Seth Martinez pitched great when he was used as well in the limited times he played. There are some that believe it's not a certainty that Montero returns. Assuming Montero does not return I'm not sure who replaces him in the rotation. I would replace Martinez with Taylor in the lineup if it comes down to it. Maton I'm not sure will be coming back either. Aside from earlier in the season when Maton had the immaculate inning. He had an era of 3.84 very close to 4 which is not nails. He struggled for a good portion of the season. Javier should not be in the bullpen rotation whatsoever he has proven he should be a starter and should remain as such.
One of the starters will be in the bullpen and I wouldn't count Whitley out for a bullpen spot either.
If he can be a part of a trade that nets a guy like Varsho then sign me up. I bet Whitley does well this year, his 2nd year back from TJ.
I think his value may be at an all time low. Strom may want to take a feeler and convince Arizona but at what price? What else would they need to give up? I think Varsho would solidify CF and help the bottom of the lineup but Whitley would likely be a throw in. At this point the Astros should just hope he is healthy, has his head on straight, and starts the season strong. He is on the 40 man roster. Eventually they will need to trade or waive him if he can't pitch for the parent team.
The dbacks would be nuts to trade Varsho. He's building block material. Even if they did consider trading him, the price is way higher than Whitley.
FYI Arizona is absolutely loaded in the OF, especially CF. They also may be a season or more away and in a very tough division. They may ( MAY - being EXTREMELY optimistic here) take a package of pitching prospects that Strom likes along with a 40-45 grade bat like Joe Perez or Cristian Gonzalez for him but I don't see Whitley as a player who would reduce the overall price.
If we wind up trading a pitcher my choice would be McCullers. He is a starter with years of control that really needs to be at the top of someones rotation.
I may be misremembering this, but is Strom one of the people who disliked Whitley? Remember Nook saying something about that, but don't remember which coach/FO person it was that disliked Whitley.
So you’d trade McCullers because he’s great and has a wonderful contract???? (MIND IS BLOWN) If we sign JV, I think it’s possible Astros could deal a starter but I’m pretty sure Urquidy or Garcia would be the only discussions. Garcia probably has a better return. Frankly I’d like seven starters on the staff unless the Astros are incredibly lucky, they’ll need that depth.
I don't think McCullers would get anyone of value back considering his contract and injury history. I would say it's EXTREMELY better to just hold on to him. Not to mention he has CY Young talent and could put it all together any season.
