Baseball fans are an arrogant bunch. They are also an ignorant bunch. It is this unique combination that allows so very many of us to sit and watch a game all the while thinking, “I could totally be the GM of this team.” The thing is, we shouldn’t. We really, really shouldn’t.
Sure, I’ve tried to conjure up a trade or two (dozen) in my day and all many some of them have been stupid ill-conceived not so great, in retrospect. But thus far I’ve managed to avoid embarrassing myself (as far as you know). Others, however, haven’t been so lucky. To illustrate this, let’s take a look at some of the reactions to the recent reports that the Angels are interested in a trade package of Huston Street and Ian Kennedy.
The most common issue with trade ideas is overvaluing your own prospects…
https://twitter.com/R_Garibay89/status/488535055401099265
Only to an Angels fan could Matt Shoemaker be the centerpiece of a huge trade. Similarly, only Angels fans seem to think that Kaleb Cowart has a huge amount of value after tanking for the last year and a half. And then there are those of us who just assume the Halos can cover up the shortcomings of their offers by adding “cash” to the deal. Sure, why not?
At least those people were willing to give away some actual talent though. Other people not so much…
@Ken_Rosenthal the angels can pull this trade off as long as they don't have to trade cron.
— DesignGraphics (@SRdesigner4life) July 14, 2014
Angels trading for Ian Kennedy and/or Huston Street would be legit. Can't trade away Cron though
— tfuhg (@tylerfulghum) July 14, 2014
Yeah, definitely can’t trade Cron. Sure, he was never even a top 100 prospect, has no defensive value and a lack of plate discipline that could ultimately submarine him, but dingers, man. Gotta keep those dingers. The Angels have the best offense in baseball and a bullpen that is their Achilles heel, but you just can’t ever give away DINGERS!
By comparison though, those people look downright charitable to this…
@Ken_Rosenthal what are their chances of landing Street without giving up Grant Green, Skaggs and Cron?
— Osiris Torres (@OsirisTorres) July 14, 2014
Pro tip: when you have a lousy farm system, you can’t declare three of your few big league ready young players off limits and hope to make an impact trade.
Others had much different ideas about who should be declared untouchable…
I mean, I don’t even… huh? How did that go from being staunchly opposed to trading Matt Shoemaker, of all people, to just abandoning the rant and defaulting to the “don’t trade Cron” mantra?
For some, it wasn’t enough to just send the Padres a pathetic return, they actually thought they should send the Angels MORE talent…
@Ken_Rosenthal could you see them taking headley in that deal too?
— DJ Swecker (@DJSwecker) July 14, 2014
Because, you know, the Angels really need another underachieving third baseman.
To the credit of everyone above, at least they understand the need to make a trade for Street and/Kennedy. Others seem to not quite grasp the concept…
“@JonHeymanCBS: angels, pirates among teams in early mix for huston street. http://t.co/hzO1IGxv7i” Angels don't need. They got Grilli
— Rob Judge (@thesportsjudge) July 15, 2014
https://twitter.com/tannerblake5/status/488794686975254528
Grilli? Really? People thought he was an actual solution? Yikes.
There are others though that think there is no solution, or hope, or really any reason to go on living…
https://twitter.com/Haas_02/status/488538725794603009
Yep, just assume Butcher is going to screw it all up no matter what happens. That seems like a great stance to take on any possible trade including a pitcher. You should probably rule out all hitters too, just in case Mickey Hatcher still has a key to the stadium.
There is actually one legitimate complaint nobody took under consideration, save for this brave gentleman…
Of course! How could we all be so blind! The last thing we should want the Angels to do is mess with team chemistry. Just think how pissed off all the guys in the clubhouse are going to be when some prospects that they probably never met get traded for some really good players who are going to come and help the current roster win! WON’T SOMEBODY PLEASE THINK OF THE TEAM CHEMISTRY!
And just to show that I’m not just bashing on Angels fans…
https://twitter.com/FakePadsGM/status/488795459142447104
So, yeah, I know. These comments are cherrypicked and reflect a minority of fans and that all fanbases are just as guilty, but still, they exist and they really shouldn’t. I will say though, the one shocking discovery I made in this process is that a lot fewer people called him “Houston Street” than I would’ve expected. Maybe there is still hope for the youth of America… just not as general managers of MLB franchises.
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