The rumors are abuzz as we approach the MLB trade deadline. Many sources have said that the Kansas City Royals are very interested in trading one (or both) of Jeff Francoeur and Melky Cabrera.
The decision with Francoeur seems more straightforward for the Royals on its face. He is only under team control until the end of this current season. His peripheral stats are largely the same as they have always been, the one difference for him this season has been increased power output. Francoeur is going for extra bases at a rate similar to that of his second season in Atlanta when everybody thought he might be a breakout player for the Braves. Francoeur has demonstrated this type of power before, and has fallen off this level of power production before. Unfortunately, because Francoeur does not hit for a high average or take many walks, his value is pretty much entirely tied to his power output, which largely cannot be trusted at its current level. Especially when you consider that his production since the first month of the season has fallen off dramatically. As such the decision for KC is easy, with no team control and a player who is not all that valuable going forward, trade him for whatever you can get and move on.
Showing posts with label David DeJesus. Show all posts
Showing posts with label David DeJesus. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Monday, December 20, 2010
The Kansas City Braves
I've been made aware that there has been "Bigger News" out of Kansas City recently than the signings of Melky Cabrera and Jeff Francouer, and I will certainly expound on that subject soon. But with Alex Gordon likely to spend his first full season in the outfield in 2010, and long-time outfield David DeJesus having been traded away, the Royals were in need of some help in the outfield.
They could've done better. Or maybe I should say, they couldn't have done much worse. It's moves like these by General Manager Dayton Moore that I just don't get.
It's not that the price tags of either Francouer (2.5m) or Cabrera (1.25m with another 250k in incentives) are exorbitant - it's that the signings are essentially pointless. Neither Cabrera, who was worth a stunningly bad -1.2 WAR (which is astonishingly hard to pull off) nor Francouer, who was worth 0.7 WAR are going to add anything of value to the Royals. Francouer hasn't posted an OPS over .740 since 2007, and Cabrera has a career OPS of just .707 and was in the .670 range last year.
Why, pray tell, would a team that will be entering it's 20th or so straight rebuilding year waste two roster spots on that pair? Is there something that Cabrera is going to give you in center that Mitch Maier or Jarrod Dyson wont?
Is there something that Jeff Francouer is going to do for a franchise that Andrew Jones couldn't do? Word is he wants a full-time job, and heavens knows he isn't going to get one with a playoff caliber squad. He still looks like he has at least a little something to give.
I understand that the outfield situation for the Royals was a bit more unsettled prior to the "Bigger News" of this week, but still, these signings made little sense. It just seems such a needless waste of 3.75m perfectly good dollars.
That might not seem like much to most, but properly invested, that money could've been used to bring in a player who at least had a chance, with a good year, of qualifying as a Type-B free agent and potentially helping the Royals in 2011, and more importantly, providing the franchise with another valuable draft pick.
Given a chance to do something useful, it's disappointing to see Moore make moves with essentially zero chance of helping the Royals either now or in the future.
They could've done better. Or maybe I should say, they couldn't have done much worse. It's moves like these by General Manager Dayton Moore that I just don't get.
It's not that the price tags of either Francouer (2.5m) or Cabrera (1.25m with another 250k in incentives) are exorbitant - it's that the signings are essentially pointless. Neither Cabrera, who was worth a stunningly bad -1.2 WAR (which is astonishingly hard to pull off) nor Francouer, who was worth 0.7 WAR are going to add anything of value to the Royals. Francouer hasn't posted an OPS over .740 since 2007, and Cabrera has a career OPS of just .707 and was in the .670 range last year.
Why, pray tell, would a team that will be entering it's 20th or so straight rebuilding year waste two roster spots on that pair? Is there something that Cabrera is going to give you in center that Mitch Maier or Jarrod Dyson wont?
Is there something that Jeff Francouer is going to do for a franchise that Andrew Jones couldn't do? Word is he wants a full-time job, and heavens knows he isn't going to get one with a playoff caliber squad. He still looks like he has at least a little something to give.
I understand that the outfield situation for the Royals was a bit more unsettled prior to the "Bigger News" of this week, but still, these signings made little sense. It just seems such a needless waste of 3.75m perfectly good dollars.
That might not seem like much to most, but properly invested, that money could've been used to bring in a player who at least had a chance, with a good year, of qualifying as a Type-B free agent and potentially helping the Royals in 2011, and more importantly, providing the franchise with another valuable draft pick.
Given a chance to do something useful, it's disappointing to see Moore make moves with essentially zero chance of helping the Royals either now or in the future.
Saturday, November 13, 2010
David DeJesus to Athletics for Vin Mazzaro
Last week the Royals dealt outfielder David DeJesus, who had been on the market since the trade deadline, to the Oakland Athletics for a pair of pitchers including Major Leaguer Vin Mazzaro and minor leaguer Justin Marks.
Initally, I was a bit shocked to see this. The last time I wrote about DeJesus, back in September, I was questioning what was taking the Royals so long too exercise DeJesus' 2011 option. Well, they did, finally. When DeJesus wasn't moved at the deadline, my guess was that the Royals would hold onto him until the deadline next year when I expected he'd have a bit more value.
Instead, GM Dayton Moore traded him to the A's for a backend starter and an interesting, if unproven A ball lefty. To say I expected the Royals to be capable of getting a better return for DeJesus, an affordable, consistent 3.0 WAR player is saying too little. I think they got hammered in this deal.
It's not that Mazzaro is a terrible pitcher - but he's completely uninspiring. His 4.27 ERA was largely the product of pitching in one of baseball's most pitcher friendly stadiums. His career strikeout (5.81), walk (3.75), homerun (1.31), and groundball (41.2%) are all below average, and weren't any better last year. As a soft throwing righty who will be 25 next year, he seems to have little upside.
The only benefit I see for the Royals is that they saved about 5.5m in the swap and perhaps finalized their opening day 2011 rotation. But for every benefit, there is an equal (or worse) drawback. First of all, if bringing in Mazzaro to finalize the rotation was a goal, they've now left themselves with a gaping hole in the outfield. Secondly, Moore has already made it clear he doesn't intend to reinvest that money and lastly, Mazzaro is pretty much the definition of a replacement level player.
The Royal's, who own baseballs best farm system should've been able to find someone easily capable of replicating his performance. If not from within, from the waiver wire or perhaps even the Rule V draft.
As for Marks, he is at least a somewhat intriguing. His rate stats in A ball were solid (good even), but given that he was drafted as a polished college pitcher finishing his junior season, his performance doesn't necessarily mean a ton. He's not a hard thrower, topping out in the low 90's and working 89-91 on the fastball, and doesn't show outstanding command. He might have a future in the back-end of the rotation or as a long reliever.
Realistically, the Royals just dealt one of their best players, and one of the leagues best trade chips for veritable peanuts. GM Dayton Moore deserves a ton of credit for building such a great farm system, but his free agent and trade philosophies continues to baffle me to no end.
Initally, I was a bit shocked to see this. The last time I wrote about DeJesus, back in September, I was questioning what was taking the Royals so long too exercise DeJesus' 2011 option. Well, they did, finally. When DeJesus wasn't moved at the deadline, my guess was that the Royals would hold onto him until the deadline next year when I expected he'd have a bit more value.
Instead, GM Dayton Moore traded him to the A's for a backend starter and an interesting, if unproven A ball lefty. To say I expected the Royals to be capable of getting a better return for DeJesus, an affordable, consistent 3.0 WAR player is saying too little. I think they got hammered in this deal.
It's not that Mazzaro is a terrible pitcher - but he's completely uninspiring. His 4.27 ERA was largely the product of pitching in one of baseball's most pitcher friendly stadiums. His career strikeout (5.81), walk (3.75), homerun (1.31), and groundball (41.2%) are all below average, and weren't any better last year. As a soft throwing righty who will be 25 next year, he seems to have little upside.
The only benefit I see for the Royals is that they saved about 5.5m in the swap and perhaps finalized their opening day 2011 rotation. But for every benefit, there is an equal (or worse) drawback. First of all, if bringing in Mazzaro to finalize the rotation was a goal, they've now left themselves with a gaping hole in the outfield. Secondly, Moore has already made it clear he doesn't intend to reinvest that money and lastly, Mazzaro is pretty much the definition of a replacement level player.
The Royal's, who own baseballs best farm system should've been able to find someone easily capable of replicating his performance. If not from within, from the waiver wire or perhaps even the Rule V draft.
As for Marks, he is at least a somewhat intriguing. His rate stats in A ball were solid (good even), but given that he was drafted as a polished college pitcher finishing his junior season, his performance doesn't necessarily mean a ton. He's not a hard thrower, topping out in the low 90's and working 89-91 on the fastball, and doesn't show outstanding command. He might have a future in the back-end of the rotation or as a long reliever.
Realistically, the Royals just dealt one of their best players, and one of the leagues best trade chips for veritable peanuts. GM Dayton Moore deserves a ton of credit for building such a great farm system, but his free agent and trade philosophies continues to baffle me to no end.
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Royals Dragging Their Feet on David DeJesus' 2011 Option
The Royals hold a 6m team option on David DeJesus for the 2011 season. To me, it seems like an easy option to exercise. DeJesus has been a solid/major contributor to the Royals for a long time and was in the midst of what was possibly his best season ever, posting a .827 OPS until he went down. Throw in the fact that 6m isn't exactly the toughest pill to swallow and DeJesus himself seems to want to be back... this has to be a no brainer right?
Well for some reason with less than a month until a decision needs to be made in regards to the option, Dayton Moore has yet to make a decision regarding that option. It's certainly not time to panic or anything, but given DeJesus' consistent performance and his bargain price - Fangraphs has only once pegged his open-market value at less than 10m since 2005 - it seems silly to drag this out.
Given a somewhat crowded outfield picture looking forward, the Royals seemed poised to move DeJesus this summer and until he broke his thumb, he was one of the better outfield trade chips on the market. That however should not mean the Royals simply cut-bait on DeJesus.
This decision should be made all the easier given that Alex Gordon, who the club sent down to AAA in hopes he could rediscover his swing, has not. Gordon lit up AAA pitching (not a huge shock) while the Royals moved him to left field in order to create a spot Alberto Callaspo - who they promptly traded. But Gordon has yet to translate any of that to the Majors as he's posted an OPS of just .725 since returning.
By all measures DeJesus' option is one that should be exercised. His performance more than justifies it, there are no age concerns, there shouldn't be any concerns about the injury, and it's not like Gordon is banging down the door with his bat or anything. Not having done so already only feeds the impression that the Royals front office just doesn't get it.
Well for some reason with less than a month until a decision needs to be made in regards to the option, Dayton Moore has yet to make a decision regarding that option. It's certainly not time to panic or anything, but given DeJesus' consistent performance and his bargain price - Fangraphs has only once pegged his open-market value at less than 10m since 2005 - it seems silly to drag this out.
Given a somewhat crowded outfield picture looking forward, the Royals seemed poised to move DeJesus this summer and until he broke his thumb, he was one of the better outfield trade chips on the market. That however should not mean the Royals simply cut-bait on DeJesus.
This decision should be made all the easier given that Alex Gordon, who the club sent down to AAA in hopes he could rediscover his swing, has not. Gordon lit up AAA pitching (not a huge shock) while the Royals moved him to left field in order to create a spot Alberto Callaspo - who they promptly traded. But Gordon has yet to translate any of that to the Majors as he's posted an OPS of just .725 since returning.
By all measures DeJesus' option is one that should be exercised. His performance more than justifies it, there are no age concerns, there shouldn't be any concerns about the injury, and it's not like Gordon is banging down the door with his bat or anything. Not having done so already only feeds the impression that the Royals front office just doesn't get it.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
AL Central's Top Trade Chips
MLB Trade Rumors has posted it's "Top Trade Chips" article for the AL Central.
Some thoughts:
- Axisa speculates that the Indians might try and trade Jake Westbrook for prospects. Could they really get anything legitimate in return? And who would take his 11m salary? I'm sure the Indians would LOVE to be able to dump his contract and get players back, but I don't know if thats really a possibility. Prior to his injury, Westbrook was a consistent sub 4.00 xFIP pitcher but he missed all of 2009 and has really struggled so far this year.
- The speculation that the Royals could look to deal - well, essentially their entire outfield - sounds about right. If Jose Guillen continues to hit, I'm sure the Royals would jump at the chance to move his contract. If Rick Ankiel proves healthy and effective with the bat, he too could be moved with Mitch Maier taking over in center. And of course, I already touched on a possible David DeJesus trade.
- Speculation about the Twins moving Wilson Ramos and Glen Perkins seems just about right. Many have speculated that the Twins would deal him for a closer. I doubt that. High end catching prospects should be able to yield a much larger return than that. Maybe not by himself, but in a package, he should be used to return either an elite third baseman or starting pitcher. Perkins has fallen out of favor with management, and the Twins would love to trade him, but the way he's pitched lately, I don't know who would want him or why.
- As for the White Sox, Axisa names Tyler Flowers and Daniel Hudson as his two best, most advanced prospects, and he's right. But he's also right in the sense that you never have any clue what Kenny Williams is going to do. The White Sox could use some offensive help, but it's probably too early to begin speculation.
Some thoughts:
- Axisa speculates that the Indians might try and trade Jake Westbrook for prospects. Could they really get anything legitimate in return? And who would take his 11m salary? I'm sure the Indians would LOVE to be able to dump his contract and get players back, but I don't know if thats really a possibility. Prior to his injury, Westbrook was a consistent sub 4.00 xFIP pitcher but he missed all of 2009 and has really struggled so far this year.
- The speculation that the Royals could look to deal - well, essentially their entire outfield - sounds about right. If Jose Guillen continues to hit, I'm sure the Royals would jump at the chance to move his contract. If Rick Ankiel proves healthy and effective with the bat, he too could be moved with Mitch Maier taking over in center. And of course, I already touched on a possible David DeJesus trade.
- Speculation about the Twins moving Wilson Ramos and Glen Perkins seems just about right. Many have speculated that the Twins would deal him for a closer. I doubt that. High end catching prospects should be able to yield a much larger return than that. Maybe not by himself, but in a package, he should be used to return either an elite third baseman or starting pitcher. Perkins has fallen out of favor with management, and the Twins would love to trade him, but the way he's pitched lately, I don't know who would want him or why.
- As for the White Sox, Axisa names Tyler Flowers and Daniel Hudson as his two best, most advanced prospects, and he's right. But he's also right in the sense that you never have any clue what Kenny Williams is going to do. The White Sox could use some offensive help, but it's probably too early to begin speculation.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
A Case of the Davids.
David Lough doesn't carry a high profile - if you asked anyone but the most die-hard Royals fans who he is, it's doubtful they could tell you. But you should know who David Lough is. Not because he's the best prospect in the Royals system, not even close, but because he might be the closest to Major League ready, and because is development could allow the Royals to trade David DeJesus.
At 23 years of age, Lough experienced a breakout year in 2009 at AA, batting .331 with 24 extra base hits, including nine home runs. Lough focused primarily on his football career while in college, but his skills on the baseball field are developing quickly. Lough can steal a few bases, though he wont be a standout base stealer at the Major League level. By all accounts he plays an above average left field.
In his limited time so far at AAA Lough is performing ok, though not as well as he did in his AA stint. Of course it's extremely early in the season, far too early to be drawing any conclusions from his effort at this level. The one area that stands out for Lough to improve at the plate is in his discipline. It should seem obvious that this would be an area where he would struggle given that he didn't commit himself to baseball until just a couple years ago, but with 8 strikes outs and just one walk in 28 AAA at-bats, it's the one skill holding him back. That being said, I'm confident Lough can cut down on the strikes outs and with a little improvement in what has been a poor walk percentage throughout his career, become a league average bat.
All of which brings us back to the other David, the one you already know. Royals left fielder David DeJesus. The best left fielder no one cares about... Well, that last sentence isn't probably very accurate, I'm guessing there are actually quite a few contenders that DO care about David DeJesus and would like to see him in left field for them. If his development could make DeJesus, who isn't getting any younger, or more affordable into a legitimate trade chip, that could help the team acquire more much needed young pitching to add to the talented core the team is building up.
At 23 years of age, Lough experienced a breakout year in 2009 at AA, batting .331 with 24 extra base hits, including nine home runs. Lough focused primarily on his football career while in college, but his skills on the baseball field are developing quickly. Lough can steal a few bases, though he wont be a standout base stealer at the Major League level. By all accounts he plays an above average left field.
In his limited time so far at AAA Lough is performing ok, though not as well as he did in his AA stint. Of course it's extremely early in the season, far too early to be drawing any conclusions from his effort at this level. The one area that stands out for Lough to improve at the plate is in his discipline. It should seem obvious that this would be an area where he would struggle given that he didn't commit himself to baseball until just a couple years ago, but with 8 strikes outs and just one walk in 28 AAA at-bats, it's the one skill holding him back. That being said, I'm confident Lough can cut down on the strikes outs and with a little improvement in what has been a poor walk percentage throughout his career, become a league average bat.
All of which brings us back to the other David, the one you already know. Royals left fielder David DeJesus. The best left fielder no one cares about... Well, that last sentence isn't probably very accurate, I'm guessing there are actually quite a few contenders that DO care about David DeJesus and would like to see him in left field for them. If his development could make DeJesus, who isn't getting any younger, or more affordable into a legitimate trade chip, that could help the team acquire more much needed young pitching to add to the talented core the team is building up.
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