Zack Greinke is a Milwaukee Brewer!!!!!!!!!

[AJ Love]

Absolutely thrilled that the Brewers traded for Zack Greinke.

[PlatinumRoom]

Another big name NOT headed to the Bronx. I love it!

[Smakutus]

and out of the American League Central... Bye Zack!

Jeff

[Jaan]

And they got him for nothing!!

[drgonzoguitar]

Another big name NOT headed to the Bronx. I love it!

and out of the American League Central... Bye Zack!

Jeff

This! (and this and this)

[AJ Love]

And they got him for nothing!!

Well they got him for not a whole lot, relatively speaking. Escobar has Gold Glove talent at SS, but he struggled at the plate last year for the Brewers, Cain is likely an above average CF, Jeffress throws 100 mph, all 3 are pretty highly regarded prospects who have MLB experience now. And the minor league pitcher Odorizzi, is still a few years away from MLB but also highly regarded

That said, I'm freakin' thrilled about the trade...

And yes Yankees fans have got to be scratching their heads the way this off-season has gone

[jimfog]

Poor kid.........from bad to bad.

[derekd]

And they got him for nothing!!


Might want to look again. SS Escobar is above avg defensively, though a light hitter. Still an upgrade for us over Yuni. Centerfielder Cain hit over .300 in the minors, steals well, is a plus defender, and supposed to be off the charts make up wise. Odorizzi was your best minor league pitcher last year, according to many, and if Jeffress can leave the left handed cigs alone, he is a flame thrower who has a chance to set up Soria at the back of the pen. Of course, it is highly doubtful they will all work out, but if 2 of the 4 do, then just as well. Zack wanted out.

ESPN.com did an analysis of recent trades for ace pitchers, and depending on how these guys turn out, it appears to be on par with the others. A word of warning. If the team ain't winning, Zack loses focus. The good news is, he was also a highly regarded short stop in high school, and fields his position very well. He is also an excellent hitter. He is brutally honest and is an odd guy, but very likeable. He will make life there very interesting.

[110db]

If it means no more Dave Bush or Manny Parra, I'm all for it.

[AJ Love]

If it means no more Dave Bush or Manny Parra, I'm all for it.

Bush is a free agent, likely not back in Milwaukee

Parra is still a Brewer, most likely will be in the bullpen

The Brewers still have almost all their hitting from last year when they were #4 in hitting, but have added Greinke and Shaun Marcum to their pitching rotation.... man, I can't wait for the 2011 season!

[AJ Love]

SS Escobar is above avg defensively, though a light hitter. .

Escobar hit very well in the minors and has a ton of potential. He made several *wow* plays in the field last year. He's also super fast (we nicknamed him "Flash") and could easily steal 50-60 bases in a season if he gets on base enough and is used properly. I'm gonna miss him, he was one of my favorite players, but it was worth it to get Zack

[WesKuhnley]

I was so pissed when I heard this.

Why can't my Twins get any deals done this year? Billy Smith needs to quit sitting on his thumb, and get some real pitching in here!

Oh, and congrats to wisconsonites...Grinke is friggin awesome.

[Roark]

THIS is why I hate the Royals....I used to love em' back in the day.

Can't / Won't pay any talent, I got tired of seeing the home grown guys move away.

Idiots.

[Analog Delay]

THIS is why I hate the Royals....I used to love em' back in the day.

Can't / Won't pay any talent, I got tired of seeing the home grown guys move away.

Idiots.

Well, Greinke is going to be a free agent after the 2012 season and he's not going to resign with KC so they kind of have to trade him. They can let him walk and get the compensation draft picks, but they went for the package of prospects instead.

The one thing I don't understand is why Dayton Moore decided to trade him now. I think Greinke would bring back a much better package than what they got from the Brewers at the 7/31/11 trade deadline. If a team in contention has a starting pitcher go down with an injury or one of their starters is having a down year, suddenly Greinke becomes a much more valuable commodity.

Dumb timing on the trade on Dayton Moore's behalf, in my opinion.

[travisvwright]

Turns out this is a baseball thread.

[derekd]

Well, Greinke is going to be a free agent after the 2012 season and he's not going to resign with KC so they kind of have to trade him. They can let him walk and get the compensation draft picks, but they went for the package of prospects instead.

The one thing I don't understand is why Dayton Moore decided to trade him now. I think Greinke would bring back a much better package than what they got from the Brewers at the 7/31/11 trade deadline. If a team in contention has a starting pitcher go down with an injury or one of their starters is having a down year, suddenly Greinke becomes a much more valuable commodity.

Dumb timing on the trade on Dayton Moore's behalf, in my opinion.

Au contrare. Cliff Lee just moved, which makes Zack the most appealing starter on the market. The longer you wait the less you get in trade. I like the deal, timing and all. Only time will tell if the crop we got is worth it. Zack is the real deal though, and frankly I am glad to see him in the NL. He has wanted to hit for the longest time.

[jimmybcool]

Well, speaking as a STL Cards fan I think the trade sucks.

For one thing, it used to be all the Cards had to do was be mediocre and the division was theirs. So last year those upstart Reds come along and they didn't get any worse this off-season so they are still a threat. The Cubs have the talent if they get their act together to be a threat.

At least we Cards fans could look forward to watching the hapless Pirates and Astros plus the incompetent pitching of the Brewers leave them cold.

Not any more with the Brewers. It isn't just adding Greinke. They also added a decent starter named Marcum and did it without giving up anything they needed for 2010. If this were a poker game I'd call it "all in".

And they are now competitive. The NL Central will not be the leagues doormat this year.

[AJ Love]

Why can't my Twins get any deals done this year? Billy Smith needs to quit sitting on his thumb, and get some real pitching in here!
.

yeah I'm not sure why the Twins aren't making more moves. Obviously the Royals wouldn't trade Greinke within the division, but there are other moves to be made. If all the Twins do is resign Pavano their pitching won't be better

[AJ Love]

Not any more with the Brewers. It isn't just adding Greinke. They also added a decent starter named Marcum and did it without giving up anything they needed for 2010. If this were a poker game I'd call it "all in".

And they are now competitive. The NL Central will not be the leagues doormat this year.

Yeah the Brewers are definitely "all in". Especially as this is their last year with Prince Fielder.

Shaun Marcum was a huge pickup, too, and definitely better than just decent. He was the Opening Day starter for the Blue Jays last year and actually had a better ERA & WHIP last season than Greinke (and a better WHIP than both Chris Carpenter & Jaime Garcia, too)

[WesKuhnley]

yeah I'm not sure why the Twins aren't making more moves. Obviously the Royals wouldn't trade Greinke within the division, but there are other moves to be made. If all the Twins do is resign Pavano their pitching won't be better

This is my frustration. I was hoping Billy Smith might dangle enough prospects in front of the Royals that they might trade him here, because obviously the Twins pitching is good enough to win the Central 6 of 10 years, but gets NOWHERE in the post-season.

Like I said, Congrats Milwaukee.

[jimmybcool]

Yeah the Brewers are definitely "all in". Especially as this is their last year with Prince Fielder.

Shaun Marcum was a huge pickup, too, and definitely better than just decent. He was the Opening Day starter for the Blue Jays last year and actually had a better ERA & WHIP last season than Greinke (and a better WHIP than both Chris Carpenter & Jaime Garcia, too)

I didn't realize Marcum was that level of pitcher. Just makes it worse :bonk


I'd still like my Cards chances if they would sign a better 2b and some 3b depth for if (when) Freese gets injured. It seems other teams do things to make themselves better and the Cards are treading water. . Maybe the Cards are waiting to see what Pujols is gonna cost for the next 8 years.

I have to say I LIKE the idea of a team that develops talent. Gets a core and then goes all in for a two year span to see if they can win a championship. Being "good" every years isn't as exciting as winning it all every 10-15 years. In the Case of the Brewers in two years I see a very weak team remaining unless their revenues increase enough to sign some of the guys coming up on free agency.

[jcs]

As a Royals fan, good luck Greinke, dont let the door hit you in the rear on the way out either!

The Royals organization were extremely patient with this guys mental problems (social anxiety or whatever it is) and did absolutely everything he asked for to get his head straight.

I am glad we are rid of Greinke for what we were going to have to pay him, he was doing us little good in 2011,,,,we now have a ton of young prospects and have plenty of money to sign anyone who is worthy in the next few years, plus it makes the team very attractive to a new buyer (yes i think Glass will sell the team).

Another thing is i think American League hitters were figuring out Zacks delivery, i watched him throughout 2010, he wasnt nearly as good as 2009.

[AJ Love]

I'd still like my Cards chances if they would sign a better 2b and some 3b depth for if (when) Freese gets injured. It seems other teams do things to make themselves better and the Cards are treading water. .

I was a little surprised with the Lance Berkman signing. He can still hit but with 2 bad wheels the Cards are going to have him in the outfield? Between Berkmann and Holiday, Colby Rasmus is going to need to cover a LOT of ground

[jimmybcool]

I was a little surprised with the Lance Berkman signing. He can still hit but with 2 bad wheels the Cards are going to have him in the outfield? Between Berkmann and Holiday, Colby Rasmus is going to need to cover a LOT of ground

You and me both. The "schtick" is he is now fully recovered from the knee surgery and has lost weight and is in the best shape of his career yada yada and can play RF.

The reality is he is 34, with bum knees and his nickname in his prime was "fat Elvis". I am skeptical he can play OF for 150 games. As for Rasmus, well yes he needs to fly. Holiday is a better fielder than most credit him for. He is about league average in LF so no issues there. Not the fastest but far from the slowest. But if Rasmus splits Holiday and Berkman there are gonna be a lot of balls fall in between them this year.

If it had been me this offseason I would have:

Resigned Westbrooke (done)

Trade for Theriot (done)

Signed Hudson to play 2b every day (he signed for 2 years at about $5.75 a year)

Signed a RF with experience and pop. Hawpe comes to mind as a good rebound risk cheap. Guy is a RFer and has had some better than average years.

Sign a backup catcher with a real bat. More effort to get Bengie Molina

I think they could have added Molina, Hawpe and Hudson for close to what Berkman is going to cost. And maybe they could have found a taker for Schumaker and his contract making it easy to cover their costs.

The team would have a different look.

C - Molina/Molina
1b - Pujols/Hawpe
2b - Hudson/Greene
SS - Theriot/Greene
3b - Freese/Craig
LF - Holiday/Craig/Jay
CF - Rasmus/Schu/Jay
LF - Hawpe/Jay/Craig

I realize the game isn't fantasy and you can't always get the players you want and clubhouse persona matters etc. But this on paper is deeper and more balanced than adding a sore kneed one time starting 1b to play RF and little else.

I fear the Brewers have made serious advances and that the Cards have not. The NL Central could have a 4 team race with whoever stays healthy the winner. Based on age I would pick the Reds to have the best odds of health.

[AJ Love]

I fear the Brewers have made serious advances and that the Cards have not. The NL Central could have a 4 team race with whoever stays healthy the winner. Based on age I would pick the Reds to have the best odds of health.

The Cubs are a possibility I suppose, but I see it as a 3 team race between the Cardinals, Brewers & Reds

[jimmybcool]

The Cubs are a possibility I suppose, but I see it as a 3 team race between the Cardinals, Brewers & Reds

The talent is there. The curse is too so........ :rotflmao

Honestly on paper the Brewers might have an edge. Their only weakness I see now is 5th starter and bullpen. If the pen comes together they could win the division and give someone fits in the playoffs.

This is a division with competition. Should be great.

[derekd]

As a Royals fan, good luck Greinke, dont let the door hit you in the rear on the way out either!

The Royals organization were extremely patient with this guys mental problems (social anxiety or whatever it is) and did absolutely everything he asked for to get his head straight.

I am glad we are rid of Greinke for what we were going to have to pay him, he was doing us little good in 2011,,,,we now have a ton of young prospects and have plenty of money to sign anyone who is worthy in the next few years, plus it makes the team very attractive to a new buyer (yes i think Glass will sell the team).

Another thing is i think American League hitters were figuring out Zacks delivery, i watched him throughout 2010, he wasnt nearly as good as 2009.

I agree that the front office bent over backward for the guy, but any would, given his draft slot, and talent (see Danny Duffy for recent example). Allard Baird did treat him with kid gloves, and I think that is a major reason he signed his current contract. However, it is a biz, and if he were struggling (see Brian Bannister), he would be shown the door, so I don't really blame his mercenary attitude. I think if Hochever doesn't make marked improvement this season, he is headed to the pen. So draft status only gets you so much time.

I disagree about the AL figuring him out. A) he was bound to have a let down year, as his numbers in 08 were right up there with Pedro in his prime. B) the guy loses focus when the team is not doing well. We have seen this before. The team was all over the place this year, and defensively terrible, espcially with Yuni up the middle. Tough to bear down when the guys in the field don't have your back.

I have always thought Zack needed to be in the NL.

[jetsnation]

Another big name NOT headed to the Bronx. I love it!


How could any player pass up playing in front of these guys?











http://boston.barstoolsports.com/files/2010/10/yankeedouche4.gif

[jcs]

The Royals lost a lot of close games and yes there were defensive problems but Zack signed a contract for what $13 million a year?

$13 million a year aint chicken feed for a guy that pitches every 5 days, so you have an obligation to go in and do your best (which he usually did) and support the team the best you can (which apparently he did not), anybody that doesnt show team support will be shown the door at this point regardless of their perceived talent.

Like i said, i am glad the guy is gone and we can move on with Ned Yost and a new cast of young players that are hungry and eager to play for the Kansas City Royals.

I cant agree that at least some AL hitters weren't figuring out Zack, i watched many games intently and his stuff was very good at times and he was getting hit period,,,thats not to say Zack wont have success, he most likely will do well in the National league, but if Milwaukee doesnt do well, you can expect Zack to whine like a 14 year old.

I think Zack was 61st in ERA last year in the American League, is that correct?