With the offseason upon us, and Larry King done congratulating the Phillies, it’s time we look at offseason moves. The peasant Royals didn’t waste long at all to get the trading under way. They acquired Mike Jacobs from the Marlins for Leo Nunez. The Royals are real movers and shakers now! With Shealy, Butler, Ross Gload and Kila Ka’aihue, the Royals desperately needed an all-power, low-average DH/1st baseman. They must be happy to cross that off their Christmas list. Finally they fill the void that Steve Balboni left twenty some-odd years ago. Going the other way in the trade, the Marlins get a very solid bullpen arm in Leo Nunez. As you can tell from my tone (Aw, am I being harsh?), I think the Royals are boneheads, but this is not for me to decide. Let’s talk about this trade from a fantasy baseball perspective:
Mike Jacobs – The trade to the Royals will not help him hit better than .260. If anything, it might cause him to hit even worse. Now he’ll be facing pitchers that he hadn’t seen at all or only during interleague. I liked Jacobs last year for some late round power and that doesn’t change. Now he has a few more caveats (<–yo, that’s Latin!) attached to his name. He can be easily replaced by the foursome of DH/1st basemen and he’ll be facing unfamiliar pitching. 30 home runs is still his over/under. .250 is his ceiling.
Leo Nunez – The Marlins have to be the most fortunate franchises in the history of baseball. Everything they touch turns to gold and I wouldn’t be surprised if Nunez is just another example. He has some low minor closing experience, so they could possibly use him in that capacity (which is doubtful). He has starting experience so they could use him as a starter — also doubtful. He will more than likely be used as a middle man. He might not be drafted out of the gate in 2009, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he gives some fantasy teams a much needed middle reliever boost. Mr. Bs, are you listening?
