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It’s easy to get pumped up over Machado. But the Cardinals aren’t going to get into a bidding war with anybody. It’s just not their style. The only chance that I could see is if, in fact, the playing field has changed as suggested by the way the last off-season went meaning that organizations start acting somewhat sensibly and honor their own pledge to stay under the threshold. Regardless, it would seem that the Cardinals could put together a pretty good package to trade for a Machado rental without hurting themselves.
The last offseason signaled that teams are finally waking up, and that free agency has changed. Maybe teams are also waking up to the idea that trading the farm for a rental is a bad idea.
To me Carpenter looks like he’s just going through the motions. But I’m not sure that isn’t partly Matheny’s fault.
I think many people expected more from Gant, including Matheny.
May 8, 2018 at 9:25 pm in reply to: Trade Ideas/Acquisition Ideas/Non-Cards Rumors – 2017-2018 #51518The Cubs ownership has expressed a desire to stay under the luxury tax threshold, and the indications are that they will do that. Signing Machado would make that difficult. Also, IMO, the Cubs need pitching. I see pitching as a big problem for the Cubs in the immediate future. My guess is that Machado will wind up with the Phillies mainly because they have been bragging about how much money they have to spend, and Machado and his agent have pretty much indicated that their only priority is getting the most money possible. They want to break the $400M barrier. I’m not saying they will be able to. But that seems to be their goal. If there’s a sleeper in the Machado bidding, I think it will be the Angels. I don’t understand why they don’t come up more often in the Machado discussion. I just don’t see the Cardinals signing Machado. They want players who want to be part of their team and part of their organization, not players who are only interested in the most money they can get. I would love to see the Cardinals trade for Machado, and I think the Orioles would be foolish not to get as much as they can for him. But I wouldn’t trade Flaherty or Reyes for him because he would surely be a rental.
Badger really plays all out. He’s fun to watch.
Brian – Would you find out if Kilichowski’s fastball has increased to 92-93 mph, or is it still sitting mostly in the upper 80’s?
Also, that replay of Schwarber tripping over himself and falling down, then getting up and catching the ball, is being made up to be some kind of amazing, heroic play. IMO, Schwarber should be embarassed. He looked silly tripping over himself and falling down.
Thank Goodness Ozuna was running hard all the way.
Thank Goodness Ozuna was running hard all the way.
I’ve been feeling the same way about Fowler. I hate to see him come to the plate. I can’t imagine this going on all season, though.
That 9th inning performance by Tui might be the best inning I’ve ever seen him have.
Nice job by Matheny, also. TLR used to punish relievers who walked the leadoff man by leaving him the game until the runner scored.
Another passed ball by Pena. This guy is scary.
Brebbia had an excellent spring. He proved that he could get outs at the major league level last year, and IMO, was one of the bright spots of the entire season. Because of a roster crunch Brebbia, was sent to Memphis even though he had already done enough to earn a spot in the St. Louis bullpen. So who does Matheny call up at the first opening? Mike Mayers, not Brebbia. I have high hopes for Mayers. He might turn out to be a reliable reliever yet. But this is insane bullpen management. Brebbie deserved the call because he is the reliever who could help the most. Matheny just doesn’t get it.
For what its worth, the previous Tweet in the Ortiz string appears to be from Yadi’s brother, Bengie.
https://twitter.com/OrtizKicks?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor
This piece was well researched and well written. This is the kind of work others will source for information. Thank you.
I don’t see any reason to make any trade unless its for Machado. And I’d be willing to include Wong in a package for a Machado rental, but not Reyes or Flaherty.
I completely agree that one size does not fit all players. OTOH, I don’t see how anybody can go wrong by pitching down in the zone. I’m not claiming to be an expert, or even smart, for that matter. But I know what I see, and IMHO, Weaver and Leone, to name two, had better start getting the ball down. Neither of them have overpowering stuff. But they both have good enough stuff to make lots and lots of money playing baseball. With the kind of control that Weaver has, there’s absolutely no reason why he can’t spend more time down in the zone.
Matheny’s first priority is ‘protecting his players’. That’s a noble cause and you can’t argue with it. The trouble is that if he doesn’t stop telling his pitchers ‘Its okay to pitch up in the zone’, then feeding them the BS about ‘launch angles’ and ‘lift’, he’s going to ruin some of them. I’m speaking specifically about Leone. Leone, like Weaver, needs to get the ball down in the zone. All anybody has to do is look at how Norris it getting his outs. Also, what about Dave Duncan? Do Matheny, and Maddux, think Dave Duncan was a fool, and that his unparalleled success with pitchers was luck? I’m not an advocate of firing Matheny because I’m not convinced that the next manager would be better. But I sure wish he would figure out what it takes for players to become better at playing baseball. It has to do with understanding, and discipline, and mostly practice, and not natural talent only.
I don’t understand why Holland keeps coming up as a bust. There’s still a likelihood that Holland could be a big asset during a playoff run. He is a proven closer.
My understanding is that the shooter went inside to look for the guy who was shot. This wasn’t a random act of violence. This was an assassination.
I’m worried about Weaver and Leone. They are both pitching up in the zone too much. If Weaver doesn’t figure that out soon, I think he will find himself back in Memphis. Leone gets away with it more than Weaver because he usually only has to get three outs and he’s out of the inning by the time the batters figure out what to do with him.
I don’t think MO would trade Flaherty for a rental. I sure hope not.
Most of the pundits are saying the Cardinals are the frontrunner for a Machado trade. Makes sense given that the Cardinals are top heavy with MLB ready prospects. The problem apparently is that the Orioles want pitching, and that no doubt, means that they want Reyes or Flaherty as the centerpiece of a trade for Machado. Given that Machado is surely a rental, I can’t see the Cardinals including either of those two pitchers in a trade.
I’m guessing that Machado’s agent is thinking $30M AVV, but for 13 years, with 13 years being the new floor for length of contract for a player like Machado. After all, Stanton got 13 years, so why shouldn’t Machado?
April 23, 2018 at 7:53 am in reply to: Trade Ideas/Acquisition Ideas/Non-Cards Rumors – 2017-2018 #49803The Orioles almost have to trade Machado. They can get 2 or 3 prospects from a trading partner’s top 10. If they don’t trade him, they will have to settle for a supplemental pick.
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