Acquire Gardner? WHIR

[Dagonus]

10 man league.
H2H
R, HR, TB, RBI, SB, OBP, K, QS, ERA, WHIP, SVHD
Keeper (Up to 3 at +5 to auction price or $10 if off wire)

Context:
I lead league in R, HR & TB. 4th in RBI. 3rd in SB & OBP. 4th in K & QS. 6th in ERA. 5th in Whip. 8th in SVHD.
Someone was looking to get power and give up speed. Obviously, I could afford to give up some TB & HR. Though, I'd rather not give up RBI. Obviously, my biggest need is SVHD and if it comes with a perk to the rest of my pitching, so much the better. ERA and WHIP might have been because I had Masterson up until recently, So I'm expecting a rebound there with the recent upgrade from Masterson to Billingsley. My original goal was a 2 for 1 trade with the intent of freeing up a roster spot for Dempster and maybe an additional arm off the wire.

My Roster:

C: Wieter
1B: Konerko
2B: Kinsler
3B: Encarnacion
SS: Hardy
IF: Nipnis
OF: Granderson
OF: Heyward
OF: Cuddyer
OF: Beltran
OF: Pagan
UTIL: Montero
BE: Morrsion
BE: Duda
BE: Headley
BE: De Aza
DL: Zimmerman

SP: Greinke
SP: Shields
SP: Hellickson
SP: Marcum
SP: Billingsley
RP: Rivera
RP: Robertson
RP: Benoit
BE: Pettitte
DL: Demptser
DL: Carpenter

With Dempster coming off the DL soon, I'm eyes De Aza or Pagan as drops to make room for the extra arm. There's no denying, I've got OF to burn at the moment which is why if I could trade 2 OFs for 1, it would lower the OF surplus but also give me a slot for Dempster. Of course if I unload 2 OFfor an IF, then I still have 6 OFs which is a much more comfortable number.

His Roster: (I've indicated players he won't even discuss with a U)

C: Mauer
1B: LaRoche
2B: Cano -U
3B: Wright -U
SS: Jeter -U
IF: Phillips
OF: McCutchen
OF: Suzuki
OF: Rios
OF: Span
OF: Reddick
UTIL: Ortiz -U
BE: Peralta
BE: Smoak
BE: Rasmus
DL: Berkman
DL: Gardner

SP: Garza
SP: Darvish -U
SP: Lohse
SP: Feliz
SP: Humber
RP: Kimbrel
RP: Adams
RP: Romo
BE: Haren
BE: Storen
DL: Hudson

My initial offer was actually Montero and De Aza for Gardner. Since I'm considering dropping De Aza and/or Pagan for Dempter and maybe another arm (Smyly? Kuroda?), this really is more of Montero for Gardner. I know why he declined(Mauer & Ortiz)

He responded with Gardner & Rasmus for Beltran and De Aza. I really don't need Rasmus, but I'd hate to give up Beltran and De Aza for just Gardner, especially when I know he's willing to give me more than just Gardner. I've gotten a fair bit of RBIs from Beltran and while I have HR and TB to spare, not really an abundance of RBI to give up. I'm inclined to decline the offer since I really don't need Rasmus.

Part of me wants to ask for one of his relievers with Gardner. Possibly even asking for Kimbrel knowing he'd say no so I could negotiate down to Adams (I would drop Benoit then, I don't need 4 RPs.) I could even throw Benoit in in addition to the deal to see if I could get Kimbrel off him. Though, I really don't think he'll bite.

I'm willing to give more than I get, just because I KNOW I'm dropping De Aza or Pagan within the week. I could also make a play for Peralta if I give up a couple OFs since I have no alternative to JJ right now, but there are a few other SS on the wire I can pick up with some pop(Gonzalez & Ramirez) so I don't really "need" Peralta since I can get reasonable backups off the wire. At the same time, if I look at the draft prices, I'm making a killing on what he paid for VS what I paid for in any of these deals.

Notable Players on the Wire:

S. Choo (W until Wed)
M. Moustakas
A. Ramirez
E. Aybar
A. Lind (W until Mon)
J. Weeks
N. Walker
Y. Escobar
J. Francoeur
H. Street
U. Jimenez (W until Tue)
M. Capps
C. Marmol
H. Kuroda (W to Mon)
J. Walden (W to Tue)
M. Scherzer (W to Mon)
J. Masterson
I. Nova
G. Floyd
D. Smyly
E. Santana
A. Aceves
F. Cordero
S. Casilla

I don't trust many of the available RPs, which is why I'm reluctant to switch Benoit to say Street.

What do you guys think of something like this:

Beltran (Maybe LoMo instead?) De Aza & Benoit for Kimbrel and Gardner? Maybe I should pass the whole thing by and see what other upgrades I could get out of Aza and Pagan. Bottom line is that I either sell one or both of them by Thursday morning, or they'll likely be gone anyway.

[punswaterboy]

Beltran/LoMo, De Aza, Benoit for Kimbrel and Gardner is a very lopsided trade. Kimbrel is one of, if not the best closer in the MLB. Plus he is young. Your trading a couple of above average OF plus a RP for a top tier closer and an average OF. I would take that trade if I were you anyday. If you are trading for Adams on the other hand, this is a not a very good trade for you. Adams is not a top tier closer like Kimbrel therefore he will not have as high a trade value. You can take out one of your OF but this would be defeating your original purpose. You can try trade away Duda too. He's not that good, I don't see why someone would keep him.

[BOWSER]

I would not include Beltran in that deal unless he offered Berkman back...

Thanks for helping with mine..

[Dagonus]

That's sort of the answer I expected to get. I appreciate the input nonetheless. I didn't think he'd bite if he lost Kimbrel and if nothing else it's good to see I wasn't the only one with that thought.

I picked up Duda in the hopes he might pan out into a sleeper keeper since I picked him up for $3. If he went big then it would be an easy $8 keep next year. Keeping bigger players when its at +$5 can get pricey. So far I've been less than estatic, but this past week he did out perform half my team including Kinsler & Granderson. A hot week doesn't make a star obviously, but if he can keep it up, it might get him off the bench. If he slumps hard again then he wasn't a big expense.