Rumor Mill: Several BBA/AAA Players looking for a trade.(36.7)

[niles08]

Rumor Mill: Several BBA/AAA Players looking for a trade.

The Omaha Hawks are in first place so every single person affiliated with the organization should be thrilled and smelling the roses right?

Wrong.

A report coming out of Omaha showcases a different attitude with several players who are unhappy with the playing time they are currently receiving, along with reports from 50 miles west of here, where Lincoln Loggers players aren’t thrilled to not be in the BBA right now.

The team employee, who has asked to not be identified, mentions Jack Gulliver (8/7/7/6/6 Ratings, .289/.351/.471, 234 HR, 930 RBI) by name as just one of the players looking to move on from Omaha. That comes as no surprise as it was well known last year Gulliver did not want to be a part of the Hawks organization.

Gulliver is batting .309 this season over 55 plate appearances, and is making $11,000,000 with an $11,000,000 player option for next season that he obviously is expected to decline based on his unhappiness.

Another player that is surprisingly giving the front office trouble is Maximo Quezada (6/5/7/4/5 Ratings, .236/.293/.446, 153 HR, 387 RBI). Quezada has been getting regular playing time in center field, having appeared in 75 games for the club this year. He is said to “dislike the ballpark”, but if I was batting .171/.239/.373 when my career average was 0.70 higher on all of those, I would dislike the ball park as well. Quezada is in the last year of his contract and is not expected to resign with Omaha this off-season.

In Lincoln, the infield duo of Tyler Moore (6/8/8/6/6 Ratings, .249/.322/.509, 67 HR, 180 RBI) & Bill Wilkins (6/8/7/6/5 Ratings, .200/.292/.389, 9 HR, 24 RBI) are the ones rumored to be causing the problems. Combine that with the “he said, she said” drama of supposedly adding Terrance Mack to their discussions and we have a threesome who are bound to cause some issues.

All 3 have had a taste of the BBA, so it makes sense that they have a problem watching from below and not contributing directly to the action.

Moore is a 24 year old who probably is going to stay at first base in his BBA career, but has a solid bad to provide some dingers. He also is very quick and is a threat to steal 50+ bases annually. Probably the one with the most experience among the 3, Moore has accumulated 1054 at bats in the BBA level with a .249 batting average and 67 home runs, giving him a home run every 16 at bats.

Wilkins who is also 24 years old, can play 1st but also could play 3rd is needed. He has a strong enough arm to cover the diamond.

Mack is a year younger than the other 2, and has a tremendously powerful bat against right handed pitchers. He probably is limited to corner outfield duty but over 266 at bats in 2034 and 2035 he did hit 14 home runs and bat .267 so the talent appears to be there from the plate.

These 3 guys are all under team control for the foreseeable future so what Omaha will do with them is anybody’s guess, but Omaha does have some veteran’s contracts expiring at the end of the year such as Patrick Lue (6/8/8/6/6 Ratings, .244/.301/.436, 173 HR, 558 RBI), Hiroyuki Rin (10/6/9 Ratings, 64 - 51, 3.73 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 830 K), Maximo Quezada (6/5/7/4/5 Ratings, .236/.293/.446, 153 HR, 387 RBI), Buck Munoz (7/7/8/5/6 Ratings, .250/.306/.472, 139 HR, 369 RBI), and right fielder Aubrey Anderson (6/8/8/4/7 Ratings, .281/.321/.539, 202 HR, 592 RBI) so there may be some openings coming around the corner for these guys to get into the game.

[ae37jr]

Gulliver is going to be the comeback player of the year next year. While I haven't inquired about his services, I'm guessing his salary is probably holding up any trade and keeping him in purgatory. Someone in need of a DH will pick him up for about $2 million next year and be very happy they did. Looks like he still has a year or two left in the tank.