With the trading deadline a few days away, let’s take a look at a few more trades and how the Cardinals prospects would match up.
Marlins acquire RHP Jacob Turner, C-L Rob Brantly, LHP Bryan Flinn for 2B Omar Infante, RHP Anibal Sanchez. (I’m ignoring the compensation draft picks as the Cardinals have none.)
Jacob Turner = Shelby Miller (give or take)
Rob Brantly: (via BP)
He’s a contact machine who works aggressively, as he rarely walks or strikes out, and he employs a line drive swing and uses all fields. This leaves him with limited power and on-base skills, so he needs to hit for average to have value as an offensive catcher. Unfortunately, the more advanced pitching of Triple-A has been able to exploit his expanded strike zone. He’s a capable defender with an average arm and will join Turner at Triple-A, projecting as a future backup or second-division starter.
Cardinal analogous player: Cody Stanley
Bryan Flynn: (via BP)
…six-foot-eight, 240 pound southpaw who can throw strikes with an 88-92 mph fastball, but those are still the most positive things about his scouting profile. His curveball and slider are both below average, as is his changeup, and scouts don’t project much improvement in them. He lacks the big platoon splits of a future LOOGY and will require significant improvement just to make it as a reliever.
Cardinal analogous player: Kevin Siegrist
Cubs agree to acquire RHP Randall Delgado from the Atlanta Brave for RHP Ryan Dempster and cash considerations. (This trade is not yet finalized as Dempster looks like he does not want to approve it, but it is indicative of the market and worth looking at.)
Delgado, ranked the second-best Braves prospect by Kevin Goldstein in February, hasn’t had an easy time of it this season, struggling with his control and pitching to an above-average ERA, but he’s only 22 years old and still technically in his rookie year. The righty hasn’t missed many bats in the majors, relying instead on getting groundballs.
Cardinal analogous player: Trevor Rosenthal
What say you? Would you pull the trigger on any of these deals?
2B Omar Infante and RHP Anibal Sanchez for RHP Shelby Miller, C Cody Stanley and LHP Kevin Siegrist.
RHP Ryan Dempster for RHP Trevor Rosenthal
Entries (RSS)
No.
I also think the publications underate Rosenthal. He was a late round, Juco pick so he will never get the respect he deserves.
+1 on Rosie
Detroit got fleeced.
I have to say that I agree. I would not make that trade msyelf. I do understand Detroit’s reasoning though…good, not great starter, good second-baseman. They needed both, especially Infante as their second basemen have been very poor. The owner wants to push for a championship, and if you can throw verlander multiple times in a series, you always have a chance to win. Plus, I think Shelby is a better prospect than Turner because he hasn’t had the injury concerns that Jacob Turner had in his shoulder. Tenditis could be nothing, but anytime the injury is in the shoulder it is at least concerning.
when i first read rob brantly’s skillset i immediately thought of bryan anderson circa 3 yrs ago. And Randall Delgado’s a young 5 star in AAA – we’d be talking shelby miller or carlos martinez territory.
I thought about comping Carlos Martinez there too, but the fact that Delgado has already been to the majors made Rosenthal a better fit for me.
Of course the key to all of these trades is knowing your own system and your own players better than the other teams do. If you trade a Delgado or a Turner you want to be pretty sure you are not trading away somebody that you think is going to be a future ace and you hope to trade that player away before other teams realize the same thing. The Cardinals have to make a similar determination with Miller. If they still think he is going to be a future ace than you do not trade him.
I certainly wouldn’t make the Rosendeal. Dempster isn’t that good, and the more I see of Rosenthal, the more impressed I am — and I was plenty impressed before he reached the majors.
As for the other one, my initial reaction was no. However, two comments seem appropriate. First, if there was also something brewing (Tyler Greene!) that might turn the team’s excess 2B assets (Tyler Greene!) into something useful in the bullpen or elsewhere (Tyler Greene!), I’d a lot rather have Omar Infante playing second than, well, guess who. Second, I note that Shelby had another lousy start last night, reducing the likelihood that he has turned a corner at Memphis and bringing back into question exactly WTF is going on with him. I can imagine answers to that question, known to the team but unknown to us, that would make such a trade attractive. Based on what we know, still no, but we don’t know everything going on with that guy.
Something to keep in mind is that improvement is never a straight line track. It will have its ups and downs. Shelby has been straight up until this year. This is the first time he has ever had to handle adversity. I think the cards are trying to let him get through it. Remember carp and wino both had major bumps when they were in the minors or early in their pro career. Lohse was no where close to being the pitcher he is today after his first four or five years in the pros. Different people develope differently. If he was doing this in A ball for the 2nd or 3rd year,then the panic level could be a lot higher. If Martinez or tavares struggle for four months in triple a, are they suddly not as good as they are now?
I wouldn’t trade any of the young bucks right now, but just dream with me for a minute. Whose your 2014 rotation: Garcia, Wainwright, Lynn, Kelly, Rosenthal, Miller and Martinez. Not many seven man rotations around and with Gast, Maness, Swagerty, Jenkins, Gorgen, Lyons, Wacha and Siegrist all waiting in the wings. It’s from this second group Mozeliak should deal from.
Brian Flynn…is a Siegrist comp? Give me a break. That’s ludicrous.