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Category: Pittsburgh Pirates
Red Sox trade for Chris Duncan, Adam LaRoche
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The Red Sox haven’t had the greatest 2nd half, even if it has just begun. They are 1-4 in 5 games, have lost Tim Wakefield, their leader in wins, for at least 2 weeks with a lower back strain and have fallen behind the dreaded Yankees by one game in the AL East. However, even though they have yet to play a game, they are having a good day today, thanks to two trades.
Their first trade was a bit of a minor deal, but I really like what they did. They finally found a taker for Julio Lugo, trading the highly paid shortstop to the Cardinals for Chris Duncan and a player to be named. Though they will eat the rest of Lugo’s contract, Lugo can now no longer hurt them. Lugo has been one of the worst defensive shortstops in the majors over the past few years, to the point where Terry Francona kept him and his highly paid bat on the bench as much as he could to prevent him from hurting their infield defense. With Jed Lowrie back from injury, they really had no need for Lugo. Duncan has big time power and can play both first and the outfield. He had 43 homeruns over a 2 year stretch from 06-07, but hasn’t played as much lately because of his high strikeout rate. The Sox will send him to the minors to fix his swing which they have done before with good success.
The second deal is one that is getting more buzz. Power hitting first baseman Adam LaRoche, formerly of the Pittsburgh Pirates, will go to Boston for two minor leaguers, Argenis Diaz and Hunter Strickland. LaRoche also has big time power, with 20+ homeruns in every season from 2005-2008, and 12 already this year, but is not a great contact guy. However, he helps take the pressure off of Mike Lowell and David Ortiz, who are not the healthiest players on earth. LaRoche can play DH from time to take, giving Papi a break, and he can play 1st, allowing Kevin Youkilis to move to 3rd, giving Mike Lowell and his bad legs a break. And, for what they gave up, that’s not bad.
Speaking of what they gave up, let’s look at them. Diaz has spent the last 6 years in the minors and has pretty much no bat whatsoever. He’s likely a career minor leaguer. Strickland is 20 and has some upside, but not a ton. This just looks like another salary dump for the Pirates, whose frugal ways have bothered the fans to the point where the fans have threatened to not show up for the games. The Pirates have traded Nyjer Morgan, Nate McLouth, and Eric Hinske, getting back what has been regarded as lesser value by scouts in all 3 deals and they might not be done yet. Last season, they traded former all-stars Xavier Nady and Jason Bay, Bay going to Boston as well. The players they have received in those deals have definitely not been as good as the players they gave up, Bay being an MVP candidate and an All-Star in the AL for the Red Sox this season.
Maybe the Red Sox should just keep trading with them. Freddy Sanchez and Jack Wilson are still on the block for the Pirates and you know you’re likely going to win that deal if you trade the with the Pirates for either of those guys. Wilson actually fills a hole for the Sox at shortstop and Sanchez could be a nice utility guy for them. Maybe they can trade 10 bats to the Pirates for the pair.
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