I do think if Houston doesn’t want to further damage their farm, there are enough good 2nd and 3rd tier free agents to get this team on par with the Yankees and Red Sox without trades or 9 figure contracts. A group of Ramos, Happ, Morton, and a bat like Cruz, Brantley, Murphy, or McCutchen would still make for a stacked roster, but avoid losing potential future core prospects or albatross contracts.
I agree with you there. I think our FO will take the best value approach with either FA or trades. Unless they really value a particular player or two above the rest, and think said player(s) will deliver the goods.
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Wonder if there’s something there to be concerned about. Then again, if the past few seasons are telling, I’m not too worried about their evaluation of open market arms.
Targets include Goldy, Brantley, Pollock, and McCutchen. Seems like Luhnow is in on every big bat that can upgrade our biggest holes. Wonder if he upgrades at 1b and corner outfield and is dangling tucker for an ace with a few years of team control. We will see soon enough. https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2018...s-astros-pollock-brantley-cutch-mariners.html
My read is that Luhnow has realized the only way he will be able to acquire a legit 3rd ace will be to trade Tucker. If Goldschmidt is added, I would think White or Gurriel would need to be traded, but I’m not sure how that would work. It’s certainly possible that a team could see real value in White. Sign Grandal and Brantley. JBB+ for Goldy. Tucker+ for Kluber. That’s a very stacked roster. But the farm would be pretty frail and payroll would be very stretched.
http://www.espn.com/mlb/insider/sto...-seriously-considering-trade-paul-goldschmidt Diamondbacks seriously considering dealing Paul Goldschmidt The Arizona Diamondbacks' Paul Goldschmidt finished sixth in the National League MVP voting this year, the fourth top-10 MVP placement of his career -- he was second in 2013 and 2015 and third in 2016. His performance this year was particularly remarkable because he started very slowly, struggling against high-velocity pitches. But from May 23 through the end of the regular season, he hit .328 with an OPS over 1.000. Next year will be the last in a long-term deal Goldschmidt signed in 2013. As has been reported before, the Diamondbacks are open to dealing the first baseman -- and, in the eyes of some rival evaluators, they are intent on moving him as they enter a period of rebuilding. But as great as Goldschmidt was over the last three-quarters of the season, the market conditions are not optimal for the Diamondbacks to move him. There aren't a lot of contenders looking for a first baseman, and the fact that Goldschmidt has just one season remaining before he reaches free agency will mitigate his trade value. The Cubs have Anthony Rizzo, the Dodgers have Cody Bellinger and Max Muncy, the Braves have Freddie Freeman. One evaluator estimated the Diamondbacks' return for Goldschmidt would be more than what the Pirates got for Andrew McCutchen last winter from the Giants -- outfielder Bryan Reynolds, pitcher Kyle Crick and international slot bonus dollars -- but less than what the Orioles got for Manny Machado in Baltimore's midseason deal with the Dodgers last summer. Baltimore received five minor leaguers from L.A., the most notable being outfield prospect Yusniel Diaz. The Cardinals and Astros are among the teams most interested in Goldschmidt so far. Rival executives say St. Louis seems open (again) to discussing big ideas, and adding Goldschmidt would give the Cardinals a needed thumper right in the middle of their lineup. The franchise has a long history of adding elite players as they near free agency in the hope they can convince them to stay with a long-term deal. That's what happened with Mark McGwire and Matt Holliday, among others, and that's what didn't happen with Jason Heyward. If the Cardinals finish a deal for Goldschmidt, they would have to move Matt Carpenter somewhere else in the field. St. Louis has a wide range of young pitching it could deal with the Diamondbacks. Rival executives report that the Yankees seemed to be pushing Justus Sheffield in conversations about a possible Goldschmidt deal before they moved Sheffield to the Mariners as the prime piece for James Paxton, and in the same way, there is a perception among other teams that the Astros are nudging 22-year-old pitcher J.B. Bukauskas, a first-round pick in 2017, as they begin to shop for upgrades. No deal appears to be close for the Astros, but if Houston made a trade for Goldschmidt -- perhaps placing first baseman Yordan Alvarez as a centerpiece -- then Goldschmidt could bolster what was a disappointing offense in 2018. Yuli Gurriel could absorb some of the role left behind by Marwin Gonzalez, the free-agent utilityman who is expected to sign elsewhere. The Astros also have been active in discussions with the tier of free agents below Bryce Harper -- the likes of A.J. Pollack, McCutchen and Michael Brantley. The Diamondbacks could gamble by keeping Goldschmidt into the 2019 season and hope his performance before the trade deadline would bolster his value. But Arizona has to make the same assessment the Pirates did last winter with McCutchen: Do they want the dominant conversation around their team to be about a revered superstar and his impending departure, or would it be better to make their best deal this winter and move on?
I think Luhnow may be fine with damaging the farm as long as it isn't guys that can help in 2019 and 2020. Problem is that there aren't many guys a long way from majors with a lot or even a decent amount of value. Nova seems the best by far of the lower level talent.
"I think Luhnow may be fine with damaging the farm...." Trading a few higher profile prospects wouldn't be damaging the farm. That said, the return to us would need to justify the loss.
