Well, for starters, apparently Peavy is signed for next year, with a club option for 2009, and there is no way in hell San Diego is not picking that up. So the earliest we could have him is 2010 I believe. So that just about kills my idea, not argument. And I believe our payroll is around $73 mil, if ESPN is correct about a week ago. And it seems people tend to forget that we made it all the way to the World Series without Pence, and with an even worse lineup, because we didn't have El Caballo. That should show the importance of pitching, both starters and bullpen. And this is where I tend to disagree with most here: you said "but then you've mortgaged the future in Pence and Patton...for Santana and Oswalt." Believe me, I like Pence a lot, I think he is going to be a very good ballplayer. I also hope and think that Patton will be a pretty good pitcher. However, to get Santana for say 5-7 years for these two is a no-brainer for me. And for those who say just wait till next year for Santana to be a free-agent, that is not a bad idea, but there is no way that we would out-bid Omar Minaya and the Mets. I always read on here that Purpura and co. hold on to our "prospects" too long (i.e. Morgan, Lane, and even Burke), and I tend to agree. But the same people that say this act like Pence is an untouchable. Again, even though I love Pence and think he is going to be good, we have to admit that there is a possibility that scouts figure out holes in his swing and maybe he doesn't pan out like we all hope he will. As an Astros fan, I sure hope Pence and Patton turn out to be great. Santana, on the other hand, is already proven his greatness, and barring injury, should continue his greatness. That is all I am trying to say, but I do respect your opinion.
i'm glad you are no where near the GM/front office. the only way santana won't hit the open market is if he signs a nice contract for the twins. if he is traded he will hit he market no matter what or get a ridiculous contract... more than Zito. once again... Pence many years >>>>> Santana 1 year
Although they do go for the top notch FA's, my point is that they have more than just a few homegrown guys, as you say. I hate the Yankees personally, but that doesn't mean they are not doing some things right. And although they are surrounded by amazing (and expensive talent), that core i was speaking of is the main reason they win in the postseason. I mean you have probably the most clutch player in Jeter (except this year) and the most clutch closer ever). As for A-Rod, I am pretty sure that they are actually only paying him like 16-17 million a year, and the Rangers are picking up the rest of the tab, so that's pretty genius of them. And Giambi has only really had one good year for them, just looking at his career stats from ESPN, and that was the first year he played for the Yanks. Other than that, he hit .250 in 2003, .208 in 2004, .253 in 2006, and .236 in 2007. Obviously steroids inflated his career with the A's.
Well, from day 1 I said that signing Santana long-term would be a prerequisite for doing this obviously. I then added that I believe that Pence and Patton would never be worth a 1 year rental. So I am pretty sure we are in agreement here.
This is where I disagree.. what that year showed is that (a) anyone can get hot (as we've seen with other teams in other years too) and (b) one of the best 3-man rotations of all time can go a long way (see Stark's column on exactly how good Oswalt, Pettite, and Clemens were that year...basically unmatched in most ways) As good as ANY 3 man crew is, it's hard to imagine them being THAT good. And even if they somehow are, we don't have anything close to the bullpen we had that year (an important piece of the pitching puzzle in order to compete with a crappy lineup).. and the payroll would, in theory, be up around $105 million by adding both your guys to the staff...which is already over what Drayton wants, I think. And over our usual. Then you count the fact that we have no one in CF (Josh Anderson is in your plan maybe?) and either some random, aging FA at 2nd or Burke if he develops.. and you're still looking at Bruntlett and Lamb (or someone at his salary level) on the bench. It just doesn't seem feasible..
we got the 10th pick in the upcoming draft...hopefully tyson ross or brandon crawford will be available then.
Now John Schuerholz is resigning. Maybe we should have waited awhile before we named a GM. http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3058578 Longtime GM John Schuerholz is reportedly stepping down after 17 seasons with the Atlanta Braves. According to various media reports, Schuerholz is handing over the reins to top assistant Frank Wren. Schuerholz, who was the longest tenured general manager in the major leagues, took over as GM in 1990 and the Braves won 14 straight division titles before struggling the past two seasons. Atlanta won just one World Series, in 1995, despite those 14 straight trips to the playoffs. Schuerholz also won a World Series ring with Kansas City in 1985 and has been a GM for 26 years. Braves manager Bobby Cox, who has said he will be back for at least one more year in the dugout, will do so with a new boss. Wren was an assistant GM for the Braves for seven seasons. Prior to that, he was the general manager for the Baltimore Orioles for the 1999 season. He was also an assistant GM with the Florida Marlins for eight seasons. The Braves said they have a major announcement scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET.
Schuerholz is staying on as president of the team. I do agree, though, that they should have been more patient. I would have loved to have Walt Jocketty as GM. I'll give Wade time, but it looks like there would have been better options if Tal and Drayton were a little more patient.
what about rivera do any of you think we should make a serious bid on him, he's older, maybe lost a little on his fastball but i think he's still the best there is
No chance the Astros offer him a deal, IMO. There's in house options for closer that will cost much less than an aged Rivera...even without Lidge.
go here pick the position you want. Some of them listed have options for this coming up season that haven't been picked up yet.
Yea, you bring up a good point about our bullpen, and I agree with that. And Josh Anderson was in my play in center, but I don't think management is sold on him. But by the admittingly small sample size we were given, I actually see him as a good leadoff slap hitter. But as I said before, this was just a crazy idea I threw out there, I am pretty sure the chances of this coming to fruition is basically slim to none. I would like to hear other ideas out there that y'all have. What would you guys try to do this offseason to better the team?
Nice under the radar type move by Wade. I remember seeing him play. He's got serious speed but is a little undisciplined at the plate. If they can get him on base more, he could be the CF/leadoff guy we want.
I think we should play luke at third base and anderson in center. I guess move wiggy to 2nd or the bench. Does anyone else know if we can do this? I know Hunsiker (sp?) said we should try it.
Luke Scott has played a whopping 4 games in the infield in his entire professional career...4 games at 1B in A-ball. Why would Gerry Hunsicker say anything about this considering he hasn't worked for the Astros for almost 3 years?
He said it on a sportsradio 610 interview, when they asked him how he could shake up this ballclub back in the season.
