Adam

O's fans are funny. Ray Miller is the reason for Chens success. Crowley is the reason Charles Johnson had that awesome year (steroids had nothing to do with it) but Kline, DeJean, Daal and Sosa are NL'ers that can't make it in the AL. Too funny! 858574[/snapback] Never said they "can't cut it". In fact, I don't think either Burnett or Lowell will have much trouble adjusting. But there's always that possibility. My main thing is losing Penn and to a lesser extent, Bigbie. We're still gunshy over here after the infamous Finley/Schilling/Harnisch trade that landed us the immortal Glenn Davis. That's our own version of "The Curse".

Don't compare Burnett with the likes of Daal, Kline, Mike Dejean, etc. Compare Burnett to Matt Clement. The only 2 things I like about the trade is we save money if Lowell if included and not Ponson. Penn is the other but we have alot of guys like Penn in the minors already and he has gotten hit hard in his last 3 starts in AA including yesterday. Julio has potential but makes 2.5 million already and will likely get a raise to 3 next year after arbitration and will likely be just a set-up man at best.? Bigbie will I think he just sucks and is the worst OF on your team. I rather have Williangham, Aguila, Dillion out there before him. On the downside you guys are getting Lowell and his contract. 858495[/snapback] Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't compare Burnett to the three I mentioned. I realize A.J.'s stuff is far better and ceiling much higher. I'm just giving you our bad luck track record with NL pitchers. I'd love it if A.J. turned out to be as good as Clement has for the BoSox. However, isn't it fair to wonder whether or not he'll end up pitching like Pavano has for the Yanks? Bottom line is we won't know untill he comes here, if he does. I agree with you about Julio... more expensive than he's worth. If he ever straightens out though, he'll be another Benitez. As for Bigbie, I'd say he's #2 as far as being our most dissapointing OF this season. Sammy is a runaway #1 in that category. But ironically, Bigs is probably the guy in that group with the highest ceiling. Some O's fans want to believe he'll be the next Paul O'Neill or Steve Finley. Personally, I'd settle for the mid-90s Baltimore version on B.J. Surhoff (.300-20-80, approximately). If he ends up doing that, you'll have a serviceable outfielder. Seriously, if this trade happens, I hope it works out for the both of us. I'm a die-hard O's fan, but the Marlins are definitely next in my heart.

Hey guys. Just thought I'd chime in from Baltimore, here. Believe me when I say this trade proposal is scary on our side as well. Nobody really knows how Burnett and Lowell will transition to the AL. The O's have had some recent failures dealing with NL pitchers (Omar Daal, Mike DeJean, Steve Kline, etc.), so understandably, we're all a bit hesitant to see this happen. For all of you who haven't seen Hayden Penn, I think you'd be pleasantly surprised. He's still just 20 years old, and really held his own during his brief audition with the big club this year. The league began to catch up with him second time around though, which is why he was sent back down. But really, he has great stuff (the changeup is probably his best pitch), and a tremendous amount of poise for someone so young. I was impressed with what I saw. The only downside is he probably won't help you this season. But down the road, I believe the O's could well regret trading him away, unless A.J. gives them good production in return. As for the rest, I have a feeling Kline would be OK coming back to the NL. Remember, he was one of the most dominant lefty relievers in the entire game last year. Bigbie, well, he's still got the "potential" tag. We've been waiting for him to bust out for a full season. He usually hits at a good clip in the second half. It's the first half that's the problem, when at times he looks absolutely lost at the plate. Julio would definitely be a project. He seems to have regressed each season, even though his stuff is electric and logic would dictate that he *should* be a great reliever. Time will tell with him. Ponson, if you guys get him, then I profusely apologize. The guy's a bum, pure and simple. One good season in 2003... a contract year (surprise!), and suddenly he reverts to below-mediocrity. And that's putting it nicely. Bottom line, the jem in this deal would definitely be Penn, whom I'd hate to see go. Everybody else is kind of a mystery. If this deal does happen, I'll be crossing my fingers for the both of us.