In Jon Heyman's column on potential trade candidates, closer Jose Valverde landed at #9. His take:
Houston owner Drayton McLane probably isn't as attached to Valverde as he is to Roy Oswalt and Lance Berkman.
I haven't seen a drop-off in production from LaHawk and Sampson in the closer role over Valverde. So that may mean that Valverde is expendable, and I would be all for shopping him for some minor leaguers - even if they were Double-A guys. You?
3 comments:
Is there something faster than "in a heartbeat"?
At this point, anything that resembles planning for the future would be a welcome sight. I just have a hard time beleiving that Drayton would pull the trigger.
Totally agree. $8 million is way too much to spend on a closer who extends games. Let's trade him for bats, get his paycheck off the books and put it in to signing draft picks.
I don't think Drayton will pull the trigger on trading Berkman or Oswalt, but I think he could be talked in to trading Valverde. For a team that is selling closers, there may be teams closer than 30 games out that needs a hard-throwing OCD pitcher with nerves of steel.
Agreed. Valverde leaves once he hits free agency anyway. Hawkins has been pretty solid, and in the future you can still turn the ball over to Sampson who probably has at least 5 more years in him.
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