Here’s this week’s look around the baseball blogosphere:
- Halo Headquarters lists reasons why the Angels should not trade center fielder Mike Trout.
- The Point of Pittsburgh argues in favor of an international draft.
- Wayniac Nation highlights five first base prospects who could make impacts next year.
- Jays Journal ponders an expanded role for Toronto closer Roberto Osuna in 2017.
- BaseballDocs names the Tigers’ top trade candidates.
- Call to the Pen (links here) reviews the White Sox‘s 2016 campaign and looks ahead to their offseason.
- CTTP also explains why catcher Jorge Alfaro might not be the only rookie to crack the Phillies’ Opening Day roster next year.
- North Shore Nine examines the Pirates’ starting second base options for 2017.
- MLB451 breaks down six impending free agents who could be on the verge of breaking out.
- Yanks Go Yard previews the Yankees’ spring training right field competition.
- Sports Heaven goes all the way back to 1948, the year of the Indians’ latest World Series title.
- Camden Depot wonders if outfielder Hyun Soo Kim is more than a platoon hitter.
- Pirates Breakdown offers three lessons the club can learn from the World Series-bound Indians.
- Clutchlings details the Blue Jays’ prospects who are headed for the Australian Baseball League.
- The Runner Sports profiles Astros outfield prospect Jason Martin.
- Sports Talk Philly focuses on former members of the Phillies organization who are now with the Indians.
Please send submissions to ZachBBWI @gmail.com.
Its such a waste of time to write articles about not trading Trout, like if Boston offered Betts, Moncada, Porcello, Benintendi and Kimbrel, OFC the Angels should absolutely take that deal. He would command the most outrageous package ever, like, it would dwarf what the Braves gifted Texas for Teixiera or what Arizona gifted Oakland for Haren. It would be stupid of the Angels to not at least see what the offers are.
Yes, and if I offer you $500 for a moldy bagel, you should absolutely take that deal. But since that will never happen, what’s the point of bringing it up, even as a hypothetical?
Right, and it’s silly to say “dont trade him” for that very reason.
I love trout but really I wouldn’t trade mookie straight up because of the contract mookie is still getting paid nothing and although I know he’s not as good realistically that much $ which is even a bargain for him I’d spend it elsewhere all of the Trout talk it’s fun to talk about but a major market club isn’t trading the bestplayer in the game unless it’s a deal of ungodly proportions i.e start with a mookie Bryant or seagar and like 3 other prospects and any club doing it would turn into the angels or Arizona
Agreed
LAA are wasting Trout years on a horrendous team; if they get 3 good-to-reallygood players in return – like you mentioned, LAA should take it.
Yes it’s Trout, but if you get Betts, Porcello and Kimbrel from BOS or Upton, JD Martinez and Fulmer from DET. Angels should bite the buyers’ hands off.
Upton, JD Martinez and Michael Fulmer couldn’t even fart in Trout’s general direction. And the Boston package isn’t close either.
I was making a general statement that for Trout LAA should get at least 3 good to really good proven MLB players in return on top of whatever prospects
It would have to be Cabrera, Verlander and Fulmer for Trout, JD is in a walk year, hed be a throw in..
Spot on with JD as a throw in!
Weren’t the angels crying broke last year to the point they sign Nava to platoon in left Cuz he was cheap and now they’re going to absorb those contracts of Cabrera and Verlander if trout were to be traded it would be with a top young first year type player and like 5 younger type players they’re not trading a 25 year old whose the best player in the game to absorb those contracts
And then the team acquiring Trout turns into the Angels because they have to give up an enormous amount of talent.
Not if they have a lot of young stars and a strong farm (Boston, Cubs).
Umm you have to give up some of those young stars and that strong farm to get a Mike Trout. You’re not just replacing 10 WAR just like that. It doesn’t work that way no matter what some writer fishing for readers tells you.
Ummm have you SEEN the depth the Cubs and Boston have? Not to mention being rich enough clubs they could replace anyone they lose with free agents.
Actually thats been my worry with the Yankees sudden 180 of not signing anyone and raiding farms in trades: that they too, have enough to get Trout and fill out the rest with FA’s.
I agree in that if the team was a couple of cogs out from contending it wouldn’t be worth it but there are so many holes to plug in the angels and if you can get some prime time ready players and some prospects then you could essentially move 1 guy and get yourself moving in a an amazingly good direction. there are a number of farms that are ripe for the pilfering too.
I will not give Bett and Benitendi Porcello for Trout!! And you talk about Moncada and Kimbrel?? Bett Mvp2016, Benitendi and Moncada future allstar players
And none of them individually or together be close to Trout.
Way to miss the point. Reading comprehension, get into it.
Did trout die and he’s not allowed winning mvp?
No they just have a biased to good teams if it was all about best player a rod would have 5 more mvp awards
Every player is tradeable even the very best.
I now! But how many games Trout can’s give you and safe??Bett-Benitendi-Moncada trees positions players plus a Pitcher and closer
In my option Betts is just as good as Trout. Trout has a longer track record of doing it that’s why he’s the best player in baseball. As a Redsox fan I would not give that up for trout nor would I trade Betts for anyone.
Mookie Betts, 2016
Home OPS: .948
Away OPS: .846
Mike Trout, 2016, career
Home OPS: .997, .959
Away OPS: .984, .966
In no way, shape or form is Mookie Betts in Trouts league. If Betts didn’t play half his home games in a hitters paradise no one would care who he was – FACT.
While I do agree with the overall idea that Mookie isn’t as good as Trout (it’s not THAT close unless you’re a Red Sox fan), I think you’re going a little over the top. Even if Mookie had “just” his .846 away OPS, he’d still be looked at as a VERY good young hitter. That being said, he has a long way to go to get to Trout’s level.
Not a fact and as usual silly comment. I agree that Bert’s is not nearly as good as Trout but let’s be real Bert’s is a very good all around player one of the better players in Baseball and With his contract probably one of the 10 most valuable players. This is the problem when you talk about big trades guys like Bert’s and Bryant have tremendous value to their teams because of what they cost and the flexibility for roster construction they allow. You have to factor that in when looking at a trade.
Betts damn spell check
I’m a Red Sox fan, and a huge Mookie Betts fan. He’s one of the best in baseball. But you are delusional.
For one, consider the lineup that each hits in. Betts has been surrounded by guys like Bogaerts, Ortiz, Bradley, Pedroia, Ramirez, and Benintendi. All six of those guys were better than ANY player other than Trout in the Angels lineup.
But really, you don’t even have to consider that. Because his numbers don’t come anywhere close to Trout’s anyway.
Trout is the best in baseball and there’s not even an argument. Nobody is even close. In fact, only two players have EVER led the league in WAR in five consecutive seasons – Mike Trout and Babe Ruth.
Thank you connorreed, as usual my legion of homer-haters don’t like reading truths I write about their infallible favorite players. At least you get it.
Also, Betts is like, 1 superstar level season into his career. He could easily fall off into Grady Sizemore territory so fast we’d forget his name in 5 years. Trout has done this repeatedly with no inconsistency or falloff (unlike B Harper).
To keep comparing Sizemore to any of these players is a little unfair because he got injured and was never the same that could happen to anyone even the great trout. Sizemore prior to injury had 4 pretty good seasons there are guys that he could be more like that were one hit wonders like Middlebrook or someone who won a Roy and never had that type of season.
Betts is the next Trout
Thx brianoryan!!for me Bett is the future !!! Go redsox
Betts is the next Grady Sizemore
I don’t agree that Betts is the next Trout, no one is Trout, but he is a very good all around player with no real weaknesses with years of control left.
Lol
How do you even match a trade package with a 10 WAR player? Throwing prospects out of the picture, how about we take a look at what Major League players would have to add up to that amount of value in one package. According to 2016 WAR, it’s Kershaw, Maeda, and Jansen. Not a trade proposal but just saying that’s how much you have to give up to get Mike Trout.
Ryan, nobody gets this. And they don’t understand full no-trade clauses, or how to balance out the equity in a deal for the best player in the game and a $30m salary for the next several years, versus a package that can touch 10 WAR annually, which has been Trout’s average for the past 4 years.
Bryant, Rizzo and Arrietta would balance out. Think Cubs would sign that deal? Of course not.
This is exactly what I wrote in my first post, but no one understood it, they just saw Mookie Betts name and freaked out because they are not smart baseball fans.
I understand what you’re saying and completely agree, but I think your example is a little misleading.
Kershaw missed almost half the season (and if he was often injured you’d have a point, but before this season, he had averaged 32 starts a season from 2010-2015). If you adjusted his WAR to a typical 33 start season for him, it becomes 8.8. In that case, Clayton Kershaw, Chase Utley, and Charlie Culberson also equal 10 WAR.
If the kakabrainiacs from the Angels’s front office would ever consider trading Mike Trout … it will be for a package with players similar to Vernon Wells, Josh Hamilton, Joe Blanton, Garry Mathews, … that sort of thing …
Ding Ding!!!! We have a winner! You sir are 100% correct. The Angels are not smart enough to understand the return value of Trout.
How many years on Verlander’s contract left ? I could see the Braves making a run at him. He actually is exactly what we need. Think the Tigers take Peterson, Newcombe, Mallex, Sims & Vizzy ???
3/84 or 4/106 if he comes in top 3 in Cy voting in year 3.
lol Braves dont want that
It’s a damn shame that one of the best players to ever play the game is stuck on such a bad team. Without any trade chips to make upgrades and the thin free agent market, it’s safe to say the Angels won’t be a playoff team next year either.
Gonna have to wait for Trout to leave to see him play in October.
Or, you know, they could trade him for a haul never before seen in the game and become contenders pretty quick. I’m disappointed Angels fans are writing pieces like the one linked that aren’t even interested in seeing what’s out there, like what if the Yankees said “Any 6 players from our mlb team and farm for him, you pick?”
As much as I think they should see what’s out there i kinda doubt Yankees or a team like that will be interested in that look at how a lot of the best teams were built this year dodgers, red sox, cubs this is a copycat league royals won it all last year and everyone wanted to build a superpen and this year a lot of teams won with a lot of young stars what do you think they’ll do or a new fad might be?
Pretty much every WS winning team ever has had a nails bullpen, thats hardly new.
Typically every team has anothersuper talent elsewhere like great offense or great starters they were this new breed that did it with that and defense which I didn’t really figure into it because almost every playoff team plays defense
And yet just two years ago they won 98 games and missed the playoffs by one game a year ago with the same bad farm system. Mike Trout is a 10 WAR player. It shouldn’t take as much as most teams to build a contender with him at the center. You want good minor league depth? We’ll consider the possibility that Trout takes care of that with 4-5 extra wins he provides all by himself. Most teams that make the playoffs have most of their WAR eaten up by a handful of key players. All the Angels really need to do is put 90% of their focus on pitching. And I’d even consider trading Cron and/or Calhoun for young pitching as well. Those are the trade talks people need to realistically be speculating about.
For the Angels to contend… they need starting pitching … a decent bullpen and a left fielder … the tandem setup of Jensen and Chapman plus Street and Cam will give the a lights out bullpen … add two decent starters via trade and make a push for Céspedes, Braun, Hayward, Upton,
Soler, Gomez or whoever and we have a winner
Would they do it? Your guess is as good as mine …