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Ian Desmond...


totdprods

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Would you take his contract, or a large portion of it, on if we somehow wrangled Raimel Tapia or Ryan McMahon back in the deal as well? Something like a Cron/Bedrosian for Desmond and one of those prospects? I'm mulling this idea after reading this article by Fletcher - http://www.ocregister.com/2017/12/11/angels-notes-six-man-rotation-could-prompt-search-for-defensive-flexibility/

"General Manager Billy Eppler said Monday at the Winter Meetings that the Angels are still planning to have seven relievers, which would mean a 13-man pitching staff if they have six starters. That is one more pitcher than normal, which means one fewer position player."

"Among the players the Angels still need to acquire are a backup shortstop, a fourth outfielder and a right-handed hitting corner infielder to share time with left-handed Luis Valbuena. If the Angels could find one player who can fill two of those roles, that would obviously be attractive.

“I always put a premium on flexibility, but it might be a little bit more now,” Eppler said."

Raimel Tapia is basically the Rockies version of Jahmai Jones. Tapia would be an ideal 4th OF in 2018, and has the potential to be a pretty special OF in his own right, giving us even more depth among our OF prospects (allowing more room for a trade of one of them) and Ryan McMahon obviously has potential across the infield and has been brought up here many times. The Rockies need help in the pen and possibly at 1B, so either Cron or Bedrosian would fit a need. There's a good chance the Angels would need to supplement with another name too.

As for Desmond, he is a player whom I've loathed as being overrated and a prime benefactor of good hitting environments, and he has a regrettable contract, but he has a unique versatility that perfectly fits the Angels needs. He is a player who can cover SS or CF in a pinch. His addition effectively fills three roles at once - either as a full-time 2B who can cover SS or CF in a pinch (so we don't need to acquire a bench player specifically for either) or as a super-sub bench player who can offer coverage across the diamond. Offensively, he is not going to provide us what we want or need, but in terms of defensive ability and versatility, he's a perfect fit...is it worth it? And keep in mind, it's less about Desmond and more about the prospect you'd bring back with him, and the value they offer.

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Another thread that is talking about whether the Angels should trade for a struggling former All Star. My answer to this thread is also a "no". And btw, wasn't Desmond's only season numbers with the Rangers boosted by only one good month? I thought I heard of something like that somewhere. Nope, I was wrong. Boosted by one good first half. Other than that, he hasn't exactly hit well since 2013.

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6 minutes ago, arch stanton said:

He's expensive but that positional flexibility could solve a lot of problems and as long as he's productive they'd find at bats for him. The question is how would he respond to being a $14 mil super utility?

Agree. Desmond is way overpaid, but he is a guy that could actually have a lot of value to the Angels. If we could poach some other players out of the deal, it could make sense.

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15 minutes ago, JustATroutFan said:

Another thread that is talking about whether the Angels should trade for a struggling former All Star. My answer to this thread is also a "no". And btw, wasn't Desmond's only season numbers with the Rangers boosted by only one good month? I thought I heard of something like that somewhere. Nope, I was wrong. Boosted by one good first half. Other than that, he hasn't exactly hit well since 2013.

In my eyes, he's never hit well really ever. Even his good months/halves were very dependent on hot stretches in good hitting ballparks.

But I do see a lot of value in having a player who could be both our back-up SS and back-up CF. It really opens up a larger range of targets for filling out the bench and other needs, and if someone gets hurt for a couple weeks, he's at least conceivably a league-average replacement almost anywhere on the diamond. He's overpaid, but you're basically playing one player the cost of what two would take. So, consider that.

Additional value I see is again, the prospect we'd receive back. Raimel Tapia is about on par with another Jahmai Jones, so if you're moving Jones (or Tapia) in another deal you're just redistributing the resources to upgrade elsewhere in a manner that wasn't possible before. Or, with Ryan McMahon, you get a potential above average MLB-ready major leaguer that could play 3B, 2B, or 1B right now.

Bedrosian and Cron are both players who may not pull much value in a trade, but both would make quite a bit of sense for the Rockies. Freeing up Desmond's contract helps them pursue other needs and work at retaining Blackmon. Desmond could effectively replace Cron's spot on the roster - you lose all of that offense, but you gain an immense amount of positional versatility instead. Bedrosian could be replaced by going after Addison Reed or other relievers. May need to supplement with another middling prospect or player too.

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2 hours ago, totdprods said:

Mostly, I wanted to also see if anyone else can think up other players who have the capability of playing both CF and SS in a pinch, because it seems like that would be a pretty valuable player the way the Angels roster will be constructed.

Chris Taylor, Trae Turner, Freddy Galvis, Kike Hernandez, and the recently acquired Dee Gordon. 

Probably even Jason Kipnis could fall into this category 

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1 hour ago, vladdy#27 said:

Chris Taylor, Trae Turner, Freddy Galvis, Kike Hernandez, and the recently acquired Dee Gordon. 

Probably even Jason Kipnis could fall into this category 

You could probably add a guy like Greg Garcia or Brock Holt to that list as well.

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41 minutes ago, ettin said:

You could probably add a guy like Greg Garcia or Brock Holt to that list as well.

I'd love Greg Garcia. Can he cover SS/CF appropriately?

Brock Holt had some major concussion issues I think...could see him not being as versatile, or good, in the future.

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4 hours ago, Mark68 said:

I think Garcia's more of a SS/3B, and certainly not an option to start.

I think he could start. He hits RHP well and has a high OBP over his career to-date, including the Minors. He is gifted defensively around the MIF (2B, SS, and 3B) and since converting infielders to the outfield is the current rage there is no reason he couldn't make the jump. Talking primarily about a super-utility role for him.

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