Wheeler news: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2019/11/reds-interested-in-zack-wheeler.html "Add the Reds to the many teams interested in coveted free-agent right-hander Zack Wheeler, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports (subscription required). Wheeler’s longtime team, the Mets, as well as the White Sox, Twins, Angels, Padres, Yankees and Blue Jays are also among the clubs that have been connected to him early this offseason." Southside Sox aiming to go all in? https://metsmerizedonline.com/2019/11/source-white-sox-are-highest-bidder-for-zack-wheeler.html/
Time to play fantasy GM again (get my mind away from the mess, Hot Stove season is one of my fav times of the year) Astros trade Reddick, Cionel Perez, Bryan Abreu, and $3M for James McCann and Gavin Sheets. Astros trade Abraham Toro, Framber Valdez, Ronnie Dawson and JJ Matijevic for Matt Boyd IF: Gurriel, Altuve, Correa, Bregman, Diaz, Straw OF: Brantley, Springer, Tucker, Alvarez, Marisnick C: McCann and backup (Avila/Maldonado/whatever FA) SP: JV, Greinke, LMJ, Boyd, Urquidy RP: Osuna, Pressly, James, five FA or ST competition winners Notable hitters in AAA: Mayfield, Tanielu, Jones, Sheets, Stubbs, Ferguson(?) Notable pitchers in AAA: Whitley, Ivey, Bielak, Javier, Hartman(?), Emanuel(?) Bullpen: Obviously there are holes to fill. Pomeranz (lefty) and Cishek (younger, less expensive version of Joe Smith) are guys I like. Resigning Smitty or Harris are also options, but I have a feeling the team signing them will overpay. Would love to take a flier on Treinen if he's non-tendered. Not sure what to do with Devo and Biagini, or Peacock (last year of control). Devo has been nearly unpitchable since the 2018 AS break, Biagini has not lived up to hope (based on velo and spin rates) but can be optioned. Very curious to see what we do with Peacock. Salary dump Reddick. Throw in some prospects and $$$ for a C and successor for Gurriel (himself blocked in CHW). MCCANNONBALLS are back! For Boyd: Toro (Moran), Valdez (Musgrove), Matijevic (Feliz), Dawson (Martin). Tried to come up with a comparable package to Cole (who actually had a better track record, but one less year of control). Yeah I know Matijevic is a hitter and Feliz a P, but I see their values as being near equal. Can stabilize the #4 spot in our rotation, I do like his fastball spin (despite lower velo) and his slider (nasty movement, generates whiffs). A good Brent Strom project. Wacha or Wood are decent bargain bin FA alternatives to look at, if they can stay healthy.
Not a good offseason so far for the Astros. Martin getting 2 years 14 million and Travis D'Arnaud getting 2 years 16 million means Chirinos and Harris are going to be $$$$$$.
Looks like the Mariners are about to trade Narvaez. I would love for Houston to get him assuming they prospect cost isn’t too high. Great lefty on base guy with enough power. Plus he’s hit well in crummy lineups which might mean he could put up star level numbers when hitting at the bottom of a stacked lineup. His defense is bad but has improved in some areas so there’s also upside there.
I would be ecstatic if we were able to pair him with Machete. Part of me think Machete/Chirinos really want to return, unfinished business and all...but money talks. Unfortunately, I’m guessing trades will be on hold until we figure out exactly what our punishment will be.
Could be a good pickup. We’ll certainly need bodies as Altuve and every other Astro is soon to be banned for life (citing media’s expectations, that is)...
Had atrocious hitting numbers every year outside a solid 2017. Wouldn't mind him as a utility man (also plays 3B), if he's less expensive than Diaz. Then again, "Diaz has some pop" as Joe Buck constantly reminded us all throughout the playoffs . Not that it's THAT much LOL.
I wouldn't want to give up Perez in the McCann deal--seems like too much to me? And Boyd deal probably requires someone higher caliber involved. Perhaps overall that group could net those players.. overall I'm good with bringing in both. I like the Cishek idea for Smith. Biagini might be great with an offseason here...let's see. I'm hoping Luhnow has some Harris and McHugh-like targets on other teams in their pens..
Of course of course. I was just joking about how during the playoffs, Joe Buck always said "has some pop, hit 9 homers this season despite spending significant time on the DL" or something. He must have fond memories from his rookie year with STL (his childhood, and probably still favorite team). That always stood out, and I think he's done great as a utility man when healthy, especially considering the low price. Cishek for Smith. Reasons are obvious: Sidearm righties, Cishek is slightly younger and has similar production and better health, but widely expected to cost less. Felt good about both the McCann and Boyd deals I proposed. A few pages back I proposed "trial balloon" deals that seemed too light. Tried to make an equivalent to the Cole deal for Boyd (inconsistent but has control and I think real upside). Love Perez as a person, and always believed in him, but he doesn't seem in that much favor with our staff (rarely used when called up), and really took a step backwards in AAA from 2018 to 2019. McCann has familiarity with JV (and Boyd), a strong arm, and came off a good year, but I forgot he only has 1 year of control left and not 2. Of course we also get $10M salary relief from Reddick and a possible Yuli successor in Sheets. My dream would be to somehow pry Vaughn away and reunite him with Korey Lee (who protected him in the lineup at Cal), but that ain't happening. Still not giving up on Biagini, cheap arbitration ($1.5M), too many holes in the pen from FA, and maybe a full offeseason and ST with us does the trick.
Not sure Astros would need to give up elite prospectsw for one year of McCann (though an extension is plausible). Astros should trade for Charlie Morton at the deadline when TB is done
I see some extension given JV (and Boyd in this scenario), plus we also get Sheets as a lotto ticket 1B prospect with good upsie. Can remove one of Perez/Abreu I guess, just thought only one may not be enough to offset Reddick. I do like CHW as a landing spot for him, they can use another veteran, and RF is a clear need. Seem to be going all in.
Saw a FA prediction video from “Giraffe Neck” on YouTube (if you’re a baseball junkie he’s a pretty good channel to subscribe to). He predicted where he thinks every FA will sign. Obviously it’s just one guys’ random predictions. However, just curious how y’all would feel about what he predicted for the Astros. He picked us to sign the following... Will Harris Joe Smith Wade Miley Michael Wacha Tony Barnette Zack Wheeler I don’t think we’ll go that pitching heavy, but I would be 100% okay with that haul. At this point I’m just bored with the off-season but wondered what y’all would think about it.
Astros to sign Dustin Garneau. https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2019/11/astros-to-sign-dustin-garneau.html SPLASH!! I'd like to think I am pretty knowledgeable about all things baseball...but who? Our front office didn't think they were getting Travis d'Arnaud did they?
Garneau is interesting. Has destroyed AAA and has had low BABIP in majors and has never gotten more than 200 mlb pa in a single season. He was pretty good last year. Hard to imagine a 32 year old busting out, but I could see him repeating his 2019 performance over a larger (albeit still backup) role, which would make him pretty valuable on a minimum salary. A .250/.350/.400 line with good defense over 250 pa would make him one of the best backups in the league.
