Dark horses for potential Fielder destinations

[LouisEly]

1) The Dodgers - especially if Manny ends up leaving. They will be in need of power again, they have the pitching prospects to send in return, they are not afraid to spend money, and they need a name/face to put to the franchise. The Brewers can get a lefty bat in return (Loney - still young, has potential) plus some arms (a starter prospect and Broxton?). Potentially can add in Hall to give them a RH bat to play anywhere in the infield. Fielder and Hall for Loney, Broxton, Billingsley, and another pitching prospect?

 

2) The Orioles - they have a need (Kevin Millar was their 1B last year), can use the DH, and they are not afraid to spend money. Unfortunately I don't know that they have the prospects to send in return. I doubt they would part with Markakis, and I don't know that they have a lot of pitching to send in return. Brian Roberts could be included in a trade though.

 

Go ahead, tell me how unrealistic these are...

[trwi7]

No way the Dodgers give up Billingsley.

[DannoMac21]

I think no matter what's said and what happens, the Yankees have to be a serious contendor if we are in fact shopping Fielder. I would gladly take Phil Hughes off their hands.

[Mike]

Not only would LA not give up Billingsley in a 3 for 2, they wouldn't even give up Loney and Broxton for Prince in a 2 for 1 deal. Broxton not only solves your Torres problem, but he is a beast. Loney will arguably be better long term than Prince in most categories except power plus he is a left-handed bat.

[mothershipconnection]

Loney will arguably be better long term than Prince in most categories except power

 

I can't see anything that would indicate Loney will be superior to Prince offensively.

In the last 2 years, Loney's OPS numbers have been .919 (keep in mind it was .727 in 58 games at AAA) and .772. Fielder is at 1.013 and .879. Loney put up mediocre minor league numbers except for rookie ball and a very nice 2006 season. Prince's "worst year" by comparison was an .829 OPS in 2004, happening in the same league and age as Loney's .638.

 

Prince may have fallen short of our expectations this year, but Loney reverted to flat-out pedestrian numbers. The only real argument for Loney is that he's not a whale and his body will outlast Prince.'s

 

.

plus he is a left-handed bat.

 

So is Prince.

[RyDogg66]

I love the Dodgers as a fit, but they have been nortoriously stingy with their prospects. They rarely let them go until they have flamed out. (See Hanrahan, Jackson and Laroche to name a few)

[fleehaw]

I would have said the Royals could have been a dark horse prior to the acquiring Jacobs. I guess you could say any team is a dark horse when it's unlikely that Fielder is going anywhere, but crazier things have happened.

 

Red Sox- They have the pieces to make an interesting offer, but I think they sit this one out.

Yankees- I don't think they match up well. It'd take more than Hughes and they don't have much else that's interesting to me.

Blue Jays- Would have been a real possibility prior to McGowan & Marcum going down for the year.

Rays- The Brewers and Rays would match up well for a possible Fielder deal. The Rays have pitching to spare and Aybar interests me quite a bit.

White Sox- If they can move Konerko, they may have some interest. Not sure what they'd need to give up.

Angels- If they lose out on Tex, they may be willing to overpay for Fielder. They have quite a few interesting young bats and arms.

Nats- I don't think they'd give up the pieces that would make it worthwhile.

Giants- They have the pitching if they want to make a deal.

Dodgers- They seem to like their 'names' and their vets. I have a hard time seeing them giving up either Kershaw or Billingsley, but if they were to sign Sabathia, perhaps they'd prefer Fielder over Loney. Who knows. They definitely have the right pieces if they want to make a deal.

 

I'd say the teams that look the most attractive for a possible Fielder deal are the Angels & the Rays.

[Ennder]

I doubt the Rays trade for Fielder just to play DH and they aren't moving Pena anywhere.

[ILuvDaBush]

Why don't the Twinkies ever get mentioned as a dark-horse? Liriano+ for Prince? They would finally have a big bat and they have pitching to spare.

[Hammer]

I'm w/ ya ILDB. Minnesota just seems like a perfect fit...

[Mike]

But if you were LA, would you give up Broxton and Loney for Prince as I was debating?

[twobrewers]

Arizona.

 

Max Scherzer would like might fine in Brewer Blue.

[colbyjack]

Loney advantage over Prince is his glove. I think it's pretty hard to try and argue that Loney at any point in time will be better than Prince already is offensively.

 

If I were LA, yes, I would seriously consider that deal because the team is in desperate need for offense. If Ramirez goes elsewhere, that need to going to be magnified.

 

I also agree that the Orioles would be a good fit, and definitely could be in the mix as a dark-horse.

 

I still think the Giants make the most sense. They made their stadium for left-handed sluggers, and have almost no impact hitters in their system. In the papers it's reported that they're intent on moving forward with what they have, but if they do they're just going to continue their downward spiral. At least they seem to have a knack for developing pitchers, which is a perfect match for the Brewers.

[brewerguy71]

I think there are quite a few good destinations for Fielder, as previously stated in other threads I think the Red Sox are a perfect fit and a return of Ellsbury, Buchholz, Bard and another prospect works well for both sides.

 

The Giants are another good spot, as colby mentioned, but I would bet Hardy is a better guy for them short term. If Fielder were to go to the Giants though they really only have one option and it would be a straight up Cain for Fielder trade, they would maybe have to throw in a low level prospect to even it out. I would be fine with this deal. The other option involving the Giants would be a boatload of prospects, including Madison Bumgarner, but I just dont see them giving him up.

 

Royals might have been a good destination before they picked up Jacobs. The Orioles are a good spot too, but there is word they are going to push hard on Teixeira this winter, maybe they shop for Fielder as a consolation. If that were to happen it would have to be a prospect laden deal. I would say if he went to the O's it would have to include Melvin Mora as a throw in, Radhames Liz as the center piece and then additionally Jake Arrieta and/or Chris Tillman and another lower level guy.

[strawbossisevil]

I'd say to the Yankees for Hughes and Cano.

 

We would be buying low.

 

Cano had a bad year with the stick this last season, that is beyond a doubt. But his two previous seasons suggest that this past season is the one that doesn't belong. He also brings a left handed stick to the offense and solid power for his position. Upside, we could get one of the better second basemen in the league just entering his prime. Downside, he continues playing like Bill Hall and becomes a hole at 2nd. He is a better fielder than Weeks, at least in regard to not making errors. He hits for a higher average, slugs better than Weeks, and strikes out less. Weeks, on the other hand, has a higher career OBP. I personally think he'd be worth the gamble as he has star potential. Weeks could either be moved to CF (meaning we would not pick up Cameron's option) or could be moved. One other possibility would be playing Cano or Weeks at 3B (I'll let those who know Cano better determine whether he'd be an option there or not).

 

Hughes would be another buy low option. He posted an ERA over 6 in limited innings last season. There seems to be no doubt that Hughes has top level stuff, but he's had to deal with a number of injuries over his short career. Worst case scenerio, he's a Dave Bush type pitcher. Best case scenario, he's a top of the rotation type pitcher.

 

This deal would carry a certain amount of risk with it, as neither are sure bets. Cano could continue to play like Bill Hall and Hughes could be one of those stud prospect pitchers than never really gets it. But the two also have incredible upsides that might be worth taking the gamble.

[mls4]

Fielder is mentioned in an article on mlb.com as a possible target for the Nationals. Any ideas about what the Brewers might ask for in return?

[endaround]

Trading Fielder for Hughes and Cano would be the opposite of buying low. And Cano was a worse defender than Weeks last season. Add into that the fact Cano is owed $6, $9 and $10m plus a $2m buyout going forward. Cano's great season was entirely BABIP driven (.363). He was good in 2007 but again had a high BABIP (.331).

[brewerguy71]

I know that this trade would never happen because of the Marlins' hatred of paying big salary, but does anyone think that Fielder for Nolasco is an even trade?

 

Similar VORP, at the worst the Marlins would throw in another prospect to balance it out...

[RyDogg66]

I know that this trade would never happen because of the Marlins' hatred of paying big salary, but does anyone think that Fielder for Nolasco is an even trade?

 

Similar VORP, at the worst the Marlins would throw in another prospect to balance it out...

I have no explanation at all for it, but Nolasco doesnt thrill me much at all.

[LouisEly]

But if you were LA, would you give up Broxton and Loney for Prince as I was debating?

If I were LA... would I give up a guy who pitches roughly 70 innings a season plus an average 1B for Prince Fielder? IN A HEARTBEAT.

 

Broxton, while he throws hard, is not unhittable (1.17 WHIP and 3.13 ERA last year, 1.22 WHIP and 3.03 ERA for his career; for what it's worth, Dave Bush had a lower WHIP last year and almost an identical career WHIP of 1.23), and like I said, he only pitches about 70 innings a season. Broxton is also roughly the same weight as Fielder too.

 

Fielder >>> Broxton + Loney. The Dodgers would have to add in a good starter prospect for me to make that deal.

[MNBrew]

Why don't the Twinkies ever get mentioned as a dark-horse? Liriano+ for Prince? They would finally have a big bat and they have pitching to spare.

I like your spirit. Not a bad call for creativity, ILDB, but highly unlikely.

 

Being around Twins talk everyday, here are some points:

 

- The Twins don't lack a big bat, esp. at 1B: perennial MVP candidate Justin Morneau, who's a better hitter (BA, doubles, & triples, and no shabby HR hitter either), run producer (370 RBIs the past 3 yrs vs. 302 for Prince), & defender, plus has no weight problem to speak of. Doesn't have Prince's temper but does have one significant character flaw: he loves the Vancouver Canucks.

- The Twins are almost as LH heavy as the Brewers are RH heavy. The Twins keep talking about acquiring RH power. Prince wouldn't solve that problem.

- Between Young, Gomez, Span, Cuddyer, & Kubel, the Twins have 5 starting-caliber OFs to fill 3 starting spots and DH. They're likely to deal some of that depth for more pitching (esp. bullpen), 3B, &/or RH power.

- Liriano to the Twins is like Gallardo to the Brewers. Any conversations where other GMs bring up Liriano are extremely short conversations.

[lukevan]

Rosenthal says Fielder unlikely to be traded

 

Not much we didn't know here, but I agree that we really can't afford to lose Fielder's bat this season.

[yoshii8]

I hope thats true, I think this team would take a dramatic step back if Fielder is traded. I'm not sure how you can replace him in the lineup.

[endaround]

Why is Fielder going to make $7.5 million in arby? What in the world is that based off of? Yes Howard got $10 m but he was ROY and MVP. And the idea that Fielder is going to get $7.5m in his first year but Hardy only $4m is humorous.

[ILuvDaBush]

Didn't Miggy Cabrera get $7.5 his first year? I would have no problem with an arby number of $7.5mil for Prince's first year. To be honest, after last year's shenanigans and Prince being miffed about being renewed, I don't want any more ill will between the Prince and his kingdom.