NEWSLETTER
Because of the size and importance of this weekend’s big trade, it’s going to take several days to lay out, discuss, and analyze all of the angles to this thing. You’ve already seen it a bit. That’s not me trying to stretch this thing out – it’s just me being realistic about how much there is to look at, and being realistic about how much folks were going to want to be attached to their computer/phone screens over the course of this lovely summer holiday weekend.
That said, I couldn’t really wait another day to check in on the early and immediate reactions around the baseball world, given that this is one of the biggest trades in recent memory.
One miscellaneous preamble thought I’ve had: with the A’s getting both Samardzija and Hammel, how is the rest of the pitching trade market affected? The A’s weren’t necessarily expected to get a pitcher at all, so, them taking two of the top ones off the market? David Price probably just got even more valuable. But, dare I ask … does Edwin Jackson become tradable? If he is, do the Cubs let him go for a song? Or do they prefer to hang onto him, knowing he could bounce back, and knowing they need some arms going forward?
In any case, some of the reactions around baseball …
The cubs have the top farm system in baseball now. Pretty easy to say that with three top 10 prospects.
— JJ Cooper (@jjcoop36) July 5, 2014
https://twitter.com/ProfessorParks/status/485253519893872640
I'm glad other people are making comps to the Shields/Davis trade, because I was worried I was starting to see that trade in the wallpaper.
— Rany Jazayerli (@jazayerli) July 5, 2014
One other big advantage to the trade for the Cubs – they were in danger of not drafting in the top 10 and having a protected pick next year.
— Rany Jazayerli (@jazayerli) July 5, 2014
I think it's critical to the Cubs to have a top-10 pick, so when they sign, say, Max Scherzer, they lose their second-round pick instead.
— Rany Jazayerli (@jazayerli) July 5, 2014
I don't understand how people can complain about this trade from the Cubs' side. They picked up the best, most realistic prospect possible.
— Christopher Crawford (@Crawford_MILB) July 5, 2014
