Starting Pitching candidates

[Tryptamine]

According to Keith Law, on Olney's podcast, we were heavily scouting Greinke in ST. Not just normal coverage type stuff. Something to keep an eye on moving forward.

 

If ARI was willing to pay him down a bit to where he was 4/100ish I'd absolutely love to have him, much more than whatever type of contract we'd have to give Darvish or Cueto in the offseason to land them.

[davell]

He's interesting for numerous reasons. Trade candidate now? I'm not sure if Arizona falls out of the WC hunt to where they'd deal him mid season. But, as an offseason target, he makes plenty of sense too.

 

And yeah, if they'd buy him down to 4/100, it'd be really nice. I wish we had a bad contract that we could make them eat. I have no clue what it'd require as a return. My guess is they'd still expect a pretty hefty return though, even if it does give them tons of flexibility moving forward.

[cubsclapp]

I was still in wait and see mode on Jake and the need for another legit starter (vs an Anderson replacement or something), but I now think the efforts to acquire such an arm may need to be turned up a notch (or at least if this keeps up for a few more starts).

 

Joe said that Jake's "stuff looked the best it has" or something after the game. 4 ER over 6 innings isn't awful, and I admittedly gave up after a few innings (and did see some 93), but I'm gonna have to disagree with him. If anything, I thought Jake was unlucky in a few of these recent starts (like even the Coors one where he primarily got blooped to death) but today it was just a lot of 91-93 right down the dick. It doesn't seem to be improving, or at least enough.

 

His K rate is somehow still a career-best, but he's paying for his mistakes. That's what happens when you catch the middle of the plate at 91-92 instead of 93-96. His command outside of 2015 was never great, but hitters either swung through or made very weak contact on his mistakes because they were plus velocity with wicked movement. Now when he misses, it's not much different than when a John Lackey misses.

 

Now, he shouldn't have a 5.44 ERA. He shouldn't have a .355 BABIP allowed. The HR rates are probably a bit unsustainable still. The results should be more in his favor than they've been, and they probably will be with the same stuff over a full season.

 

But I'm officially worried that this is what he is for 2017, barring some velocity jump/health/mechanical thing that it seems no one can figure out right now. And what that is, is basically a No. 4 starter.

 

I think that, by now, we can also put aside the theories that he's holding something back/sacrificing velocity for command/etc. By now, with the results he's been getting, he'd be throwing 93-95 instead of 91-93 if it were in him. He has too much pride and money on the line this offseason, and may be seriously costing himself like a $100 million if this keeps up.

 

I certainly hope he turns it around, but if we're entering June and it's the same stuff from Jake (plus considering Kyle's velo drop, Lackey's inconsistency, and Butler perhaps still an unknown despite the amazing stuff in his debut), the Cubs need to be attacking the trade market like they need another 1-3 starter (ideally of the cost-controlled variety, of course). You obviously don't throw aside the future, but they need to be aggressive, at least.

[davell]

My honest guess is Jake winds up taking a QO from us next year(assuming it makes sense for us to even offer it, at that point). I don't see him regaining form to where anyone's getting close to 100 mill. And I think he'd bet on himself, blaming the short off season. Work out like a madman and try to get his big payday a year later at 33.

 

Personally, I think he's done as a TOR type and should take whatever the best multi-year deal he can get(3-45?). But, my guess is he'd take a one year, prove it deal, with Boras advising him.

[cubsclapp]

My honest guess is Jake winds up taking a QO from us next year(assuming it makes sense for us to even offer it, at that point). I don't see him regaining form to where anyone's getting close to 100 mill. And I think he'd bet on himself, blaming the short off season. Work out like a madman and try to get his big payday a year later at 33.

 

Personally, I think he's done as a TOR type and should take whatever the best multi-year deal he can get(3-45?). But, my guess is he'd take a one year, prove it deal, with Boras advising him.

 

Yeah, I honestly think that's possible... but like you said, is it even worth offering him that? It's going to be 17-18 million, and, if he's in the position to accept it, it means things didn't get any better this season. Would you want to pay this guy that much money to be in the rotation next year? I know the payoff is potentially big (and if he's even 3-WAR that's like a $25 million pitcher), but it could just be paying him that much money to be a back of the rotation starter too. That would be a tough, interesting call.

 

In his position, I think it makes sense. That's more AAV than he'd get on the open market if this keeps up probably (who would pay this dude over $17 million a year on a multi-year deal?), and he could bet on himself and hit the market again the following offseason.

[davell]

My honest guess is Jake winds up taking a QO from us next year(assuming it makes sense for us to even offer it, at that point). I don't see him regaining form to where anyone's getting close to 100 mill. And I think he'd bet on himself, blaming the short off season. Work out like a madman and try to get his big payday a year later at 33.

 

Personally, I think he's done as a TOR type and should take whatever the best multi-year deal he can get(3-45?). But, my guess is he'd take a one year, prove it deal, with Boras advising him.

 

Yeah, I honestly think that's possible... but like you said, is it even worth offering him that? It's going to be 17-18 million, and, if he's in the position to accept it, it means things didn't get any better this season. Would you want to pay this guy that much money to be in the rotation next year? I know the payoff is potentially big (and if he's even 3-WAR that's like a $25 million pitcher), but it could just be paying him that much money to be a back of the rotation starter too. That would be a tough, interesting call.

 

In his position, I think it makes sense. That's more AAV than he'd get on the open market if this keeps up probably (who would pay this dude over $17 million a year on a multi-year deal?), and he could bet on himself and hit the market again the following offseason.

 

Obviously, there's a bunch of factors. Starting with how he does for the rest of the year. If he pitches like a typical 4th starter? I'd say we'd offer it. If he accepts, we'd fill a spot with a one year, upside type of play....

 

I think there'd be a few teams willing to offer him multi-year deals, if he did have that type of season.(penalty for signing QO guys is less now too) But, it'd be far less than a guy like Jake would think he can get, with his confidence.

 

Perfect scenario for us is acquiring a 1-3 type of starter at the deadline. Then, I'd be much more at ease, bringing Jake back under the preface we're EXPECTING 4-5 production from him.

[Derwood]

If Greinke was available for 4/100, we won't be the only team vying for him

[cubsclapp]

My honest guess is Jake winds up taking a QO from us next year(assuming it makes sense for us to even offer it, at that point). I don't see him regaining form to where anyone's getting close to 100 mill. And I think he'd bet on himself, blaming the short off season. Work out like a madman and try to get his big payday a year later at 33.

 

Personally, I think he's done as a TOR type and should take whatever the best multi-year deal he can get(3-45?). But, my guess is he'd take a one year, prove it deal, with Boras advising him.

 

Yeah, I honestly think that's possible... but like you said, is it even worth offering him that? It's going to be 17-18 million, and, if he's in the position to accept it, it means things didn't get any better this season. Would you want to pay this guy that much money to be in the rotation next year? I know the payoff is potentially big (and if he's even 3-WAR that's like a $25 million pitcher), but it could just be paying him that much money to be a back of the rotation starter too. That would be a tough, interesting call.

 

In his position, I think it makes sense. That's more AAV than he'd get on the open market if this keeps up probably (who would pay this dude over $17 million a year on a multi-year deal?), and he could bet on himself and hit the market again the following offseason.

 

Obviously, there's a bunch of factors. Starting with how he does for the rest of the year. If he pitches like a typical 4th starter? I'd say we'd offer it. If he accepts, we'd fill a spot with a one year, upside type of play....

 

I think there'd be a few teams willing to offer him multi-year deals, if he did have that type of season.(penalty for signing QO guys is less now too) But, it'd be far less than a guy like Jake would think he can get, with his confidence.

 

Perfect scenario for us is acquiring a 1-3 type of starter at the deadline. Then, I'd be much more at ease, bringing Jake back under the preface we're EXPECTING 4-5 production from him.

 

Yeah, I'd be cool with that.

[davell]

In some ways(you kind of insinuated it on Twitter too), we're digging ourselves into a position where we don't really have great options to trade FROM......

 

Javy- Need him for defense, still has upside offensively too, but his D and being the only guy we've got, outside of Addy, that can play SS, kind of makes him untradeable.

 

Happ- We need his bat, at the moment.(maybe longer than that). Zobrist is older and has started slow, plus his back is acting up. There's room for AB's going forward for him.

 

Schwarber- I don't see this FO moving him, but his slow start isn't going to help his value and there's no way they'd deal him for less than max value.

 

 

So, who does it leave for us to grab a TOR SP with?

 

Eloy? Sure. But damn, I really, really, really don't want to trade him. Candelario? Sure. But, he's not a lead piece in a major deal. Cease? He's probably too far away to capitalize on yet(but its one reason I'd move him to MB quick too) Almora? At this point, if you plan on keeping Happ, you'd have to find him OF AB's. That'd move Heyward to CF. Its not ideal for our overall OF D, to have him in CF, flanked by Schwarber and Happ, but maybe they think the bats worth it? No idea. But, its not easy to see what we're dealing off, to get a true upgrade starting pitcher, that's not a rental.

[cubsclapp]

In some ways(you kind of insinuated it on Twitter too), we're digging ourselves into a position where we don't really have great options to trade FROM......

 

Javy- Need him for defense, still has upside offensively too, but his D and being the only guy we've got, outside of Addy, that can play SS, kind of makes him untradeable.

 

Happ- We need his bat, at the moment.(maybe longer than that). Zobrist is older and has started slow, plus his back is acting up. There's room for AB's going forward for him.

 

Schwarber- I don't see this FO moving him, but his slow start isn't going to help his value and there's no way they'd deal him for less than max value.

 

 

So, who does it leave for us to grab a TOR SP with?

 

Eloy? Sure. But damn, I really, really, really don't want to trade him. Candelario? Sure. But, he's not a lead piece in a major deal. Cease? He's probably too far away to capitalize on yet(but its one reason I'd move him to MB quick too) Almora? At this point, if you plan on keeping Happ, you'd have to find him OF AB's. That'd move Heyward to CF. Its not ideal for our overall OF D, to have him in CF, flanked by Schwarber and Happ, but maybe they think the bats worth it? No idea. But, its not easy to see what we're dealing off, to get a true upgrade starting pitcher, that's not a rental.

 

Yeah, I went from thinking Happ was the one they'd choose to trade to now thinking it's more likely Eloy.

 

And I realize it seems dumb to change the thought process like that in one month (and perhaps they felt this way all along themselves), but with how much the Cubs may actually need Happ now, I don't know how you trade him. Zobrist is going to be better than a sub-.700 OPS hitter of course, but it's possible his age is showing and he could use some days off (even if his back etc aren't issues).

 

Baez is even more important then for the same reason. Plus he's the only other guy that can play shortstop and we just saw how that was needed for the last few days.

 

Candelario is going to go in a trade, it's just a matter of when. I'm in favor of moving him sooner than later. His value is not going to be higher than it is now, and any additional MLB playing time may only expose him. So far he's looked pretty rough at the dish in the majors. I think Candelario makes sense in a deal to Toronto for example, for Estrada or Happ as a short-term solution (Happ is still owed $13 million next year as you alluded to to start the thread). But you could also use him as the second piece in a deal headlined for Eloy if you want to find that cost-controlled starter.

 

With how much of a priority they've made about developing arms and how much crap they've taken for their failures to do so, it's hard to see them giving up Cease in a deal. But like if it's for a cost-controlled sub-30 arm, I think it's an understandable thing, right? For a big-time arm, this is the kind of scenario it may come down to, because like you said, it probably makes even less sense to trade Baez and Happ now than it did to open the season.

 

I don't see finding at-bats for Happ being an issue honestly. He can play second, he can play left, he can play right. Heck, he even started 4 games in CF this year and played there a lot at Cincy IIRC. Injuries, slumps, and needed off days (like Zobrist especially) are going to keep happening. One way or another, I bet he'd start 3-4 times a week (as long as he keeps hitting, of course).

 

So, yeah, when you add it all up, it would seem to be Eloy as the main guy to go, which really really sucks. But he's 2-3 years away from the current team that is trying to win championships, and he probably gets you the biggest return for your biggest need: a cost-controlled arm. And you are still loaded with position players offensively. He also is limited to corner outfield, and we know they have Heyward, Schwarber, Happ, etc there for the foreseeable future. It's also a position you can generally plug in with a solid bat if you have to. It would really suck to lose him, but he's probably the guy you can most "afford" to give up in their current position, especially when he's going to bring a big return that helps your current and future club at their biggest need.

[Transmogrified Tiger]

In some ways(you kind of insinuated it on Twitter too), we're digging ourselves into a position where we don't really have great options to trade FROM......

 

Javy- Need him for defense, still has upside offensively too, but his D and being the only guy we've got, outside of Addy, that can play SS, kind of makes him untradeable.

 

Happ- We need his bat, at the moment.(maybe longer than that). Zobrist is older and has started slow, plus his back is acting up. There's room for AB's going forward for him.

 

Schwarber- I don't see this FO moving him, but his slow start isn't going to help his value and there's no way they'd deal him for less than max value.

 

 

So, who does it leave for us to grab a TOR SP with?

 

Eloy? Sure. But damn, I really, really, really don't want to trade him. Candelario? Sure. But, he's not a lead piece in a major deal. Cease? He's probably too far away to capitalize on yet(but its one reason I'd move him to MB quick too) Almora? At this point, if you plan on keeping Happ, you'd have to find him OF AB's. That'd move Heyward to CF. Its not ideal for our overall OF D, to have him in CF, flanked by Schwarber and Happ, but maybe they think the bats worth it? No idea. But, its not easy to see what we're dealing off, to get a true upgrade starting pitcher, that's not a rental.

 

The current situation is because Bryant is sick plus Heyward is on the DL and Zobrist and Jay are hurt. Happ is not needed and will be going back down soon. Baez is the only backup SS, but getting one of those on the roster isn't a huge obstacle. Both are absolutely available to use in a trade, although you won't sprint to give either away for next-gen Scott Feldman either.

[davell]

In some ways(you kind of insinuated it on Twitter too), we're digging ourselves into a position where we don't really have great options to trade FROM......

 

Javy- Need him for defense, still has upside offensively too, but his D and being the only guy we've got, outside of Addy, that can play SS, kind of makes him untradeable.

 

Happ- We need his bat, at the moment.(maybe longer than that). Zobrist is older and has started slow, plus his back is acting up. There's room for AB's going forward for him.

 

Schwarber- I don't see this FO moving him, but his slow start isn't going to help his value and there's no way they'd deal him for less than max value.

 

 

So, who does it leave for us to grab a TOR SP with?

 

Eloy? Sure. But damn, I really, really, really don't want to trade him. Candelario? Sure. But, he's not a lead piece in a major deal. Cease? He's probably too far away to capitalize on yet(but its one reason I'd move him to MB quick too) Almora? At this point, if you plan on keeping Happ, you'd have to find him OF AB's. That'd move Heyward to CF. Its not ideal for our overall OF D, to have him in CF, flanked by Schwarber and Happ, but maybe they think the bats worth it? No idea. But, its not easy to see what we're dealing off, to get a true upgrade starting pitcher, that's not a rental.

 

The current situation is because Bryant is sick plus Heyward is on the DL and Zobrist and Jay are hurt. Happ is not needed and will be going back down soon. Baez is the only backup SS, but getting one of those on the roster isn't a huge obstacle. Both are absolutely available to use in a trade, although you won't sprint to give either away for next-gen Scott Feldman either.

 

And we'll have more injuries. Javy is far from JUST a backup SS. His D is needed for the whole run prevention theme that's supposed to make the staff better.(unless there's concern his early season defensive ratings are going to be the norm). And Happ becomes the true supersub, if we have just one injury. There's plenty of AB's for both of them going forward.

 

I don't know that Happ will be going back down soon. And I'm not confident that Zobrist gets back to being his normal self either, because of age. I think both Javy and Happ are going to get plenty of AB's.

 

I'm aware there are certain guys you'd have to move one of them for. But, I'm not sure its worth it, if you can get a slightly lesser pitcher, without including one of them.

[Transmogrified Tiger]

And we'll have more injuries. Javy is far from JUST a backup SS. His D is needed for the whole run prevention theme that's supposed to make the staff better.(unless there's concern his early season defensive ratings are going to be the norm). And Happ becomes the true supersub, if we have just one injury. There's plenty of AB's for both of them going forward.

 

I don't know that Happ will be going back down soon. And I'm not confident that Zobrist gets back to being his normal self either, because of age. I think both Javy and Happ are going to get plenty of AB's.

 

I'm aware there are certain guys you'd have to move one of them for. But, I'm not sure its worth it, if you can get a slightly lesser pitcher, without including one of them.

 

Injuries are going to happen, but I don't think you fear trading someone because he's the contingency for if 4 of the 10 best position players are hurt/unavailable. I forgot to add that Russell also was unavailable until yesterday, so it's more like 5.

 

Baez is a good defender, but he's also been relatively unimpressive defensively thus far this season, both numerically and to the eye test. If he's not going to be a +15 defender then he's not someone you try to make time for. Especially since Almora is doing well enough that you can still prioritize OF defense by keeping him in the lineup and Zobrist(who is going to be fine, his peripherals are the same just with some unlucky BABIP) on the IF.

[Transmogrified Tiger]

If Greinke was available for 4/100, we won't be the only team vying for him

 

Even at 4/100 there probably aren't a ton of teams that are going to be super excited to bid on paying Greinke 100 million for his age 34-47 seasons. Given how the season has progressed thus far, I'd say the Cubs and Yankees are the two frontrunners, and there's good reason for there to be very few other teams interested/willing to get him. Greinke also has a 15 team no-trade and given his quirkiness I could see some big city names on that list.

 

It's also worth noting that Greinke's deal has significant deferrals, from Cot's:

 

- 6 years/$206.5M (2016-21)

- $18M signing bonus (paid in $3M installments each 5/31, 2016-21) 16:$31M, 17:$31M, 18:$31M, 19:$31.5M, 20:$32M, 21:$32M

- total of $62.5M in salary is deferred ($10M each in 2016-18, $10.5M in 2019, $11M each in 2020-21), to be paid in five installments of $12.5M each 11/1, 2022-26

- under MLB calculation, deferrals reduce the present-day value of the contract to $193,849,298

- assignment bonus: $2M if traded

- limited no-trade protection: may block trades to 15 clubs

 

So it could be a matter of just telling Arizona to worry about the deferred stuff and having his new team take on the money to be paid out on time.

[UK]

It's frustrating that two pitchers I'd want the Cubs to pursue the most (Quintana/Cole) won't likely be on the table because of baseball etiquette.

[Aaron_Kennelly]

Does Greinke's velocity loss worry anyone, or is that just something we're immune to now?

[Transmogrified Tiger]

Does Greinke's velocity loss worry anyone, or is that just something we're immune to now?

 

I'm extremely skeptical of how true 2017 velocity loss is for pitchers who are pitching just as well(better, in Greinke's case) as they were before the Statcast/Trackman migration. Greinke specifically has been a guy whose velocity has ticked up with warmer weather in previous seasons too. Here's a crappy home-made illustration of Greinke's first 8 starts the last 3 years:

 

[UK]

Does Greinke's velocity loss worry anyone, or is that just something we're immune to now?

 

It is concerning, I would not be opposed to him but he has a lower floor than I what I feels fits their need of a TOR guy which that lack of velo hurts Greinke.

[We Got The Whole 9]

Nm

[biittner77]

Does Greinke's velocity loss worry anyone, or is that just something we're immune to now?

 

I'm extremely skeptical of how true 2017 velocity loss is for pitchers who are pitching just as well(better, in Greinke's case) as they were before the Statcast/Trackman migration. Greinke specifically has been a guy whose velocity has ticked up with warmer weather in previous seasons too. Here's a crappy home-made illustration of Greinke's first 8 starts the last 3 years:

 

 

The knock on Greinke used to be that he wasn't any good in the post season. Small sample but pitching for LA his post season results have been a lot better than his 2 years in Milwaukee. Coupled with his slow starts, perhaps he's not a good cold weather pitcher. Or the sample is too small to really prove anything.

[toonsterwu]

I don't believe he's been mentioned but something I'm keeping an eye out on are the Nationals. With Erick Fedde looking like he could jump to the bigs this year, plus their desperate need for pen help and the high price that the White Sox have placed on Robertson, I do wonder if there's some sort of match that can be made with us trading pen depth for someone like Joe Ross. Of course, there are those that feel Joe Ross is destined for the pen long term, but if Fedde's ready and the rotation's stable in front, with capable stopgaps in guys like Cole/Voth ... I wonder.

 

To be honest, if we're looking for a rental, feels like there's quite likely to be a way to make something work with the Dodgers that wouldn't be too troubling.

 

In the deep recesses of my mind ... I wonder if the Rockies may shop some of their pitching depth if they are able to hang in the race. That said, it's hard to see how we might match up with their needs. With the Nationals, it's easy - desperate for pen help, Fedde coming up. WIth the Rockies, they are bound to let some of their bats (namely, Story and Gonzalez) get some time to get going.

 

This is a totally different tack than the intent of the question, but for all the talk about Candelario lacking the talent to headline a deal to nab a top arm ... I wonder if he could nab an intriguing younger arm in the lower levels if a team had an injury that necessitated a need for a 3rd baseman, and wanted more than a stopgap option. Of course, a lot of dominoes would have to fall into place, and the Cubs would probably look for bigger fish first. Say .. an injury happened to Castellanos of the Tigers. I wonder if they would consider something like Candelario for a Burrows led package, or even Manning, and we'd go fishing for rentals for this year, adding depth to our future. Or if something happened to Chase Headley and they didn't want to rush Gleyber, and the Yankees were still in it, I wonder if we could pry some sort of Chance Adams or Justus Sheffield?

 

At the end of the day, with the way the system's set up, barring a Greinke type move that eats money, I'm more inclined to think they may move for a stopgap this year and worry about the future in the winter.

[cubsclapp]

I don't see the Cubs, Dodgers, and Nationals doing much meaningful business with each other in the near future.

[davell]

I don't see the Cubs, Dodgers, and Nationals doing much meaningful business with each other in the near future.

 

This. You're just not going to potentially make your biggest threats better.

[toonsterwu]

See, I would challenge both of you on that notion.

 

This isn't to say that I think either of those ideas would happen.

 

That said, certainly, Theo Epstein/Jed Hoyer haven't shied away from a deal if they felt it benefited their club. I mean, one only has to look at the Nomar trade they made with the Cubs in 04 - Minnesota, IIRC, was a prime challenger in the AL that year. Andrew Friedman hasn't shied away from deals with potential competitors - he dealt Shields and 5 years of Wade Davis away to get Wil Myers initially, with the Royals coming off a good season, before flipping Myers in a trade for Souza Jr. (and Jake Bauers, amongst others). Mike Rizzo has never been shy on pulling the trade on any deal, no matter how it looks.

 

Granted, yes, most of this happens in the offseason, but there's no indication that any of these guys would shy away if they liked it for their team (after all, Rizzo pulled an Adam Eaton deal this offseason that, while I liked it (granted, no one can predict injury), plenty of people bashed).

 

In this case, my point on the two options would be this:

 

a) Nationals - There's desperate pen need, with high pen costs. There's SP depth that they could potentially turn to. They might not be able to wait until the deadline (and Victor Robles has gotten off to a poor start, so it's debatable if they could trade for whatever top end pen option frees up). If Koda Glover and others can't hold the fort, it's not hard for me to imagine them making a small move or two for solid pen arms, the type of guys we might be able to peddle. To be honest, I think their pen will slowly sort itself out, at least, enough so they won't be pressured to make a move.

 

b) Dodgers - There's pitching depth with Alex Wood emerging (again) to go with Kershaw/Hill/Maeda). It's not hard to imagine they might want to cut costs and consider moving Ryu (and McCarthy has, IIRC, been shopped repeatedly along with ... crap, whose the name I'm forgetting ... he's rehabbing right now ... dangit, who is it ... ). Now, more than likely, they'd find a team more desperate for SP help that is willing to step up, but if not, with short term commitments on some of those arms (off the top, I think McCarthy and Ryu are only signed through 2018), it's not a bad fit for us.

 

Of the two, I actually think the Dodgers are more likely than the Nationals, as Mike Rizzo is probably apt to try and make a big splash compared to Andrew Friedman, IMO, if he went after a deal, and the Dodgers are overloaded (this is assuming guys stay healthy and pitch well).

[davell]

Toonster, I think teams have gotten much more hesitant recently to deal to true competition. Same with dealing inside the division now. It happens, but its rare.

 

And in these two cases, I'd look at it like this.....I'm sure the Cubs would like Ross. Hoyer and McLeod drafted him. But, I think the Nats are looking at him as a reliever themselves currently. And if that doesn't work, I'm pretty sure many other teams have the same type of relievers we do, to offer the Nats for him and they'd feel more comfortable dealing him to a team that he has much less of a chance of coming back to haunt them......

 

I guess Kazmir is the guy you're forgetting on the Dodgers. Yeah, they may part with him, McCarthy, or maybe even Ryu to ANYONE. They need to trim some payroll to get under the LT next year. In this case, why would we help them do that? None of those 3 are remotely special. All are injury-prone too. My guess is if we are just looking for a depth type addition, we can find one without helping them get out from underneath the LT. I'm sure Theo would like to see them have to make a tougher decision than that, when it comes to their future roster.

 

Not to mention, in the end, I think we've got our sites set higher than that type of acquisition for a starter.