FVBrewerFan

Just have this feeling a deal doesn't get done with the Tribe. Seems like they would like to have Lucroy, but it would be more of a luxury than a need- in their opinion. And if that's the case, they're never going to be willing to offer what Stearns would (and should) want back.

I completely understand it's the norm for teams to wait until the last day or two to make these deals, but I always wonder WHY. For example, if you're Cleveland and have a burning need for a catcher and a late inning pitcher why do you waste weeks and miss out on all that production? Could be the difference between having HFA or not in the playoffs. All because you want to get picky about the package you're giving up? If some of these teams are truly going for it, it's never made sense to me why they wait so long. I like what the Brewers did with Sabathia, got him a month early and that made a huge difference.

First glance, really tough rounding out the top 10. It will take a lot of faith in talent over results to place some of these guys where they probably "should" be placed. I may go more with results than projection this time around. Medeiros vs Wang is a textbook case of what I'm talking about.

Free Mitch Ghelfi!

Brewers couldnt trade Garza if they paid his entire salary through next year. Why would the Dodgers even want him, let alone give up any young talent whatsoever?

Yea we need to be patient, it's not even August. Let's see what happens over the next week. Elmore is still on the 25 for crying out loud, so there will be more moves soon enough. Just because Wren came up to CS and is hot for month, he's not going anywhere. Still over two months to go this season, we will see him get a chance I believe.

The Brewers can't get a big return for their bullpen guys. Chapman is a proven, elite closer. Cubs may/ may not have overpaid for him, but he's on a different level than Smith/Jeffress. And on a different planet from Boyer, Torres, Blazek, etc. That's not to say the Brewers can't get a decent return for Smith or Jeffress, I just don't think it will be a BIG return. Look deep into the numbers and they are good relief pitchers, but definitely not elite.

I get why the Cubs would do this, absolutely. They haven't won a WS in their 300 year history. This season everything is lining up so far, have all the money in the world, and still have a lot of young talent from MLB all the way down, so even after making this deal it's not a one time shot for them. This is what I think the Indians should be doing as well, because everything said above is true for them also- with the exception of having a ton of money. Lucroy/Smith just makes perfect sense for them.

Jimmy Nelson could be that guy, depending on how he performs moving forward. Santana could be, way too early to know that yet. Villar has potential to be that type of guy. But yea, your point is taken. None of those three guys have the value (yet) that Lucroy has.

Pretty sure that's not in any team's rebuilding manual. "Trade your best chip for a broken down 27 year old Catcher (sort of)" I don't get the Mets. Not a bunch of fools over there with the pitching talent they have developed, and still a decent system. But this is two years in a row now they're yanking the Brewers chain. Do they think they can bully the little old Brewers into a bad trade? Also two years in a row they made things public. We don't know the story, but I really hope Stearns is polite yet firm with them. As in "I would love to get a deal done with you, but please don't waste my time and yours."

Also, important to note some of those guys (Broxton, Kirk) were never brought in to be a long term solution in CF, they're just too old. But they could have been guys to flip, or at least hold down CF for a couple years. I still think there's a chance Broxton could be ok in CF given a longer opportunity to see what he can do. At the same time, I get why he hasn't had that chance.

Thanks for tracking down the (bad) news on Luna. Although not that surprising, had a feeling it was TJ.

"Fair" compensation? It must be fair if players are willing to keep playing. Getting paid anything to play the game you love is a job a whole lot of young men would take. It's a temporary job anyhow. Either you make it to MLB or move on in life to something else. Milb is also an internship to get a job within the organization.

Makes one long for the days of Mark Kotsay roaming CF

This means Lucroy is their priority. So obvious that his source is in the Indians organization, so why else would they leak this info. Bargaining tactic. The moment the Braves were suggested is the moment I tuned out the insider experts. We're hearing nothing about Boston, Dodgers, etc which tells me it will be someone like that. We'll make a deal with the tribe for Smith or Jeffress though.

I remember previously that is what the Brewers were looking for from Texas. And here I thought Gallo was exactly the type of player we wanted to avoid rebuilding around. Chicks dig the long ball, I'll take obp and athleticism.

Earlier today I sent Todd Rosiak a request to ask about Luna in his next session with Tom Flanagan. In March I was told "not Tommy John" (wasn't told if it was even arm-related), and 2-3 month rehab. I appreciate it! I can't keep putting him at #25 on our top prospect list if his arm is shot.

Put me down for Ponce.

Carlos Luna- Still haven't seen if it's been confirmed or denied he's had TJ. But he dominated DSL last year, and haven't heard his name since- other than a brief mention that he was put on the DL.

None of these talking heads has a clue. They are wrong all the time. Look, the Brewers are probably seriously talking to a dozen or more teams about various players. Some reporter gets a whiff on ONE of these conversations, and suddenly it's their big scoop.

Arcia was the youngest player in AAA (I think) when the season started. Nottingham in AA is aggressive, he is over 2 years younger than avg in AA. Tyrone Taylor was aggressive assignment LAST year. Medeiros was promoted to A+ very quickly, Diplan/Peralta were promoted very quickly to A+ this season for their age. Clark starting the season in A ball. Ortega in AA. There are others I'm sure, but those come to mind. I'm not saying I agree or disagree with any of those promotions, just examples of aggressive assignments based on age and/or results.

Nottingham is very young for AA, so he does have that going for him. Would have been great if he broke out this year, but I agree let him stick at Catcher next year. Time is still his friend at this point.

Exactly. Most players have the natural talent to be a good defensive player, or not. In some cases, it's finding the right position for the skills a player has. Braun, for example, was never going to be a MLB SS. So they tried hard to make him stick at 3B, just didn't work. He was a t least an average LF in his younger years. I see Gatewood the same way. I've seen him play 3B several times, and he didn't look natural or improved since the fist time I saw him play there. Could they commit to keeping there and stick to it for another year or longer? Sure. But like it or not, it's still all about whether the bat will play. And guys like Gatewood, Coulter, Nottingham, etc. are too far away from MLB to really worry too much about position, who is blocked at a position, etc. That could mean there's no Catcher or 3B on the horizon throughout the system. That's ok! At this point in the rebuild, it really doesn't matter if they have a couple holes down the road. They need a rotation, and they need to fill most of the positions on the field. But if they still need a Catcher or 3B down the road when they're truly competitive they'll have a ton of money to spend on a couple good position players. Plus WAR guys at least. They could even go cheaper and get a short term fix for a year or two. Brewers have been adding a ton of SS,CF, and C into the organization. Not al those guys can play there, and you just hope that will build depth in the other positions as well. But any way you slice it, guys like Gatewood need to keep improving at the plate (ie, taking more walks) and if he ends up being a 1B or LF, that's fine.

Both. They have enough trade chips to get "the guy" in one trade, and package in others.

Nice job! Now fix Phillips, Coulter, and Medeiros and get them promoted!