HUh?

 

This is his second full season, last season he had an OBP of .372 and almost a .900 OPS. He has gotten on base all through his career.

 

Kotchman's OPS was .839 last year and he is at .775 this year. He is good but he isn't in the same stratosphere as Tex.

Kotchman's OPS was .839 last year and he is at .775 this year. He is good but he isn't in the same stratosphere as Tex.

Yes, but I was quoting the "he's never gotten on base his whole career" remark which was not correct.

Yes, but I was quoting the "he's never gotten on base his whole career" remark which was not correct.

 

Agreed, although Kotchman's walks are down significantly this year.

Halos are going to have some money to spend. Vlad-KRod-Garret Anderson are all FA's after the year.

I think there is an option on Vladdy. Krod and Anderson are gone and they'll look to do whatever they can to move Matthews. So they should have significantly more money to play with this off-season. In addition, Garland probably won't be back as Adenhart will likely slide into the rotation.

 

Tremendous move by Anaheim. Kochman is good but Tex makes the Angels lineup significantly better and I expect the Angels to make a serious effort to resign him.

This has to make Anaheim the best team in baseball. If we meet up in the playoffs, they're going to be tough to beat.

Long way to go, but I'd start engraving their trophy. WOW.

This has to make Anaheim the best team in baseball. If we meet up in the playoffs, they're going to be tough to beat.

Thats what I thought a few years ago. Of course they could suit up 15 junior high players and will still give us a tough contest.

Just checked, and you are correct on the Vlad deal.

I'm 99.9% sure Anderson has an option as well, but there is no way the Angels will exercise that thing.

Great deal for the Angels, but I still think the Braves go away happy with this deal. They probably could have gotten more, but i havent even seen the whole deal.

I'm 99.9% sure Anderson has an option as well, but there is no way the Angels will exercise that thing.

$14M, yeah not a chance.

$14M, yeah not a chance.

They would also probably have serious talks about extending Vladdy, but given his decline maybe the Angels figure they'll give Tex a fat deal and let Vladdy walk a year from now (as opposed to going long-term with you).

On Tuesday, the Angels made the kind of deadline blockbuster they're often accused of never making by trading first baseman Casey Kotchman and pitching prospect Stephen Marek to Atlanta for the right to run Teixeira out there as their first baseman for the next two months. Initially, according to a source, the Braves asked for Kotchman, top pitching prospect Nick Adenhart and a third player in exchange for Teixeira. But the Angels told Atlanta that while they might be willing to talk about, essentially, a Kotchman-for-Teixeira swap even-up, they were not willing to open a hole in their club for either 2008 or 2009. The clubs then compromised Tuesday afternoon by agreeing on Marek, a 24-year-old Double-A righthander who wasn't regarded as one of the Angels' premier prospects.

 

The Braves also had talked to the Diamondbacks, Rays and Red Sox about Teixeira, and the Yankees and Dodgers also had checked in peripherally. But the Angels surprised the baseball world by bearing down hard on that middle-of-the-order bat that now transforms them into the official 2008 Best Team in Baseball.

 

The Angels already had the best record in the game (65-40). But their offense ranked just ninth in the American League in runs scored and 11th in on-base percentage. And their .399 team slugging percentage ranked 10th in the AL and 22nd in baseball. Now they can slot Teixeira, a 28-year-old switch-hitter with Gold Glove defensive skills, into their lineup to hit behind Vladimir Guerrero. They also get a player who is familiar with life in the AL West from his four-plus seasons in Texas. And they get an offensive force who has averaged about 35 homers and close to 40 doubles per full season since 2004, with a .291 batting average, .381 on-base percentage, .546 slugging percentage and .927 OPS. The Angels didn't ask for a window to negotiate an extension with Teixeira. But it's expected that they'll make a massive effort to sign him to a long-term deal, after trading away their every-day first baseman, and a player they were especially fond of, in Kotchman. Teixeira is a Scott Boras client, however. And early rumblings are that his initial asking price will be in the neighborhood of 10 years, $230 million. The Braves, meanwhile, prioritized getting a first baseman back for Teixeira. And while they weren't able to get the larger package they'd hoped for -- or one that even approached the five players they gave up for Teixeira last year -- they did get a first baseman who can't become a free agent until after the 2011 season. They'll lose power production since Kotchman has hit only 31 homers in 1,137 big league at-bats and owns just a .426 career slugging percentage. But the Angels believed he would develop power as he progressed. And his home-run ratio away from home (one every 31.9 at-bats) was much better than his ratio in Anaheim (one every 44.3 AB). He'd already hit a career-high 12 home runs this season.

 

In his 157 games in Atlanta, Teixeira hit 37 home runs and drove in more runs (134) than any player in the major leagues except Ryan Howard. Marek was a 40th-round draft pick by the Angels in 2004. He was a starter in his first three pro seasons. But the Angels were using him in middle relief at Arkansas, where he was 2-6 with a 3.66 ERA and an impressive 57 strikeouts in 46 2/3 innings. Jayson Stark covers major league baseball for ESPN.com.

 

Alright so they get Marek. Atleast the Braves tried to get Adenhart in the deal, knowing they got what they could is probably good enough for the Braves even though with Huddy's cloudy future they are in need of some starting pitchers. 10 years 230 mil, have fun with that LA, I bet Boras will fine a way to make it even more.

Thats what I thought a few years ago. Of course they could suit up 15 junior high players and will still give us a tough contest.

They weren't 5 deep in the rotation in 2005. This year, they are. Now add Tex. Ballgame.

HUh?

 

This is his second full season, last season he had an OBP of .372 and almost a .900 OPS. He has gotten on base all through his career.

If .337 in his career is getting on base, I've got different expectations from major league first baseman.

 

Kotchman's numbers last year were Scott Hatteberg-like.

 

Brett Lawrie

David Cooper

Isaac Davis

Andrew Cashner

Joshua Fields

Ryan Perry

David Havens

Allan Dykstra

Anthony Hewitt

Christian Friedrich

Daniel Schlereth

Carlos Gutierrez

Gerrit Cole

Lonnie Chisenhall

Casey Kelly

Steven Hunt

Jacob Odorizzi

Bradley Holt

Zachary Collier

Michael Montgomery

Connor Gillaspie

Jordan Lyles

Michael Lynn

Brett DeVall

Ryan Flaherty

Jeff Decker

Wade Miley

Jeremy Bleich

Bryan Price

Jon Forsythe

Kyle Lobstein

Tanner Scheppers

Johnny Giavotella

Xavier Avery

Anthony Gose

Brad Hand

Seth Lintz

Cutter Dykstra

Destin Hood

Joseph Austin

Robert Ross

Shane Peterson

Tyler Ladendorf

 

These are the players taken in this years draft, first round, 16-60. Pick any two of those guys and that's the type of players Atlanta gave up for Casey Kotchman. This is the same area of the first round where in '06 the Yanks got Chamberlain and Kennedy and in '05 players like Ellsbury, Garza, Rasmus, Buccholz, Jed Lowrie, and Bowden among others were selected. Casey isn't worth the potential offered there IMO.

The 2008 Baseball season just got SIGNIFICANTLY LESS interesting to me.

Glad to see KW is sitting on his ass, while we piss the division down the drain.

LOL

 

Dude, you kill me. Another team, in another division, makes a deal that this organization doesn't have the bullets to make, and doesn't match well anyway. The Sox are in first place, despite the predictions of most (including you, I presume?) saying they'd be in 3rd at best. And this is your response?

 

This isn't some video game. You can't just go pick a player you want and grab him.

 

Well...if the Sox are desperate to unload Konerko next offseason...and he does anything to make himself look like he's worth his contract before the end of this year, that may have just opened up a 1b hole on the Angels, which is where everyone always wants to send him.

If .337 in his career is getting on base, I've got different expectations from major league first baseman.

 

Kotchman's numbers last year were Scott Hatteberg-like.

Huh? This is is second full season dude, what are you talking about. He has been getting on base his entire minor league career, and his first full season which was last year. Hatteberg had ONE season approach .900 OPS. Kotchman is a good young player.

 

 

Kotchman last season (first full season) .296 .372 .840

Hatteberg career (13 years): .273 .361 .772

 

For s***s and giggles: Paul Konerko career: .277 .351 .838

 

What exactly is YOUR expectation from a major league first baseman?

Hmph. With Tex gone, saving them probalby $4 million this season, Hampton and Smoltz and Glavine presumably gone, that's about $54 million coming off the books for the Braves at the end of this season including the $4 they just saved.

Well...if the Sox are desperate to unload Konerko next offseason...and he does anything to make himself look like he's worth his contract before the end of this year, that may have just opened up a 1b hole on the Angels, which is where everyone always wants to send him.

 

That was might first thought in regards to the whole trade....

 

Huh? This is is second full season dude, what are you talking about. He has been getting on base his entire minor league career, and his first full season which was last year. Hatteberg had ONE season approach .900 OPS. Kotchman is a good young player.

 

 

Kotchman last season (first full season) .296 .372 .840

Hatteberg career (13 years): .273 .361 .772

 

For s***s and giggles: Paul Konerko career: .277 .351 .838

 

What exactly is YOUR expectation from a major league first baseman?

 

 

this was a great trade for the braves. Tex is a great player but they rid them selves of some salary and get a real good first baseman and a decent pitching prospect. Nice move.

Well...if the Sox are desperate to unload Konerko next offseason...and he does anything to make himself look like he's worth his contract before the end of this year, that may have just opened up a 1b hole on the Angels, which is where everyone always wants to send him.

 

 

Texeira may only be a rental player? I kind of doubt it. I think the LAA will sign him long term. They seem to have lots of money. If we keep Konerko at 1B I won't cry. But, Mark T is a heckuva a player.

That gives the Angels 3 huge impending F/A's in Tex, Vlad, and K-Rod. Going to have to spend a lot of money this offseason.

They basically traded Kotch for Tex. The good news is that the Angels are going to need a 1B next year.

Unless, of course, they pull out their fat wallets like they do every offseason and just sign Tex.

This is a nice deal for the Angels, but it is not like their offense was that great to begin with. 19th in the MLB in runs? 23rd in OPS? Not very impressive. Tex will help, but it seems like their record is somewhat misleading. 65-40, yet they only have a +39 run differential. Something has to give.