The Thread in which we post LF'ers we should go after

[LookitsPuck]

Baldelli? Ugh.....

[Sports Guy]

No. Because I really don't think thats what would turn this team around. I'm sorry I really can't be convinced right now that that is what would be best for this team as of now, or the future. What happens if we trade Bedard, Guthrie comes back to earth, and Cabrera still doesnt develop? We're left where we were for 5 or more years. Needing more starting pitching.

What happens if/when Bedard leaves after 2009, we have not competed and we still don't have the positional talent?

[geschinger]

No. Because I really don't think thats what would turn this team around. I'm sorry I really can't be convinced right now that that is what would be best for this team as of now, or the future. What happens if we trade Bedard, Guthrie comes back to earth, and Cabrera still doesnt develop? We're left where we were for 5 or more years. Needing more starting pitching.

This team needs a quantity of quality and the quickest and best way to accomplish that is to consider trading someone the caliber of Bedard as painful as that would be.

[Baltoravensrule]

What happens when we make a legit effort in the next two years to be competitive (and are relatively successful) and then offer Bedard a fair deal? He wants to stay.

[geschinger]

What happens when we make a legit effort in the next two years to be competitive (and are relatively successful) and then offer Bedard a fair deal? He wants to stay.

How do you get there (being a winner) in the next two years without making a trade that brings quantity of quality back? We need too much.

[El Gordo]

The club needs a young CF, a SS, a power hitting DH, a LF, a 1B and a top of the rotation SP. Bedard could get you at least 2 and maybe 3 of these positions filled.

[Baltoravensrule]

Hes not going to net you a proven top of the rotation guy. He might net you a potential top starter. But while you MIGHT get one, you trade away a PROVEN top of the rotation guy.

[davearm]

The club needs a young CF, a SS, a power hitting DH, a LF, a 1B and a top of the rotation SP. Bedard could get you at least 2 and maybe 3 of these positions filled.

The Cubs are a team with all of that to offer in the majors and/or upper minors, and a GM that's in full-fledged win-now mode.

[24fps]

Right now Baldelli just seems really injury prone, and it's not as if they're silly little accidents that he gets unlucky with. It's really a shame because when he is healthy he is another player I'd love to have.

So you're saying he's like the Sid Fernandez of OF's...

OK I'm kidding, but to my mind he's beginning to resemble Reggie Sanders a little too much for my comfort level. With luck, his injury history will clear up and he will reach his terrific potential, but I wonder if, with all the other needs the Orioles have at the moment, gambling elsewhere might make more sense.

[El Gordo]

The Cubs are a team with all of that to offer in the majors and/or upper minors, and a GM that's in full-fledged win-now mode.

So who would you give me for Bedard. I would want Pie, Murton and a top SP prospect.

[Say O!]

Despite the amount of holes on the O's team, I am still completely against trading Bedard.

What nets out better? Bedard + some solid average players or 3 prospects who might turn out to be above average players.

I will take the SUPERSTAR meshed with average players over the 3 above average ones everytime.

The O's problem is that they have not even gotten average performance/players. Instead they have some of the worst in the league in terms of Huff, Payton, Patterson, Gibbons.

Besides, most GMs are now reluctant to part with 2, let alone 3 of their best prospects as they hang onto players who will be cheap rather than progressively more expensive arbitration eligible players like Bedard.

[El Gordo]

Despite the amount of holes on the O's team, I am still completely against trading Bedard.

What nets out better? Bedard + some solid average players or 3 prospects who might turn out to be above average players.

I will take the SUPERSTAR meshed with average players over the 3 above average ones everytime.

The O's problem is that they have not even gotten average performance/players. Instead they have some of the worst in the league in terms of Huff, Payton, Patterson, Gibbons.

Besides, most GMs are now reluctant to part with 2, let alone 3 of their best prospects as they hang onto players who will be cheap rather than progressively more expensive arbitration eligible players like Bedard.

I'm not ready to declare Bedard a super star but for the sake of arguement let's say he is. I would rather have three above average players like Nick Markakis than Bedard and a bunch of Huffs, Moras, and Millars.

[blahblah]

How is Fiorentino's defense? (Isn't he a Centerfielder??).

I wouldn't expect a lot of HR power from him, but wouldn't

he be a cheap, immediate upgrade on Patterson? Or is

his defense much much worse, rather than merely step

down?

Elliot

[24fps]

Despite the amount of holes on the O's team, I am still completely against trading Bedard.

What nets out better? Bedard + some solid average players or 3 prospects who might turn out to be above average players.

I will take the SUPERSTAR meshed with average players over the 3 above average ones everytime.

The O's problem is that they have not even gotten average performance/players. Instead they have some of the worst in the league in terms of Huff, Payton, Patterson, Gibbons.

Besides, most GMs are now reluctant to part with 2, let alone 3 of their best prospects as they hang onto players who will be cheap rather than progressively more expensive arbitration eligible players like Bedard.

I'm guessing you mean "...over the 3 potentially above average ones..."

I think this is a really good point. Huff, Patterson, Payton, Gibbons and the rest should be the solid middle-class citizens of this team - making steady if unspectacular contributions enough to where we're in games more often than not.

Sadly that hasn't been the case this year. I still have some hope for Huff, but I'm not convinced that we have to trade Bedard (for example) to compensate for the shortcomings of Gibbons, Patterson etc.

Let's not overcomplicate things.

[wildcard]

To me you keep Bedard, Guthrie, Loewen and Cabrera.

The O's need to be 7 deep in starters. By next year they will have Burres, Olson, Penn and Johnson. That's a fifth starter and two guys who can put up innings in the pen. There is also one guy to trade.

(Trax is going south fast. The NL clubs pound him as shown by the Padres and D'backs. He probably nets a prospect at best.)

I keep Burres and trade one of the other three. He has filled the #5 role well. Johnson has little value but is putting up a 3.45 ERA as a starter at AAA. By August he is ready for a call up and should be able to fill a pen position next year.

That leaves Penn or Olson to trade. Penn value is down because he is not pitching. However he is still ahead of Olson in my book. He dominated at AAA. Olson has not, especially away from the large Norfolk park. But there still is time. He could improve.

So I would trade Olson and Payton for a left fielder. This might not happen until the off season. I would offer Johnson, Penn or Olson in a deal as see who gets the best return.

However Knott could solve the LF problem as could Gibbons if he gets straightened out. That would be great. It's a long shot but it could happen.