Olney on Reyes, McLouth, Holliday

This is a dumb article. There's no way any of can say that Reyes won't become a better contact/avg hitter. There's no way we can say he won't become a better OBP guy. And there's no way we can say he won't develop more power and become a consistant 20-25 hr guy. He is ONLY 25. As long as he maintains a strong drive and work ethic then I think this guy will improve. When you have that kind of talent it becomes a matter of how badly the player wants to improve.

Every Cardinals fan out there is pushing for Matt Holliday with the statement "only if he re-signs with St. Louis." Every time I read that from someone it's completely not logical. Being the Boras client that he is, of course he's going to test free agency. I'm pretty certain that the only way he would stay in St. Louis, if they acquired him, is if they went out & won the World Series. Is that going to happen? Possibly...I wouldn't bank on it though, especially considering another bat is only a small portion of their needs (4-5 starter, bullpen help). Either you trade your prospects & get Matt Holliday & push for the playoffs, or you don't & go from there. There's no "if he'll sign an extension..." you either play to win or hope to win.

The Reyes article is ridiculous; last year, at age 24, he was tied for sixth in the National League in Win Shares. The previous year, at age 23, he was tied for 15th. The guy is already one of the best players in the National League when healthy. Even if he doesn't improve one bit, you've got a plus defensive shortstop with a cannon arm who hits .280-.300 with 70 extra base hits a year and is a tremendous base stealer, all at a very affordable price. I don't think Reyes is going anywhere anytime soon.

Wallace is WAY too much to give up for a rental, but I'm not sure what else the Cardinals have that the As would want.

wallace is struggling in AAA.
maybe rushed, who knows.

holliday for 3-4 months + 2 draft picks is the risk.

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?n=Brett%20Wallace&pos=3B&sid=milb&t=p_pbp&pid=477165

The quality of Buster Olney's work seems to have gone downhill signifigantly since the MLB network launched. I really wonder how it's affecting ESPN, and if "the best team in baseball" is starting to see it's ratings decline. Stuff like this, the Penny to Atlanta rumor, the Laporta to Boston rumor...it just reeks of trying to get the ESPN name out there, regardless of content.

I don't care if Holliday would sign an extension it is not worth giving up Wallace! He is a future middle of the order bat that will hit for power and average! We need to keep cost controlled guys like him and Rasmus if we are going to be able to re-sign Albert in 2 years!

A trade for Wallace does not seem like the A's style. I would imagine they would get one good, well known prospect and 2-3 young prospects (under 21) that have been well scouted. One prospect that projects well but is currently sidelined by an injury.
I am thinking Matt Spencer/Donaldson types.

"no. theres no way Jose Reyes has hit his peak yet"

Over the last three years plus 2009: his average has flatlined, his OBP has flatlined, his slugging has varied, his fielding has worsened, and his runs and wins against replacement numbers have all been static.

Look, no one's saying the guy isn't a good player. But he may in fact be done improving.

Reyes is selfish. Until he learns how to play the game the right way -- and professionally, then we could say who could become a star.

Selfish...? Okay, what good player isn't it? Can you name any Reyes incidents in the last calendar year that have really been a big deal?
Not this make an error throw a glove or take me out tantrum stuff bc alot of big leaguers do that stuff.

Umm, do i have to? He made two bone-headed plays a few weeks before he got hurt.

Anyways, yeah he is selfish. He is like K-rod, don't care about the team as long as he succeeds. That is why they have so much emotion. Reyes needs to stop acting like a kid, jumping around, dancing. Doesn't matter if he trys to or not show up the opposing team. He needs to learn to play the game professionally.

People sure get offended easy when Reyes is brought up.

As phrontiersman pointed out - this article isn't about Reyes being a bad player. Instead, Olney is merely suggesting that Reyes maybe has hit his ceiling (which probably occurred in his age 23 season). That, if you are holding on to him because you believe he can only go up in value, then that might not be a wise move.

There are plenty of players who peek at an earlier age. With Reyes everyone knows he has crazy skills. What folks hoped would happen is that he would develop his baseball IQ. His experience + his raw skills would lead to constant improvement until the time when age started to rob him of his skills.

Reyes is amazing and provides a ton of value to the Mets. His contract is team friendly and he fills a position that the Mets have zero bench strength in.

Just for the sake of argument, I wonder the same thing about Hanley Ramirez. His numbers have been roughly the same for the past 2+ years. An OBP of 400, with 30 HR's. His SB's took a dip last year and haven't been there this year. I don't think that I would count on Hanley make big improvements over where he is today.

do you see Wright dancing around the dugout jumping and smiling? Noo. Do you see Wright pointing up to the sky after every homer he hits? Noo. Their is a difference between the emotion Wright shows and K-rod/Reyes show. Reyes just cares about media attention, hoping he will show up on sportcenter so they could admire his beautiful speed. Also, i found it funny when i saw Reyes wearing a do-rag. He probably wears it now because he saw Rollins win a World Series.

I believe Reyes wears a do rag because he actually has hair to protect. Rollins just wears his dew rag so his helmet doesn't fly off his slick bald a$$ head rounding back to the dug out after a swinging bunt.

Or maybe this....Reyes is just being Reyes or copying the "Great Manuel" himself?

Brett Wallace for a couple months of Matt Holliday? LOL, not happening.

lol, is that why you think both wear a do rag? It is a look. I just find it funny how Reyes started wearing it after Rollins won the World Series. W/e, that is beyond the point.

My point is, Reyes is pressured right now to be star -- something he is not. After his 06 season, people want him to repeat/do better. However, these fans and so called experts fail to realize he is NOT a great player and his 06 year may have been his career year. Now, I'm not saying he can't match is numbers, however don't expect him to improve on them significantly. That is the point Olney is making, and it is 100% reasonable. I don't buy in the whole age argument. I don't care how old you are. I just feel Reyes needs to change his demeanor to be a more productive player.

All it takes is a few injections, a little more bulk, and he's a much improved player.

But seriously, if he decides to hit the weights pretty hard with some consistency, then he'll hit the ball with more authority. Like another poster said, if he wants to improve, he can. By no means is someone unable to grow by age 25.

Cingular said it best: if the Mets had won anything during the Omar Minaya Era, no one would be nay-saying anything about Jose Reyes right now. As it is, the Mets have flopped, so all their core players are coming into question. Should they do something so foolish as to trade Reyes, guaranteed the team would get worse immediately.

"ESPN.com's Buster Olney wonders if the currently injured Jose Reyes has already peaked, quoting a scout who says "I don't see a lot of evolution there ... Jimmy Rollins struggled early in his career, but then he just kept getting better and better, and I'm not really seeing that in Reyes.""

Ha... Yeah, Rollins just keeps getting better and better, and he still isn't better then Reyes. Jose Reyes has posted higher OBP's in the last 3 seasons then Rollins ever has in his career. Olney is such a moron. Everything he ever said is based on "scouts". Does he have his own opinions? He is supposed to be an analyst. I remember when Buster Olney said that scouts told him Chris Shelton was going to be a perennial 40 home run guy.

So wait Jose Reyes isnt ever going to improve from being one of the top 5 SS in the league???
What a knightmare for the Mets.
I dont understand the idea that he should be traded because hes not going to get any better...he doesnt need to get any better...if the Mets dont win a WS with this current core its not going to be because of Jose Reyes 'un-fulfilled' potential...it will be because the team has the best core in baseball surrounded by a bunch of bench players starting when they shouldnt be.
How does trading Reyes help in any way unless we get above his value?

I'm not apposed to trading Reyes if the right deal came...but then it opens a hole at the hardest to fill position in MLB.

Unless the Mets can rob a Tulowitzki, Drew or Hardy from a lower market team then they shouldnt be looking to trade Reyes.

Reyes>>>Rollins

Their WAR was about even last year, except Reyes is 5 years younger and has a way higher ceiling.

The A's needs are at 3B and SS, which is why Wallace would be ideal for them. It is too much though, and the Cards would be stupid to make that deal. This trade would be much easier and get done much quicker if David Freese (on the DL) were healthy and producing. The guy will never be a star like Wallace, but he will be a solid everyday 3B. I'd gladly give up Freese and Kosma for a half year rental of Holliday.

As for those criticizing Cards fans in saying "only if we can extend Holliday", we say that because that's what the Cards do, and it is smart managment. You don't just blow your wad for a half season rental of a star player, you do it to obtain him and lock him up. You can't use Boras as an excuse either, as the Cards have had some success in dealing with Boras and extending guys before FA. This offseason does not look good for many who will be seeking big money, long-term deals, much like last year. Boras was smart in allowing Lohse to sign an extension last fall before FA, as Lohse got a good number of years and over-paid compared to the rest of the pitching FA crop. He'd be smart to do it again with Holliday this year.

"Huge Met fan hear and for years I've been very big on Reyes I know it's still early on but more and more Jose is starting to remind me of Garry Templeton remember him? Switch hitting SS great speed 5 tools but he never really managed to put up those elite numbers with any consistency. He had a bad attitude and wasn't always in the best of shape also if memory serves me well he had leg problems just like Jose. Call me crazy but thats who he starting to look like more and more to me. It's like he's perpetual rookie always making the same mistakes. He's young enough to change and really get it together but that ship may be sailing soon."

Gary Templeton never had an OPS of 800 or an OBP of .350. Reyes has done both of those a number of times already. Reyes does put up elite numbers, when you consider he does it from the SS position, and he steals a ton of bases. You know how many teams would just kill to have a .290/.350/.450 guy at shortstop? Let alone one who will steal 50 bases and play a good shortstop? People have to stop worrying about what Reyes isn't and just be happy with what he is.

I dont see Duncan as a player the A's would pursue. As for Anderson thats a maybe-you can never have enough Catchers.
I think Jess Todd might be in there as his call up might have been for the A's to take a look at him. So has St Louis given up on Freese? I admit ankle surgery for a 3B is very worrisome.

But if your the cards adding Holliday is worth it at pretty much any price. The A's will most likely go for guys that are/have been at Springfield (AA) and its going to be arms and the 3B/SS is my guess.

heres a question from way out in left field... but would the astros trade inside the division? if so i would rather have Tejeda than Holliday. i know his offensive numbers are not as good but we need an everyday shortstop. we already have outfield depth, even tho only Rasmus is hittin rite now. i gotta believe the others will catch fire soon.