Thursday, July 28, 2005
Unexpected Arrival
Well, I guess Conor Jackson's off the trading block.
Jose Cruz, Jr., designated for assignment; Conor Jackson, up from Tucson.
Now, there are many in the D-Back fan community who have been screaming for these moves loudly while fearing that Jackson -- "our precious" -- would be traded away for kibble.
I was not part of that community then, and am not of that community now, particularly as it related to the trading aspect. There had been absolutely no indication that management planned on trading Jackson (or Quentin or Santos) all season long.
Now, DFAing Cruz, I'm OK with. I -- along with just about every other Diamondback fan -- was OK with the Cruz-Fossum trade. It seemed an acceptable price to pay for a CF with just one year on his contract. Because of Cruz's back spasms, his production was limited (though, it should be noted, far better on a per-PA basis than Terrero). So the trade, based on the results, is bad. Given that the D-Backs still owe about $1.4 M on his contract (I can't imagine Cruz would refuse an assignment to Tucson for that reason alone), I wouldn't be surprised if they were willing to pay a million or so of his salary just to get some A-ball pitching prospect in return.
But I don't know if Jackson is likely to provide the D-Backs with enough offense to spark a playoff run. Keep in mind the team is still 5 games below .500.
I'd have preferred to keep Jackson in Tucson a little while longer so we could see Luis Terrero on an everyday basis for a month. We still don't have a really good sense of Terrero -- another 100 plate appearances might have helped us decide what the organization should do with him next year.
On the whole, I'm OK with this. (But with three lefties now in the outfield, if Terrero can't get into the lineup against a lefty pitcher, his fate here in Arizona must be sealed.)
More thoughts from events during my vacationary exile tomorrow.
Jose Cruz, Jr., designated for assignment; Conor Jackson, up from Tucson.
Now, there are many in the D-Back fan community who have been screaming for these moves loudly while fearing that Jackson -- "our precious" -- would be traded away for kibble.
I was not part of that community then, and am not of that community now, particularly as it related to the trading aspect. There had been absolutely no indication that management planned on trading Jackson (or Quentin or Santos) all season long.
Now, DFAing Cruz, I'm OK with. I -- along with just about every other Diamondback fan -- was OK with the Cruz-Fossum trade. It seemed an acceptable price to pay for a CF with just one year on his contract. Because of Cruz's back spasms, his production was limited (though, it should be noted, far better on a per-PA basis than Terrero). So the trade, based on the results, is bad. Given that the D-Backs still owe about $1.4 M on his contract (I can't imagine Cruz would refuse an assignment to Tucson for that reason alone), I wouldn't be surprised if they were willing to pay a million or so of his salary just to get some A-ball pitching prospect in return.
But I don't know if Jackson is likely to provide the D-Backs with enough offense to spark a playoff run. Keep in mind the team is still 5 games below .500.
I'd have preferred to keep Jackson in Tucson a little while longer so we could see Luis Terrero on an everyday basis for a month. We still don't have a really good sense of Terrero -- another 100 plate appearances might have helped us decide what the organization should do with him next year.
On the whole, I'm OK with this. (But with three lefties now in the outfield, if Terrero can't get into the lineup against a lefty pitcher, his fate here in Arizona must be sealed.)
More thoughts from events during my vacationary exile tomorrow.
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