So is the answer to never spend money on pitching? That seems a lot more reasonable than saying trade Prior now because 2 years down the road he'll be making a lot of money and there's a chance he won't be healthy. The answer is to trade declining assets if it's reasonable to believe they won't return to form and invest in pitchers you can be confident will be healthy and consistent like Zambrano for example. But isn't Zambrano a pretty big risk considering the high pitch totals he's racked up the past few years? Prior's managed to avoid the high pitch counts over that time, so he may be a better bet going forward. No, I don't think so. Zambrano has a very strong body. Some guys just do, some don't. Look at Randy Johnson. He has insane pitch counts and never gets hurt. Uhmm..if you're going to name workhorse pitchers, Johnson isn't an example of someone who never gets hurt. Randy missed nearly half a season in 2003. He also missed a large portion of a season in 1996 abd some time in 1994 as well. Throughout the years, Randy has had minor bumps with his back and knee. He hasn't had long stretches on the disabled list, but he isn't the picture of health either. Furthermore, when Johnson was 25, he had a grand total of 10 career wins and 186 IP.