MLB Trade Deadline Thread

[Big Sexy]

The MLB trade deadline is just a couple weeks away so this thread will be dedicated to discussion of deals that have been made, potential deals, and what you would like your favorite team to do.

The only big trade thus far has been the Mets trading K Rod to the Brewers for players to be named and cash. The Mets are basically out of their division race so it makes sense to cut costs and build a little for the future. The Brewers are leading their division currently but it is a four team race and adding K Rod as their closer is a great move for them.

In terms of what I'd like to see my Tigers do, they need pitching. They are good enough in terms of their position players and their hitting so pitching needs to be the top priority. Their bullpen has struggled but they have a lot of talented arms so I'd like to see them get another starter before anything. Verlander is a CY Young candidate but Max Scherzer, Brad Penny, and Rick Porcello have been very inconsistent and they don't really have a full time 5th starter. Trading for a guy like Ubaldo Jimenez from the Rockies who is supposedly on the block would be a nice upgrade to their rotation.

 

[People's Champ]

For my Giants, its all about hitters. The Giants are in need of a bat in the lineup since losing Posey and Sanchez (Freddy), with Sanchez being-as crazy as this may sound-the bigger of the losses. This team needs a bat desperately to generate some offense. The two name that keep getting talked about are Reyes (who isn't talking about him) and Beltran. Reyes looks like he's out of the picture,though, because the asking price is too much, and there is no certainty he will be traded. Of course, there's also the fact that every other team will be looking to trade for him.

As far as Beltran is concerned, I wouldn't mind the Giants trading a couple of young pieces to get him. Although he isn't the player he once was, he's still a presence in a lineup and considering the offense the Giants have at this moment, he could be a tremendous help in defending this title.

 

[Theo Mays]

The Phillies biggest need is to either bolster the bullpen or acquire a right handed bat. Amaro has stated that the team isn't likely to go after a bat, so that pretty much leaves the bullpen. I've read rumors that we have talked to the Padres and have interest in Heath Bell, Mike Adams, and Chad Qualls. Clearly acquiring Bell would mean trading some decent prospects, but we have decent depth in the minors and focusing a deal on a top 5 prospect like Jonathan Singleton is the way to go here. He has good pop and can play some 1B and RF. He would be the likely candidate when it comes to trading prospects. I believe the Phils will land either Bell, which moves Mad Dog back to setup or Mike Adams which keeps Mad Dog at closer. Either way I look forward to seeing what the Phils do at the deadline, as I expect some sort of deal to be made.

 

[danial662666]

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[TWJC: The Beginning]

Your Phillies don't have the financials to get a bat or probably even a big name reliever. You have 170M in payroll and like 100M already locked up on Utley, Lee, Halladay, and Howard, plus you have to resign Hamels. No way you get any serious upgrades.

As for my team, which is the Braves, I see us going after Bourne. We need a hitter, we need a leadoff hitter. He's perfect. The stros will take any prospects, we won't give them any of our tops like Teheran or Delgado or Vizcaino, but I think a mid level guy like Lipka may work. Although the way Dan Uggla and Jordan Schafer have been coming around, we may not need to, just need to wait for our guys to hit like they can and not lose any prospects.

The Tigers fan up there, you won't get Jimenez. He's too young. Typically teams trade older guys near the end of their contract that are making more money than they feel they can handle. Jimenez is the opposite of that. Plus the Rox aren't sellers as of now.

Leads me to my final point. A lot of teams are still in it. Rays, Yanks, and BoSox are still in it in the East and both the Jays and Orioles have more cheap/young pieces that aren't likely to be traded. Although I can see the Os trading JJ Hardy for the right pieces (I'm looking at you Giants guy).

In the Central everyone except the Royals are within 5 games of first place. The Royals have literally no tradeable pieces. Their vets like Francoeur, Davies, and Cabrera are either too awful to trade (Davies) or too valuable to teaching younger guys to be professionals. Plus the Royals have an insanely talented farm system and don't really need much there.

In the AL West the Athletics have few tradeable pieces, a lot of young talent. The Mariners are similar, although I bet they wish they could trade Chone shitty ass Figgins. The Rangers and Angels are in a pennent race so they won't be sellers.

In the NL East it's pretty much the Braves and Phillies. Bravos actually in a better position to buy because they have more payroll flexibility and a better farm system. Atlanta probably has easier to fill holes too. The Mets should be big sellers, I'd reccomend they sell high on Reyes (looking at the Giants again) and Beltran. The only reason they're sellers though is because they play in the NL East. If they were in the Central they'd be buyers. The Marlins in the NL East don't have many tradeable pieces and really had they not shit the bed after losing Hanley and Josh Johnson, they'd still be above .500. The Nationals should trade Werth and his awful contract but that won't happen. Otherwise they have a lot of cheap young talent that they won't trade.

The NL central is wide open. The Pirates, Cards, Brewers, and Reds could all win the division. The Astros should be shopping SP Wandy Rodiguez (Tigers guy), Michael Bourne, Carlos Pena, and anyone else over 27 who is getting paid more than 5M this year. Gonna be a long rebuilding process for them as their farm system is pretty shitty. Finally you've got the Chubbies who have some very exciting young players and some very unexciting old players. The problem with those old players is they are super expensive and aren't performing so it'll be hard to trade anyone.

Finally you have the west. The Giants are starting to pull away but it's still early. The Rockies haven't made their run yet and I'm sure they still feel very "in it". The Diamondbacks have been a surprise team (shouldn't be too much of a surprise as they've had a very talented young nucleus, just had a horrible bullpen last year that they fixed this year) so they won't be sellers. The Padres are probably shopping Heath Bell, rumor has it that the Cardinals are very serious about him. Finally the Dodgers and their whole mess makes it so you can't be sure what will happen. Although if I were them I'd shop Furcal and some of the older guys. Again though, not the most productive of players but would be nice additions to some teams.


So there you have it, only a few teams that are A)sellers and B)with tradeable pieces. Probably going to be a quiet few weeks. I don't see any Cliff Lee type of trades unless something really crazy happens. Then again, we still have a few weeks. If any team in these close races falls off a cliff then maybe we'll see more selling.

 

[Big Sexy]

The Tigers fan up there, you won't get Jimenez. He's too young. Typically teams trade older guys near the end of their contract that are making more money than they feel they can handle. Jimenez is the opposite of that. Plus the Rox aren't sellers as of now.

I'm going to go ahead and trust the information of ESPN and their insiders over you. There have been reports that Jimenez could be traded and the Tigers along with the Twins are two of the favorites to try and get him.

 

[Sinister Shadows]

I'm going to go ahead and trust the information of ESPN and their insiders over you. There have been reports that Jimenez could be traded and the Tigers along with the Twins are two of the favorites to try and get him.

ESPN usually doesn't know what they are talking about, they are basically fans that have their own tv show.

 

[MVP12]

As of right now, it looks like the red sox need a new right fielder and that is probably what they are going after, that and a starting pitcher. In all honesty though i hope they dont do anything big, I think Reddick should be starting in right field over drew, and we have some good starting pitchers in the farm, so we should be good. Plus we can get clay back and we should be fine with our pitching...I like the team the way it is plain and simple.

 

[People's Champ]

The Tigers fan up there, you won't get Jimenez. He's too young. Typically teams trade older guys near the end of their contract that are making more money than they feel they can handle. Jimenez is the opposite of that. Plus the Rox aren't sellers as of now.

Actuallly, if you took the little amount of time it would take to do a little research, you would see that, yes, the Rockies are shopping Jimenez around. They don't have to be sellers to look at trading him. There were talks over the weekend about trading him to the Yankees for four of their top prospects, which the Yankees are unwilling to part with (for now). The thing is the Rockies are in no pressure to trade him. They will only trade him for the right price, that being some great young talent. And why wouldn't they? Jimenez hasn't had a great season, but still has value and could be an asset to another team. The Rockies can make out with some great propects, so its a win-win. So there's no reason why the Tigers can't trade for him, as long as they're willing to give the Rockies what they want.

 

[Big Sexy]

ESPN usually doesn't know what they are talking about, they are basically fans that have their own tv show.

Actually they employ some great baseball minds and guys that have been around the game for many years. Guys like Tim Kurkjian and Buster Olney have a lot of sources around the league that provide them with information the average person doesn't have. They aren't always right but I sure as fuck trust them more then a random poster on a forum.

 

[Megatron]

While I'd love for the Tigers to get Jimenez, I think it'd be a steep price (such as Turner, Castellanos/Martinez, and another) to get him, and the Tigers don't have a deep farm system like someone such as the Yankees, who are also checking him out. I get trying to win now, but most of those guys will be in the bigs within the next year and a half, and we could go cheaper and still get some value (i.e Hiroki Kuroda from LA or Derek Lowe from ATL). We got a bonifide ace with Verlander, and I think Scherzer and Penny will bring more good then bad in the 2nd half. If they go get another guy to be a #3 or #4 they can push Porcello to the #5 so he won't have as much pressure on him.

Also, should Guillen stay healthy we wont need to shop for a 2B and I think Leyland is starting to figure it out that Kelly should be getting more reps at 3rd over a slumping Inge. Should Jackson come back healthy, we'd have a pretty decent OF with Boesch/Jackson starting and Magglio/Dirks playing the hot hand. Wells could be useful as the defensive replacement for Boesch or Maggs late. Add that with our good IF of Cabrera/Peralta/Avila, this is definitely a team that could take a winnable division.

So, go get a back-end rotation guy like Kuroda or Lowe and not really touch much else I think this team will figure it out enough and realize that the pressures on.

 

[LSN80]

Im excited this year that i can finally comment on The Pirates being in a position to buy instead of sell. It's been a long time since Ive been able to consider that, and the last time the Pirates made an upgrade at the trade deadline was 1997, when they traded for Shawn Dunston. Damn, it really has been that long.

The two biggest names that have been rumored in Pittsburgh have been Michael Cuddyer of the Twins, and Carlos Pena of the Cubs. I think Cuddyer would be the first guy I would target, as he can play three positions, two of them definite needs. Lyle Overbay has been a collosal failure as a 1B this year, and 3B Pedro Alvarez got injured, performed poorly in his rehab stints, and was optioned to AAA, likely for the rest of the season. Brandon Wood and Josh Harrison have done excellent jobs defensively at third, but they leave alot to be desired while swinging the bat.

Unfortunately, the Twins came out Friday and publicly said that they won't trade Cuddyer, and they plan on re-signing the free agent at seasons end. At 32, I dont know if this is true, or the Twins trying to get a team to call their bluff by overpaying for him . Id want the Pirates to leave Tabata, Alvarez, Marte, Tallion, Alie, and Sanchez off the table, but the Pirates farm system is perhaps the most loaded in baseball in terms of pitching. The Twins largest needs are starting pitching and a power arm out of the bullpen, and the Pirates have both in SP's Luis Heredia, Brad Lincoln, Bryan Morris, and Rudy Owens in their farm system, and two power arms with excellent strikeout to IP's in their bullpen in Jose Veras and Chris Resop, both who are solid 8th inning guys, and have closed before. Id be willing to part with one of the four starting pitchers, Veras or Resop, and Matt Hague, whose been incredibly consistent with average, power, and plate discipline in his four years in the minors, and can play 1B or 3B. There's been talk of calling him up to replace Overbay, but the Pirates see him as a 2nd tier prospect, not an elite one.

The other position of need, as I mentioned, is 1B. The two biggest names that have been mentioned have been Derreck Lee and Carlos Pena. Lee is 35 and on the downside of his career, but he would just be a rental until the end of the season. Id imagine he could be had for one decent second tier prospects, and a longshot. Lee is having his worst season statistically at .239, 8 HRs, and 39 RBI's, but he'ld still be a huge upgrade over Lyle Overbay.

Pena is an intriguing choice. There were rumors right before the trade deadline that the Pirates had already swung a deal with Pena, and he was coming to town with all his bags. Pena's batting average and strikeouts are Lyle Overbay attrocious, but he has alot of pop(20 HR's) and would instantly become third on the team in RBI's. Pena is 33, so he as well would likely be a rental. The Cubs have little in terms of pitching, so SP Rudy Owens(3.5/5 star prospect) and a hard throwing lefty like Colton Cain(2.5 star prospect), could probably make the deal work for a rental.

Im actually extremely excited about the trade deadline this year, as Pirates owner Bob Nutting has vocally said that they will be buyers, not sellers at the trade deadline. If a team wants a Wood, Veras, Resop, IF Pedro Ciriaco, or RF/1B Garrett Jones off our Major League roster, id have no problem with that. But the Pirates need to get at least one established hitter, and likely two to remain in contention. Their pitching isnt going to continue to shut teams out all season, and while their hitting has improved over the past month(the callups of RF Alex Pressley and SS Chase D'Arnaud have helped), they need a true, established bat with some pop. They have more then enough in the farm system to make this a reality.

 

[The Brain]

Sadly my team is in the position of sellers. The Cubs are obviously going nowhere and it’s time to try and move some guys. Aramis Ramirez has been as hot as anybody over the last month or so and I have to think there are some contenders out there that could really use his bat. I don’t know what the farm system is like for a lot of teams but looking at the big league roster I would think the Angels and Tigers would be a nice fit for him (maybe the Rockies but I'm not sure that they're buyers). The problem is right now Ramirez seems unwilling to waive his no trade clause. That really sucks because his value seems pretty high right now and if the Cubs can’t move him he’ll probably walk at the end of the year leaving them empty handed. Hopefully as we get closer to the deadline something can be worked out.

In terms of what I'd like to see my Tigers do, they need pitching. They are good enough in terms of their position players and their hitting so pitching needs to be the top priority.

Do you think they would have any interest in a basket case like Carlos Zambrano?

 

[Nas pins jay-z]

For my team we could use a cheap rh bat with a lil pop. A vetran 4th or 5th starter would be ok but not necessarly needed. Also we would like to trade sizemore while he still has a lil value left diddo carmona. Any of yall teams willing to give up an average bat with pop? Also dodger fans what's up with kemp? I know major prospoect would be involved but is he available? Mets fans why is management asking so much for beltran when he is on the downside of his career and could walk after this year?

 

[Big Sexy]

Do you think they would have any interest in a basket case like Carlos Zambrano?

Highly doubtful. The Tigers need a pitcher but they tend to only deal with high character guys for the most part. Zambrano hasn't been that great this year either so he wouldn't even be an upgrade over anyone.

 

[MVP12]

Sadly my team is in the position of sellers. The Cubs are obviously going nowhere and it’s time to try and move some guys. Aramis Ramirez has been as hot as anybody over the last month or so and I have to think there are some contenders out there that could really use his bat. I don’t know what the farm system is like for a lot of teams but looking at the big league roster I would think the Angels and Tigers would be a nice fit for him (maybe the Rockies but I'm not sure that they're buyers). The problem is right now Ramirez seems unwilling to waive his no trade clause. That really sucks because his value seems pretty high right now and if the Cubs can’t move him he’ll probably walk at the end of the year leaving them empty handed. Hopefully as we get closer to the deadline something can be worked out.



Do you think they would have any interest in a basket case like Carlos Zambrano?

Sadly Ramirez will veto every and any trade that they try to do...he wants to stay a Cub for his family's sake...at least he only has like one more year in his contract. I hope the cubs do well next year they deserve a ring.

 

[The Brain]

Sadly Ramirez will veto every and any trade that they try to do...he wants to stay a Cub for his family's sake...at least he only has like one more year in his contract. I hope the cubs do well next year they deserve a ring.

Actually he's a free agent at the end of this year. I'm ok with him staying if the Cubs are going to resign him. If he's just going to walk in free agency during the offseason anyway then I'd like to at least see the Cubs get something for him. He's been red hot so I'd have to think his stock is high right now. Time to capitalize.

 

[Nas pins jay-z]

Ramirez would fit nicely in our lineup. Maybe for phelps or valbuena and some other 2nd tier prospects-one hitter and one picture. Too bad cubs wouldn't want grady or fausto.

 

[Harthan]

I definitely support the Indians ditching Carmona for some good right handed hitting. Carmona has a little value in him as he can be decent but honestly, when he's as much of a liability as he is, you might as well just bring up Jenmar Gomez and let him get the seasoning. David Huff is a fine replacement for Talbot who shouldn't even come back from the DL, so the pitching rotation is just fine.

Not sure I can see many teams interested in Sizemore, might as well stick it out with him. One amusing scenario I was reading about was acquiring Jim Thome again. I doubt that's going to happen but I can't deny it'd be pretty interesting. Imagine Thome hitting his 600th in Progressive Field? Ah well.

Overall I find the Indians are in a pretty decent spot right now and should use the trading to make minor gameplan adjustments to help ensure a post season run. It might not be a bad idea to try to send some of the newer guys (Valbuena, Phelps, etc., etc.) elsewhere for some more seasoned talent. A lot of the problems for the Indians are caused by young guys like them making poor fielding decisions and not generating offense. If this were the start of the season, I'd say let them get the experience, but they need to eliminate that kind of thing, especially with all the Central Division play they have coming up.

 

[MVP12]

Actually he's a free agent at the end of this year. I'm ok with him staying if the Cubs are going to resign him. If he's just going to walk in free agency during the offseason anyway then I'd like to at least see the Cubs get something for him. He's been red hot so I'd have to think his stock is high right now. Time to capitalize.

well doesnt he have an option for 2012? given i dont think they count that as a year til they accept it....but yeah he doesnt want to be a traded and cant be cause of the 10 5 rule...ten years in the majors 5 with the current team, so he has the power to veto any trade that comes along and he said in an interview that, that is what he is going to do is veto any trade. So sadly the Cubs can't get anything for him. He says its due to family reasons and dont want to have them move for 2 months and then possibly move again later, so it looks like he might be a cub for a while, or at the very least til the end of this year, if they dont pick up the option.

 

[LSN80]

Actually he's a free agent at the end of this year. I'm ok with him staying if the Cubs are going to resign him. If he's just going to walk in free agency during the offseason anyway then I'd like to at least see the Cubs get something for him. He's been red hot so I'd have to think his stock is high right now. Time to capitalize.

The problem with dealing Ramirez is that I believe he automatically comes with a 15 million dollar cap hit the following season, if traded. It automatically kicks in if he's traded. I know there's been local talk of the Pirates dealing for Ramirez, but the 15$ million dollar hit would be too much for them for one player.

 

[Megatron]

The Tigers have acquired Wilson Betemit from the Royals for prospects Antonio Cruz and Julio Rodriguez, reports Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (Twitter links). Bob Dutton of The Kansas City Star first reported that a trade involving Betemit was imminent (on Twitter). The Royals have confirmed the move in a press release.

The 29-year old Betemit was a sought after man this summer; the Brewers, Angels, and Marlins all expressed interest in acquiring him at various times. He has hit .281/.341/.409 with three homers in 226 plate appearances this year, though he lost playing time to Mike Moustakas in recent weeks. The Tigers have been focused on pitching in recent weeks, but this move gives them an upgrade over Brandon Inge at the hot corner. Inge is hitting just .177/.242/.242 this season.

Neither Cruz or Rodriguez ranked among Detroit's top 30 prospects in Baseball America's 2011 Prospect Handbook. Cruz, a 19-year-old left-handed pitcher, has a 3.11 ERA in 75 1/3 innings with the Tigers' Low Class-A affiliate this season. He's struck out 58 and walked 28 in ten starts and a dozen relief appearances. Rodriguez, a 20-year-old catcher, has hit .283/.325/.354 with one homer in 246 plate appearances for Detroit's High Class-A affiliate this season.

Courtesy of mlbtraderumors.com.

This makes me a happy happy man. Dombrowski is clearly showing he will not be afraid to cut guys off, knowing that his job is on the line. Sorry, Inge, but .177/.242/.242 is NOT acceptable, no matter how good your defense is (and it's only alright at best). Betemit I think can be a good placement at 9th protecting Avila, since whenever Inge was playing lately teams would pitch around Avila to get to him. Now with a .280 hitter you really can't. I know everyone wants pitching, but I can see this move being like Jhonny Peralta's was last year, where he does well enough in the 2nd half that the Tigers give him a small deal. Should Betemit pan out, I'd give him either a 1 year deal or 2 to bridge the gap to their future 3B in waiting Nick Castellanos. This makes what was already a strong lineup even stronger and, should Guillen stay healthy, one of the most complete in baseball.

Now about that pitching...

 

[Big Sexy]

Great move by the Tigers, at the very least this adds depth and at best Betemit improves an already great offensive lineup. With Carlos Guillen returning recently at second the offense already was going to have a chance to improve and this just adds to that. Inge is a long time Tiger and a great fielder but he just isn't hitting. Betemit is a solid hitter and a good fielder in his own right. Coming off the bench and not playing every day should also help Inge contribute better. The best part about this was that the Tigers gave up two nothing prospects that were probably never going to make the ML roster in Detroit.

They really don't have a weakness in their lineup as long as Magglio and Guillen keep getting better off their injuries. 1-9 they will be able to hit with Jackson, Boesch, Ordonez, Cabrera, Martinez, Guillen, Pheralta, Avila, and now Betemit. They still need pitching obviously but this offensive lineup is scary and they are also solid defensively with the exception of Magglio in right.

 

[Megatron]

Inge actually isn't a great fielder anymore even. His UZR (which is the best defensive metric according to most sabermetricans) is -.1, so he's pretty much an average defender at best this year. While Betemit is worse (-2 at 3rd this year), his offensive numbers clearly overshadow that.

Inge is done as a Tiger. While it may sound surprising, he's been said, according to Dombrowski, to be behind Kelly in the depth chart at 3rd. Inge didn't show up to the team today and will be bought out and released tommorow to make room for Betemit. When he clears it he'll be a FA and be done as a Tiger. And while I respect Inge for what he has done in his decade wearing the Detroit English D, his time is up and it's time to take him behind the shed and put him out of misery.