xposbrad

If everyone chipped in 5 pesos, we'd for sure find some good talent with him.

I thought you could bribe the cops in the DR with a couple of pesos

The more you create perceived value of an asset that you don't need to necessarily get rid of, the more you might be able to extract from the person/team wanting it. Maybe he's playing hardball so he can demand more in compensation? Or the fact is, he could be putting a tough face on so that other teams don't get the impression it's open season on poaching his personnel.

Your original comment was that a pitcher could flop at some point, I never said I liked the Verlander deal either. But, hitters can flop as well, that was my point. Over payment is one thing, production drop is another. The reason a team overpays on certain star players is the premium to sign them to get something they don't have in their system or because they have an immediate need. Lester/Scherzer are legitimate ace #1 pitchers.

The same can be said ala Josh Hamilton/Ryan Howard. I mean, the fact is, age plays a factor at any position most of the time, and sometimes it's just bad luck.

They are both dominant pitchers, so just like with Martin's 5th year, Lester/Scherzer's last year will probably not pay off for the team as well. But until then, I don't think either pitcher will suddenly flop.

And you forget Boston is going hard after Lester now too. Looks like when the Jays pull a move or two, the Red Sox/Yanks one up us and go bigger.

Stroman is already pencilled in. Hutchison should be at the back end of the rotation, and who knows on Sanchez. He has what, a grand total of 33 innings pitched, and how many games started? That's not going to change the fact this team should be all in on Lester and time for Sanchez to develop is not available since we went over how JB/EE are here for this year and next.

I think this club is in a position that it needs to overpay to get Lester. The window with JB/EE is really this year and next. They can't go half ass and just hope everything falls into place, the SP is relying on a 35 year old and 40 year old to be the #1 and #2. They need an ace right now, even if it means overpaying.

You're one of the few of us on the board who can remember the last time this team made the playoffs...

at least we got another Canadian back

That's most likely not true. I don't see a big 1b signing if that's what you are thinking. Maybe the team sees EE playing 2/3 of games at 1b, and would rather a league min guy to back him up. Remember, Navarro is slotted in as a DH. So that means EE is starting at 1b.

Those would require sending away prospects. I would rather keep the prospects and sign Melky or Markakis.

That doesn't mean anything, if your opinion is contrary to public opinion. I don't know why AA isn't prioritizing a starter over 2b. There enough guys to fill in there, that could put up average numbers. Buerhle is 35, Dickey is 40. Those are your #1/2 guys technically, especially salary wise. I think 25m/aav is enough to sign Lester at 6 years. MBLTR just listed that they don't believe he has an offer at that amount. 6/150 should be able to sign him. Of course it's not my money

The way I look at it, they have a promising rookie, and several guys who can play D for 2b. There are better options than Callaspo available, but it's not like there are a bunch of game changers. Just plug in 2B with good D and average hitting, and focus on SP and LF. Wasn't Panik a rookie for the giants this year? There are better hitting options for the outfield and better pitching options right now. Some people on this board are focused on having like big war players at every position, it's not realistic, and not necessary.

I'm not saying other teams don't have holes. You don't need an all star at every position to win the world series. You don't even need the better team on paper. Right now, Boston is still the vegas favorite of winning the world series, at 8:1. I just wouldn't get overly excited until we see what other moves Boston/NY and the Jays make. I think they are still a couple of players away from being a favorite for a playoff spot.

But they still have plenty of holes that's the problem. They need another reliever, a closer, a LF and ideally a starter. 2B/CF could be filled with Pompey/Travis. You don't need an all star at every position. But the yanks will have a solid starting rotation when they most likely sign Scherzer. I think it will be harder to get a quality starter in a trade, a true #1 like a Lester. I would prioritize the needs as, Starter, Closer, LF, reliever, 2b. Travis should be at least capable of fielding balls and hitting his weight at 2B. I know, you guys hate to have Goins at 2b, but there will always be a couple of weak hitters in the lineup, as long as they can field and put balls in play. Buerhle at 35, most likely will regress, regardless who is catching him. That's what baseball players do when they age, it's a fact, Martin can frame all he wants, but at some point, velocity drops too much, their arms get tired quicker, it's just the name of the game. Dickey is 40 years old, another wild card for this year. If they Jays want to not do things half ass this time, they have to have Lester or Shields signed.

Even if this is not even real, the Yanks will get Scherzer. They aren't sitting on the sidelines, they target the best of the best and sign them. I think the bidding will get to be pretty high on Lester between the Cubs and Red Sox though.

Donaldson is the best player in the deal, no one is arguing that, in 3 years, at 32 years old, he won't be getting the value you think. He's a 3b, so realistically a team is looking at what, 2 more years of good productivity out of him at that point for that position? It's quite possible Lawrie would have more value, especially if he's signed long term. I think in 3 years, you will see if Barreto has played high enough ball to be considered a top 100 prospect.

Beane knows what he is doing. Lawrie appears to be healthy, passed a medical. He's ~4 years younger than Donaldson, and he's entering his prime, whereas, Donaldson is in his prime. They fill their need at 3b, get very serviceable pitching prospects who could end up being quite decent. They also get a highly tooled very young SS that will hold value. Beane has done this many times before, he's spread out his risk over several guys and saves money because he knows Donaldson is going to hit high numbers in arb. The Jays DID get the best player in the trade, right now. However, I wouldn't even call this near a fleecing because I think Barreto is the sleeper player in the deal. This happens time and time again, a team thinks they won their trade with Oak, yet 2-4 years later, you all of a sudden see the players you traded away starting to put up big numbers in Oakland and then somehow they make the playoffs. So no, it wasn't a fleecing, unless you're a hardcore blue jays fan and love every move this team makes, then yes, it was.

Well, I'm not sure why we couldn't work Shark out of Oakland, he most likely will get traded at some point this year. I'm sure AA/Beane talked about him. Trading Dickey/Buerhle aren't about getting something in return, they will be traded for very low end guys + salary relief. They are 35 and 40 years old. You can't expect to get any value back obviously.

Trade Dickey + Buerhle then sign all 3..

We understand Beane knows what he's doing. Every trade, he always gets 3-4 players, and 1-2 don't work out, but he always ends up with 1-2 that do, and then he flips them for more and more players. That's his job, to flip players when they start getting expensive, for younger guys. Short term AA wins the trade, but Beane gets a lot of cheap/serviceable guys, and he gets a high upside SS, both teams win, long term the As because of all the prospects as well.

That's why he's one of the greatest GMs in the game, he can actually make players younger.

Martin is going to make the Blue Jays win 2 world series this year, and he's even going to make the Maple Leafs win the stanley cup..