William Gum (real name? sounds like an 19th century dentist) thinks the Rockies should trade Matt Holliday. I kind of, sort of agree, simply because I believe my favorite team should trade their first baseman and both teams suck. There should only be one reason for this, to get prospects because that team is not going to be able to resign the player and would rather have prospects as opposed to draft picks. That's the one and only reason. But Dr. Gum needs to write an entire column so he lists 10 reasons. He basically takes this one reason and splits it into 10. This is the equivalent of the Beatles having a three minute guitar solo at the end of "She Loves You." It's pointless but you gotta fill some time and space.
http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/8333078/Ten-good-reasons-for-the-Rox-to-deal-Holliday
Also, please don't call them the Rox, that is stupid and irritates me.
It's time for the Colorado Rockies to part ways with Matt Holliday.
I agree.
Yes, it's difficult to say goodbye to a .330 hitter who hits 35+ home runs a year, has an attractive OPS that averages around 130, and who will even steal you a dozen or so bases.
It is tough because very few other hitters do that. Remembering the positive aspects of Holliday is not a reason to get rid of him. I still agree though.
The Rockies are a middle-market club that has suffered the slings and arrows of past high priced free agents signings that never panned out. They've felt that sting with players like Mike Hampton, Denny Neagle and several others.
Every team has had a free agent or two not pan out. Ironically, mostly the larger market teams have had this problem, but because they can afford to. Because two free agents did not work out is not a reason to trade Holliday. Who are the "several others" he speaks of here? I feel like Dr. Gum always takes things a step or two further than he should in listing things.
1. Financial Discipline
The Rockies now understand, as a middle market team, that they cannot afford to eat the back ends of big contracts after a player's skills have diminished like the Yankees, Red Sox and Giants can.
Ah yes, few teams can manage to eat the back ends of contracts like the Yankees, Red Sox and...the Giants? I would like to think he feels the need to list everything in threes. He has three kids, three homes and three wives, (Big Love reference) and not that he really thinks the Giants are a team that can afford to eat the back end of contracts. They are not exactly kicking ass this year, so maybe they should fall under the category of "Teams that need a better front office."
The Yankees, Dodgers and Red Sox can afford to eat bigger contracts. No other team can, so this is not a reason to trade Holliday.
2. Holliday's Agent
Yes, it is Scott Boras. I don't like it when people say after the Andruw Jones and A Rod fiascos people have "found out" Boras. It's not true. What has happened, and the players who sign with Boras don't think logically about this, is that they are narrowing their options by signing with Boras and not necessarily doing what is best for them. When players sign with Boras, whether it is before free agency or in the draft, this tells MLB teams one thing:
That player wants to be paid like he is tops at his position. How many teams can afford to this? Maybe three or four teams can afford to do this on a consistent basis with Boras clients. So by signing with Boras, this player has pretty much guaranteed he will play in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles or Boston. If that is what he wants, then great, otherwise you will never truly be a free agent on a free market. Yes, before I quit my job and moved into the attic I used to do a little economisting.
3. Financial Cost
Didn't we cover this already?
The Rockies will look for something around $14M a year range on any kind of long-term deal, which is not unreasonable, but it is only one factor that plays into the mix.
Uh, Andruw Jones got 17 million and Mark Teixiera wants 23 million dollars. I think Holliday will want a little higher than 14 million per year. That is what J.D. Drew gets paid. This reason still falls under "he is too expensive for us."
4. Length of Contract
The smart money says sign Holliday for four years and look again when he turns 32.
I read this sentence seven times and still don't get it. The smart money says sign Holliday for 12 years for 4 million per year, but just like him signing a four year deal, that won't happen.
Boras will undoubtedly look for 6-10 years and will probably find it.
Ok, I am still with you but this still falls under "too expensive for us." Do you have any other reasons?
5. Team Building
This is a great reason! I remember when the entire Rockies team went on a team building retreat to a Wyoming cattle ranch and had cow milking relay races. Holliday refused to run the milk to the container that measured which team filled it up the fastest. I knew from that day, Holliday was not a team player.
Holliday is an OK fielder and his fielding percentage has risen from the 97% range to the 99% range, but left field is not a key position that is difficult to fill.
True. Left field is not a hard position to fill, you can pretty much have anyone play it. Jeremy Giambi played LF for a few games. I think the Rockies are not worried about left field as much as they are what you said earlier:
a .330 hitter who hits 35+ home runs a year, has an attractive OPS that averages around 130, and who will even steal you a dozen or so bases.
I am sure Dan O'Dowd is crunching the numbers on his fielding range right now on the computer to help him make this decision.
Not a good reason to trade Holliday. You are de-convincing me. See what breaking down one good reason into little tiny little sorry ass reasons does?
6. The Bench
Ok, now you are stealing from Woody Paige. There is no one on the Rockies bench who can replace Matt Holliday.
On the current club's bench they have Ryan Spilborghs who's hitting .300 overall and over .400 as a pinch hitter.
Replace the All Star with a career pinch hitter, good idea.
They have so many talented infielders that they can move somebody like Jeff Baker, who can hit consistently and with power to the outfield if necessary.
An even better idea! Move someone who has never played the fucking position there. But what will his fielding range be? 96%?
Jeff Baker can hit consistently and with power to the outfield if necessary? Why "if necessary," is he like Superman in that he does not want to show off his wonderful home run hitting powers to the masses?
(Clint Hurdle) "Baker get up there and get us a base hit. The bases are loaded and it is the bottom of the ninth and we are down two."
(Jeff Baker) "Yes sir, will do."
(Baker takes two straight fastballs and then pops out to the catcher)
(Hurdle) "Why did you not hit one of those fastballs out of here, he only threw them 54 miles per hour?"
(Baker) "Sir, you know I only hit to the outfield with power if it is necessary. We only needed two runs and a home run would have given us four runs."
(Hurdle) "Good thinking. Dr. Gum would be proud of you. We just traded Jeff Francis, now go pitch!"
(Baker) "I have never pitched before!"
(Hurdle) "I figure you have so much talent, we can move you anywhere, just like Dr. Gum says."
The Rockies also have additional outfield speed on the bench with Scott Podsednik.
If Scott Podsednik is an option, you have no options. I say don't trade Holliday.
7. The Farm
In addition to their bench strength, the Rockies have a lot of good bats waiting for a chance down in their AAA farm club.
If they were good, they would not be in AAA right now while the Rockies suck.
Seth Smith is a heady hitter with a good eye who stays focused and fouls off a lot of pitches.
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=8144
That guy? He is also hitting .244 and has an OBP .320. Also, he is only two years younger than Holliday, that's it.
Cory Sullivan has a million dollar major league contract but there's just no room for him at the Rockies Inn.
No room at the inn? Just like Jesus? Call him up immediately but don't bring him gold or frankensense (spelling?), he already makes millions.
Dexter Fowler is an enormous talent still under development in Class AA Tulsa.
Perfect! No one will play left field for the next two years and we will wait for him to maybe make it to the Majors.
I now don't think they should trade Holliday.
9. Clutch Hitting
There is no such thing. Fortunately Dr. Gum does not even talk about clutch hitting but being patient as a hitter.
The Kid Rocks are free swingers that have yet to grasp that once you have a pitcher on the ropes that you make him sweat and work him hard.
You should be shot for saying "Kid Rocks."
10. The Rockies' current record
Holliday may have second thoughts about re-signing on the cheap if he feels the 2007 Rockies were the exception and not the norm.
I would say anytime you make the World Series it is the exception and not the norm.
Dan O'Dowd is never too hesitant to make a trade that will improve his club. O'Dowd will be willing to move Holliday if he finds the right deal —
That is what makes O'Dowd so great. Most GM's would never make a trade that improves their club.
This is a stupid comment because any trade that improves a club would be made. I bet you $100 the Yankees would trade A Rod if it improved their club. Longoria, Kazmir, and Upton for A Rod and Melky Cabrera? I also realize I just turned into Bill Simmons.
It may well be in the Rockies' best interests to trade Matt Holliday now instead of rolling the dice and trying to overcome the hurdles needed to re-sign him.
If this were Jerry Maguire and I were Renee Zellwegger, I would say, "You had me at hello but lost me in the other bullshit you were saying."
Thanks to Dr. Gum I think the Rockies should resign Holliday, if for no other reason than to piss him and Woody Paige off.
7 comments:
Dude...the white sox had it so right when they chose Podsednik over Carlos Lee. Lee sux, Scotty Pods rox! (That's not the team name...it's what he does!)
I hope my sarcasm showed there...
Haha..you are so right. (More sarcasm) I bet if you 100 baseball writers 70 of them would insist the White Sox did get it right.
Though I will give the White Sox credit for Pods hitting one of his career 7 HR's in a clutch spot in the World Series. No one knows what Carlos Lee would have done in that series, but still...
I pretty much always get sarcasm. Usually.
The funniest part about this entire column by Dr. Gum is the fact that he almost ruined his entire argument by dissecting the main reason too much.
"Seth Smith is a heady hitter with a good eye who stays focused and fouls off a lot of pitches."
That's the sorriest compliment of a baseball player I've ever read.
You have a new reader. I love these kind of blogs and look forward to reading your work.
J.S.
...well the White Sox did kind of win a world series the year they traded Lee for Podsednik (and Luis Vizcaino and the cash they used, in part, to sign Pierzynski, El Duque, and Iguchi)
So forgive me if I too think that trade was a wise decision.
:shrug:
That said, trading Holliday because you feel confident in Podsednik taking over in LF is something else altogether
Actually Chris I would agree with you that trade was a wise decision when I actually think about it. It seemed to work out for them. I just don't know if I would have made the trade, that's all. At the time, for some reason, Pods did end up playing pretty well. Today the trade looks pretty bad but if I tried to remember correctly Pods could actually steal bases at the time.
I would have to add though, I would never make that trade if I was a GM, which is why I am not one. Also, I would chalk up the White Sox win more to the incredible pitching performances of the starting pitching and less to Pods. I think they could have traded Carlos Lee for anything and still won the World Series.
In conclusion, I was wrong, the White Sox made the right move at the time, a couple years later it would not seem so, and the White Sox pitching had more to do with the win than anything else.
Jeff, I am with you on the compliment of Seth Smith. He stays focused and fouls off a lot of pitches. Hopefully it hits them in play every once in a while. I think Gum (I want to call him Gump) was just looking for something positive to say about the replacements for Holliday. You are not going to replace Holliday unless you trade for another All Star, that has to be accepted, so saying there are good players on the bench and in the minors like you can replace Holliday easily is a disservice to his argument.
J.S. are you really from Australia?
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