The Carl Crawford Trade Talk Summary

Has Crawford finally figured it out, or is this a carerer year?

A potebtial ace and a positional prospect may not be bad

there is absolutely no reason to be even thinking of trading CC away the league would be lined up to take him. we would never live that one down

Question: Does wOBA take into account stolen bases (I think it does)?

Don’t really have anything to add to the discussion otherwise. Although I think the PR hit will be much worse than any of the moves RJ mentioned. Remember this team did not sign Bonds when he would have been HUGE as a DH. Perception plays a large role.. My gut feeling tells me he finishes next season with the Rays and we take the draft picks, but I could be wrong.

Don’t really see the point in trading him otherwise.

let’s think of our rivals. In the AL east and all of the other top tier AL teams. Who has a Carl Crawford like outfielder and who is that player? and.. how much they all wish they did.. and how happy they would be if we no longer had him.

We should be in contention virtually every year. There is and won’t be a firesale. However to be in contention we have to maximize the value of our expendable parts. You can be expendable due to performance, public perception or contract.

Who is expendable:
CC
Kazmir
Navi
The Bullpen – Howell (Lets go with Wheeler)

In reality trading Kazmir now is a horrible move. His value is low. We would be better off paying him next year to boost his performance to get a better return.

Therefore I propose trading Wheeler, Navi, and CC. This won’t really hurt this years team too much; esp if we pick up Zaun.

Sky mentioned a three way. That could work. There are some teams that could use all three; CC, Navi, and Wheeler. Take the Tigers for example. Unfortunately they don’t have the pieces to get them.

If we package them correctly we could get a Baumgarner + Posey or Feliz + Smoak type return.

Then we plug Joyce in left. Zaun in at catcher. And lord knows we have enough bullpen pieces to make it work.

let’s say 3/$30mil

Reportedly the Red Sox have offered Bay something along those lines

What do you think Crawford gets as a FA?

If they feel they can do it, then all of this is a moot point. Resigning CC is what everyone wants. But it comes down to cost. If they can’t afford him, then it’s a matter of when is the best time to make a deal without hurting a team trying to make the playoffs. Cost is going to be relative to the economic climate, somewhat. There are not many 27-28 yr old potential HOF outfielders that hit the market. That being said, guys that usually get the big bucks are the ones that can also mash HRs and drive in RBIs. Crawford is more unique. That’s not his game, but he’s arguably the best stolen base player of the last couple decades. A 4 yr, 40 mil to 4 yr 50 mil is not a stretch. Could CC get more? Sure…on the open market. players usually take less than what they’d make in FA for the security of a longterm deal. Don’t forget CC also wants to stay with the Rays. That helps.

That being said, can the Rays afford that? Yes. By the time the extension would kick in, Percy, Wheeler, Burrell, will all be off the books and Kazmir and Pena will be in the last year of their deals. The money is there.

Perception is only a side point in all this. Either you can afford him or you can’t. That’s what matters. I do think the FO will weigh if keeping CC will have any positive/negative impact on a new stadium. In all honesty, I can’t see it making much of a difference. However, the Twins used needing a new stadium so they could retain Mauer, Morneau, etc. as an argument that helped them get a new stadium, so I could see the Rays doing the same.

The Rays needs at C can be addressed with other expendables, i.e. Bartlett/Brignac, and Niemann/Kazmir (and Kaz could rebuild his trade value with a solid second half). But if the Rays could get a top-flight catcher like Posey for CC, then you’d be foolish not to weigh the overall cost (esp. with Joyce and Jennings waiting in the wings).

For nostalgic’s sake, it would be nice to retain CC and watch him chase down the Hall of Fame. But perception and nostalgia aside, the Rays have to do what is best for the long-term health of the franchise.

where we would give up CC, but get V-Mart in return. If we were able to get an all-star catcher who is a 4.5 WAR player the past 5+ seasons that would help to offset losing a face of the franchise. Let me know what guys think about this scenario. Is it fair for all the teams? Would the Rays do it? Does it help us? Looking for your opinions.

Rays get V-Mart, send CC to Giants and a pitcher along the lines of Talbot, Rollins or Cobb to Indians

Giants get CC, send Alderson, Villalona and/or Noonan to the Indians

Indians get Alderson, Villalona and/or Noonan and say Talbot, send us V-Mart

We would get a huge improvement at C, who is also cheaper than CC and we would have him for the next 1.5 years as well.

The Giants would get a leadoff hitter and gold glove OF for the next 1.5 years and keep their top 2 prospects.

Indians give up a great C, but he is replaceable with Shoppach and then Carlos Santana in a few years. They would get a #2-3 SP, plus power 1b, back of the rotation SP and maybe an everyday 2b.