Tagged: trade

Peavy Update

The latest on a possible Peavy trade has suggested…
Yunel Escobar, Jo Jo Reyes/Charlie Morton, and another prospect for Peavy

I’m not crazy about this trade. I’m a big fan of Escobar and would be extremely hesitant to move him regardless of who I get in return. I firmly believe that Escobar has the potintial to become a player very similar to Derek Jeter and one of the top shortstops in the game for awhile.
Another issue is who replaces Escobar? Lillibridge isn’t ready offensively, but definitely good enough with the glove. Prado could replace Escobar’s bat, but would be a major downgrade defensively.
Free Agents include…
Alex Cintron, Alex Cora, David Eckstein, Adam Everett, Cesear Izturis, and Omar Vizquel all of whom aren’t good enough in my far from professional opinion.
A few name that are worth a mention are…
Rafeal Furcal would be a good fit, but he would be too expensive in all likelihood
Edgar Rentaria can get it done offensively, but his range has depleted and the Braves may be better off just using Prado
Juan Uribe isn’t much of a hitter (.247 avg/386 slg) but a solid defender and still a better hitter than Lillibridge.
Orlando Cabrera is a nice player with a decent bat and a good glove, and shouldn’t command an unreasonable contract probably the best option out there for the Braves
Trade possibilities could include…
Khalil Greene is extremely athletic and a great defender, but he struggled last season hitting just .213 (and even in his best years he was never much of a contact hitter-career high in 04 of .273) and ultimately too expensive with a 6.5 million dollars due to him next season
Clint Barmes hit 290 with 11 HR and 13 SB last year in 107 games and could be a decent fit if Escobar moves on
Bobby Crosby has had trouble staying healthy and hasn’t done much when healthy
The Angels have some depth at short with Erick Aybar, Maicer Izturis, and Brandon Wood and may be willing to move one of them

I don’t have a problem with trading Charlie Morton, even though I think he has a chance to be a good pitcher. If Jo Jo Reyes could be included as a significant part of this deal he will be, the Braves, as have most of the fans, have lost some faith in him.

If I’m Frank Wren, and I not, I would do everything possible to hold on too Escobar in addition to Tommy Hanson.

Could Peavy be a Brave?

The addition of Jake Peavy would be perfect for the Braves. He is an elite pitcher in the prime of his career with a under-market-value contract.

The question is: Can the Braves trade for him?

I will begin by saying I don’t think the Padres should or will trade Peavy for the same reasons he would be a perfect fit for the Braves (or any other team). Padres general manager Kevin Towers did say he would listen to offers for Peavy. However this does not put Peavy on the trading block. There is little doubt that it would take an overwhelming offer to land Peavy; in addition to having Peavy waive his no-trade clause. Considering Jake Peavy is an Alabama native it would make sense that he would be open to coming closer to home.

But what would it take to bring Peavy to Atlanta? Frank Wren said he doesn’t plan on trading his top prospects, but to get Peavy he would have to give up at least one, if not two, of these top prospects.

A trade that I think could work is…
OF-Jordan Schafer,
OF-Cody Johnson,
SP-Kris Medlen, and RP-Zach Schreiber
for
SP-Jake Peavy

Schafer is one of the Braves elite prospects despite a 50-game suspension for HGH use. Schafer has 5-tool potential and could develop into a Grady Sizemore or Curtis Granderson type player.

Johnson is probably the Braves best power-hitting prospect. He could develop into a Pat Burrell type player.

Medlen was one third of a pitching trio that led the Mississippi Braves to the Southern League Championship. He isn’t a top prospect, but he is the next best thing.

Schreiber had a nice year pitching out of the bullpen for the Richmond Braves (now the Gwinnett Braves). His walk total was a little high (26 in 39.1 IP), but his potential is high enough for the Braves to make room on the 40-man roster in order to protect him from the Rule-5 draft.

This is a talented package that the Braves front office may view as to high a price or the Padres may view as insufficient. I personally think it could work and is fair for both sides.