Red Sox acquire Craig Kimbrel from Padres

[MrTPlush]

The Red Sox are a great example of a large market team stuck in the old paradigm of the MLB while smarter teams have passed them by. The signings of Hanley Ramirez & Pablo Sandoval were abysmal. That team is getting older and worse. Money can't buy them out of the hole they've dug for themselves, although they do still have some good young talent coming up.

 

You must have missed the 2013 season. The Red Sox won the World Series. Something the Brewers can't manage in 45 years.

 

Yah the Sandoval/Ramirez signings are a bit of an old school type move, but like you said they still have some young talent and more coming up in the minors. They just traded for a top flight closer to make an incredible bullpen which everyone knows is the big reason the Royals made the World Series the last two years. Looks like an above average team with a good chance to compete.

 

I'm sorry but I don't see how a team that won one of the last three World Series and is looking to be competitive again is getting passed up.

[502 to Right]

The Red Sox are a great example of a large market team stuck in the old paradigm of the MLB while smarter teams have passed them by. The signings of Hanley Ramirez & Pablo Sandoval were abysmal. That team is getting older and worse. Money can't buy them out of the hole they've dug for themselves, although they do still have some good young talent coming up.

 

World Series Championships in 2004, 2007, and 2013. That's an "old paradigm" I'd like to be stuck in.

 

But in reality, the Red Sox are not an old-school team. The Red Sox are in a position to overpay in talent for a pitcher they desperately want because their farm system is ridiculously stocked with talent.

[3and2Fastball]

World Series Championships in 2004, 2007, and 2013. That's an "old paradigm" I'd like to be stuck in.

.

 

Yes, me too! My post was very poorly worded. What I meant was that since 2014 the Red Sox have seemed stuck in the old paradigm of MLB while other teams are passing them by.

[502 to Right]

World Series Championships in 2004, 2007, and 2013. That's an "old paradigm" I'd like to be stuck in.

.

 

Yes, me too! My post was very poorly worded. What I meant was that since 2014 the Red Sox have seemed stuck in the old paradigm of MLB while other teams are passing them by.

 

 

I will agree with you that the last year doesn't look good for them. Thankfully for the Red Sox they're playing with house money with respect to a deep farm system. It will be interesting to see how much things change with Dombrowski in charge.

[monty57]

Quite different from around say 10-15 years ago when a number of teams built offenses with a core ingredient of trying to wear down good starters so as to hopefully get into the bullpen by the 6th or 7th inning. Now a good number of teams have multiple 93 to 98 mph power arms in the pen with stats better than most of the starters in their rotation.

 

 

Trends are always changing, and the emergence of the "lights out bullpen" is probably a direct result of teams stacking up their roster with guys who take a lot of pitches. That has led to higher pitch counts from starters and early exits from games, but it has also led to starting pitchers being more willing to throw "fat" pitches early, knowing they will be taken for strikes, and developing a "put away" pitch they use when they get the hitter to two strikes. I read an article recently where this is how the Royals are winning. They swing at the "fat" pitches and don't let the pitcher get to his "put away" pitch. It goes against the popular trend, which is exactly what GMs looking for value have to do. It's why GMs should never only use statistical analysis, but rather should use it as a tool to help determine value.

 

What is undevalued always changes, and good teams will be the ones to see it before everyone jumps on it and it becomes overvalued. If bullpen arms are overvalued at this point because of Kansas City's success, then the Brewers are in luck, because they have a couple of tradeable bullpen arms, and a lot of young, inexpensive guys they can throw out there over the next couple of years, hopefully building up their value.

 

The thing that will always be undervalued (or, at least until the current pre-arby/arby system is changed) are good young players in their "cheap" years. Selling overvalued pieces now for multiple prospects is a no-brainer at this stage, and to topic I hope the Kimbrel deal just elevated K-Rod's price tag.

 

If you stick Will Smith in there it only takes one year for his salary to shoot through the roof. Why even make a move like that?

 

Because his trade value will shoot through the roof when he becomes a "proven closer." I've long thought that the easiest way a losing team can add value to a player is to make a reliever a closer. Justifiable or not, his trade value goes up as soon as he starts accumulating saves. I'd probably put Jeffress at closer instead of Smith, because Smith will have a lot of value simply being a good LH reliever, but either one will increase in trade value if they can pitch well as a closer.

[Point Beer Is Best]

I can get on board with the thought process behind a) Trade K-Rod for the best return, b) insert another reliever (be it Smith, Jeffress, whoever) that the regime may feel won't be around when the team is competitive again in order to increase their trade value and trade them as well.

 

I think this is somewhat similar to what the Brewers did with Dan Kolb, Turnbow and Axford with varying degrees of success. Insert unproven closers (in these cases, three reclamation projects) and in the case of Kolb, traded him to Atlanta for one of their top pitching prospects (Jose Capellan) who just didn't pan out. You could argue they missed their opportunities with Turnbow (extended) & Axford (non-tendered, re-signed and eventually traded) as they both flamed out rather quickly after they had established significant trade value. However, in the case of Turnbow and Axford, the team wasn't clearly in a re-build mentality.

 

This could be a way to "manufacture" trade value and maximize your assets, and is really about the only position that's even possible (closer).

[reillymcshane]

Imagine what a cheaper Krod could bring in return.

The answer is Javier Betancourt.

[jerichoholicninja]

Imagine what a cheaper Krod could bring in return.

The answer is Javier Betancourt.

 

There is a PTBNL too.