645
06-30-2004, 09:51 AM
The trade deadline is still a month away, but the league is buzzing with a slew of transactions. This is the time of the year where the buyers are trying to put their teams over the top and the sellers are looking to stockpile talent for the future.
Some of the notable deals going down in baseball lately include:
Carlos Beltran to Houston
The Beltran sweepstakes had been in full swing for a couple of months now, and it turns out that Houston had the winning ticket. Beltran is one of the most talented players in the majors, and he gets moved to one of the best lineups in the bigs. He's batting in front of some major RBI producers.
I’m a little confused as to why Jimy Williams wants to keep Adam Everett in the two spot and move everyone else down a slot for Beltran when he was used to hitting second in Kansas City. Jimy Williams is by far the most frustrating manager for fantasy owners, what with with his short hooks, platoons, and stubborn attitude.
Still, Beltran could hit in the eight hole and he would be a fantasy force. Houston is one of the best hitter's parks in the league, so I would expect a few more homers from Carlos. However, there's always a chance that Beltran could slump upon entering the National League. For a good example of this, look no further than Aaron Boone last year. The All-Star moved to New York and had a serious second half slide. I think Beltran will be more valuable in Houston than in Kansas City eventually. Don’t panic if he has a rough July.
Stock: Up. He's the best roto OF in the NL.
Aaron Boone to Cleveland
Speaking of Boonsey, he signed a two-year deal with Cleveland. He still isn’t playing until August, but he could be a big pick-up down the stretch. Before his move to the Yanks last year, Boone was one of the better fantasy infielders in all of baseball. The Indians have to be confident in his comeback because they don’t have a lot of money to throw away. It's unclear whether he can return to his All-Star form this year, but if you're hurting at 3B and you have room on your bench to stash him away and wait for him, do it.
Stock: Up. If you wait too long to grab him, you might lose out.
Freddy Garcia to Chicago White Sox
Garcia might wind up being the best pitcher to change teams this summer. Other than some loose rumors about Randy Johnson and Jamie Moyer, Garcia is the biggest prize as far as starting pitching is concerned. This trade could be huge for Garcia’s value. In Seattle, he would be lucky to get two or three runs to work with. For the White Sox, he might get six or seven. That's the difference between a 20 game winner and a 15 game winner. With Magglio Ordonez on his way back, the White Sox look like the front-runners in the AL central. Garcia could have a colossal second half.
Stock: Way, Way Up. He's 4-7 now, but could end the season 15-9
Octavio Dotel to Oakland
Dotel moved to Oakland as part of the three-way deal that brought Beltran to Houston. The deal made a lot of sense for Houston and Oakland. Dotel was shaky for the Astros, but he was practically Eric Gagne compared to ex-A's closer Arthur Rhodes. Oakland should be able to close out way more games and could end up destroying the Angels and Rangers in the AL West. The A’s always make a second half run, and this year should be no different. They'll get Chavez back in a few weeks, and Dotel will start shutting hitters down again.
The A’s have a good history of getting the ball in their closer’s hands. Their starting rotation has to be ecstatic with the trade; Rhodes cost them a lot of wins. In fact, I’m going to make a bold prediction: this is the deal that finally gets the A’s over the top and into the World Series.
Stock: Significantly Up. A new start for Dotel will do wonders. New Houston closer Brad Lidge’s stock skyrockets as well.
Richard Hidalgo to New York Mets
This trade flew under the radar for good reason. Hidalgo will never be the 44 home run guy he once was. Shea Stadium is a much worse hitter’s park than the bandbox in Houston, so his power could drop even further. Furthermore, Houston’s lineup significantly trumps New York’s. It's possible that this trade could focus him in a little bit and he could reemerge as a long ball hitter. The Mets are counting on that, but then again they counted on Robbie Alomar. And Mo Vaughn. And Kaz Matsui. History suggests that Hidalgo will flop and I’m see no reason to disagree.
Stock: Down. Shea will rob Hidalgo of some homers, and the Mets lineup will rob him of some RBIs.
Some of the notable deals going down in baseball lately include:
Carlos Beltran to Houston
The Beltran sweepstakes had been in full swing for a couple of months now, and it turns out that Houston had the winning ticket. Beltran is one of the most talented players in the majors, and he gets moved to one of the best lineups in the bigs. He's batting in front of some major RBI producers.
I’m a little confused as to why Jimy Williams wants to keep Adam Everett in the two spot and move everyone else down a slot for Beltran when he was used to hitting second in Kansas City. Jimy Williams is by far the most frustrating manager for fantasy owners, what with with his short hooks, platoons, and stubborn attitude.
Still, Beltran could hit in the eight hole and he would be a fantasy force. Houston is one of the best hitter's parks in the league, so I would expect a few more homers from Carlos. However, there's always a chance that Beltran could slump upon entering the National League. For a good example of this, look no further than Aaron Boone last year. The All-Star moved to New York and had a serious second half slide. I think Beltran will be more valuable in Houston than in Kansas City eventually. Don’t panic if he has a rough July.
Stock: Up. He's the best roto OF in the NL.
Aaron Boone to Cleveland
Speaking of Boonsey, he signed a two-year deal with Cleveland. He still isn’t playing until August, but he could be a big pick-up down the stretch. Before his move to the Yanks last year, Boone was one of the better fantasy infielders in all of baseball. The Indians have to be confident in his comeback because they don’t have a lot of money to throw away. It's unclear whether he can return to his All-Star form this year, but if you're hurting at 3B and you have room on your bench to stash him away and wait for him, do it.
Stock: Up. If you wait too long to grab him, you might lose out.
Freddy Garcia to Chicago White Sox
Garcia might wind up being the best pitcher to change teams this summer. Other than some loose rumors about Randy Johnson and Jamie Moyer, Garcia is the biggest prize as far as starting pitching is concerned. This trade could be huge for Garcia’s value. In Seattle, he would be lucky to get two or three runs to work with. For the White Sox, he might get six or seven. That's the difference between a 20 game winner and a 15 game winner. With Magglio Ordonez on his way back, the White Sox look like the front-runners in the AL central. Garcia could have a colossal second half.
Stock: Way, Way Up. He's 4-7 now, but could end the season 15-9
Octavio Dotel to Oakland
Dotel moved to Oakland as part of the three-way deal that brought Beltran to Houston. The deal made a lot of sense for Houston and Oakland. Dotel was shaky for the Astros, but he was practically Eric Gagne compared to ex-A's closer Arthur Rhodes. Oakland should be able to close out way more games and could end up destroying the Angels and Rangers in the AL West. The A’s always make a second half run, and this year should be no different. They'll get Chavez back in a few weeks, and Dotel will start shutting hitters down again.
The A’s have a good history of getting the ball in their closer’s hands. Their starting rotation has to be ecstatic with the trade; Rhodes cost them a lot of wins. In fact, I’m going to make a bold prediction: this is the deal that finally gets the A’s over the top and into the World Series.
Stock: Significantly Up. A new start for Dotel will do wonders. New Houston closer Brad Lidge’s stock skyrockets as well.
Richard Hidalgo to New York Mets
This trade flew under the radar for good reason. Hidalgo will never be the 44 home run guy he once was. Shea Stadium is a much worse hitter’s park than the bandbox in Houston, so his power could drop even further. Furthermore, Houston’s lineup significantly trumps New York’s. It's possible that this trade could focus him in a little bit and he could reemerge as a long ball hitter. The Mets are counting on that, but then again they counted on Robbie Alomar. And Mo Vaughn. And Kaz Matsui. History suggests that Hidalgo will flop and I’m see no reason to disagree.
Stock: Down. Shea will rob Hidalgo of some homers, and the Mets lineup will rob him of some RBIs.