Trade Review: One Nut and Overrated

One Nut recieves:
SP Felix Hernandez SEA

Overrated receives:
SS/3B Hanley Ramirez LAD

This swap made a lot of sense considering the needs of the two parties. Russ has had pitching coming out of his ears all season but has been suffering through one of Mark Reynolds' trademark slumps, while Jason had two solid left infield guys in Reyes and Headley but lacked a true ace. Having an "ace" (excellent four category production) isn't terribly important in fantasy provided you have many steady performers, but Jason does not. He has a lot of volatile guys who can dominate one week and shit the bed the next, so in this case, an ace that is extremely consistent can be a great benefit. With no positional need and other guys who are capable of filling the UTIL role, it was a smart move to deal Hanley - even if he is insanely hot right now - and get one of the few young pitchers who continually dominates year to year. That said, I worry about Headley as last year's incredible numbers are looking more and more like an outlier. There's still time though.

Likewise for Russ, it makes sense because, unlike Jason, he's benefited from lots of steady performers like Miller, Kershaw, Lohse and the surprising Nolasco. That said, there been a few chinks revealed recently as Miller has struggled at times (only one of his last six starts have been QSs), Samardjija has been inconsistent, and Ervin just got lit up. He's had some nice hits on Nova, Turner and Danks, but it is tough to trust them fully. All in all, he's still got a great staff, but its a lot less intimidating then it was a month ago. That said, ridding himself of Reynolds really makes this lineup scary as he has power/speed guys up and down the roster. I do wonder if perhaps Hanley is less of a speed guy than he was in the past (only 4 sbs so far). It was bound to happen sometime, but he can still take over when he's hot. Though it is not a huge deal, Russ lost two valuable years in the deal with Hanley 29 (30 in December) and Felix just turning 27 in April. Usually, two years isn't much but when you're talking about the age in which most reach their physical peak, those are two valuable years.

Overall, a star for star trade that made a lot of sense. I do like Hanley, but would want Felix more long term, which leads me to like Jason's side a bit more.