TRADE - Cleveland and Oakland Swap Second Basemen

With a deal going down today involving the Cleveland Rock 'N Rollers and the Oakland Osprey, let's break out the inaugural edition of the TRADE ANALYZER.  In this spot, I will try to analyze, as fairly as possible, any trades that take place in the MBL.  With that being said, let me offer up this disclaimer.

I understand that people make trades for different reasons, and that no trade will be completely equal in value exchanged.  The opinions expressed here forth are my opinions only.  Please to not take offense to anything written.  I promise I will analyze the deals as fair as possible.  It is not my intention to offend anyone involved.  This is for purely entertainment purposes only.

So having said that, let's start dissecting the deal at hand.


CLEVELAND sends IF/OF Mark McLemore and the their 2001 1st round pick to OAKLAND in exchange for 2B Edgardo Alfonzo.

This is an interesting deal between two teams who currently both sit in the basement of their respective divisions.  Cleveland manager Brian Feig is obviously looking to improve this season with the acquisition of Alfonzo while trading away his 1st round pick next season.  And although the Rock 'N Rollers are currently in last place, their record of 18-23 puts them only five games back in the Classic League's Rust Belt Division.  With a home record of only 8-10, a +29 run differential, and a record of 4-8 in one-run games and 0-3 in extra innings, it's not hard to imagine this team improving in the standings even without this deal being made.  Alfonzo should only improve their lineup for the current season.

Oakland, on the other hand, actually has a better record than Cleveland at this point in the year, sitting at only one game under .500 with a 19-20 mark.  But Oakland manager Steve Kornmuller finds himself in a different spot than Cleveland manager Feig.  His Osprey are currently nine games out of the Expansion League's Pacific Division lead, trailing the 29-13 San Francisco Quakers for the top spot.  Not to say that it's time to panic, with the season not yet a quarter of the way completed and a wildcard birth easily within reach, but building for the future by acquiring a 1st round pick is never a bad idea.  And it's not like McLemore is chopped liver.  He has some value as well as we will see.


Of course, the prize of this deal for the current season is obviously Alfonzo.  An All-Star for the only time in his 12 year career in the year 2000, Alfonzo was coming off a 1999 campaign which saw him finish 8th in the NL MVP voting.  But 2000 was unquestionably the best year of his career, a season which saw him hit .324 with 40 doubles and 25 home runs.  His on-base percentage was a robust .425, and his .967 OBP was nearly 100 percentage points higher than any other time in his career.

Alfonzo drops off quite precipitously in 2001, only hitting .243 with a meager .322 OBP.  He's almost unplayable against LHP, hitting only .211 with a .277 OBP against southpaws that year.  He switches positions in 2002 to third base and bounces back with a solid season slash line of .308/.391/.459, earning a Clutch rating to boot.  That equates to a very solid .851 OPS.  He also figured out the lefties in 2002 as he checked in with .364/.477/.545 slash against them.  He was traded to the San Francisco Giants in 2003 and finished his career there with three solid yet unspectacular seasons.

For the 2000 MBL year, Alfonzo has a triple slash of .321/.405/.537 with eight homers.
Alfonzo's career statistics:  http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/a/alfoned01.shtml

Mark McLemore was 35 years old and entering his 15th season in the majors in the year 2000.  But that's not to say he was done.  As a matter of fact, his two best offensive years were yet to come.  So for the purposes of our deal here, he has plenty left to offer.

In 2000, he is more than serviceable.  His slash of .245/.353/.316 is nothing to write home about, but he's actually very good against LHP, getting on-base at a .393 clip.  He's excellent in the field at second base and in left field.  And to boot, he's also an excellent bunter and baserunner.  He actually stole 30 bases in the year 2000.  So even though he is nowhere near as good as Alfonzo for the current season, he can easily provide decent production as a replacement at second base.

Where McLemore really shines is in the next two seasons, years 2001 and 2002.  Those two years were arguably the two best of his long, 19-year career.  His OBP surpassed .380 in both, and he stole 39 bases in 2001.  He's also super versatile, playing the utility role as good as anyone, getting ratings at seven different positions.  Great baserunner as well.  He played a limited role in both 2003 and 2004 before retiring.

The odd thing when it comes to McLemore is his splits between left and right handed pitching.  In 2000, he excels against LHP, but he's virtually unplayable against them in both 2001 and 2002, hitting only .169 and .152 in those two seasons respectively.  Of course, that means that he is a terror against RHP in both of those years.  If Steve can find somebody to play against the southpaws, McLemore can provide a platoon player in the lineup on a regular basis.  If not, he's great off the bench as a fill in against RHP.

McLemore is currently sitting on a .208/.317/.272 triple slash line with three stolen bases.
McLemore's career statistics:  http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/m/mclemma01.shtml

This deal in the end will likely depend on how the Cleveland 1st round selection pans out.  There are some good players that will be available in the 2001 draft, including names like Albert Pujols, Ichiro Suzuki, CC Sabathia, Roy Oswalt, Adam Dunn, Josh Beckett, Brian Roberts and Ben Sheets just to name a few.  That's eight names right there.  There are currently four teams in the MBL with a worse record than Cleveland, with four other teams tied with them with the identical 19-23 record.  If the Rock 'N Rollers fail to improve and finish in the bottom half of the standings, then Oakland is going to get a very good player in this deal.

SUMMARY
In the end, this is a deal that helps out both teams.  I love the fact that Brian is making a push to improve his team for the current season.  Alfonzo is a dynamic bat in 2000 at a position that few big bats exist.  It's hard to pick a winner or loser in this deal until we find out how the 2001 draft plays out.  If Cleveland isn't able to improve in the standings and one of the above mentioned players is available for Steve to draft, then I think the Osprey come out ahead in the end.  My thinking though is that the Rock 'N Rollers will use Alfonzo to make a move in their division, one that is easily winnable for them.  If that happens, their pick will be in the bottom half of the round, meaning most of the prime selections will most certainly be gone.  Of course, by trading Alonzo, Oakland may dip in the standings, landing them in one of the prime spots for the aforementioned players.

This is about as even as a trade can be in my estimation.  In the end, I'm gonna use the theory that whoever gets the best player in the deal is the winner.  With that thinking in mind, I'm giving the slight edge to Brian and the Rock 'N Rollers for the sole reason that Alfonzo's card is so good in 2000.  If Steve's gamble pays off and Cleveland does not improve, then Oakland is in prime position for two top picks in the 2001 draft.  If that happens, then the Osprey clearly come out on top.