2016 Trade Deadline

[jersey cubs fan]

a number of the guys in the pen who have been "shaky" have pretty good track records and are likely to turn it around. plus there are guys in iowa who should probably get a shot before we dump resources into another pen arm.

 

as for chapman, the cubs have a good thing going in the clubhouse so i tend to think they'd steer clear of a domestic abuser.

 

Ehh a couple of the bullpen arms we have are failed starting pitchers that we converted to relievers that had like a half year of success. If things continue the way they are then we don't have any need to acquire anything else at the deadline so we mine as well use some of our expendable minor leagues like Vogelbach and others to add a quality reliever. That being said I have no real interest in Chapman now given all we know about him.

virtually every reliever is a failed starter

[jersey cubs fan]

This might be opening up a can of hell for me, but does anyone care that Chapman didn't choke her?

 

Charges were never filed, however, and witnesses never offered any evidence that corroborated the initial allegations. Eventually, Chapman’s girlfriend offered a different account of the evening, stating that she didn’t recall saying Chapman had struck her, adding that she only heard one gunshot (after originally alleging eight shots were fired) and wasn’t sure if it was Chapman who discharged the firearm. Because criminal charges were never filed, Chapman did not face a trial.

 

Photos taken by the police the night of: http://www.tmz.com/2015/12/08/aroldis-chapman-domestic-violence-photos/

 

It's scary to imagine an America where being accused is enough to drop a guilty verdict, so I'd prefer to stay away from that mentality.

Whatever you need to justify supporting a scumbag.

 

 

A lack of a guilty verdict in a court of law protects him from prison, not from being thought of as the terrible person he so very clearly is.

[Little Slide Rooter]

horsefeathers Aroldis Chapman. He's a dirt bag and he's guilty as sin, and there's nothing

short of helping us win the World Series

that's going to change my mind.

[Cubswin11]

Andrew Miller intrigues me at the right price. IIRC, we were in on him last year in FA until the price got high and I think some combo of Theo/Jed were in Boston when they acquired him and turned him into a relief pitcher.

[CaliforniaRaisin]

Aroldis Chapman is scum.

[Transmogrified Tiger]

I'm very much closer to the 'root for laundry' end of the spectrum, but I still prefer not to have to have any conflicting emotions about being happy when a player on that team does well. Castro was one thing, Chapman is another.

 

Also and probably more importantly, I have zero interest in paying the cost it takes to acquire Chapman only to have him be a free agent in a couple months.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

I got over Kane. I'd get over Chapman. He isn't necessary though.

[Little Slide Rooter]

For no particular reason, here's a short list of teams that could be ready to back up the truck in the next few weeks and what they could move. Not necessarily guys that would be fits for us, just guys that could be on the move.

 

Brewers:

 

Jonathan Lucroy: Had no idea he was a free agent after this season. The way Miggy's looking, this could end up our main target. Would end up a very expensive rental.

 

Aaron Hill: After a brutal start, he's quietly put together some strong numbers. Not going to fool anybody into thinking he's not 34 and injury prone, but comes with no commitment. Could see him packaged with Braun, but he's also your prototypical waiver trade guy.

 

And of course, Ryan Braun. He's going to cost somebody, probably an AL team quite a bit in terms of cash and/or prospects. Even if we were willing and able to take him on, warts and all, there's no way they'd send him to us. It's one thing to trade to a division rival when your season was effectively over last season, but Braun's been the poster boy for the Brewers, if not Milwaukee, and sending him to us, or the Cardinals for that matter, would cause an absolute PR nightmare; possibly one that would catalyze the Portland Brewers.

 

Reds:

 

Brandon Phillips: Could have sworn he was traded in the offseason. He's due in 14mm 2017, but at 34, there's no reason to believe that he'll suddenly stop being good at baseball. If we didn't have Zobrist, he'd be a target, but we do.

 

Jay Bruce: 13mm team option for 2017. I know his defense sucks, but we were prepared to begin the season with Schwarber and Coghlan out there.

 

Joey Votto: Haven't heard any talk of him being traded, but everything about him and his contract scream out Yankees.

 

Braves

 

Nick Markakis: Not sure why he forgot how to hit home runs. 11mm for each of '17-'18 isn't that bad, it's not money we need to spend.

 

Jason Grilli: No thanks. But remember when he was the offseason target that got away.

 

Bud Norris: For some reason, Major League Baseball teams repeatedly employ Bud Norris. I think it has something to do with the name Bud. If they ever catch on to the fact that it's not his given name, that'll be the end of him.

[Bryants Disco Ball]

For no particular reason, here's a short list of teams that could be ready to back up the truck in the next few weeks and what they could move. Not necessarily guys that would be fits for us, just guys that could be on the move.

 

Brewers:

 

Jonathan Lucroy: Had no idea he was a free agent after this season. The way Miggy's looking, this could end up our main target. Would end up a very expensive rental.

 

Aaron Hill: After a brutal start, he's quietly put together some strong numbers. Not going to fool anybody into thinking he's not 34 and injury prone, but comes with no commitment. Could see him packaged with Braun, but he's also your prototypical waiver trade guy.

 

And of course, Ryan Braun. He's going to cost somebody, probably an AL team quite a bit in terms of cash and/or prospects. Even if we were willing and able to take him on, warts and all, there's no way they'd send him to us. It's one thing to trade to a division rival when your season was effectively over last season, but Braun's been the poster boy for the Brewers, if not Milwaukee, and sending him to us, or the Cardinals for that matter, would cause an absolute PR nightmare; possibly one that would catalyze the Portland Brewers.

 

Reds:

 

Brandon Phillips: Could have sworn he was traded in the offseason. He's due in 14mm 2017, but at 34, there's no reason to believe that he'll suddenly stop being good at baseball. If we didn't have Zobrist, he'd be a target, but we do.

 

Jay Bruce: 13mm team option for 2017. I know his defense sucks, but we were prepared to begin the season with Schwarber and Coghlan out there.

 

Joey Votto: Haven't heard any talk of him being traded, but everything about him and his contract scream out Yankees.

 

Braves

 

Nick Markakis: Not sure why he forgot how to hit home runs. 11mm for each of '17-'18 isn't that bad, it's not money we need to spend.

 

Jason Grilli: No thanks. But remember when he was the offseason target that got away.

 

Bud Norris: For some reason, Major League Baseball teams repeatedly employ Bud Norris. I think it has something to do with the name Bud. If they ever catch on to the fact that it's not his given name, that'll be the end of him.

 

Lucroy is a free agent after next season.

[cubsclapp]

Votto turns 33 in September and is making $25 million per through 2023 (and with a $7 million buyout in 2024, or $20 million at age 40-41).

 

And while we know he will be much better than -this- and he's going to at least get on base for a long time with his strike zone knowledge and plate approach... he's currently a -0.1 fWAR player on the season. I can't see any team (even the Yankees) touching that contract.

 

Wouldn't bet on anyone getting Brandon Phillips either. Turns 35 in June, currently a 0.3 fWAR player, and makes $14 million next year.

 

Someone will likely give up more than they should for Jay Bruce because everyone wants power, but he's basically as replacement level player as they get at this point. I'm not sure two butchers in left field (without near the bat value of Schwarber) is worth it, especially when you'd have to give one of our division rivals a decent prospect. I'd rather just roll with Baez/La Stella and Bryant in LF if Soler keeps hitting like Rey Ordonez.

 

Lucroy is a guy that's been talked about a bit, and I'm sure Theo/Jed love him. But he'd be a rental, require the Cubs carrying 3 catchers all year, and require the Cubs giving a division rival a very legit prospect or two. While Willson Contreras has the 4th-best OBP in the PCL. Just too many things at play with that one... but who knows. Theo knows you only get so many chances so maybe he'll say let's go for it and make a move like that. Lucroy really would be a perfect No. 6 or 7 hitter on this team.

 

Edit: And as Bryant's Disco Ball alludes to, Lucroy is going to be under team control for another year (a $5.2 million option or $0.2 million buyout). So that would seem even less likely if they really like Contreras.

[squally1313]

With our playoff odds being what they are, outside of an injury leaving a gigantic hole (which this team was built to avoid), I don't see much benefit in trading away more than cash and nothing prospects for short term offensive upgrades.

 

Andrew Miller is probably my main target in terms of realistic deadline improvements. Agree with most everyone else on Chapman. The vision of him being the guy getting the final out for us would be that one lingering negative to an otherwise perfect moment.

[JWCUB]

Miller would be great. Strop, Miller and Rondon. That's a shutdown bullpen!

[Rob]

I could see the Cubs trying to convince the Brewers to take back Montero as a piece in a trade for Lucroy, helping with the whole "have to carry three catchers" thing.

 

I'd think you'd need to work that into a three team deal though -- find a cheap team with a big need at C and let the Cubs foot the bill for Montero, with the other team contributing some portion of the prospects needed to get Lucroy.

 

The Rays, Rockies, and Marlins have guys at C that Montero should be an upgrade over in the short term. Same for the Rangers, but they've got the bullets to just go out and get Lucroy. Montero is an upgrade for the Angels as well, but they don't have any prospects.

 

The Rays are probably the best fit. They've gotten -0.6 fWAR from Casali and Conger combined to this point. And the front office even sans Friedman is still smart enough to recognize Montero gets some real value from pitch framing.

[KingCubsFan]

Would the Royals move Ventura? I love me a healthy power arm that smells like a buy low candidate. Plus - getting a proven young SP is probably going to cost a shiiiiit ton so any circumstance that might bring that cost down is nice.

I wouldn't be so sure that Ventura is healthy. Velocity down, walks up...

[Little Slide Rooter]

Josh Reddick Suffers Fractured Left Thumb

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2016/05/josh-reddick-suffers-fractured-left-thumb.html

 

Expected to miss 4-6 weeks.

[JWCUB]

With recent struggles of DeGrom and Harvey, along with injury speculation, are the Mets gonna be looking for starting pitching as well?

[sneakypower]

supposedly they get the Ghost of Injury Past, Zach Wheeler, back at the ASB

[Liam Neeson]

With recent struggles of DeGrom and Harvey, along with injury speculation, are the Mets gonna be looking for starting pitching as well?

 

Wheeler is suppose to come back early July and Logan Verrett has been an okay spot starter. I can't see the Mets giving up anything to acquire pitching.

[Ding Dong Johnson]

supposedly they get the Ghost of Injury Past, Zach Wheeler, back at the ASB

he's still alive?

[davell]

What should the Cubs' interest be if the Yankees made Tanaka available? Wouldn't that make them a one-stop-shop option for the Cubs?

 

Too scary for me. Lots of money, injury concerns, and high acquisition cost. I'd take any of the others(Archer, Gray, Fernandez, Corbin, Teheran) over him once all things are considered.

 

Edit- Cashman doesn't seem the type to package guys together either. But who knows? I don't think he's ever sold before. I'd love to add Miller. In fact, I voted for a reliever if we could only add one piece. At any rate, all things considered, I'd take plenty of others over Tanaka. Not necessarily from a talent standpoint, but weighing it all out, I think there's better options for us.

[Bobson Dugnutt]

What should the Cubs' interest be if the Yankees made Tanaka available? Wouldn't that make them a one-stop-shop option for the Cubs?

 

I had a similar thought a few days ago, but then I dismissed it on the basis that Tanaka is still fairly young and signed through 2019. I'd guess they think he's important to them competing in upcoming seasons.

[davell]

What should the Cubs' interest be if the Yankees made Tanaka available? Wouldn't that make them a one-stop-shop option for the Cubs?

 

Too scary for me. Lots of money, injury concerns, and high acquisition cost. I'd take any of the others(Archer, Gray, Fernandez, Corbin, Teheran) over him once all things are considered.

 

Edit- Cashman doesn't seem the type to package guys together either. But who knows? I don't think he's ever sold before. I'd love to add Miller. In fact, I voted for a reliever if we could only add one piece. At any rate, all things considered, I'd take plenty of others over Tanaka. Not necessarily from a talent standpoint, but weighing it all out, I think there's better options for us.

 

What's the trade cost for a Tanaka compared to those other guys? That's a rough one - if you're scared to pay up for Tanaka then you should probably be crapping your pants at the cost for a Fernandez or really any of those guys. Heck, what's his injury risk compared to the others? Two of the guys listed have already had TJ surgery and Archer's probably a bigger injury risk today than Tanaka is.

 

 

I figure the extra years of control would heighten the cost on Tanaka. Of course, his salary would bring it back down somewhat. Hamels maybe a comp? He's not as good as him and has some injury history, but maybe a package like that, minus one top 100 guy?

 

I'd prefer a guy coming off TJS than a guy who's avoided it, albeit with concerns. Plus, my true guess is the Yankees won't trade him anyway. They're not going to rebuild and with Strasburg off the market, they've got no options to replace him. Not since they can't really compete with some other teams in the trade market.

[JennieGarthAlgar]

Bring Archer home.

[Aaron_Kennelly]

Yeah, I am glad that we didn't make a big trade in the off-season for some of the names that have been thrown around. Archer looks broken. Not enough command or control. Throws way too many sliders. Too much of a concern that he is injured, will be injured, or is just broken. Gray sucks. He doesn't strike out enough guys in the first place. And now he is getting squared up and walking too many guys. He wasn't good enough in the first place, to where he could avoid a precipitous fall if he lost some stuff. Pass on them both. horsefeathers pitchers, as always. I'd still be open to trading for one -- it would have to be like Jose Fernandez or something, though. But, I'm almost to the point where I wouldn't trade for any pitcher.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

Screw pitchers forever.