January 2, 200422 yr -By John Sickels Mark M. From Chula Vista, California, asks: I see the Athletics traded left-handed pitcher Bill Murphy to the Marlins to complete the Mark Redman deal. As an Oakland fan, should I be concerned about this? How good is Murphy? I saw Murphy pitch for Double-A Midland in July, and I was quite impressed with him. He was picked in the third round in 2002, out of Cal State Northridge. His fastball is good for a lefty, reportedly hitting 93 mph at times, though he was working at 89-90 in the game I saw. It looks faster than that, however, because he mixes it well with his curveball and changeup. He also has a deceptive delivery. I thought his delivery looked a bit stiff in the contest I witnessed, but so far it looks like he's going to be fairly durable. He pitched 147 innings combined between Class A Kane County and Midland without trouble. Murphy posted a 3-3 record and 4.09 ERA in 11 starts at Midland, with a 34/26 K/BB ratio. I think he can do better than that, but he will have to improve his command from "good" to "excellent" to get the most out of his ability, since he doesn't usually blow the ball by people. For me, he projects as a No. 3 or 4 starter, probably ready in 2005. I don't think he'll have a spectacular career, but I can see him as a solid contributor. He could end up being quite similar to Redman himself down the road. Their arsenals and styles are somewhat similar.
January 2, 200422 yr Good, now he is in our Talented minor league system. I hope he can develop more because we need another lefty in the pen.
January 2, 200422 yr Glad to hear Admin got the most out of that trade. Well of course WC, Admin Beinfest is our "Fearless" GM.
January 2, 200422 yr Glad to hear Admin got the most out of that trade. Well of course WC, Admin Beinfest is our "Fearless" GM. No, he's god.
January 2, 200422 yr So we got a future Big Red and a future closer? Where are those trade doubters now.
January 2, 200422 yr So we got a future Big Red and a future closer? Where are those trade doubters now. ummm... Neu is not a future closer, but yes we did make out pretty well in the trade.
January 2, 200422 yr Neu is not a future closer link? :lol Neu has the stuff to be a good Closer but has the stuff to be a great setup man with his nasty curve and slider. Plus his fastball is good too.
January 2, 200422 yr Am I the only one who sees the 3 - 3 record with an above 4 era? Red had some trouble in the past but is that really promising stuff coming from a minor league pitcher?
January 2, 200422 yr Am I the only one who sees the 3 - 3 record with an above 4 era? Red had some trouble in the past but is that really promising stuff coming from a minor league pitcher? Look at AJ Burnett...
January 2, 200422 yr Am I the only one who sees the 3 - 3 record with an above 4 era? Red had some trouble in the past but is that really promising stuff coming from a minor league pitcher? Look at AJ Burnett... So does mean he's guaranteed to be one of the rare exceptions. Look at the other minor league pitchers who have average numbers, in a percent, how many end up making it as an abover average third or above starter?
January 2, 200422 yr So we got a future Big Red and a future closer? Where are those trade doubters now. Right here. Fact is we gave up a lefty 14 game winner with a 3 ERA for a lefty prospect and a solid bullpen arm. SOlid trade. And we saved money. But let's not get ahead of ourselves here - Murphy does not have the resume Redman had at that time. Neu is going to be a solid addition, and if Murphy pans out great. But Redman could easily win 14-18 games this season. The reason I doubted this trade is because I think we could have gotten more for Redman - but we would have had to spend the money on him to keep him around. The fact that we are not touching this money 'freed' up by Fudge not signing though is quite interesting. We could have re-signed Red, but didnt...why? :shifty
January 2, 200422 yr Am I the only one who sees the 3 - 3 record with an above 4 era? Red had some trouble in the past but is that really promising stuff coming from a minor league pitcher? Look at AJ Burnett... So does mean he's guaranteed to be one of the rare exceptions. Look at the other minor league pitchers who have average numbers, in a percent, how many end up making it as an abover average third or above starter? No I was just pointing out that the minor leagues don't mean anything except for development. I mean look how many busts there have been from people who have been great minor leaguers...
January 3, 200422 yr The fact that we are not touching this money 'freed' up by Fudge not signing though is quite interesting. We could have re-signed Red, but didnt...why? Likely because our payroll target was not the $60M everyone speculates, and is the same as last season.
January 3, 200422 yr The fact that we are not touching this money 'freed' up by Fudge not signing though is quite interesting. We could have re-signed Red, but didnt...why? Likely because our payroll target was not the $60M everyone speculates, and is the same as last season. No, I dont think so. I believe Beinfest has said that our target is $60M. I think that if they can get it under that, great. But there may be 'extra' money laying around for other purposes. I didnt think Redman would be in our long term plans anyway, but I thought we could have gotten a little more for him. I think we got a lot for Lee though, so things may be just balancing out in a way.
January 3, 200422 yr So we got a future Big Red and a future closer? Where are those trade doubters now. Right here. Fact is we gave up a lefty 14 game winner with a 3 ERA for a lefty prospect and a solid bullpen arm. SOlid trade. And we saved money. But let's not get ahead of ourselves here - Murphy does not have the resume Redman had at that time. Neu is going to be a solid addition, and if Murphy pans out great. But Redman could easily win 14-18 games this season. The reason I doubted this trade is because I think we could have gotten more for Redman - but we would have had to spend the money on him to keep him around. The fact that we are not touching this money 'freed' up by Fudge not signing though is quite interesting. We could have re-signed Red, but didnt...why? :shifty dood redman wont win 14 games.. in the AL he will give up more runs and oaklands anemic offense wont get him no runs... redman is back in detroit mode.. dood.. ok well not taht bad lol, but hes not gonna repaet 2003 in the AL
January 4, 200422 yr So we got a future Big Red and a future closer? Where are those trade doubters now. Right here. Fact is we gave up a lefty 14 game winner with a 3 ERA for a lefty prospect and a solid bullpen arm. SOlid trade. And we saved money. But let's not get ahead of ourselves here - Murphy does not have the resume Redman had at that time. Neu is going to be a solid addition, and if Murphy pans out great. But Redman could easily win 14-18 games this season. The reason I doubted this trade is because I think we could have gotten more for Redman - but we would have had to spend the money on him to keep him around. The fact that we are not touching this money 'freed' up by Fudge not signing though is quite interesting. We could have re-signed Red, but didnt...why? :shifty You make good points, but I gotta believe that Beinfest knows what he is doing. In fact, I know he know what he is doing. I have 100% in Beinfest to field the best team he can with the money he has. He borders on being a genius.
January 5, 200422 yr So we got a future Big Red and a future closer? Where are those trade doubters now. Right here. Fact is we gave up a lefty 14 game winner with a 3 ERA for a lefty prospect and a solid bullpen arm. SOlid trade. And we saved money. But let's not get ahead of ourselves here - Murphy does not have the resume Redman had at that time. Neu is going to be a solid addition, and if Murphy pans out great. But Redman could easily win 14-18 games this season. The reason I doubted this trade is because I think we could have gotten more for Redman - but we would have had to spend the money on him to keep him around. The fact that we are not touching this money 'freed' up by Fudge not signing though is quite interesting. We could have re-signed Red, but didnt...why? :shifty dood redman wont win 14 games.. in the AL he will give up more runs and oaklands anemic offense wont get him no runs... redman is back in detroit mode.. dood.. ok well not taht bad lol, but hes not gonna repaet 2003 in the AL Cmon Pubey - you know better than to contradict me! Redman's ERA was about a run higher in Detroit than what it was with us this past season. But that is pretty much the standard for any pitcher making the switch from AL to NL (where they play REAL baseball). That said, Redman was a tough luck pitcher and suffered more from Detroit's anemic offense and bad team play than his lack of pitching ability. The A's are a good team, although overrated (especially Beane). Redman will win AT LEAST 14 games there.
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