I would think they would be more likely to trade an elite pitching prospect for a proven major league bat. Just get the best prospects you possibly can, whatever position. Folty has been on an absolute tear since they went to the 6 man rotation, and got out of the tandem system. 5 G 31.2 IP 2.27 ERA 0.92 WHIP 10.2 K/9 I would say it's time to call him up, but it seems we have 6 pitchers that deserve to be in the rotation as is. :grin:
I think we should seriously consider trading Feldman for an impact prospect bat. We are absolutely stacked with pitching, and if we can trust Keuchel/McHugh to be rotation anchors, there's no reason why we shouldn't shore up a weakness.
I don't think there is anyway you can trust Keuchel/McHugh to be rotation anchors yet. They are on an incredible run but it's not like they had a history of dominance on their way through the minors.
Ronnie Mitchell's grand slam: <iframe src='http://www.milb.com/shared/video/embed/embed.html?content_id=33309645&width=400&height=224&property=milb' width='400' height='224' frameborder='0'>Your browser does not support iframes.</iframe>
True. If they are still performing we'll come trade deadline then MAYBE you consider dealing Feldman for a prospect bat. I say this only because Folty seems very close to almost demanding a call-up with his performance.
The problem is, I doubt you'd get much in return for Feldman. The Astros had to pay 110 cents on the dollars to get him to sign this offseason. But, I agree with your larger point that it may make sense to trade pitching depth to address other weaknesses. The Astros did that this summer with the Lyles for Fowler trade. Someone like Cosart would have more trade value than Feldman and I wouldn't mind moving him if you could get a major-league-ready corner outfielder (think someone like Joc Pederson).
The Dominican Summer League opens play today. The Astros will be fielding 2 teams this season. Without further ado, here are the rosters. DSL ASTROS BLUE 3 Australians are on the roster: C Hayden Timberlake, 2B Connor MacDonald, and RHP Lachlan Madden. Madden signed in February, and he's a product of the same club that also produced Travis Blackley. PITCHERS RHP Albert Abreu RHP Dariel Aquino LHP Luis Arias RHP Yan de la Cruz LHP Carlos Hiraldo RHP Lachlan Madden RHP Ezequiel Madera LHP Salvador Montaño RHP Hansel Paulino RHP Erasmo Pinales RHP Gabriel Pirela RHP Moreno Polanco RHP Jose Rosario RHP Abdiel Saldaña RHP Carlos Sanabria RHP Josue Uribe CATCHERS Carlos Canelon Hayden Timberlake Oliver Toribio INFIELDERS SS Marcos Almonte 3B Reiny Beltre SS Wander Franco 2B Connor MacDonald SS Jonathan Matute SS Joan Mauricio OUTFIELDERS Edgar Lorenzo Felix Lucas Nestor Tejada DSL ASTROS ORANGE PITCHERS RHP Bryan Abreu LHP Yhoan Acosta RHP Joel Belboder RHP Gerald Benzant RHP Robert Corniel RHP Tomas Lopez RHP Adonis Peña RHP Carlos Pizzolato RHP Jose Ramos RHP Michael Richez LHP Starlyng Sanchez LHP Cristopher Santamaria RHP Starlyn Taveras RHP Gabriel Valdez LHP Edwin Villarroel CATCHERS Ihan Bernal Gabriel Bracamonte INFIELDERS SS Wilson Amador SS Osvaldo Duarte SS Frankeny Fernandez 3B Cristopher Luciano OUTFIELDERS Bryan de la Cruz Andy Pineda Vicente Sanchez
You never have too much pitching. Also pitching is a far more valuable quantity. I can see them going HS pitcher over Rodon, but don't see them going stick this year. Probably should have gone Bryant #1 last year for a stick, but there was no way to know how good our pitchers would be and Appel may prove to be a #1.
The problem is Cosart won't return you a Joc Pederson either. Houston has a ton of prospects but not a lot of blue chippers that they're willing to trade. Given the positional depth and ceilings trading a Cosart and Folty for Pederson would make more sense. But every Astros fan would scream 'overpay'.
I also think calling Folty up and using him as a 7th inning arm would do the club some good. I remember when Roy O was used as a 6th / 7th inning guy his rookie year, then the next season just blew up as a starter.
Personally, I am the impatient type, and I feel like Cosart does not miss enough bats. He has good stuff, but his control issues along with his ability to miss bats are worrisome.
Some notable pitching performances last night: Folty (AAA) -- 7.2 IP, 6H, 1R, 1ER, 0BB, 10Ks eek Hader (HiA) -- 7.2 IP, 4H, 1R, 1ER, 1BB, 9Ks EDIT: Crap. Should have checked last page. Of course y'all are on top of it.
Well, in 21 career starts he has given up more than 3 runs a total of 3 times, so he is doing something right
You can never have too much pitching. If you have to trade anyone, trade a guy like Mchugh whose value can't peak any further. I would probably wait until the offseason unless I was blown away though.
And as far as Pederson goes, the Dodgers could very well trade him but if they do, it would be for a true established FOR type of starters, a Cliff Lee type I do think with the pitching depth we have there could be prospect for prospect deals there to add offense if we wanted, but those would likely be with other teams not currently in contention. As stated by others though, you never truly have too much pitching
He does somethings right. Other things he doesn't do right like pitching deep into games. He is playing like a good No.4 or No.5 starter this season. I expect he'll have a Feldman like type of career (more or less) if he stays a starter. There is nothing wring with that. If he can find a strikeout pitch like Keuchel, he could be drastically better. If he can't keep the ball in the park, he'll have a drastically worse career than Feldman.
