Trade Alert - We have a closer

good for you

I like it a lot

We weren't going to get much for burke, so packaging him was our only option.  I remember seeing Gutierrez a couple times, but can't remember much about him.  Was he a decent prospect? Or someone we can afford to give up?

I like it, too. Looking at Valverde, he's been good for a while, with last year as his first as a full-time closer. I don't know what his contract status is.

Gutierrez is the 4th best prospect in Baseball America's list. We have now traded away our 3rd and 4th best prospects, both of them SPs. Oh well, it's a little irksome, but Valverde looks good to me.

I kept saying why keep getting veterans and this team can't win.

The reason I like this trade is because Valverde is worth way more than what they gave up for him. So I am in fact being consistent in the fact that they gained a greater asset. The D-Backs must love Burke and Gutierrez for this to happen.

I see Qualls as the big loss in this transaction. I liked Gutierrez, too, but Qualls was the rock for the 2008 bullpen. Who will assume his role?

I'm drawing a blank on Valverde so I cannot comment on good or bad trade.

The sentiment here seems to be it was good trade. That's comforting.

From their blog:

Awesome wheeling and dealing by JB today!

Acquiring Haren and selling high on Valverde, I love it!!

by NGOChocolate on Fri Dec 14, 2007 at 06:59:37 PM EDT

It all makes sense, now...
Man, JByrnes outdid himself on this day.

First, the Valverde deal. I love it. You toss Valverde, who, while effective this year and 05, looked horrible in 06, for the remarkably consistent Qualls, who slots right into the 7th inning, get a reasonable prospect (4th in the Astros system according to BA) who held the PCL to a 4.15 ERA in Gutierrez, and a decent utility guy in Chris Burke, who looked pretty damn good in 06. I'd almost take Qualls for Valverde straight up, if only to lower my blood pressure. Gotta think this, if not a clear win for us, fits into JByrnes' pitching strategy

Ed Wade just said that Valverde is a FA after 08

Where do yall see major league service time? I came up with 4yrs 90 days. I don't see how he is a FA after 5 1/2 years.

I like the deal much less if he is a FA in 09 instead of 10.

Help me out on the site

but what do all these trades say about the Astros "top" prospects?

I had him on my fantasy teams the past two years and he piles up a lot of points.  He is kind of emotional and crazy, but he has very good stuff.  This is like picking up another Brad Lidge.  But, as much as I like the idea of Valverde as closer, I think this probably was a bad idea from a long term view.  The pool of pitching prospects (and pitching depth for next season, even) has been whittled into a tiny group.  I think giving up both Qualls and Gutierrez in the trade probably was excessive, but I'm sure the trade doesn't get done without it.  If Qualls becomes a good closer for Arizona sometime in the next couple of years, the trade won't looks so great for the Astros.  But those are the chances you take.

I am befuddled if Wade said he has only one more year of arbitration eligibility.  Cott's contracts web site does not show Valverde as a potential free agent for 09.  But, if Wade said it, he should know.  Yes, my view of this trade changes radically if he only has one more year of arbitration eligibility.

And does his moves today make Byrnes the best GM in the league?  Outside of the Quentin deal, he seems to be putting together quite a juggernaut.

I wouldn't be surprised at all if Qualls and Valverde wind up with very similar numbers, except for saves.  But, since Valverde has that shiny, closer smell to him, Wade needed him like a baby needs a teat.  Because of that, Valverde will be more expensive to maintain.

Burke was available because we are wasting $5MM/year on Matsui.  And we had to toss in another live arm in Juan G., which means we need to go spend more money on a reliever to replace him.

I'm not sure if Drayton's directive to Wade was to shuffle the chairs on the Titanic to make it look like they were doing something, anything to improve the team.  So far, though, the only deal I like was the one for Villareal.  Otherwise, I see a team that is older, overpaid, right-handed heavy, and with poor depth in the rotation and the pen.  Oh yeah, and a farm system that is easily the worst in the league.

I'm a qualls fan, so I'm not real big on this trade... and I have reserved ill-feelings towards Valverde for reasons unknown... we'll see how this turns out.

Just saw Lamb signed with Minnesota...