toonsterwu

I've got high doubts that the Padres would have interest in adding Garza. I think their interests in moving Headley have as much to do with the fact that Gyorko is close to ready, and he really isn't ideal at 2nd base. Thus, with a cheap alternative at 3rd, if they feel like Gyorko can produce enough offensively, then moving Headley, in a seller's market (particularly for the position) makes some sense. I wouldn't mind looking at Headley (largely because I think people forget that he was guy with good power potential in the minors, but changed his swing to adapt to Petco), but I doubt we get involved with that because the reports for what they are seeking is just ... enormous. I like Headley, but giving up that much to get him now makes zero sense. yea, i don't usually get into the hypothetical trade stuff. i'm ashamed of myself. don't be. I don't get why people get worked up about the hypotheticals here (I guess, the overabundance of them from certain posters don't help). It's the silly season right now, and hypothetical trades are part of the fun for fans, IMO, allowing us to bitch and moan about what could've been, or to tout what we got.

Eh ... as badly as Volstad tanked, there were some statistical indicators that suggested that he might be able to turn it around, and he had a superb spring. At the end of the day, you'd rather get an asset to gamble on than simply eating the money. Volstad hasn't been that much worse than say, Travis Wood (xFIP is fairly close, as is SIERA). He just hasn't turned the corner and is prone to that one, gigantic, awful inning.

I've got high doubts that the Padres would have interest in adding Garza. I think their interests in moving Headley have as much to do with the fact that Gyorko is close to ready, and he really isn't ideal at 2nd base. Thus, with a cheap alternative at 3rd, if they feel like Gyorko can produce enough offensively, then moving Headley, in a seller's market (particularly for the position) makes some sense. I wouldn't mind looking at Headley (largely because I think people forget that he was guy with good power potential in the minors, but changed his swing to adapt to Petco), but I doubt we get involved with that because the reports for what they are seeking is just ... enormous. I like Headley, but giving up that much to get him now makes zero sense.

My sentiment exactly. There's no reason to keep looking at Valbuena, who could be a decent utility guy, and I don't think that there's any benefit to keeping him in Iowa. He's hitting better then ever, and making some progress in his patience, but still leaves much to be desired in that deparent. it's not like an extra 2 months in Iowa is going to suddenly turn him into vintage Kevin Youkilis. The fact that all the reports seem to indicate that the Cubs are looking for a 3rd baseman in a trade makes me wonder how they view Vitters future.

I've been thankfully too busy to follow this debacle. I'd love to be a fly on the wall inside. I'm disappointed with Dempster for hampering the Cubs ability to make moves, but well, he earned 10/5 rights, and it is what it is. The ideal scenario would've been to send Dempster to Atlanta and have Garza go to LA. I really wonder what happened. The fact that the Cubs tried to keep this under wraps, but the Atlanta reporters leaked it out, makes me wonder if they knew that Ryan was pushing for the Dodgers that much harder. Whatever the case, it's a debacle right now, for Ryan's image, and for the Cubs ability to make moves. That said, it is what it is, and the Cubs were aware of his 10/5 rights. At the end of the day, much as bringing him back at, whatever the number was, 13+ mil?, sounds like a decent fallback, I tend to think that the Cubs will probably end up moving him if they get any decent assets back. I imagine they'll probably push this up to the deadline, with the Cubs perhaps holding firm on Allen Webster, so the best hope now is that the Dodgers don't land a SP before then. Guess a Garza decision is on the backburner until then.

Not sure where to note this, but thought someone should note that Sickels Cubs Top 20 Pre-season review is on at his site right now. http://www.minorleagueball.com/2012/7/27/3192443/chicago-cubs-2012-top-20-pre-season-prospects-in-review#storyjump

Even Baez, Almora, and Soler have a lot of questions to answer. Baez is the clear top dog in the system, and even Callis is finally acknowledging that his defense has been better than expected (his chat the other day), and that he has a better chance to stick at short than originally thought. That said ... how his approach plays at a higher level, against tougher pitching is still a big, big question. raw, I'm assuming you are talking about Pierce Johnson there, but I just wanted to double check. I think Brett would still be 4th for me, with Vitters 5th, and Szczur 6th. I could perhaps put Johnson 7th, Candelario maybe 8th, and then ... uh ... Alcantara? It's ugly ... almost a choose a name out of a hat after 6th (now, the positive thing is that, from 7-30, we probably have a decent amount of guys who will reach the bigs ... the flip side is that because they don't have the huge ceilings, the chances are high that many will be left unprotected in the coming Rule 5 drafts, this year and next, so the depth could be eaten up a bit). Still got to go with Brett 4th. Perhaps it's more by default, but he still does enough good things (power would be solid for a corner role, walks, has a good glove) to buy that he will be in the bigs in some fashion, for more than a cup of tea. Vitters might be closing in on him, but the more I ask about his defense at 3rd, the more I worry that my whole "he can be passable for a couple years if the bat plays" idea is off, and if he's not at 3rd, I would need to buy him as having above average power (and thus, being average for a corner OF role), which I'm not sold on at the moment. If Szczur was playing like this in AA, I would consider slotting him 4th (that said, he's not that much better, defensively, than Brett in CF ... Szczur might be plus, and Brett might not be, but the gap isn't that big). But it's just so hard to put him higher when he has the big power wart, and is only doing it in A+ right now. He needs to be in AA. One guy to watch for the rest of the year, at least for me, is Whitenack. He had a solid June, has had a horrid July, but inconsistency was expected. the velocity is there, supposedly, and, as much as minor league BABIP's can be utilized as a sign of bad luck ... it seems like he's had some in July (granted, the walks are really high).

What's this about Vitters being dismal now? If anything, he's surpassed expectations. What odd timing on Vitters - he was a HR shy of the cycle yesterday. I still wonder how much legitimate HR power Vitters will have at the next level. That said, the one encouraging point is that he's hit homers in some of the tougher PCL HR parks this year. The bigger issue is still defense. I've long defended his ability to be a ... passable ... hot corner guy ... but some people that saw him this year swear that he's headed for LF (well, they actually said corner OF ... but I wouldn't put him in RF ... particularly in Wrigley). If the HR power never materializes as more than average, that's a pretty pedestrian LF (average ISOP this year has been what, .170ish at last check), but ... it'd be solid at 3rd base (average ISOP was around .150 at last check).

The one positive about Ha's injury (and I never want to see anyone hurt) is that there should be zero reason for Szczur to stay in A+ anymore. He should be in AA.

Brett Jackson is just an odd, odd package to me. Not a "hacker", but an aggressive swinger. A guy with a swing loop/issue, but it's supposedly, by most accounts, not major. A guy who doesn't have elite bat speed, but has good bat speed. A guy who has shown the ability to hammer breaking balls before ... but has struggled with breaking balls and fastballs at different stretches this year. A guy who has a solid eye ... but it's perhaps ... too good? There's really no apparent reason why he should be striking out this much. Just an odd, odd package. Callis noted once that he was a bit too mechanical with his swings, which might jive a bit with Cooper's comments in helping explain his insanely high K rate this year (that is, the mechanical swing/limited hand-eye bat control hampers his ability to do stuff on borderline pitches in deep counts, pitches that he swings at because he's got a decent enough eye to know they are borderline enough that it could go either way). That said, when he's been bad, he's been awful this year. The one tiny positive thing, at least, compared to when he was drafted, is that there's less concern about how his power plays in a corner OF role. He should be fine, power wise, if moved to a corner role (actually, two positives ... his defense in CF might actually, sort of be underrated now. It's not plus, but keep hearing it's very solid). Let's just hope he can hit enough to make it matter.

For awhile there, it seemed like a lock that Jeimer Candelario would be in the top 10 of any list, and likely top 7. But he's fallen off the cliff hard. The problem is ... there really aren't that many guys to slot in the top 10. We really need those Dempster and Garza trades (and hopefully more) to help the top of the system (Allen Webster would probably slot top 5 for me if that happened).

I wonder if there's some truth to what JJ Cooper (I think) said a few weeks back, something along the lines that Brett might've taken this "discipline" thing too far, becoming too patient for his skill level, as he doesn't have the hand-eye or bat control to get certain pitches in deep counts. I'm paraphrasing there, but the way Cooper made it sound, it sounded like Brett should be trying to go after good pitches earlier in the count.

Yep, you're talking about throwing 89-91 as a starter vs. throwing (from what I hear) mid 90s in relief. Assuming that's 94-96, that's 5 mph increase. Obviously, it's making a huge difference. Not sure it matters with him in this organization, but I'm sure someone will take notice and you'll see him in an ML bullpen in 2013 at some point. He's topping out mid-90's, but the better news is that his slider has supposedly been "found" again. I've always thought he had some late-inning potential. The Cubs are going to have to make some tough Rule 5 decisions on pen arms. I think Jay's probably on the outside looking-in (left available that is), and I think there's a chance he might get taken.

Thing is, TheoJed's gone all-in on the rebuild here. I wouldn't mind having Dempster back next year, but we need whatever assets we can get for him now.

I'd be disappointed with Dempster if he made this decision solely on wanting to be in LA, because of family being closer, since there's no guarantee that he would be on the same club next year. That said, it's hard for me to be angry over this. He earned 10/5 rights, and with that, he gets to make a decision on where to go. He's been a good pitcher for us. We need assets back for him to rebuild, so I'd be disappointed, but the rules granted him those rights, so it is what it is. Let's give him some time to think it over. Atlanta seems "in" on this deal, at least for now.

Yeah, that's kinda insulting assuming Rosenthal's sources are right. If Rosenthal's sources are correct, this is somewhat disappointing because there's no guarantee that he'll be in the same area next year. Let's give it some time, though. We live in an age where people expect things to happen right away, but this is a pretty big decision for him. I understand the desire to have your daughter near family, in case something happens, but I have my doubts he's uprooting his family right away, after the trade.

You do realize that Dempster has a daughter with DeGeorge syndrome, right? He hasn't given any indication that he's going to turn a trade down. For all we know, he's trying to make sure things are settled for his daughter before he leaves for a couple months. Considering how open he's been about the realities of the business, and open about the destination, when you combine that with the fact that he hasn't given any indication of wariness towards Atlanta ... it might be non-baseball decisions that he's sorting through, for all we know. Edit: I hadn't read the Rosenthal report when I typed this.

Seriously? Are people really feeling this way? This might be more than just a baseball decision. He has a kid with DeGeorge syndrome. Sure, it sounds like things are positive, but c'mon now. That's a couple months away from his daugther. As much as we talk about things being "just a flight away" these days, it's still painful, for many parents with disabled/sick children, to be so far away from their child on a daily basis. I think Dempster is enough of a pro to understand the business aspects and eventually approve a trade. I have high doubts that he's trying to force his way to the Dodgers, but that's just my guess based on how open he has been about the destination he's going to. For all we know, it's quite possible that he's just sorting out issues and arrangements. Edit: I hadn't seen the Rosenthal report when I typed this.

I really don't recall the Lee situation being anywhere near similar to this, but maybe I'm wrong (the situation being that the player showed up to work and was surprised to find out about a trade before hearing from the FO). Off the top, wasn't the trade made after deadline, off waivers? So, wouldn't Lee have had some time to know that it was Atlanta? Even if Lee was similar to this and my memory is slipping, perhaps instead of saying the same vitriol/anger (and was there really ... anger/disappointment on Lee ... I really don't recall that) should be shown Dempster, perhaps we should be saying shame on those fans that were showing anger/disappointment towards Lee. Dempster showed up at work and found out about a trade before hearing from his bosses. That's unsettling, even if you are prepared for it. He earned the 10/5 rights, so he has the power to make that decision. It's been one day, and there's been no indication that he won't take a deal Add in the dynamic with his child, and let's give him more than a day. If I had a situation with a child like that, it'd take me some time to think about making a change, even if it was for a couple months. It still feels like he's going to take a deal. Let's be patient (and I'm aware most of us are).

Agreed. He's been a good soldier and leader for this club. A number of scenarios could be going on for all we know (maybe Demp is trying to find out how often he can fly back to Chicago ... it is a shock to go from living with family to living out of a suitcase, even if it's only for a few weeks). Add in that the heavy rumors last week were the Dodgers, and let's give him some time. He deserves that much from the fan base.

I'm actually quite intrigued with the idea of a Dodgers pursuit of Garza, largely because their system is so pitching heavy, but also if they are willing to shop a possible elite arm like Lee. There aren't that many GM's where you feel like you could rob them of top talent, but Colletti feels like a candidate. If we could get Zach Lee and another quality arm (doesn't need to Eovaldi or Gould ... but obviously, it'd be nice if it was one of them), that would be a heck of a deal and would, assuming we get Delgado, give us some quality upper level SP arms to build forward with.

I expect he'll see AAA before season's end, but a random stab at their rationale for having him in AA would be a) No rush. Beltre's in place, this is his first year in AA. b) Getting him additional work with Profar next to him. While both guys are blocked, it never hurts to have them develop a rapport in case things surprise and both are at their respective positions in the bigs for the Rangers.

How is Olt's defense at 3B? Fantastic. Isn't fantastic a bit ... generous? I am a big Olt fan and would love to add him ... but there are a fair amount of folks that peg him as more average to above average.

Wow. This would be a home run of a deal if it happens, and at this juncture, with so much leaked, I imagine it will get done after they finish tidying things up. Yeah, Delgado's had some command issues in the bigs, but it's nothing to get extremely worried about. I think he's got "2" potential. It's hard to imagine a Garza deal topping this in some respects. Actually, with Delgado in the fold, there's a part of me that wouldn't be as bothered now if we revisited Garza signing an extension. Still seems unlikely, but a rotation of Garza/Shark/Delgado/FA (the return of Dempster in this slot would make this trade awesome ... )/Wood looks pretty solid. Getting Delgado means getting a quality upper level arm, and that could allow TheoJed a lot more flexibility with Garza, either holding the line on demands, gambling more, or keeping him. Damn fascinating situation, if it gets done. Realistically, Delgado is a better return than ... basically any arm we could've gotten from the Dodgers, outside of Zach Lee.

Makes sense for the Yankees, as they needed an OF'er. I imagine this was sort of a gold watch trade for Ichiro - thanks for the years of service, we'll make sure you get a soft landing, type of move. The return seems pedestrian, even for an Ichiro that isn't all that good.