2037.3: Offseason Preview: Key Decisions Looming on Gagne, Ellis?

GM: Fred Holmes

Moderator: Rubaboo

User avatar
Rubaboo
BBA GM
Posts: 2187
Joined: Tue May 27, 2014 9:09 pm
Location: Chippewa Falls, WI
Has thanked: 200 times
Been thanked: 320 times

2037.3: Offseason Preview: Key Decisions Looming on Gagne, Ellis?

Post by Rubaboo » Thu Feb 21, 2019 10:23 am

The Aztecs had a very up and down 2037 or, more accurately, down and up rather. After a slow start that saw the team under .500 at the all-star break, the Aztecs picked up some steam down the stretch to take the last wildcard spot from the Hunstville Phantoms in the last week of the season. Two players connected with the Mexico City swoon and surge of 2037 are 1B Mike Ellis and OF Willard Gagne. Ellis and Gagne, both former 1st round picks of the Aztecs, have been key players since their ascent to the major leagues but they both have had the same persistent problems dogging them throughout their careers: injuries. Injuries limited Gagne to 95 games in 2037, Ellis to 137. Both players were effective in their time on the field, as Gagne posted a .322/.380/.550 slash line with 18 homers and ended the season with 3.5 WAR, putting him on pace for ~6 WAR in a full seasons worth of games. Ellis hit .333/.369/.517 with 14 homers and swiped 43 bags, finishing with a WAR of 3.6. Both players are still ARB eligible this offseason, Gagne is estimated for a pay increase from $8.125M to $9.45M, Ellis is due a big bump from $750k to $4.6M. The team can make the money work with no issue, the big question that lingers over the Aztec front office is one of replacement, and there are several scenarios that Mexico City has at its disposal.

The replacement scenarios the Aztecs have available are built on two key pillars: Young players prepared to graduate from the farm system and positional versatility. Mexico City has at least two players in AAA that are ready to graduate and take the ML reigns in 2038 in Dan Flores, a 20 year old center fielder, and Ricardo Pena, a 21 year old corner outfielder. Both of these players are ready to roll in 2038 if the team needs them but both have their full number of options still available and can be left down if need be. This puts Mexico City in both an enviable and difficult position. The easiest, and most probable, of the options available to the Aztec front office is to keep both Gagne and Ellis, pay the arb and either play them or try to move them during the season. Sources indicate that the team will try to explore deals for one or both players this offseason but with no real pressure to move either player after the arbitration deals get done, due to the minor league status and non-rule 5 eligibility of Flores and Pena, it might be a little tough to extract the value that the team feels these players are worth via trade. Ergo, the likeliest outcome is that both players will be Aztecs again in 2038.

Scenario 2 involves one or both players leaving this offseason and revolves around the positional flexibility of Jose Estrada. Ellis leaving would create an opening at 1B which Estrada would slide into a fill nicely. Moving Estrada to 1B creates a void in the OF, which Flores or Pena would be called in to fill. If Gagne also leaves, that creates two roster spots, one for Pena and one for Flores, putting Estrada at 1B still. If Gagne is the only one to depart, the team slides a AAA OF to the major league roster in a 1 for 1 swap.

Realistically, the Aztecs are a team with very little strife heading into the offseason. Most of the core is still young and cost controlled, and there's money left to add a piece or two via trade or FA. The Gagne/Ellis decision is back-page at best and may be the largest hurdle the team has to overcome before 2038 starts.
Fred Holmes
General Manager
Mexico City Aztecs - BBA

BBA Champs - 2052
JL Champs - 2027, 2052
JL MW Champs - 2022, 2023, 2024, 2027
JL Sun Belt Champs - 2035, 2036, 2038
JL Frontier Champs - 2051, 2052
JL Manager of the Year - 2023, 2024, 2026, 2052

bschr682
Ex-GM
Posts: 8038
Joined: Wed Jun 16, 2010 11:24 am
Has thanked: 306 times
Been thanked: 383 times

Re: 2037.3: Offseason Preview: Key Decisions Looming on Gagne, Ellis?

Post by bschr682 » Thu Feb 21, 2019 10:56 am

#fakenews
GM Vancouver Mounties

User avatar
RonCo
GB: JL Frontier Division Director
Posts: 19815
Joined: Sat Nov 14, 2015 10:48 pm
Has thanked: 1982 times
Been thanked: 2902 times

Re: 2037.3: Offseason Preview: Key Decisions Looming on Gagne, Ellis?

Post by RonCo » Fri Feb 22, 2019 9:46 pm

MEX is riding the surge tide at this point.
GM: Bikini Krill
Nothing Matters But the Pacific Pennant
Roster

Post Reply Previous topicNext topic

Return to “Mexico City Aztecs”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 3 guests