the combination Encarnacion, Smoak and Colabello works well already as they combined for the following:
602 AB / 96 R / 148 H / 39 HR / 110 RBI / 2 SB
Thanks for the reply. Agree with your points but is a career .230 hitter and negative 1.6 defensive war guy really the answer in LF? He’s a home town guy and I know Toronto would love to have him pan out but he really hasn’t shown much in the majors to warrant a regular spot on the roster though right? Plus Pompey’s numbers in the minors don’t look over whelming. He could make a giant leap but would it be smarter for them to sign a proven guy if their plan is to keep on contending for the next couple of years? Lastly Bautista isn’t an golden glover in the outfield either so moving him to DH would make greater sense IMO.
Brewers have 2 guys who could be available for right deal from Rockies. One is Wily Peralta who’s hard mid 90’s sinker would be a good Coors Field fit. The other is SS Jean Segura who Brewers would like to move to make room for their top prospect Orlando Arcia. I believe Segura in Coors Field would be fairly productive.too as he doesn’t walk much and sprays it all over.
Brewers are trying to both rebuild quickly while improving the depth overall in system. Blackmon, like Peralta is in first arby year.and wouldn’t be seen as a long term piece but he gives them a guy who’ could fill a present need for a LH bat, and provide some trade value when their #2 prospect, CF Brett Phillips is ready.
So Blackmon and a lower level prospect with upside talent for Peralta and Segura.might be good deal for both teams.
I think a Blackmon for Peralta based deal makes sense, but not Segura. In the infield they are locked in at 3B with Arenado, 2B with LeMahieu, and I’m sure they’d love to get rid of Reyes if someone would take on some of his contract… But even if they deal him they still have Trevor Story who could be ready and I believe they hope he will be better than Segura. Who knows though if Reyes is gone it would be much more of a possibility. Anyways though I can see something like Peralta for Blackmon.
Tigers should be patient and wait out the “leftover” of Cespedes and Upton.
They will be patient. They have no room left in the budget. Mayberry was their move, and he will have to beat out Aviles for the 25th spot.
Like the idea of Ces back in LF for the tigers as he seemed to really fit in nicely with the team. Upton intrigues me also though i admittedly have not really seen him play. Would really acrually prefer to test the trade side of things. Either of the Colorado trio, or maybe even Bruce from the Reds(maybe Cincy eats a little of salary too). All depends on asking price though. Would not give up Fulmer for anybody. Not knowing how Reds are set up, i would go collins/boyd for bruce.
One random thought but there’s talk about Cespedes’s market coming down but what’s going on with Desmond? Are there any teams wanting him?
I think the white sox take a gamble on desmond for one or a two year deal until tim anderson is ready
If the White Sox are the only one courting him my god is he probably wishing he’d have signed an extension lol.
Very true. He is not only kicking himself for not signing the extension, but we’re almost to the point where he is probably thinking he should have taken the qualifying offer.
Desmond shouldn’t of turned down that extension the nationals gave him
My God.. Cardinals got out and trade Marco Gonzalez and Alex Reyes for CarGo already.. Holliday needs to be replaced at some point and I dont buy the whole “Where would we put these guys, who would sit” BS… YOU MADE A 200 Million offer to Heyward! Get it done now because I can guarantee youll be checking in around the trade deadline.
I still find it crazy that Heyward left the cardinals for less money
Heyward just wants his money and to play baseball. He doesn’t want to worry about being the main man like he would have had to be in St Louis when Holliday is gone. He pretty much said it.
I don’t blame him for saying that, he made a good point
Heyward is just smarter than most players! He went with the young team that is loaded with talent.
Cargo is not that good in lower altitudes.
Neither was Matt Holliday when he was a Rockie. Ridiculous argument.
Um…Holiday was pretty decent away from Coors Field…he was amazing in the light air, but good away from it. Gonzales right now is simply a product of playing in Denver. He’s atrocious away from it. But since you don’t like that argument, and like the comparison between him and Holliday…Holliday is, was and always has been a better player than Cargo. Gonzales is injury-prone, rarely plays a full season and while he’d be a good pickup for a team like the Cardinals, he’s not worth Denver’s asking price.
Then don’t pay the price. I’ll be more than happy to keep him a lifelong Rockie and watch you guys start your fall down the division standings.
Nobody is trading for Reyes until his suspension is completed. Why CarGo though? His splits show he’s trending platoon now. He’ll be another rental. The cards would be better off staying put Gurch and Piscotty healthy. Not only that price comes down and Heyward would be a better option.
****Upton not Heyward.