Brewers Trade for Mike Moustakas, Royals receive Phillips and Lopez

[mrn1ceguy]

Soooo you are Stearns, are you picking up Moose’s option? Does Moose agree? I’m really liking Moose on this team. Bat has been good, D has been mostly really good.

 

Yes, pick up Moose’s option. Unfortunately, I don’t see Moose accepting it. I would happily start next year with the too many IF options of Moose, Shaw, Arcia, Dubon, Schoop, Huira, Perez, Aguilar and Thames. Worst case scenario, we have an awesome 6 man IF and someone or two is let go for less of what we want.

[jerichoholicninja]

I think the question is irrelevant as Moose is going to decline his end. $15M is a lot to turn down but (provided he learned anything from last offseason) he should be able to get something like $40M-50M over 4 years from somebody.

[coolhandluke121]

I think the question is irrelevant as Moose is going to decline his end. $15M is a lot to turn down but (provided he learned anything from last offseason) he should be able to get something like $40M-50M over 4 years from somebody.

 

Yes but can he secure the $15m and still get the $40m deal after next year? If he plays like this next year, I think so.

[superfly]

Sell high on Aguilar if there are any takers. Kind of tired of him and has trotting ways. I like moose a lot. Solid glove and professional hitter. Nothing overly impressive, but solid all around.

 

Now we sell 30-40HR hitters with high OBP that are controllable for ages? What exactly do we want In this organization if we don't hang onto guys like this?

 

Sure, keep the door open and listen on stud pitching but otherwise this doesn't make much sense to me. He probably doesnt have a ton of trade value anyway, think Santana.

[Devinep]

I think the question is irrelevant as Moose is going to decline his end. $15M is a lot to turn down but (provided he learned anything from last offseason) he should be able to get something like $40M-50M over 4 years from somebody.

 

Yes but can he secure the $15m and still get the $40m deal after next year? If he plays like this next year, I think so.

He’s playing like he did last year and he had to settle for a 6 million dollar deal in March. I’m not sure why people think his marker or value would be much higher this year

[JohnBriggs12]

Sell high on Aguilar if there are any takers. Kind of tired of him and has trotting ways. I like moose a lot. Solid glove and professional hitter. Nothing overly impressive, but solid all around.

 

If you can keep Moose, you sell on high on Shaw, not Aguilar. Moose turned downed $16-17 million QO last year from Royals only to end up getting one year for $6 million. I think he takes one year for $15 million this time around. Aguilar is too valuable as the prime RH power bat. Shaw is a 3B playing 2B, on a team that has three other LH bats with power. Thames trade value is too far down right now.

[Boomer5]

I can’t imagine how he accepts $15M for one year when he will certainly get multi year offers on the open market.

[Jopal78]

I would exercise the team’s half of the option on both Soria and Moustakas.;Make the player walk away from significant guaranteed money...they likely won’t. If both sides exercise the mutual option nothing says the team couldn’t trade them. Or get creative in packaging Shaw for controllable pitching or something like that

[coolhandluke121]

 

He’s playing like he did last year and he had to settle for a 6 million dollar deal in March. I’m not sure why people think his marker or value would be much higher this year

 

He had better offers and turned them down, thinking he'd cash in like Hosmer eventually. $6m was surely not his best offer. It's not that simple. Players have to recalibrate what they're worth in their late 20's and accept more modest 4-year deals, but some of them got burned before they figured that out. Markets are very fickle and you'll still see an occasional Hosmer type deal, but for the most part guys like Moose are still going to get much better contracts than they signed last year. They just have to stop turning their nose up at them.

 

He did reject the qualifying offer of nearly $20m so no, his market value was definitely not $6m and won't be this year either.

[jerichoholicninja]

I think the question is irrelevant as Moose is going to decline his end. $15M is a lot to turn down but (provided he learned anything from last offseason) he should be able to get something like $40M-50M over 4 years from somebody.

 

Yes but can he secure the $15m and still get the $40m deal after next year? If he plays like this next year, I think so.

He’s playing like he did last year and he had to settle for a 6 million dollar deal in March. I’m not sure why people think his marker or value would be much higher this year

 

He was holding out for a megadeal last offseason that nobody got. I think he would "settle" for a multiyear deal in the $12M-$15M a year range this year.

[adambr2]

Jorge Lopez had a great outing for KC today. 7 IP, only 1 ER - a solo HR to Jonathan Villar.

[jjfanec]

Jorge Lopez had a great outing for KC today. 7 IP, only 1 ER - a solo HR to Jonathan Villar.

 

So he had a great start against a AAA team?

[IntentionalHBP]

In one play, Villar hit a fly ball off of Lopez that was caught by Phillips.

[Ron Robinsons Beard]

Jorge Lopez had a great outing for KC today. 7 IP, only 1 ER - a solo HR to Jonathan Villar.

 

I'm still bothered that the Brewers for some reason stopped starting him. He would have had more value in a trade as a solid starter.

[coolhandluke121]

Perfecto through 7. Kind of dreading the reaction here if he pulls it off...

[Eye Black]

Perfecto through 7. Kind of dreading the reaction here if he pulls it off...

Into the 9th with a Perfect Game now. I will be ecstatic for him if he finishes the deal. Regardless, if he pulls it off I think history will categorize him more closely with Phil Humber than Roy Halladay.

[coolhandluke121]

Perfecto through 7. Kind of dreading the reaction here if he pulls it off...

Into the 9th with a Perfect Game now. I will be ecstatic for him if he finishes the deal. Regardless, if he pulls it off I think history will categorize him more closely with Phil Humber than Roy Halladay.

 

I will be thrilled for him and I hope he does it. Just hope to avoid a barrage of "I'm tired of Stearns apologists acting like he doesn't deserve criticism for his bad moves, like this one" posts afterwards.

[coolhandluke121]

Arguably squeezed on what should have been strike 2 and eventually walked Kepler in the 9th...

[Jenkins5]

Stand by deal but always loved Lopez & am happy for him! I felt Brewers kind of quit on him after he struggled like most all pitchers do there. Moving him to pen I wasn’t a fan of & they never gave him a real look. Just their usual here today, gone tomorrow approach they take with young arms. Never let him stay & just learn, adjust, and improve. Always had the talent. Glad Royals are giving him that chance

[Jaylyn]

Almost!! Still a one-hitter is good enough for the win! Don't know about everyone else, I like to see ex-Brewers doing well, as long as it's not against us! Looking at you Scooter!

[ClosetBrewerFan]

Even with a near perfect game, Lopez finished the year with less than impressive numbers: 5.03 ERA with nearly a 1.5 WHIP. Unfortunately he ran into his 3b recently and is done for the year with bruised ribs.

 

Phillips has a sub 600 OPS. Neither player has had enough playing time to really gauge how they will do.

 

It will be interesting to track these players to see how they will do long term. They have their worts but have enough tools to be major league players especially for a rebuilding team like the royals.

[pacopete4]

Revisiting this again:

 

Phillips stinks. Lopez stinks. Moustakas still playing well for us.

 

We win again!

[TigerUppercut]

Revisiting this again:

 

Phillips stinks. Lopez stinks. Moustakas still playing well for us.

 

We win again!

 

In the case of Phillips, outside of some brief flashes of brilliance in hitter's paradise Colorado Springs, it just seems like he never got on track after coming over from Houston. It's like Stearns got here, took a look around, and went after the first taker he could find for him knowing he couldn't play.

 

Kudos, DS!

[pacopete4]

[sarcasm]Maybe Phillips should stop goofing around, laughing all the time and get serious about baseball.[/sarcasm] -Arcia [sarcasm]haterz[/sarcasm]

[rickh150]

Moose has a shot at being an All Star this season.... probably not, but it wouldn't be a surprise especially if he continues the power in the next few weeks.