I wouldn't say so... he's fast, like Juan Pierre is fast, and has an above average arm... but he isn't one of the top 5 defensive CF'ers in baseball. Gold glove calibur players make a difference in the game with defense alone... Willy doesn't do that. He is, however, much better than he was 3 years ago.
Maybe we can trade Jennings for Willy T. And maybe they will throw in a couple prospects to make it even.
i think pence is beter suited for RF than CF. Plus we dont really want the future of the franchise to be falling on the hill too much.
Hopefully the 'stros mngmnt gets that this was a bad trade. I hope they do not make it worse but feeling pressured to keep the guy and giving him a big contract that he does not deserve. If he wants to go elsewhere (SD) then he will have to do so at a reduced rate as he sucked this year and would have to prove himself. Conversely if he signs with the 'stros then we would probably have to open the bank to keep him if he sees us as a booby prize. Kinda sucks. If we can get anything in trade then bye otherwise let himgo and let him take Purpura with him and let's cut ALL our losses.
How so?? He has excellent speed and a sorry arm. How on earth does that make him *better* suited for RF?? If we think people take advantage of his arm (extra bases and such) now, just wait 'til he's in right. Pence is a CF, and he'll only get better. Even his throws will: his arm won't get better, but he'll get smarter, hit his cutoff man more, and make less *stupid* throws. I get that many of us wish we had Willy in CF and Pence in RF. But, since we don't, we happen to have a very, very good CF who will only get better, and who happens to hit better than most CF. Factoring in his offense, we'd have to pick up Andruw Jones to get better than Pence.
Honestly, what other astro deserves center field duties more than Hunter? Are you going to put Jason Lane there? Bruntlett? Scott? No body will be able to cover more ground than Hunter, which is sooo vital in MMP.
I dont know if this has been written before but i read on mlbtraderumors.com that Jennings is most likely to be rated a "tier 1" i believe free agent. Meaning if the astros let him walk then we 2 first round draft picks in return. The article pretty much says that if the Astros dont get an offer better than receiving 2 extra first round draft picks they wont do it
