CASTRO DEAL
It sucked.
OK, I needed to do that.
This was not a good trade at all.
Look, Tommy Pham was obtained by Tampa for less, in my opinion. Yes, the Cardinals got 3 prospects for Pham but the highest was 15th rated Rays prospect.
Willi Castro, who we traded for Martin/Dowdy, was our #8 prospect.
Hey, I don't think Castro projects, at least right now, to be any better than Erik Gonzalez. He could definitely have been traded. But for Martin/Dowdy?
Absolutely freaking not and here is why:
1. This organization is filled with guys like Martin, only better. Lefthanded hitters with speed like Allen, Zimmer and Naquin are all passable AND not even close to arbitration. This TOTALLY negates the fact that Martin still is under control after this year and increases a logjam that we have for lefthanded hitting center field types.
2. The Cardinals just traded Tommy Pham to Tampa Bay for 3 prospects, their #15, #28 and one other guy. We traded our #8 prospect, Castro. I will make the argument that Castro is better than the package Tampa Bay gave up. I have seen Pham play for two years now. He is a good player who is having an off-season.
No, Tommy Pham was a much better choice for us. He hits right handed, which we need. Martin adds nothing, in my opinion, after this year although this year he does save Rajai Davis' legs. Castro may not have ever been the starting SS but he was worth a lot more than we got in this trade.
As far as Dowdy, let's hope he becomes a good relief prospect. There are stats there that make me think he can be. However, it may be 2 years away, if ever. I don't think he rates as high as Cam Hill right now and Hill has been hurt most of the year.
I am on board with Castro being traded but this is, to me, just the same as a two month rental for a mediocre piece. Not a good use of Castro, IMHO.
CAPEL/TORRES DEAL
OK, like many who have opined already, this is a head scratching deal for me. Mercado is closer to the majors but Capel and Torres are younger.
Maybe Mercado could be swung in another deal. Maybe there is a team that wants Mercado but couldn't get him from the Cardinals. If you look at him as a centerfielder he is maybe an upgrade from Greg Allen but that isn't saying much. Martin and Zimmer are everyday players even with their warts. I don't know if Mercado adds much to the mix as a rookie 4th outfielder even next year and if he ever develops, it may be outside of window of competitiveness.
Now what we gave up is interesting. Capel was assigned to Lake County last year due to need and he survived the first half of the season and prospered in the 2nd half. This year he has settled in as a young guy at High A but his numbers are not eye-popping but he is young for his league. So this is a 50/50 thing to me. I have seen guys do what Capel is doing and get more credit than they deserve because they are young for their league. But once they get to the higher levels of the minors they stall. However, Capel is the sort of long-term prospect that can bite you in the butt some day if he puts it all together and just develops one plus tool (i.e., power). Torres is so young it is hard to know what to make of him but I have seen flashes in his stats during the year and my guess is that the Cardinals have seen him for a while and like his long, long-term potential as he matures physically.
So we trade for an older prospect closer to the majors who doesn't except for his speed, show much else and won't help us this year and, in the majors of today, doesn't have much of a place as he isn't a power hitter. If his defense improves he looks like a righthanded version of Leonys Martin but trading prospects for a platoon player or a 4th outfielder type does not help now or in the future.
I am not excited about this trade because, like the Martin trade, it spends resources in ways that doesn't really help the long-term future of this franchise in any way I can guess. But that's what scouts and player development is for, I guess.
If you are going to trade prospects get something back that will help now or is more guaranteed to help later. I don't see either of these trades doing that. It just looked like we re-arranged the deck chairs while spending resources. I don't like that approach at all.
No comments:
Post a Comment