It's Hunter... “@JimBowdenESPNxm: Fredi Gonzalez told us today on our show that they are looking at RH OF Bat that can play all 3 OF pos..so..Beltran?Pence? @mlbnetworkradio”
It has to include one of Teheran, Minor, Delgado, or Vizcaino If not Wade needs to be fired the second Crane gets ownership.
Does anyone else get the feeling that his solid (or stubborn) stance that he doesn't want to move far from his ranch (and favorite BBQ eatery) has contributed to his very poor year? We all realize he is in decline, but his home run totals as an Astro have gone from 32 to 28 (in 115 games), 26 and 24. Now, so far this year he has 7!?! That is ridiculous. It's hard to believe that someone would tank it like that, but he is adamant about not leaving and this is the only year the team has any leverage in the deal, as he becomes a 10/5 guy next year.
It looks like this is going to turn into an all out bidding war between the Phillies, Braves and possibly the Pirates. Pence will most likely be wearing a new uniform next week.
I agree, throw in the Giants and RSox too...basically anyone who wants Beltran will also go after Hunter.
I hope you guys aren't setting yourselves up to be disappointed. This isn't a Roy/Lance deal in that Hunter is young.. but at the same time, he doesn't have the star power or the hisotrical beast performance mode that those guys had. I wouldn't be surprised if everyone said "no elite prospects for Hunter". And if I were the Astros, I'd still deal him to the highest bidder anyway (assuming we get 2 future MLers or something rather than a stud)
Crane needs to step in and veto. He bought a turd. Pence is one of the bright spots. Wow it sucks to be a Houston pro sports fan. McNair blows Kubiak. Les holds on to Yao for too long. Uncah Dreyton has destroyed the Astros and made the Rangers officially Texas' baseball team.
Look back at the Carlos Beltran deal the Astros pulled of to see what you can expect or Pence. Pence is having a better season than Beltran was that year before he was traded, and that was Beltran before he went on the tear and got the huge contract. We gave up a top 50ish minor league catcher in John Buck and a good major league closer in Dotel. Montero and Noesi from the Yankees would probably be a similar profile. Maybe Gary Brown and Surkamp from the Giants. Singleton and Cosart from the Phillies Should expect at least one top 50 player and another from 50-100 range.
Please elaborate on how you think Pence is having a better year than Beltran was in 2004 before the trade. 1. Beltran played CF. 2. Beltran had a .901 OPS in 2004 prior to the trade. 3. Beltran was a super elite basrunner at that point. 4. Beltran was an elite defensive player. 5. Beltran was younger. 6. Beltran had a much better track record up to that point in his career to go with his superior 2004 season - ROY, coming off two top 12s in MVP voting in the AL. 7. Pence is doing nothing elite this season other than hitting for a high average, which is greatly inflated by his unsustainable BABIP, 60 points or so above his career average. 8. For his career, Pence does nothing elite. He has a strong arm but that hardly compensates for his other defensive deficiencies (poor reads/routes, average-at-best glove). 9. Pence is a corner infielder, unlike Beltran was at that point. Compared to others at his position, he doesn't touch the 2004 Beltran. 10. Pence has poor plate discipline and a very poor BB%, unlike Beltran. 11. Beltran is also switch-hitter who does nearly equal damage from both sides of the plate. ... I'm not sure where you drew that conclusion but I hope it wasn't simply based on batting average. A top 50 and a top 100? If that happens, it's due as much to the market as anything else. Comparing him to Beltran doesn't work for a lot of reasons. Pence is not a great baseball player. Above average? Yes. Elite? Not even close, offensively or defensively. And he's at the age where players typically peak. He is a good athlete and in great shape so he may push his peak back a little further but not much.
that's not going to happen anytime soon. That's like the texans having one good one and being Texas' football. Won't ever happen. Baseball belongs to the Astros and football belongs to the Cowboys.
I still don't understand why we would trade Hunter if there we weren't getting any elite prospects in return. It's just not worth it imo. I would rather extend and build around him.
Because he's due a big raise this year. Most likely a LT deal if he sticks around. Pay him big money on a team that's destined to be out of the playoffs for the next 3 years? Doesn't make a whole lot of sense. If you're building for the future, you build for the future. Why spend a lot for still not making the playoffs and then getting less when you trade him (or let him go as a FA) when you're finally ready to make the playoffs? Instead, you can spend less and get prospects who will be ready when the team's ready to be good On top of that, you want to "build around" someone who's, at best, a 5 hitter on a playoff team. This isn't a Pujols or a Bagwell or a Berkman or a Biggio. This is closer to building around Derek Bell, if you want a 90's analogy
Everything he said in that post up there. Ridiculous to compare this deal to Beltran... Beltran was the big-time guy on the market that year, too....whereas Pence is the 2nd prize (to current Beltran)
I don't understand why we wouldn't trade him. A. He'll be 29 next season and the Astros won't be good for at least a few years. B. He isn't even close to the caliber of player you build around. C. His value will likely never be higher so even if you can't get an elite prospect, get a good prospect or two. Every single move made right now should be about building up the farm system with an eye toward the distant future. And I genuinely like Pence, less for his baseball abilities and more because of his attitude and the fact that he's homegrown. He is nothing more than an above average player who doesn't fit our rebuilding timeline. Not moving him now would be a mistake. I understand that there is an emotional connection for us fans. I feel it, too. But I also have an emotional connection with the team winning and losing. Moving Pence is one of many small steps that we need to take over the next few years to get back to winning and contending. Knowing that, I am willing to feel a little bad about no longer see a player that I like wearing an Astros uniform.
Ironic, huh? Even the current Beltran is worth more than the prime Pence. *apologies if I misused the word "ironic"
