At this point Francouer is going to get nothing more than a mid level prospect and PTBNL. He has limited power, strikes out to much, doesn’t walk, and hits for a low average. His defense is average and if it wasn’t for his arm it would be below average. Somebody will want him because he’s still young and could turn things around but they are not going to overpay for him.

be traded is in a package deal. Maybe Frenchy, Gonzo/Soriano and Escobar for Bucholtz and Lowrie

  are wrong. you have cody ross with 0 strikeouts for the year. he actually has 51.

i see the note now. my bad.

I love the idea of your trade mvhsbball, I have always wanted Uggla, (and Jason Bay), however it would take more to acquire both Uggla and Ross than simply Frenchy an KJ, maybe if we put KK in the trade as well and called up any pitcher to take his spot we could make the deal happen.

CAn we just DFA him and be done with it? Might have to eat some salary, but at least he won’t be GIDP’ing all the time.

Frenchy for Ross? What’s next, offering Kelly Johnson straight up for Robinson Cano?

I think you’re right, it’s unlikely that Frenchy ends 2009 with the Braves. However, my fear that if the Braves keep overvaluing him this much then this will take longer than any of us desire.

Anybody read the comments of that MLBTR entry? The author asks, “What club makes sense for Frenchy?” One of the comments (Daniel) says, “I think he would be a good fit for the Rome Braves.”

Daniel, wherever you are, I second that.

 I’ve said it before and I’m prob the only one who will think this but . .

IF we are so desperate for a bat and we have no financial means left to pursue that bat why don’t we do something unexpected that kinda makes sense.

Why don’t we trade Lowe?

Now I’m not saying this because Lowe did badly today against Baltimore. Just hear me out.

Lowe is a nice arm in any rotation. He ideally is a #2 but could be substituted as a #1. He has great control and will do well as long as he has a good defense behind him catching those ground balls.

Yes he is in his late 30’s but someone wrote an article about how because Lowe didnt become a starter till so late in his career he doesnt have as much mileage on his arm and is essentially coming into his prime as a starter.

Yes I know he is being paid more than a lot of teams would want to pay him as well.

Now what we would need is a team with a pretty good INF Defense. A team that has an OF that we could acquire that would bolster our lineup in a Big Way. And a team that desperately needs pitching.

So I present to you the Texas Rangers.

Here is a team that has a young core of pitchers coming through the gate with Kevin Millwood on his way out and no one to really head the rotation.

They have a very solid defensive infield.

And they have a Bat we could use.

Why dont we trade:

Derek Lowe
Francoeur
Cash (Say 4 Mil a year on Lowe’s Contract)

For
Nelson Cruz

The Rangers get a Pitcher to slot either behind or infront of Millwood. Lowe also most likely wouldnt see a drastic increase in his ERA since he is a GB pitcher (Although I’m not 100% on this). They also get him for 3 1/2 Years.

Yes they lose Cruz in RF. BUT they gain Frenchy. With the way their hitting coach has turned around Andruw Jones and how Frenchy started the season so much better after being under him not to mention the ballpark his numbers will get better for that team and he will be at least league average.

Then they get Hamilton back in July.

Braves will of course lose their "Staff Ace" but we still have a solid 1/2 behind JJ and Vazquez. Kawakami is pitching like a #3 starter with league average ERA and has shown signs of improvement. From there they can slot Medlen in the #5 hole.

If you want to take it further they could then possibly do a trade for a decent starter to hold them over till Hudson gets back since they will have cleared most of Lowes salary.

Now if you really want to stretch it you could delve into the whole issue that appears to be happening with Escobar where we might see him get traded Escobar and or Kelly Johnson would certainly be enough to net us a pitcher and im talking BETTER than Brad Penny

i dont know if it has any validity, but we are apparently in talks with colorado about hawpe. in the rumor, it was stated we offered rohrbrough, parr, and francoeur for hawpe. it just doesnt sound right.

my take on the next few weeks: vazquez and soriano should both be shopped if we fall out of contention. with hudson’s option obviously being picked up, the pitching surplus will be ever present. i dont like losing soriano, but he’s going to be a hot commodity next year, and will likely get closer money, which the braves cannot afford.