Gomez to drink your Brew, Hardy to eat your Twinkie

Brewers get Gomez, JJ goes to the new Target Field. I like this trade for us, because JJ is better offensively, plays more positions, and well, frankly, is just damn better than Gomez. Now JJ is out of the NL Central, albeit, he had a rough 2009. Go Twins.

Dan

over 2 years ago dtpollitt 30 comments 3 recs |

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Brewers got fleeced

Gomez is not a good player, he has speed and that’s about it.

"It's been my policy to view the Internet not as an 'information highway,' but as an electronic asylum filled with babbling loonies." - Mike Royko

by DTJchris on Nov 6, 2009 12:37 PM CST reply actions

Yeah, I don't understand this deal at all from a Brewer standpoint.

Sure, they have Escobar to play SS, but their offense will be substantially worse with Gomez.

"You can observe a lot just by watching." ~ Yogi Berra

by Al Yellon on Nov 6, 2009 12:59 PM CST up reply actions

Check out this ringing endorsement from the Brewers' GM:

@Haudricourt: Doug Melvin said he explored pitching in a deal for Hardy but wasn’t offered anything better than going with CF Carlos Gomez.

Maybe he hopes that, by strengthening the defense up the middle, he’ll take some of the heat off their creaky starting rotation. Speaking of which, Brewers’ beat writers are reporting the team is looking into reclaimation project Mark Mulder.

Catch my act on Twitter as @dat_cubfan_dave.

by daver on Nov 6, 2009 1:22 PM CST up reply actions

how does this strengthen their D

up the middle? I believe Cameron is a better CF than Gomez. He has a ZR of 8.755 to 8.033.

I was surprised to see Kosuke had the #1 ZR in CF in all of MLB at 10.944

I am going to look at the UZR numbers too.

by socalbob on Nov 6, 2009 3:02 PM CST up reply actions

about the same UZR/150

Cameron at 10.3 and Gomez at 10.0

by socalbob on Nov 6, 2009 3:05 PM CST up reply actions

Kosuke - OUCH in CF

he had a UZR/150 of -18.1 in CF versus a 37.9 in RF. Ridiculous variation and proves Kosuke is no CF.

he actually had a -13.6 value from ’08 to ’09. Amazing.

by socalbob on Nov 6, 2009 3:08 PM CST up reply actions

Well, I'd guess the Brewers' answer would be...

…that Gomez is much younger than Cameron and less likely to decline. It’s funny, though, I checked the Hardball Times earlier (because Fangraphs was having some server issues, apparently) and was surprised to find Gomez did not make the Top 2009 AL centerfielders in terms of RZR. His career UZR numbers, though, are quite good 25.1/14.2 UZR/UZR 150 in 2132.1 innings.

Catch my act on Twitter as @dat_cubfan_dave.

by daver on Nov 6, 2009 3:13 PM CST up reply actions

Melvin is a bad GM

Its, what, the second day of the official off season? Wait a few weeks/months and see if the market opens up for a starting SS. Terrible, terrible move for the Brewers.

"It's been my policy to view the Internet not as an 'information highway,' but as an electronic asylum filled with babbling loonies." - Mike Royko

by DTJchris on Nov 6, 2009 3:48 PM CST up reply actions

I wouldn't say that Melvin is a bad GM

Taken in a vacuum, this is a bad move, but maybe that’s all they could get, and they are going to target a true ace with the savings.

He’s built a team that has contended in 2007 and 2008 in a small market with a fickle fan base. I doubt they would have won this year had Weeks not gotten hurt, but they probably would have had a better record.

The Gwynn for Gerut deal, though, I still can’t figure.

I'm singing, "GO CUBS GO! GO CUBS GO!" -- DrCrawdad on Jun 12, 2009 7:23 AM CDT

Facts are meaningless. You could use facts to prove anything that's even remotely true! -- Homer J. Simpson

by Shanghai Badger on Nov 6, 2009 3:58 PM CST up reply actions

Yeah, I suppose

This just seems like such a bad deal for them I jumped on Melvin’s case. The Brewers have a lot of good young talent but seems to be going to waste with only really one starting pitcher, Gallardo, and no bullpen, besides Hoffman.

I know its a small market and Melvin is limited in his resources but he could do more with pitching, and one way could have been JJ Hardy, and he squandered it on Gomez.

"It's been my policy to view the Internet not as an 'information highway,' but as an electronic asylum filled with babbling loonies." - Mike Royko

by DTJchris on Nov 7, 2009 2:32 PM CST up reply actions

I expected them to get more, too

Maybe they couldn’t

I'm singing, "GO CUBS GO! GO CUBS GO!" -- DrCrawdad on Jun 12, 2009 7:23 AM CDT

Facts are meaningless. You could use facts to prove anything that's even remotely true! -- Homer J. Simpson

by Shanghai Badger on Nov 8, 2009 10:28 PM CST up reply actions

wait

you can’t figure it out from their side or the padres side? It made a lot of sense for the Brewers – a young struggling CF for a veteran that had played real well in 2008. hope to catch lightning in a bottle and for gerut to find his swing again. didn’t happen, but if he had, they would’ve had a solid depth of for gwynn jr, a guy who has a great name, but profiles more as a backup.

by toonsterwu on Nov 8, 2009 9:23 PM CST up reply actions

From the Brewer side

They never really gave him much of a chance.

The larger point was that Melvin isn’t terrible.

I'm singing, "GO CUBS GO! GO CUBS GO!" -- DrCrawdad on Jun 12, 2009 7:23 AM CDT

Facts are meaningless. You could use facts to prove anything that's even remotely true! -- Homer J. Simpson

by Shanghai Badger on Nov 8, 2009 10:28 PM CST up reply actions

fair enough

I don’t think Melvin is terrible, although the problem wasn’t opportunity, imo, in regards to tg jr.‘s time there, it was macha wanting him for more power. That said, at the end of the day, Gwynn Jr.’s profile is more of Sam Fuld type, borderline CF starter, good depth.

by toonsterwu on Nov 8, 2009 11:18 PM CST up reply actions

As a sidenote, I'd like to see the title of this Fanshot changed to:

Gomez to Brew, Hardy to Twinkle

Catch my act on Twitter as @dat_cubfan_dave.

by daver on Nov 6, 2009 1:38 PM CST reply actions

Done.

"The riches of the game are in the thrills, not the money." --Ernie Banks

by dtpollitt on Nov 6, 2009 2:03 PM CST up reply actions

Twinkle, not Twinkie

I'm singing, "GO CUBS GO! GO CUBS GO!" -- DrCrawdad on Jun 12, 2009 7:23 AM CDT

Facts are meaningless. You could use facts to prove anything that's even remotely true! -- Homer J. Simpson

by Shanghai Badger on Nov 6, 2009 2:12 PM CST up reply actions

I don't get it.

What does “Twinkle” mean?

"The riches of the game are in the thrills, not the money." --Ernie Banks

by dtpollitt on Nov 6, 2009 2:27 PM CST up reply actions

It's a verb - like "to brew."

Catch my act on Twitter as @dat_cubfan_dave.

by daver on Nov 6, 2009 2:31 PM CST up reply actions

Modified.

"The riches of the game are in the thrills, not the money." --Ernie Banks

by dtpollitt on Nov 6, 2009 2:33 PM CST up reply actions

LOL, even better!

Catch my act on Twitter as @dat_cubfan_dave.

by daver on Nov 6, 2009 2:36 PM CST up reply actions

Yes, I'm going to have to recommend the post now.

I'm singing, "GO CUBS GO! GO CUBS GO!" -- DrCrawdad on Jun 12, 2009 7:23 AM CDT

Facts are meaningless. You could use facts to prove anything that's even remotely true! -- Homer J. Simpson

by Shanghai Badger on Nov 6, 2009 2:42 PM CST up reply actions

What the hell - I'll rec it, too.

Catch my act on Twitter as @dat_cubfan_dave.

by daver on Nov 6, 2009 2:58 PM CST up reply actions

I think the proper response to this is

People should remember that while they have the right to their opinion, they are not entitled to be taken seriously. -- Bruce Bartlett

by berselius on Nov 6, 2009 2:06 PM CST reply actions

Outstanding deal for Twins

JJ Hardy is a plus defensive shortstop and a guy who has hit well and driven in runs in his past.

Milwaukee got fleeced. Gomez is a solid centerfielder but nothing more than a #8 hitter in the lineup. I guess the Brewers figure they can live without a bat in centerfield so long as they have somebody who can go get the ball in between the below average Ryan Braun and Corey Hart.

"Cubs will win 79 to 83 games." BLou (7/21/09)

by BLou on Nov 6, 2009 5:11 PM CST reply actions

+1

I don’t understand what the Brewers were trying to do with Hardy. They demoted him after their season was virtually over, which would seem to only have lowered his trade value, with other teams knowing he wasn’t in their plans anymore. They could have called up Escobar and let him share starts with Hardy without destroying his trade value.

by madcow256 on Nov 7, 2009 9:38 AM CST up reply actions

They demoted Hardy to mess with his service time

long-term it probably helped his trade value because the Twins now have an extra year of control of him

People should remember that while they have the right to their opinion, they are not entitled to be taken seriously. -- Bruce Bartlett

by berselius on Nov 7, 2009 11:10 AM CST up reply actions

I agree, though I'd still give Melvin some points...

…for maintaining/improving the Brewers defense in centerfield. I’d also again point out that Gomez is going to fit in quite well on a team that seems to thrive on showboating and immature behavior.

Catch my act on Twitter as @dat_cubfan_dave.

by daver on Nov 9, 2009 10:35 AM CST up reply actions 1 recs

Red Sox were interested in Hardy as well...

…but according to Boston Globe’s “Extra Bases” blog (linky), when the Brewers asked for Bucholz or Bard, Theo said no.

According to the same source, Milwaukee wanted either starter Clay Buchholz or reliever Daniel Bard for Hardy. The Sox were not willing to offer either pitcher. Milwaukee was not interested in righthander Michael Bowden, whom the Sox would have been willing to part with, and the Sox did not have a center field prospect who could match Gomez’s skill set.

And scrolling down a bit, there was this little harbinger of financial doom for some…

The money is all relative, but it’s going to be a long, cold winter for some players. The non-tender market is likely to be bigger than ever before and many “name” free agents will find they have to settle for one-year deals.

…and possible value deals for those who know how to shop wisely.

Lou Brown: "My kinda team, Charlie, my kinda team..."

by ballhawk on Nov 6, 2009 8:21 PM CST reply actions