As it stands, in addition to the current division leaders, twelve
teams are within five games of first-place creating a market in which 16 teams could potentially be buyers in the next two weeks as the non-waiver trade
deadline rapidly approaches. In the next fortnight, there will be a deluge
of rumors, hypothetical scenarios and actual trades that inundate all mediums. To be sure, it is a dizzying time of year to
be a baseball fan.
For example, last Friday the day began with Cliff Lee in a
Seattle Mariners uniform but ended with him relocating to the Dallas-Fort Worth
Metroplex. Somewhere in the middle of all that, there was a point in which the baseball
world was convinced the Yankees would land the southpaw in exchange for catching
prospect Jesus
Montero. Some of baseball’s most prominent reporters all but confirmed this
transaction.
But before you could finish your Jimmy John’s sandwich, that
all changed.
Suddenly, the Mariners were no longer interested in the
catching prospect and were broadcasted to be discussing terms with yet another
team. Undoubtedly, every fan following this action unfold quickly did a mental inventory
of their team’s farm system and tried to determine if there was enough prospect
in stock to land the coveted ace. Twins fans held their collective breaths
hoping that Wilson Ramos’s slump did not deter the Mariners from wanted the
best trading chip in the organization. Was he enough? Who could have better
chips on the table? Ultimately, the Rangers won the auction, landing Lee with a
cache of prospects that included the switch-hitter first baseman Justin
Smoak, and have changed the dynamic of the franchises both presently and in
the future.
So unless you are nerdy enough to have Jimmy John’s
delivered so you don’t have to miss a tweet as the transaction was constructed,
you probably don’t have the time to dig through all 32 teams and figure you
their needs, their commodities and their ability to absorb a budget. With that
in mind, we at TwinsCentric
enlisted some of the internet’s best writers to help condense all of this into
an easily digestible and accessible 160-page PDF document: The
2010 Trade Deadline Primer.
These intelligent writers and wonks have provided us with an
exclusive firsthand account of their respective team’s needs, trading chips and
their specific targets. In additional to the individual teams, we’ve isolated
all the potential trade targets league-wide and provided a cliff’s notes
scouting report and analysis on the player. Likewise, we also have done the
same with baseball’s top prospects as these are often the unknown pawns that
wind up emerging as frontline contributors in no time. As names are bandied
around on Twitter or MLBTradeRumors.com, you can quickly review these sections
to see what the experts think about his ability.
Naturally, we did not farm out the writing for the hometown
team. We’ve got all the information you want on the Minnesota Twins including a
team summary by the always level-headed Nick
Nelson, prospects covered by the minor league maven Seth Stohs, and a sharply-penned essay on
the team’s future payroll (absolutely vital in shaping the available trade
targets) by the entertaining and educational John Bonnes. Finally, I’ve
contributed the team’s report card grades along with a first-half write-up on
the roster’s individuals, attempting to explain their performances and what we
may expect in the back-half of the year. Between the four of us and the stable
of writers, we spoon feed you all the background you need to know to help you formulate
a well-informed opinion on all trades, rumored or otherwise.
Lastly, ESPN.com’s Rob Neyer, whose resume includes
working with Bill James, STATS, Inc as well as authoring numerous books on his
own, lends his writing chops to the Primer in the foreword. His contribution to
the publication added flavor from a professional individual that shares the
same passion for the game and the intricacies of team-building that is enjoyed
by the rest of us that do this more or less for free.
So as the activity intensifies in the coming weeks, be a
proactive fan: Purchase the 2010
Trade Deadline Primer.
