COCO for COCO!
I know that I may be putting a target on my back, and I may need to hire someone to test my food in public places, but I'm gonna say it anyway....."what's the big fuss about a potential trade of CoCo Crisp?".
My God, if you listen to the fans around Cleveland, you would think that Frank Lane is trying to trade Rocky Colavito again, and throwing in Sam McDowell and Gaylord Perry, too! Granted, Coco has one of the best baseball names around, but he is not the straw that stirs the offensive drink in our lineup. Coco has turned out to be a pleasant surprise, and he may have some more upside, but he is an average fielder at best. He is not a base-stealing threat, and should be expendable if Mark Shapiro and the scouts feel that the team can be improved. Many of the same fans that are whining now were dead against the trade that sent Bart Colon packing.....all we have to show for that deal is Cliff Lee (18 wins), Brandon Phillips(a bust so far....but alot of teams still ask for him), and, oh yeah, a kid named Grady Sizemore! No one had heard of Grady or Cliff back in 2002, either! The 2005 season has given Shapiro and his staff the credibility that they know what they are doing. It is much easier to plug a hole in one of the corner outfield spots, than it is to find a 3rd baseman that has been voted the best in every league that he has played in to date.
I am a diehard Tribe fan, but I cannot even begin to claim that I know the entire minor league talent pool....it's hard enough to keep track of the players that run thru Lake County! What I do know, from press reports, is that this Marte was ranked by experts as the top talent in the Atlanta organization, and in the top 10 in the entire country.
Let me share 2 past trades that I was upset about, at the time, because I didn't have the "inside scoop". The first was 1996, when John Hart sent Carlos Baerga packing in mid-season. Carlos had put up numbers that hadn't been seen at 2nd base since Rogers Hornsby! How could the Indians give him away? Well, the scouts and front office knew the true story, that CB was beginning a downward spiral, for many reasons not readily apparent to us fans, and decided that his value was never going to be higher. Guess what....good call!
The other trade that pissed me off was when the Tribe sent Felix Fermin (and Reggie Jefferson) to Seattle in the 93-94 offseason. I loved El Gato! Who was this chump that is going to play SS for us now...some nobody from Caracas? And then, I go to the Jake, in early 94, and watch this turkey boot 3 routine plays in the same game.....see, I told you so.
Well, if it had been left to the fans, we never would have had the pleasure of seeing a HOF shortstop work his magic for the decade that he was here, all because we were "taking a step backwards".
There, I feel much better now!
I hear what you are saying and agree. The more I heard about the guys we were to get didn't sound so bad. And let's face it - this team is already not the team we had last year - No Millwood (I'm not too sad about, No Howry - that really bums me out - so who is to say that these new guys wouldn't help us. I just don't want to have a hole in the outfield. Don't you wish we could get someone who has a little pop in their bat and can drive runs home consistently like Ellis Burke did? Or am I getting a little too greedy?
ReplyDeleteI agree with both of my fellow bloggers. I was surprised to be sitting in the dentist's chair and hearing several conversations buzzing around the office about the impending Coco trade. (Or was that a drill buzzing?)
ReplyDeleteAll were against it. And with great passion against it. The last time I overheard strangers on the street and folks around the water cooler talking about a trade was when the Tribe dispatched Bartolo Colon.
I like Coco Crisp. He seems like a nice fellow. His play is entertaining. My only real pain about the trade arises from the realization that when April rolls around and baseball is on TV, by boy will be looking for Coco. But he will be almost three years old by then. And if you are a Cleveland Indians fan, you better learn young that disappointment comes with the deal.
He's "gone like a freight train, gone like yesterday". We tried the break the the news to two year old John softly. He was more concerned with getting more waffles for breakfast.
ReplyDeleteBeing an Indians fan is all about being resilient. He is off to a good start.
Just for fun, here is one last look at John practicing his Coco Crisp batting stance.