And on that note, the only truly special prospect right now is Correa. Sure, will somebody "unknown" turn into a stud that is currently in our system? Yeah... it happens. Every team runs the risk of trading that guy... hell, look at half the players we got as prospects in return during this whole rebuilding process. Its still about getting viable/projectable or actual MLB talent in return for guys you don't have as for-sure future all-stars, based on your current algorithms.
Count me in with the group that is for cashing in some of our minor league depth for some real ML level proven talent. With many of our prospects knocking on the door already, there are only so many opportunities for a real shot with the big club. Time to start coloring up and full on competing for a title.
lol yes... lets trade away the talent who the astros patiently developed over the years for aging vets on big contracts. smart.
While I would not be against moving prospects for Donaldson, i'd rather see us make an offer for Sandoval to improve 3B. He isn't the player that Donaldson is, and would cost more money. But if the choice were Sandoval at 3B and keep the prospects, or lose Appel, Folty and Ruiz and get Donaldson, i'd rather have Sandoval and keep the kids Having said that, if a guy like Sandoval as a FA wasn't a possibility, then i'd certainly move Appel, Folty and Ruiz or Moran for Donaldson While those three are highly rated prospects, i'd be happy if any ONE of them came anywhere close to being as valuable as Donaldson already is Ultimately trades between the Astros and A's are probably unlikely when it comes to prospects, both organizations probably overvalue prospects more than any other organizations. They probably need to make deals with organizations that don't value kids quite as much
There is a misconception about the A's and how they value prospects/young players. Keep in mind this team: A) Traded Carlos Gonzalez to get Matt Holliday B) Traded Addison Russell & Billy McKinney to get Samardzija C) Traded Michael Choice to get Craig Gentry D) Traded Chris Carter & Brad Peacock to get Jed Lowrie To put it in perspective, of the top 10 prospects for the A's to start 2013, 6 have been traded, and that includes 4 of the top 5 (Russell, McKinney, Peacock, Strailey). If you go to 2011, only 1 of the top 10 is still with Oakland.
Cabrera is probably the worst defensive third baseman in baseball and that's a big reason why he doesn't play there any longer.
instead of trading prospects away at this juncture for upgrades at certain positions I would prefer them to go out and spend some money in FA. Especially considering how low the payroll has been the last few yrs.
The problem with FA, is you tend to pay for past production instead of future production. Most players don't reach FA until they are around 30, which means ending up with a bad contract in the back half of the deal, not unlike Carlos Lee was for us.
What JS said... additionally, payroll will be rising simply with the current players all starting to make more money as they get older. If they hang onto Fowler/Castro they will be on the books for about $15-20 million next year. They should be aggressive in FA, but not be willing to hand out stupid-money contracts. Not going to be a fan of signing any pitcher for more than a 3 year deal (or at most a team option for years 4 and 5).
If they do target players of Donaldson's ilk (under 30), they'll almost certainly offer them long-term contracts.
He's been steadily declining each and every year since his breakout season in '11 - his OPS+, '11-'14: 155, 123, 116, 111. He's striking out more, reaching base less - that's not random; it's a legitimate trend - any team paying him will undoubtedly be paying for better seasons in his past.
Yea like I said, he isn't the player that Donaldson is, but he wouldn't cost top prospects either, he would only cost Jim Crane's money and I don't care how big of a profit jimbo makes to be honest Also, Sandoval is only 28 years old, because he was only 21 when he came up it seems like he should be older than that. And to be honest, the past three years haven't been a steady decline, they have all been worse than his 2011 season for sure, but the past three years have all been similar. And I wouldn't take a guy who is 28 and think he is already past his prime. If someone offers him a stupid contract then sure, you don't get involved. But we aren't getting anyone on the "cheap", so if he would sign here for market value or a tad above that, i'd rather that than give up major prospects for a guy like Donaldson. And heck, Sandoval could take a step back offensively from his past three years, and still be a solid upgrade over what we have been getting at 3B. And really all of this talk is fun discussion, but no way either situation happens. Luhnow himself brought Ruiz and Moran into the organization, one of those guys is where he views the future of 3B for us, that i'd be pretty certain about
He has dealt with weight issues, which have shown to negatively impact players in what could be their prime. At the end of the day, it is all about $$$. If he gets a 5 year $100M offer, I want no part of that. At 3B, I do think it will be trading for a guy like Donaldson, a short-term FA deal (Aramis Ramirez?), or probably the most likely depending on a Dominguez rebound.
He's still an upper-echelon 3B (as much because there aren't a lot of upper-echelon 3B overall) - but the only statistic that flatlining or declining, unfortunately, is strikeouts. I'm admittedly looking at a statsheet - I know nothing else about him. But he's the prototype for why free agents are, generally, a giant waste of money: their best years are behind them.
He's not striking out more. His K-rates are: 2011: 13.5% 2012: 13.3% 2013: 13.5% 2014: 13.3% He's just been healthier.
