http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/chi-08-rogers-whispersfeb08,0,6701151.story Houston is planning a sneak attack on the Cubs and might improve its chances of success if it signs Adam Dunn to a one-year deal before camp starts. Dunn, a 40-homer man for five straight seasons, would allow the Astros to move Hunter Pence to center field and Michael Bourn to the bench. That would mean a huge lift to run-production. Dunn has multi-year offers on the table, including one from Washington, but clearly isn't crazy about them. … The Caribbean Series was fun viewing, but the talent level wasn't as good as had been hoped, with Ivan Rodriguez and Javier Vazquez among the big-leaguers who decided to stay home. Fernando Martinez, the Mets' five-tool outfielder, left early because of pain in his elbow. …
Pence would need an oxygen tank in the dugout to get his breath back after covering for Lee and Dunn out there.
He's the kind of guy that Uncle Drayton would stretch the payroll for - local guy, long-ball hitter. Batting him 5th and Tejada 6th would be great.
Get it done Morey....I mean Wade. If you add Dunn (and perhaps Pudge): The lineup could look a little something like this: Matsui 2B Pence CF Berkman 1B Lee LF Tejada SS Dunn RF Blum 3B Pudge C That gives Pence the protection of having Berkman follow him. Tejada will see better pitches to hit in the second half of the season being sandwiched between Lee and Dunn. If you don't add Pudge, I guess Quintero is the everyday guy.
Worst defensive outfield ever. It's a nice idea, in theory, but Pence just isn't nearly fast enough to cover the gaps he's going to have to cover with Lee and Dunn. I just don't think the runs they gain offensively outweigh the runs they give up defensively. Simple base hits turn into doubles. Popups in the gaps become hits. If it was Bourn out there, I could kind of see it happen. The only way it remotely makes sense is if Berkman moves back to RF. He's not pretty, but he's Willy freakin Mays compared to Lee and Dunn.
Get it Dunn!! Carlos in left, Pence in CF, and Dunn in right field. That's the only way I could see it working., it may not be the best defensive outfield but 40 more homeruns would make up for that IMO. Like it has been previously stated, if it don't work out, use him as trade bait.
Even on offense, he's a very high risk/high reward guy. He'll get his homers and RBI's but his batting average will be atrocious. Seriously, Brad Ausmus has a higher career BA. He'll walk a bunch and have a high on base percentage, but he'll strike out even more. He's almost reached 200 K's twice. So I can see him bringing a lot of joy, but also a lot of disappointment and head banging.
I don't see Drayton signing anyone right now. He thinks we are going to be champions since we signed Hampton. Look for Dunn to sign with Washington.
As somebody else mentioned, Adam Dunn last year had an OBP of .386. That is a higher OBP than any player on the Astros roster. I found it to be surprising, but after looking, it's true. Regardless of strikeouts, he got on base more often than anybody we would put out there instead.
The only way Dunn works here is if they can move Pence for SP help. The last thing a team trying to contend with mediocre pitching needs is a terrible defensive outfield, so Bourn needs to be in center. Problem is, McClane views Pence as the face of the franchise and he wouldn't consider dealing him to get Peavy earlier this offseason. FWIW, I wouldn't mind Dunn in Houston, but I'm not seeing genuine interest from the team right now.
