TheFutureIsNear

QUOTE (StRoostifer @ Nov 9, 2014 -> 09:12 PM) That is an interesting read. If the Sox are truly trying to contend in 2015, they aren't trading a proven major leaguer for prospects. If the Sox are rebuilding, that's a completely different story. If I'm the Sox, I'm telling the Mets I want Zack Wheeler in return or call the cubs about Castro. Honestly, I don't think Ramirez is worth Wheeler but if the Sox are going to trade Ramirez without having an experienced SS to step in, then the Mets will have to pay. Otherwise, I'm perfectly happy with Ramirez in a Sox uni for the next two years. He's top 5 in the MLB at his position, which is arguably the most important position on the field, and is due to make only $20M over the next 2 seasons....I think Alexei gets a lot more in a trade than you think.

QUOTE (Jerksticks @ Nov 8, 2014 -> 01:22 PM) Just use those guys for Heyward wtf Heyward has a lot more value than Evan Gattis. I can see that package including Micah, Hawkins, and possibly Danish or Montas. Too rich for my blood. Jason Heyward isn't making this team a championship contender.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Nov 8, 2014 -> 11:08 AM) Micah Johnson doesn't have as much value as assumed if he can't play 2b at mlb average or keep his hamstrings at 100%. In order to play to potential means utilizing his plus speed, so he's going to have to steal 40-60 bases per year and that means a lot of wear and tear on his body. He's already had the throwing problems, which may or may not have been fully rectified. Again, what are you basing this on? Micah has plenty of value. The braves neither have a 2B or a leadoff hitter. They would love to get a guy like Micah. And then you add in a young mlb ready arm with a legitimate fastball in Bassit and the Braves would have to have real interest. If you think there is going to be a bunch of teams willing to give up 2 mlb ready prospects for Gattis you are seriously overestimating his value.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Nov 8, 2014 -> 09:18 AM) May has no value to the Braves. Bassit would be the third piece...a possible Santana replacement. Micah and Hawkins and bassit gets it done, but the white sox are high on Johnson as their future 2b. I'm glad you think your options are fact....even if you're the only 1. Micah and Hawkins is way too much.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Nov 7, 2014 -> 10:46 PM) Because it's boring to read over and over again how packaging Sanchez, Beck and Ravelo will lead to the acquisition of nearly every player in baseball...or Tyler Danish for that matter. If there are two polar opposites, the truth has to be somewhere in the middle. Which means giving up Montas and/or Hawkins. It's not being negative to assume the Braves will ask for Tim Anderson. Who else would they ask for? Dick Allen has been arguing for victor Martinez for days...is everyone negative that votes no? I'm more than happy to trade for Gattis to dh catch and play outfield occasionally. I'd probably give up Hawkins or Danish but I wouldn't trade Anderson or Montas. So let's hear exactly who everyone would trade for Gattis? I notice that question hasn't been answered. Semien/Micah (whichever one our organization thinks is less likely to start), any minors pitcher the Braves want not named Danish, Montas, Adams, or Rodon, and a maybe a high upside guy like May or Michalczewski. So let's just say Micah, Bassit, and May for Gattis. Sounds like a good deal to me.

Dykstra is definitely interesting...I'd sign him and give him a spring training invite.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Nov 7, 2014 -> 07:52 PM) Gattis, as mentioned above, would have had the fourth best dh performance in the al. The Braves will look to trade Heyward and upton as both will be lost as free agents. The Braves like evan's bat ... And prefer another catcher defensively. They also feel his bat will play even bigger not having to catch regularly. You tell me who the white sox would have to give up for a proven young cost-controlled player if it's not Anderson? From what I've read the Braves don't think Gattis can hack it in the OF and therefore are stuck in between a rock and a hard place with him. Gattis played 47 games in LF in 2013 and was worse than Viciedo is pretty much every metric. Not good. Maybe his value is being slightly understated, but I still don' t think Anderson would be in play.

QUOTE (fathom @ Nov 7, 2014 -> 02:39 PM) Jerry CrasnickVerified account ‏@jcrasnick The #mariners are expected to shop OF Michael Saunders hard at GM meetings. Both sides appear ready to move on. Reply Retweet Favorite More It wouldn't shock me if a Viciedo for Saunders deal is discussed. I was thinking the same thing when I saw they are shopping him. Tank for Saunders almost makes too much sense as a classic change of scenery trade. I'd much rather take a shot on Saunders over signing veterans on the FA market for $12+million who isn't worth it.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Nov 6, 2014 -> 09:20 PM) Then you have the uncertainty of the NL transition to AL...McCann was a flop. That doesn't mean Gattis will automatically end up like Dunn or McCann or any number of other examples, but there's been a pretty consistent trend of reduced performance when switching leagues (especially the first year, NL to AL). Obviously, it didn't end up bothering Eaton too much, as a counterexample. Some players can adjust much more quickly. The question is would Hahn be willing to give up Tim Anderson for Gattis? Or wouldn't it be a better use of resources to find a DH on the free agent market, someone between Adam Lind and Victor Martinez. Wow, you really think Tim Anderson would be in the discussion for Gattis?? Maybe I'm way off but I just don't see it. I just don't think his value is that high. I could see Semien/Micah, Beck, and a guy like May or Rondon being enough. Evin Gattis just isn't the type of guy who gets traded for top 100 prospects.

QUOTE (peavy44 @ Nov 6, 2014 -> 07:12 PM) Hes really not a upgrade over flowers In what way is he not offensively? Defensively I can't really comment because I can't say I've seen Gattis catch many innings.

QUOTE (StRoostifer @ Nov 6, 2014 -> 07:08 PM) I like the idea but what do the Sox offer for Gattis? Not going to pretend like I have a clue what they are actually asking for, but a quick glance at their roster shows they aren't exactly set at 2B. I don't think La Stella is their future there. Wonder if Sanchez would get it done? Guess it would all depend on what kind of league interest there is in Gattis....don't know the answer to that either honestly.

Gattis is more or less what we all hoped Flowers would be. A catcher who can post an .800 OPS and at least hold his own defensively. Would he be worth it to be a C/DH for us? From what I've read the Braves are pretty set on trading him and the price wouldn't be a ton.

Danks and Viciedo for Cargo straight up....if not they can keep paying him.

Non tendering Viciedo is crazy talk, not going to happen. Why? He's 25 years old right now and has hit 20+ HR's in 3 straight seasons. Now I'm not saying he should be given another year for us, but I refuse to believe that there isn't a team that would be willing to trade for him. I'm not even saying for a lot, but a young arm for the bullpen shouldn't be that hard to obtain in my opinion.

Trade Tank for the best young reliever you can get and laugh at Belesario and $3.9M as he packs his bags.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Nov 4, 2014 -> 03:22 PM) Pardon my cluelessness, but isn't there a Thompson in the system that was thought highly of? Is this a different guy? Trayce Thompson was at 1 point highly thought of...not so much now

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Nov 4, 2014 -> 10:09 AM) Is he a $100 million upgrade? Is any player in the world a $100M upgrade? It doesn't even make sense to look at it like that. But again, I never said we should run out and throw a bunch of $ at Sandoval. I'm just stating that Conor Gillaspie shouldn't be an everyday player and not signing any player because you would have to move Gillaspie is just silly.

QUOTE (Dam8610 @ Nov 4, 2014 -> 12:52 AM) Don't get me wrong, I like Sandoval and would want him on my team. That said, Sandoval is a left handed hitting 3B who struggles to hit lefties and whose performance has trended downward the last few years. Basically, he's Conor Gillaspie with a slightly better bat and much better glove. To me, that's a fairly marginal upgrade, and considering Gillaspie is a cost controlled asset and Sandoval is looking for $100 million over 6-7 years...I don't think Sandoval is going to be worth 3 more WAR per year than Gillaspie over the next 4-5 years. There are bigger holes to fill, like LF, 2-3 spots in the bullpen, and a mid rotation starter. For the price you'd pay for Sandoval, you could have something like Markakis and a solid pen arm or LaRoche and Billingsley instead. Like Balta said, if this were an 85+ win team, and 3B was the biggest hole, it would make sense to go after Sandoval. With this team, it makes no sense. You're kidding yourself if you think Sandoval's bat is only a slight upgrade over Conor.

QUOTE (Vance Law @ Nov 3, 2014 -> 09:08 PM) You saw Mike Moustakas in the playoffs this year, right? There are lots of reasons to pass on signing Sandoval, namely he'll be getting an absurd amount of money that he is not worth. What does Moustakas have to do with Gillaspie? And I'm not advocating signing Sandoval really. Don't get me wrong, I would want if the $ was right (which it won't be), but my post was more about the idea of not wanting to sing any player because of Conor Gillaspie being ridiculous. Sandoval was the example that someone else used.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Nov 3, 2014 -> 04:00 PM) Kinda. The way I keep looking at it...an upgrade to the 3b position is minor. It could push an 87 win team over the top, but we're not an 87 win team right now. An upgrade to the corner OF, middle of the rotation, or bullpen, is a major upgrade. Basically, spending money for a big time player at a position where we already have someone tolerable is ok if we've filled the huge holes and still have funds remaining. It's not the priority though - if you add an upgrade to 3b and the bullpen but leave the corner OF spot with a Viciedo sized hole, that team is not winning. If/When we become serious competitors in the AL Conor Gillaspie will not be our everyday 3B...he's just not that good. We need a long term solution at 3B and Gillaspie isn't it. Is Gillaspie the biggest hole in the lineup? No, but that doesn't mean you pass on a chance to sign a guy like Sandoval because of that.

QUOTE (Dam8610 @ Nov 2, 2014 -> 03:50 PM) If you sign Sandoval, you're practically committing yourself to trading Gillaspie since Sandoval is a better version of Gillaspie. Headley, Markakis, and Cruz would likely be my top 3 FA targets. Are you really suggesting that you wouldn't sign a player like Sandoval because of Conor Gillaspie?

QUOTE (GreenSox @ Nov 1, 2014 -> 09:59 PM) Lind can't be a full time DH because he's a platoon hitter. So with him, we'd have a partial DH. Yea, Roost, that's a big improvement offensively and defensively at a reasonable cost. Gillaspie could play some first, OF?, DH. Maybe another guy from the right side of some sort. He'd still easily see 450-500 PA's. That's well worth the 7.5M he'll make next year if he can continue his career .860 OPS and 128 WRC against righties. I don't want to make it seem likes its a huge deal that we didn't trade for Lind, because its not, but I just can't imagine how a deal similar to the value of Marco Estrada seemed like too much to give up for Lind. Oh well, hopefully Hahn has something else up his sleeve.

Keep Vmart to 3 years and Rasmus to 1 and I'd be very happy. Of course that probably won't happen so I wouldn't be thrilled with those signings

QUOTE (GreenSox @ Nov 1, 2014 -> 09:23 PM) He's a platoon hitter at a position at which the Sox have a 130 game starter. Not a great fit. Interesting scenario, Roost. I like the idea of Headley. As for Crawford, I would have thought he was north of 35, but he's only 32. We have a DH option worthy of starting 130 games right now? Who?

QUOTE (StRoostifer @ Nov 1, 2014 -> 02:21 PM) I would have guessed Lind could bring a better return than Estrada. Shows how little I know. A little frustrating to see him go for that little and not end up in our line up honestly. He would have been damn near perfect for the middle of our lineup.