Sun: Cubs Offer Ceden, Gallagher, Veal and maybe a 4th player - For Roberts

[joeride]

He's too smart to allow a key player to get hurt right before the trade deadline a couple years down the road when the O's are in a pennant race?

Hopefully by then we will have a strong farm system where all he has to do is make call to AA or AAA to get some body qualified.

[Ruzious]

LOL, the Cubs were not being rational in expecting the O's to be rational. Gotcha.

And... huh?

[blueberryale77]

Huh?......

You said MacPhail was "too smart" to get himself into a situation where he would have to make a snap decision. While MacPhail's intelligence relative to other baseball executives could be debated until the cows come home, one thing is certain: his intelligence couldn't possibly be sufficient to prevent emergent situations from taking shape and forcing him to make a decision in a hurry. Should he be successful in rebuilding the Orioles into contenders, his ability to act under fire would become crucial to the team's chances of going from also-rans to champions.

[Ruzious]

You said MacPhail was "too smart" to get himself into a situation where he would have to make a snap decision. While MacPhail's intelligence relative to other baseball executives could be debated until the cows come home, one thing is certain: his intelligence couldn't possibly be sufficient to prevent emergent situations from taking shape and forcing him to make a decision in a hurry. Should he be successful in rebuilding the Orioles into contenders, his ability to act under fire would become crucial to the team's chances of going from also-rans to champions.

Can you give me some examples of when GMs had to make such important snap decisions?

[mapierce]

Can you give me some examples of when GMs had to make such important snap decisions?

Colleti maybe? If he actually thought out that Juan Pierre contract then that was pretty sad...

[blueberryale77]

Can you give me some examples of when GMs had to make such important snap decisions?

Just off the top of my head...

Last year Chase Utley broke his wrist and Pat Gillick picked up Tadahito Iguchi at the deadline to fill in at 2B.

Two years ago after Duaner Sanchez's car accident, Omar Minaya pulled off a fairly big last minute trade sending Xavier Nady to the Pirates for Roberto Hernandez and Oliver Perez. Hernandez didn't quite make up for Sanchez's absence in the bullpen (to put it mildly), but Perez has resurrected his career and become a mainstay of their rotation after being acquired in a panic trade.

Just about every year at least one contender goes through a situation like that.

[HarryReasonable]

The bottom line is - Roberts just may be the final piece of the Cubs puzzle to get them over the hump and to the World Series (no guarantees, but if you're Cubs, that's how you have to look at him in your lineup, or why would you even be thinking about it?). Does he give you a better chance than the horses you would put at 2B now? Most people would say yes.

From the Orioles standpoint, it doesn't matter that much - we don't need to trade Brian. But if we get enough pieces that may be legitimate long-term answers for the O's, not just a few castoffs that don't fit into another team's immediate plans, then you do the deal.

How many "Gallaghers" do you need, and Cedeno, EPat and Murton apparently do not have the tremendous upside and tools that someone like Pie or an Adam Jones would have, that would make this deal a no-brainer for the O's. We're not going anywhere, so it doesn't matter.

Since Brian Roberts is a hypothetical/potential difference maker for the Cubs, they theoretically have more at stake by not getting this done. Just my opinion.

[rynomites]

why? because...unlike the o's...the Cub is trying to win now. Robert's has more value now to the o's than he will later. The closer he gets to free agcy, the less trade value he has on the open market. I see little reason why the o's would keep him when they are being offered multiple legit prospects in positions of need. The o's will not win again for years & roberts will not be around for it.

[BaltimoreTerp]

why? because...unlike the o's...the Cub is trying to win now. Robert's has more value now to the o's than he will later. The closer he gets to free agcy, the less trade value he has on the open market. I see little reason why the o's would keep him when they are being offered multiple legit prospects in positions of need. The o's will not win again for years & roberts will not be around for it.

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[Boy Howdy]

March 20, 2008 - With Felix Pie's Cactus League OBP way below .300 after an extended slump, as more innings get thrown by guys who will actually start the year in the big leagues, Cubs manager Lou Piniella rips Jim Hendry a new one within earshot of reporters.

"Get me that Roberts SOB to leadoff right now!", Piniella is heard hollering. "They want this Pie fellow who has a chance to be a helluva player when I'm retired on a golf course somewhere in Tampa and that Ceda kid that has no idea where his 100 mph fastball is going? They can have them dagnabbit! You espect me to beat the Cardinals and the Astros and Reds this year, right? Then give 'em Gallagher & Cedeno too and get me some G.D. major league ballplayers! Send the kids to Trembley and MacPhail to babysit so I can win some effin' ballgames! You got that?"

"Andy, we need to talk," Hendry is overheard saying into his cellphone as he walked out of range of reporters.

[T2E2C]

March 20, 2008 - With Felix Pie's Cactus League OBP way below .300 after an extended slump, as more innings get thrown by guys who will actually start the year in the big leagues, Cubs manager Lou Piniella rips Jim Hendry a new one within earshot of reporters.

"Get me that Roberts SOB to leadoff right now!", Piniella is heard hollering. "They want this Pie fellow who has a chance to be a helluva player when I'm retired on a golf course somewhere in Tampa and that Ceda kid that has no idea where his 100 mph fastball is going? They can have them dagnabbit! You espect me to beat the Cardinals and the Astros and Reds this year, right? Then give 'em Gallagher & Cedeno too and get me some G.D. major league ballplayers! Send the kids to Trembley and MacPhail to babysit so I can win some effin' ballgames! You got that?"

"Andy, we need to talk," Hendry is overheard saying into his cellphone as he walked out of range of reporters.

I know for a factoid that Lou never said such a thing because he & Dibs were having a brew after going 10 rounds again.

Besides, it's too late to get Pie in a trade. It should have been done last year, then the FO could have announced that they got Cherry Pie for Trachsel.

[hoosiers]

We are just posting in circles and have debated this to the smallest detail.

IMO, the bottom line is that we are offering an all-star quality player with an attractive contract and are getting back only Gallagher from the Cubs top five prospects, none of their projected starting pitchers or position players or top bp arms or recently graduated prospects like Pie or Marmol. So, of the Cubs top 20-22 most valuable players in the organization, they are offering up one (Gallagher) for BRob. If BRob is going to outperform all of the players offered in the deal from a VORP, WARP or win-shares perspective all by himself, why would we make the deal? There needs to be more likely and better production offered by the Cubs before this is going to work.

It doesn't matter to me if the Cubs make eight or eighty offers if they all stink.

[ugadawg38]

In no particular order I'd probably rank Butler, Spoone, Tillman, and Penn ahead of Gallagher. Minimum.

Any reason for this?

FWIW Gallagher threw two good innings today

[Terps23]

Any reason for this?

FWIW Gallagher threw two good innings today

Not really worth all that much... Even Cabrera manages a couple good innings every once in a while

[ugadawg38]

March 20, 2008 - With Felix Pie's Cactus League OBP way below .300 after an extended slump, as more innings get thrown by guys who will actually start the year in the big leagues, Cubs manager Lou Piniella rips Jim Hendry a new one within earshot of reporters.

"Get me that Roberts SOB to leadoff right now!", Piniella is heard hollering. "They want this Pie fellow who has a chance to be a helluva player when I'm retired on a golf course somewhere in Tampa and that Ceda kid that has no idea where his 100 mph fastball is going? They can have them dagnabbit! You espect me to beat the Cardinals and the Astros and Reds this year, right? Then give 'em Gallagher & Cedeno too and get me some G.D. major league ballplayers! Send the kids to Trembley and MacPhail to babysit so I can win some effin' ballgames! You got that?"

"Andy, we need to talk," Hendry is overheard saying into his cellphone as he walked out of range of reporters.

LOL good Lou impression I really do like it. I would be tempted to throw in Ceda but it would have to be a deal of just Gallagher and Ceda for Roberts then..

Would this be fair to Orioles fans?

Ceda, Galalgher and Patterson for Roberts?