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Friday, July 24, 2009Holliday to CardsPosted by Paul Singman at 11:06pmAs you probably already know, Matt Holliday has been traded to the St. Louis Cardinals for prospects Brett Wallace, Shane Peterson, and Clayton Mortensen. Cards fans are hoping this is not Mark Mulder Trade Part 2, and more like the Tim Hudson deal the A's made with the Braves three days earlier. Holliday is at least healthy (impressively played for Cards tonight, batted fourth behind Pujols, and went 4-for-5 with a double and a steal) so that is a good start. From a fantasy perspective the trade is good for the two major pieces involved. Holliday gets a boost in value entering a much more impressive lineup and batting behind the best hitter in the world. I would say Pujols will benefit from Holliday's presence as well, but I am not sure we can expect Pujols' numbers to actually improve. The key prospect the A's received in return, Brett Wallace, now has a clear path to the majors. Wallace is currently playing third base in Triple-A this year, however because of his 6-foot-1, 245 pound frame scouts think his eventual home will be first base. The Cardinals have EDIT: Wallace projects as a high-average mid-power type—I've heard Billy Butler and Pablo Sandoval comparisons—so do not have to high expectations of him, at least not in his first couple of seasons. The power may develop further in the future, nobody can know for sure, but no one would be complaining with a .290, 15-20 home run third baseman. It seems the trick to his value long-term will be staying at third base and not moving over to first. The two players hurt most by the trade are Colby Rasmus and Rick Ankiel, who both figure to lose playing time, though we will have to wait see which one loses more. Ankiel got the nod tonight in center, but that might not be the case going forward. Both are left-handed hitters by the way, so a righty/lefty platoon is not in the works. Eric Patterson was called up to take Holliday's spot on the Oakland roster and got the start today in center, but I do not believe he will get most of the playing time. Rajai Davis and Ryan Sweeney I would think will platoon in center, Hairston will man left, and Travis Buck and later Aaron Cunningham may now be in line for some PT in right. The A's outfield picture is still muddy and most of these players are borderline fantasy-relevant—especially when splitting time—so I would not worry about how things shake out. Travis Buck, who is playing well in Triple-A right now, is one guy I would keep an eye on in deep leagues. From a fantasy perspective, the other two players the A's received are pretty much irrelevant. If you are in a dynasty league and want to know who they are, I'll link to Evan's write-up of the trade again because he discusses the makeup of those two guys. Paul has been managing fantasy baseball teams for many seasons and writing for THT Fantasy over the past three years. He is currently a student at UPenn welcomes readers' thoughts at his email here or in the comments below.
Paul Singman said...
Thanks for catching that LVW, cannot believe I made that mistake. Late night, I guess. I suppose Wallace was not really blocked at third in St. Louis either—at least while Glaus cannot play there—so the Cardinals envisioned him as a first baseman only. Whatever the case, the A’s will certainly be more willing to experiment with the youngster in the majors since, unlike the Cardinals, they are not involved in a pennant race. Posted 07/25 at 01:47 PM
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Rolen is in Toronto, not St. Louis. Joe Thurston has been the Cardinals primary 3rdbaseman this year.