Our line-up could face Tom Seaver, Bob Gibson, and God and we would cut them. We're the Big Orange Machine! They'll be filming documentaries about our line-up in decades to come.
I don't think we should be a looking for a rental like Darvish. A rental is way more valuable for a team TRYING to make the playoffs, not teams who already have the division locked up and looking for an upgrade in the playoffs. Is having an A pitcher over a B pitcher for 3 games or so in the playoffs worth giving up top prospects?
There's no roster in baseball that is going to feel excited about facing a series of great pitchers, and no trade is going to change that. But the simple fact is that our team has been doing better all season than Boston and has matched LA despite most of our pitching staff being out. Price and Kershaw are fantastic but have long histories of failure in the playoffs. We should be as scared of facing guys like Wood as other teams should be of facing Peacock or Fiers (except their pitchers have to face our superior offense). I'd be more concerned about the Nationals than either Boston or LA. They have an outstanding offense to go along with their 3 aces and have aggressively addressed their big weakness - the bullpen - and their biggest ace (Scherzer) is healthy and has a lot of playoff success.
Pure speculation on my part, but I think Houston expects to complete a deal by Thursday. I base that on the rhetoric associated with Fisher's callup and Springers injury; sounds to me like if Fisher is still in the organization by Friday he will be the everyday LF, but that there is significant doubt about if he will still be around.
Asked how long Fisher would be up with the team, Hinch said "Two days, or the rest of his career." Hinch and Luhnow are nothing if not great interviews.
Maybe they are trying to figure out how to compete with the Astros in a potential World Series matchup? Or they are scared of the Cubs or Nationals. Or they don't think as highly of their rotation as everyone who here thinks we should fear them as some unstoppable team. They also have an insane TV deal double the size of anyone else that allows them to make virtually any moves with no long-term consequences at all.
I like the way you think. I was surprised when I saw them rumored as "interested" or "actively (something)" re: starters. Seems a little greedy to me, like Lasorda in front of a bowl of pasta. The Cubbies went bold when they were, what, a week's worth of games behind the Brewers? Now the potential NL playoffs look really, really intriguing.
I think, in general, fans tend to look at players on other teams and see the grass as always greener because they just see the numbers and don't actually ever *see* them fail. Alex Wood is basically Brad Peacock. But on the Dodgers, he's an unstoppable ace that we need to go get someone to matchup with. On the Astros, he's just a great bullpen guy. So my thought is that everyone fears other teams more than they should.
This wild card thing has definitely added a lot of interest at the trade deadline. 11 out of 15 teams in the AL are with 3.5 games of a playoff spot. NL Playoffs look mostly set, besides the NL Central divisional race, or one of the NL West teams imploding. Dodgers, Cubs, Nationals plus D-Backs and Rockies should make for some fun games.
Oakland is reportedly seeking a CF as a part of a trade for Gray. maybe that's why Fisher is playing CF tonight? https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/...young-center-fielder-in-any-sonny-gray-trade/
As much as I like him, Marisnick could also fit the bill. He still has 3.5 years to free agency. The article also mentions Daz Cameron, and we also have Jason Martin who can play some CF (assuming baby Tucker is off limits). I wonder where Marisnick + Cameron/Martin + Franklin Perez would get you?
I'm saying on the Astros, people say we need to go find a #2, while they see Peacock as a great guy to put in the bullpen. But on another team, the same basic guy (Wood) is the #2 that we desperately need to figure out how to matchup with. If Peacock was having the season he's having except doing it for LA, we'd be saying Kershaw/Peacock is a deadly duo we need to deal with.
Since Lance has decided to say "**** mechanics" and act like a little b!tch on the mound, you can't count on him at the moment. No way you take Peacock out of the rotation now. If it were up to me, LMJ goes on the 10-day "DL" and spends the entire week in the film room and throwing bullpens with Strom.
Why would a few games in MLB outweigh over 1000 innings in CF in the minors the past 2 years? Even Billy Moneyball has scouts for a reason.
I agree. If the playoffs started today, my playoff rotation would be Keuchel, Peacock, Fiers, and McCullers. Presumably, McCullers will figure things out in the next few months and move up, but I'd be pretty comfortable with that quartet and our offense against any other foursome + their offense in the league. The only questionmark right now for me on the Astros would be more depth in the bullpen.
I agree, I just want a little more pitching at the right price, they can figure out their roles. I trust Ground Control, Major.
I think it matters to some degree but it doesn't tell the whole story. It's not just because we need another OF... Willing to bet that.
