Excuse me as I indulge in some thoughts about baseball
Well, it looks like after trading Schilling to the Red Sox, my favorite team just picked up Richie Sexson. First of all, simply getting Sexson is a huge plus for the D-Backs, and softens the blow from losing Schilling, as the Diamondbacks need as premiere power hitter much more than they need a premiere pitcher at this point.
But what interests me more is the details:
Giving all these players excites me greatly, as it means this will be a very busy offseason for Joe Garagiola, Jr. (he being the D-backs GM, for those who didn't know). But let's look at it in depth.
Chris Capuano is nothing to the Diamondbacks right now, he's a pitcher with two games of Major League experience in an organization that last season turned out to have a plethora of young pitching talent, with potential young starters in Oscar Villarreal, Stephen Randolph, Andrew Good, Edgar Gonzalez and that doesn't even mention the amazingly talented Brandon Webb. Jorge De La Rosa is also of no importance. He's a minor league pitcher acquired in the Curt Schilling deal and probably wasn't officially on the Diamondbacks 40-man roster for an hour before this trade went through.
It's kind of a shame to see Overbay go, but this is a critical time in his development and he'd probably not get much better unless he could be a regular starter this season, and that just is not going to happen with Sexson on the team now. And let's face it, Sexson has a much, much better upside than Overbay.
Chad Moeller as part of the deal is what they call addition by subtraction. Let's face it, the Diamondbacks last season platooned two backup catchers, and that leaves a hole in the lineup. Without Chad Moeller that means one of three things, either the Diamondbacks are going to call up Brad Cresse and try him out, which is highly doubtful, or they'll make Robby Hammock into their starting catcher, or they'll bring in a starting catcher through trade or free agency (Ivan Rodriguez anyone?). But since Craig Counsell is also part of the deal, I'd imagine they're going to keep Robby Hammock as their utility player, meaning the third option is the most likely.
That leaves the only part of this deal with something like a sting, and that is the loss of Junior Spivey. But even this has an upside for the Diamondbacks. Spivey is a free agent after this season, so getting rid of him now means not having to deal with him later. The Diamondbacks already have Matt Kata who's cheaper if slightly less effective than Spivey, and losing Spivey clears up some room for Scott Hairston as soon as he's ready to come up, which could be as soon as sometime this season. Seeing as Hairston is the most talented prospect in the Diamondbacks organization, clearing up a spot for him is always a good idea.
So overall, this was a great deal for the Diamondbacks, and Garagiola should be proud. I'm not sure how good it is for the Brewers, but really, who cares about that?
[edited for clarity]
Well, it looks like after trading Schilling to the Red Sox, my favorite team just picked up Richie Sexson. First of all, simply getting Sexson is a huge plus for the D-Backs, and softens the blow from losing Schilling, as the Diamondbacks need as premiere power hitter much more than they need a premiere pitcher at this point.
But what interests me more is the details:
To acquire Sexson, who hit 45 home runs last season, the Diamondbacks dealt infielders Craig Counsell, Junior Spivey, pitchers Chris Capuano and Jorge De La Rosa and catcher Chad Moeller and first baseman Lyle Overbay.
Giving all these players excites me greatly, as it means this will be a very busy offseason for Joe Garagiola, Jr. (he being the D-backs GM, for those who didn't know). But let's look at it in depth.
Chris Capuano is nothing to the Diamondbacks right now, he's a pitcher with two games of Major League experience in an organization that last season turned out to have a plethora of young pitching talent, with potential young starters in Oscar Villarreal, Stephen Randolph, Andrew Good, Edgar Gonzalez and that doesn't even mention the amazingly talented Brandon Webb. Jorge De La Rosa is also of no importance. He's a minor league pitcher acquired in the Curt Schilling deal and probably wasn't officially on the Diamondbacks 40-man roster for an hour before this trade went through.
It's kind of a shame to see Overbay go, but this is a critical time in his development and he'd probably not get much better unless he could be a regular starter this season, and that just is not going to happen with Sexson on the team now. And let's face it, Sexson has a much, much better upside than Overbay.
Chad Moeller as part of the deal is what they call addition by subtraction. Let's face it, the Diamondbacks last season platooned two backup catchers, and that leaves a hole in the lineup. Without Chad Moeller that means one of three things, either the Diamondbacks are going to call up Brad Cresse and try him out, which is highly doubtful, or they'll make Robby Hammock into their starting catcher, or they'll bring in a starting catcher through trade or free agency (Ivan Rodriguez anyone?). But since Craig Counsell is also part of the deal, I'd imagine they're going to keep Robby Hammock as their utility player, meaning the third option is the most likely.
That leaves the only part of this deal with something like a sting, and that is the loss of Junior Spivey. But even this has an upside for the Diamondbacks. Spivey is a free agent after this season, so getting rid of him now means not having to deal with him later. The Diamondbacks already have Matt Kata who's cheaper if slightly less effective than Spivey, and losing Spivey clears up some room for Scott Hairston as soon as he's ready to come up, which could be as soon as sometime this season. Seeing as Hairston is the most talented prospect in the Diamondbacks organization, clearing up a spot for him is always a good idea.
So overall, this was a great deal for the Diamondbacks, and Garagiola should be proud. I'm not sure how good it is for the Brewers, but really, who cares about that?
[edited for clarity]
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