The Braves, on the hunt for starting pitching, sent a top scout to Detroit this weekend to watch Tigers right-handers Justin Verlander and Michael Fulmer, reports Mark Bowman of MLB.com (on Twitter). Neither Verlander nor Fulmer seems like a realistic trade candidate, however. The Tigers reportedly want a noteworthy haul for Verlander, even though he’s 34, in the throes of a down season and still owed nearly $70MM through 2019. Verlander also has a full no-trade clause, so he could veto a deal even if the Braves do present an offer to the Tigers’ liking. Unlike Verlander, the 24-year-old Fulmer is both cheap and in his prime. Detroit would justifiably demand a ransom in return, then, but there’s no indication it’s interested in parting with him.
More from the National League:
- Realistically, no one would have expected the Brewers to hold a 5.5-game advantage in the NL Central this late in the season, which could lead to an agonizing deadline for the team’s decision-makers, as Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes. The Brewers, who were in on now-Cub Jose Quintana before the White Sox traded him Thursday and have interest in the Athletics’ Sonny Gray, must weigh whether to make a bold strike that eats into their farm system or take a more conservative approach. General manager David Stearns doesn’t seem eager to part with a prospect haul, telling Haudricourt: “We’ve worked very hard to build our system and organization as a whole where the level of young talent we have is a good place to be. I don’t see us, whether it’s this year or any year going forward, moving from that strategy.” Nevertheless, Haudricourt points to Gray’s team control, his connection to Milwaukee pitching coach Derek Johnson (who coached Gray at Vanderbilt) and the Brewers’ rotation questions as reasons why acquiring him would make sense.
- Speaking of the Brewers, their success has come without having left fielder Ryan Braun at full strength, and his health will continue to be an issue for the rest of the season. Manager Craig Counsell said Saturday (via the Associated Press) that the Brewers will evaluate Braun daily through the end of the year, given that a strained right calf has hampered him for a while and forced him to the disabled list twice. While the 33-year-old has once again been a quality contributor to Milwaukee’s offense, having hit .260/.343/.553 across 169 plate appearances, Counsell believes there’s enough talent on hand to weather Braun’s issues. “We certainly want a healthy Ryan Braun, but we’ve had success with this team because of depth and we’ll continue to rely on that if we have to,” Counsell said.
- Phillies outfielder/infielder and trade candidate Howie Kendrick has been out this month with an injured left hamstring, and a return doesn’t seem imminent. Kendrick will join the Phillies in Miami on Monday, but only so the team can evaluate him to see if he’s healthy enough to embark on a rehab assignment, tweets Todd Zolecki of MLB.com.
- Currently in possession of a wild-card spot, the Rockies will temporarily remove one of the best starters from their rotation in order to preserve his arm, according to Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post. Rookie left-hander Kyle Freeland, who’s top two among Rockies starters in innings (110 1/3), ERA (3.67) and ground-ball rate (55 percent), is likely to head to the bullpen and could then log some time in the team’s Triple-A rotation before resuming his starting role in Colorado. Another rookie, righty Antonio Senzatela, looks primed to take Freeland’s place in the meantime. Freeland threw three shutout, no-hit frames in relief Saturday, when the Rockies lost starter Tyler Chatwood to an undisclosed injury in the first inning, per Saunders.
And like I said, going for Verlander may not be a bad idea, and it seems like the team is being convinced of that too.
But, “it’s a dumb idea”.
You’re right. It’s a dumb idea.
verlander hasn’t even been league average, he has thrown more pitches than everyone in the league, he has had 1 good season in the last 4, and he’s old and Detroit would try to take some of those yummy young braves prospects. Atlanta doesn’t need Verlander and if they actually got him it would set the franchise back years
Even going back to Wren days, the Braves are always mentioned as having interest for X and Y guys, but always end up just sitting back and not making any huge trades.
aren’t the braves like at or slightly below .500??? why are they buyers?
Because we won’t be under .500 next season and we need a leader for our pitching staff. JV is the leader we need in 2018.
Who’s winning the world series next year? Somehow you can predict what will happen next year.
Jeez, I think he just means that the Braves will be in win-now mode next year and having a controllable “ace” would help them win games next year and beyond.
The Braves are currently 0.5 games behind the Cubs, 1.5 AHEAD of the Cardinals, and the 7th best team in the NL. That’s traditionally always been the position of a potential buyer.
Furthermore, the Braves record against the 6 teams in contention are as follows:
Nationals: 6-7
Dodgers: 0-0
Brewers: 4-2
Diamondbacks: 3-0
Rockies: 0-0
Cubs: 0-0
That’s an overall 13-9 record vs. playoff teams.
Cmon man. Wake up.
So, they’re 4 games under .500 against teams with a worse record and they have at least 28 more games against the contenders. They haven’t even played three of them. Good luck against the Cubs starting Monday. Cubs are starting the roll they haven’t had all season.
The Cubs are 6-4 over their last 10.
The Braves are 6-4 over their last 10.
The Braves also played without Freddie Freeman, and played the first month with a horribly depleted Bench. They also had Bartolo Colon..who getting rid of him upgradedcthe Braves rotation the way Quintana upgraded the Cub’s.
That roll the Cubs are starting that they haven’t all season? The braves have been on it since May 12th. They’re 34-25 over that span. There’s no reason to think that trend isn’t going to continue.
Nice sweep of the Dbacks to get to .500, but the Braves have been overachieving on a weak schedule so far. It should not continue.
Dude, the entire story of the NL is overacheivement on a weak schedule.
How do you see that? I literally illustrated that they’ve consistently overachieved against the tough teams as well. In fact, if you look at the trend and discount play over the first month against the nationals, the Braves have handled the nationals to the tune of 4-3 since The first series in april. That would be 5-2 if the Braves acquired any semblance of bullpen depth to bump the order away from situations like letting Jim Johnson close three games in a row and letting him give up 3 runs.
I crunched the numbers for the Braves. Discounting the non-competitive games started by Bartolo Colon oh and 2 to 4 run leads blown late by the bullpen, you’d have 5 more games back to June that would be in play. If they merely split those 3-2, it would be the best record in baseball since May. The Cubs needed to swing an ace to be ‘in the mix’. The Braves are a lot closer then that.
I’m not saying that the Braves are built to be Dodger killers, or Astros killers…all I’m saying is neither are the Cubs, and it’s just as likely right now that the Cubs and Braves play the WC game as it is the Dbacks and Rockies.
I get that the Cubs offense is coming around…but to act like they’re going to walk in and dominate this series is absurd. I see a scuffling Lester who’s had no control going into the break going up again a question mark in Teheran, who was great in his last few starts, but has blown at home. Tuesday I see a terrible John Lackey vs. Newcomb, a rookie who has been on and off. Wednesday, I see Montgomery who got shelled in his last two starts and a relief appearance this month, vs. a resurgent RA Dickey who has given up 4 Earned Runs in his last 33 Innings pitched…20 of those innings against clubs currently in contention for a post season berth.
Sorry dude, I just don’t see the clear advantage you’re seeing for the Cubs.
The Braves offense isn’t coming around….it’s been at this party for two months. And today it’s adding two super U players to replace what is likely Jace Peterson and either Lane Adams or a pitcher.
If you asked who, you’re right. Meanwhile, SRod alone was a 2 win player last year.
They are both buyers and sellers! They are looking for a frontline starter that is under contract for the next few years.
“Buyers” in the sense that they’re looking for long term pieces.
Personally I hate the labels buyers and sellers. As a phillies fan, I wouldn’t hate it if we “bought” on Yellich like I’ve been hearing, assuming we don’t completely tear down the farm.
Either way, makes plenty of sense for Atlanta to go for longer-term pieces. I have a gut feeling they wind up with Fulmer
Are we really pretending the Braves won’t make the WC game this year?
Rockies in full on meltdown mode
Braves on the rise
Cubs are mediocre
Lol at anyone who doesn’t have their money on ATL between these 3 teams the rest of the way.
It’s like none of you have paid any attention to the Braves progress at all yet feel you’re informed enough to call them a bad team
Braves are under .500. They have a tough climb ahead of them to make the playoffs and even if by some chance they do, they’re likely one and done anyway. They have no pitching and aren’t making the playoffs this year
After taking the first two games against the DBacks, the Braves are one game under .500, but they have the Cubs coming in for three games Monday which gives them a huge opportunity to make up some ground. The next week and a half will be very telling about their chances at making a run with games against the Cubs, Dodgers, DBacks and then finishing the month with 4 against Philly.
You think the world champion Cubs coming to town gives you a good chance to make up some ground?
Under estimate them based on their weak first half at your own peril. Just like the Orioles just did and see what happens
Let’s not act like the 2017 Cubs are the same as the 2016 Cubs. They’re not. Hopefully, Atlanta runs all over Lester and his childish inability to throw a baseball to first.
Your absolutely right at least someone besides me pays attention
Unless some team is going to step up an offer a Hershel Walker type of deal, Fulmer isn’t going anywhere.
Agreed. Fulmer is the real deal. As a Mets fan I was sad to see him go, but talent requures talent. Fulmer has continued to develop, so a king’s ransom should be expected.
Maybe Verlander and Kemp contract swap, bring up Acuna now. Trade Marsalis to Rays since they lost Colby Rasmus. Trade Teheran to Yankees for Clint Frazier and more we loaded
Verlander is the face of the Tigers. has been for awhile. they won’t be willing to do a bad contract swap.
not to mention he’s just one year removed from a CY caliber season. I’d bet on JV rebounding more than Kemp.
they’ll want to trim payroll and get something back in return.
I’d rather have Steve Kemp back.
I’d rather have Chet Lemon back.
With Ron LeFlore in LF, naturally.
LeVar Burton as Ron LeFlore, please.
Me Too!
We won’t be lucky enough to get Kemp gone in a Verlander deal. I wish we could, but that won’t happen.
But, if we take on all or most of Verlanders contract, it will cost us way less in prospects than trying to get Detroit to pay his contract for us, and that’s probably how it will work if we were to do it.
Now, if we go for Cole Hamels, Texas may take Kemp off of us. I’d be happy with Verlander or Hamels.
Why rush Acuna up let him develop some more I know he is raking in the minor leagues but still
Oh I for sure agree about Acuna.
But, Kemp, even though I love the guy, could break apart any minute. And if that happens we’re stuck with him. Maybe the AS break has helped his legs some, but he’s still a liability and needs to be DH’ing.
Sean Rodriguez will be back soon, and I think he could cover LF for awhile.
Our front office knows what they want they have followed plans so far they will do what’s best
Yea… Andruw Jones would totally agree. Don’t rush up an Atlanta Braves outfielder.
Andruw Jones is one of the few players that could be rushed. More prospects that are rushed end up failing than ones that succeed.
Don’t know why there are Braves fans so adamant about pushing various “unload Kemp” scenarios.
ATL is playing with the Padres’ “house money” on Kemp after Preller took Olivera and his disastrous contract off their books. Figuring that money was already gone whether ATL acquired Kemp or not, their LF with the .295/.341/.824 is essentially costing them just 3/30.
Kemp will continue to go from bad to worse defensively and the time is nigh for one or both of his hips to explode, but if he can finish 2017 strong ATL could punt on the remaining $18MM to $20MM owed through 2019.
Honestly Kemp has not been bad at all. Don’t understand the hate
I understand he’s not the best outfielder but his bat has been huge.
Is there any coincidence Freeman got really hot last year after we traded for him which continued on into this year?
Sorry but Kemps presence extends beyond his personal numbers. He’s a threatening bat in an offense that lacks power bats (particularly right handed bats)
Everyone is so focused on WAR or whatever these days. No one stops to look at the whole any more. Braves are better with Kemp
Trading Kemp is dumb. Especially if the goal is to trade Kemp to be rid of his contract. Is there someone out there you’re all targeting with the extra money you’d save with that move?
Our infield is full (with Camargo not even having a position and Albies ready for next year). Our outfield is full (with Acuna ready to take over for Markakis). Our rotation is trying to make room for prospects who are near ready
Where’s this “money saved” for 2018 and 2019 going to be spent by moving Kemp? Has anyone actually asked that or has no one thought that far ahead, lol
Just pedal to the metal of “trade Kemp” with little or no after thought by most of you
Kemp may be bad in left but he’s certainly better than Kyle Schwarber.
So I know The narrative around Schwarber regarding his D but the numbers don’t back it up and he seems okay to me (I am a Cub fan and watch nearly every game)
Kemp is a dumpster fire who’s defense is so bad it takes away most of the positives his bat brings.
So he’s not certainly better, at least objectively, than Schwarber. Schwarber has struggled with the bat most of this year so overall, Kemp has been more valuable of course.
If you’ve watched the games then you’ve seen players take extra bases,confusion in his reads,and the funny error transferring the ball to his glove. If you say Kemp is a dumpster fire,then Schwarber is a full on kitchen fire.
Kemp is worth negative 20 runs via UZR every year. Schwarber is not that bad, sorry. He’s not 2014 Alex Gordon or anything but compared to Kemp, he’s pretty average.
Guy hasn’t played a full season yet. Give it time before comparisons.
Set the bar low enough and anybody can clear it.
You are a special kind of stupid aren’t you? Lineup protection has already been proven to be a farce. It’s not like Freddie Freeman wasn’t one of the best hitters in the game BEFORE the Braves acquired Matt Kemp. And it doesn’t matter where the money they aren’t paying Kemp would go. Almost anything would contribute more to wins than Kemp and his ~0 WAR. The Braves owners could buy themselves a yacht with that money and it would contribute about as much to their record as Matt Kemp.
Farce or not, Freddie feels it with Kemp behind his just as achipper Jones did with Tex hitting Cleanup.
Pavlovian or not, there is a reaction here.
There’s a better chance that your arms and legs all turn into hoagies from Wawa than there is of Cole Hamels going to the Braves.
That is a risk I would be more than willing to take.
I’m always up for some Wawa hoagies.
No to the silly Braves proposal of us getting Tehran the mediocre!
I think braves should deal from there farm and bolster there rotation for a playoff run. Deal away that farm, its only right when all you do is ask other teams who are no closer to the playoffs to deal away there’s!
Agree..*theirs*
Braves need to keep Kemp. Since he came aboard last trade deadline, the Braves have been significantly better hitters. He’s not a black hole in the lineup, they need to keep his production in the order.
He’s also not been a liability in lf
He has indeed been a liability in LF. His fielding is so bad it negates any value he brings with the bat
The Braves success since Aug 1st 2016 has been tied to Kemp in the lineup. It’s not a coincidence.
First off, what success? Braves are 76-70 since then. It’s alright but not exactly “success.”
Secondly, no it isn’t. He is barely replacement level as a player and he has no effect on how the other players hit. Lineup protection has already been proven to be a farce.
76-70 is pretty incredible considering the bullpen last year, the Wislers and Colon’s, etc. the offense has been nearly dominant since Kemp arrived.
You can keep saying that lineup protection has been “proven a farce”, but this isn’t Physical Science class doc. It can be BELIEVED that lineup protection is a farce by many or most…but it can’t be PROVEN.
Not too concerned about being able to trade Kendrick. If you need to wait for August, no problem.
We gave up Darin Ruf and Darnell Sweeney to get him, so getting pretty much any prospect back will count as a win.
No doubt there’s plenty of interest in him during the waiver trade season- team places a claim on him, eat some cash and get a C+ prospect.
Makes a decent amount of sense for a team like Kansas City- not a ton of available cash, but still seemingly going for it (although I don’t support that notion).
Give me Dziedzic for Kendrick and cash. He’s 26, pretty much ML-ready and flies under all of the prospect rankings radars. Philly can call him up assuming Hellickson was traded and run with Nola, Eickhoff, Lively, Pivetta, Dziedzic assuming Eflin is still hurt and they do the logical thing and move Vinny to the closers role where his stuff would play up.
Markakis I meant
I’d rather have Marsalis.
Are we talking about Wynton Marsalis, the trumpet player?
Branford > Wynton > Nick Markakis > Delfeayo, in my opinion.
No way Nick is better than Delfeayo. The struggle is real for trombonists.
Don’t forget Sam Horn…..
If Freeland is going to start in Triple A, how does it preserve his arm? One wonders if Rockies aren’t looking to play with service time.
If they move him to the pen they’ll want to give him a couple tune-up starts to build back up his arm strength. Better to do that in the minors.
Brinson and Ortiz for Sonny Gray.
The A’s are on the verge of sweeping the Indians largely on the backs of their trade pieces, they aren’t giving them for low level prospects.
I think a deal will be closet to Ray, Ortiz, Diaz, Harrison. I don’t think the Brewers are trading either of Hader or Brinson.
Deal doesn’t happen then.
Thats three top 100 prospects(1 top 50) and a lotto ticket who has been playing hot of late. A’s would be stupid to turn that down.
Exactly my point. They would be stupid to not do this.
Quality over quantity. Why not just trade Brinson and Ortiz for Gray?
Brewers got a 5.5 game lead in the Central based off of a starting staff of misfit toys. I honestly don’t think they need Gray to win it.
I offer Corey Ray and Gilbert Lara for Gray. No more. I’d honestly rather have a bullpen arm, but my hope is that Stearns don’t break the farm for Gray out of the sake of “responding” to the Cubs trade.
augold5-
There’s only 1 current top 100 prospect on that trade you propose
That is quality. Also with prospects, the more you acquire the better chances you have at one panning out. Brinson could possibly help out the Brewers in this make-shift post season run especially with injury prone Braun in LF. For that reason I don’t think Brinson is available.
A’s will get a better deal than a good pitching prospect and a couple ballers hitting .230.
Ray and Lara isn’t nearly enough to get Gray.. that barely gets you a solid RP.
Misfit toys will be meat in the postseason. They need Gray.
Looking at current stats is really naive. The Carolina league is a pitcher friendly league. Both are young, 5 tool, high potential players. Batting average isn’t the only stat used to measure a player’s talents.
Was looking at MLB.com not BA
Ray(21)/Ortiz(51)/Diaz(54)
C’mon, Gorman. Even your Harvey’s Wallbangers team had to pick up Sutton at the ’82 deadline to buoy your more solid Top 4 of Caldwell, Vuckovich, Haas, and McClure.
gorman I kinda agree with you. The Brewers need SPs, but I don’t think you push in this year. No one nationally expects the Brewers to hold on, and even as a Brewer fan, I fully expect the Cubs to go on a run, and the Brewers to falter a little.. I think you make less expensive moves this year RPs, and less expensive SPs, and see if you can hold on. I know you don’t that many looks at this, especially the Brewers, but this just seems like an extra bonus year in “the rebuild.”
I have zero objection to trading OFs…the Brewers have a lot in the minors that seem promising, but the Brewers don’t know how all the pieces fit yet. Is Brinson the replacement for Broxton or Santana? Is Cordell or Phillips the 4th OF.. Does Hader rise to an ace or a 2 or 3? Did Anderson have an amazing half or has he found a new level? Is Ortiz utimately Anderson’s replacement? Is Villar capable of returning to previous form, or do we need to find a 2B which turns out to be Isan Diaz? It’s not obvious to me the Brewers know any of these answers. That’s the point of a rebuild to answer some of these questions before you push in.
That won’t get Gray because someone else will offer a lot more.
Brinson/Ortiz for Gray absolutely isn’t happening. Stearns most likely didn’t even include Brinson in the Quintana discussions (however deep or not those got).
Ray, Ortiz, Diaz, Harrison also won’t be offered because Stearns will be giving up way too much in that deal just for Gray (if Doolittle came with I could see that but he was traded earlier today). Ray, Ortiz makes the most sense as part of it + potentially Demi O and Nate Griep types. He’s not getting a Quintana return.
A’s have poor OF production (R.Davis FA after this year and Joyce the following year) and nothing in the pipeline in the immediate future so I wonder if Stearns is also discussing Broxton. I don’t think he wants to give up Phillips either for 2yrs of Gray.
We need better bullpen staff than anything.
As a Braves fan, I wouldn’t mind trading a haul of prospects for Michael Fulmer. It just doesn’t make sense to deal a bunch of prospects for any #2/3 starter though.
A trade for a controllable #2-3 doesn’t make much sense when you have a lot of great pitching prospects in the minors and we’re still a year or two away from actual title contention. A couple of those prospects will be middle of the rotation guys. But a TOR arm is worth biting the bullet and paying for. Besides that, stay the course with the rebuild and sell off the veterans that won’t contribute next year.
It pains me to see how well the Braves are playing as of late. Because I know how trigger happy Coppy is and I’m afraid he won’t stay the course. LOL
Title contention is a couple of years away but wild card contention is very much in site
In sight, but still 6 games back and realistically you have to pass the Cubs (I think the Dbacks hold on). I guess if they keep gaining ground you could make a move on Verlander, who will be available later in July. What they don’t have now in the rotation is essential in the postseason: a guy with a big arm and the killer instinct. Folty looks too fragile. Newcombe may be gassed by then. Julio is too hittable.
If you can get Fulmer, of course. But get in line.
As for Kemp, you can move him in August. He will clear waivers. And that gives Acuna more time in AAA.
Dude you have no clue what your talking about why are you even on here think before you speak
A little punctuation never hurt anyone…
Lol a 2/3 starter? No no no. Fulmer, coming off his rookie of the year campaign, hasn’t even come close to reaching his ceiling. He would demand a haul bigger than what Sale brought in. He’s controllable through 2022, hasn’t even hit arbitration yet and he’s been able to showcase lights out, front of the rotation type stuff.
Did you even read my post man?
If it sounded confusing, my bad!
I wasn’t calling Fulmer a #2/3, I was more so referring to Gray or a Quintana type.
You were clear enough.
Coppy being trigger happy is why I don’t want him or Hart going for Gray or any of the other guys who fit in that category. I like what they’ve done in the Minors, they have assembled a serious force of young players. I do not want to give any of them up for a #2 or #3 when we already have guys to fill those roles with even more down the minors.
Fulmer is a guy I would pay for though. And my only concern with Fulmer is experience. When we get back to the play offs next season, we need a pitcher who can lead us through it. We lacked one in 2010-2013 and I don’t want it to happen again. But, Fulmer is 24, looks great, and isn’t even in his prime yet. He could very well be a Ace in the making.
I completely agree.
If we’re gonna use top prospects. At least go get your guy. It appears that we certainly have #2s and 3s for days in the minors.
I would honestly love to trade for Fulmer and then just sell off our veterans like J. Garcia, Dickey, Adams, Phillips, Kemp or Markakis, and maybe a bullpen piece or two and prepare for next year and beyond.
I know that sounds completely idiotic to make a big trade like that and then sell off but it would restock some prospects and take some of the sting away.
I just hate to see the rebuilding process go down hill because we’re a .500 team this year.
I’ve watched every start of his since he made his debut and he reminds me a lot of Verlander when he was younger. The way he’s able to get stronger as the game moves along and make the in game adjustments is really something to see. He’s only going to get better, within the next 2-4 years, he’ll be up there with Scherzer and Kershaw and Bumgarner.
Out of curiosity would a trade of players like Weigel, Demeritte, Anderson, Ruiz, and a lottery ticket be one the tigers would be willing to take?
Wow that’s so weak. Your pained thatbthe Braves are playing well because your afraid they will deal prospects to improve a team that’s been awful for so long meanwhile your fellow fanboys want to trade Tehran the great for other teams best prospects. I hear you about staying the course but when we read silly comments from other brave fans who want everyone’s best young players for there mediocrity then it appears as if your fanbase is living in a bubble. But very weak saying you don’t like the recent winning!
You lack the sarcasm upgrade.
Seeing as there is absolutely no point in trading Teheran, of course the braves want top prospects, meanwhile teams like the tigers, Giants, white Sox, etc. Could be getting desperate to trade their top players to improve the team. If the braves were to trade Acuna or Albies it would hurt them a lot.
That’s agreeable to an extent, but doesn’t describe the situation with Fulmer. He’d be the kind of guy you only let go if you’re offered the moon.
There’s every reason to trade Teheran. He’s sucked at Suntrust and kicked ass on the road.
I think that while Fulmer has been very good his peripherals do not say he is a lights out front of the rotation starter they just don’t. I find it funny that when Q was on the block everyone wanted to talk about his lack of strikeouts not a real top of the rotation guy well Fulmer doesn’t strike out a lot of people his peripherals don’t say he is top of the rotation not like Noah S. I do realize he is a very good pitcher very similar to Q on his peripherals when they were at similar ages. I look at him as a excellent two or higher one not an ace. Maybe I am wrong about him and maybe he will blossom into that lockdown 1 but I don’t see it yet based on his advanced stats.
He’s only 24 and in his second year of the bigs.
Before you evaluate Fulmer’s peripherals you have to understand his pitching philosophy. He values pitching late in games and feels strikeouts impede your ability to do that because they take too many pitches.
That was a problem the Tigers had with Verlander and Scherzer on the team. They both would have double digit k’s and be out of the game after 6 too many times.
David Price used to say he wanted to throw three pitches and have the hitter out or on base. His career k/bb rate is 3.75 not far off from Fulmer’s young rate.
Fulmer has the stuff to be a strikeout artist but chooses not to be one. He does get strikeouts when the situation calls for it.
He is exactly the type of player the Tigers want to build around. I can’t see anyone willing to pay what it would take to get him but I guess you have to ask and you have to listen.
Maddox wouldn’t be considered an Ace since he didn’t strike out a ton. The next “Moneyball” team will be the one that realises an out is an out, and these pitchers are being under valued.
I just found it completely ironic that Q who has very similar peripherals as Fulmer at similar ages if you look back on Q’s career was so maligned by so many people many wanting to call him a three which is ridiculous but Fulmer is an ace just strange to me.
Albies, Muller, Cumberland plus 10 million dollars for Fulmer.
I know this is unrealistic but it’s a thought that a team like the Detroit might be interested in money
Detroit has money. It’s staying away from the penalties for being over the cap. If they didn’t have money, they wouldn’t be over the cap, duh.
It’s to pay the offset for a verlander’s contract. So they can trade him to the Cubs or Yankees for Happ or Frazier etc
You’d be laughed off the phone.
Fulmer and Wilson to the dodgers for Alvarez, Calhoun, buehler, heredia and lux
Don’t want Calhoun. Detroit already has a DH.
Detroit won’t be looking for guys in the low minors for Fulmer or Wilson.
Haha the one prospect Detroit wants isn’t included?!! Corey Seager, Cody Bellinger, Alex Verdugo, and Walker Buehler for Micheal Fulmer…that’s how difficult it would be to acquire him. Maybe not even then..
Want Gray? Entice A’s big time…
Pursuit of Jose Quintana (now a division rival) and Sonny Gray gives me hope for the Brewers’ front office. At this stage, I feel they should only make a play for a SP that has multiple years of control, hence now Gray. However, there is a thin line on how much is too much. Understanding that either Brinson or Ray have to be a part of the deal, it then depends on how much more… I wouldn’t be willing to go much further than Ortiz.
I dont think the brewers would trade a future piece for sonny gray, no way that happens
There was no pursuit by the Brewers for Quintana. They “expressed” interest and did some background work. Big deal
Every single Brewers home game, I see the same Elvira looking woman with an exceptionally low cut top sitting in the front row. Every single game.
Beats the fat guy painted in black and gold who stand on the rotunda at PNC, I guess.
Her name is Julie and she is single.