How Much are Titles Worth? Breaking Down the German Rivas Trade.

On June 5th, 2015 one of the biggest trades in BSA history took place.  German "Golden" Rivas, the face of the Orlando franchise, was sent to the Toronto Titans for a staggering 14 players.  Playing in a contract year with the Calrissian who were on pace to lose 100+ games, Jason Goldberg and James Patterson struck a monumental deal which would change both franchises.  3 years short of the 10 year anniversary of this trade, how did both teams fare?  Who got the better end?  Let's break it down.

To TORONTO:

OF German Rivas.  The then 29 year old Rivas would sign a 6 year deal worth $88.5M and would spend the entire length of the contract with the Titans, giving him 6.5 seasons in a Toronto uniform.  Over that time period, Rivas would put up 30.7 WAR, a triple slash line of .299/.393/.530 to go with 192 HR, 201 2B, 652 RBI and 141 SB.  He would make the CL All Star team 4 times in those 6 years following the trade and was an instrumental part of a lineup that would go onto win back-to-back BSA Championships in 2018 and 2019.

Totals: 30.7 WAR, 4 AS games, 2 titles.

To ORLANDO:

SP Reagen Wear.  One of two crown jewels of the deal.  The 33rd ranked prospect before the 2015 season.  Wear has been everything that he was projected to be and then some.  The 30 year old SP has a career record of 126-95 with a 3,46 ERA, 1.15 WHIP and a career WAR of 49.7.  His 2021 season in which he won the NL Cy Young was one of the best seasons in BSA history for a starting pitcher where he posed a BSA record 1.22 ERA, 0.79 WHIP and 10.7 WAR.  Wear is under contract with Orlando for next 4 seasons as well.

126-95 record, 49.7 WAR, 1 Cy Young, 6 AS games

1B/DH Santiago Marquez.  The 2nd of crown jewel prospects found in the trade.  Marquez was ranked the 85th prospect before the season in 2015.  Known simply as Q in Orlando, Marquez was 18 when the trade happened and though probably rushed, he played 85 games with Orlando that season.  The now 28 year old is under contract with the Calrissian for the next 4 seasons as well.  In his career thus far, Q has put up 35.1 WAR, 321 HR, 301 2B, 1032 RBI as well as winning the 2024 NL MVP award.  He is a fan favorite and is probably heading towards 3000 hits and 500 HR.

35.1 WAR, 6 AS games, 1 MVP

CF Bryce Hopkins.  The 28 year old Hopkins came over in the trade to be a replacement for Rivas in CF.  He won the 2014 gold glove the year before and while he only would spend the remainder of 2015 in Orlando and the next 3 years, he would have 3 of his top 5 overall seasons there.  Hopkins played in 576 games over 3.5 seasons putting up 21.1 WAR with a triple slash line of .280/.343/.438 with 134 doubles, 28 triples and 58 HR.  He would make one all star team before leaving the team via free agency in 2019.

21.1 WAR, 1 AS game.

MR Max Jones.  A 29 year old reliever at the time of trade, Jones would be a staple in the Orlando bullpen from 2015-2018 before bouncing around the minors for a few years and retiring in 2021.  Jones pitched in 209 games over a 4 year span with a 3.27 ERA, striking out 216 batters in 242 innings and produced a 2.3 WAR/

2.3 WAR.

MR Randolph Plante.  A 28 year old reliever who put up a 2.81 ERA in Toronto in 16 innings in 2014.  He would throw in 94 games over the next 2 years for Orlando, including a league high 91 appearances in 2016.  In 2 seasons he put a 4.72 ERA, striking out 94 batters in 108.2 IP, which was good for a 1.7 WAR,

1.7 WAR 

MR Jorge Ibarra.  A 28 year old reliever at the time of trade, Ibarra had a spectacular 2014 in the Toronto pen, which ended with a 0.43 ERA, 0.79 WHIP and completely aided by a .155 BABIP.  He would pitch for the Calrissian for 2.5 seasons before leaving for Irvine in free agency and ultimately retiring in 2023.  He would pitch in 76 games, including 34 starts for Orlando.  He would end his time in Orlando pitching 214 innings of 4.91 ERA ball, good for 1.4 WAR.

1.4 WAR

MR Michael Taylor.  A 32 year old reliever who was a big part of the Titans bullpen in 2014.  He would pitch in the Orlando pen for remainder of 2015 and parts of the next 4 years before becoming a free agent and eventually retiring in 2019.  His time in Orlando saw him pitch in 198 games, 210 innings with a 3.34 ERA and contributing 1.3 WAR

1.3 WAR.

OF Salvador Gonzales.  A 19 year old and ranked 67th best prospect before the 2015 season who showed a lot of promise in AA after coming over in the trade.  He would be called up in 2016 at the age of 20 and would struggled in 68 games.  Over the next 2 seasons he would generally play in AAA and would look major league ready mid-way through the 2018 season where he would put up his best season in 130 games.  He would eventually be claimed off of waivers by Reno in 2020.  He played in 372 games for the Calrissian, putting up a line of .264/.313/.408 with 28 HR and 167 RBI.  Good for a WAR of 0.3.

0.3 WAR

MR Tetsunori Okamoto.  A 35 year old throw in who would start 3 games in Orlando before being released just over a month after the trade.  He went 1-2 in his 3 starts with an ERA of 9.82 and WHIP of 2.25, where he walked 6.8 batters per 9 and had a .368 BABIP.  His time in Orlando would be the last he would see of the bigs and he retired in 2017.

0 WAR

SS Michael Cooke.  At the time of trade, Cooke was your glove first utility infielder.  He would play the next season with Orlando, playing excellent 2B and SS and struggling at the plate.  He would become a free agent and sign with Seattle in 2017 before eventually retiring in 2019.  in 106 games with the Calrissian, Cooke would put up a triple slash line of .226/.274/.276 with a ZR of +8.3 at 2 posititions.

-0.1 WAR

MR Kenneth Duncan.  A 33 year old journeyman reliever at the time, would get 2 starts in Orlando during the 2015 season, neither of which went well.  He gave up 12 runs in 11.2 innings pitched and was released shortly after.  He would sign back with Toronto after the season and appear in 30 games with the Titans over the next 2 years.

-0.2 WAR.

MR Bill Boland.  At the time the 30 year old reliever was bouncing between AAA and the big league club. He would pitch 2 seasons for Orlando appearing in 55 games. His overall stat line was a 5.23 ERA and a -0.2 WAR. After becoming a free agent following the 2016 season he would fail to pitch in the majors again, finally retiring in 2022.

-0.2 WAR.

MR Juan Reyes.  A 26 year old reliever who had never seen the majors before coming to Orlando in 2015. He would struggle in 2 seasons before being claimed off the waiver wire by Irvine in 2017.  He would go on to have some decent seasons in Los Cabos and is one of the only players still active in the trade, as he was recently signed to a minor league contract by the Cartel.  He appeared in 103 games for Orlando, putting up a 5.56 ERA as control has never been his forte.  

-0.4 WAR

2B Vicente Morales.  A toss in who would never see a game in an Orlando uniform and also would never find his way back to the big leagues who eventually retired in 2022.

Total for Orlando:  112 WAR, 13 AS games, 1 Cy Young, 1 MVP

Once broken down, the 14 players to Orlando turned out to be 3 good prospects, 1 ML player and generally a group of middling veterans who wouldn't produce much.  Wear is still an ace, Marquez is a monster and both are locked up for the next 4 years.  Rivas helped Toronto to two banners and Toronto went to the playoffs in 6 of the 7 seasons he was there.

So what's your opinion?  Who's side do you want?

Jersey and Baffin Make Deal; Mungo Coming Home

After 8 seasons in Jersey blue, Jamie "Mungo" Saenz became a free agent and eventually signed a 3 year, $19 million dollar deal to switch coasts and pitch for the Seattle Pikes.  Jersey was the only team and organization he had ever known after joining the Jersey organization in April 2010.  Ownership wanted to keep him but salary restraints and the fact that the D-Bags have a knack for producing a high level of major league quality middle relief pitching, the fans had to watch their closer, 2-time All-Star and 2017 Reliever of the Year leave.

Jose Ruiz stepped in last year, saved 40 games and was elected to the All-Star team.  He struggled this season blowing 2 saves and having 4 losses pinned on him before handing the reigns to the young Gerald "Top Dog" Johnson.   While Johnson has an electric fastball that can reach 99 on the gun, first time closing duties aren't always a success. Johnson was lights out as the setup man before taking over the closer role.  Since he has blown 5 of 14 save chances and left GM Josh Swain with question marks what to do with his closer role.  The team's 15 blown saves leads the entire BSA, and in a race as tight as we have this season, losing games in 8th and 9th is not something a team like Jersey can afford to do.

In a casual conversation with Aaron Blank, GM of the Baffin Island Beavers, Blank made a comment on how old his relief pitching had gotten. With Daniel Morris and Saenz at 34, Tapia at 35, J-Rod and James Kelly 33, and Pedro Castillo at 31, the bulk of the relief corps is 33 or over.  With the Beavers struggling mightily this year, and at the time were sitting 15+ games under .500, Swain simply asked about Saenz and his large $9M dollar team option for next season.  Talks progressed and eventually a deal was in place for Mungo to be sent back to Jersey for a pair of young middle relievers.  

Those relievers are Pedro Vega and Antonio Ramos.  Vega was discovered as an 18 year old in 2013 and has slowly worked his way up through the Jersey system spending multiple seasons at every level before seeing action in the Jersey bullpen last season as a 24 year old.  Now at age 25, Vega throws 2 above average pitches and his fastball reaches the mid-to-upper 90's.  His arm isn't nearly as live as Saenz's arm, but at 10 years younger he could be a nice cheap bullpen fixture on a team who will probably have to re-tool their bullpen in the near future. 

Ramos actually came from Baffin Island when Jersey traded starting pitcher Dan Macias to the Beavers after the 2017 season.  Macias would pitch one year in Baffin before deciding to hang them up.  Ramos is also 25 and your typical hard throwing bullpen arm.  He has averaged just a shade under 12 K/9 in his minor league career and his knack has been giving up the long ball, but being in Baffin should help that tremendously. 

For all intents and purposes this move for Jersey looks like a rental, as Saenz's $9 million dollar option next season seems like a stretch for Jersey to be picked up, but if Saenz keeps up his great numbers he has put up in Seattle and Baffin this year, you never know what will happen.  For the season Mungo's stat line looks like: 4-2, 15 saves. 1.93 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and is striking out 11.6 K/9.  He will step into the closer's role immediately and being added to the CL's 2nd best bullpen (statistically wise) should make a good pen even better.

"We hope this is a move that helps push us over the hump," GM Swain exclaimed, "If we had only won a third of those 15 blown saves we would be sitting in 1st place with the best record in the CL.  The fans are excited to have him back and the veterans are as well."  Saenz will go back and wear his #99 jersey that he wore for all 8 seasons in Jersey.  Welcome back Jaime!

GO D-BAGS

Early Jersey Trade Bock

Though we have just hit June 1st and the trade deadline sits just less than 2 months away we have already seen a handful of BSA trades where veterans have been swapped for prospects.  Contending teams starting early before the frenzy of the July comes.  With that being said, here is an early Jersey Shore Trade Block:

One of Jersey's strong points is the bullpen.  Their 3.30 ERA sits 2nd in the CL and they have a slew of talent in AAA as well.

LHP Phillip Moran - The 32 year old is enjoying a much better year in his 2nd year in Jersey, carrying a 3.06 ERA in 35 innings pitched.  His K/9 is over 10 while posting an ERA+ of 140.  He has a team option of $4 million next season, but with the emergence of Gerald Johnson and the comeback after 14 months after a nasty injury to Hyo-chin Kim, this lefty is available.

C Warren Goyer - The signing of Fernando Ramos in the offseason had Jersey fans thinking Goyer's days might be numbered and after seeing Ramos severely out-hit Goyer in the first 2 months of the season, things are looking that way.  At age 31, Goyer is coming off of a 38 HR season and is in the last year of 4-year deal given to him by Jersey after acquiring him from Cleveland in 2016.  He still has elite power and rumors have it he is looking for a very modest extension.

1B/3B Alberto Perez - A D-Bag for life, Perez lost his starting position at 1B when rookie Kisuki was called up before the season.  The 32 year old has a career slash line of .293/.341/.422.  He still plays an above average 3B and has a slick glove at 1B.  He is in the last year of his contract and is also looking for a short term extension for any team that is interested in acquiring him.

LF/RF Jose Ortiz - A 4th or 5th option a crowded Jersey OF over the years, Ortiz has above average contact, a knack for hitting the ball to the gap and rarely strikes out.  Currently making only $1.25M this season, he will become a free agent at the end of the year.  With Berroa and Mendoza knocking on the door from AAA, Ortiz is very much a trade-able asset.

Now we will also accept offers on other players, but these are very much the most available.  Feel free to make offers on other relievers as there is a long list of quality arms in the majors and AAA who can help many teams out.

With all the slew of talent, we are looking to restock the farm system.  Just letting that be known before offers start being made.  

GO D-BAGS

Bags Make First Trade in Over a Year; Get Goyer From Cleveland

GM Swain has never been known for his knee jerk reactions or long winded traded talks.  In fact Jersey Shore had not made a trade in over a year, the last coming when they brought Jerry Burgess in from El Paso for a handful of prospects.  On Tuesday the Bags completed their first trade since then.  According to sources talks went swiftly and were very concise which resulted in Catcher Warren Goyer, formerly of Cleveland coming to Jersey for 3 players.  Those players were MR Chris Woodruff, 3B Williams Seppings and former 1st round pick 3B Richard Coker.

Goyer is 27 in his 3rd year in the BSA.  He came up through Reno's system before being traded to Cleveland in 2015 where he got his first extended playing time.  In 429 AB, he hit a paltry .219, but did slug 18 2B, 18 HR and drove in 62 runs.  This season thus far he has seen the bulk of the playing time and in 353 AB, he has matched his totals from last year in doubles and has 17 HR while bring up the average to .238.  He has always had big power potential and Jersey thinks with their hitter friendly park they may have brought in a guy who can start and hit 30 HR.  Not bad for a team which already has the power in their lineup.  Current catcher Luis Antonio Duran who has been in the organization since 2011 and starting catcher for the past 4 is without a contract next season and rumors have it trading for Goyer was to replace Duran.  That will set to be seen, but with Duran looking for a big deal, that could be a possibility.

Leaving Jersey is MR Chris Woodruff who was claimed off of waivers before the season.  He could never get it going and demoted to AAA where he pitched decent.  He is 31 years old and has good pitches, he could put up decent numbers in Cleveland.

The 2nd player traded is 3B William Seppings.  He is 29 and been with the team since the inaugural draft, but hasn't seen much playing time in AAA the last couple years.  He is more or less just organizational filler and was included in the trade because he was on the 40 man roster and had a 400K contract.

The 3rd and last player going was the main piece.  Former 1st round pick, 1B/3B Richard Coker.  We recently did our prospect breakdown on Coker, which can be found: here.  Coker in his 4th year with the team was having his best year in AA and was on pace to be called up soon to AAA.  He was currently hitting .293/.391/.434. He has a high contact rate and hits the ball to the gap.  He lacks power and his walk rate has been going up while his K rate has been going down.  Scouts have compared him to a slightly less version of 3B Alberto Perez, who is on pace for 200 hits and hit the game winning single in the All Star game this season.  We here at the Bag Report will be keeping tabs on Coker and wish him the best in Cleveland.  

Will this be the only trade the Bags make until the deadline later this week?  Nothing is on the hot stove right now, but that could change in an instant.  Stay tuned Bag fans!

GO D-BAGS

D-Bags Make Trade, Bring in Powers

Scott Powers was a popular name around the Jersey Shore clubhouse this off-season.  With Damien Balmforth leaving via free agency, it left Ramon Tavarez, Joe Hernandez and Bill Welshman as the only RH OF bats on the roster.  While neither of these players are slouches, management didn't view either as everyday starters.  Powers was rumored to be headed to the Shore in an off season trade but things fell through and the two sides couldn't seem to work things out after that.  As we know Jersey went in a separate direction and acquired power bat and RH OF Leon Foster from the New York Knights.  It was Jersey's only big move of the offseason and paid dividends as Foster is in the Top 5 in HR and is on pace to hit 48.

 Powers

Through a sluggish May and even into June even though the Bags lead the CL in BA/OBP/SLG/Runs/Hits they lack consistency.  No one complains when in the past 7 weeks they have scored 9 runs or more 15 times.  It's the 13 times during that same stretch they have scored 3 or less runs and the 4 times they have been shutout.

After a slow start by the Niagara Falls Frenzy and even slower start by CF Scott Powers, Jersey again reached out and inquired about Powers.  After posting a triple slash line of .311/.376/.434 with a VORP of almost 40 last season, Powers line through the time of the trade looked like a shell of his former self at .250/.361/.321.  A line that is marginally better than a replacement player.  Powers has a contract of nearly 4 million this year and just over 4 million for the next 2 years, which would be put him over the age of 30.  Talks resumed last week and the two teams finally found an agreeable point. 

Niagara Falls sent Powers and a small sum of cash to Jersey Shore in exchange for AAA MR Alonso Jiminez, AAA 2B Benny McCafferty and AAA SP Marty Twombly.  Though Jersey did in fact get their man, they also parted with some quality pieces.  

Jiminez in a solid bullpen arm that some scouts say could be a very good setup man.  He has dominated at every level he has pitched at, including that set up role in AAA this season.  McCafferty was a college on base machine playing at St. John's before being drafted by Jersey.  He struggled in his first 3 minor league seasons before really busting out last season in AA/AAA.  He hit a scorching .351 with AA Gainesville before being promoted to AAA Tuscaloosa where he found a power stroke, bashed 12 HR, amassed 36 XBH in only 114 games.  He should step in and start for Niagara Falls.  

             McCafferty                 Jiminez                

It is unknown where Powers will hit and at this point where he will play for Jersey Shore.  He has seen all his playing time at CF this season, but Jersey sees him more of a corner OF, where he once won a Gold Glove.  If he can get his OBP to his career levels, a lineup of Taylor-Powers-Bonniface-Foster-Lozano could produce a ton of runs and should give fear to many GM's in the league.  That isn't even mentioned former All-Star Parker Morrow, SS Jerome Lindsey, and young studs Mike Bryant and Antonio Ruiz.  If healthy this team could get scary.  They already lead the league in most offensive categories, the two the lack in: BB and SB.....two of Powers specialties.  

With Powers now on the team the Jersey Shore would now like to announce a merchandising special.  We would like to introduce the Power's Muscle Tank.  Perfect for taking to the gym or laying on the beach.  Who's gunna question those guns of yours when you have the word "Power" on your back?

ORDER YOURS TODAY!

Bags Make First Off Season Move

Welcome back Bag fans!! Afte the Bags best season since moving to Jersey, their first roster move of the off season has happened.  Right before the eligible players have filed for free agency talks a deal finally formalized between the Bags and the Knights of New York.  The teams had been in talks for almost a week when a deal was agreed upon. 

The D-Bags agreed to send one of the more popular players in 3B David Pena, who broke out last season witha team high 28 HR, and former inaugural 4th round selection SP Rudy Bourg packing to New York.  In return Jersey will retain some power back with the versatile OF Leon Foster.  Foster plays all 3 OF above average, brings what Jersey most sorely needed as well, power from the right hand side of the plate.  Last season Leon jacked 36 bombs, 42 doubles while driving in 123 runs hitting 5th for the Knights last season.  His bat will be a welcome addition to the lefty-laden roster of Jersey.

When asked about trading Pena, GM Josh Swain said it was a hard one and added, "David is a great kid.  He is a gold glove caliber fielder and hits the ball a long ways.  He is only 27 and we might not have seen his peak yet, but it was a team decision.  We sorely needed a big OF bat, especially a right handed one.  Our 1st-3rd base platoon is a very crowded one, and he was expandable, but we will miss him in the clubhouse."

When Swain mentioned that the 1st-3rd platoon was a crowded one, he wasn't kidding.  Milliard Cross showed splashes of power hitting with his 200-some AB's last year for the D-Bags and the 2012 likely MVP Derrick Wright will get ample time to prove he can handle the position.  He absolutely tore up AAA pitching to the tune of 35 2B, 31 HR, a league record 158 RBI and a triple slash line of .343/.420/.561 and scouts like what they see in this kid.  

On the 3rd base side you have the incumbent and Jersey's MVP of the 2012 season in Parker Morrow who is signed for the next 3 seasons.  In AAA 25 year old Alberto Perez finished last season with a line of .334/.379/.462 while knocking 13 HR's looks ready for some VBL experience and one of the team's top prospects Adam Morrow was very successful in AA after his mid-season promotion and will likely be called up to AAA for the upcoming year.  A very crowded depth chart.

With the trading of SP Rudy Bourg, a spot will open up in the rotation.  Bourg had a lackluster year posting an ERA of 5.15, with a record of 11-12.  The most likely candidate to take Bourg's place would be the 26 year old Rob Goodship who went 12-7 in AAA last year, but posted a very big dominating performance in the last week of the season to keep Jersey's season alive.  Another candidate could be #2 pitching prospect league wide Jerry Paige.  Paige came over in the Vargas trade with Maui last off season.  In AAA he went 15-5, an ERA of 3.44, while striking out 240 batters in just 209 innings.  

According to sources this move might be the first of a couple moves to come this off season to bolster this roster for another playoff run.  We shall see!

Go D-Bags!