Setting Up for a Roadrunners Run in 2012

There have been twenty-three trades in BRASSball this off-season. I don't know if that's a league record or not, but it's the most I can ever remember in all of my years playing Strat-O-Matic. All of these players, picks, and cash moving around makes me a little nervous. I wonder about the uncertainty of all this change and how it will affect teams in the long run. You have to hope that every trade made will end up helping both teams equally, but you and I both know that's never the case. Why would you make a trade if you didn't feel that you were getting some kind of edge in the deal?

California ignited the BRASSball Hot Stove when we dealt Jose Bautista to Metropolis, and Plaza turned up the heat when Justin Verlander was moved to Latrobe. Since those two deals, BRASSball has seen the following exchanged:

• 71 players, including Matt Kemp, Roy Halladay, Alex Rodriguez, Chase Utley, Jeremy Hellickson, Trevor Bauer, Michael Pineda, and Kevin Youkilis
• 17 draft picks, including one #1, two #2s, and three #3s
• $7,433,333 cash, almost half of which spent by San Jose to acquire Jurikson Profar from Cook County

Cook County and San Jose each made seven trades (so far) between October 2011 and November 2011. The California Roadrunners were the next most active club with six. We've already broken down the Jose Bautista deal, so here's a rundown of the other five deals.

California trades Chris Volstad to Frisco for GAU #6 (2012)

This was simply a move to give Frisco (now San Jose) some cheap innings pitched, with some moderate potential for Volstad to finally break out. The Roadrunners had given up on Volstad and were considering his release as an open roster spot looked more appealing.

Springfield trades Sean Marshall to California for CAL #3 (2012)

This deal was pretty much about ego. Sean Marshall was dealt to Springfield prior to the 2011 season in the Gerrit Cole deal. While California is still pleased to have Cole in their amateur system, moving Marshall as part of the deal left some regret. During the entire 2011 MLB season, Marshall was observed, and the club wanted him back as part of their 2012 squad. California has a handful of goals for 2012. One of those goals is having one of the top bullpens in the AL. Marshall will hopefully help achieve that goal.

Latrobe trades Roy Halladay, Yorvit Torrealba to California for Ivan Nova, Christian Friedrich, CAL #2 (2012), CAL #4 (2012)

This. Was. The. Big. One. Dealing Bautista was difficult, but necessary. The couple of trades that followed were nice, but not game-changers. Adding long-time BRASSball ace Roy Halladay has, on paper, upset the balance of the AL West. Having to move Nova and Friedrich along with two high draft picks may appear to be costly for the future of the franchise, but Halladay is under contract for both 2012 and 2013. Nova was penciled in as the #4 starter behind Kennedy, Beckett, and Norris. Friedrich projected as a "Cliff Lee type," but didn't look like he was going to be ready for full-time action for another two years. Not to be forgotten in the deal is Torrealba. He gives the team a starting catcher after entering the off-season with zero plate appearances from behind the dish.

Lancaster trades Torii Hunter to California for Julio Borbon, Chris Valaika

Now that Doc Halladay was in the fold, there was some internal pressure to make sure the Roadrunners were in a position to win. Win NOW, I should say. When Lancaster put Torii Hunter on the block, California reacted and struck first. Hunter is tied up with an expensive contract (he'll be on the second year of a three-year, $12.99M deal), but his offense and defense is actually a significant upgrade. The only other real offensive threat under contract is Josh Hamilton, and he has injury concerns entering 2012. Hunter, while expensive, brings some pop, some glove, and a lot of stability to the roster.

Cook County trades Matt Thornton to California for CAL #6 (2012), $350k

The Roadrunners picked up lefty Matt Thornton as sort of a last-minute, impulse-buy-kind-of deal. When putting together a playoff-caliber bullpen, you want to have a lefty specialist that you can whip out in the 7th or 8th inning with the game on the line. The Roadrunners now have two of those after picking up Thornton to go alongside Sean Marshall. With two sixth-round picks in the 2012 draft, moving one of them was not an issue. Cook County loves him some cash in a trade, so the $350K keeps him happy.

All in all, it was a busy off-season for California. Many a draft-pick were dealt away, as was about $10M in money spent on contracts. The Roadrunners, basically, looked at it as two free agency signing periods, and didn't mind spending some of it's hard-earned coin on some players that are poised to play key roles in what hopes to be a fun and exciting 2012 season.