I’ve been quiet on this trade so far. I’ve had trouble
putting anything into a coherent post. There are just so many reasons why this
is such a stupid, infuriating, move, that I can’t stop jumping from one to the
next. Basically, though, I can’t wait any longer, so I’m just going to roll
through them all.
My first thought? So, this is what it’s like to be a Pirates
fan? To see your best players traded away because you can’t afford them? But,
that’s not really the case. When the Pirates dump good players, it’s because
they know that they can’t win with just the one star, and can’t afford to fill
in stars around them. So, the only option is to get prospects, and hope that
five prospects mature into stars at the same time. Like the A’s did ten years
ago. The Sox, though, had a team that (when healthy) was a winner. When the
players on the 2012 roster were all healthy, the Sox were the best team in
baseball. Why do you trade away players from that situation?
What’s the plan, exactly? I hear all about financial
flexibility. To do what? To sign an all-star first baseman? You had one of the
top finishers in the 2011 MVP race already. To trade for a multiple time
all-star outfielder? You had one of those too. I actually heard a beat writer
say with joy that the Sox had to pass on Edwin Jackson and Hideki Kuroda last
off-season, and now they’ll be able to make those moves. Really? Dumping the
core of a great team in order to sign Hideki Kuroda? That’s the plan? Go with a
team made up of minor leaguers and Edwin Jackson? How does that make sense to
anybody? Go ahead. Look at the list of free agents. Find me any of them that
makes a roster better than the one that was just broken apart. Anyone?
I hope all the EEIdiots who have been calling for this start
buying tickets. They wanted to go with the youth. They wanted to blow it up so
that the team had nobody with any talent, but that would run out ground balls.
They wanted a team of players who can’t pitch, but who eat salads at their
locker. They got it. They better start filling the stands.
One good thing has come of this. It has made my avoidance of
Boston based media complete. I can’t listen to anything they say anymore. I
can’t read any Boston papers. It’s just sickening. What did they have to do
with this? Everything. Imagine this. Two years ago, Carl Crawford signed a
contract to play here for the next seven years. At the time he picked three
other teams in all of baseball that he didn’t want to be traded to. One of them
was the LA Dodgers. Less than two years later, he waived that restriction.
That’s how unbearable the toxic media had made things for him. That’s how much
they had made themselves the story. I can’t do it anymore. Unfortunately, I’ll
still get too much of what they have to say form other locations. I wish I
could stop that too.
The part I can’t stop thinking is that this trade smells of
a cocky GM wanting to make the team his own. I hope Ben’s not pulling a Theo. I
had hoped that since he has been here all along, he might not feel the need.
Hopefully this trade wasn’t made just to clear out all of the old guard. It
just makes a bad move even worse.
There’s just no upside whatsoever.
I hear ya. I always thought CC got a bum rap. From what I read he was pretty shocked at how things deteriorated in Boston last season, what with the chicken-and-beer attitude, so going to LA has got to be a godsend for him now. Here's hoping the Sox dump Bobby V (TERRIBLE idea to begin with) and get things turned around.
ReplyDeleteI don't know how you can see this as anything but a win for us? I break it down like this:
ReplyDeleteWe lost:
1. Gonzalez - one of the best 1st baseman in the game but also someone who has been reported as one of the "problem' guys in the clubhouse.
2. Beckett - He was great on 07 and good ever since except this year. This year he has not been good and the numbers he put up shouldn't be hard to get somewhere else cheaper.
3. Crawford - We haven't got anything out of Crawford in two years. If he had played either of his two years in Boston like the guy that was in Tampa this would be a horrible trade but he never even had a few weeks for us where he was that player. So what we lose is a bad contract.
We Gain:
1. 270 Million in payroll flexability.
So in total we lose one guy who contributed nothing (Crawford) one guy that is easibly replaceable (Beckett) and Gonzalez. So I ask is Gonzalez worth 270 Million? To me the answer is easy, no.
We won't find a 1st baseman of Adrian's caliber for wht we were paying him but with 270 million we can get close and add pitching and pitching is what we really need.
(I agree however that Boston's media is horrible)
What the hell just happened?
ReplyDeleteAdam, if i may...
ReplyDelete1. You said he A-gone was one of the best in the game. If you have one of those on your roster, you keep him. As for clubhouse problem, that's media spin. Why? Because the guy wouldn't talk to them. He sent a text message about a problem on behalf of him and other players. Isn't that the definition of "team captain?" Is that different than Pedroia complaining "that's not how we do things here?" But, Pedroia gives better quotes, so he's not a problem.
2. Beckett has been hurt this year. Is he an ace? Probably not. Is he a valuable pitcher? apparently the Dodgers think so.
3. Crawford had an adjustment year, and a hurt year. I can't give up on him yet. Especially since it's not like the Sox can't afford to wait and see. They're not the Royals.
1. The 270 million. What are they doing with it? Signing Josh Hamilton? I'd rather have Gonzalez. Signing Cody Ross long term? My gosh, I hope not. You only need flexibility if there are holes to be filled. Before this trade, the Sox didn't have any of those.
1. Yes he is one of the best in the game but a team isn't made up of a player. I would rather have 2 good pitchers and a non All-Star first baseman than a superstar on first and nobody's on the mound. I have said before that I myself would hate to play with Pedroia. ALl his braging would get on my nerves. Either way we had no clubhouse problems till Gonzalez was here. Maybe he was the problem maybe not. In 5-10 years Tito will write a book and we will know for sure.
ReplyDelete2. Hasn't he always been hurt? Every year he has a few missed starts for assorted things. Even with Flordia he had problems like that. Blisters, bruised thumb, oblique, quad, etc but he was never as ineffective as he is this year. LA did a medical exam of him before the trade and if he had an actual arm problem they would have turned him down. He can still be an effective pitcher but he isn't an elite pitcher anymore even though he is being paid as one. The National League should help him out though.
3. I didn't like Crawford even when he was in Tampa. To me the only thing special about him is his speed. He doesn't hit for power, doesn't have a huge OBP he is just a normal hitter with super speed. It gioves him a few more doubles and triples which raises his OPS. But with age comes a loss of speed. I can't see him keeping that speed for the lenght of his contract.
1. I hope they don't sign Hamilton. I hope they don't spend it all in ritht away. I hope they give Ortiz the two years he has always wanted, Extend Jacoby long term, give Ross maybe 2 years, sign Marcum, and short term pitching cotracts. TO me you shouldn't spend all your money in the offseason every year. You should have some kind of reserve so that you can pick up people mid year as teams fall out of contention.
It just gives us a ton of options where we had no options before. We were stuck with the same under achiving roster for the next few years.
This is the single best trade in recent history. I joke not. Offload all the salary of guys that were leading a team that was losing. They were disfunctional and terrible and they were bad. Do not forget that. Oh, but they were all former all-stars! They were great on paper! But they were bad.
ReplyDeleteOut with the old and in with the new. The new will not be as torturous as the old. That I guarantee.
I share your disappointment about Crawford being gone. I wanted a full year of a healthy Crawford to see what he could bring.
ReplyDeleteI don't dislike the trade because it ships out Gonzo and Beckett. That's fine with me. I dislike it because we didn't get enough value back.