Garza to Texas

[Grinch]

Per MLB Traderumors:

4:08pm: The Cubs will receive Olt, right-hander C.J. Edwards and one other player, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.

4:04pm: The Rangers have acquired Matt Garza from the Cubs, according to Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports (on Twitter). In a second tweet, Passan adds that Mike Olt is in the package. Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star Telegram tweets that Joe Ortiz could be in the package as well.

[Bodhizefa]

Yeah, I think everyone saw the writing on the wall that this was going to happen. Good deal for the Cubs, but some people will overestimate their haul -- Olt is kindof a crappy player and is really overrated in prospect circles.

[Grinch]

Yeah, I think everyone saw the writing on the wall that this was going to happen. Good deal for the Cubs, but some people will overestimate their haul -- Olt is kindof a crappy player and is really overrated in prospect circles.

Yeah, looked good for a brief period (small sample size) in Texas last year, but not a great body of work otherwise. Upside maybe a Luke Scott type.

[Ryno84MVP]

Yeah, I think everyone saw the writing on the wall that this was going to happen. Good deal for the Cubs, but some people will overestimate their haul -- Olt is kindof a crappy player and is really overrated in prospect circles.

I have my concerns about Olt (even before the vision problems), but regardless of that, where does he play in a couple of years? Kris Bryant or Javier Baez are likely to play 3B, and Anthony Rizzo is locked-in at 1B.

Final deal: Cubs trade Matt Garza to the Rangers for Mike Olt, C.J. Edwards, Justin Grimm and PTBNL.

https://twitter.com/JeffPassan/statu...23862015926272

[Grinch]

I have my concerns about Olt (even before the vision problems), but regardless of that, where does he play in a couple of years? Kris Bryant or Javier Baez are likely to play 3B, and Anthony Rizzo is locked-in at 1B.

DH???? Oh wait wrong side of Chicago.....


AAA????

[Hornsby]

Somebody gets to be a mediocre outfielder...not like Cub fans aren't used to that.

[chancellor]

Somebody gets to be a mediocre outfielder...not like Cub fans aren't used to that.

LOL...yeah, the thought crossed my mind that he can't possibly be worse than Soriano was a couple years ago. To be fair, Soriano actually hustles now so he's merely a below average LF instead of an atrocious one.

[BigJonEmpire]

Olt has some similarities to Ian Stewart who is wasting away in the minors now but if any of what I've read is true he has a far superior attitude.

[Don Quixote]

Olt has some similarities to Ian Stewart who is wasting away in the minors now but if any of what I've read is true he has a far superior attitude.

Given Stewart's major league numbers (.232/.319/.417, with his best BA and OBP .259 and .349 in 2008 and his best SLG .464 in 2009), he's right where he belongs if he's in AAA.

[rhd]

So who is the Rangers' top prospect now? Gallo? Jackson? Odor? Sardinas? Alfaro? Williams? Guzman? Mazara? Brinson? Ramirez? New draftee Gonzalez?

[joncarlos]

So who is the Rangers' top prospect now? Gallo? Jackson? Odor? Sardinas? Alfaro? Williams? Guzman? Mazara? Brinson? Ramirez? New draftee Gonzalez?

I have a feeling it depends a lot on who you ask. There's definitely no single answer. Alfaro has amazing tools but has miles to go. Same with Brinson. Gallo is producing but still has massive holes in his swing. Odor is polished but doesn't have ceiling and he's a 2B. Sardinas has the tools but maybe not the desire. Guzman is pretty polished but has no defensive upside. If he was hitting for any power I might pick him. Here's my list:

1. Someone from Hickory
2. Someone else from Hickory
3. Someone else from Hickory

But if I was forced to choose someone I'd choose Alfaro, just because his defensive tools probably give him a better floor than most people, even if he ends up a .220-10HR backup catcher. And he still has a massive ceiling. And I'd probably put Gonzalez 2nd.

[Don Quixote]

Baseball America writeup on the three prospects that the Cubs nabbed in the deal:

http://www.baseballamerica.com/major...or-matt-garza/

Good writeup, thanks for posting it. It reinforces my thinking that the Cubs did pretty well in this deal.

[rhd]

So who is the Rangers' top prospect now? Gallo? Jackson? Odor? Sardinas? Alfaro? Williams? Guzman? Mazara? Brinson? Ramirez? New draftee Gonzalez?

This exchange in the BA chat today gives BA's ideas on this question:

@Jaypers413 (IL): With the graduation of Profar and the departure of Olt, who gets your vote as Texas' top overall prospect right now?

Jim Shonerd: I’m really intrigued by Luke Jackson. Rougned Odor is another guy to watch for, along with the Hickory crew (Alfaro, Gallo, etc.)

[rhd]

And from Jim Callis in today's 'Ask BA':

My current top five: catcher/first baseman Jorge Alfaro, shortstop Luis Sardinas, third baseman Joey Gallo, righty Luke Jackson and second baseman Rougned Odor. He doesn’t have the lofty ceiling of the position players I have ranked ahead of him, but Odor is a safer bet to become a solid regular in the big leagues.

[joncarlos]

And from Jim Callis in today's 'Ask BA':

My current top five: catcher/first baseman Jorge Alfaro, shortstop Luis Sardinas, third baseman Joey Gallo, righty Luke Jackson and second baseman Rougned Odor. He doesn’t have the lofty ceiling of the position players I have ranked ahead of him, but Odor is a safer bet to become a solid regular in the big leagues.

Literally just coming here now to post this. Strong work.