Let's not panic. They have payroll flexibility to add a proven 5th starter. They get Mccullers back for his standard half a season and they are fine... Valdez Javier Mccullers Brown Trade acquisition Bielak is emergency 5th starter... Still a good rotation. Then Abreu snaps out of it and anything Altuve / Brantley do to extend the lineup and we're good.
His ERA in AAA is currently 6.0. Last year it was 6.53. The year before that it was 7.99. In 5 or 6 years he might be ready.
I’d love to have Cease, but know way I’m giving up Gilbert or Diaz. Anybody else in the minors and/or Myers or McCormick I’d do. Just don’t think it’s enough.
If the Astros are going to acquire a non-rental star player, my guess is that the package going out would look something like a 4 prospect package consisting of: Drew Gilbert Either Meyers or McCormick 1 of Loperfido, Clifford, Wagner, Leon, Lee, Whitcomb, Melton, Julks, or Dirden 1 2022 draftee pitcher (Taylor, DeVos, Dombroski, etc.) And even then it would probably not be a superstar (no Ohtani). But a package of Gilbert, McCormick, Taylor, and Whitcomb might be enough for someone like Cease.
We chose the unknown over the known and we've been measured. It is what it is. We need to find a Spencer Strider type and fast. We just don't have it.
Who the f**k doesn't want a Spencer Strider type. Our starting pitching has been the among the best in baseball, even better than the Braves who actually have Spencer Strider.
There should really be a "random trade" thread in this forum, it seems like 1/3 of the posts in every thread are along those lines. *not complaining about you or your post*, just a general thought
I think the last few years there has been an annual “trade target” thread to contain most of those types of posts, but iirc it hasn’t been started until mid May at the earliest. It is probably too early for hypothetical trades but I need distraction from the futility of my own existence. Sorry for partying.