Trades and Things

I don't think there has been that much trading going on this year. More of an unsettling trend than anything else. I am not sure setting trade needs is necessary myself. I only look at the trade block if I need or want a veteran ML player in the first place. I rarely trade for a ML player anyway as it can be tough fitting  budget constraints.

I have been turned down several times this season in making trades.  Not that they were bad trades either. Early on I was looking for a veteran right-handed Starting Pitcher.  Only three on the Block I was interested in, one I couldn't make a way for the budgets to work. With that I started the tedious task of looking for what I wanted at AAA but no one was interested in giving up their "reserve pitcher".  Can't blame them for that, I have done the same thing. I started looking at the youngsters but most were not ready for the majors. I finally found what I was looking for in a pitcher but now I am kinda mixed on how I want to use him, go figure.

I traded catchers with Little Rock because Chip Knepper just didn't fit in with my team for some reason. I think all of us are happy in that regards.

I was trying to unload R.J. Bellhorn as he needs a change of scenery if you ask me. I think everyone is a little leary of him. I would be too as he has a terrible history.

My latest look into things was for a young 3B, I thought surely someone would have a 3B or SS that has the hitting prowess of Marc Redman ready for the majors. Well, if they do, I sure as hell didn't find one. I did find a RF I was interested in but I couldn't figure out if he would actually help my team or not in the end.

Some of the reasons trades are becoming a bit unwarranted lately has been because of the Draft and Internationals. Starting pitching has always been a big commodity but lately those "AAAA" pitchers are starting to look a little dreamy. They also have been playing like they are super studs also. Adding to the confusion, good power hitters are very few and far between lately.

I know there was talk earlier about keeping players in the minors for 4 full seasons. After doing all the searching around I came to this conclusion. Advancement the 4th year is negligible to none at all in the minors. I can see keeping him there the first 20+ games to hold his clock a bit but the full season loses an option that could be used later. Another trend I have noticed with younger players is that they need to acclimate to the majors. Some do it immediately but rarely and some never do for some reason.

I also looked at the big crop of Type A players signed this season and how they have been performing. I thought Harpo Cust would be a big boon for the D'Backs but has been playing as an also-ran.  Returns so far has been a dramatic pan for most of them. The Type B's for the most part are enjoying much more success though I wouldn't call it profound.