Jorge Lopez traded to Twins for pitching prospects (edit)

[NashLumber]

6 minutes ago, LarryHarlow said:

I mean if our prospects turn out to be the Professor and Mary Ann of the Orioles, that's a pretty good return!

Maybe her cocoanut cream pies will make a return for the post game revelry. 

[Spy Fox]

I wonder if they think they can solve Cano's walk problem in a Felix Bautista like way. 

It feels like they should have gotten more. But if they turn Cano into a decent reliever, you traded a great reliever for a decent reliever and a rising SP prospect. 

[tntoriole]

7 minutes ago, NCRaven said:

Because every team had to have someone on the team.

Yes, does that happen with “waiver claims” very much?  Making the All Star team? I get  minimizing Lopez value as a “waiver claim” makes it seem he will be an easily replaceable piece.  I don’t agree.   And I predict his WAR over the next two years will be more than the return or his replacement.. yes, Bautista can move into closing but the measure really is do we find a set up guy as good as Bautista because that is Lopez value too.  

[vab]

5 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

Yea because clearly the idea that they struggled mightily at it for 3 years but have done well with it this season suggests they will do it going forward.

And also, that’s totally irrelevant.  Just because you can have success doing something doesn’t mean you get rid of an asset at a lesser cost.

They did struggle the first couple of years but sure seems like something has changed. I mean Voth? Watkins? Pretty much the entire bullpen? That seems like more than just a lucky streak. And they set their own value on players and they stick to that so to them it's not selling Lopez for less. I mean, obviously this is not a deal they had to make so they got what they wanted. As always, time will tell. 

[OriolesMagic83]

11 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

Soto going to SD, for their whole farm system, means no Santander there.

SD got Josh Bell too.  Preller put all of SD's chips in the middle of the table.  World Series or bust for them.

[Frobby]

22 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

I find it amusing that Lopez’s track record means he will regress yet Bautista, who until last year had a poor MiL track record, is destined to be some great reliever.  
 

 

If you had to bet on the future of both, who do you think will be better?  I prefer Bautista.  But I’m not down on Lopez at all.   Having both set up the back end of the bullpen nicely.  

[Can_of_corn]

9 minutes ago, DJHJR86 said:

We got 6 pitchers in return for 1 and a 30 year old DH who has had a starter level WAR for only 2 seasons...and people are upset at this?  I legitimately do not understand.

You can get pitchers off the waiver wire all day long.

I think the issue is that no one from the Lopez deal looks, at first glance, as if they will eventually contribute to the ML team in a meaningful way.

[oriolediehard]

If one pitcher from the trade turns into a solid starter, then I would agree it to be a good trade. If another one turns into a good bullpen piece it is a bonus.

[RZNJ]

The only thing I'll say about Lopez is that his effectiveness his because he's got 3-4 pitches.   I'm not sure he's got one key, go to pitch, which sometimes worries me.   I think he's going to be solid but I don't think he's elite.

The return certainly doesn't knock your socks off but I'd like to hear scouting reports on the 2 FCL pitchers, particularly Rojas before saying the return is disappointing.      Having said that, if Yennier Cano alone can be a key setup type reliever, that makes the rest of the package gravy.   There are a lot of ways of looking at this but it's certainly not going to be a big win over the next 1 1/2 years and is definitely going to hurt over the remainder of the season.

Edited August 2, 2022 by RZNJ

[Sports Guy]

4 minutes ago, Frobby said:

If you had to bet on the future of both, who do you think will be better?  I prefer Bautista.  But I’m not down on Lopez at all.   Having both set up the back end of the bullpen nicely.  

I’d take Lopez because I think Bautista’s size makes it easier for him to have mechanical issues but I like both to continue to be really good.

Edited August 2, 2022 by Sports Guy

[tntoriole]

Twins board generally ecstatic lol

 

nicksaviking

Community Moderator 

Posted 1 hour ago

Normally you don't give up 4 prospects for a relief pitcher, but I'm definitely on board with the quantity over quality approach. Hopefully teams other than the Orioles are willing to do this too.

Also, what the heck are the Orioles doing? They're above .500, possibly seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, and trade a guy who would still be around for 2.5 years for Cano and three guys who are many years away from making the majors.

[Three Run Homer]

At first glance I am disappointed and puzzled by this trade.  Lopez is not a fluke; he is not the first failed starter whose stuff plays up in short stints.  Guys who can throw 99 MPH sinkers with wicked movement and command do not grow on trees--the last time the O's had one, his name was Zach Britton.  I see no reason that Lopez can't continue to be an excellent back-end reliever for the next few years.  The fact that we got him on waivers is irrelevant.  If you find a Van Gogh at a yard sale, it's still a Van Gogh, and you don't sell it cheap.  

Sadly, I find it all too plausible that Elias was told that the club didn't want to pay Lopez' Arb 2 salary in 2023, and so he had to trade him now.   

The only caveat is that I want to know more about the FCL guys, especially the 18 year old lefty.  Does he have high-end stuff or is he more of a pitchability guy?  Otherwise, I don't see a lot of upside in this trade.  I'm not too impressed with Povich.  His K/BB numbers are good but he gives up too many home runs.  You don't trade an all-star reliever for a guy whose ceiling is to be a number 4-5 starter.  I agree with earlier posters who pointed out that guys like Cano are available on the waiver wire routinely.   

Finally, maybe we shouldn't be surprised at the low return considering that the Twins are the one team that Lopez bombed against this season.  

[DJHJR86]

4 minutes ago, Can_of_corn said:

I think the issue is that no one from the Lopez deal looks, at first glance, as if they will eventually contribute to the ML team in a meaningful way.

Cano is undefeated right now.  

[SilverRocket]

I'm not thrilled about this one, but I suspect there weren't a ton of offers, and this was the best one that Elias thought to be at least slightly beneficial long-term, and Lopez will never have a higher value than now. This is selling high.

A really optimistic way to see it is that maybe they think Cano can become another Jorge Lopez quickly and with a lot more years of team control. I wonder how long he'll be in the minors before a callup.

[RZNJ]

11 minutes ago, Spy Fox said:

I wonder if they think they can solve Cano's walk problem in a Felix Bautista like way. 

It feels like they should have gotten more. But if they turn Cano into a decent reliever, you traded a great reliever for a decent reliever and a rising SP prospect. 

He walked 6 in 23 innings in AAA this year.   It could be just a matter of confidence in his stuff at the ML level but it's the chicken and the egg.  Which comes first?  Success or confidence.