Orioles "Appear to be the Leading team of interest" to Get Samardzija

[Can_of_corn]

Very tempting. Still, I look at his K/9 going down to 7.7 this year and I have to think that 1.68 ERA is deceptive for a guy with career ERA 3.90. Could turn out to be another Scott Feldman - might bring a couple additional wins over what we have, but still not quite the legit "ace" that we really need. We got Feldman for Arrieta and Strop, neither of whom are in the league of Gausman/Bundy.

For two years of Cliff Lee on the other hand...

Lee is hurt.

Also no to trading any of the kids, well I would trade E-Rod but he won't be enough.

I don't think Samardzija is enough to get this team to the playoffs, and even if he was I would still be very hesitant to give up what would be required.

[Can_of_corn]

I would give up Gausman and E Rod and mayb Bundy and E Rod, but no way I am givingup Harvey.

Shiny new toy much?

I like Harvey, I like him a lot.

Do you seriously rate Harvey over Bundy?

[DrungoHazewood]

Actually the peripherals suggested improvement. Maybe not a 1.68 era but he's pretty good. I'd give Gausman up for him but not much more than that. I like Bundy better and the reports on Harvey sound too good for him to be a secondary piece.

As a starter in 2012-13 his FIP in the NL Central was about 3.60. The league ERA over that period was 3.90-something. To me he looks like a guy who's 10% better than an average NL starter.

[Enjoy Terror]

I'd prefer giving up Gausman, honestly. Just personal bias on my part. I haven't been impressed with his ML/MiL performances thus far, and his inefficiency/wildness bothers me.

See: Tillman, Chris

He took a long time to get where he is, as staff ace. I didn't think he'd be able to do it for similar reasons you don't think much of Gausman. Some guys just aren't immediate impact guys.

Gausman has obvious tremendous talent and he will be amazing for whatever team he plays for in a year or two.

[Aglets]

Actually the peripherals suggested improvement. Maybe not a 1.68 era but he's pretty good. I'd give Gausman up for him but not much more than that. I like Bundy better and the reports on Harvey sound too good for him to be a secondary piece.

Drungo basically already covered this, but I think it can be succinctly stated this way:

His entire career has been spent in the NL Central where he has a cumulative 3.90 ERA. His FIP is 3.80.

I believe that will trend up some moving in the AL and then what you have is basically a league average starter. That is better than 4/5 of our rotation at present, but it's not worth overpaying for.

[MrOrange82]

See: Tillman, Chris

He took a long time to get where he is, as staff ace. I didn't think he'd be able to do it for similar reasons you don't think much of Gausman. Some guys just aren't immediate impact guys.

Gausman has obvious tremendous talent and he will be amazing for whatever team he plays for in a year or two.

Tillman's the staff ace because the staff is full of "pretty good" or average-ish pitchers. IMO, the jury is still out on whether Tillman is even a legitimate #2 starter. Despite last year's 3.71 ERA, his FIP was 4.42. This year (which has been...uneven, at best) his ERA and FIP are more closely aligned (4.69 ERA and 4.62 FIP). Even in his brief run of success in 2012, his 4.25 FIP was much higher than his 2.93 ERA. Bottom line, I don't really like what I've seen from Tillman overall. He's pitched some great games, but those have been more than counterbalanced by really bad games, IMO.

If we're just talking about a 1-for-1, I'd trade the possibility of another Tillman for 1.5 important years of Samardzija ("important" because the O's are in a playoff race surrounded by weakened teams in a winnable division, which might not be the case a couple years from now, especially since some players are almost certainly going to depart via FA).

[webbrick2010]

I would give up Gausman and E Rod and mayb Bundy and E Rod, but no way I am givingup Harvey.

Fascinates me how the new shiny kid on the block is always going to be better than what preceded him.

Do you remember how dominant Bundy was in the minors before he got hurt. Pretty sure he had better numbers than Harvey.

I'd trade any two of the above for Sm??? given that he also signs a minimum 3 year extension, so we lock him up for 4-5 years

[paulcoates]

Can Harvey be traded yet? Is there any reason to believe that Chen and/or Gonzalez won't be throw ins here since someone has to go from the Major League roster?

[Guest]

Gausman Berry and 1 more i would do that. I've seen enough of Gausman to know he wont cut it in the AL East.

[Can_of_corn]

Can Harvey be traded yet? Is there any reason to believe that Chen and/or Gonzalez won't be throw ins here since someone has to go from the Major League roster?

Just make him a PTBNL then send him over in a couple weeks.

[CA-ORIOLE]

As a starter in 2012-13 his FIP in the NL Central was about 3.60. The league ERA over that period was 3.90-something. To me he looks like a guy who's 10% better than an average NL starter.

His peripherals have steadily improved. He is a different pitcher. higher GB rate while maintaining K's due to effective use of his 2 seam fastball. He has a 7.6 fWAR in 2 and 1/3 seasons as a starter. That's what it is about, and it's not just this season. It's what many of us discussed this past offseason. That's way better than "10% better than the average starter".

[Old#5fan]

Shiny new toy much?

I like Harvey, I like him a lot.

Do you seriously rate Harvey over Bundy?

Only because Bundy is damaged goods and how he responds to his surgery remains to be seen.

[Guest]

Side Note Royals keep playing like crap maybe Shields is on market. What is a half a year of him worth?

[Can_of_corn]

Only because Bundy is damaged goods and how he responds to his surgery remains to be seen.

He's throwing.

Harvey is doing well, go back and see what Bundy did at the same level.

[CA-ORIOLE]

Drungo basically already covered this, but I think it can be succinctly stated this way:

His entire career has been spent in the NL Central where he has a cumulative 3.90 ERA. His FIP is 3.80.

I believe that will trend up some moving in the AL and then what you have is basically a league average starter. That is better than 4/5 of our rotation at present, but it's not worth overpaying for.

Disagree. You need look a the peripherals and trends and consider the reasons behind those peripherals and trends.

I am against overpaying based on his current ERA, but he looks like a very solid pitcher right now. Likely better than anyone we have and likely very effective with a better infield behind him.