Comments on: Trading A Starting Pitcher Would Be A Mistake

By: Metsie

Metsie — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 18:44:25 +0000

What to do? Easy!
Stop trying to build on a shoestring and go and spend another 10-15 Mil on a good hitting OFer and then if you want trade three of the 6 who will be fighting for an OF spot they are unsuited for to get another OFer.

Thinking you can fix a team while limiting yourself to a 100Mil budget is what is dumb…
Trading away great pitching to get an OF that can’t win without good pitching is just as dumb!

By: Terenc

Terenc — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 18:39:29 +0000

Hello? Pitching as a strength is reative to other positions We have NOTHING in the outfield. What are we going to do, convert Zac Lutz to the outfield?

By: Metsie

Metsie — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 18:28:09 +0000

Well I agree Adam….They should keep Dickey!

Santana is done after next year, Wheeler will replace him and Dickey would serve as the Vet leader of the pitching staff.

Trade him and your 2014 rotation consists of Niese, Gee, Harvey, Wheeler, and your back to starting guys like Schwinden and Hefner evey 5th day. We have seen how that works.

By keeping Dickey around for another 3 or 4 years you buy some time so you can properly develop another young starter to go with Harvey and Wheeler without having to rush someone.

Unless mejia or Familia all of a sudden find themselves as a starter there is very little to go to in the Minors to fill that rotation spot.
And more likely both will wind up in the pen.

Even if some other kid emerges you can THEN trade Dickey for something without hurtuing yourself and who know maybe even Gee is worth a package of something good.

You can’t have enough pitching and that deficiency has always been what has held this team back.
We look on the verge of having a staff that could be as good as the 86 rotation and giving it away just seems dumb and shortsighted.

By: TRS86

TRS86 — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 17:55:39 +0000

Yup, thanks for the recap.

By: Alex68

Alex68 — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 17:47:19 +0000

Yea, those 6 games he had 2 good games, 2 mediocre games and 2 were he got absolutely BOMBED!

By: TRS86

TRS86 — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 17:39:59 +0000

He had 6 games in AAA.
His total for 2012 was 3.6.
Harvey’s total in 2011 was 3.5.
Cherry pick all you want.

By: Alex68

Alex68 — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 17:32:48 +0000

K Maxx, i said this kid will remind us of oliver perez due to his wildness and i got hammer here… Even though i posted similar minor league numbers to compare the 2…

By: K Maxx

K Maxx — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 17:25:42 +0000

His walk rate was 4.4 in Buffalo and he had 12 HBP in 2012. The Giants traded him after he put up a 5.5 walk rate to lead the minors and majors in 2010, and then was still at 4.8 when they unloaded him. He is a huge risk and he needs to improve quickly like all pitchers with his command issues.

By: TRS86

TRS86 — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 17:15:43 +0000

Uh, sure he needs to improve on his control but Harvey had a 3.5 BB/9 in 2011 and Wheeler was at 3.6 for 2012. Not sure it’s that much of a concern.

By: K Maxx

K Maxx — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 17:08:42 +0000

If Wheeler had only shown that his control problems are not a recurring annual thing, I would say trade Dickey. But Wheeler still has the same bouts of wildness and command issues that prompted the Giants to trade him in the first place. We have to keep Dickey, and in fact I’d trade Wheeler to get a catcher before I would Dickey.

By: TRS86

TRS86 — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 14:54:14 +0000

I agree to an extent but in trading Dickey with Wheeler and others in the wings it might be the only way to actually score a run for the pitchers. Even San Fran needed some offense.

By: Roxio

Roxio — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 14:52:04 +0000

I find myself in complete agreement. We need to build and keep a solid pitching core. It needs to be stocked like it was with Seaver, Koosman, Ryan, Gentry and Gooden, Ojeda, Darling, Fernandez.

By: TRS86

TRS86 — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 14:46:58 +0000

Agreed, there really are no untouchables and even if there were there’s only most likely one of them on the current MLB team in Harvey.

By: taskmaster4450

taskmaster4450 — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 14:45:13 +0000

Everyone should be available and a GM should listen to offers about anyone. The problem with talking trades in this context is there is no context. Fans want to say trade this guy or dont trade that guy. None of that means anything until it is put into context. For whom is the big question. Arguing about the merits of trading Ike, for example, are crazy. Why? Because there is no basis. Would you trade Ike for McCutchen straight up? Anyone with half a brain would. But Ike fans say dont trade him. Well if you replace that piece with someone who fits better and gives you more, then you do it.

I give Dickey a 2 year extension max. I dont like having a 38 year old hard throwing late developing knuckballer tying up big money for 5 years (4 after 2013). To many question marks. If you cant get his signature on a sensible contract, deal him for players who can help.

By: Willis

Willis — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 14:17:36 +0000

Catching is a huge commodity. Salty or Arencibia will still cost. But I guess that one of them will be a Met target.

By: Willis

Willis — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 14:14:45 +0000

It’s not so much that the Mets have so much starting pitching depth, its more that the Mets have more than a razor thin supply of major league talent among it’s roster of starting pitchers. Trading from any other unit will create a giant hole. The offense is so devoid of talent that there just isn’t anyone meaningful to trade. So trading a starter is the only way to jump start the process of accumulating a more broad base of talent across the roster.

So, if the Mets trade Dickey there is at least a conversation to be had about who could replace him in the rotation in both the short (Hefner, Mejia) and long (Wheeler) term. No such conversation can be had about say first base (or more importantly, 32 HRs) if the Mets were to deal Davis. Reminder: Duda broke his wrist moving furniture.

By: Adam Rossi

Adam Rossi — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 14:11:51 +0000

Agreed, but I feel they can acquire a decent catcher to platoon with Thole without giving up anything significant. Toronto and Boston all have a plethora of catchers, none of which should require a lot to trade for.

By: jerseymet

jerseymet — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 14:02:14 +0000

Winning starts with quality catching. Until we have that we are just spinning our wheels. I would be willing to trade a starter to get catching.

By: Seligman

Seligman — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 13:59:28 +0000

Nice job on a perfectly presented article. You laid out the case on why we shouldn’t deal a Niese or a Dickey, and that is we have no depth. McHugh and Hefner are not replacements for either of those two. Wheeler and Harvey are a part of our future. We play in Citi Field. Pitching should always be our strength as well as speed and defense. Look at the San Francisco Giants as a model of how to win in a huge pitcher’s park.

By: Metstheory22

Metstheory22 — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 13:42:12 +0000

As much as we need all our starters, we also need outfielders and a catcher. I also think that with Dickey, you need to sell high. At 38 and only having this kind of year once, we need to take advantage and trade him for as much quality as possible. Either we get either a top notch outfield or catching prospect.