We are out for Framber regardless - and should be. I understand keeping him, but still think it would have been smarter to trade him than Tucker ( but I would trade both)
There’s a lot more good SP in trade than there were star position players. Cease, King, Fedde, possibly some of the Mariners pitchers. Framber’s market was not primed for a team to overpay. Tucker’s market was all seller. I don’t think there were any players close to his caliber available.
That is a great point. I just hate to see the current state of the OF minus Tucker along w/ knowing Framber is gone next year w/ nothing to show for it.
Possible low odds, but I could see a world where he's decent, our SP is going strong around him and we need another bat. And I said I wouldn't be surprised. Not that it would happen
I see a world where: Framber continues to be an Ace. Brown continues his growth into a legitimate Ace. Blanco continues to be a dependable MOR. Arrighetti makes a Hunter Brown type jump into a legitimate playoff starter. Wesneski is exactly who they think he is and becomes the 2025 Blanco. By June-July McCullers is 2021 Lance again. Luis Garcia proves he is 100% healthy and at least in pre 2023 form. Javier is healthy and pitching like Javier Blubaugh, Gordon, Ullola, and Gusto are all pitching well and ready for an audition. Then regardless of where they are in the standings they should trade Framber. They should probably trade him if 3/4 of those things happen.
And the fact is we lost 4 picks. If you take the average rate at which those picks make an impact in MLB, we would probably have one more player here now, or close to being here, out of those picks. That has value of course, but it's not like it would alter where we are as an organization right now.
We are out of Framber next year anyway. Crane doesn't like long contracts in general, and he certainly isn't handing one out for a SP At the very least the money pit dodgers will offer him an amount that Crane will say go ahead and go to.
Crane wants to have a chance to make some noise in the playoffs this year though, and without Framber your chances are slim I don't agree with Crane on everything, but I agree with him on this. We need Framber badly
I would alter that to be "We most likely need Framber" What are the chances he gets hurt and isn't a factor at all? This is a very real possibility with any and all SP and why I feel you should never commit to any of them long term or ever put too many eggs in their basket. What are the chances that among Brown, Blanco, Arrighetti, McCullers, Garcia, Javier, Wesneski, France, Gusto, Gordon, Blubaugh, and Ullola By July: At least 2 are healthy and pitching like TOR SP? At least 2 others are healthy and good MOR SP? At least 3 others are healthy and worthy BOR SP? If that happens and Framber can bring back talent to help 2026+ I would jump to trade him. If NOW you think there is a good chance of that happening trade him now but expect 2025 + future help.
I would not be surprised if a deal we would totally reject now looks good a the trade deadline. It's just the nature of baseball.
I think Boras is waiting out Alonzo. If Alonzo goes elsewhere, he probably hopes to bring the Mets into it.
I see a world where: Chas is hitting near 2023 levels Dezenzo is putting up around a .750 OPS We sign Polanco and he’s putting up around a .750 OPS That’s just as likely to happen as what you’ve laid out here.
It's certainly possible. I deal much better in the world of possibility and uncertainty than certainty and impossibility.
That's just a crazy way of looking at a rotation. You named a bunch of guys, some of who have potential, some won't pitch at all in 2025. None of them have put up a season even close to what Framber has done every single season of his Astros career. You may as well trade away all your bats because maybe the AAA guys surprise us. It's just not a rational way to think. If you trade away Framber because Arrighetti and his 7-13, 4.53 ERA, 1.41 WHIP might become an ace? Because Javier might come back late in the year? Because Lance might unretire? Because JP France and his career #s (which look a lot like Arrighetti but with less stuff) might break out at age 30? You're wishing with fairy dust. That's not a legitimate plan of action to compete in 2025. Trading him now would be capitulation. If all those things you hope happen, then you let him go and take the draft pick in 2026.
