There’s a lot of uncertainty surrounding the 2011 Mets from Francisco Rodriguez to Omar Minaya to Jerry Manuel. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says Minaya or his replacement, “would be wise to explore trades for [Jose] Reyes and [David] Wright” this offseason. Here are the rest of the rumors:
- Carlos Beltran, a player who could become a trade chip this winter, told Rosenthal that he would like to remain on the Mets.
- Pirates president Frank Coonelly is the team's “de facto GM”, according to some rival executives.
- Not surprisingly, the Cardinals’ top offseason priority will be extending Albert Pujols, who will hit the open market after 2011 unless the Cards lock him up. It took Joe Mauer and the Twins a while to work out their $184MM extension, so we could be in for a winter’s worth of Pujols rumors.
- As Rosenthal points out, the Braves could use a big bat to play left field and they'll likely be on the lookout for one this offseason.
Rasmus, if StL will trade him, would be the best option for LF in Atlanta. Braves have the pitching prospects to get it done, but they’d probably have to part with a stud.
I’d rather see McLouth is left field and Rasmus in center. St. Louis said they won’t trade him though.
I would love to have the McLouth of the last week in LF, but you don’t know what you’re going to get. It might be nice to sell high on him though if possible. But I’m sure StL would trade Rasmus if they got a good return.
Crawford and Werth will be too expensive.
Braves will probably end up with Nady or some risky, cheap option like always.
They plan on playing him in left for some of the remainder of the season, he said hes comfortable there
You really want to see McLouth, owner of a career .252/.337/.441 line in a big-bat position? Dude had a fluky April/May 2 seasons ago and people still think he’s a legit everyday player.
Nate’s a streaky hitter. In 2008 he had an OPS of .931 in July and .885 in September. In 2007 he got better as the season went along. And while its a small sample, he’s got a 1.075 since returning from AAA. I’m not saying that he’s 100% back, but he’s proven that he is a streaky hitter and he’s looked very good since his stint in the minors. I’m cautiously optimistic that he could be a good CF for us next year.
After working with chipper he has been crushing the ball, before he was trying to not mess up rather than trying to do something, he is back to form in my opinion, and him in left would be better than Melky any day so anything would be an improvement
I’m not sure if you noticed, but the guys normally manning the “big bat position” are Matt Diaz and Melky Cabrera, neither of whom can be considered big bats. My comment was in response to speculation that we could acquire Rasmus to play left field, but he is a better center fielder than McLouth, so it would make more sense to move McLouth to left than Rasmus. Of course the Cards will not be trading Rasmus so it’s a moot point anyway. McLouth is more than likely going to be playing for the Braves next year, as his trade value is close to nil and he makes $6 million. C’mon. Read what I am responding to before you comment.
Ideally, Crawford or Werth would be great in LF for Braves. Realistically, Wren will try and find a Glaus-like bargain.
The money will be there to do it if Liberty lets Wren spend. With Wagner gone and Diaz/Cabrera/Saito likely non-tendered, the money will be there to get an impact bat.
They money will be there. The question is if it will be worth it. Before the success this year, I thought Braves would buy BP arms this off-season. Maybe now they would be willing to spend on Crawford. Werth, I don’t see coming to the Braves.
While I agree Atlanta would be a good fit, I honestly don’t see any way that the Cardinals trade him. Larussa’s time is almost over in St. Louis. They are not going to cater to him because of his dislikes anymore. Also I would think the Cardinals would be looking more for a top positional prospect IF something were to happen.
Exactly. I’m a Braves fan and I’m getting sick of seeing other Braves fans assume Rasmus will be in Atlanta in 2011. Rasmus is an elite level player, and outfield is a very shallow position currently. If Rasmus was on the Pirates, sure, maybe we could get him. They don’t have much use for players who are good right now. The Cardinals are annual contenders, and need the inexpensive production. They don’t have the funds to go out and replace him with a free agent, plus nobody of his caliber is going to be available anyway.
Is Rasmus really an elite level player?
Is Rasmus really an elite level player?
I’m not sure I’d trade Wright or Reyes. I think they are young enough to still build a team around. Wright is the only run producer in their lineup that I’ve seen be able to handle hitting for power in thier ballpark. Yes, he could bring in a huge return, but if I’m the GM, it would have to truly be a huge haul. I have differing opinions about Reyes. You’d essentially be selling low on him. If you’re concerned about him being prone to injury, turn him into you centerfielder. I think offensively, he remains a difference maker if he can avoid the aches, pains, and knicks for a season.
I don’t think they Mets can compete next year beyond a .500 record. But I think that they can in 2012 if they use free agency correctly the next 2 offseasons. Therefore, I don’t see the need to tear the team down. They need to pick up a frontline starter and another run producer. While this year’s free agent crop is poor, they might be able to get something in 2 years.
What they need to do is get rid of Castillo, Beltran, and Rodriquez- or at least stop making similar mistakes in future player signings.
I would trade Reyes in a heart beat, he does not have that winning mentality, bat seemed to have declined regardless of previous injuries, and defense is not what it was a few years ago. He could still net a nice return for the mets, aside from davis and wright they need offensive major league ready hitters
a – what is this winning mentality ?
b – who would u propose play the most important position in the infield
c – who would u propose lead-off
I don’t really think it matters who plays shortstop or bats leadoff for the Mets next year, they are going lose anyway. Trade the guy and get some value for him. The Mets seriously need to consider a Marlins style firesale.
LOL —> “I don’t really think it matters who plays shortstop or bats leadoff for the Mets next year”
I love a fan with a plan !
I’m a Braves fan. I’m just being realistic. The Mets are going to be awful no matter what.
awful?
they were .5 game out of 1st place in July…they straighten out their
situational hitting issues…and
they’re just fine…they have ranked dead last in hitting with the bases
juiced for 3 STRAIGHT YEARS…
I think a different approach to hitting would probably make a world of
difference.
and ur a braves fan….please wake me up when u can sell out ur stadium next
time u get to the WS
Awful. Plain and simple. A good strategy tor hitting with the bases loaded? How about have some good hitters on your team? Mets fans are always the first to blame management. Maybe they’re just a crappy team.
umm…i call delgado…beltran…reyes…wright…pagan…bay….good
hitters…
dont worry about making jokes about the mets…worry about why u got
bu*tfu*ked by the rangers for mark texiera…u traded half ur farm system
for 1 player. then u trade that one player for a scrub…then u trade that
scrub for another scrub u just traded before.
lets not even talk about the derek lowe signing…or trading away yunel
escobar for alex gonzalez…or trading away javy vasquez for melky cabrera
LOL…or the fact that u couldnt take advantage of a philly team injured all
year and ur about a banana peel away from giving bobby cox a noose as a
going away present.
Roberty did all that?
hold on a second….delgado is no longer a met….beltran sucks and was always overated…..reyes is not the player all you met fans thought he was….pagan is a 1 hit wonder having a career year that is nothing special except for sb total…..bay is obviously not nearly the hitter we all thought he was…….and wright..ok he is a very good player………also the only player of any significance that we traded to the rangers was elvis andres and it was done to try to win the division that year…….and the signing of derek lowe….way too much money for a #3 but he is a serviceable pitcher that is very dependable…..as for trading yunel…great talent but may never reach his potential…….javy had a career year and tied up alot of money…..i love javy but i dont see that as a huge because he has never been a consistant front line starter……the injured philly team was chasing the braves the entire first half and now have caught them but i believe this team will finish bobby’s career with a playoff appearance…..really dont believe we are ready to content for a world championship yet though….so as i see it you are a typical mets fan suffering from sour grapes and a misconception that you actually have a decent team in NY……by the way thanks for taking francour off our hands
btwalker – we were talking about what omar has done with the mets from
05-present.
beltran was over-rated ? really?
05 played with injured quad…and injured face…and still put up decent
numbers…
06-08 was hands down the best CF in baseball
09 was having a career year til the bone bruise which the mets mis-managed
by trying to have him play through..
2010 was a wash..
pagan was 3rd in the NL in triples last year…his stat line is almost
identical to last year’s….but hey dont let facts get in the way…
Bay was a marketing gimmick….I was against that from the start…but hey,
with the mets putrid offense in 2009…no LF in 2009…and injuries all over
the place…getting a “durable” LF who averaged 30 HR a year everywhere
seemed like a good idea…the mets can mess up a peanut butter and jelly
sandwich if its not already put together.
the only player of significance was elvis andrus ? ummm…there is this
neftali feliz guy….ever heard of him ? LOL…and ur a Braves fan???
with the rotation u had, javy did not have to be a front-line starter…he
would’ve been alot more valuable than kenshin kawakamiandhis1-10 recordwith
plus 5 ERA…lmao…having Javy in ur rotation, u probably have a 5-6 game
lead in the division…not behind by 4 games with the wild card slipping out
of ur grasp…
im happy that u can read the standings and can see the phils have caught up
to you….you say that u think the braves are gonna get to the post-season?
well making predictions is a pointless effort to me…I say we shall
see…right now, if wagner retires…neftali feliz would’ve been a nice
replacement at 23 years old to be ur future closer…
u have no closer for next year…saito just came up lame…u have no 8th
inning set up man…not sure how freddie freeman is doing nowadays…so im
not sure about 1B….who do u have to replace Chipper Jones?
who do u have to play CF ? nate mclouth and his .190 batting average ?
im not familiar with the braves system too tough so ur gonna have to help me
out here…
i think its HILARIOUS that braves fans are talking smack when u have s*cked
gorilla donkey nu*s for 5 years…and the one fluke year u have, u might not
even make the playoffs…
how sad is that u guys cant even sell out a game during a world
series…even in a year where u’ve been in 1st place all year long…u still
rank in the bottom third of % attendance…
as charles barkley would say…dats turrible !
ok i will give you the fact that beltran was a good player but in my opinion he was never the best cf in the game but those days are clearly over he will never be the same player again……as for pagan you really think he is an elite player……his only real value is speed…he strikes out way too much for so little power and still i say has not proven he is an everyday player……ok..ok…you are right i forgot about neftali feliz he was a signifacant player but have you heard of craig kimbrell or joey venters or mike dunn….really believe these kids might make up for losing feliz…….and how could you say having javy in the rotation would constitute 5 or 6 more wins…is a 5.05 era that much more valuable than a 5.15 era…..and also at a much lower cost…..now that being said im not a kawakami fan but i am a fan of ridding ourselves of a 12 mil contract from a player that has proven hi is anything but a sure thing…..the biggest thing javy does is almost guarantee you 200 innings which is a valuable commodity but is it worth 12 mil a year….i personally dont think so…….all that being said dude….i think we will make the playoffs but if we dont we do have brighter days coming in the near future……..and the mets future is looking more bleak by the day……by the way how is that all world SS doing….looks like he must be human after all……oh yea….the braves system is in fine shape….we have a young power hitting 1b on the horizon and several good pitching prospects that can be traded for needed pieces to the puzzle
lets tacke this one subject at a time…
Beltran was NEVER the best CF in the game ?
please name another gold glove CF that averaged 35 HR and 113 RBI from 06-08…bear in mind before the bone bruise on the knee, beltran was hitting .344 up until mid-june.
as soon as his bat left the lineup…wright was exposed…the mets tanked the season.
I’ll be here waiting for that CF’s name. thanks 🙂
next subject – pagan.
Never did i say he was an ELITE player. Elite to me is top 5 or at least top 10 in your position. i think Pagan can be a great addition to any team. he hits well in the clutch. plays good defense. runs the bases well. only costs like a 1 mil per year. I think he would be a great replacement if they decide to trade beltran and go for a corner OF. ( which I recommended at the end of 2008 by the way ). I always saw Beltran leaving NY to the AL as soon as his contract was up. it makes perfect sense for both the mets and beltran for them to part ways now and let pagan take over CF.
the 3 kids u listed are fine…however u could’ve had elvis andrus…and nef feliz on TOP of those kids, then add ADAM WAINWRIGHT to that list…
ur big 3 could’ve been …wainwright…hudson…hanson….
with a pen that had nef feliz, and vetters, dunn…SICK…
u traded away a Cy young contender for 1 year of JD Drew…
and u have the NERVE to complain about Omar…smh…
” javy in the rotation would constitute 5 or 6 more wins…is a 5.05 era that much more valuable than a 5.15 era…..and also at a much lower cost…..now that being said im not a kawakami fan but i am a fan of ridding ourselves of a 12 mil contract from a player that has proven hi is anything but a sure thing…..the biggest thing javy does is almost guarantee you 200 innings which is a valuable commodity but is it worth 12 mil a year….i personally dont think so…….”
Javy Lopez S*cks in the AL…esp in the AL EAST….Javy has always done well in the NL…Javy plays in a lil league stadium where a pop fly goes out for a home run…and he is a fly-ball pitcher…Javy is a 15 game winner with a 3.5 ERA if he is on the braves…KK is 1-10..with a 5.00 ERA….replace 1 win with 15…where would the braves be now ?
“i think we will make the playoffs but if we dont we do have brighter days coming in the near future……..and the mets future is looking more bleak by the day……by the way how is that all world SS doing….looks like he must be human after all……oh yea….the braves system is in fine shape….we have a young power hitting 1b on the horizon and several good pitching prospects that can be traded for needed pieces to the puzzle”
LMAO…ok….u have a solid prospect in heyward…nothing in CF or LF…no prospects at SS…no prospects at 3B……and u have freddie freeman at 1B…right ?
u have prado/infante/mcaan in their prime..
so right now ur 2011 lineup looks like…
infante
prado
mcaan
heyward
freeman
?
?
?
pitcher
the future so bright…i gotta wear…._ _ _ _ _ lmao
mets –
1B – Davis
2B – Havens/Tejada/Valspin
SS – Reyes
3B – Wright
LF – Bay
CF – Beltran
RF – Pagan
prospects – flores (ss )…ratliffe ( rf )…kirk…(cf )…f-mart ( lf )
yeah thats just terrible !
i cant agree more….that met lineup is terrible…….lol…..i love to see a loyal met try to make excuses why they will be better next year……im really kinda yanking your chain dude……..but i really do think you are severly misguided if you think the mets are heading in the right direction….
chill out dude….just messing with you …dont get bent out of shape…..all
jokes aside beltran is done! reyes is overated…..but from what little ive
seen of davis he looks decent (not great)…………as for the braves gozo is
at ss (not great but good)……mcclouth if he gets on track can either play lf
or cf…again not great but good……..braves will trade for someone with pop
to play either cf or lf….the word is cody rasmus (not sure i like that but who
knows) and either chipper will return or prado will play third….omar will
either start at 2b or be a supersub again……either the braves will retain lee
or freeman will be given the job at first………lets just see how it pans out
but imo the braves are far superior to the mets when lineup/starting
pitching/relief pitching are compared………….but its fun to debate
differences of opinions!
________________________________
sorry if i seem overly sensitive..but met-bashing seems to be all the rage and i cant see why they get more heat than the braves….or the dodgers…or the brewers..or the cubs… as far as the lineups go, u think the braves are FAR superior than the mets…well…ok….what can i do to convince u otherwise ?
the mets can trade davis for albert pujols and u will still say that freeman is better
beltran is done ? beltran is hitting .345 with power since his knee started getting better 3 weeks ago…but hey….simply coming on mlbtraderumors and saying he is done is fun !
i mean i guess if i were an atlanta fan i would have a lil chip on my shoulder…
how often does ATL win ?
football? – never
baseball ? 95….before that ? 1895 ?
basketball ? never
hockey ? never
( same theory goes for phillie fans )
good fun…..isnt this great……but in all honesty we did have that little 14 straight nl east run….by the way thats never been done in sports before ….and before you say it i know we should have won more pennants and WS but im sure your mets would have loved to have won the division 14 consecutive years……also i do realize the first couple were west titles but you know what i mean……oh and also i dont mean to just bash the mets ………i like to bash all non-brave fans……..just kidding dude its just fun to see you get worked up
do you realize that i have to be like bruce lee fighting hundreds of kung fu
assasins armed to the teeth when i come on these boards…
the worst part is that most of the people i argue with….are met fans..!
and yeah…14 straight division titles is a feat in itself…but in this
town…no one cares about 2nd place…all everyone would talk about is how u
come up short in the playoffs…
i would love to see u bash the yankees lol
by the way dude….i am from MS and was in Jackson when the mets double A team came to Jackson back in the late 70’s…I saw the first game the jackson mets ever played….saw the likes of Darrell Strawberry….greg jefferies ….saw Mike Scott pitch a no-hitter in jackson…….so im not a met hater …was really a met fan in those days….but tbs and being able to watch the braves everyday has converted me……its been great giving you a hard time but im gonna get of your case a little now…but i reserve the right to bash you agian one day
LOL
so basically…u became a braves fan during their 14 year run…which coincided with the mets going down quicker than a president’s intern in the 90’s…
i used to watch the braves during that whole time in the 80’s and saw dale murphy come up…and i was pulling for the braves when they were under-dogs.
this is the first time i’ve ever seen braves fans talk junk…so to do it in aug/sept and then lose the division…ehhhh….not a good look homie…
u can bash me again to ur hearts content…it just looks better for u if u win while ur doing it…otherwise ur roseanne barr making fun of ricki lake for having a big gut
nah…jumbed on the braves when they were like michael jackson…….they wore 1 glove for no apparent reason…..you know the dale murphy …bob horner…claudel washington braves…..so i am actually not a band wagon fan i just happen to get lucky that i only had to wait 10 years for them to win or did you not realize that it wasnt until the early 90’s when they started winning……i thought you knew your baseball history but maybe i was wrong
nah…jumbed on the braves when they were like michael jackson…….they wore 1 glove for no apparent reason…..you know the dale murphy …bob horner…claudel washington braves…..so i am actually not a band wagon fan i just happen to get lucky that i only had to wait 10 years for them to win or did you not realize that it wasnt until the early 90’s when they started winning……i thought you knew your baseball history but maybe i was wrong
LOL
so basically…u became a braves fan during their 14 year run…which coincided with the mets going down quicker than a president’s intern in the 90’s…
i used to watch the braves during that whole time in the 80’s and saw dale murphy come up…and i was pulling for the braves when they were under-dogs.
this is the first time i’ve ever seen braves fans talk junk…so to do it in aug/sept and then lose the division…ehhhh….not a good look homie…
u can bash me again to ur hearts content…it just looks better for u if u win while ur doing it…otherwise ur roseanne barr making fun of ricki lake for having a big gut
by the way dude….i am from MS and was in Jackson when the mets double A team came to Jackson back in the late 70’s…I saw the first game the jackson mets ever played….saw the likes of Darrell Strawberry….greg jefferies ….saw Mike Scott pitch a no-hitter in jackson…….so im not a met hater …was really a met fan in those days….but tbs and being able to watch the braves everyday has converted me……its been great giving you a hard time but im gonna get of your case a little now…but i reserve the right to bash you agian one day
ok i will give you the fact that beltran was a good player but in my opinion he was never the best cf in the game but those days are clearly over he will never be the same player again……as for pagan you really think he is an elite player……his only real value is speed…he strikes out way too much for so little power and still i say has not proven he is an everyday player……ok..ok…you are right i forgot about neftali feliz he was a signifacant player but have you heard of craig kimbrell or joey venters or mike dunn….really believe these kids might make up for losing feliz…….and how could you say having javy in the rotation would constitute 5 or 6 more wins…is a 5.05 era that much more valuable than a 5.15 era…..and also at a much lower cost…..now that being said im not a kawakami fan but i am a fan of ridding ourselves of a 12 mil contract from a player that has proven hi is anything but a sure thing…..the biggest thing javy does is almost guarantee you 200 innings which is a valuable commodity but is it worth 12 mil a year….i personally dont think so…….all that being said dude….i think we will make the playoffs but if we dont we do have brighter days coming in the near future……..and the mets future is looking more bleak by the day……by the way how is that all world SS doing….looks like he must be human after all……oh yea….the braves system is in fine shape….we have a young power hitting 1b on the horizon and several good pitching prospects that can be traded for needed pieces to the puzzle
I think it’s going to take more than fixing their situational hitting. They just lost Santana for the majority of next year with a shoulder injury (shoulder injury recovery is much more unpredictable in its recovery). The rest of the rotation is inexperienced and not regarded as high quality (despite their current statistics). RA Dickey? Can you really trust him? Wright is a good guy, but he can’t carry an offense. You can’t count on Bay, Beltran, or Reyes to rebound because they are always banged up. Who else fills out the lineup and produces runs? Do you really want to trust Pagan? Ike is okay, but he’s not going to develop into the #4 hitter that the Mets need. He more of a complimentary player.
Look I’m not bashing the Mets. I don’t think they need a Marlins type firesale but they need to stop looking for quick fix answers to their problems like they did with Frankie Rod. or Bay. Give them 2 years and they will be contenders.
well the problem with the mets, is that here, u ALWAYS have to present the
illusion that you are competitive. especially when there are more
entertaining/less heartbreaking options in the bronx. in general there are a
million things to do in NYC…and the attention span of folks along with the
dollars in their pockets are dwindling. so expect a bunch of smoke and
mirror type moves this off-season. I do not see them being honest with their
fan base.
I agree that Wright should stay. However, I think it’s time to move on from Reyes. He simply hasn’t made the necessary improvements you’d expect from a player who has been in the league for 6 years. You constantly year Reyes apologists regurgitating the same old BS line they heard on sports talk radio: “When Reyes goes, the Mets go.”. Problem is, Reyes doesn’t “go” at the rate you’d hope. His on-base skills have only improved marginally since he’s 19. He’s never going to be more than a .340-.350 OBP guy. As a leadoff hitter, that isn’t cutting it. Also his defense is inconsistent at best. The Mets best bet would be to move him now while his market value is still higher than his actual value rather than sign him to a long-term, big money contract.
I appreciate your argument and agree with many points. Reyes is miscast as the catalyst for the Mets. He had 1 year where he was the team’s spark plug and its been a few years since then. I still view him as having more value though. If the team were able to consider him more as a complimentary part versus the key man in the lineup, they would get more value. The Mets have expected the moon from him and have been disappointed. Lower you expectation and I think you still have a player with solid skill set and value. I’m not sure the Mets can lower there expectations though after falsely relying on him to be a centerpiece player. I still say take him off of short, put him in center, and drop him to the 7 or 8th spot in the order.
I understand your point about lowering expectations of a player, I think you could make the same argument for Wright. People want both these players to be something they aren’t. I have an ongoing argument with a guy at work who in 2009 said he wouldn’t trade Reyes for HanRam and early this year said he wouldn’t trade Reyes for Tulo. That’s the kind of player disillusioned Mets fans think Reyes is. He isn’t on either players level. Also people want Wright to be a Derek Jeter type leader who also puts up Alex Rodriguez numbers. Lowering expectations of both players would do wonders but I just don’t think most Met fans are capable of it. Therefore, I would trade away Reyes because I think statistically he doesn’t even come close to measuring up to his expectations. I keep Wright because I think if the Mets ever put a player on this team who was clearly the better player, Wright could relax and go back to being the player he was 06-07 when he was top 5 in WAR.
good point about taking the pressure off Wright. I don’t think he’s the type of player that can single handedly carry a club. Maybe if the pitching staff was better, maybe if their were better complimentary players around him. But I think he’d be more valuable if he was second fiddle on the team. The problem is Bay and Ike aren’t going to push Wright to a better role within the offense. An their isn’t a free agent bat that I would do it either.
I agree that Wright should stay. However, I think it’s time to move on from Reyes. He simply hasn’t made the necessary improvements you’d expect from a player who has been in the league for 6 years. You constantly year Reyes apologists regurgitating the same old BS line they heard on sports talk radio: “When Reyes goes, the Mets go.”. Problem is, Reyes doesn’t “go” at the rate you’d hope. His on-base skills have only improved marginally since he’s 19. He’s never going to be more than a .340-.350 OBP guy. As a leadoff hitter, that isn’t cutting it. Also his defense is inconsistent at best. The Mets best bet would be to move him now while his market value is still higher than his actual value rather than sign him to a long-term, big money contract.
I say the same no trade of Wright or Reyes, i am a fan of Beltran but with a year left why not trade him to Boston for Elsberry & Mike Cameron
If either Reyes or Wright became available they could both fill HUGE needs for the Cardinals. Not sure the Cardinals would be willing to pull the trigger and take on another good size contract. Both both would fit well.
Atlanta may need a third baseman. Buuut i’d rather wait for Zimmerman to hit FA. No way the Mets trade Wright to ATL
Where does it say anything about Wright to ATL? If we decide to spend money this offseason, we’ll give Beltre an offer. If not, then get ready for Prado and Infante if Chipper doesn’t come back.
Their current lineup but plus a decent LF should be good enough to make the post-season again. Most of their lineup is either young and should improve, or a fairly reliable vet. If Chipper comes back, then Infante could play LF or CF. They have to just hope that McLouth can play similar to what he did in Pit.
This offseason is going to be a quiet one for the Braves imo. The only move I see them making is trying to trade Lowe or KK.
I’ll have to disagree that this will be a quiet offseason for the Braves. Wren has shown that he’s everything but inactive, moves will be made to make this team better.
BTW, are you the same LioneeR from BN?
Yeah I am. I don’t mean that they will stay put, just that there won’t be any big signings.
That will be 2014 if he’s not extended by the Nats. Besides, chipper will be there 2 more years. I haven’t seen a player walk away from $26 mil yet…
wright to boston?
shhh
As bad as things are for the Mets there is nothing they could do to alienate fans more than trade either Wright or Reyes.
Mets fans love to be alienated. That’s why they’re Mets fans. Nobody becomes a Mets fan because they love a winner. They become Mets fans because they love to complain about a loser. Don’t believe me? Listen to WFAN radio.
So you’re gonna take the < 1% of Met fans who call WFAN and generalize the entire fanbase as a bunch of complaining losers? Met fans are a tremendously loyal and passionate breed of people. Otherwise they would just jump ship and become Yankee fans. It's not easy to root for a team that consistently underachieves.
So you’re gonna take the < 1% of Met fans who call WFAN and generalize the entire fanbase as a bunch of complaining losers? Met fans are a tremendously loyal and passionate breed of people. Otherwise they would just jump ship and become Yankee fans. It's not easy to root for a team that consistently underachieves.
As much as I would love to see Carl Crawford or Jayson Werth in a Braves uni I doubt it. Lol how about Andruw Jones or Manny Ramirez? I’m kidding don’t worry.
I wouldn’t mind seeing Andruw back on the Braves. He is certainly in better shape now than he ever was in Atlanta.
Yeah because the Andruw Jones today would be running laps around 1997 Andruw Jones at the gym.
I wouldn’t want to see Andruw in CF, but he would be great as a RH platoon player in left field. I bet he can bench a lot more than 1997 Andruw Jones.
in roberty’s world…being able to bench = being able to hit a CB or a 2-seam FB
Hardly. In the real world Andruw Jones is OPSing .902 against left handed pitching this year. That is certainly platoon worthy. Plus, Andruw can hit a fastball and a curveball. He can’t lay off the slider low and away. He never has been able to. He is a lot slower than he used to be, but he is much thinner. There is far less of Andruw hanging out over his belt than there used to be.
Wright, Mejia, F-Mart/Capt.Kirk for Buchholz and Ellsbury
I really think the Braves will be in the market for a full time centerfielder and not a leftfielder. There are a few reasons I think this.
McLouth will make 6.5MM next year plus a 1.25MM buyout for 2012 and I don’t see the Braves trading that salary or just cutting him outright. Its pretty clear he was one of the worst offensive players in the MLB for the first part of the year mainly because of his inability to hit the ball square though his walk rate (ie eye at the plate) remained constant. Since coming back up from the minors and tweaking something at the plate with Chipper’s help he has OPSed 1.120 with 3-2B, 1-3B, 3-HR, and more walks than strikeouts. That line is impressive considering he had two more HRs brought back by great catches in FLA and ATL that would have been sure thing HRs in PHI or CIN and still has an unlucky BABIP. This is a small sample size however so he will need to keep it up and hopefully into the playoffs.
McLouth this past week has been moved to LF in the late innings and actually started there yesterday. Two days ago when he moved over to replace Diaz and immediately caught a ball that would have a been a sure double with the average fielding Diaz out there. His poor arm and medocre range for a CFer would be masked in LF enough that he would be a fantastic fielding LFer. I do think we hold onto Diaz though because though his career McLouth has struggled against LHP where Diaz would once again come in as a RH platoon partner.
I think we will see a McLouth/Diaz LF next year in ATL with a trade for a leadoff/8th hitting defensive/speed minded centerfielder, not that mythical ‘big bat’ for LF fans are always clamoring for.
I believe Wren has said that we’re paying McLouth his buyout this year, so we won’t have to worry about it next year. And I could very easily see us pursuing a CF and using Nate/Diaz in LF, but I think that’d come at a detriment to our offense. We all saw how the offense clicked when Glaus, a right-handed power bat, was healthy and in the middle of the lineup. While we may not end up with one, we need a right-handed hitting LF to hit cleanup behind Heyward next year.
Left field is for a big bat. That said, there really aren’t any available. It’s too bad we always use the big power positions, 1B and LF, to save a buck. I would love to see a speed and defense centerfielder, but I don’t really know where we would get one. I like Denard Span and Franklin Gutierrez but they both had down years and I don’t think their GMs would be willing to sell low on them, plus Spann isn’t a great centerfielder, and Gutierrez isn’t much of a hitter.
It doesn’t really matter if we get that ‘big bat’ which you admit isn’t really there. The Braves are built on pitching, playing defense (which needs upgraded), and getting on base all the way down the lineup.
Everyone makes a big deal about how the Braves don’t have a good offense but even with little production out of LF/CF for much of the year we are 4th in the NL in runs and 1st in the NL in OBP. We need to upgrade our outfield defense and just get competent solids bats out there and not overreach for that big bat. If we are going to go out and make a big trade it should be for a quality speed CF along the lines of Ellsburry or Gardner.
My ‘reply to’ hasn’t been working so if this gets posted as a new post its @roberty.
I think it takes a more balanced lineup than the Braves have right now to really contend. Sure we can get on base, but we have a hard time driving in runs. And if Chip isn’t going to be back next year you can count on our team OBP to drop considerably. We rely on pitching, sure. But our defense isn’t anything special.
Don’t forget the Braves were thinking about moving Heyward to CF, and McLouth to LF, then they could go get a RF. Braves could be extremely flexible in looking for a so called impact bat. They have survived without one this year, just a consistant hitting lineup. They can add Werth and or Crawford if they make the right moves!
Wren will have the money. The question is if he wants to get into a bidding war and throw money at these players that wont perform nearly as good as they are paid. That’s not even to mention if Wren thinks we need one of those guys.
David Wright to the Toronto Blue Jays for JP Arencibia, Brad Emaus, and Shaun Marcum/ Jesse Litsch
David Wright to the A’s! Or Angels! Just not an uniform in white and red NOT in California!
if the red sox dont re sign beltre for some reason, theo should look into wright. it would take a boat to get him.
The A’s have the pieces to get him, and if they do, they would still be a top ten farm system.
i would love to see wright or even reyes in anaheim. Aybar would be part of the deal for either of those guys, but reyes is an actual leadoff hitter, which the angels desperately need
The Braves aren’t gonna add diddly. They have been talking that sh*t for 2 years and haven’t done anything. The ownerships 5 year hold clause(part of deal with Time Warner) expires next year and they are trying to maximize profits. To them the way to do that is cutting as much payroll as possible. Really a short term strategy, but they could care less. Bunch of corporate aholes who only look at P & L statements. Look at what they did with Vazquez. And all that was supposed to free up money for a big bat which never happened. They have dumped 20 MM plus since last years payroll and are looking to dump as much more as they can.