KeithStone53151

Hamels is a logical target for the Cubs because his contract is prohibitive for many teams to get involved. He's owed roughly $9 million the rest of the season, that's no small dollar amount when it's for 2 months. They might be able to get this done. I liked the idea of targeting Hamels previously, but at the moment I don't think he's a great fit. I do hope we get involved to make it more expensive for the Cubs though...

He's actually on the books through 2031, with 10 years of deferred salary. Ah. So we will have our very own Bobby Bonilla. Right, he is relevantly on the books through 2020 though. $4 million buyout and the small amounts of deferred salary aren't really going to impact anything. I'm moreso referring to those big $20 million numbers.

As much as I don't like the trade, it will be nice having another really strong option in the bullpen. There won't be days where Jeffress/Hader/Knebel were all used 2 of the last 3 days and are mostly unavailable...so we throw out Drake/Logan/yuck pitchers and it costs us games. We should be able to nail down games that we get leads in the first 5-6 innings at a very high clip going forward. And maybe this acquisition revitalizes some of the guys.

Right. Let a deep pockets team spend that kind of money on a reliever. That's not were the Brewers should be spending that kind of money and I believe Moneyball thinking also states not to spend a lot on relievers. That is not spending a lot in a 1 year contract. Any time you can get a player for just a 1 year commitment it is worth paying the premium. That is also the same money they gave a 32 year old Eric Gagne for 1 year, certainly not unheard of. For the next couple of years we still have some payroll flexibility especially for 1 year type deals. 2019 in particular is going to be very difficult to handle that $10 million option. I'm not going to hijack this thread with an in depth look at payroll, but we have significant commitments in 2019 and probably won't have a ton of room to add payroll. That $10 million would really hurt our flexibility. We don't get much of a break until Braun's contract is gone after 2020.

Sounds like he'll join the team Friday.

I've seen multiple sources list that option as a team option, not a mutual option...

Drury and McKinney. It's annoying seeing the Yankees trade spare parts for value.

I think that's pretty much all you had to say. Good trade. That's entirely untrue, we would have found a spot for him. I understand we would have had to expose talented players in rule 5 next year, I just strongly disagree that he would have been one of them.

The main reason I dislike this deal as much as I do is specifically Kodi, I've grown very fond of him and have enjoyed watching him develop. I really think he's underrated and would have preferred giving up a slightly higher ranked prospect like Brown. If they sent enough money back in the deal, it's probably a reasonable deal on it's face. I just wish it were someone else we gave up.

Stearns just lost some of that unlimited amount of rope...as far as I'm concerned. Medeiros is so much more valuable than what the Athletics gave up for Familia.

oh dear god, you've got to be kidding me. I hate this trade now. Yuck

I could see Ponce for Soria, maybe Gatewood. Someone in that range that's a 40 man guy this offseason.

Oh man, Soria has a pricey contract with an option. Hard to imagine a huge return from us.

Not sure what you are objecting to. Showing me all trades by all MLB teams says nothing about DS and his nature. I see no history or indication that says DS is going to be pushed into a trade just because of a deadline. Sure, if the right guy falls into their lap at the deadline then I'm sure he will make that call but typically that will be a smaller move like Jeffress was last year. The tendency is for teams to overpay right at the deadline and I just don't see DS getting involved in a bidding war because said deadline is looming. Frankly that is simply correct. I'm specifically objecting to the idea that it is less likely that the Brewers make a major acquisition before the deadline. Stearns has made selling trades on deadline day plenty, this is his first time being a serious buyer. And this team is much different than the team last year. Much more complete, and much more talented. Rentals make a lot more sense this year at the right price, and not all rentals go up in asking price as the deadline approaches...I would actually argue more rentals go down in value. Specifically looking at the 2b market, it's just as likely that teams with a rental 2b lower their asking price(as the blue jays have with happ) as they absolutely have to move them or get nothing. 2B market is a buyers market, there are more 2b options than teams that need help at 2b. Unless the Twins rattle off 3 or 4 wins in a row and Cleveland loses ground, they will 100% trade Dozier for whatever the best offer is...which probably means lowering their asking price. I'll agree that it generally isn't in Stearns nature to overpay, but at the same time he surprised everyone with his aggression in the Machado sweepstakes. He didn't win, but he came close and his offer was probably an overpay from a value standpoint...just not as much of one as the Dodgers offer.

Wheeler has been better than you'd think. 3.5 FIP. And don't forget, Peralta is going to get shut down at some point. He's at 104 innings and pitched 120 last year. I would think 150 will be a soft cap...possibly willing to go to 155, so 45-50 innings or probably 6-8 starts max. I'd be surprised if he pitched much if at all in September...and we really shouldn't bank on Nelson or Davies returning.

Kind of thought Ray would make it, he definitely has the credentials this year. Ray's trajectory kind of exposes some flaws in the ranking systems if you ask me. He was really overrated after the draft. Now he's been really underrated since then. One other flaw, I'm trying to figure out how Amaya belongs in the top 100. He's having an ok season in low a after 2 dreadful seasons, and it really was primarily one good month in April...he's been mediocre at best lately. He's a decent prospect, but to make these lists at that age/level...you really need to stand out and he doesn't. These pipeline guys just couldn't stand not having a cub in their top 100 could they?

Murphy has only played 30 games or so, was coming back from knee surgery in the offseason. He's improved as of late and is getting better. 471 OPS in June and 792 OPS in July, it shouldn't be surprising that a guy might struggle his first week or two considering when he came back.

I tend to agree, they probably should sell but they probably will remain all in. That may change if they lose a few games or if Strasburgs injury is more serious. If they do, Murphy would be an excellent fit. I'm also curious what Harper could command if traded. He probably could get as much if not more value than Machado.

MLB just posted an updated top 100 and top 30s. Hiura 27, Burnes 53, Peralta 82.

The Nationals are currently 50-51 and 7 games back in the division(behind 2 teams) and 5.5 games back in the wildcard. They also generally aren't playing all that well and now Strasburg is headed to the DL. Is there any chance the Nationals become last minute sellers? And if so, could Murphy be a realistic target at 2b? Seems crazy to think they'd punt the season in Harper's last year, but it might be the right decision if they lose 2 of the next 3 to the lowly Marlins.

I would be shocked if we didn't grab someone, and when the dust settles I suspect Saladino will be the primary backup at SS/2b with Miller and possibly Villar or Perez gone. I wouldn't be shocked at all. We saw this play out very similarly last trade deadline and after the Yelich/Cain acquisitions. DS isn't going to overpay for anyone under any circumstances. We might get Swarzak/Walker level moves for extra rule 5 pieces but the longer this goes the more likely that there isn't a major acquisition. That is simply incorrect. The link below shows every deadline deal last year. The day with the most deals was naturally July 31st. That tells me it absolutely does not become less likely that we make a major acquisition the longer this goes on. https://www.sbnation.com/mlb/2017/7/18/15989724/2017-mlb-trade-deadline-rumor-tracker

He always gets it done, until he sets a team up for 5 years of failure and leaves... The Red Sox would probably still be bad had the Dodgers not bailed them out for some unknown reason.

Just a friendly reminder that Ramos is dreadful defensively. CS% 17 and 22 percent the last 2 seasons. Obviously his bat is an upgrade, but be aware you are sacrificing defense if he's acquired.

I would be shocked if we didn't grab someone, and when the dust settles I suspect Saladino will be the primary backup at SS/2b with Miller and possibly Villar or Perez gone.

Fair point, but I think they tried doing that over the offseason and didn't get any takers. Maybe Happ's value has gone up a bit, but the market has proven they don't value 1b/DH only types very highly. No rebuilding team is going to look at Schwarber and be happy sticking him in LF, unless they are solely looking to make their fans laugh at his comically bad defense. Plus, generally speaking, rebuilding teams that are trading players with multiple years of team control are going to want prospects as they aren't likely to be competitive immediately. That's why I figure the Rays and Mets aren't a match with the Cubs. The Blue Jays actually could be in my opinion and specifically for Ian Happ, considering Vlad is coming and they probably want some good pieces around him...but that's purely my opinion/speculation, only they know what they want. But I think a Happ+ for Stroman deal could make sense.