Sell, sell, sell?

[Never Outhustled]

I never got why so many complained about acquiring David Bell for basically nothing.

Because at the same time we got Bell for nothing, SD got Branyan for nothing, and he put them in the playoffs with a huge Septemeber.

[brewmann04]

i am not very sure the Brewers are going to be Sellers or Buyers at this late point. i guess the 3 games aganist Pittsburgh should go a long way to see if Melvin makes a deal.

[Tbadder]

I think Yo's continued inconsistency, and the lack of available pitching, I'd be selling for sure. Suppan, Looper, Cameron, Hart, Hardy. Heck--anyone not named Gamel, Fielder, Braun, or Yo I'd be willing to jettison for the correct young player.

[bklynbrewcrew]

I think the time has come where we really need to consider selling. We would all like to contend but lets face the facts; we are in 4th place and have been bad for two full months now. Its time to serious consider becoming a seller and seeing what we can get for guys like Hoffman and possibly Looper if anyone wants him. Teams are always desperate for bullpen arms at the deadline and Hoffman could net us a serious return.

[naivin]

Attanasio said tonight he believs they are a piece or two away from tipping the balance. He may be right, but they are definitley at the tipping point...make the right move and they probably have a chance. Make the wrong one and it could be disaster for a few years to come. No doubt in my mind they want to get better. Hopefully they are just ratcheting up the PR in the event they can't get the right deal done. Sure sounds like they're trying though.

 

Save for an injury to Braun, Fielder or Gallardo in the next couple days, I don't see any way they sell at the deadline though.

[valpocrewsader]

A level-headed discussion of selling is certainly warranted at this point. The key is returning players that will contribute next year -- I don't think it makes any sense to sell for guys that need until '11 or '12 to develop, too much can happen between now and then.

 

A good fit would be a contender who wants what we have and also has top talent that is currently blocked and available to send back to us. I suppose this would rarely mean starting pitching, but maybe a Buchholz-type situation is out there where a top prospect has no spot. More likely, look for a team that has, say, a CF tearing up AAA with a veteran already firmly entrenched with big league club. Or a guy one someone's 25-man who can't crack the lineup due to veteran presence. Pitching prospects on track to be solid relievers soon would also be worth considering getting in return. Shed some payroll and set the organization up with better, exciting options for 2010.

 

Then again, I guess you need to be careful to consider possible comp picks we might be missing out on by trading a guy like Hoffman.

[pogokat]

If you could sell hardy or hart (or Mcgeheeeeee) i say think about it...they have value and it wouldn't really hurt the team to let one of them go (that is assuming that CM isn't going to start very much anymore...i still think Mitch Stetter has more value as trade bait than he does to the team///

[nate82]

If I was selling it would be Hardy, Cameron, and Hoffman. All three have value and there could be a couple of teams out there that could use Hardy and Cameron. Maybe even Hart could be traded to a team.

 

Hardy to the Twins for a couple of pitching prospects could be a good deal even a Hardy for Liriano plus a prospect or two.

 

Hart or Cameron to the Braves for Morlan or another pitching prospect could be a good trade.

 

Cameron to the Yankees for Swisher could be something to look at also.

 

Hart to the Tigers for?

 

Hoffman to the Rangers for?

[804Sox]

I think that the Card's addition of Holliday makes them the clear favorite now, meaning it might be time for the brewers to sell.

 

I'd look to unload any of Hoffman, Looper, Suppan, Kendall, Hall, Cameron, Hardy, and Hart as long as the return was decent. Unfortunately, it might be hard to find takers for Kendall, Hall, and on others based on their contracts and production.

 

Edit: Unless the Brewer's acquire a player like Halladay

[nate82]

I think that the Card's addition of Holliday makes them the clear favorite now, meaning it might be time for the brewers to sell.

 

I'd look to unload any of Hoffman, Looper, Suppan, Kendall, Hall, Cameron, Hardy, and Hart as long as the return was decent. Unfortunately, it might be hard to find takers for Kendall, Hall, and on others based on their contracts and production.

 

Edit: Unless the Brewer's acquire a player like Halladay

No and the Brewers are not going to be able to trade either Hall, Suppan, or Kendall unless the Brewers can find someone like the Cardinals to take our Lugo's.

[RU Rah Rah]

I was watching "Quick Pitch" this morning, and when they showed the WC race, the Brewers weren't even on the first page. The team is currently 4th in the division and 7th in the WC. True, they aren't many games back in either, and a hot week or two could change things considerably for the better. But if we were just talking about "Generic Team X" in this situation, I'd be inclined to say, "It's time to start thinking about selling."

 

Remember, at this point last year the Brewers were 15 games over .500 (!), 3 games up in the WC race, and they just had acquired one of the best starters in the game -- and it turned out that they were just barely able to hang on for the WC. In 2007, they were 11 games over .500 (!) and 2 games up in the division -- and it turned out that they missed the playoffs completely. With that recent history in mind, I have a hard time looking at the current standings and thinking, "Hey, this team is going to make the postseason."

 

I'm not willing to raise the white flag quite yet, but if I were DM I'd think long and hard about making deals that would serve the team's needs in 2010 and beyond.

[KCBrewerfan34]

How do you explain to the 3 million fans that we're going to start selling???

[JohnBriggs12]

How do you explain to the 3 million fans that we're going to start selling???

 

You buy tickets months in advance and that's the chance you take. Right now those 3 million are seeing bad baseball. How many of those people are already thinking: "Next year, I'll wait"?

 

It would compound things to ignore the obvious and not take advantage of opportunities to improve your club for next year and beyond.

[naivin]

How many of those people are already thinking: "Next year, I'll wait".

Probably almost none.

[JohnBriggs12]

How many of those people are already thinking: "Next year, I'll wait".

Probably almost none.

 

Right. The 83 Brewers drew 2.4 million. In 84, attendance dropped 800,000. If you think that can't happen, then your in denial.

[Invader3K]

They don't have to sell off any real key pieces, but it might be worth exploring trading a couple guys that will be free agents after this season, or trading someone like Hardy who won't be under control much longer and has a replacement waiting in the wings.

[KCBrewerfan34]

I think the guy to go if they do sell would be Cameron, they won't or shouldn't offer him arby.

[Invader3K]

I guess the question is, if you do trade him, who plays CF next year? I realize he's a free agent, but they might be able to get him re-signed at a somewhat reasonable price. I would think he does have value even as a rental to some team, though.

[endaround]

Cameron is the third best Brewer position player this year and it isn't even really close. I don't get the hate for a 800+ OPS and 360 OBP CFer who plays great defense at the cost of an average starter.

[KCBrewerfan34]

I'm hearing he's testing FA, if thats the case the Brew couldn't risk bringing him back at $10 million plus if he would accept arby, therefore there is a scenario where Cameron walks for nothing.

[Invader3K]

I don't think anyone hates him...I just think some figure if the post-season this year is realistically lost, it might make sense to flip him for something the Brewers can use in the future. An average-ish upper minor league level pitching prospect would be nice at this point.

[endaround]

Why can't the Brewers risk bringing him back at $10m+?

[fondybrewfan]

If we were to become sellers, I think there are really only 3 MLB players that should be completely untouchable right now and they are Prince, Braun, and Gallardo. I would trade anyone else on the team if the price is right.

 

I guess if Boston offered Lester, Ellsbury, Bard and change I might even consider trading Prince. So even he would be available, but the price for him would be so astronomcial that I don't think any team would do it

[Invader3K]

Why can't the Brewers risk bringing him back at $10m+?

What if he declines slightly again next season? People will complain and his contract will handicap Melvin from making other moves.

 

I would think if he's going to be brought back, it would have to be for less than what he's currently making. I have no idea if he would agree to that or not. For all we know, he could be looking for one last multi-year deal, too.

[trwi7]

I don't think anyone hates him...I just think some figure if the post-season this year is realistically lost, it might make sense to flip him for something the Brewers can use in the future. An average-ish upper minor league level pitching prospect would be nice at this point.

 

I'd take a compensation pick or Cameron back for another year over an average minor league pitching prospect.