My worst case was to lose Whitey or Tucker. My bad case was to lose Fisher and Martes + filler. This turns out or be the best possible scenario. The player I hate losing the most is Musgrove, and he was really only decent out of the pen in stints. I'm blown away that this is all it took to get Cole. Highway robbery.
It isn't about his role with the team .. he has still been with that group of guys since August 2016... far longer than you're suggesting ... they can still have human relationships and be sad to see him go.
I think the players know that roster spots are limited and a lot of the glut has to be addressed. Musgrove, Feliz, and Moran should have been starting last season. Musgrove is built like a workhorse pitcher, Feliz needs to be tried as a starter too. And Moran i feel will be a building block and staple at 3rd base for the next 10 years for the Bucks. It sucks that Astros have limited space for them here, but I’m sure the guys know these guys need playing time.
Seems cheap(er). At least than what was expected to be the amount needed to acquire Cole. All in baby!
I do believe Mark Berman didn't mention Musgrove to Bregman, McCullers, or Springer. They were probaly thinking that it was minor leaguers (Whitley, or Tucker). To appreciate this trade, just read the twitter https://twitter.com/search?q=gerrit+cole&ref_src=twsrc^google|twcamp^serp|twgr^search