ultimopain

See here's the thing though, if we sell Borowski, Herges and Helms... specifically the pitchers... then that would mean we'd have even more young players in the bigs who neccessarily aren't ready. You have to have the right mix, and I believe without those three guys you'd be wearing out the young arms even quicker. You gotta remember that this is the first time many of our squad is playing a full season, and if they were to get tired and weary, they'd just implode in late August and September, leaving no one in a good frame of mind for next year. I can see the benefits of keeping them.

Link: http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2535130 Pretty amazing to think Shelton has fallen so far to be behind Sean freaking Casey after exploding with homer upon homer early on in the year.

Being in Australia, I was able to see it on MLB.tv... Unfortunately, it did happen.

Great K Moe.

Acquiring Soriano would be awesome, but realistically it's going to take more than West and Bostick. I'd say it would take Willingham, Petit and one of our top A arms. I'd still do it though, because I believe with him in the line-up we'd be so much more dangerous, as he'd offer some protection for Cabrera. Then again, if I had the chance at Crawford or Soriano I'd still take Crawford, as we could have him for years to come.

Totally agree 100%. That's why I'm perplexed when I see people saying "Don't trade Pinto/Petit/Gaby/etc whatever you do!" when we have these four guys who will probably be in the rotation for years to come. We've got a surplus of pitching prospects, and even if we trade Pinto/Petit/Gaby we still have Volstad/West/Thompson/Garcia/Sinkbeil/etc. The pitching depth of this organization is sick, but I wouldn't be trading Nolasco/JJ/Olsen/Sanchez whatsoever.

To be honest, and I'm not just saying this to be a smart ass, but I never thought Vargas would be a successful long-term starter. IMO, he doesn't have nasty stuff like Olsen or Nolasco does, so he hasn't been consistently successful. I actually classify JJ in the same category, he's done well this year but I worry about his future once hitters work him out, because he doesn't seem to vary his stuff that well. In my opinion, anyway.

To think coming into the year we all thought he'd be the #2 guy. :plain

At least if we make the playoffs we won't have to play the Phillies... :mischief

The Yankees and Phillies were reportedly talking late into Friday night about a Bobby Abreu deal that might also include Jon Lieber or Cory Lidle. ESPN.com's Jayson Stark has said that the Yankees could get a discount by taking the full contracts of both Abreu and Lieber, as there's been little interest in both players elsewhere. The Star-Ledger reports that the Phillies are now discussing second-tier Yankees prospects instead of Philip Hughes and Jose Tabata. :plain The Phillies would give up Abreu and Lieber or Lidle for second tier prospects? I know they need payroll relief but that's ridiculous if true.

I agree, if we get to the playoffs, anything can happen. Getting there is the problem.

I really do think Messenger and Herges are better than Kensing at this stage.

Source: Brewers trade Lee to Rangers By Keith Law ESPN.com The Milwaukee Brewers are trading slugger Carlos Lee to the Texas Rangers as part of a multi-player deal, ESPN.com learned Friday. The Brewers are sending Lee, minor-league outfield prospect Nelson Cruz and a player to be named later to the Rangers for relief pitcher Francisco Cordero and outfielders Kevin Mench and Laynce Nix. Both teams are checking for any medical issues before consummating the deal. http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2532418

Holy sh*t Texas gave up a lot for him IMO.

You know what I've been thinking, we'll be even better next year in this regard because all of our starters will have pitched a full season for the first time, so they'll be given more of an opportunity to go deep into games. Sometimes this year we've had trouble when Girardi has taken out the starter early for precautionary reasons (and it's a good move IMO, you don't want to burn them out now) and then the bullpen has blown it. Next year the starters will be able to work deeper into games which will be better for everyone as it will give the bullpen a chance to rest and then fire when they're really needed.

^ Totally agree. Herges should get an opportunity in bigger situations considering his recent form.

Man he's blown 6 saves and lost 2 games, and yet his ERA is only 2.63, he must be lights out when he doesn't blow one. Well, I suppose that's an obvious statement...

Didn't he have a four-hit game like a week ago? He'll be back.

August 17th.

I guess this Braves lineup from the game thread is off... Giles Renteria Betemit A. Jones McCann Francoeur LaRoche Langerhans Smoltz http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/boxscore?gid=260726115 Hmm... :mischief2 Where did you get that line-up from?

Amezaga - SS Uggla - 2B Cabrera - 3B Jacobs - 1B Ross - CF Hermida - RF Borchard - LF Olivo - C Johnson - P Hanley gets the day off and Borchard gets a rare start in LF. Also for Atlanta: Giles Renteria C. Jones A. Jones McCann Francoeur LaRoche Langerhans Smoltz Both Joneses... yikes.

Wow, great trade for the Mariners. They easily upgrade their DH position by getting rid of Everett and acquiring Broussard.

Trading for a better veteran like A-Rod or Peavy or Lugo or Crawford or Jones. :plain :lol

The ultimate pro. Many guys in his situation would say "I don't want to be in the bullpen", but he knows the future of this team and he's willing to help anyway he can. He may not have pitched the best this year, although at times he's been great, but you gotta respect his attitude.

Considering the effectiveness of the move, it was the right decision. It may not have been at the time, but in hindsight, it was the right move. And I think the two most crucial points have already been mentioned: the effectiveness on the upcoming hitters against Annibal in the previous at-bats, and also to preserve him for the long season. It worked, there's no use harping on about it now. Had Annibal stayed in and if he had given up the game winning runs, then people would be all over Girardi for not pulling him sooner. It's a no-win situation really... well, except for the fact we DID win.