LHP Cole Hamels to Braves - 1 year, $18 million

[LouisEly]

Agreed on Keuchel. I'm glad the Brewers didn't go for this. I think we can find a better deal than this. Heck I think Lyles > Hamels at this point.

 

Come on! Take off the Brewers colored glasses. Hamels has been a top tier starting pitcher in the major leagues for over a decade. Not only does he have the track record Hamels had the better season last year under any objective standard.

Hamels 2019:

1st half: 17 GS, 99.2 IP, .659 OPS-A, 8.8 K/9, 2.77 K/BB

2nd half: 10 GS, 42 IP, .903 OPS-A, 9.9 K/9, 2.19 K/BB

Total: 27 GS, 141.2 IP, .740 OPS-A, 1.391 WHIP, 9.1 K/9, 2.55 K/BB

 

Lyles 2019:

1st half: 14 GS, 74.1 IP, .764 OPS-A, 9.4 K/9, 2.89 K/BB

2nd half: 14 GS, 66.2 IP, .770 OPS-A, 9.2 K/9, 2.43 K/BB

Total: 28 GS, 141 IP, .767 OPS-A, 1.319 WHIP, 9.3 K/9, 2.65 K/BB

 

By this standard, they are pretty close to the same pitcher. All thing being equal, I'll take the guy who is seven years younger, didn't fade down the stretch, and costs >$10M less.

[brewmann04]

I again be happy with Lyles and Dallas in the rotation.

[Fear The Chorizo]

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/28685366/braves-lefty-cole-hamels-shoulder-discomfort

 

Not exactly a good start to 2020 for Mr. Hamels...who'd of though a late 30's starter with a ton of tread on the tires that has shown a propensity to getting injured the past 2-3 seasons isn't worth an $18M flyer? It could be some weird way of avoiding a chunk of spring training by a cagy vet...but it's likely that the Braves aren't going to get their money's worth out of this signing.

[KeithStone53151]

And it's a shoulder too, which is seriously awful news for an older guy. The good news for the Braves, they have so much pitching in their upper minors that they won't miss a beat if he misses time.

[Ron Robinsons Beard]

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/28685366/braves-lefty-cole-hamels-shoulder-discomfort

 

Not exactly a good start to 2020 for Mr. Hamels...who'd of though a late 30's starter with a ton of tread on the tires that has shown a propensity to getting injured the past 2-3 seasons isn't worth an $18M flyer? It could be some weird way of avoiding a chunk of spring training by a cagy vet...but it's likely that the Braves aren't going to get their money's worth out of this signing.

 

Time for a these huge starting pitching prospects that baseball fans have been told the Braves organization is flush with to step up, I guess.

 

It would seem to me that, perhaps, the Braves organization's reputation for developing starters in-house has been vastly overrated, as they keep globbing on to these type of Hamels-type acquisitions, and subsequently getting burned by them, year after year.

[ThisIsMyCrew]

Braves always have highly praised pitching prospects. Few ever do anything positive in the pros.

[clancyphile]

Braves always have highly praised pitching prospects. Few ever do anything positive in the pros.

 

Which makes them a slightly better bet than stock in Theranos.

[DHonks]

Braves always have highly praised pitching prospects. Few ever do anything positive in the pros.

 

Tom Glavine, Kevin Millwood, Adam Wainwright, Jurggens had a few good years...that's just a few. Any in recent years?

[JosephC]

Mike Soroka was terrible last year. 2.68 ERA, 3.45 FIP, 169 ERA+, 3.46 K/BB. I would have expected a lot more out of a 21 year old.

 

I always get a kick when Brewer fans bad mouth other team's pitching. Even a guy like Julio Teheran. Bring his name up and most Brewer fans would probably say "over-rated, mediocre, never lived up to his billing." But taking the bWAR he posted for the Braves, put him in a Brewer uniform and it would be the third best bWAR in FRANCHISE HISTORY.

 

Speaking as a Brewer fan...and it's completely discouraging to say this...but history shows that Brewer starting pitching is just about the equivalent to Chicago Bears quarterbacking. Uugghh. I'd gladly take a whole bunch of those over-rated Braves pitching prospects.

[Ron Robinsons Beard]

Mike Soroka was terrible last year. 2.68 ERA, 3.45 FIP, 169 ERA+, 3.46 K/BB. I would have expected a lot more out of a 21 year old.

 

I always get a kick when Brewer fans bad mouth other team's pitching. Even a guy like Julio Teheran. Bring his name up and most Brewer fans would probably say "over-rated, mediocre, never lived up to his billing." But taking the bWAR he posted for the Braves, put him in a Brewer uniform and it would be the third best bWAR in FRANCHISE HISTORY.

 

Speaking as a Brewer fan...and it's completely discouraging to say this...but history shows that Brewer starting pitching is just about the equivalent to Chicago Bears quarterbacking. Uugghh. I'd gladly take a whole bunch of those over-rated Braves pitching prospects.

 

That's fine, but the Brewers have never been floated as an organization that is adept at developing pitching. Quite the opposite, actually. The Braves have ... for decades. Yet it seems year after year they are going out and signing starters off the scrap heap, or overpaying for has-beens, while their home-grown young hyped guys flame out. All I'm saying is that there is an obvious perception out there that the Braves organization as a whole is both terrific at developing pitching talent, and that they have a plethora of future Ace-type pitchers at their disposal, both of which, when looking at the evidence and the personnel moves they make, seems to be a somewhat substantial media fabrication.

[KeithStone53151]

Mike Soroka was terrible last year. 2.68 ERA, 3.45 FIP, 169 ERA+, 3.46 K/BB. I would have expected a lot more out of a 21 year old.

 

I always get a kick when Brewer fans bad mouth other team's pitching. Even a guy like Julio Teheran. Bring his name up and most Brewer fans would probably say "over-rated, mediocre, never lived up to his billing." But taking the bWAR he posted for the Braves, put him in a Brewer uniform and it would be the third best bWAR in FRANCHISE HISTORY.

 

Speaking as a Brewer fan...and it's completely discouraging to say this...but history shows that Brewer starting pitching is just about the equivalent to Chicago Bears quarterbacking. Uugghh. I'd gladly take a whole bunch of those over-rated Braves pitching prospects.

 

The Brewers have been getting better when it comes to developing pitching over the last handful of years. Previously it was pretty bad, but we have a number of home grown or mostly home grown arms in the majors right now. Woodruff, Burnes, Suter, Devin Williams, Taylor Williams, Trey Supak. Then there's Hader, Houser, and Peralta who were mostly home grown...started elsewhere but were mostly developed by us.

 

I'm not going to argue we're as good as the Braves(even though the Braves had a ton of high 1st round picks to develop, better chance of success), but I think it's safe to say we're getting significantly better at developing pitching.

[Ennder]

Mike Soroka was terrible last year. 2.68 ERA, 3.45 FIP, 169 ERA+, 3.46 K/BB. I would have expected a lot more out of a 21 year old.

 

I always get a kick when Brewer fans bad mouth other team's pitching. Even a guy like Julio Teheran. Bring his name up and most Brewer fans would probably say "over-rated, mediocre, never lived up to his billing." But taking the bWAR he posted for the Braves, put him in a Brewer uniform and it would be the third best bWAR in FRANCHISE HISTORY.

 

Speaking as a Brewer fan...and it's completely discouraging to say this...but history shows that Brewer starting pitching is just about the equivalent to Chicago Bears quarterbacking. Uugghh. I'd gladly take a whole bunch of those over-rated Braves pitching prospects.

 

It does suck that we haven't developed more but it also sucks that every time we do develop a good one they get hurt. Sheets got abused in a year where we had no chance to win and was never fully healthy after it. Gallardo's career was derailed by his injury his first season and he never fully regained his mechanics. Nelson was just breaking out when he wrecked himself running the bases. It really bothers me more how few RP's we have developed. It is hard to develop starters but you should be raining relievers.

[clancyphile]

Mike Soroka was terrible last year. 2.68 ERA, 3.45 FIP, 169 ERA+, 3.46 K/BB. I would have expected a lot more out of a 21 year old.

 

I always get a kick when Brewer fans bad mouth other team's pitching. Even a guy like Julio Teheran. Bring his name up and most Brewer fans would probably say "over-rated, mediocre, never lived up to his billing." But taking the bWAR he posted for the Braves, put him in a Brewer uniform and it would be the third best bWAR in FRANCHISE HISTORY.

 

Speaking as a Brewer fan...and it's completely discouraging to say this...but history shows that Brewer starting pitching is just about the equivalent to Chicago Bears quarterbacking. Uugghh. I'd gladly take a whole bunch of those over-rated Braves pitching prospects.

 

Then again, the Bears were all about their defense and running game. You think Bears offense, you think Walter Payton, Neal Anderson, Matt Forte, Gale Sayers, Bronko Nagurski, Red Grange. All running backs.

 

Then on defense, it's easy to name names: Butkus, Hampton, Dent, Singletary, Urlacher...

 

This isn't to say that the Brewers starting pitching won't have good years - the Bears had some QBs have good seasons at times. But the bread and butter was always running backs and a dominant defense.

 

Kind of like the Brewers have always been about offense and the bullpen more than their starting pitching. Doesn't mean good starters don't emerge, but it's always been more about the offense and the relievers.

[Thurston Fluff]

Mike Soroka was terrible last year. 2.68 ERA, 3.45 FIP, 169 ERA+, 3.46 K/BB. I would have expected a lot more out of a 21 year old.

 

I always get a kick when Brewer fans bad mouth other team's pitching. Even a guy like Julio Teheran. Bring his name up and most Brewer fans would probably say "over-rated, mediocre, never lived up to his billing." But taking the bWAR he posted for the Braves, put him in a Brewer uniform and it would be the third best bWAR in FRANCHISE HISTORY.

 

Speaking as a Brewer fan...and it's completely discouraging to say this...but history shows that Brewer starting pitching is just about the equivalent to Chicago Bears quarterbacking. Uugghh. I'd gladly take a whole bunch of those over-rated Braves pitching prospects.

 

It does suck that we haven't developed more but it also sucks that every time we do develop a good one they get hurt. Sheets got abused in a year where we had no chance to win and was never fully healthy after it. Gallardo's career was derailed by his injury his first season and he never fully regained his mechanics. Nelson was just breaking out when he wrecked himself running the bases. It really bothers me more how few RP's we have developed. It is hard to develop starters but you should be raining relievers.

 

Going back further Cal Eldred and Teddy Higuera both had promising careers messed up injuries. Eldred was especially disappointing because his problems were so predictable. Not to mention preventable. He pitched 258 innings over 36 starts (both league highs) in his second major league season. He was never the same again.