Pick a player, any player

by Pucking Insane on Jul 18, 2005 3:01 PM PDT

I write this diary because I'm curious who A's fans would pick if we could trade for one player who is currently on "the block."

First let me preface this by asking if anyone really thinks there is a dominant team in the AL this year? I don't see it. Maybe the Red Sox or Angels if they got another arm, but still both those teams are nothing special.

This is just me, but it would be awesome to see a deal that could bring AJ Burnett and possibly Castillo (also on the block). If this new ownership really cares about winning this deal makes sense. A new big 3 of Harden, Zito, and Burnett to go along with Haren and Blanton. Castillo would be the 2nd baseman with a high average the A's have been missing.

Look, this isnt likely because even if the A's acquired Burnett, ownership would need to expand the payroll to have any shot at re-signing him. However, this is a year where the team who makes the right move could easily vault themselves into the playoffs and I just hope the A's are that team.

Tweet Comment 21 comments | 0 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

Albert Pujols

"This," Kendall said, "is why I catch."

by carp on Jul 18, 2005 3:15 PM PDT reply actions

ditto

"Their batters are patient to the point that it's annoying." -- Gil Meche

by Alien @ Athletics Nation on Jul 18, 2005 3:19 PM PDT up reply actions

i do not think he is on the block

A hot dog at the ball park is better than steak at the Ritz. --Humphrey Bogart

by West Bay A s Fan on Jul 18, 2005 4:57 PM PDT up reply actions

Dunn

by saint @ Athletics Nation on Jul 18, 2005 3:21 PM PDT reply actions

dave kingman and the rat

by firedog on Jul 18, 2005 3:21 PM PDT reply actions

I was trying to remember the female:

reporters name the other day. Do you recall her name?

by saint @ Athletics Nation on Jul 18, 2005 3:26 PM PDT up reply actions

Sue Fornoff

check out this excellent Kingman website:

www.davekingman.com

by Brian in 317 on Jul 18, 2005 4:39 PM PDT up reply actions

Vlad Guererro

Outfield bat we need.

Or A-Rod at 2nd base. Imagine that infield!

The face of a child can say it all, especially the mouth part of the face.

by JJ on Jul 18, 2005 3:21 PM PDT reply actions

A-Rod?

No way. You do NOT want him on this team. Seriously.

by Squeaky on Jul 18, 2005 3:45 PM PDT up reply actions

The Curse of ARod...

we wouldnt win again for years! Although, I wouldn't mind having him for an hour so we could ship him off somewhere. Look at the success of the teams after they got rid of him?

"I don't want to play golf. When I hit a ball, I want someone else to go chase it." ~Rogers Hornsby

by ZeroIndulgence on Jul 18, 2005 5:03 PM PDT up reply actions

Yeah

Which years did Texas and Seattle win the world series? :-P

Olympian Amil Gartenamo, world record holder in both the javelin and the hundred yard dash--only person who ever died by throwing a spear into his own back.

by Furious George on Jul 18, 2005 8:04 PM PDT up reply actions

Dream Trade

Adam Dunn for Joe Blanton, Richie Robnett and a PTBNL (probably one of this year's draft picks). We'd have to add payroll though as Dunn will have about $3 million left on his $8 million contract for this year.

Especially if Durazo can't come back this year, we could stand to upgrade our DH spot tremendously as well as our potency against right-handed pitching. Dunn is a star, legit 45 HR threat who is an OBP machine. (Yes, he strikes out a ton but an out is an out is an out -- it doesn't matter how you make it, strikeout, groundout or popout.)

Blanton has been very good for stretches and poor for stretches as well. He has a 4.60 ERA as a rookie, which is better than Mark Mulder's first campaign effort. He is cheap for the next 5 years. You might be asking, "Isn't this exactly why we shouldn't trade him?" No, this is exactly why he's a prime candidate to be traded. A pitching-starved team like the Reds is dying to get their hands on a young, inexpensive "potential ace". Blanton has the Moneyball hype and the AL Rookie of the Month credentials; by all appearances, he is a blossoming star.

But take a closer look at the numbers. Smokin' Joe has posted a .250 BABIP, a number so flukey that there's no way he can sustain it. His K rate, while good in the minors, has taken a terrible dive in the big leagues. And his HR rate is downright nerve-wracking (he's given up a ton of solo home runs, so while the long bombs haven't killed his ERA, you have to wonder whether some of those are going to become 3-run jimmy jacks). Certainly, a rookie pitcher who's been instructed to pound the zone will give up a few solo homers; however, it's not as if once runners are on base a pitcher can just turn off that gopher ball tendency. In the long run, high HR rates correlate with high runs allowed.

Basically, Blanton's problem begins with the fact he doesn't miss enough bats. He's been quite fortunate that an unusually high percentage of those balls in play have been directly at his defense. He's been doubly fortunate that those balls in play that are hit so hard that they leave the yard have happened to come without runners on base.

Bottom line: We should think about trading Blanton while his value is sky high, especially if there's merit to my theory that he's a 5.50 ERA (or worse) waiting to happen. Dunn would probably be worth an extra 4-5 wins by himself -- that could be the difference between the playoffs and no playoffs.

by NP15 on Jul 18, 2005 3:31 PM PDT reply actions

Dunn's salary

is 4.6 or 4.8 million this year. And it'll be more like 8-9 next year.

I've sat a few rows behind home plate in Cincinnati and have seen Dunn and Wily Mo hit, and here's my opinion:

Dunn doesn't swing at a ton of bad pitches. But, he misses a lot of hittable pitches. Those pitches he does hit go a long, long ways. He could single-handedly bump Oakland out of its position as toughest team to K in the majors. Another complaint I have with Dunn is that he walks too much with RISP. That's why he has 24 HRs and only 54 RBI's to go with that power.

Wily Mo swings at everything, but the problem is that he isn't Vlad. He is very susceptible to the slider low and away, and he looks ugly missing it. (61 K's, 9 BB's in 175 AB's). When he's laying off these pitches, he's an incredible hitter and goes on incredible tears. He'd be a reason to bring a glove in the left field bleachers!

If we're looking for tough outs, these are not the players we're looking for. Pena swings at bad pitches so he K's and hits soft outs too often.

The face of a child can say it all, especially the mouth part of the face.

by JJ on Jul 18, 2005 3:50 PM PDT up reply actions