Talked to my guy today....

[NATTYBO's]

Okay back to Baseball. With the information that I have gathered I believe Roberts could go to the Cubs soon. We all know Roberts is a fan favorite and has done a good job in the community, and the fans with knowledge know by trading him we would be moving in the right direction in rebuilding. What do you think the "casual fans" reaction would be? Do you think it would be a PR nightmare for the front office?

I think that the casual fans can be convinced that we have a new "face" in Markakis but the front office has to sell this to them. I for one am still oppose to trading him unless we are getting one of Hill or Pie back - in which we hear neither is in the deal.

[mtairydan]

You can forget about Aramis Ramirez being traded. The Cubs have no interest in moving him, and he's got a NTC. If he wanted to play in LAA, he would've just signed there for probably $25M more than he took to stay with the Cubs.

Not that the Cubs would consider this deal in the first place. Hill and Ramirez are the two best players in there, and we're giving both of them.

Okay Dave hopefully this scenario is more equitable for all the teams involved.

Hill, Liz and Tejada to the Angels

Figgins, Roberts and Saunders to the Cubs

Wood, Adenhart, Pie, Gallagher and Cedeno to the Orioles

Secondly Nick has got to be the face of the franchise now and in the future just as Jeter is to the Yankees regardless of who else is on the team.

[nyjimbo]

If we won't want Tejada's pissed off face around, what does that say about Mora?

[Prospect]

Okay back to Baseball. With the information that I have gathered I believe Roberts could go to the Cubs soon. We all know Roberts is a fan favorite and has done a good job in the community, and the fans with knowledge know by trading him we would be moving in the right direction in rebuilding. What do you think the "casual fans" reaction would be? Do you think it would be a PR nightmare for the front office?

Good point Belkast, I also wonder if there would be a loss in revenue for the FO. It seems that nearly 1 in 3 jerseys that I see worn have his name on them.

It remindes me of Damon for the Red Sox. When he went to the MFYs you did not see a whole lot of Crisp jerseys being bought to replace them and I noticed a substantial increase in Damon jerseys at the yard since the move.

Just a thought. Doesn't the FO see substantial $$ from the sale of those items? Would we be missing out on that revenue stream?

[Belkast]

If we won't want Tejada's pissed off face around, what does that say about Mora?

I agree but our options are more limited with Mora's NTC. Hopefully things will open up alittle more. Personally I think we would have traded him to the Phillies already if we made some other moves to get younger. If things go as planned and Philly still sees him as a option then I would think he would still be moved there. I guess the " dominos fallen" plays a pretty big role with the whole Mora situation.

[blueberryale77]

Brian Roberts is a above average second basemen in the prime of his career. He does everything well and is a plus baserunner. He is fairly inexpensive for his level of production.

These things mean he will net a good return in a trade. Other teams definitely need players with his tools.

Brian Roberts is also an asset to the community and a PR blessing for a franchise. This also makes him more valuable in a trade. Other teams want this type of player also.

Do they? My problem with trading him now is that the offer on the table involves 2-3 mediocre players/prospects. Pie I guess is worth a risk because he's the Cubs former top prospect, but though he's extremely physically talented, he lacks virtually all the things that make Roberts great... instincts on the basepaths and in the field, batting eye, ability to work the count... in other words, "the little things." We should not have to throw in a prospect with Roberts to get Pie + a lesser prospect. Roberts needs to go in the right deal, not the first one to come along.

[davearm]

Good point Belkast, I also wonder if there would be a loss in revenue for the FO. It seems that nearly 1 in 3 jerseys that I see worn have his name on them.

It remindes me of Damon for the Red Sox. When he went to the MFYs you did not see a whole lot of Crisp jerseys being bought to replace them and I noticed a substantial increase in Damon jerseys at the yard since the move.

Just a thought. Doesn't the FO see substantial $$ from the sale of those items? Would we be missing out on that revenue stream?

The revenue from licensed merchandise like jerseys is shared equally by all 30 teams.

The O's got just as much from all those Damon jersey sales as did the Red Sox.

[erb8472]

I agree but our options are more limited with Mora's NTC. Hopefully things will open up alittle more. Personally I think we would have traded him to the Phillies already if we made some other moves to get younger. If things go as planned and Philly still sees him as a option then I would think he would still be moved there. I guess the " dominos fallen" plays a pretty big role with the whole Mora situation.

I'm betting he's traded to Philly for a middle reliever.

What do you personally think the chances are of them being able to unload Hernandez?

[davearm]

Do they? My problem with trading him now is that the offer on the table involves 2-3 mediocre players/prospects. Pie I guess is worth a risk because he's the Cubs former top prospect, but though he's extremely physically talented, he lacks virtually all the things that make Roberts great... instincts on the basepaths and in the field, batting eye, ability to work the count... in other words, "the little things." We should not have to throw in a prospect with Roberts to get Pie + a lesser prospect. Roberts needs to go in the right deal, not the first one to come along.

So you want a player just as good as Roberts, only younger, cheaper, and 4 more years from free agency.

Sorry, it doesn't work that way.

[Sports Guy]

I agree but our options are more limited with Mora's NTC. Hopefully things will open up alittle more. Personally I think we would have traded him to the Phillies already if we made some other moves to get younger. If things go as planned and Philly still sees him as a option then I would think he would still be moved there. I guess the " dominos fallen" plays a pretty big role with the whole Mora situation.

We should be looking to trade Mora regardless of what else we do.

If the Phillies are offering warm bodies for him and his contract, take them and sort out how good they are later.

I would ecstatic to trade Mora for a PTBNL to be honest...Anything we get of value is just icing on the cake.

[psk3170]

I have a feeling the Roberts trade to the Cubs is done but BRob does alot of community work for the O's around Christmas so they will wait until that is done before announcing anything. They can wait because McPhail and Hendry are such close friends that their is a trust there. The bottom line is the casual fan will be upset but most fans are either frustrated and want change or are indifferent to the Orioles. All my old Oriole buddies only want to talk Ravens these days.

All I want is a real prospect like "Pie" who has the potential to be Hanley Ramirez good in a few years. Murton, and Patterson are good additions but we need someone that has the potential to be a superstar and the only young player that the Cubs have that is electric is "Pie" and those types of players are few in all of the minors (30 or less players total IMHO) so that would be huge if we can get him. If Pie comes here then it has the potential to be a win-win for both teams. Wood, Kemp, Jones, and Kershaw also fall in that category for me for guys we are talking about.

By the way, Gallagher is no slouch either. He sounds like a right handed Loewen to me 6-6 monster. I hate when my fellow O's fans bash guys like him. He made the majors at 20 years old. When Penn made it at that age we all went crazy and no one here would say we should give him up for peanuts even today. Gallagher was one of the few pitchers to be rated in the top 20 prospect list with Arietta for the AFL. Making that prospect list as a pitcher is close to impossible considering all the teams send their best upper level hitting talent should tell you something about his potential.

Note that I keep using the word potential with all these guys. They always have the chance to be a bust but a guy like Pie or Gallagher is worth the risk. If you go back ad read the reviews of Bedard as a prospect he was never supposed to be a #1. He was constantly rated a #3 by BA the few times he was rated. When I think of Bedard I think of a guy throwing all winter in a cold barn at 20 below in Canada. That is what makes someone go from a #3 to a #1.

At this level talent alone is not enough, you have to work hard. Call it my opinion but Cal would have been good not hall of fame great if it was not for his work ethic and you can say that about most guys in the HOF except a few freaks of nature that just had unnatural God given talent.

[bigbird]

We should be looking to trade Mora regardless of what else we do.

If the Phillies are offering warm bodies for him and his contract, take them and sort out how good they are later.

I would ecstatic to trade Mora for a PTBNL to be honest...Anything we get of value is just icing on the cake.

Problem is he's said he will not approve of anything unless other pieces are first dealt.

[Sports Guy]

Problem is he's said he will not approve of anything unless other pieces are first dealt.

Oh ok....Well, that does change things then.

Thanks for that little tidbit.

[Rocky1983]

I guess my point here is this...I don't think the "casual fan" has any clue about potential prospects that we may get in return. With that said I have to think all they will see is a good player and community guy being traded off of the team, and I could see the talk show callers being pissed! Am I the only one that thinks by trading Roberts that it could result in a negative take to the " casual fans"?

I agree. The casual fan will have a fit. I heard a bunch of callers on local sports talk stations complaining specifically about the Roberts rumors and that the Orioles have no clue. The "casual fan" has no clue. We have been losing with Roberts, Tejada, and Bedard. I like these guys, but we need to do what is best to improve this club and rebuild it the right way, through young talent.

[dabirds]

So you want a player just as good as Roberts, only younger, cheaper, and 4 more years from free agency.

Sorry, it doesn't work that way.

Let's get this straight - Pie is NOT as good as Roberts. Roberts is an all-star second basemen. Pie is a prospect. Pie has as much and probably more upside than Roberts, but that does not mean he will obtain it. As a contending team you give up potential to get the sure thing. The risk in this trade is on the Orioles side.