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Thread: Kluber Traded to Rangers

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    King of TalkSox a700hitter's Avatar
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    Kluber Traded to Rangers

    Rangers To Acquire Corey Kluber

    By Anthony Franco | December 15, 2019 at 11:44am CDT
    11:44 am: Center fielder Delino DeShields, Jr. is also headed to Cleveland, reports Rosenthal (via Twitter).
    11:42 am: Reliever Emmanuel Clase is part of the return heading to Cleveland, hears Levi Weaver of the Athletic (via Twitter).
    11:07 am: The Rangers are finalizing a deal to acquire Corey Kluber from the Indians, reports Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic (via Twitter). The deal is agreed to, pending physicals of the players involved, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network (via Twitter).
    A fractured forearm and an oblique strain combined to limit Kluber to just seven underwhelming starts in 2019, but he was one of the sport’s true aces over the preceding half-decade. From 2014-18, Kluber averaged over 200 innings per season with a 2.85 ERA and a nearly-identical 2.84 FIP. Among qualified starters, only Clayton Kershaw, Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer bested that ERA, while only Chris Sale, Kershaw and Scherzer topped Kluber’s combination of strikeouts (28.5%) and walks (5.2%). Kluber was twice rewarded for his dominance with the AL Cy Young Award in 2014 and 2017.
    Of course, it’s anyone’s guess whether the 33-year-old Kluber will recapture that level of dominance. Kluber’s initial injury was certainly fluky, as he was struck by a 102 MPH line drive off the bat of Miami’s Brian Anderson. Prior to the injury, though, he hadn’t quite resembled his previous self. Kluber’s strikeout rate was down to just 22.6% in 2019, while his walk rate spiked 8.9%. His fastball velocity, per Brooks Baseball, sat at a career-low 92.43 MPH, although pitchers tend to pick up velocity as they distance themselves from spring training, a luxury Kluber was never afforded. Kluber’s velocity has trended down consistently in recent years, though, and he now sits about two ticks slower than he did at his 2014 peak.
    Kluber will make $17.5MM next season, and he is under control through 2021 via an $18MM team option (or a $1MM buyout). As Rosenthal notes (via Twitter), Kluber will receive a $1MM assignment bonus once the trade is finalized.
    So continues an offseason trend for the Rangers, who have strengthened their starting rotation considerably. Kluber joins Kyle Gibson and Jordan Lyles (both of whom were brought in via free agency) to complement the strong duo of Lance Lynn and Mike Minor. Having missed out on their top free agent target, Anthony Rendon, the Rangers were reportedly pivoting to the trade market to address gaps on the roster.
    Clase was among a handful of players generating interest league-wide. The 21-year-old made his MLB debut in 2019 and turned in 23.1 innings of 2.31 ERA ball. A fastball-slider reliever, Clase averaged an astounding 99.44 MPH on his heater, topping out at 102.02 MPH. He didn’t generate as many strikeouts in his brief MLB time (22.3%) as one may expect given that velocity, but he did induce ground balls on upwards of 60% of balls in play against him. He’s also thrown a high volume of strikes the past few seasons, culminating in a 6.4% walk rate at the highest level. He comes with six seasons of team control and figures to profile as a long-term bullpen asset for manager Terry Francona.
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    Minimal return for two years of an ace.

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    Quote Originally Posted by jacksonianmarch View Post
    Minimal return for two years of an ace.
    Injured.
    Sox 4 Ever

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    Quote Originally Posted by jacksonianmarch View Post
    Minimal return for two years of an ace.
    Yes if Kluber is healthy and returns to form. No if he simply pitches sporadically and is nowhere near the pitcher he once was for games when he is active.

    That Cleveland accepted so little for him - and they know his health situation better than any team - suggests the latter is certainly a distinct possibility...

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    Quote Originally Posted by notin View Post
    Yes if Kluber is healthy and returns to form. No if he simply pitches sporadically and is nowhere near the pitcher he once was for games when he is active.

    That Cleveland accepted so little for him - and they know his health situation better than any team - suggests the latter is certainly a distinct possibility...
    He was turning a corner after a bad start to the season when the line drive broke his arm. I am betting that he returns to form.
    The King of TalkSox has Spoken.

    Quote Originally Posted by a700hitter View Post
    Chaim, you are in the big leagues now. Drawing 10,000 fans a game is not going to cut it, and people don’t buy tickets to Fenway to talk about the Farm

    Quote Originally Posted by notin View Post
    "Relief pitchers are a crapshoot." No, the truth is "Crapshoot pitchers are relievers."

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    I don't know what his medicals look like, but man, even if he only returns to being a mid-rotation starter, that's a steal for Texas.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Jack Flap View Post
    I don't know what his medicals look like, but man, even if he only returns to being a mid-rotation starter, that's a steal for Texas.
    He's basically being paid like Jake Odirizzi right now. The question is, can he pitch as well as Odirizzi (4.3 fWAR, 131 ERA+)?

    It's not just about the players Texas gave up. It's also about the salary involved...

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    Quote Originally Posted by a700hitter View Post
    He was turning a corner after a bad start to the season when the line drive broke his arm. I am betting that he returns to form.
    But the Indians clearly feel differently. Sometimes you have to wonder why that is...

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    TalkSox Ascended Master mvp 78's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by notin View Post
    But the Indians clearly feel differently. Sometimes you have to wonder why that is...
    They prefer Trevor Bauer's makeup.
    Quote Originally Posted by moonslav59 View Post
    ( I won't say the "C word.")

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    Quote Originally Posted by mvp 78 View Post
    They prefer Trevor Bauer's makeup.
    They traded him away for a pretty good haul. Tough to trade your ace midseason and still make the playoffs, but the Indians nearly pulled it off...

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    Quote Originally Posted by notin View Post
    He's basically being paid like Jake Odirizzi right now. The question is, can he pitch as well as Odirizzi (4.3 fWAR, 131 ERA+)?

    It's not just about the players Texas gave up. It's also about the salary involved...
    Well, I'm not even confident that Jake Odorizzi will continue to pitch like this year's Jake Odorizzi, which is probably why he accepted the qualifying offer.

    Another point of reference is that Kluber will be paid $4.5 million less next year than Rick Porcello's AAV on his just-concluded Red Sox contract.

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    Deity moonslav59's Avatar
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    Makes you wonder, if we hadn't been in such a budget mess, right now, we could have gotten Bumgarner & Kluber for close to what Price is making.
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    Quote Originally Posted by moonslav59 View Post
    Makes you wonder, if we hadn't been in such a budget mess, right now, we could have gotten Bumgarner & Kluber for close to what Price is making.

    Bumgarner would have never signed with Boston. The guy is a pure country hick. We’re talking about a guy who once gave his wife a cow for an anniversary present.

    Where is he going to keep a cow in Boston??

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    Quote Originally Posted by notin View Post
    Bumgarner would have never signed with Boston. The guy is a pure country hick. We’re talking about a guy who once gave his wife a cow for an anniversary present.

    Where is he going to keep a cow in Boston??
    He could have lived in Western Mass or NH/Maine/Vermont.
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    Quote Originally Posted by notin View Post
    But the Indians clearly feel differently. Sometimes you have to wonder why that is...
    It could just be a financial move.
    The King of TalkSox has Spoken.

    Quote Originally Posted by a700hitter View Post
    Chaim, you are in the big leagues now. Drawing 10,000 fans a game is not going to cut it, and people don’t buy tickets to Fenway to talk about the Farm

    Quote Originally Posted by notin View Post
    "Relief pitchers are a crapshoot." No, the truth is "Crapshoot pitchers are relievers."

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