On a side note, how the heck is Will Wagner batting 305 with only 4 walks in over 20 games. There has to be some regression.
Dana Brown is exceptional at talent evaluation and talent development and has relationships with the very best scouts and coaches- the only question about him was whether he would be able to handle having 100 people working for him instead of 10. So far - so good. His drafts so far are promising but haven’t broken out yet. His choice for manager is mediocre at first blush, but Espada is someone that will listen to and work with everyone else in the organization and adapt. Plus the candidate list was short and Espada is a rookie- and already has improved. The one interesting thing I have heard is that Brown has been a lot more laid back with the Astros than the Braves. He and Crane genuinely respect and like each other. With the intensity of Crane and how he rode Luhnow and Click - I expected Brown to be cracking the whip and outside of once or twice, he hasn’t and supposedly Crane hasn’t had any legitimate fights with Crane… seems like a really good fit. I still think we need a stronger group of outside thinkers but that’s about it.
Some guys are like that. Not many - but some guys make a lot of contact but not work the count… sometimes those guys learn to draw walks or hit lots of doubles and become valuable.. but some have empty .300 averages. Even then- those guys have value. Luis Arraez is someone I would love the Astros to get to play first base. His OPS is only 740 this year… but he is about to win his third straight batting title with less than 50 walks on the season. However - I would argue is an all star caliber player and would be perfect for the Astros. Now - I don’t think Wagner will ever be as good as Arraez and likely won’t be a long term starter unless he hits with more power, his profile does exist
I am still *impressed* how the Commissioner let the Red Sox/Yankees off the hook for sign stealing, Angels for the spider tack and opioids... and the translator, St. Louis corporate espionage, and the Goldilocks balls.
He's also hitting .191 w/ 56 OPS+ vs LHP and below average defense so he's not a regular starter and therefore not a big deal to give up. Kikuchi 0.9 bWAR as an Astro Lopeffido 0.5 and Wagner 0.5 Minimal difference.
Trades that work out for Both teams are a good thing. The last thing you want is a reputation of barbarians at the gate style raiding of other teams talent pool. If it were to happen you want the Astros to come out on top, but seeing guys the Astros develop do well in other clubhouses is a positive in my book.
Agree with this 100% I fully expect all 3 guys to contribute in Toronto. I just don't see any of them becoming all stars. Loperfido - Meyers-esque defense first OF who struggles w/ Ks so bat is somewhere around league average and ends up about 10 WAR over his 6 seasons. Wagner - good lefty contact bench bat who can play 2-3 infield positions and likely learn LF - 5 WAR over his 6 years of control. Bloss - solid bottom of the rotation starter. Of course you never know when/if a SP will get hurt so does he pitch 6 seasons or only 4? Over/Under is probably 500 IP and until he shows more in MLB, take the under. But solid return for a rental SP by Toronto.
Nobody should care what little minor league whatevers we gave up. You know where to stick the WOPRs and WARs. 8-0
It was over 3 years after we traded him before he was useful and we had Brantley, Springer and Tucker during that period.
