Figgy likely to the M's

Everywhere is reporting that Figgins will sign with Seattle.

:::sigh:::

It sucks that he's leaving, but I'm not as up in arms as some of the halosphere. As I stated earlier, BWood needs his shot. Most of those that are flat-out freakin out are *certain* that BWood is bad, just like Dallas McPherson, etc. Let's take a deep breath and consider some of these charges:

(a) BWood has shown nothing in the big leagues. Uh, yeah, I think that discounts two well-known facts: (1) He never got the consistant at-bats that his long swing needs (2) He's freakin 24! Its been repeated everywhere by baseball writers, coaches, etc. that BWood's talent best plays out when he's an everyday player. The Angels would send him down to Triple AAA rather than sit him on the bench in Anaheim. The fact that he's just 24 and spent two and a half years in AAA escapes a lot of people's notice. How many 22-24 year olds are *stars* the moment they arrive in the Show?

(b) BWood is overrated. Yeah, this normally precedes the above statement. And really, so what? BWood has been the Angel's perennial "top prospect" so its natural that anticipation has hyped him. The Angels believe he has enough potential and has accomplished enough in the minor leagues to warrant that title. He's also waited in AAA, when it was obvious that he couldn't do much there. So after those years of hording and touting him, you're not going to give him his shot? If he plays for the Angels and bombs out, that wouldn't be the best result. But then at least we, he, and the angels will have a better sense of what he is. And don't forget how young he is. Even if he doesn't explode onto the scene a la KMo, he's got time to adjust and become the player the Angels hope he is.

(c) BWood should be traded as part of a package for Halladay. Really? In addition to the whole "we waited all these years to never see him really play for the Angels?!" there are people who really think a year of Halladay is worth a boatload of prospects? This argument usually goes hand-in-hand with (b). Fans are so scared of seeing BWood flame out and his value plummet they want to cash him in now. First of all, other GMs know (just as we do) that he's an uncertain commodity. Secondly, he's not the only one we'd have to ship out to get Halladay. Most baseball writers put it at least a young starting pitcher from our rotation (Santana, Saunders, or Weaver), BWood, and two or three more prospects/players. That's a lot of club-controlled years. Furthermore, do we really want the FO to deplete the farm even more? (BA recently ranked the Angels at the middle of the pack.) Yes, they could work towards an extension with Halladay, but that has its own pratfalls. (1) The package to Toronto would have to be better, (2) The Angels would have no leverage when negotiating with Doc, (3) He's 31 - are you going to really give him 7-8 years?? (4) He's going to cost you a lot of money... Look, I'd jump at the deal to send BWood to Toronto for Doc straight up. I understand the difference between proven and unproven. But at the same time, I understand the efficiency of low-cost young players vs. high-priced veterans. Right now, the Halladay deal just doesn't make sense.

(4) BWood is a strikeout machine. Okay, I'll concede that I don't follow his strikeout stats and even if I were to look them up, I probably wouldn't be able to tell you if they were bad, really bad, or goddamn awful. What I do know is that it was a major hole in his game and one of the "reasons" he was kept in AAA for all these years. I also know that he's cut down on them, which is promising. I'm not saying that he won't strikeout a lot, but if he was able to improve before, maybe he can continue that improvement. Besides, power hitters are known to be prone to the strikeout (ie. Ryan Howard, Mark Reynolds, Carlos Pena).

(5) BWood is another Dallas McPherson. Okay, this one's ridiculous. First of all, DMac's biggest problem was his health (most notably his back). He couldn't stick on the roster long enough to really do anything or even develop. And I have yet to hear of BWood suffering from durability questions. Seriously. Ri-dic-u-lous.

I really think this overreaction is a product of fear, uncertainty, and a really boring offseason. Yeah, it's scary that so many key pieces can potentially leave. It's scary that these young-unproven kids dominate the roster. It's scary that Vlad/Figgy/Lackey/Oliver could end up with Seattle/Texas. It's scary that we won't really know what to expect from the team. (Well, we all know that everyone expects another AL West title.) And its so much easier to bitch about the FO not making any moves, not throwing money around, not getting the big names. I think its better to not make a move than to make one just cause (GMJ anyone?). I still think the FO should just let the kids play. Hey, how about using that surplus money to get a reliable 5th starter, or perhaps bring back Lackey? And using those draft picks to get some more stud prospects like Trout and the next wave of Angels.

I wish Figgy the best in Seattle. It's a good fit - a rising team, focused on defense and speed. Also, its a beautiful city - when it's sunny, that is.