The fucking Rays just traded my favorite player, pitching ace David Price, to the Tigers for a mediocre-ass 2nd baseman and the bottom of the bullpen barrel not-half-bad pitcher who is no David Price.* What the fucking fuck? Baseball is dead to me. Those fuckers!
Open thread.
*ETA: Looked into Mr. Smyly’s record a bit more closely and found he’s a better player than I originally thought. Not hard to look at either, so there’s that. But damn, I’m gonna miss Price. I still say it’s an awful trade. We got more for Shields and Garza, who weren’t anywhere near as good as Price.
Mnemosyne
I am in voluntary quarantine at work today (I have a nasty cold and three of our managers are leaving for China on Saturday, so I’m trying not to infect them). It’s even more boring than you’d think.
raven
And Prado to the stinkin jankees!
Andrew
Smyly is a decent starter, for the record.
BGinCHI
All you had to do was get Ted Cruz to tell them not to do it.
You have only yourself to blame.
gene108
The Rays did not get any prospects? I they got prospects, it was a good trade.
They did better than the Phillies, who did nothing.
Aging veterans, who are at the ends of their careers with contracts that make them unmovable, and a farm system that has produced no MLB players, since the team won the world series in 2008.
Figure probably 4-5 more years of suck, at a minimum, before any rebuilding can even happen.
Not sucking while rebuilding. There’s hope in that.
This is just flat out suck, with no hope for a better tomorrow.
Rommie
Meh, Smyly is more than just a bullpen scrub. He’s nowhere in Price’s class either, so I don’t think the Rays got close to fair value, unless the kid SS proves a HOFer.
But I’m not thrilled about what the Tigers did either. The bullpen still looks like a playoff-killer, and now they have a hole in the OF I’m not sure they can fill.
Betty Cracker
@Andrew: I’ve been reading up on him in the last few minutes, and I’m feeling better about it. I still think it was a lousy trade, though. The Rays couldn’t hold onto Price, but they could have done better than this, IMO.
Hal
I realize it’s difficult to stymie a yawn, but holy glob, if my coworker yawns one more time, followed by a little whispered excuse me, I’m going to scream. Her yawns are bullhorn loud, and come every 2 to 3 minutes. This is in between her sucking her teeth and chewing loudly.
This is how I know it’s time for a new job. Small office, and a bunch of coworkers whose bodily function are starting to annoy me.
BGinCHI
@Hal: Stand your ground. Totally legal.
tomes
C’mon, don’t sugar coat it -tell us how you really feel…
:-}
Kevin
Trade made me happy. The Rays have been charging hard recently, catching up my home town Blue Jays. This will likely stop that.
But it looks like the AL will come down to the Tigers vs the A’s. The pitching staffs on both teams is insane right now.
gene108
Betty,
Franklin’s only 23 years old. He was drafted in the 1st round of 2009 and is in his 2nd year. There’s hope and/or room for improvement with him, before you hang him out to dry.
Plus you got one of the Tiger’s top prospects and a serviceable starting pitcher.
So basically two young guys, who may develop into something is what you have to do to rebuild.
askew
Can we just talk for a second about the clusterfuck that is the Boehner-led House? They were bragging this morning the border bill would pass and by afternoon they had to shelve the bill. Then, they let there members leave to go on vacation only to call the back while some were at the airport ready to leave town. Now, leadership is saying they’ll stay here until Christmas if necessary to pass this one bill.
Not to mention that Boehner voted to sue the president over executive action yesterday and today is demanding that he act unilaterally to fix the border issue.
Randy Khan
My real question after today is if there’s anyone left on the Red Sox pitching staff.
As for Prado to the Yankees, well, he’s not a pitcher, and that’s their big hole, although I guess he can help them in other ways.
The Phillies seem like the big losers, since they really needed to move some players and obviously (a) nobody was willing to meet their price; and/or (b) they couldn’t get people to waive their no-trade clauses.
It does seem like one of the most active deadline days I can remember, and a fair number of biggish names were moved, to boot.
Betty Cracker
@gene108: Franklin is hitting .128 or something like that. I sure as hell hope he improves. The thing that burns my ass is we have made good trades in the past. We got more for Garza and Shields than we got for David Fucking Price, Cy Young award winner and clubhouse leader. It’s just not right.
SiubhanDuinne
@Hal:
Your comment made me yawn. That’s scary contagious stuff.
SiubhanDuinne
@askew:
I still don’t completely understand Ted Cruz’ role in all this. I don’t mean to be dense, but since when do Senators dictate anything to members of the other chamber?
I now officially believe I’m living in a book by Lewis Carroll.
ranchandsyrup
smyly is young (25), left handed and under contract control until 2018. not bad.
Trollhattan
@SiubhanDuinne: Not the first time Cruz imposed his manly will on the House. Just sayin’
the Conster
@SiubhanDuinne:
Now I’m yawning.
p
In the who-coulda-node category, the Rays have traded another star player away. Surely this isn’t a surprise? (Hint: what’s the difference in salary?)
JPL
The Red Sox traded their best pitcher, so you want to shed tears, shed tears about a pitcher who was instrumental in two world series wins. The motto of the ownership, is not loyalty.
Tissue Thin Pseudonym (JMN)
@Betty Cracker: Franklin is hitting .128 in all of 52 plate appearances. So it’s a completely meaningless number. (Always remember Voros’ Law: In 70 plate appearances, anyone can do anything.) He’s been ripping up AAA for most of the season and is a good hitter. On top of that, he’s a natural shortstop that the Mariners that the Mariners buried out of position and in the minors so that they could give playing time to guys that aren’t as good.
The Rays clearly didn’t do as well as they did with Shields and Garza but the evidence is that those sorts of offers weren’t out there this year. The Red Sox didn’t get as much as they had hoped for Lester and basically got a bag of beans for Lackey.
From the Tigers’ perspective I have no objection to this trade in isolation. In fact, I like it even if it does mean seeing more of Rajai Davis than I really like. However, it does prompt me to ask why it is that, if the rotation needed an improvement, we traded away Doug Fister for nothing of value in the first place. And I’m not worried about the bullpen as I see fixes there.
I really don’t get this from the perspective of the Mariners, though.
ThresherK
Can I just exchange the names “Vladimir Guerrero” and “Expos” for “David Price” and “Rays” here?
How long before MLB takes over and runs the Rays into the ground?
Suffern ACE
Sigh. The issue isn’t that you lost David Price. Its that my Brewers didn’t get David Price.
Priorities. Priorities.
Hal
Damn, so the house is following pied piper Ted Cruz? I guess that Cruz led shutdown didn’t leave a bad enough taste in anyone’s mouth?
WaterGirl
@SiubhanDuinne: Doesn’t count if you didn’t suck your teeth and fart at the same time.
Schlemizel
The MN Twins signed some kid nobody seems to ever have heard of yesterday for $250k which is a ton for an undrafted nobody. Word is he can throw at 100+ which is all well and good. He is in some rinky-dink nobody league with an 8.something ERA so that fastball may be fast but it must be very hitable.
They stole half a billion dollars + from the taxpayers of Hennepin County to build a new palace for the Polhad family on the promise that the new park would get them the money needed to compete. After their first year there they have lost 90+ 3 straight years and are on their way to 4. Bad management is bad management no matter how much money they have.
KG
@Betty Cracker: actually, they could have held on to Price because he’s got one more year under contract. He’s not a free agent until after next season, so unless he wanted out or they didn’t think they could do better next year or during the off season, they probably pulled the trigger too early.
I’m just surprised that the Dodgers did nothing about their overabundance of outfielders. I mean, there aren’t any places on the major league roster they could have improved, but it’d’ve been interesting if they tried to move one of their outfielders for prospects.
Suffern ACE
@Hal: I will enjoy watching the border patrol run out of funding. “We will not spend one more penny on border security until Obama deports every illegal in the harshest way possible.”
gogol's wife
Speaking of Cruz, I’m sure this has been discussed ad nauseam here, but I finally got around to reading (almost — couldn’t stomach the last two pages) the Jeffrey Toobin article on Ted Cruz in the New Yorker. It’s disgusting — it’s all about how brilliant he is. I’m sorry, I JUST DON’T BUY IT.
catclub
@Schlemizel:
Believing bad management is what cities do when they give money to plutocrats.
Schlemizel
@JPL:
Loyalty is the bullshit owners sell to players (and fans) in order to fuck them over even more. YOU OWE ME LOYALTY! Hey, this is just a business sorry kid. Anyone who is loyal to a sports franchise is a sucker ripe for the taking, does not matter if it is the Yankees or the Royals, the COwboys or the Browns, The Heat or the Timberwolves, The Red WIngs or the Oilers, even the mighty Cubs. Loyalty is a one way street in favor of the billionaire owners
J.
It could be worse, @Betty. You could be a Red Sox fan.
Schlemizel
@Tissue Thin Pseudonym (JMN):
Did Williams or Dimaggio ever hit .152 over 70 at bats? Seriously, I doubt it but I bet you would know.
How about Carew or Rose?
I am not disagreeing with you really because I see your point but I also believe good hitters are good hitters & they may go 0 for 4 but they don’t go 1 for 13
SiubhanDuinne
@the Conster:
Hey, I didn’t start it!
jame
What you’re feeling is quite similar to what my sister’s going through with the New Orleans Saints. They got rid of Darren Sproles, and now she says they’re talking about how they’re looking for another Darren Sproles. “What was wrong with the original Darren Sproles?” is something I have to listen to every week now.
Schlemizel
@Tissue Thin Pseudonym (JMN):
BTW – you have your locker choice for the upcoming season? We are not yet settled as stuff has changed. Didn’t get the new kid we wanted (Dave beat us so I don’t feel bad, he deserves it he has be at it longer) but Paula’s favorite (and only Native American currently playing at the D-I level) may be available so we are sort of unassigned yet.
SiubhanDuinne
@Trollhattan:
Oh, I know. Sigh. I just CAN’T when Cruz is part of the scenario.
And every goddam time I see his photo, I want to snarl and kick things.
SiubhanDuinne
@WaterGirl:
And who is saying I didn’t?
Comrade Luke
As a fan of the Mariners, I fully expect Nick Franklin to be an All-Star in 2016.
gene108
@Betty Cracker:
Last year he didn’t play well and this year he’s only played in 17 games and stunk.
Just trying to look on the upside for the Rays and that is he is young, a former 1st round pick and therefore may have some potential.
I know nothing about him other than what I found in a quick google search.
@Randy Khan:
The problem with he Phillies is not the asking price in a trade, it is the actual price on the contracts of trade-able players.
Ryan Howard go a big contract, which made some sense, when it was signed but an ACL and Achilles injuries and he’s now a barely serviceable MLB player and gets platooned at 1st base. Who wants to pay a total of $60 million for him, which is what he has on his contract?
Marlon Byrd is having a good year and probably could have been moved, but he’s 36 and has 2 more years at $8 mil/year. Who wants to take the risk for two seasons. He could help a team now, but no one wants to eat the additional two years in a trade.
Cole Hamels would be the piece the Phillies could have gotten the most back for, but he has 5 years left on his contract at $22.5 mil/year. He’s 30. Teams do not want to lock in for so long, because there’s a real risk of players breaking down after 30.
Until the big contracts expire in 4-5 seasons, there’s nothing the Phillies can do.
The real problem with the Phillies is they seem to have blind scouts and a crappy farm system.
Even if they traded players, I do not trust their scouts to pick out good prospects in return.
The whole front office needs to be cleaned out, scouts and farm system needs to be cleaned out.
Villago Delenda Est
Now, Betty, you know the pain felt by Frank Costanza when that twit Steinbrenner traded away Jay Buhner for Ken Phelps.
As a Mariner fan, of course, I could not have been more pleased.
Villago Delenda Est
@SiubhanDuinne: Cruz has a Backpfeifengesicht that rivals that of Sean Hannity.
EriktheRed
From Chuck Pierce:
The whole thing’s worth a read (and a chuckle): http://www.esquire.com/blogs/politics/Cruz_Control
Villago Delenda Est
@Hal: For normal human beings, yes. But you have to remember that Cruz’s constituency is the subnormal rabble that are the teatards, who just eat that shit up.
Raven
Uggla is available!
Raven
NEW DELHI (AP) — Israel and Hamas have agreed to a humanitarian cease-fire to start Friday morning for 72 hours, the United States and United Nations announced Thursday.
SatanicPanic
@Schlemizel: This is true if we think that owners owe us a winning team. Which I agree, probably should be the case. But as a San Diego Padres fan, I really don’t care that much if we win or lose. Sports is a story. And sometimes you want kick-ass triumphant stories, sometimes you want tragedy, sometimes you just want a nice story about some guys who play a game for fun and you want it told in a very pleasant setting while you drink beer. Anymore I almost think winning too much would ruin my experience.
KG
@Schlemizel: not really fair picking four the the greatest hitters of all time as a comparison. And for the record, DiMaggio did go 2 for 18 in the ’49 World Series. Unfortunately, Baseball Reference doesn’t have game logs that far back.
BD of MN
@Schlemizel:
I was at a St. Paul Saints game a month ago or so and one of our relievers came into the 8th inning with the bases loaded and no outs, and threw mid 90’s heat and struck out the side. My first reaction was to question why he was in the Northern League, and the answer was provided in the 9th inning, when he again struck out the side, but he interspersed those strikeouts with four walks and a double… (we still won, good thing we had a four run lead…)
I still prefer the Saints to the Twins, though…
WaterGirl
@SiubhanDuinne: Um, ::very small:: no one?
KG
@SatanicPanic: winning too much doesn’t ruin the experience (I say this as a life long Lakers fan who has seen a lot of titles and finals trips). what ruins the experience is when other fans don’t understand that you aren’t entitled to winning and bitch and moan about having two losing seasons in 30 years. see also: Yankees fans; Cowboys fans; and Red Wings fans.
and it’s funny, as i get older, I care less about whether my team wins (it’s nice) and more whether the games/series are competitive and interesting.
muddy
@WaterGirl: I for one pretty much assumed.
Schlemizel
@SatanicPanic:
Its not about winning and losing as much as it is about if they care one way or the other. I don’t see oweners caring much as long as the money rolls in.
Brendan in Charlotte
@Randy Khan: Is it Workman, De La Rosa, and pray for rain?? Or do we just skip the first 2 and pray for rainouts from now on…
@J.: As a Sox fan, don’t remind me….
At least we got rid of Steven Drew – to the Yankees, even!
KG
@Schlemizel: here’s an interesting question… would you rather have an owner like the Russian that owns the Brooklyn Nets who spent so much money he actually managed to lose money without really being competitive or ownership like Oklahoma City where they put a competitive team out there that has a good chance of winning but won’t go over the salary cap/luxury tax limit? And then there’s the Philadelphia 76ers who have pretty much made it clear that they are actively trying not to win games.
Schlemizel
@BD of MN: I prefer root canal to the twins. The Saints have gone too far, the the point where baseball is secondary to the “event”. We have been going down to Mankato for Moondogs games Or Cedar Rapids for the Kernels. Enjoyable games with a great atmosphere.
Schlemizel
@KG:
Its basketball, I’d rather have an owner that set fire to the arena and left the players to be the parking lot attendants their education prepared them to be.
But seriously I want competent management that is interested in putting out the best product they can. Most, however, are only interested in what will serve their puerile needs and are only too happy to fuck over the taxpayers of their community and the nation.
EDIT: that was rather bitter but seriously I am sick to the teeth with pro athletes and the leeway they are give to be scum yet still idolized. Owners are worse as they steal from the players and the fans and the taxpayers. Fuck all pro sports
Ian
@SiubhanDuinne:
No direct power over the crazies, but if the house members don’t heed the call of the Cruz then they will get primaried for being liberal pansy Rhinos.
Think they are to far conservative already for that to work? I used to think that about 4 years ago. Time has made fools of us all.
KG
@Schlemizel: watching the new stadium stuff in other cities is really interesting from a Southern California native. LA didn’t play ball with the NFL in the 90s, Staples was privately financed, and while Angel Stadium and the Pond are publicly owned, Anaheim requires the teams to chip in for upgrades (and since the teams operate the stadiums, that makes sense).
Schlemizel
@KG:
That is better than the other 99% of the teams/owners. Ther deserve some small amount of credit for that.
Elizabelle
Saw “Million Dollar Arm” today (re American sports agent hunting for newest pitching phenom in India). Jon Hamm, Lake Bell, Alan Arkin, Bill Paxton and two excellent newcomers as the Indian prospects.
Fun to see for $4.00. Pleasantly surprised Disney let its lead character (Hamm) be such a jerk. Subtext re money in sports.
mdblanche
@askew: It’s a fiasco even by their miserably low standards. We have a legislature that can’t or won’t legislate. It’s a perpetual slow motion constitutional crisis. There are times when I almost root for the Republicans to win the Senate in November. That would at least bring the crisis to a head so we can get it over with. I soon think better of it though.
SiubhanDuinne
@Villago Delenda Est:
Thank you!! Danke schön!! That’s the word I was trying to think of and couldn’t!
SiubhanDuinne
@Raven:
That’s wonderful news, seriously.
Now I wish the folks at the Metropolitan Opera would do the same.
SatanicPanic
@KG: This is it really. I don’t actually care if my team goes to the WS. I just want to watch a good game. And since we’ve got a pitcher’s park blowouts are rare. Bad team= cheaper tickets. Plus, it’s a nice park. I used to wonder how it would effect fans of a team of longtime losers to suddenly be winners. We found out the answer with the Red Sox. Yikes, I’d rather root for the Cubs
SiubhanDuinne
@KG:
Agreed. I didn’t really become a baseball fan until I let go of having to be a Braves fan.
Edited to remove random punctuation and insert clarifying indefinite article.
SiubhanDuinne
@Ian:
Just sadly shaking my head. It’s staggering, innit?
SiubhanDuinne
I totally thought Mike Ditka was dead, but he was just on the T&V machine, apparently alive.
gwangung
The Mariners get a league average centerfielder for an outfield that was a disaster walking.
Frankline has three years to improve; hes more of a second baseman than shortstop; trust the minor league record more than the SSS of his less than cup of coffee in the bigs (and the Mariners development team from AAA to the majors frankly sucks).
Jay C
@Raven:
Edited for clarity.
KG
@SatanicPanic: after seeing what happened with the Red Sox, I now actively root against the Cubs for this very reason. It would be unbearable
SiubhanDuinne
Is efgoldman around?
SiubhanDuinne
@KG:
Saw what you did
different-church-lady
Hey, my local 9 just completed the dealing 4 out of 5 from what had been starting rotation earlier in the season.
@Brendan in Charlotte:
Pssst: Buchholz. Unless you count him as praying for rain.
the Conster
@different-church-lady:
Yes you do. Let that sink in – Buchholz is at the top of the rotation.
Mustang Bobby
I’ve been a Tigers fan since 1957, through thick and thin, and they have built their team on trades from Florida teams: Miggy, Pudge, Sanchez. And while I live in Miami and drive past Marlins Park on the way to work, GO TIGERS.
(Don’t hate me, Betty. Please.)
PaulW
I took some Rays shirts out of the laundry this evening, and part of me wanted to fold them away into long storage and never wear them again.
I hate that our team keeps forcing itself to trade away good players all because there’s not enough payroll. Baseball’s failure to employ a more comprehensive shared revenue plan is killing us.
John Revolta
@SiubhanDuinne: No. Walter Payton is dead. Mike Ditka is still alive.
Further proof that if there IS a God, he’s one twisted sonofabitch.
Bobby Thomson
Coulda been worse. They could have traded a Cy Young winner for a catcher with a bum shoulder and a few other not-as-good players. But I’m not bitter.
Gin & Tonic
@KG: It’s actually possible to be worse than all three of your examples. I, for instance, am unfortunately a Knickerbockers fan.
different-church-lady
@Gin & Tonic:
My god, do you need someone to call an ambulance?
different-church-lady
@efgoldman:
What could possibly go wrong!
Darkrose
I’m just glad that y’all didn’t trade him to the Bums.
Darkrose
@KG:
The only outfielder that isn’t broken is the one they have to keep–Puig. Kemp can’t stay healthy, plus is saddled with that big contract.
That said, I would love to see him go north and wear orange and black. He and Kershaw are the two Dodgers I kind of don’t hate.
I’m okay with the Giants not making any moves. Yes, 2B is a tire fire, but there was no one on the market who would have been an improvement and wouldn’t have cost one or both of the only two halfway decent prospects we have left. If Belt and Pagan don’t come back soon, it’s not going to matter anyway.
Gin & Tonic
@different-church-lady: Thank you for your concern.
Betty Cracker
@efgoldman: Here’s the thing: the local population center can’t reach the stadium without sitting on a goddamn bridge for an hour. And even if every regular schmoe in Tampa was willing to do that, the real $$ is in corporate boxes, and the Trop has none. It’s a bullshit argument that the team doesn’t have local support.
burnspbesq
@Betty Cracker:
That said, Tropicana Field is, without doubt and beyond dispute, the least pleasant ballpark in all of MLB. Even Shea and Candlestick were nicer.
Lucslawyer
My Orioles got one of the best relievers, and a lefty at that, for just a middling prospect…the best deal of the day.
2liberal
@SiubhanDuinne:
obviously not. there is no f***ing way he would have not commented by now.
2liberal
@efgoldman:
i stand corrected – he is around
randy khan
@gene108: All of those points are right. On reflection, I think the Phillies would have had to eat a lot of the contracts to move these players. That might work with Byrd, but there may be too much money on the other contracts to do it.
The player who might have the most trade value is Papelbon, although there’s another year on the contract and the possibility of vesting for 2016.
I’m going to guess the Phillies put a bunch of these guys on waivers to see what happens and in case someone gets desperate in August.
Joel
Nick Franklin is a great prospect. Not a SS, though. His value was way down because the Mariners signed Cano.
DocSardonic
You know……unfortunately if you run Rays fan through the baseball translator that means dumbass
Temporarily Max McGee (soon enough to be Andy K again)
I’m glad you came around on Smyly, Betty. I think he’s got a lot of upside to him. I’d rather that the Tigs would’ve been able to deal Porcello- he’s having his career year, and I’m afraid he’ll never repeat it. Alas, it looks like a lefty-for-lefty deal, so Porcello remains in The D.
Wally Ballou
This Tiger fan is provisionally happy about the trade, provided that 1.) Price doesn’t blow his arm out here 2.) our bullpen gets shored up at some point so they don’t shitcan Price’s starts like they have our other starters’ 3.) Willy Adames doesn’t blossom into a Hall of Famer.
Still seems like a great deal on our end at this point in time. Don’t know what the Rays were thinking.
Temporarily Max McGee (soon enough to be Andy K again)
@Wally Ballou:
Price is at the peak of his value. Try to trade him next year at the deadline and they’d get less, seeing as his contract is up at the end of ’15.
Betty Cracker
@DocSardonic: Not even remotely clever.
@Temporarily Max McGee (soon enough to be Andy K again): I get why they traded him. I don’t get why they traded him for so damn little.
Brendan in NC
@different-church-lady: Since Buchholz can’t seem to put 2 consecutive pitches in the same area code – it’s raining again…
Egilsson
@Schlemizel: http://www.billy-ball.com/2013/03/the-longest-hitless-streaks-of-ted-williams-career/