Brewers acquire Felipe Lopez from Arizona for Cole Gillespie/Roque Mercedes, Gamel back to Nashville

[derflotr]

I could definitely see Hall being DFA'd. Or a change of scenery type deal.

[hauser42]

Great move and the Brewers once again give up nothing to fill a hole on the team. OFers can be found all over the place so giving up a 4th type OF for a starting 2B is great.

 

Lopez takes over at the top and allows the Brewers to put McGee and Counsell at 3B. I also believe that Gamel will get sent down at this point. He still needs some work with his game, but his defense was better than advertised.

 

Melvin might be seriuos about Halladay and I can see moving Escobar for him. Blue Jays love him but I dont know what kind of pitching they have to send there to complete the deal. Hart would be an option if the Blue Jays can also work a deal to flip Rios for yount SP from another theam. Escobar has high value right now and it is time to move him, Hardy is the better over all SS and IMO wants to be a Brewer for a long time.

[Invader3K]

Gamel will either be sent down or traded, I have a feeling.

 

I really like this trade a lot. Lopez, while not a powerhouse, could help reinvigorate the lineup. It's not like it cost a ton, either.

[PrinceEatMeat]

Also, Hall will no longer play at all, which is good. Lopez will play 2b against lefties, and McGehee will play 3b. Hall will likely only see pinch-hit ab's in extra inning games, so I don't think there's even a point to keeping him anymore. However, we probably will keep him.

[MickeyDavis]

Send Gamel down, let him play every day for 6 weeks, then he can come back September 1.

[clancyphile]

Gamel will either be sent down or traded, I have a feeling.

 

I really like this trade a lot. Lopez, while not a powerhouse, could help reinvigorate the lineup. It's not like it cost a ton, either.

Keep in mind, Gamel is not the only option at third base that the Brewers have in the system. Taylor Green is more a Cirillo-type hitter as opposed to the power threat Gamel is, but trading Gamel is NOT the end of the world.

[lcbj68c]

Anybody know what the corresponding move was off the 40-man roster? Or did we have 1 opening left previously? brewerfan.net filter shows 38 names, not including Lopez. Brewers.com shows 41 names including Lopez with 2 dl spots. Any word on a jersey number?

[logan82]

I don't think this move helps us much if at all. The only gain may be if Gamel is sent down and we stop using his service time. Lopez looks to be in the Weeks/Durham level of defender at 2B. Slightly below average to a little above average at best. He is 72% at SB wich is barely above breaking even. His splits against RHP and LHP are both under .340 OBP over 2006-2008. His SLG is also pretty low. We would probably be better off just using Gamel more and playing Counsell and McGehee at 2B.

[jackalope02ca]

Now my Mercedes Helena game worn jersey is useless. Oh well never had great expectations for him anyways.

 

Great move by Doug trading spare parts for a solid player. Hopefully he can get Doug Davis back before the deadline as well.

[brewmann04]

I likr the idea to bet Mat full time playing time and come back Sept 1 for the big push. But remember Casey and Craig but have bad knees.

[GB12]

I could definitely see Hall being DFA'd. Or a change of scenery type deal.

I'd much rather see Gamel sent down than Hall DFA'd. Hall has become completely useless, but there's no reason to keep Gamel up now that we have solid options in the infield. It's time to stop wasting Gamel in Milwaukee if he's not going to play.

[dadofandrew]

Lopez's production was heavily dependent on playing half his games in Arizona, so I doubt he'll be much of an upgrade. That said, Gamel playing every day in AAA, and with both McGehee and Counsell hobbled, it is a nice move to add a quality IF to the mix. I'd say it's a fine move for a playoff team, but at this moment, I doubt this is a playoff team.

 

I give Doug credit for picking up a nice player for little cost. As Rotoworld pointed out, Gillespie is limited to LF because of his arm and is unlikely to ever produce LF numbers. He'll have some value while he's cheap, but that's about it.

 

I wonder why the Mets did not make this deal a couple weeks ago, they've been devastated with injuries to their INF. Felipe would have been a perfect fit.

[Sheets4theHOF]

I don't think this move helps us much if at all. The only gain may be if Gamel is sent down and we stop using his service time. Lopez looks to be in the Weeks/Durham level of defender at 2B. Slightly below average to a little above average at best. He is 72% at SB wich is barely above breaking even. His splits against RHP and LHP are both under .340 OBP over 2006-2008. His SLG is also pretty low. We would probably be better off just using Gamel more and playing Counsell and McGehee at 2B.

Agree, but the reality is Gamel just wasn't going to be the everyday starter at 3rd for whatever reason. A Lopez + McGehee / Counsell combination is better then Counsell + McGehee.

 

I'm just excited about a someone who consistently gets on base batting in front of Braun and Fielder.

[PrinceEatMeat]

I don't think this move helps us much if at all. The only gain may be if Gamel is sent down and we stop using his service time. Lopez looks to be in the Weeks/Durham level of defender at 2B. Slightly below average to a little above average at best. He is 72% at SB wich is barely above breaking even. His splits against RHP and LHP are both under .340 OBP over 2006-2008. His SLG is also pretty low. We would probably be better off just using Gamel more and playing Counsell and McGehee at 2B.

Agree, but the reality is Gamel just wasn't going to be the everyday starter at 3rd for whatever reason. A Lopez + McGehee / Counsell combination is better then Counsell + McGehee.

 

I'm just excited about a someone who consistently gets on base batting in front of Braun and Fielder.

I couldnt agree more. We desperately need some guys on base for Braun and Fielder. We could put Counsell in the 2 spot when he plays, so that could be a nice 1-2 for us.

[BadgerFan]

Lopez's production was heavily dependent on playing half his games in Arizona, so I doubt he'll be much of an upgrade.

Am I missing something? What does playing half of his games in Arizona have to do with his ability to get on base?

[logan82]

His wOBA this year is .345 which is basically league average. Over 2006-2008 he had wOBA's of .336, .295, .320.

 

For comparison sake

Kendall/Hall/Lopez

.321/.369/.336

.272/.317/.295

.293/.297/.320

 

He is a slightly better hitter than Kendall, not much else.

[RU Rah Rah]

Career OPS+ of 91, and, prior to 2009, exactly one season of OPS+ of over 100. Career average OBP of .334. Count me among the underwhelmed.

[Ennder]

I sure hope there is another deal coming, Lopez is underwhelming and throwing away prospects for a minor upgrade doesn't do it for me. Maybe this means we dump Hall which I'd like, otherwise I'd rather just start Gamel more and keep our prospects.

[RightFieldCoder]

Anybody know what the corresponding move was off the 40-man roster? Or did we have 1 opening left previously? brewerfan.net filter shows 38 names, not including Lopez. Brewers.com shows 41 names including Lopez with 2 dl spots. Any word on a jersey number?

Players on the 60-day DL do not count towards the 40 man roster. MLB.coms list those guys because fans still want to see them and realize how many or few guys are injured. So 41 - Weeks - Riske - Lopez is the 38 that BF.net lists. So we still have one more spot open on the 40.

[1Badgerfan]

I like it, more flexibility in the IF, keeps Kendall from leading off against lefties, and hopefully he continues getting on base 40 points above his career and last 3 year average.

[lcbj68c]

I think this moves means that the Brewers are still looking at 2009. I'm guessing it involves Hardy for pitching. Do you guys like an infield of Lopez, McGehee, Escobar?

 

Lopez

Escobar

Braun

Prince

McGehee

Cameron

Hart

Kendall

Pitcher

[Sheets4theHOF]

Am I missing something? What does playing half of his games in Arizona have to do with his ability to get on base?

Not to mention the fact he put up road numbers in 2008 that match his 2009 overall numbers.

[pogokat]

his last 500 ab's have been way above his career averages...i don't think he's a star, but he's been a very good player since he left Washington...also, while his home road splits are huge this year, last year they were the exact opposite...i'm guessing he's a very streaky hitter...

 

either way, we should get a pick for him at the end of the year...and it gives us the depth to do some other stuff that needs to be done.

[bklynbrewcrew]

Obviously the optimal situation would have been Gamel everyday at third with McGehee sharing second with Counsell but Macha just doesnt want to play Mat. From what I have seen of Macha he doesnt like young players so Gamel is being wasted on the bench. Mat can now play everyday in AAA and not use up service time. Hopefully Melvin cans Macha after the season so Gamel can get a fair shake.

 

Lopez is a decent acquisition since we didnt give up much and we most likely will recieve a draft pick for him after the season. I still dont think this team is anywhere near being a playoff team but we didnt give up anything irreplaceable in this deal.

[hauser42]

His wOBA this year is .345 which is basically league average. Over 2006-2008 he had wOBA's of .336, .295, .320.

 

For comparison sake

Kendall/Hall/Lopez

.321/.369/.336

.272/.317/.295

.293/.297/.320

 

He is a slightly better hitter than Kendall, not much else.

You have to be kidding me when you say he is only slightly better than Kendall. Kendall's only value as a hitter is his ability to walk, he offers nothing more besides grounding out weakly time and time again. At least Lopez has the ability to have a little pop, drive the ball in the gap from time to time, and adds a little speed to the lineup. He is almost .20 better each year than Kendall in OBA, so it is not as close as you make it out to be.