Wacha

[whalewang]

Is it time to sell on Wacha (in keeper leagues) or hold him? He reminds me a little of Medlen from last year.

[revo]

Always depends on what you can get for him, doesn't it?

I see no resemblance to Medlen outside of terrific performance. Wacha was an extremely well thought of prospect who rose to the majors in a startlingly quick fashion and performed very, very well. He's legit. Medlen, on the other hand, was drafted in the 37th round and topped out as the Braves #9 prospect (he never made any prospect lists that I'm aware of). Wacha was drafted in the 1st round and was Baseball America's #76 prospect in 2012, his only year in the minors.

I'd need to be pretty overwhelmed to deal him, myself.

Agreed, I'd have to get blown away to deal him.

[joncarlos]

Yeah, it's time to sell. Paul and Jason said last week (before last night's good start) that they thought he would be a $12-$14 guy in LABR. I thought that was too low then and now I think it's WAY too low. I think he's legitimately a $15-$17 guy and might go for $22-$24.

[Moonlight J]

The postseason is going to inflate his value. I thought he'd be like Alex Cobb after the end of the season - now he's going to be Harvey lotto ticket and I'd rather let someone else have it.

[Hornsby]

Just remember TINSTAAPP...once he gets around the league a couple of times, hitters will get a book on him and he's going to get hit. At that point, he's got to adjust, and he will, in large part because of Yadi. But he's not going to win 20 games or the CY next season...time to deal him is now.

[Hornsby]

No way could you get equivalent value for Wacha, imo. Simply saying "sell" is pretty meaningless. Sell for whom? Russell Martin? Albert Pujols? Miguel Cabrera? Melky Cabrera?

Wacha is clearly legit. He's also clearly a pitcher and carries more inherent danger of injury. Still, he's a top 10 NL pitcher easily, in my opinion, and has the potential to be even better than that. Unless you, as a Wacha owner, get a really impressive offer for him there's no reason to sell based on what appear to be faulty assumptions. Hey, if he goes out and puts up a 4.50 ERA with a 1.40 WHIP next year then I'll eat my words. That won't happen.

He's got as good as good a chance to be a 3.75 pitcher with a 1.30 WHIP as a pitcher with a 3.00 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP. The league WILL adjust to him...

And now is the point where you CAN get more than what Wacha will be worth in 2014...if he has a bad April, your chances to cash that lottery ticket will be lost. If you really thought that highly of him, why didn't you ever put him in the line-up in the RJEL?

[Moonlight J]

No way could you get equivalent value for Wacha, imo. Simply saying "sell" is pretty meaningless. Sell for whom? Russell Martin? Albert Pujols? Miguel Cabrera? Melky Cabrera?

Wacha is clearly legit. He's also clearly a pitcher and carries more inherent danger of injury. Still, he's a top 10 NL pitcher easily, in my opinion, and has the potential to be even better than that. Unless you, as a Wacha owner, get a really impressive offer for him there's no reason to sell based on what appear to be faulty assumptions. Hey, if he goes out and puts up a 4.50 ERA with a 1.40 WHIP next year then I'll eat my words. That won't happen.

That's an incredibly bold statement based on a limited sample size.

[whalewang]

Kershaw
Wainwright
Strasburg
Cliff Lee
Hamels
Greinke
Jose Fernandez
Cain

Latos
Gio Gonzalez
Zimmermann
Bailey
Minor
Shelby Miller
Cole
Cueto
Teheran
Cingrani
Wacha

The top 8 are pretty clear to me. I can see Wacha fall into the 9th or 10th spot on some lists.

[Hornsby]

Well, I did say it was my opinion, no? My opinion is not only based on a small sample size in the majors but also minor league success, control and quality of pitches, pedigree, and pitching intelligence (as far as I can tell from location and pitch selection). His fastball and his change are plus plus pitches and he keeps hitters honest with great location (see Dave Cameron's Fangraphs article) and the ability to throw in a couple other pitches (a curve and a a cutter). He appears to be using the breaking ball more and more (as evidenced in his consecutive near no-hitters) as he gains confidence in the pitches. Still, it's an opinion. I know I'd take Wacha ahead of several pitchers on whalewang's list. He has a very impressive combination of overpowering stuff with great finesse.

As for why I didn't put him in my active lineup, which is an irrelevant strawman in itself, I was unsure that he'd get past rookie eligibility. Moreover, he was a middle reliever when he was being misused by the Cardinals for weeks straight.

I stand by what I said. If you can get an awesome return for him (or any player), go for it. I would not trade him for anything other than an overwhelming offer and I have damn good reason for thinking that way.

Not an irrelevant strawman at all...IMO, if you really thought that he was a top 10 pitcher, you would have had him in your lineup ahead of several lesser pitchers that you ended up using. He started every game he pitched in in September. I get that you we're trying to save a yer, but you were also in the running for a money spot.

[Hornsby]

Not that interested in your backseat managing. I made my decisions intentionally. I preferred the #1 overall draft pick to finishing in the last money spot. That was my call. But, yeah, wholly irrelevant strawman that has close to zero to do with Wacha's pitching ability.

You keep telling yourself that...

[Don Quixote]

Not that interested in your backseat managing. I made my decisions intentionally. I preferred the #1 overall draft pick to finishing in the last money spot. That was my call. But, yeah, wholly irrelevant strawman that has close to zero to do with Wacha's pitching ability.

I'm not going to criticize that decision, given my lofty spot in the standings. I'd like to have had that "dilemma".

Getting back to Wacha--IMO he's the kind of cheap pitcher who can make your whole season. If I owned him, there's no way I'd deal him in the off-season, and the only way I'd trade him during the season is if I'm in contention and get multiple pieces of the puzzle in return (say, a dumping team's high-priced Miggy plus a respectable SP).

Sure, all pitchers are a crap shoot (and for me, usually crap more than shoot), but if you have one this good that cheaply, you count your blessings and keep him in the lineup UNLESS it's for a reason such as the one eld had.