IIRC, Donaldson is under club control for 4 more years. Not sure why the A's would trade him other than for a major haul of good youth. 3B who can play GG caliber defense and hit in the middle of the lineup are one of the rarest commodities around.
That is why they would trade him. He's a very good player. I'd do a Moran or Ruiz + Foltynewicz + Santana type package, but they would probably want more.
Was just thinking: they're about to, I assume, lose Lester, Samardjlkja and Kazmir over the next 2 years and I have no idea what their minor league pitching depth is like. Stros do have quite a few young arms that could be enticing.
Why do Altuve/Carter have more to prove than Springer at this point? If you can do a deal without Correa, you could have: Fowler Altuve Correa Donaldson Springer Carter Castro Singleton Marisnick That is a good lineup, and good defense. If you really wanted to get crazy, sign Scherzer or Shields or Lester Scherzer/Shields/Lester Keuchel McHugh Oberholtzer Tropeano
I'm with Max - he's a very good player... I'm not sure he's dump the farm system good, though. His offensive numbers, frankly, are very good but by no means great: .798 OPS; 126 OPS+; 5.0 oWAR - again, all very good but none of those numbers surpass Jose Altuve's. And Donaldson is 4 years older than Altuve which means he's probably at, or near, his ceiling - a tremendous glove with above-average-ish bat. (Which is probably why the A's want to strike - they recognize Donaldson likely isn't going to get appreciably better so they'd sell high.) I'd pursue, for sure- I wouldn't give up top-top prospects for him, though. ETA: I do wish *this* was the 3B we got for Cosart...
A 5.0 oWAR is more than just "above average". He has posted a road OPS of .877 and .874 over the last 2 years. And I'm not sure how being worse than Altuve matters, is he replacing Altuve? His WAR is 2nd in baseball only to Mike Trout over the last 2 years, he is an elite player and team controlled. So yes he is the type of player you give up multiple big prospects for. I would hold onto Correa, but otherwise I would give the A's the pick of any 4 prospects they want.
He slugged .456; Altuve .453. Assuming health and limited regression, I would think Springer and Carter are locked in 3-4, right? He feels like a #2 hitter, to me, with Altuve leading off. If they landed him and if they could somehow fix Singleton and get him back on track, that'd be a potent 1-5, however the line-up eventually fell.
Anyone here think we may actually try to sign one of the top FA SP arms? I think Scherzer is likely to sign in one of the huge markets, but maybe we could nab Shields? Wishful thinking, I know.
Because you don't deal away "multiple big prospects" for your second-, or perhaps even third-best hitter (his offensive numbers weren't appreciably better than Springer's, either, and Springer has lots of room to grow). He's a tremendous defensive player. And I'm not discounting a 3B who posts a 7+ WAR; I'd definitely pursue him. But he'll be 29 next year - he's not getting appreciably better. Why else would the A's think about dealing an "elite player" who's team controlled for four years? Because he's a quintessential sell-high chip.
For whatever reason, after having about identical splits last year, his OPS was about .160 higher on the road this year. Thought that was odd. This is the first offseason I've been excited about in many moons. Good times.
He's probably the 4th or 5th best 3B in baseball - again, tremendous value. But not dump-the-farm level, IMO.
Why does he need to get better? You give me 5 more seasons of what he's done over the last 2 years and I sign up for that in a heartbeat. I don't know why you are ignoring his 2013 season. As for the A's, they operate under strict financial constraints. A constant wave of talent is their only hope. Right now their farm is one of the worst in baseball. It is no doubt a sell high move, and quick farm reboot.
Like I said earlier, I do expect Luhnow to start cashing in some of these "assets" at some point... you aren't going to build a winner through promoted players alone. Donaldson seems like the right type of player to target, especially if Beane plans on hitting "reset"... as he traded most of the top tier farm players for this year's run (and he would be one of the talented non-pitchers who could get a farm system rejuvenated). I think figuring out what to do with Fowler should be at the top of this off-seasons' priority list... along with trying to lock up Springer. Its too bad that Singleton is basically ineligible for the AFL, because if there's anybody that needs some serious off-season work, its him (and I know he's not totally ineligible, but I doubt they could convince him to go back there).
Because you're advocating trading away "multiple big prospects." I obviously think he's a very good player; I don't think he's worthy of "multiple big prospects," however. Sure, let's talk about his 2013 season: he *regressed* offensively this year - which is what players who move into their 30s tend to do. If he were 24, 25, 26 - this would be an entirely different conversation. But trading away "multiple big prospects" for a player who (likely) won't get better - and is likely to regress over those five years - isn't, IMO, a tremendously smart use of your resources. I would trade prospects, for sure - I've said repeatedly I'd pursue him. But I wouldn't give up Correa, no way. I wouldn't touch Springer, either. I'm not sure I'd give up a top 10 prospect, let alone "multiple" ones. No; but this conversation has swerved toward his bat. He's a tremendous defensive 3B; again, I'm not in any way slagging the guy. It's a matter of worth, not independent evaluation. He's not, IMO, worth "multiple big prospects."
I always thought those leagues were of lesser caliber... or at least had some players that are not currently part of MLB clubs. Regardless of where he can/needs to go, he needs to put in some work. They should have some backup 1B options and if Jon doesn't have a good spring, he may need to start next year at AAA.
