There is no doubt he is having a career year but that's no guarantee those numbers hold up if traded here. I'd rather have Beltran's postseason experience and locker room presence.
If we only have to give up peanuts then fine, but no way am I trading away key prospects for a player who has historically been a role player.
Since we are picking on the A's rn, what about Khris Davis? I admit I have no idea about his contract situation, but he would be a huge upgrade at LF IMO. Not to mention he has a career OPS of over .800 so it's not a 1 yr wonder type of thing. (I really don't have much info to go on here so if this is a terrible idea for one reason or another somebody please call me out)
I'm on record as being on @Joe Joe's side of this RE: Alonzo, but I wouldn't argue too hard against Beltran. There is something to be said about camaraderie, chemistry and playoff experience and Beltran is a HUGE part of this with the current club. That said, if a deal presented itself where we weren't splitting with anyone in our top 5 and picking up Alonzo and Gray? I think you'd have to be nuts to turn that down... Still, I think focus should be on TOR starter or #3 and a lefty reliever. Alonso, Khris Davis, Ozuna, Abreau... any of the offensive pieces we get in addition to pitching would just be gravy, IMO. Nothin wrong with this offense at all.
Getting a guy like Khris Davis would be the opposite of what the front office tried to accomplish this off-season. He leads the league in strikeouts this year. Heck, Jake Marisnick has a higher WAR in fewer games. I would rather give Marisnick or Fisher a shot at everyday LF than trade anything for Khris Davis.
There's no guarantee about the future. It is about odds. There's no guarantee that Beltran helps Astros more than Rangers last year. There's no guarantee that Beltran helps the Astros more than he helped the Yankees against Keuchel in 2015.
I would argue that Alonso regresses back towards his historical numbers. Sure, he may have improved his swing dynamics but consider me extremely skeptical that he will continue at his current pace. Again, team chemistry is a major reason that this years team has had so much success. Taking a team leader like Beltran out of the lineup and essentially assigning him to a bench role seems like an unnecessary risk.
I would almost advise the Astros to look in to staying put this year. I think they have enough if Peacock and Devenski can tandem a third or fourth playoff game. Sign Yu Darvish in the offseason for a huge 3 year deal. Let the farm talent come through, and set yourself up to be able to sign an Altuve, Springer, Correa, Keuchel as you go.
I see what you are saying, but if I am not mistaken Marisnick has a higher overall WAR bc of his defense. He also strikes out at a very high rate. His offensive production is also trending downward. One thing we know for sure is that Davis has consistently been a high OPS guy. He would be a big upgrade in my opinion. Clearly adding depth to the pitching staff is the main concern but I guess I was saying I would much prefer Davis over Alonso.
I agree for the most part. I am not as enthusiastic about giving up a ton of young talent for the arms being mentioned currently. If deGrom or Archer were available I might take a chance. However, I don't want to give up prospects for Gray, Quintana, etc when Peacock and Fiers are doing what they are doing. If Keuchel comes back healthy I would really just want a good left handed reliever. I like how the Astros have managed salary. The last few years and this year they have money coming off the books. After this year Beltran, Aoki, and Gregerson will all most likely not be returning and that drops about 27 million from the payroll. I also think Gattis will probably be gone as well. That's over 32 million to help pay for raises for the other guys.
I'd be happy letting go all three and focusing on Marwin who I think makes this team so much deeper. I like the idea of signing Darvish for three years so he comes off the books when it's time to hand out the real money to our core.
Davis can't play left so he's basically playing DH as well and has more years of control (i.e. it will cost more to get him). Alonso provides more defensive value at 1st and Alonso can't play 1st. I'd rather have Alonso as there is a 50-50 chance he provides more value by deadline than Davis has in any season and likely costs less as Davis is under control for more years.
I can't pinpoint why this thread made me think of this, but it occurred to me that the Astros have some pretty amazing defensive versatility on their position player roster. McCann and Altuve are the only players that couldn't play at 3 or more positions: Gattis has played C, LF and 1B. Marwin has played every position except C. Correa has only played SS but it's pretty obvious he could man any number of positions. Gurriel has played 1B, 3B, and LF. Bregman has played 3B, SS, LF, and 2B. Marisnick, Springer, Reddick, Beltran, and Aoki have experience at all 3 OF spots. That allows them to easily get by with 12 position players and keep an extra arm, which has paid dividend already with the taxed pen. And it looks like it's s trait that carries over to the minors, with guys like White and Moran seeing time at multiple spots.
He can't play left or he is not a good defensive left fielder? There is a major difference... Most of what I have read says he has good range but a noodle arm. I can live with that.
His ARM rating is -7.3.The next closest not on Oakland is -3. In a playoff series, a LF without an arm will be exposed with the extra scouting by having runners take extra bases on everything that isn't hit hard directly at him (assuming he fields it).
Bro (and I feel weird saying, Bro)...I'd so effing do it, just to stick it to the Arlington Rangers!!! You have no freaking idea. Even if it backfired on us....I'd do it just for the lol'z. I can't even imagine the ish I'd talk if that happened.
Minute Maid left field is pretty damn small, but I get it. You don't want Davis, and I don't want Alonso.
It's all well and good on paper, but the playoff jitters are a real thing. Guys like Peacock and Devenski have never had the weight of a ROAD playoff game on their shoulders (which is exactly what a game 3 or 4 would be). I'm fairly certain relying on them to give you 3+ innings each of mistake-free baseball in October is a recipe for disaster. You have to roll the dice at some point, unless you're Danny Ainge and you get off on hoarding assets.
Maybe at first, but baseball is baseball. These guys are used to big situations and eventually it becomes a glove and ball.
