Closser to Oakland for Charles Thomas

[kdeval31]

According to rotoworld...odd.

 

Athletics acquired catcher J.D. Closser from the Brewers for outfielder Charles Thomas.

 

A trade of two players that have already cleared waivers this year. The A's wanted an extra catcher with Mike Piazza out, and the Brewers could spare Closser with Mike Rivera also in Triple-A. Closser won't be called up unless either Jason Kendall or Adam Melhuse gets hurt.

 

Brewers acquired outfielder Charles Thomas from the Athletics in exchange for catcher J.D. Closser.

 

The Brewers don't need Thomas, but they hardly needed Closser either. Maybe Thomas could get a chance to act as a sixth outfielder later on if the team decides Tony Gwynn Jr. would be better served by getting regular playing time in Triple-A. Thomas was hitting .230/.296/.257 in 74 at-bats for Sacramento.

 

EDIT: Title. -PF

[crewcrazy]

Another outfielder to eventually take time away from Corey Hart.

 

Seriously, though, I'm just happy the Brewers got something for Closser.

[JoeH33]

I don't get the point of this. Sure we really didn't need Closser, but you'd think we could get a little more for him. I would think just the fact that he's a catcher would make him more valuable than an OF'er that can't hit a lick.

[brettac1]

The Charles Thomas star has faded quickly after he had that sweet (as far as backup OF's go) .288/.368/.445 season.

[Never Outhustled]

This opens the door for Lou palmasano to move to AAA, as he's having a terrific start to the season. Also, Rottino has been getting alot of starts behind the dish. Are they starting to think Rottino is a real catcher? That would be great.

[brettac1]

If Lou were to go up to AAA, that would be one of the best prospect rebounds I have ever seen.

[AdvantageSchneider]

I guess this goes under the heading of not standing in the way of a guy that is not part of our plans from playing in the big leagues. I guess that makes us a team that guys like Closser will want to sign with in the future.

 

Would you be upset if you were an AL West team, that the Padres and the Brewers gave away players the A's wanted/needed for essentially nothing. Wouldn't that tick you off a little bit and perhaps gum up future trading opportunities? Just curious.

[brettac1]

Wouldn't that tick you off a little bit and perhaps gum up future trading opportunities? Just curious.

 

Nah. It's something that happens pretty often. The Brewers did it a couple years ago with Pat Borders, too. There is an "old boys network" among GM's, I'm sure, too. Like you know Sandy Alderson is going to try and help out Beane if he can without hurting the Padres.

 

But (like you said) it's a favor to players, also. Rather than stand in the way of Closser's opportunity to get back to MLB, they traded him to a team where he has a chance.

[RobertR]

Not to mention, it's J.D. Closser the Brewers are trading. Hardly the definition of an impact player.

 

Robert

[foamboy1]

I'd rather have the catching depth with Closser than acquire a guy that will never help. Cathing depth is far more valuable (see 80% of last ten seasons as example).

 

Odd trade...the only explanation is to make room for Lou....in which case I would favor the trade.

[dadofandrew]

Player friendly move by Doug. Thomas used to be good, but it's tough to imagine him having an impact.

[JohnBriggs12]

Remember Closser was acquired before the Estrada deal.

 

I think they want to get Rivera's bat going too by giving him more regular PT.

 

Plus, the Nashville OF collection, Dillon, Macias, Anderson, etc. was not very productive.

 

As has been pointed out two of the hottest hitters in the organization this season are catchers, the aforementioned Palmisano and my favorite sleeper Carlos Corporan.

[And That]

There's only one reaction I have to this deal...

 

You can't trust a guy with two first names.

[mothershipconnection]

I agree that this is a curious move. I mean, I could see trading him, but why not try to get a Carlos Villanueva type? By that, I don't mean currently equal to CV, but a low-level throw-in type who at least some day may turn into something you could use. I guess the guy showed some promise for one year back in 2004, but he doesn't even possibly have a future with the team.

[DHonks]

Rottino seems to be catching more lately, so that's worth noting

[sbrylski]

Boo. I had Closser pegged as next season's back-up catcher. What are we going to do with Charles Thomas?

 

This seems pretty odd to me. Closser is a better hitter than Thomas, and he plays catcher.

[rwa12]

Think of the headlines this trade would have brought about 2 years ago. As was mentioned, at least Thomas has some success at the big league level. He was one of the key pieces to the Hudson deal I believe.

[And That]

Only thing I can think of is that Melvin is working off of his late-blooming OF theory here.

[Kevbo74]

Maybe now that Angel's back, they see him taking the fast-track and don't need a catcher logjam throughout the upper minor leagues?

That's cool.

[brettac1]

I had Closser pegged as next season's back-up catcher.

 

He still could be, I suppose. He's going to be a minor league FA again after the season.

[Team Canada]

Doug states in Adam's article that they wanted to get Vinny more catching reps.

[valpocrewsader]

As hard to come by as solid catching depth is, this seems like a foolish move to me. A year ago we were inserting Moeller into the lineup every 5 games and now already we're shipping off guys like Closser for next to nothing? Seems like a luxurious move. I don't like it.

[MNBrew]

Quote:

---

Closser is a better hitter than Thomas, and he plays catcher.

---

 

At this point, Closser was hitting .188 in AAA and Thomas was hitting .230. Neither seems to be doing well at all, but I think I'd take the guy hitting over 40 points higher.

 

Closser was becoming the 3rd string AAA catcher behind Rivera and Rottino, and Palmisano's finally hitting AA pitching like he hit Rookie Ball pitching a few years ago. Closser was a minor-league prospect for the Rockies who never panned out. The guy couldn't even hit in Colorado.

 

Between Damian Miller, Mike Rivera, Lou Palmisano, and even Vinny Rottino, there are at least 4 better options for backup catcher next year than Closser. I liked having the guy. But it really hurts nothing to lose him unless they have a year like they did somewhere back in the late '80s or early '90s when they went through about 5 catchers in a matter of weeks. I remember Dave Valle hitting 3 doubles in one game but getting hurt - and they'd only just gotten him from Seattle because their other guys were hurt (Schroeder?) - then I think it was Matheny getting called up for one of the first times and he hits three doubles in the next game. What a weird stretch that was!

[KCBrewerfan34]

This probably lays the groundwork for the Harden talks, LOL

[jackalope02ca]

A change of scenery for both guys will likely do no harm.

 

Seriously if we got to the point where we needed Closser to contribute we were done anyways. A trade would have happened prior to a guy hitting .188 getting the call. Vinny or Rivera would have gotten the call first. Lou might have even gotten the call before him.