Still not sure I wouldn't prefer trying to throw money at Burnett and keep the arms we'd be dealing for Samardzija IF A. J. would take it for a year. Would buy time for Graham to prove healthy and put us in a much stronger position.
That said, if a package can be put together that lands Samardzija without including Sims, I'm definitely in - we should be able to replace anyone ranked below Sims with our early draft picks without losing any depth. Depth chart would then be awfully impressive...
1.) Samardzija
2.) Minor
3.) Medlen
4.) Teheran
5.) Beachy
6.) Wood
7.) Graham
8.) Sims
Would personally prefer Scott Baker, Jake Westbrook, or Clayton Richard over Hammel if Wren winds up signing a "depth guy" as well - think all 3 have more upside than Hammel.
Last edited by clvclv; 12-12-2013 at 03:57 PM.
Has there EVER been a statement and question a certain someone should absolutely never have made and asked publicly more than...
Kinda pathetic to see yourself as a message board knight in shining armor. How impotent does someone have to be in real life to resort to playing hero on a message board?
When we can't afford to sign or trade for an ace we need to target guys who have front line stuff that have the potential to become a TOR starter but aren't there yet. I think Samardizja is exactly that. He's got absolutely overwhelming stuff that matches up with any pitcher in baseball. When his command is on, he's impossible to hit. IMO we need to be VERY aggressive in getting him and I'd be willing to pay a hefty price. I would pretty much have Sims, CB (because of need), and Peraza off the table and everyone else available. I would hate to trade Alex Wood but I absolutely would put him in the deal if it's a deal breaker.
The Cubs are open about the fact that they want young pitching back for Samardzija. But they also have a need for a corner OF. I think Wood, Terdo, plus another good pitching prospect would be the price.
Last edited by emk418; 12-12-2013 at 04:10 PM.
What is Samardzjia's projected arbitration award.
If we only get him for 2 years and the Cubs need a corner OFer why not offer JUpton and his 2 years of control. Keep our young pitchers and move them only for a young controllable OFer?
Wouldn't want Wood to be included. I think Wood can be a shade less than Samardjia
I not a fan of Samardizja, I see him as a 4th starter of the 5 we currently have. Certainly not a front of the rotation guy. He has only pitched 200 innings once and that was not with great results, he has a lifetime losing record and his ERA last year was not very good, also he he pretty bad against left handed bats. Plus his control is iffy. I don't see any reason to trade Wood or anyone else for this guy. Not a move that bolsters anything if it happens.
The Cubs are in rebuilding mode. Their farm system is loaded with talented young position players. But they don't have a catcher of the future and are weak in pitching prospects. They match up incredibly well with us. The trade is there for the making:
We can get Samardzija by offering them Bethancourt plus any three our minor league pitchers not named Sims or Cabrera.
The three I suspect they would choose if they had that offer would be Hale, Graham and Simmons.
I would not include Wood, Sims or Cabrera in any trade for Samardzija.
This trade would be similar to the Michael Bourn trade. We gave up Schafer, Oberholtzer, Clemens and Abreu in that trade. None of these guys are of the caliber of Bethancourt as a prospect. We would be offering a stronger package for Samardzija.
Last edited by nsacpi; 12-12-2013 at 05:55 PM.
Knucksie (12-12-2013)
I'm still iffy on Samardzija. There's no doubt he's possessive of a ton of raw, relatively untapped potential, but if the Braves are going to offer a package like [MENTION=89]nsacpi[/MENTION] advocates then I'd rather save my pennies for a true ace (whenever he does come along.)
I don't think we match up well with Rays. Not nearly as well as we do with the Cubs. Unlike the Cubs, the Rays have a fairly strong group of pitching prospects. I would see the Rays as more interested in position players, which happens to be a relative weakness in our farm system.
Has there EVER been a statement and question a certain someone should absolutely never have made and asked publicly more than...
Kinda pathetic to see yourself as a message board knight in shining armor. How impotent does someone have to be in real life to resort to playing hero on a message board?
It's really not a concern of mine having just 2 lefty hitters in my lineup. It's a bigger deal if we have too many lefties but I like it this way. Plus La Stella should be in the lineup relatively quickly as another lefty. But again I don't see that as a concern at all.