Coco Crisp Traded To Royals

Good pickup
Although Crispy is very inconsistent

Can anyone give me a little scouting report on this Ramon Ramirez guy? Never heard of him till 5 seconds ago.

I'll miss Coco, but I think the writing was on the wall. The team wants Jacoby to play every day and they allow Coco to hopefully get more consistent playing time.

Coco Crisp is "coco puffs" hehehe

anyone else smell the Mark Teahan trade a little more now???

hmmmm........sheds a little payroll and gets what appears to be a decent bullpen arm. was it worth giving up the defense though?

you said it before i could philsWSchamps... only now i don't think the royals will be demanding Pie in return which is nice b/c i think the kid still has some upside.

another thought.....crowded outfield now for the royals, plus rumors of trade to cubs= three way trade? could the sox be getting someone else from the cubs?

Ramon Ramirez | #56 - Pitcher (RP) Birthdate: August 31, 1981
Age: 27
Birthplace: Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic
Height: 5'11
Weight: 190 lbs.
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
MLB Seasons: 3

Scouting Report:

Assets:An aggressive righty with low-90s heat. His curveball is nasty and he adds a splitter. Tough on right-handed hitters.

Flaws:Can be prone to giving up the longball, primarily because he can't change speeds and he occasionally leaves his heat up in the zone.
Career potential:Good mid-late relief.

I'm really shocked the Braves were not in on this since Coco could have filled that one year stop gap for Schafer and our leadoff blackhole. Seems he could have been had for Boyer or Acosta but oh well, good pickup for the Royals I think.

Somewhere, Crisp's agent Count Chocula is upset about not being traded to a more chocolatey city.

turnthe2 -
The Sox have been wanting to trade Crisp for some time now. So obviously, they knew they were going to give up defense.

I like this move for the Royals, as this improves their defense, and either allows for a DeJesus move to left and Teahen/Guillen trade, or a DeJesus trade, to shore up their middle infield. He's not that bad offensively either, and definitely improves their team speed. Although, his arm isn't that great, and he's not much for walks, only averaging about 39 walks per year.

This isn't a bad move for the Sox, as Crisp wasn't going to net them a good prospect anyway, plus it shores up their bullpen, as Ramirez would be an adequate replacement for Timlin.

Does anyone else see this as a possible pre-cursor to a huge Teixeira offer from Boston? It alleviates the congestion in the OF, allowing a potential split in CF for Drew and Ellsbury (since Drew will definitely miss some time due to injury, and Ellsbury can expect to miss some due to ineffectiveness here and there), and a split in RF for Bay and Drew, a split in LF for Youkilis and Bay, a split at 3B for Youk and Lowell, and letting Teixeira play 1B and mixing up the DH spot when Ortiz needs a day off.

Seems like a lot of work for Francona, but I think everyone could get at-bats in that situation, and you wouldn't have to unload Lowell if you sign Teixeira. Interesting move.

unloading lowell is going to be pretty tough considering he just had hip surgery.

Well, at least this makes more sense than the Nunez for Jacobs trade.

Good deal for the Red Sox as it gives them a solid young Righty Bullpen arm for 4 more years of control;

Essentially they had hope to have this in Craig Hansen; before rightfully giving up on him and trading him as part of the Bay/Manny deal.

ALSO...it might give the Red Sox some options with moving Masterson into the rotation, as Ramirez is familar in the late inning role that Masterson was largely filling in the postseason.

4th OF for the Red Sox...
I'd be suprised if there wasn't mutual interest with Mark Kotsay.

He just makes too much sense. Can play all 3 OF positions and 1st base, but his main position has been CF in his career.

Then I would look for the Sox to add more of a power Right Handed bat for the bench that can play Corner OF; as Kotsay is a lefty too (as is Jacoby/Drew)

"I like the pick up for them but you have to figure Pie from the Cubs no longer looks very attractive to them."

Felix Pie no longer looks attractive to ANYONE...except cub fans who sill think he has some value.

Nice for both sides. But since everyone will talk about the sox I'll talk about the royals end. Nice pickup my Moore. They can trade a large group of guys now and I see at least one outfielder moving. Most likely teahen. Royals could maybe be okay.

boston fans..just wait until the first time you see Ramirez's changeup..you will shake in your seat in glee.

the guy throws the fastest changeup in the leagues..it's a thing of beauty that buckles hitters.

it's going to be hard to find an arm to replace him to get to Soria..but this is a great trade!

What would be great would be the Yankees now trading for Coco.

Ramirez looks like a pretty solid reliever and this should allow them to move Masterson out of the bullpen now.

Minor move that appears to be done to cut costs, but I expect to pay huge dividends on their pitching staff.

I disagree tomahawk368. I think moving Lugo is the wrong move. Think about it, his trade value is at an all time low, so you would have to get garbage in return to trade him(I want NO part of Willis or Robertson). Also, he could fill a valuable role as our utility infielder(he can play SS, 2b and 3b). He is markedly better than Alex Cora.

Let me ask you guys something, is this not the most fun time of year? I love all these deals. Makes work go by quicker. :)

Was looking at Ramirez yesterday hoping the Cubbies would go after him if they got Mark T. as well. I love this kid. ERA is a bit deceptive, but I think he's very capable of a 3ish ERA with some solid ratios. Liked this kid all the way back to his days with Colorado.

Didn't he have TJ or some other surgery that shelved him for most of '07?

The Red Sox 4th OF HAS to be able to play CF. Even if its a crappy defensive CF, there shouldn't be *major* strikes against him play CF. Who fills in if Ellsbury gets hurt/underperforms.

"only now i don't think the royals will be demanding Pie in return which is nice b/c i think the kid still has some upside."

Teahen is as good as gone.

"since nobody in the Sox OF bunch is even remotely capable of playing CF and not totally embarassing himself on a regular basis. "

JD Drew is a more than capable CF, has played the position repeatedly in Boston, and I don't seem to remember ever embarrassing himself.

I don't think people should be penciling Ramirez in as Timlin's replacement just yet. Unless the Red Sox plan to move Delcarmen or move Masterson to the rotation in 2009, Ramirez could just be a piece they acquired to flip as part of package for a catcher or some other need.

Sox 4th OF...Mark Kotsay, or is it to obvious they both have mutual interest and he will re-sign with them?

Kotsay is a CF as a main position too.

Also....what is the deal with people suggesting Youkilis will move to LF????

He played there in a pinch for a few games and all of the sudden the Red Sox are going to move a Gold Glove 1st baseman to LF?

No.

I also like this move b/c it might allow Masterson a chance at the starting rotation....or at least time to go back to pawtucket to work on being a starter while Ramirez fills in the bullpen as the Righty arm along with Delcarmen.

If I could choose between the versatility of Kotsay as a fielder and the speed/defense of Crisp, I take Kotsay. Kotsay is also a solid professional hitter, where as Crisp improved last year but he still has too many holes in his swing to call himself a switch hitter.

Is Masterson now headed to the rotation?

"If the Royals deal Dejesus for a better player then Ramirez, then I would say this was a positive deal for them as I don't feel they downgraded in CF that much, if at all."

They improved, big time in CF, regardless of whether they deal DeJesus or not. DeJesus shouldn't be playing CF. Period. He should be playing a corner OF spot. Crisp is an improvement over Gathright.

ESPN confirmed it to:

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3712531

MLB confirmed:

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20081119&content_id=3684444&vkey=hotstove2008&fext=.jsp

Ouch!! I hate losing Ramirez, especially with Nunez already being dealt. What kind of bullpen are we going to have? We are going to have to get another arm, even if Carlos Rosa steps into the Bullpen. I think Ramirez is a very good setup man. Boston fans should be very happy about this move. Although Ramirez has a tendency from time to time to give up a bomb. He is pretty dependable though.

I guess we have to move an OF now. What about Teahen for Rich Hill? Is that too much/too little? Hill has shown at times to be dominant.

I have a hard time seeing us pick up an 8 million dollar option on Coco, unless he has a stellar year, but for 8Mil, he has a lot of incentive.

I really like this deal for Boston. They get a solid, youngish reliever whose posted good numbers and is under control for four years, and only had to give up an outfielder that probably was going to be dealt no matter what. The outfield is Boston is basically locked up with Bay, Ellsbury and Drew, so they really didn't need Crisp. A bullpen of Papelbon, Okajima, Declarmen, Lopez, Ramirez, Masterson, etc. is going to be really, really good.

As for the Royals, I think this deal is solid, but also a definite prelude to another deal.

They really needed a good defensive CF with some speed, so Crisp helps them a lot in that area. He'll never give them the high OBP leadoff hitter they crave, but he should be able to post a mid .340's OBP, which is more than solid enough.

I think we can pretty much be assured now that one of Teahen and DeJesus will be moved. They now have two guys and one spot in left field, as well as two first baseman and DH already locked up Butler.

I would expect one or two of DeJesus, Teahen and Ka'aihue to be moved for pitching and/or middle infield help.

"I guess we have to move an OF now. What about Teahen for Rich Hill? Is that too much/too little? Hill has shown at times to be dominant. "

I'd rather do Teahen for Sean Marshall. Younger, and more consistent. And available, with Dempster locked up for the next 4 years.

ha, he has the fastest changeup...that's classic.
i never heard of ramirez before, but his stats look decent, and people seem to be saying good things. and you can never have enough pitching.

for people saying the sox will miss crisp's defense, have you seen ellsbury play? he gets very good jumps on balls and covers a lot of ground.

as for their 4th OF, who knows. kotsay is looking for a starting job, baldelli (hometown boy?? didn't he grow up a yankee fan) has his physical problems, and kapler??? c'mon. moss would have looked good.

and i think the "saved money" is more for signing pedroia to a long term deal.

maybe this move gives masterson a chance to start again (i take him over lowe at this point). which would leave no spot open for buchholz.

KangarooBoxer-

I'd rather do something like Guillen-Crisp-DeJesus in the OF, with Billy Butler either DH or traded and focus on moving Teahen.

I hadn't paid close attention to Rich Hill. What about Fontenot? I don't know much about him. We can't give up DeJesus without landing a legitimate leadoff guy like Furcal, and from what I've been reading that doesn't sound very promising right now. I'm guessing we move Teahen and keep DeJesus for out leadoff spot. I like Maier as a 4th OF and we still have Gathright as well. What is Dayton Moore upto?

"JD Drew can play CF? He's not a great defender in the corners, and CF is a much harder position to play defensively.

I really don't think he can."

Drew can and has played a capable CF before for the Sox (and also a little bit for the Braves, I believe). He's also a very good RF- not spectacular, but solid and consistent. He gets great reads on the ball and has a strong, accurate arm. The only problem putting him in CF is that its harder on the body and health hasn't exactly been JD's calling card. But if he stays healthy, I've got no problems throwing him out there for a couple weeks worth of games.

I'd really like to see the financial details on this trade. Seems the Sox probably had to eat some of Coco's salary to get a player of Ramirez' status (i.e. locked up for 4 years at little $$). If not, the Royals will probably have to dump Teahen instead of trading DeJesus to the Cubs. So much for the rumors that Felix Pie was in on the possible Cubs-Royals deal.

Would the Royals be able to compete this year.

I'm just saying that it is a possibility, with the Additions of Mike Jacobs and Coco Crisp, and the great Duo of Pitching from Greinke and Meche, they definitely have a chance. They will probably compete for the majority part of the season though.

"The days when both Coco and Ellsbury were in you had that warm feelin in your gut that comes from watching 90% of the outfield covered by 2 players."

course, the days when both coco and ellsbury were in meant a combined 1 for 8 at the plate. seemed that way, anyways.

After reading through these comments so far, I wanted to add a couple things. First off, Youk will not be playing LF. Why would the Sox move a gold glove 1B to the outfield? Second, Mark Kotsay won't be back, as he wants an everyday role. Third, JD Drew can play center, but he is fragile, and CF takes more of a toll on your body, so he probably won't be playing there too much. And lastly, the Sox do have faith in Ellsbury and want to give him the chance to play everyday, which is what will probably hapen next year.

Grovers Royals-- what the hell did we just trade ramirez for if we arent going to put him in the lineup.. you have maier starting.. wow.

OK, I'm an idiot. Got to get used to having Coco.

The lineup could be:

1. Furcal
2. DeJesus
3. Gordon
4. Guillen
5. Jacobs
6. Aviles
7. Butler
8. Crisp
9. Olivo

Sure solves our SS and CF problem while giving us a prototype leadoff man.

any chance the Royals trade Guillen doesnt he want out?

This trade has to be a precusor to a coming trade.. there is no doubt about it. The Red Sox aren't bolstering an already strong bullpen without getting ready to get a young starting catcher.

Tek's days as Captain and everyday player are over. The Texas guys (salty, laird, ramirez & teagarden) aren't what's needed. They're nothing special and shouldn't be part of the discussion at this point. IF, and only IF by the start of spring training comes and no trade is made, then, the Texas guys could be considered. In the meantime, Tek will be back as the "boutique" or "personal catcher" for Wakefield.

The candidates for trade (after you get by the Texas guys) should be in order:

1. Tyler Flowers: Atlanta
2. Carlos Santana: Indians
3. Taylor Teagarden: Rangers

All of these "young" receivers will benefit from having Tek's councel. All of them are plus defensive players with excellent arms and plenty of ceiling.

The only question left, who will the Red Sox give up to get them?

What say you?

"Tek will be back as the "boutique" or "personal catcher" for Wakefield"

Ever see Tek catch Wake on those days when the knuckle ball was dancing? Let's just say Josh Bard was only slightly worse. My bet is the Sox get a young catcher and have Tek groom him. Tek will probably get the largest contract ever for a back up catcher, probably topping out at 2 yr/10M or maybe less with a large signing bonus. The high price tag will be passed off by the Sox as a PR move calling it a loyalty bonus or something. He'll probably then becoming the personal caddy for (my guess) Beckett or Burnett if the sign him.

As for what to trade... gotta think now either Ramirez or Masterson is more expendable for a trade.

"The candidates for trade (after you get by the Texas guys) should be in order:

1. Tyler Flowers: Atlanta
2. Carlos Santana: Indians
3. Taylor Teagarden: Rangers"

I heard Flowers may not stick behind the plate, I suppose that's due to McCann but has anyone heard otherwise?

Santana had one good year and you'd have to imagine he wouldn't be any less expensive in prospects to acquire.

I'd love Teagarden but who knows about his availability. I still think Salty is the way to go, best combination of upside and affordability.

baseballasagame...

maybe it's semantics... but playing CF doesn't take "more of a toll on your body" than RF. players like ramirez don't play there because of lack of range, and not getting good jumps when the ball is hit.

You have to keep Dejesus. Period. Teahen hasn't worked out. A great "fans" guy, but mediocre numbers. Move Teahen and move gathright. dejesus, crisp, guillen and maier as 4 outfielders.

1. Crisp
2. Dejesus
3. Aviles
4. Guillen
5. Jacobs
6. Butler
7. Gordon
8. Olivo
9. Callaspo

80-90 wins coming up in 2009.