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The MLB trade deadline is approaching, this year set for July 30 to make it a weekday. That leaves another two weeks.
The Oakland A’s are in their fourth consecutive summer, and if the season ended today, they would advance to the playoffs at No. 2 on the Wild Card. However, there are still several teams on their heels, with the Blue Jays, Mariners, Yankees, Indians and Angels all within 5.5 games. The A’s should obviously be buyers.
In addition, their most urgent needs were highlighted. Oakland has a strong and deep starting rotation, but they might need some help with their reliever box setup team. And their roster has been crashing for a month and could use a new bat to revive them, especially in the DH or outfield corner spots.
All of this leads to a potential business partner that is so perfect that it is strange. The Minnesota Twins were supposed to defend their 2020 division title but failed completely instead, and they have the ageless All-Star slugger’s expiring contract. Nelson cruz plus a stable of interesting reliefs to choose from. And Cruz should be affordable, because as a DH he won’t have a market in the Netherlands, and several AL competitors are already loaded there.
- Cruz, 2021: .301 / .380 / .543, 18 HR, 147 wRC +, 10.3% BB, 17.6% Ks, 0.397 xwOBA
There are always other options, and the Detroit Tigers might make sense as A partners, much like they did in 2018 when they sent out. Mike Proud here. But Cruz and the Twins are by far the most exciting fit to consider, given he’s a big-name superstar in every way the team needs.
Negotiations
What would it take to get Cruz? As a two-month hire that started the year with an eight-figure salary, Baseball Trade Values suggests it has a premium but not a ton.
The first question is whether the As’s can absorb all of his remaining money (around $ 4.5 million), or whether they need the Twins to cover it. When they scrimped last winter, did they plan a supplement for July? And / or, do they get some return on the assurance of Trevor Rosenthal never throw to throw? Asking for Minnesota Cash Back will mean parting with better or more prospects.
The next question is, are you expanding the deal to get a reliever as well? I am not enthusiastic about Hansel robles and Statcast either, and I’m not betting on Tyler duffey and its reduced speed. Taylor rogers will be too expensive. but if they could sweep left-handed Caleb Thielbar so go ahead. This leaves Alex Colome, mired in a sluggish year which Statcast says has been a really bad one, but if you want to roll the dice on its superb long-term track record, it would likely be cheap as free to acquire with around $ 2 million left in its Contract expiration.
And finally, what is the leverage effect? How many other suitors actually enter the chat (Blue Jays, Rays, Mariners?), And how serious are they? Do As’s need to outbid and part with someone at the top of their prospect list, or can they get away with putting together a few lesser names in a quantity package? In other words, is a great name like AJ Puk or Daulton Jefferies or Brayan Buelvas need to make headlines, or can it be two or three lesser-known lotto tickets?
Depending on those factors, it could go in a lot of different directions. If the As’s surprisingly have money after all and want to take on the roughly $ 7 million owed to Cruz and Colome combined, they might only need to send one token prospect the other way around. If it’s only Cruz and the A’s who pay him (or even Cruz plus Robles?), Then maybe they are only two good hopes, or a good no-big deal. If they ask Minnesota for money to cover Cruz, it could start to get expensive in the top 5-10, including the names in the previous paragraph.
List adjustment
Like a glove. The A’s may have the worst DH output in the AL right now, and there’s no long-term presence anchored there if they want to upgrade the veteran. Mitch moreland. They are also missing one of their right-handed sticks in Chad Pinder, and in its place, they audition a long line of minor leaguers. There is room, on the roster and in the roster, and of course that kind of bat would improve the outlook for any club.
In particular, Cruz hits less than he has ever done in his career, which helps him sustain a high batting average while the rest of the league declines in this statistic. Oakland often needs one more hit or even a fly bag to change a game, so a slugger who makes tons of contact is perfect.
It might be even better if Cruz were left-handed since the formation leans heavily to the right, but at least the As’s can still have three lefties around them – 1B Olson, 2B Lowrie, LF Kemp / Brown.
Historical significance
What if it was the Nellie curse all this time?
Almost 17 years ago, the A’s traded Cruz to the Brewers in exchange for 51 Keith Ginter. Cruz was just a Double-A prospect at the time, and was thrown late as softer to close the deal. The As wanted Ginter as insurance at second goal behind Marc Ellis, who had missed the previous season after a spring collision with his teammate Bobby crosby. Damn it Bobby.
Fast forward a few decades, and the setback hasn’t been kind to A. Cruz has hit 435 career home runs, made seven All-Star teams and won five Top 10 MVP rankings, won four Silver Sluggers and two Edgar Martinez DH Awards, led his teams to two World Series appearances and once won the ALCS MVP along the way. He’s probably one of the 100 best hitters of all time, and a few weeks after his 41st birthday he’s still going strong and arguably having his best season yet.
It was not a completely perfect race. There was a mixed PED suspension, which seems to be universally forgiven now. And he’s kind of the scapegoat for his team that lost the 2011 World Series, although on the defensive side he doesn’t even play as a DH anymore.
But Oakland fans would surely love to know what could have been had he been able to wear green and gold. Since Cruz left, we’ve seen the A’s go through seven futile playoffs, three of which even before he achieved free agent status for the first time after 2013. Now, with an eighth trip to Oaktober, hopefully it would be the perfect addition. if they could finally bring him here.
What if he ends up being the missing piece that led 2021 A’s to stardom, all these years later? What a story that would be.
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