Braves trade for McLouth

Nate McLouth was traded to the Braves for starters Jeff Locke and Charlie Morton and center fielder Gorkys Hernandez.

over 2 years ago Matthew 30 comments 0 recs |

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And Hernandez is supposed to be excellent defensively and looks like he might hit a little. McLouth is a slightly above-average corner outfielder miscast as a centerfielder and I think both sides in this deal knew that. The Braves did well to not give up any of their stud prospects, but I think the Pirates did well to get three potential contributors.

by patsfan on Jun 3, 2009 10:10 PM PDT up reply actions

Plagiarist!

that or McLouth is a meme.

"Even the stupidest of men, by some instinct of nature, is convinced on his own that with more observations his risk of failure is diminished."
-Jacques Bernoulli Ars conjectandi 1713

by Bearskin Rugburn on Jun 4, 2009 8:10 AM PDT up reply actions

Wow, that was totally unintentioned, my bad

Perhaps he is a meme.

by patsfan on Jun 4, 2009 8:53 AM PDT up reply actions

So I assume the Pirates are selling high on McLouth's reputation

by Poochie on Jun 3, 2009 5:35 PM PDT reply actions

Any time you get a player named Gorkys in return, you have to make the deal

by abender20 on Jun 3, 2009 5:46 PM PDT up reply actions 4 recs

A quick glance at the stats

suggests that Charlie Morton alone was worth it. McLouth is a on okay corner fielder miscast in CF, who can be counted onto hit a little better than average. Morton has been putting up some great numbers in AAA for a little over a year and was about average (by tRA) during his stint in the bigs last year. A guy who’s ready to be a league average starter with upside for a slightly better than average corner fielder? And some other shit on top of that? Pirates win.

"Even the stupidest of men, by some instinct of nature, is convinced on his own that with more observations his risk of failure is diminished."
-Jacques Bernoulli Ars conjectandi 1713

by Bearskin Rugburn on Jun 3, 2009 7:38 PM PDT reply actions

"some shit on top of that"

Doesn’t even describe Gorkys, who will probably end up being as good as McClouth.

St. Louis Cardinals... defying win expectancy since 2008

by vivaelpujols on Jun 3, 2009 11:23 PM PDT up reply actions

I have a hard time believing that

and given the kind of player he is comparing to McLouth is strange. The pitching they got is pretty good but Gorkys seems like a minor league Endy Chavez to me.

"Even the stupidest of men, by some instinct of nature, is convinced on his own that with more observations his risk of failure is diminished."
-Jacques Bernoulli Ars conjectandi 1713

by Bearskin Rugburn on Jun 5, 2009 8:34 AM PDT up reply actions

His defense looks pretty amazing

He was +42 by total zone last year, and +23 the year before. If he could be +20 in center in the majors, he wouldn’t even need to be a league average hitter to be as good as McClouth.

St. Louis Cardinals... defying win expectancy since 2008

by vivaelpujols on Jun 5, 2009 8:55 PM PDT up reply actions

I don't know much about the guys headed to Pittsburgh, but this surprised me.

McLouth may be a bit overrated, but he’s still good and signed to a reasonable deal through his arb years. Then again, the Pirates probably need quantity over quality right now.

The more I think about it, the trade makes sense on both ends.

by Teej on Jun 3, 2009 11:53 PM PDT reply actions

Regardless, the Pirates win.

Now we just need to unload Yuni to them.

WELCOME TO THE ZONE.

by HHZ on Jun 4, 2009 1:50 AM PDT up reply actions

I don't know if you can really call a winner.

McLouth immediately becomes the Braves’ best outfielder, and it’s not like they gave up a ton of high-ceiling talent.

by Teej on Jun 4, 2009 9:02 AM PDT up reply actions

It's a win-win

St. Louis Cardinals... defying win expectancy since 2008

by vivaelpujols on Jun 4, 2009 7:53 PM PDT up reply actions

I rather love McLouth's contract

by Jeff Sullivan on Jun 4, 2009 9:07 AM PDT up reply actions

Absolutely.

This reminds me a bit of when the A’s signed Swisher to quite a team-friendly contract, then traded him. Seems like the kind of player/contract you want to keep around.

by Teej on Jun 4, 2009 9:18 AM PDT up reply actions

They don't need him

They likely won’t be a competitive team while McClouth is under contract, and when they are, he will be too expensive. Here they get two good young pitchers, and a center fielder who could end up replacing McClouth’s production.

St. Louis Cardinals... defying win expectancy since 2008

by vivaelpujols on Jun 4, 2009 7:54 PM PDT up reply actions

I imagine they can compete before 2012.

by Teej on Jun 5, 2009 1:16 PM PDT up reply actions

Except the prospects aren't that good

by Matthew on Jun 5, 2009 1:38 PM PDT up reply actions

Their good enough

St. Louis Cardinals... defying win expectancy since 2008

by vivaelpujols on Jun 5, 2009 8:56 PM PDT up reply actions

No.

by Matthew on Jun 5, 2009 10:10 PM PDT up reply actions

Locke has potential

And Morton put up an above average tRA last year despite struggling overall. Plus he has a good track record in the minors. Gorkys, just because of his defense, could end up being as good as McClouth. I would definitely say they got a good return

St. Louis Cardinals... defying win expectancy since 2008

by vivaelpujols on Jun 5, 2009 10:44 PM PDT up reply actions