Odds And Ends: Manny, Rangers, Pie

Who the hell is Jamey Newburg, and why doesn't he have a newspaper company behind his name? Because of the stupid sh** he wrote. Why in the hell would they trade their first-baseman for about 4-5 years and a average MRP who could make alot of teams bullpen, for a SS who wouldn't get a lick of playing time, a 5th starter at best(already have enough of them, not to mention that glass-arm Glavine), a relief pitcher who would be another body in our "stockpile" of them, and a Catcher/First-Baseman who struggles at both position and wouldn't be any better than Dave Ross?

Barves, no way Marek is an average MRP that can make alot of teams bullpens. In two or three years, maybe. If he can't make the braves right now, he can't even make a well below average bullpen, so he definately isn't mlb ready. Feliz is one of the top ten pithching prospects in the game...not a "5th starter at best". Salty would be a huge trade chip, as would andrus. Jones and Harrison were toss ins, but both have more upside than Marek. I wouldn't call what the braves have a "stockpile" of relievers...having 1000 pennies in your pocket still only adds up to ten bucks.

If Felix Pie goes through waivers, the Chicago White Sox will be picking him up without any hesitation.

Personnaly, the way the braves have drafted, I'd have kept tex and taken the two picks. I really don't think Marek will ever amount to anything, and you have to think at least one of those two picks should produce value at least equal to kotchman. After the tribe got LaPorta for Sabathia, I was honestly shocked at the return Atlanta got for Tex.

"for a SS who wouldn't get a lick of playing time, a 5th starter at best(already have enough of them, not to mention that glass-arm Glavine), a relief pitcher who would be another body in our "stockpile" of them, and a Catcher/First-Baseman who struggles at both position and wouldn't be any better than Dave Ross?"

That is the dumbest statement of homerish I've read on this site in a long time, probably ever since baseball guru stopped posting.
1) SS with not a lick of playing time? He has 83 ABs, .265 AVG, .700 OPS, and did I mention the kid is still a talented rookie. A year ago you would have licked your lips at the opportunity to get him back as AAA depth.
2) Feliz, despite a rocky start in AAA is still considered a potential ace, not a #5 like you're idiotically claiming.
3) Salty is outhitting McCann right now... so by the same logic you have of Ross being better than Salty, Salty must be better than McCann!
4) Stephen Marek is a guy struggling in AA. He has a couple of good pitches, but AA is full of prospects you can say the same about who have maybe one or two showings in the big leagues.
5) Kotchman has 3 years of service time and a streaky bat.

Just a year ago you'd have killed to have just one of these guys as AAA depth but now you're claiming now of them are worth anything??? How ignorant are you?

I don't think I'd call Kotchman above average. He's a good defensive 1st baseman that has hit for average and no power. He probably sits right about in the middle of the pack of MLB 1st baseman, but he really is a bad fit in an Atlanta lineup that needs a power guy somewhere. If they really wanted that type of player, they could have had nick johnson for peanuts this off season.

So no team passes on Manny, therefore sending the message that even though steroids are illegal to take without a prescription and against MLB policy, it's ok if players do them?
Cute.

Personnaly, the way the braves have drafted, I'd have kept tex and taken the two picks. I really don't think Marek will ever amount to anything, and you have to think at least one of those two picks should produce value at least equal to kotchman. After the tribe got LaPorta for Sabathia, I was honestly shocked at the return Atlanta got for Tex.
Posted by: SkiBolton | May 09, 2009 at 11:07 AM
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Whoo whoo wait... The way the Braves have drafted? Oh yeah the way we get what is now two of the top five prospects in baseball, and everyone on our starting nine is homegrown except Kotchman and Diaz.. And so what about the return for Sabathia.. Obviously pitching is valued more than hitting, disregard Tex's and Sabathia's contract differences, but who did the Indians get? LaPorta and who? The Braves have a future first-baseman in Freddie Freeman, and the second-best package was reportedly Chad Tracy and Micah Owings, not to mention what did Tex do for LAA, led them to the playoffs, were they were eliminated first round and he left for NYY.

That's what I'm saying braves...the team could have done more with the two draft picks than they could have with the trade. I don' tthink frank wren really cared what Tex did for the LAA when he traded him, his concern was for what he did for the braves. If you can't get a decent offer for the guy, keep him. The big name besides LaPorta was Micheal Brantley, who's a decent prospect. The point is, a trade to rebuild doesn't make any sense if you trade for an average 1st baseman who's arbitration eligible already. I know they have freeman in the minors already, but having more depth never hurts.

And I'd not put too much stock in last night's HR...It was in Citizens Bank T-ball Park after all.

Thanks, Trevor for the explanation. And SWP, tryin to defend my team, and hell, lets see you,me,anyone hit with vision problems.

Nick Johnson??? The guy who missed all of 2007 and most of 2008? I think that to depend on him is an extremely poor decision for a front office. Kotchman is the safe choice, and while he's not incredible, he is above average and seems to be settling in nicely. I love his on-base skills.

1. Hoping for 2 picks is risky. Just ask the Brewers, Blue Jays, Yankees, and Diamondbacks (and about a dozen other teams) about that. Either their players were signed and they received NO first round picks or they decided not to offer arbitration to type A's. Point is, you can't just assume that you will land a 1st round pick. Odds are against you that you will receive your full compensation.

2. Kotchman does not have power. NONE. 35 HR's in 1550 PA's is pathetic. He doesn't hit for a high enough average or take enough walks to justify that. And while his defense is outstanding (arguably the best in baseball), that does not push him into the above average category. I like Kotchman a lot but at this stage he is a major bust. He was supposed to be a guy with great discipline, a high BA (320+) and 20-25 HR capability. So far, none of that has happened.

Kotchman doesn't have much HR power, but he has good doubles power. Where are you getting this 20-25 hr number? He has NEVER hit that many in pro baseball. He's doing really well this year and to call him a bust is extremely premature.

"And SWP, tryin to defend my team"

But not so much by misrepresenting facts so much as making things up. It was a dumb statement to make. Own up to that.

"I think Salty's numbers are the fluke right now."

And you're going to completely ignore the fact that he's still just 24 and my statement was still more to draw out the comparison to him and Ross? Let me make it much more clear: McCann is dealing with an issue right now, if at the beginning of the season you were told McCann would miss a significant amount of time which of the following players would you prefer behind the plate - Salty, a 24 year old prospect who has yet to reach his potential, or Ross, a journeyman catcher whose career line is far from inspiring. I never said Salty was better than McCann. Braves for NL East was flaunting Ross being better than Salty using his numbers, I used the same numbers to show something similiar. The truth is McCann > Salty > Ross.

OK, here's my position on the issue. I feel like Kotchman and Marek was a somewhat fair return. It's no Youkilis and Hansen or Matt LaPorta, but Kotchman is a decent enough player. He's currently one of our best hitters, mainly because most of our hitters really , REALLY suck. I think the organization handicapped itself when they demanded a MLB first baseman in return for Tex. Trading him meant punting on the season so nothing was an immediate need. I'd have taken the best return possible regardless of position. Maybe that was Kotchman and Marek. I don't know. Speaking of Marek, he was looking like a solid late-innings bullpen guy until spring training. He came to camp about 30 pounds overweight. And I'm not even joking. I saw him in the southern league last year and in spring training. He went from a few extra pounds to looking like Joba in an offseason. At the time of the trade, though, he was a legit prospect. Back to the origional thought. I would trade Kotchman and Marek for Feliz right now. Salty, probably not. Andrus, probably not (even though Escobar has done nothing but p!ss me off all season). And Harrison I definetly wouldn't acquire for Kotchman and Marek. It was a crappy trade and I didn't approve at the time and I've never approved, but Wren did a pretty decent job of cleaning up Schuerholz's mess and I'm fairly content with that portion of the Saga. This draft class doesn't really look that great so netting Kotchman was probably a best-case scenario. Every team that has acquired Teixeira has failed miserably so far. Seriously, the Braves offense scored more runs without Teixeira than with him, the Angels exited the playoffs early again like they would have without him, and the Yankees are off to a terrible start. I'm glad the whole saga is over. Scott Boras is a snake.

Salty wouldn't have much room to make an impact on our team so he would've been part of another deal had we not moved him for Teixeira.

PWHjort...you're dead on with the fact that schurholtz left a heck of a mess...the tex trade never should have been made in the first place. I think you're severely discounting the value of andrus and salty though. They may not fit in with the needs of the big league club right now, but they are very good prospects at the two premium defensive positions on the field. Both of those guys could be huge chips to use for pitching. Boston wasn't willing to do salty for bucholtz straight up, but you have to wonder if they would have done it for andrus and salty, filling their two biggest needs right now. Those guys would have been a great start to a peavy package, and I think there trae value alone would make them more valueable than kotch and marek.

Just taking the facts so far this season, Kotchman is better than Tex. Add the "I'll play anywhere for money", "I'll sign with the bastard agent of baseball", "Screw the team I'm with, just do all that you can for ME, ME, me, me...me!" I'm glad we have Kotchman.

Guess you shouldn't have asked for jair in the renteria trade since he's a boras guy...

"Just taking the facts so far this season.....I'm glad we have Kotchman."

It was not a "sex drug".

Reports have said it is similar to Clomid which boosts a person's testosterone when the body can not naturally produce enough. To boot, this was a drug designed primarily for WOMEN!

Manny is not Bonds and that is why every team would be willing to pay him a measly $5mm.

“The reason teams wouldnt pass on his is because it wasnt an anobaolic steriod or HGH, it was a sex drug. Calm down”

Yeah, it isnt a sex drug. It is used in pregnancies for women and to normalize testosterone after steroids in men. In some rare cases it is given to men to create more active, mature sperm (the only other thing it does) but it is not commonly prescribed to do so, and wouldn’t be subscribed to athletes for this since it is banned. Besides, do you really think Manny has inactive sperm with three children already – and if so, why didn’t he tell the appeals office “I was just trying to have a child” and possibly have the suspension reduced?

“Manny is not Bonds and that is why every team would be willing to pay him a measly $5mm”

I don’t think every team would. It was just an opinion by one person. Manny is quickly approaching the negativity level of Bonds with regard to a traveling circus and steroid implications. 5Mil isnt much for a 37 YO (or whatever) with a bat like that (as opposed to Bonds who was 42+) but…

It's really hard to say this is a weak draft...it's always such a crapshoot.

At the time of the trade Feliz was the most valuable piece with Salty close behind and Andrus close behind him. Since the trade Feliz's value has shot through the roof after he made it all the way to AA in his full season debut where he continued to dominate. He'll most likely be the best pitching prospect in MiLB next year (assuming Strasburg will already be in MLB).

So...

Felix Pie gets pushed out of the Cubs because of Joey Gathright. About two months later, Felix Pie gets pushed out of the Orioles because of Joey Gathright.

Well, not really, but seems wierd.

If I were Pie, I would:

1) Start taking my baseball career very serious and start to hit and get on base.

2) Not invite Joey Gathright to any holiday dinner.

"On ESPN Radio, Keith Law says no team would pass on Manny Ramirez if he's available for $5MM in the near future"

I can think of at least one that would.