MLB Winter Meetings: 5 Teams That Had a Great Week in Nashville
With the MLB Winter Meetings coming to an end Thursday, it's time we look at those who had a good week in Nashville, Tennessee, and which teams will benefit the most this upcoming season.
The list comes with this disclaimer:
We can't definitively project success over the long-term. The Zack Greinke to the Arizona Diamondbacks-type deal has proven time and time again that monster contracts for guys in their 30s don't always pan out in the end. Who knows how good the Greinke deal will be in 2021, when the 32-year-old is in the last year of his contract?
Or, who knows how good 2015 No. 1 overall pick and former Diamondbacks prospect Dansby Swanson will be in 2018, when he's been in the league a couple years.
So, from Monday to Thursday, let's list five possible winners and how their acquisitions will help them this season. Also, this list isn't ranked.
Atlanta Braves
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And in the first list, I already broke the rules!
Call it the steal of the Winter Meetings, but the haul the Atlanta Braves got for starting pitcher Shelby Miller may significantly help their rebuild.
In the deal with the Diamondbacks, the Braves acquired Dansby Swanson and outfielder Ender Inciarte, a player whose 2015 slash line was .303/.338/.408 and who had a WAR of 5.3 per ESPN, which was good for 21st in the majors.
It's kind of cheating to add the Braves to this list since it's supposed to project out to this season only, but the Braves are seemingly masters at rebuilding and will be a force in the upcoming years.
And, if we want to get technical to save the integrity of my list-making skills, Swanson and Inciarte could be key cogs toward the Braves exceeding expectations next season, considering how they may be projected to finish in the NL East basement.
Houston Astros
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Though the Houston Astros sent four prospects to the Philadelphia Phillies for closer Ken Giles, Jayson Stark of ESPN.com said the prospects won't do any damage to Houston's future plans.
With the Aroldis Chapman situation reaching a disastrous peak for himself and the Cincinnati Reds, the Astros—who were looking into trading for him, per Mike Axisa of CBSSports.com—looked elsewhere and acquired the next best thing. They also re-signed left-handed reliever Tony Sipp to a three-year, $18 million deal.
Giles' value comes from his swing-and-miss stuff and his ability to top 99 mph on his fastball. According to Daren Willman via Dave Schoenfield of ESPN.com, the Astros' bullpen could use Giles' velocity.
"Here's another fun one... #Astros have thrown 29 pitches 99 MPH+ since 2008. Ken Giles did it 37 times last year.
— Daren Willman (@darenw) December 10, 2015"
According to Schoenfield, Houston's closer last season, Luke Gregerson, only topped out at about 89.2 mph on his fastball.
With the addition of Giles, it seems the Astros are ready to try and make another run this season, as their bullpen was part of the reason they lost to the Kansas City Royals in the ALDS.
Chicago Cubs/New York Yankees
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Though the picture above is the Chicago Cubs' new acquisition, Ben Zobrist, the New York Yankees acquiring second baseman Starlin Castro also was a win.
For the Cubs, they get a utility man who can play multiple positions, including second base. Zobrist's career on-base percentage of .355 would have tied Kyle Schwarber for third on the team last season, per ESPN Stats & Information. His ability to get on base is an upgrade on recently departed Starlin Castro, whose OBP was .296 last season.
Zobrist's flexibility and plate discipline will be an upgrade for the sometimes free-swinging Cubs and will allow manager Joe Maddon to adjust lineups and work with different types all season.
However, that's not to say Castro isn't a good player and the Yankees didn't get what they needed. At the worst, the 25-year-old is an upgrade over 32-year-old Stephen Drew, who struggled to hit over .200 last season and is a career .251 hitter.
Castro is a career .281 hitter and has slugged over .400, which would put him near the top-10 of MLB second basemen. Castro is also a right-handed bat that will help a lineup that struggled with left-handed pitchers.
Couple that in with minor league pitchers they got in a trade with the Detroit Tigers and the Yankees seem to be doing a good job so far getting younger.
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Detroit Tigers
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Having said that about the Yankees, the Tigers made out during the Winter Meetings, too.
In the trade with the Yankees, the Tigers received left-hander Justin Wilson—a hard-throwing reliever that the Tigers desperately needed. Detroit also added closer Francisco Rodriguez and right-hander Mark Lowe to add further depth to its bullpen.
More, the Tigers signed starting pitcher Jordan Zimmermann, who signed with the team on a five-year, $110 million deal. Though Zimmermann wasn't signed during the Winter Meetings, he goes along with the intended goal of pitching depth for the Tigers.
With a Tigers rotation that still centers around Justin Verlander and hitters Miguel Cabrera and Victor Martinez anchoring the lineup, it seems new general manager Al Avila is hoping Detroit becomes a contender again in the AL Central immediately.
Arizona Diamondbacks
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After a finalized six-year, $206 million deal for Greinke on Tuesday and a trade for Shelby Miller, the Diamondbacks upgraded their rotation with two viable starters.
Any questions on why Arizona put out so much for Greinke and Miller could be answered by a baseball executive.
"To me, they're kind of like Boston," said an executive of one team via Jayson Stark of ESPN.com. "This is about winning now. There are times when every organization kind of comes to that conclusion, that it isn't enough anymore to just be a .500-ish team and see what happens."
I'm sure it gets tough remaining patient over a stretch of seasons, especially with a lineup that features two of MLB's best all-around hitters in Paul Goldschmidt and A.J. Pollock, parts of an offense that finished eighth in runs scored, fourth in hits and ninth in OPS. But it's always a gutsy move to push everything all in about five months before the start of the next season.
And the deals for Greinke and Miller may turn into disasters around 2020, when Swanson and Inciarte—or both—turn into stars for Atlanta and Greinke is making more than $34 million while getting tattooed every five days.
For now, two quality pitchers at the top of the rotation can significantly help a team that won 78 games and ranked toward the middle and bottom in pitching statistics last year.
Considering that was a 15-game upgrade from 2014, it's possible the wild card is a realistic goal this season.
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