Done: Lester and Gomes from the Red Sox to A's for Yoenis Cespedes

[Inside Pitch]

You've promised this team would fold for 2+ seasons now.

 

Meanwhile, any talk of the Rangers being in trouble on any level is patently false.

[floplag]

even with 5 aces, they still gotta score some runs... losing their one true presence in that lineup will affect that.
arguably they had 5 great starters before making any trades... what they have done is weaken the offense.
run differential will be affected in a negative way i think. 
instead of winning 3-2 it will all be 1-0, lol  but there will be a lot less room for error on those starters without the offensive threat behind it

Donaldson has to be pissed right now
Call me crazy,,, but i dont think this is as huge as some do and may even be to our benefit.

[Turd Ferguson]

Their farm system is barren and many of these guys are about to get much more expensive. Another long rebuilding period is likely in order. 

 

And I think Beane sees that along with the AL West getting more and more competitive, which is why he's going balls to the wall this season.  

[nate]

They lead baseball in runs scored.

[HaloMagic]

even with 5 aces, they still gotta score some runs... losing their one true presence in that lineup will affect that.

arguably they had 5 great starters before making any trades... what they have done is weaken the offense.

run differential will be affected in a negative way i think.

instead of winning 3-2 it will all be 1-0, lol but there will be a lot less room for error on those starters without the offensive threat behind it

Donaldson has to be pissed right now

Call me crazy,,, but i dont think this is as huge as some do and may even be to our benefit.

They have the best offense in baseball. They weren't winning 3-2 before this trade. They won't be winning 1-0 after it. What are you talking about?

[Lou]

but what about 3 years from now? I guess this means Beane is very shortsighted.

[RallyMo]

This will make their offense only good enough to be tied for the position of beat offense. Their pitching, on the other hand...eeeeeesh.

This makes them better, especially in the playoffs.

[sneaky_flute]

Meanwhile, any talk of the Rangers being in trouble on any level is patently false.

With one of the better minor league systems and money to spend, I doubt Texas spends the next 5 years in rebuild mode. 

[Adam]

Good for them. All In. Gotta respect that.

[Lhalo]

Trading Milone for Sam Fuld pretty much indicates that Beane knows the team will suck for years to come.

He'll trade some aging vets for some under-the-radar rookies that will crush next year.

[Inside Pitch]

Their farm system is barren and many of these guys are about to get much more expensive. Another long rebuilding period is likely in order. 

 

Their farm system does one heck of of a job of getting them other team's failures for future use.  They aren't looking at the farm to supply them with players as much as they see it as a source of currency for patch moves.   They will parlay a pitcher or two into players they can use and so on and so on.   

[nando714]

With one of the better minor league systems and money to spend, I doubt Texas spends the next 5 years in rebuild mode.

The prospects in Texas have been really meh in the majors tho.

Not to mention the bad contracts of Andrus, Choo, Fielder

[bloodbrother]

Yeah, why do people still act like their offense isn't good? It's been elite for 2 years now. Can this be put to rest already. Yeah, the names don't stand out and you wonder wtf it is, but the results speak for itself

[Lou]

Good for them. All In. Gotta respect that.

yep. They're in a great position, so why not?

[fan_since79]

The A's have a multifaceted offense with guys up and down the lineup contributing on a nightly basis. Losing Cespedes is a blip in the whole picture.

[budice0]

@Joelsherman1:  Asked #Angels GM Jerry DiPoto if Lester to #Athletics forces him to act further. 1 word answer: “No."

 

*facepalm*

[SoWhat]

Lmao I can't believe someone said this move could benefit us.

[Turd Ferguson]

Yeah, why do people still act like their offense isn't good? It's been elite for 2 years now. Can this be put to rest already. Yeah, the names don't stand out and you wonder wtf it is, but the results speak for itself

 

At least from my perspective, I don't think it makes their offense bad, or even mediocre.  But when you take a guy like Cespedes out of there, even if he's overrated, I think it does impact the overall depth and quality of the lineup.  You can't argue that losing a guy like Cespedes has not impact on the lineup.

[Lhalo]

@Joelsherman1:  Asked #Angels GM Jerry DiPoto if Lester to #Athletics forces him to act further. 1 word answer: “No."

 

*facepalm*

Good.

[bloodbrother]

This will make their offense only good enough to be tied for the position of beat offense. Their pitching, on the other hand...eeeeeesh.

This makes them better, especially in the playoffs.

Yep. Just like Samardzija deal, this was done to plan for October. No other contender can match the 1-4 that the A's are gonna be throwing out

[Lou]

@Joelsherman1:  Asked #Angels GM Jerry DiPoto if Lester to #Athletics forces him to act further. 1 word answer: “No."

 

*facepalm*

why the facepalm?

Did anyone really expect him to say yes?

[gotbeer]

Initially I thought, WTF.  But looking at it more.  This is a total Beane move.  Cespedes for all the hype, has not hit over .800.  He's a FA after 2015.  Beane usually trades a year early, than a year late.  

 

They are all in, and their farm isn't touched.  

 

* checked the stats again, and his rookie season he hit .861.  His next 2 seasons have been in the .700's.

Edited July 31, 2014 by gotbeer

[nate]

why the facepalm?

Did anyone really expect him to say yes?

 

I hope he was insinuating that JD facepalmed.

[bloodbrother]

At least from my perspective, I don't think it makes their offense bad, or even mediocre. But when you take a guy like Cespedes out of there, even if he's overrated, I think it does impact the overall depth and quality of the lineup. You can't argue that losing a guy like Cespedes has not impact on the lineup.

Oh definitely. They did downgrade a bit offensively, but they could afford to when they are leading baseball in runs scored. They still got Moss and Donaldson and Norris, and Vogt is hitting .360 for some damn reason

[Lou]

I hope he was insinuating that JD facepalmed.

I highly doubt that