Is this hinting at a A-Rod reunion? Or was it just in good fun at "Bora$$'s" expense? Lol
The King and his Diamond Table-A Seattle M's Franchise (MLB14-PS3)
Collapse
Recommended Videos
Collapse
X
-
Re: The King and his Diamond Table-A Seattle M's Franchise (MLB14-PS3)
He will be making a return to the league, but after looking at who else could use a 3B/DH right now, I think I have found a team that would be a better fit.
Not sure I could sell my soul to the devil on this one.Comment
-
PSN Name - xboxxerx
You can call it being a "Homer". But as Tupac said, its California Love.
My Teams
NFL- San Francisco 49ers
NBA- Los Angeles Lakers
NHL- Anaheim Ducks
MLB - Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
NCAA - USCComment
-
Re: The King and his Diamond Table-A Seattle M's Franchise (MLB14-PS3)
RANGERS SIGN A-ROID
When Mariner GM "The Deuce' refused to sell his soul, Super Agent S. Bora$$ moved quickly calling another former team of A-Roids.
Texas was the perfect fit. Not only where they already still paying him from his previous contract, but they also had just lost veteran 3B A. Beltre to the DL for 1-2 months with a Fractured Arm.
With Joey Gallo still in AA, Donnie Murphy was left to man the hot corner and his .210/.266/.302 2 HR 10 RBI performance in 116 AB's wasn't leaving Ranger fans much to be excited about.
GM J. Daniels"I get why Seattle would pass on bringing Alex back. There is alot of hurt feelings still about him leaving. For us this is a business move, we were already paying him a bunch of money anyways and if we are going to compete in the AL West, we need the best team on the field."
The Deuce"Daniels can spin it anyway he likes, for me personally I feel he made a deal with the Devil. Think about it. Alex wasn't suppose to play at all in 2014 but somehow he manages to log 371 AB's and hit 12 HR's (not sure why I had him start the year in Single A, and guess i never paid attention to the fact he was called up). Some people might not believe but I do, his 12 HR's gives him 666 for his career. To me that's just to creepy, I want nothing to do with him"Last edited by Deuce2223; 08-19-2014, 12:54 AM.Comment
-
Re: The King and his Diamond Table-A Seattle M's Franchise (MLB14-PS3)
Cracking up at the "666. Thats creepy." part. Also I don't see the Rangers point. A-Roid doesn't have anymore roids. He can't be better then .210...Comment
-
Re: The King and his Diamond Table-A Seattle M's Franchise (MLB14-PS3)
anything .250 would be a pretty decent # for them.
Sardinas is in AAA but hitting .250 with no power, Odor is hitting .242 with 7 HR's in AAA and Gallo is having a very tough start hitting just .251 with 3 HR in AA
So the fact I had him sign for 2 yrs 4.0 million, means they are taking a pretty inexpensive risk being how A-Rod is still rated a 76/A.Comment
-
Re: The King and his Diamond Table-A Seattle M's Franchise (MLB14-PS3)
DOWN ON THE FARM IN AAA
The Rainiers continue their strong season having won 7 of their past 10 and currently sit atop the PCL Pac North Division at 42-16 with a 6.0 game lead over the Reno Aces (36-22) an 18 game lead over the Sacramento River Cats (24-34) and a 24 game lead over the Fresno Grizzlies (18-40).
The reason why Tacoma has been so good this season has to be the rotation. Despite losing E. Ramirez and V. Sanchez to the D.L. and J. Hammel to “The Show”, the Rainiers have gotten CY Young worthy performances from Danny Hultzen and Jordan Pries.
Hutlzen the former #2 Overall pick coming off spending the entire 2014 season on the D.L. has been outstanding pitching 8/12 QS and has a perfect 8-0 record with a 2.73 ERA.
Pries a 30 round selection in 2011 out of Stanford is having more success than his former teammate (M. Appeal) with 10/12 QS gong 9-2 with a 2.59 ERA. Could Pries make this MLB debut before the former #1 Overall pick?
Well Ramirez (6/8 QS 3-2, 3.11 ERA), and V. Sanchez (8/9 QS 4-1, 1.67 ERA) have been on the D.L., Top-10 prospect E. Diaz has been pretty solid with 3 of 4 QS and a 2-1 record with a 1.13 ERA and F.A. signee Hector “Daniel” Rodriquez is 4/4 in QS going 2-1 with a 2.83 ERA.
Another reason why the Rainiers already have 42 wins, is the strength of the bullpen.
LHP veteran J. Mijares is currently 3-1 with a 2.67 ERA in 27 IP.
Former SP B. Maurer is 0-2 with a 2.70 ERA in 23 IP but has saved 3 of 4 games and leads the team in holds with 12. He also is holding batters to a .159 BA and has a K/9 of 12.34
RHP D. Colvin is 4-1 with a 4.76 ERA in 22 IP well CP Carson Smith is 0-1 with 14/15 saves posting a 1.38 ERA in 13 IP.
In limited IP, LHP J. Beimel (8 IP) has posted a 3.13 ERA, RHP L. Vasquez (8 IP) is 0-1 with a 2.25 ERA and LHP L. Luetge (5 IP) is 1-0 with a 0.00
At the Plate, 2013 2nd Round Pick Austin Wilson looks to be one in line for a shot at what he can do in “The Show”. After dominating AA ball last year, Wilson has adjusted well to AAA hitting .308/.370/.523 with a team high 9 HR’s and 34 RBI
1B Ji-Man Choi Is another bat who might get a chance to show what he can do in Seattle before Sept. Choi is hitting a team high .318 and has 4 HR and 20 RBI
If. J. Montero proves he can’t handle the catching duties for the next 2 months in Seattle with “Z” out, the M’s don’t have to go the trade route as both J. Hicks (.296 3 HR 12 RBI) and T. Marlette (.276 15 RBI) are playing well in a platoon role.
Another player who could benefit from a trade of either B. Miller or C. Taylor is SS K. Marete. The Switch hitter is currently hitting .286 from both sides of the plate with 20 RBI’s and a team high 10 SB’s.
With the M’s current bench short of quality utility guy’s who can help out in multiple positions, both N. Tenbrink (.272 4 HR 24 RBI) or T. Kelly (.262 17 RBI) could also get a chance at a callup.
The rest of the bats looks like this
OF M. Saunders .258 6 HR 20 RBI 9 SB’s
OF J. Jones .254 1 HR 8 RBI 6 SB’s
3B P. Kivlehan .250 2 HR 20 RBI
OF X. Avery .214 in 14 AB’sComment
-
Re: The King and his Diamond Table-A Seattle M's Franchise (MLB14-PS3)
DOWN THE FARM REPORT FOR AA
Last season the Jackson Generals won the 1st Half to place them in the Southern League Playoffs where they went on to win the Championship.
This season, Jackson is looking to do it again. With a 33-24 record, the Generals currently are in 1st Place, with a 3.0 game lead on the West Tennessee Smokies (30-27), a 5.0 game lead on the Huntsville Stars (28-29), a 9 game lead on the Chattanooga Lookouts (24-33) and a 12 game lead on the Birmingham Barons (21-36)
Following the theme of the organization the Generals are winning ball games with sound pitching.
S. Landazuri leads the team with a 7-2 record well posting a 3.39 ERA in 6/10 QS.
T. Pike has posted a team best among SP's 2.81 ERA pitching 8/12 QS going 5-3.
2014 Draft pick D. Altvilla also adjusted well to AA as he is 4-2 posting a 3.59 ERA with 5/8 QS.
Well A. Fernandez (8/11 QS 6-4 4.99 ERA) and J. Gillheeney (3/3 QS 2-0 3.46 ERA) round out the rotation.
CP Jordan Shippers has also done well saving 16/18 save opps well posting a 1.65 ERA in 16 IP.
At the Plate, everyone is talking about 2014 1st Round Draft Pick Alex Jackson. Jackson currently leads the team in hitting .348/.469/.685 and has a team high 8 HR's with 19 RBI's and 4/5 SB's.
With the way Jackson is playing it's very possible we could see a promotion to Tacoma before Sept and even see him in Seattle for the final month of the season.
Another name to watch for his 2013 Draft Pick Tyler O'Neill. A catcher in high school, O'Neill made the move to RF last season but this year has been at 1B where he is hitting .326/.423/.465 with 4 HR and 25 RBI. If the M's decide to move Choi in a trade or up to Seattle, O'Neill could move to Tacoma to see what he can do against AAA this year.
Former 1st Round Pick (Cubs) Brett Jackson is 26 and the time frame for him to prove his is not a career minor leaguer is closing. However with a .319 BA 5 HR 22 RBI performance in Jackson, he at least has proven he is ready to make the jump back to AAA.Comment
-
Re: The King and his Diamond Table-A Seattle M's Franchise (MLB14-PS3)
Well being how Andrus is hitting .256, L. Martin is hitting .221, Fielder is hitting .265, Profar is hitting .230, D. Solano is hitting .211 and Murphy is hitting .207
anything .250 would be a pretty decent # for them.
Sardinas is in AAA but hitting .250 with no power, Odor is hitting .242 with 7 HR's in AAA and Gallo is having a very tough start hitting just .251 with 3 HR in AA
So the fact I had him sign for 2 yrs 4.0 million, means they are taking a pretty inexpensive risk being how A-Rod is still rated a 76/A.Comment
-
Re: The King and his Diamond Table-A Seattle M's Franchise (MLB14-PS3)
Yep, but yet they still have managed to go 28-30 which is crazy because they rotation has not been that good either. Darvish is 4-5 with a 3.91 ERA. They are only 4 games out of the WC so I would expect them to try and make some kind of trade move of A-Roid doesn't work out.Comment
-
Re: The King and his Diamond Table-A Seattle M's Franchise (MLB14-PS3)
THE 2015 DRAFT PREVIEW
With the 2015 Draft just 48 hours away, all eyes are on the Chicago Cubs who own the 1st Overall Pick. As bad as the Cubs have been over the past century this is just the 2nd time they have held the #1 selection with the last time being in 1982 when they selected SS Shawn Dunston #1. With the #2 Overall pick in the 2013 Draft the Cubs selected 3B Kris Bryant who just 2 years later is already in Chicago playing everyday as the teams RF. With a lineup loaded with young hitters, most experts agree the Cubs choice should be a SP, but before we get a look at the players, here is a look where the rest of the league will be drafting.
#2 Minnesota, #3 Miami, #4 Pittsburgh, #5 Houston, #6 Arizona, #7 CWS, #8 Tampa Bay, #9 Detroit, #10 LAA, #11 Boston, #12 Oakland, #13 NYY, #14 Texas, #15 Philly, #16 Cleveland, #17, NYM, #18 Milwaukee, #19 San Francisco, #20 Baltimore, #21 Kansas City, #22, St Louis, #23 Atlanta, #24 San Diego, #25 LAD, #26 Washington , #27 Cincinnati, #28 Toronto, #29 Colorado, #30 Seattle.
Now that you have seen the order. Here are some of the Top names in this draft.
Pitching
In the discussion for the #1 Pick is a pair of Lefties. 20 yr old Mario Silva (93 POT/53 OVR) and 23 yr old Willy Tejera (93 POT/50 OVR) however when put up against the potential of what some of the bats have to offer these guy's look like Top-10 picks at best.
One dark horse for the possible #1 could be CP Carlos Cairo (94 POT/62 OVR). The 22 yr old Righty throws heat and because he is a likely a 1 IP pitcher he could move up through the farm quickly. The Cubs currently have P. Strop closing out games and he has done pretty well 22/23 save opps, but you just never know what the Cubs will do.
Odds the Cubs take a Pitcher (10%)
HITTING
On area the Cubs don't have much depth or a current MLB player who looks to be the future is at Catcher, and lucky for the Cubs there is a potential Franchise player available. 21 yr old Donnie Clinton (97 POT/51 OVR) is a switch hitter who offers a pretty balance attack of contact and power. However the Cubs taking Kyle Schwarber last year, most assume the selection of Clinton would mean Schwarber would likely move to a very crowded OF.
There are 2 other potential Top-10 picks behind the plate as well in 21 yr old Rob Hernandez (95 POT/45 OVR) and 18 yr old Carlos Ponce (93 POT/46 OVR)
Despite the fact the Cubs are loaded in the OF, the Rest of the Top-10 teams picking have to be pretty excited about this group of guy's.
19 yr old R. Grover (97 POT/44 OVR)
19 yr old F. Gonzalez (95 POT/47 OVR)
22 yr old N. Alfaro (93 POT/63 OVR)
22 yr old S. Park (93 POT/78 OVR)
If Catcher and OF are the need areas of your team then you might want to check out a pair of SS's. 23 yr old J. Hurst (93 POT/64 OVR) or 20 yr old B. Nolan (91 OVR/58 OVR)
Other Top-10 and 1st Round potential picks are
Power hitting (73) 22 yr old 3B A. Saucedo (94 POT/66 OVR) as well as another pair of 3B's in 22 yr old C. Barnard (91/52) and 21 yr old L. Kirpatrick (90/47). As well as 21 yr old 1B C. Singleton (89/63) and 19 yr old 2B W. Chen (87/52)
With Seattle picking last in the Round, the M's will likely take the best available player regardless of position or need.
However with a lack of MIF depth and depth at 1B,Catcher and 3B expect bats to be the main target for the M's after they went with 6 straight selections of pitchers in 2014 after taking OF's Jackson and Morgan with their first 2 picks.Comment
-
Re: The King and his Diamond Table-A Seattle M's Franchise (MLB14-PS3)
CUBS TAKE CATCHER #1
Despite having a lack of depth in the arms race, the Chicago Cubs once again pass on taking a pitcher in the 1st Round instead adding focusing a position of need in landing a potential starter for behind the plate as they take Donnie Clifton (97/51) #1.
With the 2nd Overall Picks the Minneosta Twins pick probably the best Pure hitter in the draft OF S. Park (89/77). With Buxton and Sano already in the Twin Cities, Park will should be joining them soon.
With the 3rd Overall Pick the Miami Marlins surprised everyone by selecting 20 yr old Matt Stokes (99 POT/ 55 OVR). He originally wasn’t on the radar as a Top-10 player but the Miami Scouts saw potential that other teams (Cubs) missed.
With the 4th Overall Pick the Pirates took a major need position selecting 21 yr old 1B Chris Singleton (99 POT/72 OVR).Pirate scouts love this kid and believe he could be in the majors by 2016.
With the 5th Overall pick the Houston Astros selected 21 yr old Catcher H. Claussen (95 POT/63 OVR). With several teams hot in pursuit of current Catcher Jason Castro, Claussen could be the man behind the plate real soon. ETA 2018.
Arizona had a huge need in the OF and filled it by picking 19 yr old OF R. Grover (99 POT/46) at #6
The White Sox have need at every position, which left them with the ability to take the best available player and they decided that guy was SS J. Hurst (93 POT/64 OVR).
With the trade of David Price to Detroit, Tampa Bay took the first Pitcher of the 2015 Draft selecting 20 yr old LHP M. Silva (99 POT/58 OVR) with the #8 pick.
With Raja Davis (34) and C. Granderson (33) currently starting in CF/RF for the Tigers, Detroit was looking for their future replacement and landed him in 23 yr old C. Rodriguez (98 POT/53 OVR).
The Angels finished out the Top-10 with the selection of 22 yr old 3B Blake Beals (97/75). Beals can play 3B,SS, and 2B, and most scouts believe he could be up as early as next spring as a utility guy.
Boston short of potential corner OF’s took Bryan Holt (99 POT/47 OVR) the younger brother of super utility man Brock Holt with the #11 pick.
With Y. Cespedes a potential FA, the Oakland A’s looked to land his replacement taking 18 yr old J. Rubio (99/70) with the #12 pick. Rubio reminds most scouts of current A Coco Crisp with a solid contact score (74) and decent speed (68).
Like the White Sox, the New York Yankees have needs pretty much at every position and despite the fact they signed J. Lowrie (30) and A. Carbrera (29) this off-season as well as R. Weeks, they went who they hope will be the next D. Jeter in 20 yr old SS Barry Nolan (91 POT/58 OVR)
The Texas Rangers currently have A. Beltre and recently signed A. Roid at 3B with Joey Gallo expected to be the future, but that didn’t stop them from taking 22 yr old A. Saucedo (95 POT/67 OVR). At 6’5 222 lbs, most figure Saucedo will move across the diamond and be a potential replacement for P. Fielder allowing the fellow bigman to move to DH.
The run on bats continues as Philly looks for C. Ruiz’s replacement behind the dish taking 22 yr old R. Erskin (96 POT/46 OVR).
The Indians finally took the 2nd Pitcher of the 1st Round selecting CP C. Cario (94 POT/62 OVR) with the 16th pick.
The NY Mets looked to pair up a young 2B to go with T. Story in the Middle of their IF, taking 19 yr old 2B J. Wiseman (95 POT/61 OVR) at #17.
The Milwaukee Brewers currently have 36 yr old A-Ram playing 3B. Today they drafted a player they hope will be his replacement in 23 yr old C. Pena (99 POT/67 OVR). Scouts have his ETA at 2017.
The San Francisco Giants entire diamond was filled with red (which means thin). They went after the man with the most potential from their scouting which happened to be 22 yr old 1B R. Bautista (99 POT/46 OVR)
With Rumors of C. Davis and M. Wieters both leaving via Free Agency some wondered if the O’s would go 1B or C, but with a lack of depth in the OF, they went with 22 yr old N. Alfaro (98/66 OVR) which is a great pick considering he was a potential Top-10 talent.
Kansas City picked Catcher R. Herandez (94 POT/44 OVR) at #21, St Louis followed taking Catcher R. Thompkins (98 POT/61 OVR) at #22, Atlanta took 18 yr old OF E. Quntero (95 POT/52 OVR) at #23. The Padres took SS R. Whitlock (95/72 OVR) at #24, well the Dodgers followed suit taking 22 yr old SS W Vaszquez (96 POT/72 OVR) at #25.
Washington went for a potential replacement for J. Zimmerman taking 22 yr old LHP SP R. Lopez (97 POT/56 OVR) at #26, Cincy took 3B C. Barnard (91 OVR/51 POT) at #27, Toronto took the potential #1 pick in LHP SP W. Tejera (93 POT/50 OVR), well Colorado followed suit taking RHP SP J. Wakefield (85 POT/64 OVR)
With the last pick of the draf the Seattle Marniers went back to 3B where they selected DJ Peterson in 2013. Despite having Seager, Peterson and P. Kivlehan in the system, they selected 3B Lorne Kirkpatrick (90 POT/47 OVR).
Deuce“Kilpatrick is just 21 yrs old, so he is young enough that we can let him spend a full season in Single A before moving him to Jackson where can likely spend 2 years before we need to move him to Tacoma. Plus at 5’11 167 lbs he has the potential size to move to SS or 2B as well, so our thoughts are he isn’t just going to be a 3B”2nd Round Picks
Cubs- RP M. Calero (91 POT/45 OVR)
Twins-SS W. Baek (97 POT/47 OVR)
Marlins- RF B. Schrieber (93 POT/46 OVR)
Pirates-2B K. Lowery (98 POT/52 OVR)
Astros-RP A. Ruiz (99 POT/56 OVR)
D-Backs-2B W. Chen (89 POT/54 OVR)
White Sox-SP C. Montanez (91 POT/64 OVR)
Rays-RP J. Gamble (98 POT/49 OVR)
Tigers-C J. Torries (88 POT/42 OVR)
Angels- CP B. Szuminski (88 POT/65 OVR)
Red Sox- OF F. Gonzalez (89 POT/44 OVR)
A’s-3B E. Rodriguez (89 POT/47 OVR)
Yanks-CF O. Lopes (85 POT/66 OVR)
Rangers-OF C. Parks (92 POT/51 OVR)
Phillies-SP D. McKinney (95 POT/69 OVR)
Indians- OF I. Snider (88 POT/44 OVR)
Mets-C A. Luke (91 POT/46 OVR)
Brewers-CP H. Manzo (94 POT/72 OVR)
Giants-2B C. Watson-(90 POT/50 OVR)
O’s- C T. McNamara (88 POT/67 OVR)
Royals- SP C. Liriano (87 POT/58 OVR)
Card’s-SS C. Matsui (89 POT/53 OVR)
Braves- C C. Ponce (83 POT/41 OVR)
Padres-OF G. Ramirez (83 POT/41 OVR)
Dodgers- RP H. Quinones (90 POT/56 OVR)
Nat’s 3B T. Volple (83 POT/48 OVR)
Reds-LHP RP J. Morlaes (90 POT/51 OVR)
Blue Jays-OF A. Gonzalez (83 POT/50 OVR)
Rockies-OF M. Bravo (86 POT/57 OVR).
With their 2nd Round Pick the M’s took LHP RP M. Mejia. Mejia is only 19 yrs old but is already very developed for his age (76 OVR) and has the potential (88) to be a very solid Loggy who could work his way up and into the pen quickly.
With the M’s 3rd Round pick they took 20 yr old 2B G. Liriano (81 POT/61 OVR). In the 4th Round they took 18 yr old RHP SP A. Zarate (84 POT/53 OVR) and in the 5th took another 18 yr old RHP SP D. Rice (82 POT/55 OVR). With their last pick in the 6th Round the M’s added 20 yd old Catcher F. Mercado (74 POT/52 OVR).
Deuce"To be honest were were hoping to add more bats this draft, but the run on offense in the first 2 rounds left us ignoring the needs and just going with the best available players. Liriano has the potential to be a decent utility guy for us and gives us that MIF depth we were hoping to improve, well Zarate, Rice and 2nd round pick Mejia add to our strengths and should give us the depth to feel comfortable making a deal. Mercado is a project and might not ever be more then depth at Jackson or Tacoma but it's never bad to add a guy who knows how to call a came."Comment
-
Re: The King and his Diamond Table-A Seattle M's Franchise (MLB14-PS3)
M'S DROP 2 OF 3 TO BLUE JAY'S
The Mariners open up June play officially (already played June 1st to finished the Miami Series) with 9 straight homes games and dropped the first 2 of 3 to Toronto leading to a fan out cry of trade demands.
Here is a recap of the 3 game series.
Game 1 (M's fall 4-1)
Once again a lack of run support ruins a good outing by the M's SP.
On the Mound, T. Walker went 8 IP giving up just 1 run on 3 hits and 3 BB's well striking out 7. He got the no decision though because this game was on in the 9th.
With the game tied 1-1, C. Furbush started the 9th and quickly served up the go ahead runs (2 H, 2 R) before being yanked without even getting a out.
D. Leone took over and got 2 quick outs before serving up a N. Reimold solo HR which led to his hook, so S. Pryor finished it striking out Navarro.
At the Plate the M's managed just 2 hits and 1 run off former Mariner B. Morrow as he goes the complete game striking out 8 to move to (3-6) on the season.
The lone run came via back to back doubles by Smoak (scored) and DJ Peterson (RBI).
Game 2 (M's fall 5-2 *Played*)
On the Mound
J. Paxton quickly gave up 3 runs in the 1st which was all Toronto needed. Paxton would end up leaving after 4 IP giving up 5 runs (2 ER) on 7 hits and 1 BB well striking out 3.
Y. Medina pitched the 5th and 6th, well S. Pryor pitched the final 3 IP striking out 2.
At the Plate
The M's managed 8 hits off Hutchinson but manged to score just 2 as R. Cano scored both runs going 2/2. J. Smoak and M. Carp each drove in a run.
Game 3 (M's win 10-1
At the Plate
Seattle's bat's explode for 9 runs in the 2nd inning! R. Cano was the POG hitting 2 HR's and driving in a team high 5 runs.
DJ Peterson also had a good day at the plate going 3/4 with 3 RBI's.
On the Mound
J. Hammel pitched his 2nd straight complete game giving up just 3 hits and the 1 run well striking out 9. Hammel is now 2-2 and has lowered his ERA to 2.19
NEXT UP SEATTLE WILL HOST THE WHITE SOX FOR A 4 GAME SERIES.
PITCHING MATCHUPS
F. Hernandez (8-0, 1.77 ERA) vs J. Danks (5-4, 3.04 ERA)
H. Iwakuma (7-4, 2.60 ERA) vs T. Hanson (2-5 4.59 ERA)
T. Walker (4-5, 4.16 ERA) vs J. Quintana (5-5 5.57 ERA)
J. Paxton (7-3, 1.81 ERA) vs C. Beck (0-0, 0.00 ERA making his debut)Comment
-
Re: The King and his Diamond Table-A Seattle M's Franchise (MLB14-PS3)
M'S AND CUBS SWAP 7 PLAYERS!
The Seattle Mariners and Chicago Cubs have officially kicked off the 2015 Trade season with a 7 player deal. With 5 players headed to Chicago and 2 coming to Seattle.
Last year the Cubs made some noise when they shipped Jeff Samardzjia and Jason Hammel to the A's for Top-10 prospect A. Russell, Top-100 prospect OF B. McKinney and SP D. Strailey. The Cubs then continued to deal trading off vets like N. Schierholtz, D. Barney, and R. Sweeney.
Chicago then hogged the headlines when they started the year with A. Russell as the opening day 3B, along with J. Baez starting at 2B and 2013 #2 Overall pick Kris Bryant starting in RF.
The Cubs offense however produced despite the 3 rookies in the starting lineup and now Chicago has found themselves leading the Wild Card and just 4.0 GB of 1st place in the N.L. Central.
However what the Cubs need was rotation help, bullpen help and more specifically help from the left side, where they have just 2 LHP between the MLB and AAA teams.
Well we all know the M's have a surplus of pitching and we know they have a surplus of LH Pitching so it appears this was a match made in heaven.
The Cubs and M's are no strangers to being trade partners. Last year the M's sent SP B. Beavan, LHP SP/RP L. Gohara and 1B D. Paolini to the Cubs for LHP RP J. Russell and OF/2B E. Bonifacio.
So now let's get to the trade.
The headliner in this deal has to be M's LHP SP Danny Hultzen (78/B) the #2 pick of the 2012 draft. Hultzen a former Top-10 prospect in the M's farm system and a Top-50 in the Minors (now ranked #15 in the M's Top-20) missed most of the 2013 and all of the 2014 seasons with injuries, but so far in 2015 has excelled going 8-0 in 8/12 QB well posting a 2.73 ERA.
The M's are also dealing another Top-20 prospect (#16) as they are sending AAA CP Carson Smith (82/B) to the Windy City. Smith was dominating last season saving 34 games in Tacoma and so far his year was 14/15 well posting a 1.19 ERA.
Joining Hulzen and Smith is a trio of RP's including D. Farquhar (79/C) the M's former closer in 2013 when he had 16 saves (this season 1-1 3 saves 3.06 ERA) as well as RP's LHP J. Mirajes (66/C) who is 3-1 with a 2.89 ERA and LHP L. Luetge (68/C) who is 1-2 with a 5.58 ERA at the MLB level and 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA in AAA.
In exchange for the 5 arms, the M's will get a pair of bats, including former Top-50 prospect 3B Mike Olt (76/B) hitting .327 with 7 HR and 16 RBI off the bench in 107 AB's as well as Utility IF/OF Junior Lake (73/B) who is hitting .267 with 5 HR and 25 RBI in 187 AB's.
Deuce"It's always tough to trade away guy's who are having great years and have a promising future, but we need to make a move and felt like moving Hutlzen and Smith was a much better option then trading away Paxton. Giving up Farquhar could really come back to bite us but we felt like B. Maurer was ready to make the jump to the MLB bullpen. Olt gives us a solid option at 1B and a potential DH as well. We can also use him at 3B if we need to give DJ a day off until Kyle Seager returns. However the X Factor in this deal has to be Junior. Lake started out his career as a MIF playing SS and 2B as well as some 3B before moving to the OF where he is capable of playing all 3 spots. Well he doesn't have great speed he has the ability to be a potential 20/20 type guy. We had a huge need on our bench for a guy who can play multiple positions and I really feel like Junior can be that guy. Plus who in Seattle doesn't like a guy whose name is Junior"Comment
Comment