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 In most fantasy baseball leagues the trade deadline is basically the same as the MLB trade deadline. In my league, The Big Show, it's no different.
The Big Show certainly has had a lot of trades the past two weeks. Some of them have been downright ugly where one party should be thankful that charges weren't pressed for rape, pillage and murder.
There have been objections to some of the "dumping" trades claiming that they were too lopsided and not in the best interest of the league, but there haven't been any that were so bad that they were overruled by a majority vote. Until possibly now....
I haven't objected to any of the trades so far, (in fact, I took part in one myself) not because I thought they were all fair trades, but simply because I am of the opinion that all the guys in the league are honorable. From where I sit everyone deserves the benefit of the doubt that collusion is not taking place and everyone deserves to make moves that they see fit for their team, whether it be long term or short term.
When you are in a league together with a group of guys as long as I have been, you become like family and regardless of what place they are in, they deserve the respect of managing their roster the way they want.
There was a trade however that just came across my screen that just doesn't seem right, at least not on the surface. There have been some objections voiced already and perhaps there will be more to come. Or maybe not.... These two team owners are certainly knowledgeable about fantasy baseball and have proven to be savvy players in the past, and I was quite surprised to see something so apparently lopsided agreed upon.
Without telling you who is dumping and who is trying to make a run for the money (it's no secret, you'll be able to tell pretty quickly), the proposed trade is as follows. Please keep in mind that any player over $25 must be kept and everyone who gets kept gets $5 added to their salary next year:
 Roy Halladay ($37)
Mike Napoli ($9)
Ichiro Suzuki ($16)
Dan Uggla ($8)
for
Austin Jackson ($4)
Jose Guillen ($1)
Richard Clayton ($1)
Andres Torres ($6)
Anibal Sanchez ($2)
Ronny Paulino ($2)
Here's my take. My gut reaction was that team trading away Roy Halladay has been fleeced on talent. But then I thought about it some more.
$42 next year is a lot of money. Heck, it's more than 16% of your draft budget on one player. Halladay has proved durable and is unquestionably one of the best pitchers in the game, but if he has an off year next year or has to miss any significant part of the season at all, your season next year is going to be eff'ed up.
I guess you could consider protecting Mike Napoli for $14.... However I doubt he would go for that much in the draft. Ichiro Suzuki and Dan Uggla would get thrown back, but they will definitely help a stretch run in the HR and RBI categories.
On the other side of the ledger, while Austin Jackson isn't going to be mistaken for hitting like Reggie Jackson any time soon, the rookie has shown that he can certainly hit for average, steal 30 bases and likely score about 100 runs. I'm guessing that most would assume that he will hit with a bit more pop over time and he's probably a keeper at $9.
You may think I'm nuts but at $6, Jose Guillen is a keeper. At .270 with 25 HR and 100 RBI, he's definitely worth paying $6 for. I don't care what team he plays for, it's above average production for below average price.
As for Richard Clayton, I don't see anything earth shattering but I'll say this, you could do worse things than protecting a $6, 27 year old pitcher that is pitching to a 3.571 ERA and on pace for 170 K's. His WHIP suggests that his ERA will rise, however it's not beyond the realm of possibility either that his WHIP will fall to be commensurate with his ERA. Again, it's not something I would do, but it's not my risk to take. And if he turns out to pitch well next year, then keeping him was a pretty shrewd move.
Andres Torres. If you think he's protectable at $11 you are nuts. It's not like he's a prospect with potential, he'll be 33 years old when the season starts next year.
Neither Anibal Sanchez or Ronnie Paulino are protectable.
In summary, let me be clear that when making a trade with someone, the goal of making the trade is in fact not to make a fair deal, but to make one that's good for you. If that means fleecing the other team, than so be it, however, the trade should not disrupt the competitive balance of the league.
If the seller in this instance proclaims that he will protect Austin Jackson, Jose Guillen, and Richard Clayton (all three) or if they are involved in a trade for a keeper(s), there really isn't anyone who can say anything about this trade other than he did a poor job of getting a return for his talent (and even that is just an opinion.)
If he does not protect all three players then the trade will isrupt the competitive balance of the league, having an effect on the league (positive for some, negative for others) because of a ‘gift' that should not be allowed.
I'll wait to hear what the sellers intentions are, then cast my vote. If anyone has an opinion on this one way or another,
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. - Mike Cardano
Mike is the founder of Around the Horn Baseball & Xtra Point Football.
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