At the risk of becoming formulaic, I’m revisiting the past—again—in light of the deals made by the Cardinals this week.
Last week in this space I wrote about the possibility of the Cardinals trading for Roy Halladay because the Arizona Diamondbacks were in town, Dan Haren plowed through the Cards’ lineup, and some were lamenting the 2005 trade that sent him away. I pointed out that this is the risk a team runs when they trade young talent for a veteran. Sometimes things work out for both teams, and sometimes one team gets screwed.
I thought, at the time, that any deal for the Toronto Blue Jays’ ace would include Brett Wallace, and Colby Rasmus was not entirely out of play. I thought maybe Kyle McClellan or Jason Motte would be requested. And I figured that some slightly lower-tiered prospects would round out the package sent by the Cardinals in exchange for Halladay.
But the Cards threw us all a curve when they bypassed the Halladay dream and traded for Matt Holliday instead. And, after seeing which players were sent to the Oakland A’s, I have to say that being half right never felt so good.
By many accounts, Brett Wallace is poised to be a great big league hitter. But many also disputed his value as a third baseman. Since the Cardinals already have a first baseman, they basically had two choices: try to mold him into a better third baseman, which would include trying to slim him down so it doesn’t look like Prince Fielder is manning the Hot Corner, or move him.
Clayton Mortenson got his first taste of the Majors this season and did alright, but he didn’t show enough to get the nod when the team needed a fill-in starter while Kyle Lohse was on the DL. Of course, this doesn’t mean a lot, other than he isn’t ready for the big leagues. Mortenson does project as a starter, and had OK numbers at AAA Memphis. But OK in the Minor Leagues doesn’t exactly translate into a spot in the Major League rotation.
Shane Peterson was drafted in 2008 and had some good numbers between Class A Palm Beach and a handful of games at AA Springfield. But he’s an outfielder, which isn’t exactly a premium position and is certainly one where the Cardinals have depth.
So other than Wallace’s bat (maybe), the Cardinals didn’t really give up anything that was expected to help them before 2011. Wallace might have competed for a spot on the team next year, but it likely would have been more like Nick Stavinoha’s role if he did make the team. The Cardinals acquired Holliday without giving up Rasmus, Motte, McClellan, or anyone else on the 25 man roster. And, as many Major League debuts as the Cards have seen this season, that pretty much means they didn’t give up anyone they felt was irreplaceable.
Now I do have concerns about the ability to retain Holliday and/or Mark DeRosa after this season, and I have to say I’m not the biggest fan of trading away multiple prospects for rental players. As it stands now, the Cards will have Holliday and DeRosa for less than half the season each, and the final cost will be five young, controllable players.
But not all is lost. Nothing is guaranteed with any player. The guys the Cards have shipped away have just as good a chance of flopping, struggling, getting injured, etc. as the players still in the system have of blossoming into an impact player. One good example is Brendan Ryan. Here’s a guy that never looked like he was going to put it all together and become a Major League shortstop; now all of a sudden he’s getting mentioned in Gold Glove conversations. And I don’t remember anyone saying, “Wait until this Albert Pujols kid makes the big club!” in 2000.
We still have to see what David Freese is made of. His injury derailed his shot for this year, but Freese was putting up good numbers at AAA in 2008. Many expected him to bridge the gap to the Wallace era anyway. The Cards have a maximum of two rotation spots to fill in 2010, and guys like McClellan, Mitchell Boggs and Jaime Garcia will be poised to compete for those slots. And we haven’t even discussed the possibilities of free agent signings, arbitration offerings to any of the departing free agents, and the draft picks the Cards could receive if they do lose some players to free agency.
The Cardinals gave up a lot to acquire Holliday, but they still have a lot too. This deal is not completely against the recently adopted philosophy of developing from within, but it is a major shift. It shows a willingness to win and a willingness to adapt and adjust whenever necessary. And it was done without completely draining the farm system.
Chris Reed is a freelance writer from Belleville, IL who also blogs on the Cardinals at http://bird-brained.mlblogs.com. |