Why would a team give up an ace for any of that? (Let alone a club controlled ace). Astros should try and see what the pirates want for Cole. He needs a change of environment.
Giving up an ace for a major league ready Outfielder, Pitcher and a third baseman. that fills three holes in an everyday lineup
Lol. Sure. Why would the Mets or Toronto do that deal? Do you really think they cant find another Fisher, Kemp, or Moran somewhere else? Even so, how do any of those guys help those teams either contend or rebuild? Martes has value. But Degromm and Stroman are currently what you hope Martes to someday be.
Let me first say that Luhnow has done a fantastic job since he's been here. He stripped everything down, rebuilt the farm system, and the parent club is now starting to see success. Moving forward the million dollar question is can Luhnow put together a World Series champion? Especially for a franchise that's never won a WS. The competition isn't with the A's or the Angels. It's with teams like Boston, Clev, Dodgers, Wash and the Cubs. These are the teams that stand in the way of being World Champs. The Celtics knew their biggest competition back in the day was the Lakers. They didn't have a guard who could match up defensively with Magic, and this was the biggest weakness the Celtics had. So what did they do? They traded for DJ (Dennis Johnson). So this is what Luhnow has to do (figure out the 'Stros biggest weaknesses and do what he can to rectify it and how it helps them match up better with the teams mentioned above). Some GM's/Mgr's are good at building/managing a competitive team, but do they have what it takes to take a team to the playoffs and ultimately good enough to win it all? This makes me think of Michael Corleone in the "The Godfather" when he tells Tom Hagen, "you're out....you're not a wartime Consigliere". Is Luhnow a "wartime Consigliere"? I guess we'll find out.
I'm betting Jeff has a document on his desk right now that spells that out exactly. Same for about every other name that has been mentioned, as well some that haven't. One can only gather that Jeff doesn't like what he sees or he thinks the price on some guys may change in time in our favor and has decided to wait.
It's been mentioned here before as far as his war-time abilities. I thought getting Gattis, Kazmir, Gomez, and Fiers in 2015 was a step in that direction. I thought getting Reddick/McCann/Beltran further pushed that. Ultimately, they all know this team can win it all, and they will attempt to improve. However, as is, this team is good enough.... as long as they get healthy.
I will give up Tucker and/or Martes...... but not for the pitchers that are on the market right now. There isn't a single #1 starter on the market. There are a bunch of #2's and 3's...... and how big a difference is there between Quintana are Grey? How big is the gap between Morton and those pitchers on the market? I don't have an issue with the Astros targeting someone like Grey, he fits a 2-4 spot in the rotation for the next 3 years....... but not for anything remotely close to what the Cubs paid. When pitchers like Sale or Scherzer or Randy Johnson come available, I have no problem paying a steep price...... but there is no one on the market that would be considered a top 10 pitcher.
Neither of them are really true number 1 aces, albeit they are very good. Not to mention a package like that is a ton of value. I'm not sure the Astros would be winning that deal.
What teams are going to want a starter at the deadline? The Brewers..... some think the Dodgers....... maybe the Twins.... maybe the Yankees? There will be a few guys available at the deadline that surprise people...... and we already know that Gray will be available. The market is limited, if a few things go right, the Astros could protect Tucker, Martes and Whitley and build a deal around Franklin Perez and get their pick of what is out there.
I see mostly organizational/backup depth and filler. The market is set as far as what young/club-controlled/above-average starting pitching is going to cost... and that's not going to get it done.
So our biggest trade chips are: OF Tucker (11) RHP Perez (32) RHP Martes (48) OF Fisher (54) RHP Whitley (58) Guys who aren't in the Top 100 but I feel still have some value: 1B Alvarez 3B Moran 3B Davis C Stubbs RHP Paulino OF Hernandez So the Cubs gave up #5 and #83, at a minimum it would have taken Tucker to get Quintana. Cole and deGrom all will start with Tucker as a centerpiece. Gray may be had for Martes, Fisher, and two of the lesser guys, one if we're lucky.
You're probably correct saying that package wouldn't get an ace, but Moran should be a coveted trade piece with the year he's having. A 24 year old #4 overall draft pick who finally found his power, putting up a .900+ OPS with <17% K rate at AAA is a legit prospect. His success isn't BABIP driven either. The numbers seem real to me and we'd all be calling for his promotion if the team didn't already have Bregman/Yuli at the corners.
Tough to criticize them for what they did last year regarding winning last year. However, I still don't see how winning the World Series makes them less than 5.5 games back ("danger zone") that they got themselves into last week (maybe last two weeks may be more appropriate). I don't see how that is a criticism, either. They are still a great team, but great teams that are 5.5 games at the break have lost most of their bad luck cushion. Adding Quintana helps give them more margin for bad luck not to ruin their season. By "Danger Zone", I mean they went from nearly a certainty to make playoffs to more than likely to make the playoffs. I would not have "criticized" whether they made move or not. They are a very well run organization.
It helps them to suck (maybe). Fisher has really boosted himself this year and you could certainly see him as a regular. Moran as a guy you take a shot on and Kemp is a bench player.
He can be traded, sure... but coveted? Where he was drafted shouldn't matter as much. He's not one of the Astros top 10 prospects, and other teams know that. 24 year old good AAA players, that haven't had any real MLB success yet, may be a commodity that quite a few teams have.
I'd venture anybody could convince themselves that these guys could get a deal done... I just don't see it... not for what the price currently is.
