News rang out on Facebook last week that my Thunderchickens made a blockbuster deal in the Illowa APBA League. We made a mutually beneficial deal which sent former Thunderchickens’ first pick Stephen Strasburg (a BXYZ pitcher) to Marcus Bunch’s Moline Upperdeckers for shortstop Javier Baez.
I needed a shortstop, that was apparent. SS-7 Jose Peraza who got his batting average up to .239 by the end of 2019, was slotted to be my shortstop until this deal.
2019 Baez is definitely an improvement.
| Split | G | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 Totals | 138 | 561 | 531 | 89 | 149 | 38 | 4 | 29 | 85 | 11 | 28 | 156 | .281 | .316 | .531 |
Javy Baez comes to Twin City as a SS-9 with five power numbers. That was unheard of three decades ago unless your name was Cal Ripken or Robin Yount. Granted, Javy’s four zeros are tempered by five singles in the second column but he also can go yard seven times as well.
Baez has a 15-10 due to his eleven steals. Not known for his eye at the plate, he managed to at least get two walks.
The Baez-Strasburg deal is one that seems to benefit both teams, a bit of a rarity for a one-for-one deal. Marc needed quality pitching and I needed to fill my shortstop role. I gained four years in the trade but Marc got some valuable innings.
That said, I seriously need to shore up my pitching staff before 2020 begins. At this point, I have 1060 innings of usable pitching. Playing a full 162-game schedule, the Thunderchickens will need between 1460 and 1500 innings to play them out.
Looks like some trades are in order or the Thunderchickens will be devoting all four of their draft picks to pitching.
Javy Baez hit a pair of homers today in the decisive Game 6 of the LDBA World Series. His first shot was on rolls of 44-0, 25-1. Enjoy El Mago!
‘m glad the trade is working out for you! And nothing against Mr. Baez, but this is in no way a “monster card”. A player with under 30 home runs, under 90 RBIs, under 90 runs scored, under 15 steals, a batting average under .290, and not even the top defensive rating for his position?
“That was unheard of three decades ago unless your name was Cal Ripken or Robin Yount. ” So…the 1990’s? Oh how soon we forget. You want a power hitting shortstop not named Ripken or Yount? How about Alex Rodriguez from 1996 or Nomar Garciaparra from 1997? Or more recently, how about Miguel Tejada from 2002, 2004, or 2006? Those are “monster cards”. You want to go WAY back for a big hitting fast shortstop? Hughie Jennings in 1894 comes to mind.