Will Braves trade Jurrjens to strengthen outfield?
Giving up this home run to Washington pitcher Livan Hernandez in September was one of Jair Jurrjens' lowlights.
Braves general manager Frank Wren went into the winter last offseason determined to trade a starting pitcher in hopes of acquiring some help for the Braves’ offensively-challenged lineup. The result was the oft-lampooned Javier Vazquez-for-Melky Cabrera trade.
The only difference this winter is the Braves are coming off a postseason berth — so maybe they won’t appear quite as desperate. But an unpopular move could be forthcoming: Are you ready to say goodbye to Jair Jurrjens?
I know — dealing Jurrjens seems unfathomable. Why would Wren trade his team’s young, inexpensive and talented starting pitcher? Simple: If he doesn’t, it’s going to significantly limit his options this winter and certainly would force him to get real creative with the team’s budget.
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♦ 1.) The Braves’ payroll this season was approximately $84 million. It’s not expected to increase much, if at all. Owner Liberty Media’s Board of Directors, as you might’ve noticed, did not arrange a field trip to Turner Field for the postseason. Nobody handed out red foam tomahawks at stockholders’ meetings. In short, they don’t care. So don’t expect the club to be free to pursue a mega-dollar free agent like Tampa Bay outfielder Carl Crawford.
♦ 2.) Chipper Jones’ intention to hold off on retirement and rehab from a major knee surgery — he seems more determined than ever to come back and is a big fan of new manager Fredi Gonzalez — means his $13 million salary will remain on the books. Closer Billy Wagner ($7 million) falls off the payroll. So does big-money late-season acquisition Derrek Lee ($13 million, of which the Braves paid only a fraction).
But here comes the painful part: The Braves still have 2011 obligations to outfielder Nate McLouth ($6.5 million) and pitcher Kenshin Kawakami ($6.67 million) — both of whom were demoted to Triple-A Gwinnett during the season.
♦ 3.) The top three starters in the rotation are Tim Hudson, Tommy Hanson and Derek Lowe. Lowe finished the season strong and was outstanding in two postseason starts (three earned runs, 14 strikeouts in 11 2/3 innings, despite two losses). He is perceived as far more important to the success of this team than he was after last season. Also, even if the Braves wanted to move Lowe, the fact he is owed $30 million over the next two years makes that possibility unlikely.
♦ 4.) Unless Wren is willing to deal touted prospects, something he’s generally been averse to, that means he’ll either have to shop for low-budget free agents again or deal from his position of strength: starting pitching. Jurrjens is only 24 but his long-term future in Atlanta is uncertain, given that his agent is Scott Boras. Jurrjens also struggled this season with a hamstring and knee injuries. He dropped from 34 starts, 25 quality starts (allowing three or fewer earned runs in six or more innings), a 14-10 record and a 2.60 ERA in 2009 to 20 starts, 10 quality starts, 7-6 and a 4.64 ERA this season.
But of all the Braves’ tradable assets, Jurrjens is the most likely to fetch something decent in return. It’s either that or fill available starting jobs in left and center field on the cheap again.
After Hudson, Hanson and Lowe, the Braves’ next two spots would go to some combination of Kawakami (if he is kept and not paid to walk away), Mike Minor, Brandon Beachy and a low-budget free agent (back-end-of-the-rotation starters aren’t difficult to find). Kris Medlen will miss most of the season recovering from Tommy John surgery.
Wren obviously moved quickly with his new managerial hire. But that move was kind of a slam dunk: Fredi Gonzalez was unemployed and living in Marietta. The roster fix won’t be as easy — and somebody may have to leave.
(I’ll leave you with this: Columbus, Ga., native and St. Louis center field Colby Rasmus clashed this season with manager Tony LaRussa and requested a trade two months ago. Would you be willing to part with Jurrjens if he was part of a Rasmus trade, or do you think the Braves can do better than Rasmus? And yes: I’m just throwing this against the wall. Below are all the pitchers who started games for the Braves this season, listed in order of quality starts.)
Pitcher QS (GS) W-L ERA K BB
Tim Hudson 25 (34) 17-9 2.83 139 74
Tommy Hanson 19 (34) 10-11 3.33 173 56
Derek Lowe 15 (33) 16-12 4.00 136 61
Jair Jurrjens 10 (20) 7-6 4.64 86 42
Kris Medlen 7 (14) 6-2 3.68 83 21
Kenshin Kawakami 7 (16) 1-10 5.15 59 32
Mike Minor 3 (8) 3-2 5.98 43 11
Brandon Beachy 0 (3) 0-2 3.00 15 7
♦
EARLIER TODAY:
♦ Gonzalez keeps Pendleton but not as hitting coach (UPDATED)
♦ Fredi Gonzalez is Braves’ perfect choice to replace Cox
♦ Challenge of Cox’s replacement will be recreating chemistry
♦
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553 comments Add your comment
Simon
October 14th, 2010
1:46 pm
ok Now youve lost me….theyre not breaking up the team, theyre lowering payroll by not bringing back one star and one 1B who nearly hit below 200 this year…Longoria is the cornerstone of everything in Tampa and signed a 6 year deal….stop dreaming.
The Abs Man
October 14th, 2010
1:47 pm
Look as mauch as ALL of US would love to time-machine Chipper back to his glory years, he is done.
Braves were better this season with him out of lineup.
Sure, like any past-class superstar, he had his giant moments here-and-there….
jim
October 14th, 2010
1:47 pm
Five points.
1) I had to laugh at the poster who was ready to declare Beachy > Minor after a total of 3 and 6 starts for each
2) the Vazquez trade was made inorder to sign Hudson. The trade amounted to Hudson + Vizcaino, Dunn, Melky IN THAT ORDER!
3) Prado is an average to slightly below average defensive 2B. He has not, and cannot, play SS.
4) It was claimed by one of the coaches that Omar’s best position was CF. That does not mean he is a good CF, but that he is a below average defender at the other IF positions. His best position, like Prado’s is 2B.
5) Even if the Braves pick up a bat like Werth, Kemp, or Uggla they are unlikely to do as well next year as they did this year. — The Phillies will still be very strong, the Marlins, with or without Uggla, Have a nucleus of Josh Johnson, Nolasco, Hanley, + Coghlan, Morrison, Stanton, G. Sanchez, A. Sanchez, Bonifacio, Maybin, and Matt Dominguez in the wings. Trading Uggla for some help on the mound frees up 2B for Coghlan and makes them a strong playoff contender. The Nats are a team on the rise with young players like 2 Zimmermans, Desmond, Bernadinha, the young 2B, Morgan, the strong core of relievers.
Freeman and Heyward will be good players eventually, but they are works in progress and will not likely be ready to carry the offense next year. There are no other offensive players in the high minors that will make a significant contribution to the team. (Matt Young might be a fourth outfielder type that can replace Diaz in that role.) after Prado and McCann there are too many question marks/holes for this team to be a legitimate contender. 1B — rookie Freeman, SS — eratic Gonzo, 3B — declining and injury prone Chipper, LF — ?, CF –?, RF — which Heyward? 4/5 starter — JJ?, Minor/Beachy?, bullpen depth filled by unproven Martinez, Marek (Kimbrel, Venters, Dunn, EOF, Moylan back?, Martinez, ?, ?) — not as strong as this year’s. Hudson will be good, but unlikely to be as good as this year, but Hanson may be better.
Even with the aquisition of the big bat, there are too many question marks to expect next year’s team to be better than the team that overachieved this year.
I would prefer to see them get younger, get faster, and play for 2012 or 2013 when they get rid of the big contracts holding them back and would have a solid young nucleus in place ready to contend for the bigger prize.
darrell starks
October 14th, 2010
1:47 pm
1.INFANTE 2ND
2.PRADO SHORTSTOP
3.CHIPPER 3RD
4.BRAUN LF
5.HEYWARD RF
6.CRAWFORD CENTER FIELD
7.MCCANN CATCHER
8.FREEMAN 1ST
GO BRAVES!!!!!!!!!!!
Ueeediot
October 14th, 2010
1:47 pm
“Thats a lie”
wow, the discourse is unbelievable.
If you recall….24 players stood (yes, stood) and cheered Gonzo when he came in the club house.
It has been reported in this newspaper that Yunel had worn his welcome in the clubhouse.
NSS
October 14th, 2010
1:47 pm
Scotty Pods has a 381 slugging average and below average fielding skills and while he steals a lot of bases he gets caught a lot too. Pass.
NSS
October 14th, 2010
1:50 pm
That’s funny what Ueeediot said about Longoria because at 1:16 PM I left a comment about trading for Longoria because I thought it was one of the few scenarios more insanely unlikely than trading JJ for Rasmus.
NEW CARS
October 14th, 2010
1:50 pm
I think the deal with Freeman is this…We either commit to him now and look for RH power in the two outfield spots, or we try to package him with a couple of pitchings prospects not named Teheran to go after Adrian Gonzalez. With AGon here, then you might go after a Cody Ross and an upcoming RH bat like the Morse guy in Washington. A guy like Gonzalez (the key would be to sign him up for a about 5 more years) would anchor the lineup and make everyone around him better.
Heisenberg
October 14th, 2010
1:50 pm
I do not understand the Tampa breaking up the team concept. They have a hot prospect to replace Crawford (though maybe not quite as good). Besides him only Soriano & 1B (Carlos ???) are free agents. They still have a deep bench from which to fill 1B (Johnson) and young affordable quality pitching. May not win AL East in 2011 but should still be able to contend for WC.
DawgDad
October 14th, 2010
1:51 pm
Look, if I were in Chipper’s shoes I’d rehab and go to spring training. No way I’d leave the money on the table and walk away with regrets. From the team perspective, yes, he’s a payroll killer. Not much they can do about it at this point.
Given the fact that the team is much better with Infante getting his AB’s as a multi-position utility player rather than holding down a starting job, I’d pencil in Chipper/Infante at third and look to fill other holes. If a good trade offer comes along for Infante would have to consider it because he’s at peak value right now.
They need to land a right handed hitting outfielder (or first baseman if they trade Freeman) who is a lock to drive in 100+ runs and isn’t a Teixeira/Drew expensive one-year wonder. Whatever it takes, it needs to be done. They need an outfielder or middle infielder who can lead off effectively and run. Find those and have some pitching left and they will contend again next year.
Ueeediot
October 14th, 2010
1:51 pm
Ahhh, I hadnt seen the 6 year deal to Longoria. Oh well…
I still say Chipper to 1st.
You cant put those legs in LF
Simon
October 14th, 2010
1:52 pm
Jim—Im not denying our division is going to get harder before it gets easier. To be honest, if the Marlins had a bullpen they wouldve been in the race probably in a better position than us. But I dont see as many holes as you do. I like Prado and Gonzo fine enough and I still think McClouth is going to bounce back to 250 and his defense will be decent enough to pass by, its not like we have many other options to roll with. I like our rotation, a nice mix of wiley veterans and young studs, I like the bullpen, power youthful arms. Heyward hopefully grows instead of suffering a sophmore slump, Chipper still gets on base but yes 3B will be a hole to fill very very soon…
NSS
October 14th, 2010
1:55 pm
Ueeediot, you hadn’t seen the long term deal Longoria signed 2 1/2 years ago?
Simon
October 14th, 2010
1:55 pm
But even if chipper goes to 1B…whos playing 3B? Infante? I still prefer Infante to be that utility infeilder/bench
Heisenberg
October 14th, 2010
1:55 pm
I like Morse. The Nats do not seem to know what to do with him. If they get a momentary case of the stupids I would be a buyer. But not for the price of JJ. AGon not going anywhere now that the Pads believe they can contend.
Simon
October 14th, 2010
1:55 pm
Darrell Starks makes me laugh…I like him
Simon
October 14th, 2010
1:56 pm
I thought the Padres would revisit the AGon trade situation this winter now that it is officially his contract year but I expect them to start the season with him then look to move him if they dip in the standings by July
Heisenberg
October 14th, 2010
1:57 pm
A long long time ago in a galaxy far far away Freeman played 3B. Probably not gonna happen now though.
Heisenberg
October 14th, 2010
1:58 pm
I thought that was starks fantasy baseball team!
heymmered
October 14th, 2010
1:59 pm
I live near Cincy and watch a lot of Reds games. O Cabrera is awful. Worse than A Gon.
Simon
October 14th, 2010
1:59 pm
While were at it, why not dig up Ruth? He can still hit a few more homers and bring Hammerin Hank back too
Ueeediot
October 14th, 2010
2:00 pm
NSS,
no, like a fool, i was listening to the network broadcasters talk about how TB is going to revamp the team.
It sounded like most everyone could be had (fire sale).
I do recall the big contract Longoria signed but it had slipped my brain.
Point remains, in my capacity as GM, I need top notch corners and a strong OF. Moving CJ to 1B and finding a near All Star 3B would be priorities.
Moving CJ to 1B also gives you your second hitting coach (you dont have to be named a hitting coach to give advice to your team mates) and it also gives F Freeman the chance to be on the bench and work his way into the lineup.
NEW CARS
October 14th, 2010
2:01 pm
Jim,
What do you base your theory that the Phils will be better next year…They are already starting to show wear and tear with Rollins, Utley, Ibanez and Polanco. Halladay will not be as good next year. Oswalt will be a year older. Howard will probably not be as good. The only regulars on that team that are on the uptick are Hamels and Domonic Brown, and if you think Heyward is “a work in progress”, then Brown needs to go back to AA.
Cody
October 14th, 2010
2:01 pm
I hate trading prospects. Ever since the Teixeira trade, it has left a bad taste n my mouth. Thank you Feliz and Andrus, good luck in the ALCS! :/
jim
October 14th, 2010
2:01 pm
Assuming that Fredi could handle Yunel any better than Bobby because both are Cuban is like assuming a black football coach could handle T. O. any better than a white one, or a white manager would handle a player like Josh Hamilton as well as a black one has. I don’t know that Chino had much of an influence on Yunel, so there is no reason based upon common heritage to think Fredi might. Depending upon the time difference when both left Cuba and their family backgrounds, there may be issues that would make it harder for Fredi.
The Abs Man
October 14th, 2010
2:01 pm
Have to agree with heymmered about Orlando Cabrerra–more negatives than positives in his game.
Another name out there who should be avoided: Matt Kemp. He’s a Milton Bradley in-the-making….with an attitude worse than Yunel.
Simon
October 14th, 2010
2:02 pm
To be honest, if were opening up 3B a bit…if the price is right, I would look into Jorge Cantu…hes set to be a free agent
The Abs Man
October 14th, 2010
2:03 pm
Admitedly, perhaps the Cubano thing with Fredi-Yunel was racist…so apologize if it offended…
Just saying, Yunel’s defense and Alex G not in same zipcode…and with Hudson/Lowe living off ground balls, it’s tough to take..
Mike
October 14th, 2010
2:03 pm
My offseason plans…in an ideal world (which we all know is not the baseball word – but ifs fun to hope)
-Get a good hitting coach and put him to work to fix McLouth (he is untradeable so he is the CF). Hopefully McLouth can come back to form and be the lead off guy that we need, or at the very least serviceable in the 7 or 8 hole)
-Trade Lowe simply to free up cash. Would love to keep him, but we need the money (some one will take him I think, even at $15 mill, for how well he pitched at the end and in the post season)
-Non-tender/Release Melky, Ankiel, Diaz (ouch). Plus money saved from no more Wags, Saito, Lee, Glaus.
-Resign/pick up option on Hinkse, Gonzales (no one better)
-Trade KK (eat half the salary and maybe someone take him), Farnsworth for anything reasonable.
-Take the money and go sign Werth (not Crawford, we need power) or even dare I say Dunn.
Simon
October 14th, 2010
2:06 pm
I def agree with the hitting coach part and McClouth but I still pass on Werth and Dunn. It just smells of bidding war then eating a bad contract 2 years into the thing…
jim
October 14th, 2010
2:07 pm
I don’t think the Phillies will be better next year than they are this year, just that they will still be better than the Braves. The Phillies will not likely have as many injuries to contend with next year and they will go out on the FA market to pick up pieces they need. Brown may or may not be ready for prime time — he did not get many ABs after Victorino returned. Stanton looked overmatched when he first arrived, but not the last time we saw him, Brown may have needed those additional ABs to become more comfortable in his role.
Heisenberg
October 14th, 2010
2:07 pm
Cantu. Who would not want a 90-100 RBI guy? Can he play LF? Probably.
Simon
October 14th, 2010
2:09 pm
Cantu really only has had 90+ RBI three times but he was showing alot of promise in Florida, hit for an above average BA, stick him in the upper third of our lineup, might work out.
The Abs Man
October 14th, 2010
2:10 pm
Drop Adam Dunn nonsense. Freeman looks like real deal.
Drop Werth…..overpriced and over-rated….
Drop Kemp—superstar entitlement-attitude, lazy, stupid, under-achieving pouting rat.
Ueeediot
October 14th, 2010
2:10 pm
Cantu in 2010 had less plate appearances than 08 and 09 where he was a 90 -100 RBI guy. This year only 56.
Was he on the DL for a minute?
Cantu is also a 6 million dollar man.
Heisenberg
October 14th, 2010
2:10 pm
Are we about to become the Atlanta Marlins?
Mike
October 14th, 2010
2:11 pm
Cody…Feliz doesnt hurt as much because we have dominate young arms…What hurts in hindsight is Andrus. he would be AWESOME at short and hitting lead-off for us. the kid is an Allstar! But thats hindsight because at the time Yunel was even better and on the rise. He was the MVP of this team in 2009 for most of the year. I still am not sure about that trade.
And not to disagree or make it a race thing, but there is more of a culture difference especially in baseball between Cuban and American players, so yes a guy like Fredi as the manager with Yunel may have made a difference. Yunel may have been able to open up more or feel more comfortable with Fredi. IT IS NOT the same as a white or black coach and T.O.
I am not taking blame away from Yunel, he is suppose to be a professional and a grown man. But there is a difference.
Simon
October 14th, 2010
2:11 pm
Price will be the problem…I assume Freeman will be an everyday first baseman and I dont want to sink 19 million into a Chipper/Cantu platoon at first…unless the guy plays Left, Im not spending 6 million to be a sub
papadawg
October 14th, 2010
2:12 pm
YES I’m bashing Chipper, he’s making 14 Million Dollars next year and he’ll probably be out hurt more than he plays so how is that going throw fear into opposing teams. 14 million can buy alot to help this team all year long
Mike
October 14th, 2010
2:14 pm
The Abs Man…if you were referring to my post, I meant Dunn for LF, though I know he would be a defensive liability, but so was Melky and Diaz.
Also with all the DROPs would do you suggest we get?
Ueeediot
October 14th, 2010
2:15 pm
Isnt Hanley Ramirez from the Dominican? Seems just speaking the same language and being from the same region dont have too much to do with personalities clashing.
The Abs Man
October 14th, 2010
2:16 pm
Mike: I like Colby Rasmus…huge upside….a St. Louis source tells me his IQ suspect, but love his game.
Now that moody IB Pujos was re-upped, Colby available.
Heisenberg
October 14th, 2010
2:17 pm
How did that latino thing work out between Fredi & Hanley? Less of a race thing, more of a personality thing.
The Abs Man
October 14th, 2010
2:19 pm
What I would love TO KNOW is:
What players and at what appox $$$, does team have option to re-up or let walk?
Simon
October 14th, 2010
2:22 pm
http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2009/09/2011-mlb-free-agents.html
thats a good website to find things out, they cover rumors, but also contracts and what not
The Abs Man
October 14th, 2010
2:28 pm
Thanks Simon.
NEW CARS
October 14th, 2010
2:29 pm
What I really wish we could do is what the Rangers did with Nelson Cruz and the Rockies did with Carlos Gonzalez…find a guy languishing in another organization that develops into a full-blown stud..Sort of like Matty D to the nth power…Brandon Wood, Michael Morse the 3rd baseman who flamed out in KC…I thought Wilkin Ramirez might be the type of guy who could do that and he still might be…Would like to see him do well this winter and he might be an option for one spot
Simon
October 14th, 2010
2:30 pm
Dont we all wish that?
Im still going to push for Garrett Jones.
Bama Brave
October 14th, 2010
2:31 pm
I think that we would be better off with Carl Crawford than jason werth.
Simon
October 14th, 2010
2:31 pm
Michael Morse would be good but the Nats are really onto something in the rebuilding process and Im not sure they would part with him to be honest. They probably know what they got there.