Cause all of us GM's.... we like to swim and we like to cook. Though not all of us are very good at it.
The Brooklyn Robins have apparently ditched their "World's Greatest Rebuild" after just two seasons and are planning to make a run for it again. Turns out 18 year old players don't take 5 years to develop anymore. Most of the "lineup of the future" is ready or near ready. Pitching is another story. So heading into this offseason, starting pitching was priority A1.
Immediately following the expansion draft, Brooklyn shipped 4 B-Pile Prospects to Portland in exchange for André Georges and Pat Allen in a prearranged trade. Both players serve a dual role for the team. The first is that they are both captains. Last years captain, Albie 'The Dragon' Racist was nontendered for a variety of reasons. On top of being redundant and worthless player, his name itself was sure enough to get me thrown out of the league if I ever mentioned him in a team news. Oh wait, I just did. Anyway, he will catch on with another team. I wonder if the Hebrew Hammers will give him a hard look?
So on top of giving us a captain on both sides of the field, these two players will fill needed roles. Georges is not great. But he is a veteran innings eater. Something Brooklyn is severely lacking. His biggest flaw is that he gives up HR to left handed hitters. Well, his new home park isn't very kind to lefty power hitters. So we are hoping he plays better then his ratings. Right now, Georges slots in as our #1 starter. There is a very real chance that the Robins will be sending out #4/5 type starters everyday. The cost of an ace is absurd and the results are volatile right now. Starters are getting hurt a lot more then any other position. Brooklyn leveraged their bullpen more then any other team in the Brewster last season. That trend is likely to continue.
Pat Allen is a right handed hitting DH whose bat is meh best. Brooklyn had a sub .500 record against southpaws last season and will only get more lefty heavy with this crop of rookies. So we needed a competent righty to platoon. Since he is such a swell guy and also has an option left, Pat seemed to be a good fit. We think he'll do ok with his limited role.
The third player added this week was pitcher Júlio Velasco. It's probably assumed all around the league that we plan on using Velasco as a starter and that this is a terrible signing. Fact is, Brooklyn does not see him as a starter, nor do they see him as a reliever. When Brooklyn sees Júlio Velasco, they see.... Peter Grady lite. Velasco will work out of the pen, yet be required to handle a starter workload.
That's all the signings and trades so far. Brooklyn has at least 2 other offers on the table. Both could very well be over pays sure to get killed on a podcast. But hey, this is all about winning ballgames, not impressing others.
