Kikuchi to Astros

[Stangstag]

Holy s***

 

 

That’s an absolute fleece by Ross lol damn

[Spanky99]

Loperfido essentially takes the IKF role next year.

 

Hopefully Jays are selling high on IKF this deadline.

 

They're not alike, bro. He doesn't play 3rd or Short, just sayin. IKF's D is sublime, Loperfido's is average in the dirt and above average in the OF.

[BTS]

They're not alike, bro.

 

You slow-playing the trade offer I sent you yesterday?

[Pendleton]

 

Loperfido seems like a fun player, hopefully he can hit consistently enough to be regular, even if in a utility role

[Spanky99]

 

Read replies

 

Fun.

[Spanky99]

You slow-playing the trade offer I sent you yesterday?

 

Yes. After the deadline I'll have a look.

[Jays24]

Do the Astros think Kikuchi is locked up for 3 more years at a cheap deal? This makes 0 sense lol

[Brownie19]

I'm not going to lie, Loperfido has a bit of a Derek Fisher profile to him...Now personally, I'm cool with that. Give me the upside potential, but we know fans won't understand the probability of failure for a guy with his profile.

[Omar]

This may not be Atkins doing so let's not give him kudos just yet. This shouldn't save his job either. He should be toast by Halloween.

[James Key]

Yeah who expected 2 50 fv players plus a guy doing decent as large adult son in AAA ?

 

I will give Ross credit. it seems like there was a legit bidding war for Yusei. Probably the dodgers were in it till Dana blew his load.

 

So nice haul and if the market is like this for pitching I wonder what we could get for CBass?

 

And again Atkins’ shrewd usage of FA dollars on pitchers pays off.

 

I will tip the hat if any of these make it as regular contributors.

[L54]

This may not be Atkins doing so let's not give him kudos just yet. This shouldn't save his job either. He should be toast by Halloween.

 

Without question this does nothing for either of their long term outlooks

 

Like it’s a good trade but it wasn’t the Josh Donaldson trade

[Grant77]

I like this deal. None of them are can't miss guys, but we'll have an opportunity to give Bloss and Loperfido some major league reps and see what happens. Maybe the latter can replicate Teoscar Hernandez's success from a similar trade.

 

Next, I'd like to see KK moved to a contender and Richards moved to make room for a young reliever. We can also entertain offers on Chad Green and IKF if we get something nice.

[metafour]

The Blue Jays are a think-tank organization. I have no idea why everyone keeps bringing up Atkins as if he is making moves in a vacuum alone. Even before this failure of a season he wouldn't have been making decisions alone. Now that this team is "re-tooling" and his job is in serious question, I would be even more shocked if he was being left alone to make these trades. You guys need to remember that this FO has former Astros GM James Click sitting in it. I wouldn't be surprised at all if he has been granted more decision making power by Shapiro with these trades.

 

The Indians had Antonetti, Atkins, Stearns, and Falvey all in the FO at the same time at one point under Shapiro.

[Stangstag]

I'm not going to lie, Loperfido has a bit of a Derek Fisher profile to him...Now personally, I'm cool with that. Give me the upside potential, but we know fans won't understand the probability of failure for a guy with his profile.

 

Kinda seems to have a similar profile as Daulton Varsho??

 

Even still, I would have been happy with Loperfido for Kikuchi straight up. Bloss looks to be a very solid piece too

[Barrelsandbombs]

Read that 2 of the 3 players Jays got for Kikuchi were James Click draft picks with Houston. Could he be in the driver's seat of this FO now?

[metafour]

Kinda seems to have a similar profile as Daulton Varsho??

 

Loperfido is like Derek Fisher/Teoscar Hernandez - ironically both also came from the Astros.

[L54]

The Blue Jays are a think-tank organization. I have no idea why everyone keeps bringing up Atkins as if he is making moves in a vacuum alone. Even before this failure of a season he wouldn't have been making decisions alone. Now that this team is "re-tooling" and his job is in serious question, I would be even more shocked if he was being left alone to make these trades. You guys need to remember that this FO has former Astros GM James Click sitting in it. I wouldn't be surprised at all if he has been granted more decision making power by Shapiro with these trades.

 

The Indians had Antonetti, Atkins, Stearns, and Falvey all in the FO at the same time at one point under Shapiro.

 

Nobody thinks Atkins has full control over roster construction

[Carlos Danger]

The Blue Jays are a think-tank organization. I have no idea why everyone keeps bringing up Atkins as if he is making moves in a vacuum alone. Even before this failure of a season he wouldn't have been making decisions alone. Now that this team is "re-tooling" and his job is in serious question, I would be even more shocked if he was being left alone to make these trades. You guys need to remember that this FO has former Astros GM James Click sitting in it. I wouldn't be surprised at all if he has been granted more decision making power by Shapiro with these trades.

 

The Indians had Antonetti, Atkins, Stearns, and Falvey all in the FO at the same time at one point under Shapiro.

 

Right, but there has to be someone ultimately accountable for good and bad. That is Mark and Ross.

[Angrioter]

Alex A kind of deal.

 

Ross is good

[metafour]

Nobody thinks Atkins has full control over roster construction

 

Clearly they do considering that I've seen about two dozen iterations of these posts: "gotta give credit to Atkins here", "who is letting Atkins make trades", "can't believe they're letting Atkins sell our players", etc. etc.

 

There is a greater than zero chance that Atkins has already been benched and isn't making ANY decisions.

[Carlos Danger]

Yeah who expected 2 50 fv players plus a guy doing decent as large adult son in AAA ?

 

I will give Ross credit. it seems like there was a legit bidding war for Yusei. Probably the dodgers were in it till Dana blew his load.

 

So nice haul and if the market is like this for pitching I wonder what we could get for CBass?

 

And again Atkins’ shrewd usage of FA dollars on pitchers pays off.

 

I will tip the hat if any of these make it as regular contributors.

 

There is not two 50FV I am aware of?

[James Key]

Someone was saying that Loperfido was a 50 fv or about to be graded as one.

[L54]

Clearly they do considering that I've seen about two dozen iterations of these posts: "gotta give credit to Atkins here", "who is letting Atkins make trades", "can't believe they're letting Atkins sell our players", etc. etc.

 

There is a greater than zero chance that Atkins has already been benched and isn't making ANY decisions.

 

Gotta give credit to Atkins, Click, Shapiro, Sheehan, Tinnish, Sanjay, Reesor, Padmore, Goldberg, Dedar, Carruthers, Estey and Maxime Wang

[Terminator]

Will Wagner is Billy’s son

 

So he's the son of a former Astros legend? Well if you don't say....

 

[Spanky99]

There is not two 50FV I am aware of?

 

Bloss and Loperfido, I post there BA reports for all players in here, Wagner's a 45?

 

Team Logo of Houston Astros

Ranked Houston Astros #2 prospect in 2024

BA Grade: 50/High

 

Track Record: Bloss spent three seasons with Lafayette College in Pennsylvania, earning an All-Patriot League first-team selection after his third season. He transferred to Georgetown for his fourth season and went 8-4, 2.58 with 96 strikeouts and 24 walks across 76.2 innings. Bloss won Big East pitcher of the year and was a unanimous first-team all conference selection. The Astros took Bloss in the third round of the 2023 draft and signed him for a below-slot bonus of $497,500. Bloss debuted in the Florida Complex League making two appearances before a promotion to Low-A Fayetteville.

 

Scouting Report: A strong-framed and athletic pitcher, Bloss has the broad- shouldered build of your typical innings-eater. Bloss mixes primarily a four-seam fastball, a curveball, a slider and a changeup. Bloss’ fastball sits 93-95 mph and was clocked as high as 97 while at Georgetown. Due to the spin efficiency and lower release height he’s able to create a flat plane of approach on the pitch which makes it difficult for hitters to get on plane. His primary secondary is an upper-70s curveball at 77-78 mph with heavy two-plane break. Bloss’s slider is hard at 85-87 mph with heavy cut, and he shows above-average command of the pitch. His changeup is an upper-80s offspeed with two-seam fastball movement. Bloss has fringe-average command but should develop into an average strike-thrower.

 

The Future: A late blooming college arm with a four-pitch mix led by a plus fastball, Bloss has a chance to blossom into a back-of-the-rotation starter with the ability to be effective out of the bullpen.

 

Scouting Grades Fastball: 60 | Curveball: 50 | Slider: 50 | Changeup: 40 | Control: 50

 

Ranked Houston Astros #5 prospect in 2024

BA Grade: 50/High

 

Track Record: After going unselected in the five-round 2020 draft, Loperfido went back to Duke for his senior year and has since developed into a legitimate position prospect after the Astros drafted him in the seventh round in 2021. After hitting .286/.387/.458 in 2022 across both levels of Class A, Loperfido spent a majority of 2023 with Double-A Corpus Christi. He hit .296/.392/.548 with 19 home runs and 20 stolen bases in 84 games. He was promoted to Triple-A Sugar Land on Aug. 15 but struggled with strikeouts in 32 games.

 

Scouting Report: Loperfido is a well-rounded player with no standout tool. At the plate, he sets up with his hands high, equal with the crown of his helmet. A moderate leg lift gives way to an explosive lefthanded swing. Loperfido has shown average bat-to-ball skills and a good balance of aggression and patience as he has climbed the ladder. During his month at Triple-A, he struggled to make contact and expanded at a much higher rate than at any of his previous stops. He shows above-average game power with the ability to get to it by slugging 25 home runs in 2023. Loperfido’s groundball rate is on the higher side, capping some of his raw power until an adjustment is made. An above-average runner underway, he is a baserunning threat. He stole 27 bases in 31 attempts in 2023. Loperfido’s speed translates to the outfield, where he shows the ability to handle center field. His arm is below-average but has been enough to make him playable at a variety of positions. Loperfido saw playing time at five positions in 2023: first base, second base and all three outfield spots.

 

The Future: Loperfido fits the super-utility profile with average or better hitting ability and a nice power and speed combination.

 

Scouting Grades Hit: 45 | Power: 55 | Run: 55 | Field: 45 | Arm: 45

 

Ranked Houston Astros #19 prospect in 2024

BA Grade: 45/High

 

Track Record: The son of seven-time all-star Billy Wagner, Will has gone from an unheralded 18th-round pick to one of the better performers over the last two seasons in the Astros organization. After Wagner hit .261/.374/.394 at two levels in 2022, he returned to Double-A Corpus Christi to begin 2023. After beginning the season on the injured list and struggling over the first month, Wagner was shut down with right wrist discomfort. The injury required surgery to remove the hook of his hamate bone. Wagner returned to Corpus Christi on Aug. 7, hitting .331/.396/.562 over the final 30 games.

 

Scouting Report: Wagner is a bat-first infielder whose advanced hit tool drives his profile. He has quick hands, is rarely fooled in the strike zone and hardly ever expands the zone. His strong contact and plate discipline allow him to get the most out of below-average impact. Wagner has shown the ability to make his hardest contact at good launch angles but rarely drives the ball in the air to his pull side. Wagner’s advanced barrel control allows him to hit for more power than his raw exit velocity numbers would suggest. He is a below-average runner and lacks range in the field. Wagner has split time between second base and third base but is below-average at each spot.

 

The Future: Wagner is a hit-first infielder with an above-average hit tool but no real position in the field, and looks like a bat-first, second-division regular.

 

Scouting Grades Hit: 55 | Power: 45 | Run: 40 | Field: 40 | Arm: 40

[Carlos Danger]

Bloss and Loperfido, I post there BA reports for all players in here?

 

Ok, Fangraphs has Loperfido as FV45, not even 45+. He went from FV45 to 50?

[Stangstag]

Ok, Fangraphs has Loperfido as FV45, not even 45+. He went from FV45 to 50?

 

Yeah idk, Fangraphs article from June has him as a 45 FV so I guess they just disagree on his potential.

[Spanky99]

Ok, Fangraphs has Loperfido as FV45, not even 45+. He went from FV45 to 50?

 

Well that's an Eric Longenhagen and Travis Ice write up. I'll roll with BA's staff and all their sources as it's all they do from kids coming in the '25/'26 drafts etc to players on the cusp... the larger outfit feels better for me, they're the best in the business.

[Carlos Danger]

This is probably one of the reasons they were willing to pull the trigger on Loperfido. I think Tucker is coming back soon also?

 

Astros

 

• Trey Cabbage, Chas McCormick, Joey Loperfido, and Mauricio Dubón are sharing two outfield spots.

[Omar]