Baby, it's cold outside...Let's stay in and trade for a third baseman with pop!

by Evan Hochschild on Dec 5, 2008 10:13 PM CST

My attempt at a trade rumor: Ty Wigginton to the Minnesota Twins for minor leaguer Stephen Tolleson (SS) and former Rice Owl, Philip Humber, (P). The Twinkies are interested in Casey Blake so why not throw Ty into the mix? He's younger, has more power and you won't have to commit to him long term. So there ya go, Minnesota. Stop ice fishing and make a move.

Pictured below, Minnesota GM Bill Smith brings in his catch of the day. And what a prize! Looks like a keeper..128 OPS+ in 2008 from cap to cleats, I reckon. Get to it, Bill. Ed Wade is just a phone call away.

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Wow, good timing

I was just trying to put together a trade scenario for Wiggy of my own.

To establish what his market value might be, I looked to this trade as precedent:
The Indians traded 3B Casey Blake in July of this year to the Dodgers in exchange for RHP Jon Meloan and C Carlos Santana.

A quick comparison of Wiggy’s 2007 stats with Blake’s 2008 stats show that they are very similar players (I used different years because they had roughly the same number of AB).

Why Wiggy might have more value than Blake: as HLP stated, he’s four years younger, and has more power. Also, whatever team got Wiggy would have him for a full season, whereas the Dodgers only got Blake for a half-season.

Why Wiggy might not be worth as much as Blake: the trade also required the Indians to throw in some cash to pay off the rest of Blake’s $6mil salary.

On the other end of the deal:
Catcher Carlos Santana (Hi-A when traded) was the centerpiece. He is now rated by Baseball America as the Indians’ #1 prospect, though he didn’t crack the Dodgers top 10 before the 2008 season.

RHP Jon Meloan (AAA when traded) rose through the Dodgers system as a reliever with really great K/BB ratios and a stellar WHIP the whole way through. He has more than just two pitches, so the Dodgers tried converting him to starter, where he struggled before being traded. Cleveland has returned him to relief, and is showing signs of returning to his previously dominant form.
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So what’s the lesson here? An appropriate return for Wiggy could be a quality position prospect and a good relief pitching prospect.

by AstroAndy on Dec 5, 2008 11:22 PM CST reply actions

Twins

In the past, I haven’t been sold on Humber. Now that you suggest this trade, I look at his recent stats, and I’m still non-plussed. His FIP has been pretty bad: in 08, 5.00 in AAA and 8.14 in MLB: 07, 4.88 in AAA and 5.32 in MLB. Also, I’m not sure that the Twins would want to take on Wigginton’s arbitration award. But I think Wigginton is the type of hard nosed player that the Twins seem to like. I wonder if the Twins would trade Slowey for him?

by clack on Dec 5, 2008 11:36 PM CST reply actions

Wiggy for Slowey

would be a great return, IMO.

Then again, I’m a sucker for young arms who have thrown strikes and already performed at the ML level.

by jonthefon on Dec 6, 2008 12:44 AM CST up reply actions

All right

adding to my comment: unfortunately, it seems like a long shot that we’d get Slowey for Wigginton.

by jonthefon on Dec 6, 2008 1:07 AM CST up reply actions

i was just trying to throw out a conservative idea

slowey would be great, but i just figured that the Twins wouldnt be willing to give up an “established” major league arm for wigginton…perhaps a deal where it was a one for one- slowey for wiggy straight up?

by Evan Hochschild on Dec 6, 2008 9:37 AM CST up reply actions

The discussion boards over at MLBTradeRumors.com seem to think that there’s no way Slowey for Wiggy gets done. They seem to value him very highly. I usually try to avoid the comments section of that site because they seem to be filled with knuckleheads who overvalue their own players way too much and undervalue other teams’ players. But if Slowey projects as well as his stat line looks, I’d have no trouble sending them more than just Wiggy.

by AstroAndy on Dec 6, 2008 10:22 AM CST up reply actions

Kevin Slowey

There is no way the Twins trade Kevin Slowey for anything we are willing to offer. You’re talking about a pitcher with a career 1.94 ERA in the minors, who did not disappoint in the majors. And they have him for 5 more years for cheap. Why would they give that up for one season of a slightly above average third baseman? Humber is a possibility, but I imagine the Twins would be hesitant to deal even Blackburn or Perkins. Slowey is a completely unrealistic trade offer.

by seanbergmanrules on Dec 7, 2008 12:18 PM CST reply actions

you may be right that the Twins feel that way about Slowey...

but I’m just going on my own evaluation. And I don’t see how he projects into anything but a mid-rotation or lower pitcher, which is nice, but it’s not like he should be considered a premier prospect on the order of a Clay Buchholz or the like. His FIP generally has exceeded his minor league ERA. His K rate in the majors is nothing special. He is a flyball pitcher. He throws in the high 80’s, but has good accuracy. Granted, his best feature is that he is young and will be under team control for awhile. And if the Twins would rather keep him than trade him, then so be it. But I do think Wiggy is worth more than Humber; I wouldn’t make that trade.

by clack on Dec 7, 2008 12:58 PM CST up reply actions

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