The rumors coming out of Chicago today were stating that the Cubs (18-32 so far in 2012) were about to go into "firesale" mode, offering any player on their roster in a deal with the exception of SP Jeff Samardzija. That got the baseball gossip train moving on the possibility that SS Starlin Castro, the teams 22-year old phenom, could be had in the right deal.
Shortstop hungry teams (The Pirates included) immediately saw the internet light up with fantasy trade offers for Castro. Speculation all day was about whom the Pirates would have to give up in a potential deal for the superstar shortstop. Names like Taillon, Cole, Marte, Allie, etc. were thrown around the message boards and social media realms, with the fan base split 50/50 on whether the Bucs should mortgage their future for a chance to obtain a player who could help them win this season and be under control for another four years.
A few hours later, the Cubs were squashing those rumors at every chance. Bottom line: Castro is at the "top of the list" of players who are untouchable in Chicago. Veterans like SP Ryan Dempster, OF Alfonso Soriano, SP Matt Garza, and even young first baseman Bryan LaHair are all available for the right price. Even with hefty price tags, starting pitchers with the pedigrees of Dempster and Garza will find homes very easily. Soriano is a different case, with $48 million remaining on his long-term deal and a declining skill set that has rendered him a mediocre player in his twilight years.
Let's play devil's advocate for a minute and assume the Pirates are buyers and the Cubs are dangling Starlin Castro out there. What would it take to acquire him? The Cubs GM is Theo Epstein, not an easy guy to get over on when it comes to player evaluation and value. The immediate reaction would be that the Pirates would need to offer a deal that is based around either SP prospect Gerrit Cole or Jameson Taillon, two first-round picks that are being counted on to become the aces of the Bucs future pitching staff. Of course, we would need to throw in OF Starling Marte for good measure and add a third player out of the B-class prospects (Jeff Locke, Robbie Grossman, etc.). That would make this deal the biggest gamble the Pirates organization ever undertook. The odds of GM Neil Huntington giving away the best talent he has accumulated in his tenure is slim, and the odds of the Pirates even talking about Cole/Taillon is even slimmer. Marte is probably going to be in Pittsburgh by July as the Pirates begin to make decisions on the long-term playability of OF Alex Presley, Gorkys Hernandez, and even Jose Tabata - the latter having regressed badly this season.
Last season at the trade deadline, the Houston Astros were dangling OF Hunter Pence to contenders for a package that would have to include at least one top prospect. The Pirates inquired, but didn't like what they heard and settled for minor deals that brought 1B Derrek Lee and OF Ryan Ludwick to the Steel City. The Philadelphia Phillies pulled the trigger on Pence, and ended up getting him for a package of mid-level talent that made GM Ruben Amaro look like a genius. How nice would Hunter Pence have looked playing right field in the black and gold this season? He is currently holding the Phillies lineup together while the team waits for All Stars Ryan Howard and Chase Utley to return from injuries.
As much as we all want to the Pirates to be for real in 2012 - and they very well could be - this team is not going to trade away blue-chippers like Gerrit Cole or Starling Marte for ANYBODY. It just isn't the way small market teams do business. The Pirates need to take a lesson from the Tampa Bay Rays, who have been World Series contenders for a few years now and have accomplished that through player development and bargain gems they found on waivers or in the mid-season free agent dump. The Rays are the cream of the crop when talking about small market clubs, and when the Pirates do contend, it will be by following the same format.
The Bucs will make some deals if they are in the race come July 31. Perhaps they go out and get a big bat or another lights-out bullpen arm. Regardless of what they do, they won't be trading all of the aforementioned players and the return package will not include Cubs SS Starlin Castro. Sorry Pirates fans, but that is reality.
No comments:
Post a Comment