Three moves I'd really like to see if the Stros refuse to move Pence and Wandy... Keppinger for Eric Surkamp...good lefthanded arm having a heck of a year. Giants need a middle infielder in the worst way, Kepp fits their squad perfectly. Bourn for Arodys Vizcaino or Randall Delgado...I think the Braves would bite, they need a CF BADLY. Either one would instantly become our top prospect along with Springer and Ovando. Brett Myers for Tim Wheeler...Rockies need another starter and he would be ideal as a workhorse innings eater. Wheeler is having a great season and appears to be hitting his stride. These three guys along with Springer, Houser and hopefully Armstrong would help give the system some much needed depth of high ceiling guys.
I doubt the Giants bite on that deal. Braves could do that deal. They are so stacked in the minors they can afford to give up guys like that. Myers needs to keep the quality starts rolling, but I can see the Rockies taking that deal.
Looks like things are starting to get interesting... jonmorosi Add the Rangers to the Tigers, Rockies and Yankees who have all said they are or will be looking for an upgrade to the rotation. Rangers just witnessed first hand strong performances from Wandy and two by Brett.
“@native_astro: According to @MLBNetworkRadio, the Astros are asking for three top prospects for Hunter Pence.#Astros #MLB”
I'm the same way. Pence is a legit all-star, and young enough that after 2-3 years of rebuilding, he'll still be in his prime. I'm not completely against trading him, but I think I'd be happier if he stayed.
I like the idea of trading Pence, if you can trust Ed Wade to get the right deal. That's why I'm on the fence. If we can, I think it's time to sell high. Yes, Pence will still be a productive player in 2-3 years. But nothing in his career indicates he'll be more than a slightly above-average corner outfielder, and a closer look at his performance this year doesn't show any true fundamental improvement. His walk rate is about the same, and strikeout rate is actually substantially worse. Slugging percentage roughly the same as well. The only major difference in Pence's production? The sky-high .389 batting average on balls in play (BABIP). When that regresses to near the mean (.300 ish), as it did from 2008-2010, he'll go right back to his usual .285/.335/.465 level. There's nothing wrong with that, of course, but it doesn't indicate a franchise cornerstone. And if you can take advantage of his good fortune in 2011 and get a franchise-player type haul for him, I think a smart GM (given the Astros' situation) makes that move. http://www.fangraphs.com/graphs.aspx?playerid=8252&position=OF&page=7&type=full Oh, and one more thing: I'm not saying it's a failure on Wade's part if the Astros don't move Pence. It's only a mistake in my view if another team actually makes a major offer and the Astros turn it down. Weslinder and others are right in that Pence is not a Wandy/Myers type that you move for the sake of moving - he can still be a productive player in 2-3 years. But if you can take advantage of his strong 2011 and find a desperate team willing to overvalue Pence based on immediate need... I think you do it.
Agreed. Wandy should not be moved for the sake of moving. And if moved, Wandy should bring more value than Pence would.
Oh, I undoubtedly agree with you that Wandy is a more valuable player than Pence. I'm just nervous about relying on any player 35 and up, which is what Wandy will be when the Astros could conceivably have any hope of contending again. Yes, I know he's a soft-tossing lefty and some of those guys can age well... but it's far from a guarantee. Consider that with the reality that Wandy's market value will never be higher... and I'd be surprised if he isn't moved. I mean, if the offers are ridiculously low, I would keep him... but I don't think that'll be the case. He should get a significant haul, and the Astros need to take advantage.
If the return is equal, deal 'em both! I shudder to think the team could actually get worse but, yeah - on August 1, this roster needs to basically look like a store shelf the day before a hurricane. If Wade's smart, he's working the phones now and maximizing his time. Regradless, by July 31, if you have buyers, you need to sell at pretty much any cost. At this point in time for this franchise, sadly, a low-level prospect with upside has more value than Wandy Rodriguez.
http://insider.espn.go.com/mlb/insi...espn.go.com/mlb/insider/news/story?id=6756665 Insider article involving Pence. I'd assume it is an updated version of the Pence to the Phillies article from a while back.
Get it done Wade... Pence to Boston for Will Middlebrooks, Kyle Weiland, and Josh Reddick Wandy to Texas for Neil Ramirez and Luke Jackson Bourn and Keppinger for Mike Minor, J.J. Hoover and Andrelton Simmons Stros get three young cheap MLB ready starters in Minor, Weiland and Ramirez to go with Lyles and Norris. Stros also get two developing arms in Jackson and Hoover which will look nice going with Houser and Folty. Stros get a power corner outfield bat to replace Pence in Reddick, 3b prospect in Middlebrooks and developing SS in Simmons...TOOLSY. Stros will basically need to replace Bourn in center but wipe out up to 30 million next season and get some serious prospects from organizations who won't miss them.
Here's an interesting exercise for anybody that is on the fence about trading just about anyone on the roster for even .50 cents on the dollar if it came down to that for any reason: go team by team in the NL and list the likely future (3 or more years from now) core players of each, including top level prospects that are on the verge of breaking into the bigs. Then note the ages of those players. Then go back and look at the ages of any players on our team that you are hesitant to get rid of while considering our present situation as a team in extreme rebuilding mode. Here are just a few... Nationals: Zimmerman, Strasburg, Harper, Storen... Braves: Hanson, Heyward, Freeman, those bullpen guys... Giants: Posey, Bumgarner, Sandoval... Pirates: McCutchen, Alavarez, Tabata, Walker... Reds: Bruce, Leake, Cueto, Bailey, Chapman I'm sure I missed some names just from those teams I touched on from the top of my head. I also left off some notable names because those players are over 25. When you finish the list above, go look at the core talent of teams that are currently in contention or near contention and project how long those players will be elite or near elite. If we get bumped to the AL, repeat the same exercise and the picture will be even more discouraging because so many of the AL teams have to take care of their farm systems to have any chance of competing with those two empires in the AL East. Bottom line: Lyles, Wallace anjd Melancon, if you like, are the only two that should be considered keepers. I'd even entertain trading Wallace and Melancon in package deals depending on the return but they are good pieces. Wallace would be a lot nicer if he could play 3rd though.
Forgot about Castro. Go ahead and add him to that list but he's pretty much untradeable right now even if you wanted to move him, which we don't. Out of the upper levels of the minors, the only player that I'd be very hesitant to let go of is Altuve. I understand that trading any decent prospects is unlikely to happen because of the state of our team but there are occasionally deals like that that do happen, thus I'm just pointing out Altuve as the most interesting prospect to me as far as the upper minors go.
•Hunter Pence will likely stay in Houston unless the Astros are “overwhelmed,” according to Olney.(MLBTR)
