So long Dan. You took the ball whenever the bell rang. Now you have an incredible opportunity to join a youth movement that keeps gaining momentum. Today the A's sent Dan Haren to Arizona for a ton of blue chip prospects. In a move that A's fans were dreading all through the Winter Meetings Billy Beane replenished a farm system that was looking bleak. The D'Backs got a complimentary horse for the stable head Brandon Webb. Where this leaves Randy Johnson rotation-wise is still yet to be seen. Immediately Haren has hoisted Arizona's expectations even higher. The D'backs now have 1-2 starters who haven't thrown less than 217 innings in the past three years. Losing Jose Valverde's 47 saves from the back-end of the bullpen to Houston in another deal earlier in the day definitely stung. Chris Burke is a young position player still trying to find his stroke and Chad Qualls is a serviceable middle man. The other pitcher in the deal Juan Gutierrez is too young to forecast. The winners for next season are the D'backs with Haren and the Astros with a shutdown closer in Valverde. Down the line the A's part of the deal will pan out and they might earn more in offseasons to come.
The real winners of this deal are the Oakland A's fans. We lose an eventual staff ace, but we don't have to deal with the circus tent hovering over the Coliseum if Barry comes to town. He will only sign(take a paycut)for a contending team. Since Billy Beane has raised the white flag we are no longer in the Bonds bermuda triangle media event. I recently tore BB a new ass for getting rid of our beloved Marco Scutaro, but at least he isn't going to sell out.
Other topics I would like to add are the sad news of seeing Jack Cust's name on the Mitchell Report and the lack of Red Sox on that list. Are we to seriously believe a team that has won two championships in a 4 year span didn't have a single juicer using? I guess they are far enough from the East Coast and Bay Area to not be touched by steroid taint. Bullshit. They are fortunate enough to have the lead investigator sit on their board of directors. Oh wait he took a leave of absence from that position while slitting open the underbelly of the steroid era(more like heavy petting the underbelly). Great choice Bud. That choice won't bring up conflict of interest stories. Bud do yourself a favor and step down from the Commissioners spot and get back to the Owners Box. That's were your judgment has been all these years. The MLB needs to have an impartial "fan"....yes thats right I said fan! We are the people who know what is right for the game. We sell our souls for teams that would spit on you if your lead fist wasn't full of green and still come smiling to the ballpark. I'm not talking about the ass that goes to every game, but rarely sees it because he is wasted. Not that fan. Someone who knows the history of the game. Loves to see Eras change from generation to generation. I will be appointing myself in 15-20 years. I would do it now, but my receding hairline isn't quite to the "trustable" stage as of my 27th year. That is all.
No comments:
Post a Comment