Dramatic Transaction Reenactments - Episode 2: Yuni to KC

In the second installment of the potentially ongoing series Dramatic Transaction Reenactments, we get an inside look at how the Royals acquired shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt. In the process, we see the remarkable lengths that Z will go to keep deals secret, plus a raw, and perhaps sobering, glimpse into how the Royals operate.

As with the first video, some liberties may have been taken. It is a Dramatic Transaction Reenactment, after all:

Yuni to the Royals

Last night, an "organizational decision" was made to pull Yuniesky Betancourt from the game in Tacoma. In other words, the move wasn't injury-related, meaning Yuni had been traded but the M's couldn't say that officially yet. The move that seemed imminent last night was finally announced. Now, officially, Yuni is going to the Kansas City Royals for pitching prospects Dan Cortes and Derrick Saito.

Betancourt is a known commodity, and a frustrating one at that. He has talent, and perhaps a change of scenery will do him good. It was so aggravating watching him get worse and worse each year, both at the plate and in the field, even though he is still just 27 years old. While Yuni and Don Wakamatsu did not butt heads, Betancourt seemed oblivious to Don's constant prods to be more patient at the plate, and focus more on the field. It looked like the coaching staff may have been breaking through right before Yuni got injured, but it is hard to tell. Regardless, he is not a big loss for the Mariners. Even if Ronny Cedeno bats .150 the rest of the year, he has better patience at the plate than Betancourt (which isn't saying much at all, but still is true), a little more power, and much better defense. Personally, I think Cedeno will improve at the plate with more playing time; it's just a question of how much. The bottom line is that the M's are better off with Cedeno playing every day anyway.

Now, on to who the M's acquired. Derrick Saito is a diminutive 21-year-old southpaw, listed at just 5'9" and 155 pounds. He is in his first full season of professional baseball, and at first glance it is an unimpressive one. In low-A he has a 2-6 record and 4.15 ERA coming out of the bullpen. However, Saito is the victim of some bad luck. In 52 innings, he has allowed 50 hits and 4 home runs, while walking 15 and striking out 53. All those numbers are darn good. A lefty that can come out of the bullpen and strikeout lefties and righties, while also keep the ball in the yard, has some value.

The big catch in the trade though is Dan Cortes. He is 22 years old, and repeating AA. Why he needs to repeat AA is beyond me, because he was the Royals 2008 minor league pitcher of the year, and rated their top pitching prospect coming into this season, with the best fastball and curveball of all of Kansas City's prospective hurlers. His strikeouts are down considerably this year, but so are his home runs, and he is getting more ground balls too. Ultimately, his ERA is about the same, so judging from his numbers it looks like he is trying to pitch to contact more this season, and it is working. At 6'6", 215 pounds, Cortes has a great frame for pitching, and his classic fastball-curveball combo plays well at any level. Perhaps his value has sunk with the lower strikeout rate and a lack of clear progress despite repeating AA - but still, the Mariners got this guy AND another pitching prospect for Yuni Betancourt.

Jack Z is a magician. Betancourt shouldn't have netted this caliber of pitching talent. Of course, the only reason the M's could even consider dealing Yuni is because they have acquired Ronny Cedeno, Josh Wilson, and Chris Woodward for practically nothing over the course of the past six months. Say what you want about the trio's shortcomings, but the M's had Betancourt, Miguel Cairo, and Tug Hulett last year, and that was it. I would have played Hulett over Betancourt, but the point is that the M's have three guys as good or better than Yuni right now instead of just one.

Then again, Jack Z probably is not done. Pittsburgh scouts are in Seattle right now, and both Freddy Sanchez and Jack Wilson make a whole bunch of sense for the M's. Still, the Betancourt deal can stand on its own. The team right now was not going to be any better with Yuni's return, and the future just got brighter with Cortes and Saito added to the minor league system.

Kansas City has kept Tony Pena (a less powerful, even more aggressive version of Yuni) on the roster all year, so I can see why they would be willing to take a chance on Betancourt. I don't understand why they think so much of him to give up as much as they did, but I'm not going to ask questions. I've watched the M's pull the trigger on deals like Asdrubal Cabrera for Eduardo Perez in the past, and I've kept telling myself that some day a GM would come to Seattle and pull a similar deal in the M's favor. Maybe this is the trade (or maybe it has already happened with how great Gutierrez looks), but I am sure that Jack Z is the man that will make it happen with deals like this one.

A Dramatic Comeback Bigger Than Most

I usually like to look ahead and stay focused on the big picture on the blog, but every now and then a game comes along that deserves a recap. This is one of those games. It was almost one of those games before the eighth inning, and definitely one of those after it.

The Mariners came into tonight a beat up team, more emotionally than physically. Rob Johnson and Russell Branyan were both back after attending funerals, but it is not as if the grieving process is completely over now that they are back. On top of that, the bullpen got taxed pretty badly yesterday as the team continues to stretch out Brandon Morrow, so it was up to Jarrod Washburn to pitch deep into tonight's ballgame, with a back that has been giving him problems lately. One look at the starting lineup gave a sense of how the team is faring right now. The last four hitters combined have hit a total of three home runs this season.

The game got frustrating quickly. The Mariners were getting hits off Jon Garland, but stranded runners all over the bases. Jarrod Washburn started to get squeezed a bit with the strike zone, and then got a really bad break with the Stephen Drew bunt. Drew was on the grass for a few steps, which is clearly inside the baseline. Not surprisingly, Washburn hit him with the throw to first, allowing a run to score without any out being recorded. Drew should have been called out, and the runners should not have advanced. That changed the whole complexion of the inning, allowed a couple runs to score, and ran up Washburn's pitch count on a night the M's needed him to work deep into the ballgame. Meanwhile, the offense continued to strand runners. It was a frustrating game.

Frustration gave way to despair in the fifth inning on a soft fly ball to short left field. It was in no man's land, and both Yuniesky Betancourt and Endy Chavez charged after it full speed. Betancourt caught it, but in the process uprooted Chavez, who went down hard, and immediately was writhing in obvious pain. It was an ugly collision that halted the game for several minutes. Endy was ultimately carted off the field, a very rare sight in baseball. The moment was sobering, and made the frustration of the game sink into an even worse feeling. With how the game was going, and how that past few weeks have gone off the field for this team, this felt like the latest blow. If there was ever a game to mail in, this was it.

Washburn had other plans though. He settled into a nice groove, and made it through seven innings. He has been criticized many times for his inability to pitch deep into ballgames as a Mariner, but he deserves credit tonight. Considering his back was not feeling completely healthy, and the bad non-call on the bunt early on, Washburn hung in the game valiantly. He deserves credit for stepping up and delivering a quality start in the face of adversity, frustration, and watching a teammate getting carted off the field. Washburn sent the message that this game was not over.

Then came the eighth inning. The Mariners still had not scored. Russell Branyan scorched a missile into the right field seats to finally get the Mariners on the board. Adrian Beltre got on base, bringing the tying run to the plate. With two outs, Wladimir Balentien was slated to come to the plate, but Don Wakamatsu decided to pinch-hit with Ken Griffey Jr. Safeco Field came to life with a standing ovation, as thousands of fans in the ballpark and across the Pacific Northwest got the same magical vision in their head, dreaming, "what if..."

Tony Pena set, and delivered his high-octane gas. Ken Griffey Jr., the aging, 30-something slugger that has lost more than a step or two, and sat on the bench the entire game through unseasonably cold weather, had the odds stacked against him. The odds should have been stacked against him at least. However, Griffey wasted no time and attacked the heater with that sweet black bat of his, and even sweeter swing.

The click.

The drop of the bat.

The gaze.

The deficit was erased. Ken Griffey Jr., the aging, 30-something slugger, is still Ken Griffey Jr.

The game was far from over though. The inning was far from over for that matter. Chris Woodward reached base for the second time on the night via a grounder that was just a tad too far to Stephen Drew's right. That set the stage for Rob Johnson, fresh off the bereavement list after attending the funeral for his mother-in-law, who unexpectedly lost her life in a car accident. Not known for his hitting anyway, Johnson found a way to turn on a Tony Pena fireball too, and laced it down the left field line. It kicked away from Eric Byrnes, easily allowing Woodward to score, and with a headfirst dive Johnson made it all the way into third base with his first triple of the season. It might be the sharpest Johnson has hit a ball all year. The Mariners, a team frustrated, battered, and bruised in about every way imaginable, dug down somewhere deep and pulled out some magic. An inspired David Aardsma came out of the bullpen, and shut the door emphatically, striking out the side with pure heat.

The Mariners came into the game a team that could use some good news. The road trip was not all that bad on the field, but spirits had to be down with the personal problems mounting. Throw on top of that injuries, especially the one to Chavez in the middle of tonight's game, and it all seemed unfair. In the end, this team made their own breaks tonight, and gutted out a magical victory that they can feel great about.

It is dangerous to put lots of stock in one game, especially in baseball, but tonight's game was bigger than most. This clubhouse needed something to go right after all the things that have unexpectedly gone wrong the past couple weeks. It was not to the point where this team was going to completely lose it, but you could feel the season slowly slipping away. Tonight stopped the bleeding. It may not be the start of a hot streak, and it did not transform the team, or fix any of its holes. However, this team really needed something to feel good about it, and it got exactly that tonight. This is the kind of victory the team can rally behind, and think back on when the next rough patch happens. Tonight said something about this team's mettle, and also galvanized the team further. The Mariners needed a game like this to stay in the pennant race.

Trade Worth Exploring #3

There are a couple versions of this deal. I am not sure if either are realistic, but they are worth exploring.

Brewers trade SS J.J. Hardy to the Mariners for SS Yuniesky Betancourt, SP Jarrod Washburn, RP J.J. Putz, and RP Mark Lowe

Why it makes sense for the Mariners: The Mariners need offense and defense, and they have a logjam in their pitching staff. While the loss of Putz would be noticed, Washburn and Lowe's combined 2008 production is replaceable from within, and Hardy would be a major upgrade over Betancourt.

Why it makes sense for the Brewers: With Ben Sheets and CC Sabathia hitting the free agent market (and Salomon Torres unexpectedly retiring), Milwaukee has all sorts of pitching holes. Washburn and Putz would fill a couple of them. Betancourt would be a downgrade at shortstop, but Milwaukee thinks top prospect Alcides Escobar is nearly ready for the majors anyway. If he is ready now, Betancourt could slide over to second, and Milwaukee's infield defense would be better than last year's. All of those are fairly short-term fixes though, so Mark Lowe is a piece that can stay in the organization for years to come, given that they are giving up a young shortstop that could be a Mariner for years to come.

Problems with the deal: The legitimacy of this deal is contingent on what the Brewers think of Betancourt and Lowe. Do they still think Yuni is a great fielder, and could be a decent hitter? Do they think Mark Lowe can re-gain the dominance he flashed when he first came up? If they say yes to both, this deal should be tempting. If they say no to both (as I would), they will probably look for better deals.

I'm not sure how Milwaukee would react to trade posed above. If they rejected it, I would make the follwing offer:

Brewers trade 2B Rickie Weeks and SS J.J. Hardy to the Mariners for SS Yuniesky Betancourt, SP Erik Bedard, RP J.J. Putz, OF Jeremy Reed, and RP Mark Lowe.

Why it makes sense for the Mariners: It's pretty much the same as above. The Mariners need offense and defense. Rickie Weeks could be the DH (as the M's try to move him to the outfield), and J.J. Hardy becomes the every-day shortstop. They M's also alleviate their pitching logjam with this deal.

Why it makes sense for the Brewers: If Bedard and Putz return to All-Star form, they more than offset the loss of J.J. Hardy, especially if Alcides Escobar is ready for the majors. Even if Escobar isn't ready though, Betancourt can play shortstop and utility man Bill Hall could take over at second. The bench would not be left bare thanks to Jeremy Reed, who is a decent pinch-hitting option and solid fourth outfielder.

Problems with the deal: How healthy do the Brewers think Putz and Bedard are, and how much are the Brewers thinking only about next year? This would be a risky trade with the possibility for big immediate returns. If they like Betancourt and Lowe enough as long-term options, this deal would look more attractive to them.

The Mariners should aggressively pursue a J.J. Hardy trade. If the Brewers are intrigued by J.J. Putz, Erik Bedard, and Jarrod Washburn, there may be a deal to be made. Hardy would be an upgrade offensively and defensively, and he is also under team control for a few years before he is even eligible for free agency. Beltre and Hardy would be oen of the best left diamond combos in all of baseball.

Trade Worth Exploring #2

Mariners trade SS Yuniesky Betancourt to the Royals for 1B Ryan Shealy

Why it makes sense for the Mariners: Bavasi and friends were in love with Yuni, and I was too when he first came up. However, he has shown a stunning lack of plate discipline that keeps him from becoming a very solid hitter. More troublesome is how much his defense has deteriorated though. Betancourt was horribly overrated by Bavasi and friends by the end of their tenure. He could conceivably be replaced by Tug Hulett, and Shealy would be a noticeable upgrade at first base.

Why it makes sense for the Royals: There are rumors that they are interested in Yuni Betancourt, and if they acquired him they would like shift Mike Aviles over to second base. Essentially, Betancourt would be replacing Mark Grudzielanek then. With the acquisition of Mike Jacobs, the Royals have a logjam at first base, and Shealy does not seem to fit in real well at this point.

Problems with the deal: Yuni has more pure talent than Shealy, and he plays a more premium position too. There still is a part of me that believes Betancourt could blossom into a darn good player, and all it might take is a little better player development. A Jack Zduriencik front office might provide the development that Betancourt needs. Basically, the problem is that this deal could potentially look bad for the Mariners if Betancourt develops into the type of player most thought he would be.

It is still a deal worth exploring and considering though, mostly because I am no longer sold on Yuni Betancourt as a long-term solution at shortstop. Furthermore, I believe Tug is capable of replacing Yuni's contributions the last couple seasons, and I like that Tug is much more patient at the plate. If Yuni is replacable from within the organization, and he is not a long-term solution, it makes sense to use him as a trade chip to acquire other talent that will improve the team.