Good morning.
Who can become
baseball's next next superace ? -
Noah Syndergaard, New York Mets: It was a lost season for Syndergaard, who
made five starts before going down with a lat tear (he returned to make two
abbreviated appearances at the end of the season). He has said he learned a
lesson from getting too muscular in his offseason workouts heading into 2017
and will scale back this winter. We know the upside: A 2.60 ERA over 183
innings in 2016 with a league-leading 2.29 FIP. In the 30 innings he did pitch
this year, he fanned 34 and didn’t allow a home run. Aside from the raw stuff,
his ability to limit home runs is a huge positive in this new era of home runs.
6-5 Eric Hanhold was identified as the ‘player to be named
later’ in the trade of 2B Neil Walker to the Baltimore Orioles.
Hanhold is another
right-handed reliever with a big arm, was originally drafted in the 6th
round of the 2015 draft, out of the University of Florida, by Milwaukee.
I never had this kid on
my draft board because he pitched three years as a reliever for Florida and his
best ERA was 4.20 (2014). He didn’t fare any better for Milwaukee, even when
they converted him to a full-time starter in 2016 at the A+ level (19-starts,
2-12, 4.81).
He did turn it around a
little last season (A-Carolina: 30-G, 3-starts, 8-3, 3.94, especially in the
second half of the season where he posted a stat line of 1.53, 1.09-ERA.
I have him breaking
camp with the Binghamton team this spring.
I talked earlier this
week to Mets outfield prospect, Kenneth Bautista,
down in Puerto Rico.
Bautista lives in
Carolina, Puerto Rico and he told me that he is blessed to have his power on at
him home. Not everyone is that lucky down there with the island still
estimating that over 50% of the island is without power.
Bautista was a 25th
round draft pick, in 2015, out of the Puerto Rican Baseball Academy, in Gurabo,
Puerto Rico.
The 19-year old hit
.264/.383/.450/833 in 129-at bats for the GCL Mets last season. He had 43
strikeouts, but balanced that off with 22 walks.
I’ve got him going to
Kingsport this spring.
Baseball America is
reporting that the Mets are the favorite to sign 15-year old corner outfielder,
Freddy Valdez. He’s 6-3 and known for his ’raw
power’.
I find it very
interesting that Baltimore hasn’t begun any extension discussions with 3B Manny Machado. He has one year left on his contract
and it’s no big secret that the Orioles have plans to move him to shortstop so
one of their prospects can take over the hot corner.
Let’s remember Machado
was a top SHORTSTOP prospect in the minors and only moved to third because of
team injuries at that position.
I can’t imagine the
Orioles giving up on this guy, but I’ve seen many players with huge salary
demands be dealt off before the team loses them anyway.
Could we get this guy
for the 2018 season and beyond?
David Rubin says I’m nuts here and this guy would
never sign a deal with the Mets. Rubin has good contacts, both at the team and
league level, so he may be right, but, if it was possible, what could the Mets
offer here?
You know how I hate
projecting phantom trades, but Machado is worth the effort here.
The first thing the
Mets would have to work out with Machado’s agent is a trade and extend deal,
somewhere in 4-5 years attached to the 2018 commitment. Remember… Machado will
only be 25 years old next season!
Machado will obviously
cost $30+mil a season.
In addition, I would
offer 4 players.
To start, either 3B David Thompson or SS Luis Guillorme.
The Orioles would need some infield depth on that side of the field and they
can decide what position they would like to fortify (I would hate to lose Luis,
but baseball is first a business).
Next, an SP… I’d give
them three…
One at the MLB level… Seth Lugo.
Next, a top high level
prospect… they can pick one from Chris Flexen, Marcos
Molina, or Corey Oswalt.
And last, a low level
pitcher… either Thomas McIlraith or Jason Viera.
Is it enough to get
him?
Well, it would first
take Machado and the Mets to work out a new deal. If they could do that, this
is a good haul for a team that is going to lose this guy anyway in a year.
12 comments:
Mack on an earlier thread you postulated that there might be a deal in the works for a second baseman (Kinsler, Kipnis etc ) who do you think it might before & what players do you think could be dealt ?
Ed
I don't have any names at this point.
Thanks
Ed -
Sorry for a short answer. I was shopping with the wife with my hand held. I am back home now on my laptop.
I do not know how others do this, but I flood my contacts with either specific questions or hypothetical ones.
In all cases, my contacts know that I would never identify who they were if they gave me some inside poop.
In some case, they share things but tell me specifically that I can not use the info even without using a name.
As for second base, I have not heard any specific names but I have been told that the Mets are currently looking to upgrade there. It may be a one year deal or more. For whatever reason that remains undefined, Wilmer Flores just does not wet the whistle of Mets decision makers.
As for the names of Mets being offered, that changes hourly. Go re-watch Moneyball and specially watch the part where a trade is executed to get rid of a bad apple. This is how it goes sometimes. Multiple calls to multiple GMs with multiple scenarios.
Not a problem & I appreciate your candor - thank you ‘& have a great holiday
Syndergaard has to be 10% healthy and 100% committed to getting us 200 superior innings - or we are toast.
It just always seems that there is some other team to beat us out for a Machado. If we drafted better, we'd have more to deal from.
I talk to myself a lot, which is where I get much of my "info", but I find myself to be a lousy source - when I realize that, I refuse to talk to myself.
For machado or Harper we should be prepared to give him Stanton type deal and consider it a deal
Eddie -
I can not see Harper and the Mets sit down in the same city no less across each other at a table.
Mack, I want to play along. I’m the Orioles. I say: Wilmer Flores, Corey Oswalt, Seth Lugo, and an A ball pitcher like Uceta. I don’t want all those nobodies. Would you do it?
Remember, Alderson gave Flumer for just two months of an outfielder. This is a top infielder, MVP player, for a whole season.
I might want Gsellman instead of Lugo...
I would jump on that offer if the Orioles would accept it.
Ok Bob, I’m glad to hear that. Because from the Orioles side, when you add up a power hitting infielder like Flores (who I think can handle second base and those don’t grow on trees), the Eastern League pitcher of the year, a good, young controllable MLB starter and another good arm for one year of a player that I won’t sign, I’m happy. That’s a lot of future benefit there, and 75% seems like a known quantity.
Post a Comment