Frenchiegangsta9 wrote:This trade reminds me of the Red Sox/Dodgers players/contracts swap.
Except the Dodgers got Adrian Gonzalez. And though he did have a sharp drop in the HR department, he was still a very good hitter.
The players the Jays brought in are certainly good and will definitely help them out over the next
couple of seasons. And given the state of the AL East and the Jays' best player (Bautista) aging, this may have been the right move.
Looking at the trade, is Jose Reyes really worth $17.5 million over the next 5 years (ages 30-35)? Logic would say that someone his age with his set of skills is not going to be a sound investment past 2014. And Reyes had a great 2nd half of 2012 when he was hitting in front of Stanton. Now he goes back into the leadoff spot where he struggled. Still a top tier SS but again, once 2015 rolls around, this is going to be a major burden.
Bonifacio could be a decent player, but to expect totals similar to 2011 would be a mistake. That nice season was BABIP induced. And he needs to stay healthy too. Is he an upgrade for the Jays? If he plays 2B, he will be an upgrade with the glove, but how much of a hitting upgrade over Kelly Johnson will he be?
Buehrle will not be worth close to the $15-16 million per year over the next 3 years. He didn't pitch well in the NL East. He was serviceable, but how does a move to the AL East help him? This division is loaded with good hitters and small parks. If his GB% wasn't on such a decline I wouldn't be worried.
Josh Johnson is certainly better than Buehrle and costs less, so that is a huge plus. But how well will he transition to the AL East? Are his injury problems past him?
mweir145 wrote:This deal is a remarkable win for the Blue Jays. They gave up nothing of current value beyond Escobar...
The prospects the Jays gave up weren't nothing of value. They didn't give up their best guys but Marisnick and Nicolino have some trade value and upside.
It is a win in the short term, especially with the AL East being up for grabs (except the Sox). But is this remarkable in the long term? Hell no. Reyes and Buehrle are going to be vastly overpaid in a couple of seasons. And who knows if JJ will resign with them.
If Romero returns to form, Santos comes back healthy, Encarn repeats, Lawrie grows, and Bautista posts MVP like numbers then the Jays should take the division this year or the next. But they tied up a whole lot of money in doing so. And that money is going to come back to bite them in the arse in a couple of years.