Angels/Chi Sox Blockbuster?

[Dry1313]

Via ESPNRadio:

Chone Figgins and Ervin Santana for Freddy Garcia and Joe Crede.

If this is true, Angels are getting robbed.

[DirtyKash]

Why do you say that?

Crede > Figgins
Santana > Garcia

seems pretty fair to me. What am I missing?

[Dry1313]

Well, I feel Figgins as more valuable than Crede, strictly because he is the perfect leadoff, with good defense. Crede's had only 1 good year.

And Santana is better than Garcia, so...

[Reds_fan_4_life]

Santana is going to be a stud and Figgins is one of the best leadoff(?) hitters in the game, didnt look up if he's leading off anymore. I think the angels would be getting robbed

[McKain]

The deal sucks for the Angels because they'll get one mediocre year of Garcia while Santana becomes great for the next 4 arb years he's got.

Crede/Figgins might end up being a wash wth any edge going to Crede.

[DirtyKash]

Crede plays elite defense and he's a 30-homer guy who has improved his production for three straight years now. I like him better than Figgins, although Figgins has positional versatility.

[Dry1313]

Still, Crede's defense is a bit better than Figgins, but you cannot touch Figgins' SB posibilities. I don't know the exact #, but I know he blows away Crede. Figgins had a 13 pt higher OBP, and only a 13 pt lower BA, and destroyed him in SB, 52-0.

Crede's power isn't needed in that lineup, where Vlad and Garret already hit for enough power.

And Santana destroys Garcia, plus his contract status, this is now way fair.

[McKain]

Crede's defense at third is insanely better than Figgins', but Figgins is solid in center.

Also, Garrett hits for almost no power at all. Juan Rivera's pretty nice, but the lineup lacks quite a bit, and Crede helps a lot. It says a lot that their top 4 hitters look something like Vlad, Rivera, Robb Quinlan, and Mike Napoli/Tim Salmon.

[Dry1313]

Garret still slugs over .400....433 for last year.

He's still a solid hitter, just his HRs and RBIs were down.

[McKain]

The AL as a whole slugged .428 last year.

[Dry1313]

Hence the solid.

[McKain]

He's an average hitter and you cited him alongside Vlad as giving the Angels enough power. Anderson's mediocre and probably replacable, and the rest of their hitters range from bad to potential-flukes, so they needed a big bat pretty badly.

[Dam8610]

Still, Crede's defense is a bit better than Figgins, but you cannot touch Figgins' SB posibilities. I don't know the exact #, but I know he blows away Crede. Figgins had a 13 pt higher OBP, and only a 13 pt lower BA, and destroyed him in SB, 52-0.

Crede's power isn't needed in that lineup, where Vlad and Garret already hit for enough power.

And Santana destroys Garcia, plus his contract status, this is now way fair.

The Angels are looking for a power bat, and Crede plays great defense at 3B. Last year might have been a career year for him (although I wouldn't bank on that), but he has improved over the last few seasons. I think you'd be able to count on .270/25-30/80-100 out of him as long as his back doesn't take him out of commission. Figgins, OTOH, has been on the decline since becoming a regular player in 2004 (which was his best year), and isn't really an ideal leadoff hitter, although he does steal a lot of bases and is very versatile. I won't deny that the White Sox make out like bandits in getting rid of Garcia and getting Santana in return, but you're either overestimating Figgins or underestimating Crede if you're putting them on the same level, especially given that the Angels are looking for a power bat, which Crede provides and Figgins does not, and from what I've heard are trying to get rid of Figgins.

[Dry1313]

I don't think you can call all of their hitters that bad.

They were 9th in the Majors in average, and about the middle in everything else. I don't think they're in dire need of a hiter.

[Dam8610]

I don't think you can call all of their hitters that bad.

They were 9th in the Majors in average, and about the middle in everything else. I don't think they're in dire need of a hiter.

Then why have they been lighting up the rumor mill in pursuit of hitters, usually using Ervin Santana as bait?