I'm not saying they will be green lighted every time, but you don't stifle base stealers like bourn/castillo that much, you want them getting in a pitcher's head as much as possible.
Well I think the 7/8 spots will go based on who is "hotter" at the time, i'm just going by the experience factor right now. As far as 2b goes, this move not only frees up lidge's 5-6 mil, but consider they can now use the 10 mil plus it would have cost on rowand or hunter for the 2b/pitching moves they want to make. And this is a solid 2b group with castillo, matsui(resurrected himself as a rockie) and iguchi, not factoring in loretta either. Plus they aren't going into next season with burke starting. They want a more proven option, preferably a great defender and speedy, thus the reason they like castillo the most.
pence probably shouldnt be hitting 2nd, but he probably will. we have been a wait and see type of offense, and if we dont get a big hit, we're pretty much done. bourn has insane speed, and we need to allow him to do his thing on the basepaths. if pence is hitting 2nd, it doesnt give bourn enough pitches to steal any bases because pence is a free swinger. we need to steal bases and manufacture runs. if pence can become a bit more patient and draw more walks, he and bourn can wreak havoc on the basepaths with their speed. it wouldnt be a bad thing for him to hit 2nd, it just wouldnt allow our leadoff hitter to steal many bases. however, i guess having berkman and his patience hitting 3rd would somewhat make up for that.
youre too quick to judge. more teams covet burke's youth and athleticism than you might think. he's shown glimpses, and he's a solid defender who can steal 20+ bases. he's in his prime right now, and he hasnt even been given a fulltime chance at his natural position. someone will be willing to give up something for him.
Again once they sign one of iguchi, castillo, matsui or re sign loretta odds are pence bats in a middle of the order run producing spot.
Questions: - were there rumours last year about BoSox offering Ellsbury plus others for Lidge? How legit? How does Bourne compare to Ellsbury - what is the asking price for Dontrelle Willis. to me, he is target number 1. Far more important than a Castillo. That guy can flat out pitch and fall right behind Roy O as a 1 - 2 punch.
He'll be 28 by the start of next season, I don't think youth is on his side any more. I don't think he has the trade value that he had 2 or 3 years ago. On the other hand, I won't be opposed to keeping him on the roster to compete with our new 2b considering Castillo, Matsui and Iguchi are all 32 years old, and on the downside of their career probably.
they can do both of those things as the 2b will come from FA, but I feel extremely confident they are getting a 2b via free agency. I'm guessing you are looking at say albers or patton plus scott for willis.
Ed Wade speaking about the trade from Chron.com <object classid="clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000" codebase="http://fpdownload.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=8,0,18,0" width="325" height="47" id="divmp3"><param name="movie" value="http://www.divshare.com/flash/audio?myId=2677138-85e" /><embed src="http://www.divshare.com/flash/audio?myId=2677138-85e" width="325" height="48" name="divmp3" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer"></embed></object>
I would think it would take a helluva lot more than that, or this deal would've been done last week. While Patton was regarded as a good prospect, he didn't exactly blow people away in his brief stint up here. I can't see Patton/Scott being enough without another significant piece. (Burke/Anderson not being good enough)
I understand the concept of buying low, but is it for certain that Dontrelle will return to his old form? Also, would we be signing him for the long term if we do trade for him?
Keith Law at ESPN insider called this a terrible deal by Wade, doesn't like anyone in the deal but Lidge. Believes Wade misread market for a reliever like Lidge. I am disgusted.
