SteVo+ 3,702 Posted July 3, 2011 Trade Possibility #1 Trolls trade: SP Moises Novak 1B Lonny Rubio Giants trade: SP Hassan Worrell 1B Clint Beyer Breakdown: Novak, the lesser of the two tradebait pitchers on our staff, would get shipped off for Worrell, a 23-year-old right-handed arm. He's not quite as good as Novak is right now, but he will be in a year or so, and he's already pitching at a high level. The first basemen swap is basically just to even out the trade in terms of value, but Rubio is a B-potential prospect who is useless to us because we already have Kloseoff. Beyer is minor league fodder. Hassan Worrell's stats in 2014: 17 GS, 119.1 IP, 10-5, 3.24 ERA, 35 BB, 113 K, 1.33 WHIP Trade Possibility #2 Trolls trade: SP Arturo Cordova RF Claude Poole Orioles trade: SP Shawn Robles RF Rueben Overstreet Breakdown: Compared to the 29-year-old Cordova, Shawn Robles is a stud. The right-handed ace is only 24, but check out his arsenal: a 94 mph fastball, 80 mph curveball, 90mph slider, 85mph circle change, and--wait for it--an 83mph screwball. In terms of his stats he hasn't quite put it all together yet, but he's close. The reason this trade can happen is Claude Poole, a stud prospect in right field who we obviously have no room for. Overstreet is a good return prospect, though; he could be a solid utility outfielder someday. Shawn Robles' stats in 2014: 18 GS, 130.0 IP, 6-6, 4.57 ERA, 51 BB, 113 K, 1.55 WHIP Trade Possibility #3 Trolls trade: SP Leland Norman Mariners trade: SP Marc McManus This would be a straight up swap of minor league pitchers, but I figured I'd include it in this list just to give you guys a heads up. These guys are both A-potential prospects and future starters, but Norman has a lot of red flags. Even though he throws hard (fastball, screwball, and sweeping curve all at top speed) he lacks control and he gives up a lot of home runs. McManus, on the other hand, is solid across the board with no red flags. I think at worst he becomes our 5th pitcher in a few years when Galarraga is gone. Trade Possibility #4 Trolls trade: SP Arturo Cordova RP Denis Dyer Rangers trade: SP Kendall Harden RP Makoto Maeda Breakdown: This trade is utter rape. Kendall Harden, a 24-year-old left-handed arm, is already a beast. His attributes are sky high all across the board and he's in a contract year, which means we can sign him on the cheap in the offseason. Then, the swap of bullpen arms is even better. For whatever reason, the Rangers love Arturo Cordova, so they're willing to trade us a B-potential arm who throws everything at max speed (Maeda) for a D-potential guy (Dyer) who will probably never make it to AAA. Kendall Harden's stats in 2014: 18 GS, 112.2 IP, 10-3, 3.91 ERA, 42 BB, 56 K, 1.37 WHIP Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RazorStar 4,025 Posted July 3, 2011 Give us the number 4, with a side of fries. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SteVo+ 3,702 Posted July 3, 2011 I was thinking the 2, 3, and 4, with a side of curly fries. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SteVo+ 3,702 Posted July 4, 2011 Alright how about this: we're currently at the All-Star break. Should we wait until we get closer to the trade deadline to make a move? Maybe one of our pitchers will get hot in the second half. Or should we get super aggressive and make a move now? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sarge+ 3,436 Posted July 4, 2011 Make a move now. That Kendall Harden looks great now and can get even better. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Favre4Ever+ 4,476 Posted July 4, 2011 Ya... I say why not? I don't have any faith in our rotation right now. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RazorStar 4,025 Posted July 4, 2011 FOr glory, Fortune favours the one who strikes first. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SteVo+ 3,702 Posted July 4, 2011 July 8: The National League has defeated the American League 9-5 in the MLB All-Star Game, securing home-field advantage for the 2014 World Series. July 9: The Pittsburgh Trolls have acquired SP Kendall Harden and prospect Makoto Maeda from the Texas Rangers in exchange for SP Arturo Cordova and prospect Denis Dyer. Harden will enter our starting rotation instantly. Maeda will start in AA playing for the Demons, though he should find himself in AAA by the end of the year if he keeps improving. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SteVo+ 3,702 Posted July 4, 2011 All-Star Break - July July 10th through July 30th Game Results by Series Trolls 10, Astros 6 W: Pack (1-3) Astros 6, Trolls 5 L: Willett (2-4) Trolls 8, Astros 4 W: Novak (8-5) Trolls 4, Astros 3 W: Thornton (10-5) S: Hanrahan (22) Cardinals 3, Trolls 2 L: Harden (10-4) Cardinals 5, Trolls 4 L: Hanrahan (0-3) Cardinals 3, Trolls 1 L: Brock (8-8) Trolls 3, Braves 1 W: Bishop (1-1) Braves 7, Trolls 2 L: Thornton (10-6) Braves 4, Trolls 1 L: Harden (10-5) Nationals 3, Trolls 2 L: Galarraga (7-3) Trolls 6, Nationals 0 W: Brock (9-8) Nationals 3, Trolls 0 L: Novak (8-6) Trolls 6, Nationals 3 W: Thornton (11-6) S: Hanrahan (23) Padres 2, Trolls 1 L: Hanrahan (0-4) Padres 7, Trolls 4 L: Galarraga (7-4) Padres 9, Trolls 6 L: Pack (1-4) Trolls 6, Dodgers 4 W: Novak (9-6) S: Hanrahan (24) Trolls 8, Dodgers 6 W: Bishop (2-1) Dodgers 4, Trolls 2 L: Flores (4-5) NL Central Standings Cubs 68-42 -- Cardinals 64-44 3GB TROLLS 55-53 12GB Brewers 49-59 18GB Astros 49-59 18GB Reds 45-62 21.5GB NL Wild Card Race Cardinals 64-44 -- Rockies 60-47 3.5GB Phillies 56-50 7GB TROLLS 55-53 9GB Dodgers 54-53 9.5GB Giants 54-54 10GB Player Statistics C Chance Phillips: .290, 13 HR, 58 RBI, .998 FLD 1B Oliver Kloseoff: .255, 16 HR, 55 RBI, .994 FLD 2B Doctor Manhattan: .265, 12 HR, 48 RBI, .978 FLD SS Yamaury Velez: .278, 14 HR, 56 RBI, .987 FLD 3B Jonathan Maverick: .289, 14 HR, 50 RBI, .990 FLD LF Will Taylor: .233, 15 HR, 52 RBI, 1.000 FLD CF Caden Daniel: .278, 23 HR, 57 RBI, .986 FLD RF Ramirez Jaxson: .266, 11 3B, 10 HR, 54 RBI, 14 SB, 3 CS, .978 FLD SP Sean Brock: 9-8, 5.12 ERA, 1.58 WHIP, 63 BB, 130 K SP Malik Thornton: 11-6, 4.54 ERA, 1.46 WHIP, 53 BB, 112 K RP Marcus Bishop: 2-1, 2.55 ERA, 10 holds, 1.10 WHIP, 10 BB, 27 K CP Dontrelle Hanrahan: 0-4, 5.13 ERA, 24 saves, 6 blown saves, 1.82 WHIP, 9 BB, 23 K Green-Leads Trolls Red-Leads National League Team Rankings Batting Average: .261 (20th) Runs: 506 (14th) Doubles: 199 (19th) Triples: 39 (1st) Home Runs: 130 (t-15th) Stolen Bases: 165 (2nd) On-Base Percentage: .325 (25th) Errors: 42 (1st) Fielding Percentage: .990 (1st) ERA: 4.17 (9th) Notes Well gents, that was a rough stretch there. That sweep to the Cardinals really killed us, as we're way out of the wild card now. But have faith! A close look at the stats reveals that we didn't seriously decline; we just lost some close ball games. And our team ERA is higher than it's been all year. So, where do we go from here? The trade deadline is upon us. We've already executed one move. I say we pull another one and ship Moises Novak for Shawn Robles (trade option #2 several posts up). This is a trade that would also benefit us long-term, so it's not like we're entering panic mode and selling our future for the chance to make the playoffs this season. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Vin+ 3,121 Posted July 4, 2011 The team needs more Bishop, IMO. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SteVo+ 3,702 Posted July 4, 2011 The way your guy is pitching versus the way mine is I think I might put you in the closer role. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RazorStar 4,025 Posted July 4, 2011 Hanrahan blew some really close ones... <_ what is the deal with our pitchers> Then again, I'm having a rough month as well. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sarge+ 3,436 Posted July 4, 2011 Make the 2nd trade. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SteVo+ 3,702 Posted July 4, 2011 Some roster changes I'm thinking of making based on recent performance: 1) Switching Will Taylor and Yamaury Velez, batting Velez 4th and Taylor 5th 2) Moving Marcus Bishop to closer and Dontrelle Hanrahan to middle relief Thoughts? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SteVo+ 3,702 Posted July 4, 2011 July 31: The Pittsburgh Trolls have acquired SP Shawn Robles and outfielder prospect Miles Dodge from the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for SP Moises Novak and outfielder prospect Claude Poole. Slight variation of a trade proposed earlier. Robles is our 2nd best pitcher on paper already. Dodge has some potential but not a lot; he was just acquired to balance the value of the trade. July 31: The Pittsburgh Trolls have acquired prospect Mark McManus from the Seattle Mariners in exchange for prospect Leland Norman. A straight up swap of pitching prospects. Since Norman wasn't used as trade bait in boosting our current rotation, we ship him and his red flags off for a future 5th pitcher. Technically, McManus is good enough to start now but we already have Galarraga in place, so he's down to AAA until the rosters expand in September. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SteVo+ 3,702 Posted July 4, 2011 August August 1st through August 31st Game Results by Series Trolls 6, Brewers 5 W: Pack (2-4) S: Bishop (1) Brewers 8, Trolls 6 L: Flores (4-6) Brewers 10, Trolls 4 L: Robles (7-8) Padres 9, Trolls 8 L: Pack (2-5) Padres 7, Trolls 2 L: Harden (10-6) Padres 6, Trolls 4 L: Galarraga (7-5) Brewers 3, Trolls 2 L: Brock (9-9) Brewers 7, Trolls 6 L: Robles (7-9) Trolls 6, Brewers 3 W: Thornton (12-6) S: Bishop (2) Trolls 3, Cardinals 0 W: Harden (11-6) S: Bishop (3) Cardinals 7, Trolls 5 L: Bonser (0-2) Cardinals 4, Trolls 2 L: Brock (9-10) Trolls 5, Nationals 4 W: Willett (3-4) S: Hanrahan (25) Trolls 12, Nationals 9 W: Pack (3-5) Trolls 3, Nationals 2 W: Harden (12-6) S: Bishop (4) Trolls 9, Nationals 5 W: Flores (5-6) Trolls 6, Astros 5 W: Brock (10-10) S: Bishop (5) Astros 3, Trolls 2 L: Robles (7-10) Astros 8, Trolls 6 L: Flores (5-7) Cardinals 5, Trolls 4 L: Pack (3-6) Trolls 5, Cardinals 1 W: Galarraga (8-5) Trolls 11, Cardinals 4 W: Brock (11-10) S: Hanrahan (26) Cubs 5, Trolls 4 L: Bishop (2-2) Trolls 14, Cubs 4 W: Thornton (13-6) Trolls 5, Cubs 4 W: Harden (13-6) S: Bishop (6) Trolls 8, Giants 7 W: Bonser (2-1) Giants 5, Trolls 4 L: Brock (11-11) Trolls 7, Giants 6 W: Willett (4-4) NL Central Standings Cubs 86-52 -- Cardinals 76-60 9GB TROLLS 69-67 16GB Astros 65-71 20GB Brewers 62-74 23GB Reds 59-77 26GB NL Wild Card Race Rockies 78-59 -- Cardinals 76-60 1.5GB Phillies 71-64 6GB TROLLS 69-67 8.5GB Player Statistics C Chance Phillips: .283, 19 HR, 72 RBI, .998 FLD 1B Oliver Kloseoff: .254, 22 HR, 68 RBI, .992 FLD 2B Doctor Manhattan: .271, 16 HR, 62 RBI, .973 FLD SS Yamaury Velez: .303, 22 HR, 85 RBI, .986 FLD 3B Jonathan Maverick: .293, 17 HR, 61 RBI, .987 FLD LF Will Taylor: .251, 19 HR, 68 RBI, 1.000 FLD CF Caden Daniel: .281, 29 HR, 75 RBI, .985 FLD RF Ramirez Jaxson: .266, 13 3B, 12 HR, 71 RBI, 19 SB, 4 CS, .983 FLD SP Sean Brock: 11-11, 4.96 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, 79 BB, 169 K SP Malik Thornton: 13-6, 4.92 ERA, 1.49 WHIP, 64 BB, 139 K RP Marcus Bishop: 2-2, 3.63 ERA, 6 saves, 7 blown saves, 10 holds, 1.39 WHIP, 16 BB, 39 K CP Dontrelle Hanrahan: 0-4, 4.19 ERA, 26 saves, 6 blown saves, 2 holds, 1.57 WHIP, 13 BB, 28 K Green-Leads Trolls Red-Leads National League Team Rankings Batting Average: .267 (14th) Runs: 665 (t-12th) Doubles: 260 (15th) Triples: 47 (1st) Home Runs: 172 (t-12th) Stolen Bases: 208 (2nd) On-Base Percentage: .332 (17th) Errors: 58 (1st) Fielding Percentage: .989 (1st) ERA: 4.25 (11th) Notes Well, we've gone from playoff push mode to suck mode. Kind of. Again, we didn't totally tank this month; we're just not keeping pace with the playoff teams. WE SUCK. Maybe we'll catch some magic in September but I think we're looking at next year, fellas. Remaining Schedule -3-game series vs. Cubs (86-52) -3-game series @ Diamondbacks (85-53) -4-game series @ Reds (59-77) -3-game series vs. Brewers (62-74) -3-game series vs. Reds (59-77) -4-game series vs. Phillies (71-64) -3-game series @ Rockies (78-59) -3-game series @ Cubs (86-52) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sarge+ 3,436 Posted July 4, 2011 Oh well. Everyone will be better next year. Our pitchers are due to breakout. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Vin+ 3,121 Posted July 4, 2011 I suck as a closer, apparently. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
