Stewart/Dewitt swap?

[Little Slide Rooter]

So what if the at bats are going to Stewart, DeWitt, Colvin, or LaHair. At least with Stewart he could potentially be something more.

 

If our management team is a fraction as good as they are supposed to be, those can't be the only four options.

 

For the 25th man? Any one of the 4 would good enough for me.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

I assumed we were talking about starting 3b. Stewart will make way too much money to be a 25th man. Especially in an organization as stacked with 25th-man infielders as this one.

[Rob]

Rotoworld is actually reporting now that the Rockies had turned down the Cubs offer of DeWitt for Stewart.

 

I'm not even that high on Stewart and I'd be willing to go up from that pricetag a good ways.

[Little Slide Rooter]

Troy Renck of the Denver Post reports that the Rockies turned down the Cubs' offer of Blake DeWitt in exchange for Ian Stewart.

Renck intimated previously that it was the Cubs that turned down the offer, but evidently it was the other way around. He adds that the Rockies "still think highly enough" of Stewart that they want more than DeWitt for him, with Tyler Colvin or a pitching prospect presenting more intrigue to them. If the Rockies wind up hanging on to Stewart, he'll compete for the third base job with Jordan Pacheco, Chris Nelson and Brandon Wood until Nolan Arenado is ready.

 

Now there's a report that it was the Rockies that turned down the offer. Makes more sense I guess. Still, as for the Colvin and a pitching prospect, depending on who the pitching prospect is, I'd be OK for it. Jay Jackson would have been a good option if not for the Rule 5 thing. Other than that, Casey Coleman or Alberto Cabrera would be the best I'd offer unless they have their eye on a minor releiver like Gaub, Stevens, or Caridad.

[Guest]

It's a game. Theo probably prefers Headley. But, at some point, how much is he going to cost in return becomes a huge factor. So, he holds off the Rockies until he gets to the bottom of what it's going to take on Headley. If Stewart gets dealt before Theo decides whether Headley is worth it or not, then Theo kind of loses the game here. But, he probably has a 3rd option anyway, so it's not really all that bothersome. What about Betemit on a one year deal? Is he THAT awful?

 

If so, it's a stupid game. As I said before, even if Theo thinks that he has a shot at Headley between now and next winter, there's no reason not to jump on Stewart if the price is DeWitt.

 

The question isn't the cost. It's whether you want Stewart at all. If you pick him up, you are giving him a roster spot, playing time, and $2.5 million or so. I'm not convinced that's worth it.

If you are planning on nontendering DeWitt, there is no reason not to do this. Keep pursuing headley. If you get him, then no tender Stewart and you've lost nothing.

[Little Slide Rooter]

It's a game. Theo probably prefers Headley. But, at some point, how much is he going to cost in return becomes a huge factor. So, he holds off the Rockies until he gets to the bottom of what it's going to take on Headley. If Stewart gets dealt before Theo decides whether Headley is worth it or not, then Theo kind of loses the game here. But, he probably has a 3rd option anyway, so it's not really all that bothersome. What about Betemit on a one year deal? Is he THAT awful?

 

If so, it's a stupid game. As I said before, even if Theo thinks that he has a shot at Headley between now and next winter, there's no reason not to jump on Stewart if the price is DeWitt.

 

The question isn't the cost. It's whether you want Stewart at all. If you pick him up, you are giving him a roster spot, playing time, and $2.5 million or so. I'm not convinced that's worth it.

If you are planning on nontendering DeWitt, there is no reason not to do this. Keep pursuing headley. If you get him, then no tender Stewart and you've lost nothing.

 

Right. These are often my favorite types of trade, the justa guy for a guy who need a change of scenry. Like when we swapped DuBois for Gerut. A couple of guys who were once highly thought of but didn't meet expectations and both were given the oportunity for a change of scenery rather than being cut.

[Guest]

Troy Renck of the Denver Post reports that the Rockies turned down the Cubs' offer of Blake DeWitt in exchange for Ian Stewart.

Renck intimated previously that it was the Cubs that turned down the offer, but evidently it was the other way around. He adds that the Rockies "still think highly enough" of Stewart that they want more than DeWitt for him, with Tyler Colvin or a pitching prospect presenting more intrigue to them. If the Rockies wind up hanging on to Stewart, he'll compete for the third base job with Jordan Pacheco, Chris Nelson and Brandon Wood until Nolan Arenado is ready.

 

Now there's a report that it was the Rockies that turned down the offer. Makes more sense I guess. Still, as for the Colvin and a pitching prospect, depending on who the pitching prospect is, I'd be OK for it. Jay Jackson would have been a good option if not for the Rule 5 thing. Other than that, Casey Coleman or Alberto Cabrera would be the best I'd offer unless they have their eye on a minor releiver like Gaub, Stevens, or Caridad.

 

The quote says either Colvin or a pitching prospect, not both.

[Little Slide Rooter]

Troy Renck of the Denver Post reports that the Rockies turned down the Cubs' offer of Blake DeWitt in exchange for Ian Stewart.

Renck intimated previously that it was the Cubs that turned down the offer, but evidently it was the other way around. He adds that the Rockies "still think highly enough" of Stewart that they want more than DeWitt for him, with Tyler Colvin or a pitching prospect presenting more intrigue to them. If the Rockies wind up hanging on to Stewart, he'll compete for the third base job with Jordan Pacheco, Chris Nelson and Brandon Wood until Nolan Arenado is ready.

 

Now there's a report that it was the Rockies that turned down the offer. Makes more sense I guess. Still, as for the Colvin and a pitching prospect, depending on who the pitching prospect is, I'd be OK for it. Jay Jackson would have been a good option if not for the Rule 5 thing. Other than that, Casey Coleman or Alberto Cabrera would be the best I'd offer unless they have their eye on a minor releiver like Gaub, Stevens, or Caridad.

 

The quote says either Colvin or a pitching prospect, not both.

 

Well [expletive], even better. While Colvin has a slightly higher ceiling than DeWitt, with DeJesus, Jackson, and Lahair in the mix he's even more expendable. Do it now. Colorado already seems to have a crowded enough outfield though and have been talking about swapping Seth Smith for Martin Prado.

[davell]

Yeah, I feel much better that Stewart, rather than Colvin, could help us out next season. Beyond as well. Unless the thinking is Headley can be had without even giving up Szczur or McNutt, go ahead and get this thing done.

[toonsterwu]

If it is just a DeWitt/Stewart swap, I'd do that in a heartbeat. No 2nd thoughts about it. DeWitt's hitting his arb years and, well, isn't all that good defensively at 2nd or 3rd, and isn't all that good offensively. If Flaherty makes it through Rule 5, I'd simply add him on if they wanted a utility guy, and there's still LeMahieu.

 

The way I read the Renck thing seemed to suggested DeWitt and a pitcher for Stewart. Depending on who the arm is, I'd probably still be okay with the gamble.

[rawaction]

It's a game. Theo probably prefers Headley. But, at some point, how much is he going to cost in return becomes a huge factor. So, he holds off the Rockies until he gets to the bottom of what it's going to take on Headley. If Stewart gets dealt before Theo decides whether Headley is worth it or not, then Theo kind of loses the game here. But, he probably has a 3rd option anyway, so it's not really all that bothersome. What about Betemit on a one year deal? Is he THAT awful?

 

If so, it's a stupid game. As I said before, even if Theo thinks that he has a shot at Headley between now and next winter, there's no reason not to jump on Stewart if the price is DeWitt.

 

The question isn't the cost. It's whether you want Stewart at all. If you pick him up, you are giving him a roster spot, playing time, and $2.5 million or so. I'm not convinced that's worth it.

If you are planning on nontendering DeWitt, there is no reason not to do this. Keep pursuing headley. If you get him, then no tender Stewart and you've lost nothing.

 

Could keep Stewart and Headley. Headley at 3B. Stewart has played 2B and both corner OF spots in addition to 3B.

[Little Slide Rooter]

Heres my take on the Headley vs. Stewart thing. headley, while his career stats have been blah, he has some pretty crazy home road splits,

 

Home: .229/.319/.336/.655 15 HR

Road:. .303/.364/.441/.805 21 HR

 

Makes me think

 

1. You'd think that the Padres would want to move him

2. Why the hell don't the Padres just build a stadium where baseball could be watchable

3. While the road line is impressive, he power simply isn't there. Is it really worth pursuing him that hard when the Padres arent set on trading him? He seems like the safer bet over Stewart, but is it a big enough difference to be worth giving up a top prospect package vs. getting Stewart for spare parts? Why not grab Stewart this year. If he can give us a good season, maybe he's the 3rd baseman of the future. Also, see what Vitters does in AAA. If neither Stewart nor Vitters impress in 2012, then see if the Padres are more inclined to move Headley next offseason. He's still under team control through 2014.

 

And for the interest of those with their hearts set on Headley:

 

Padres Interested In Andrew Bailey

By Ben Nicholson-Smith [December 2 at 3:15pm CST]

The Padres are interested in acquiring Athletics closer Andrew Bailey to replace Heath Bell, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (on Twitter). It remains likely that the A's will trade Bailey, Olney writes.

 

Could the Pads be interested in a package built around Carlos Marmol and perhaps Welington Castillo?

[Guest]

Could the Pads be interested in a package built around Carlos Marmol and perhaps Welington Castillo?

 

Maybe if the Cubs were willing to eat most of Marmol's contract over the next two years. If the Padres wanted to spend that kind of money, they could have resigned Bell. Bailey won't make much more than 2m next year and he'd be a hot trade commodity at the deadline next year when San Diego falls out of contention. A team with payroll constraints like the Padres can't afford to spend 8-9m on a closer.

[davearm2]

Heres my take on the Headley vs. Stewart thing. headley, while his career stats have been blah, he has some pretty crazy home road splits,

 

Home: .229/.319/.336/.655 15 HR

Road:. .303/.364/.441/.805 21 HR

 

Makes me think

 

1. You'd think that the Padres would want to move him

2. Why the hell don't the Padres just build a stadium where baseball could be watchable

3. While the road line is impressive, he power simply isn't there. Is it really worth pursuing him that hard when the Padres arent set on trading him? He seems like the safer bet over Stewart, but is it a big enough difference to be worth giving up a top prospect package vs. getting Stewart for spare parts? Why not grab Stewart this year. If he can give us a good season, maybe he's the 3rd baseman of the future. Also, see what Vitters does in AAA. If neither Stewart nor Vitters impress in 2012, then see if the Padres are more inclined to move Headley next offseason. He's still under team control through 2014.

 

Home @ .297 BABIP

Road @ .374 BABIP

 

Makes me think,

1. How'd he manage to sustain a .374 in over 1000 ABs?

2. .655 OPS is probably closer to reality than .805, even considering park effects. SWAG is you're looking at around .700 OPS after adjusting for both park and BABIP.

[Guest]

While the road line is impressive, he power simply isn't there.

 

San Francisco and LA are two more stadiums in that division that are pitcher friendly. Chase also hits the ball equally to all parts of the field and mostly to the gaps, which are the deepest parts of the park.

 

I wouldn't balk on Headley for the right price.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

If you are planning on nontendering DeWitt, there is no reason not to do this. Keep pursuing headley. If you get him, then no tender Stewart and you've lost nothing.

 

The reason not to do it is that you should really be able to come up with better back-up options to Headley than Stewart, so it's really just a waste of time. You can probably come up with better options internally, especially considering salary.

[Guest]

How are you going to come up with a better backup option than Stewart? There's no way you can do that without paying even more than Stewart would make.

[KingCubsFan]

How are you going to come up with a better backup option than Stewart? There's no way you can do that without paying even more than Stewart would make.

He probably thinks someone like Flaherty is roughly equivalent to Stewart, or at least close enough where it's not worth it to spend $3 million on Stewart when you can have Flaherty for the minimum.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

How are you going to come up with a better backup option than Stewart? There's no way you can do that without paying even more than Stewart would make.

 

How are we going to come up with a better backup option than paying $2.5 million for a mediocre defensive 3b who put up a .705 OPS the last two seasons in a 110+ park factor home park, coming off a major wrist injury?

 

I can think of a lot of ways to do better. Wave a $400k contract around the AAA Infielders Convention and see who bites?

[Guest]

So we're back to the Stewart isn't any good refrain?

 

 

There's way more certainty in Stewart's performance than just throwing AAAA guys at a wall.

[KingCubsFan]

So we're back to the Stewart isn't any good refrain?

 

 

There's way more certainty in Stewart's performance than just throwing AAAA guys at a wall.

It's not the certainty that makes him intriguing, it's the fact this upside is so much higher than your normal AAAA infielder. None of those guys have the potential to hit .260-.270 with 20+ homers.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

So we're back to the Stewart isn't any good refrain?

 

Yes. He's not awful, but he's not good in any way.

 

There's way more certainty in Stewart's performance than just throwing AAAA guys at a wall.

 

Way more certainty for a guy coming off a .464 OPS season and is coming off a major wrist injury?

[Guest]

There's way more certainty in Stewart's performance than just throwing AAAA guys at a wall.

 

Way more certainty for a guy coming off a .464 OPS season and is coming off a major wrist injury?

 

A hundred times yes.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

So we're back to the Stewart isn't any good refrain?

 

 

There's way more certainty in Stewart's performance than just throwing AAAA guys at a wall.

It's not the certainty that makes him intriguing, it's the fact this upside is so much higher than your normal AAAA infielder. None of those guys have the potential to hit .260-.270 with 20+ homers.

 

Ian Stewart has never hit .260 in any major league season, full or partial, in five tries. He is currently on a 56-game homerless streak at the MLB level.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

There's way more certainty in Stewart's performance than just throwing AAAA guys at a wall.

 

Way more certainty for a guy coming off a .464 OPS season and is coming off a major wrist injury?

 

A hundred times yes.

 

101 times no.