Next week, I’m rolling out the latest version of our annual trade value series. Before we get into this year’s list, though, I think it’s instructive to look back at where players were ranked a year ago, and see if there are any lessons to be learned from the placement of various players. I would rather learn from history than repeat it.
Let’s just start with the list itself.
We close out this year’s list of the top 50 assets in the sport with a fantastic group of young players and The Contract That Keeps On Giving. You can check out 6-50 in the links below, and then scroll down to find out which of the game’s brightest young stars comes out on top.
#50-#46
#45-#41
#40-#36
#35-#31
#30-#26
#25-#21
#20-#16
#15-#11
#10-#6
Note: salaries are rounded estimates and include all team-controlled years. Rankings from the 2011 Trade Value series in parentheses.
5. (16) Giancarlo Stanton, OF, Miami – Under Team Control through 2016.
#50-#46
#45-#41
#40-#36
#35-#31
#30-#26
#25-#21
#20-#16
#15-#11
Note: salaries are rounded estimates and include all team-controlled years. Rankings from the 2011 Trade Value series in parentheses.
10. (2) Jose Bautista, OF, Toronto – Signed through 2015 for $63 million
#50-#46
#45-#41
#40-#36
#35-#31
#30-#26
#25-#21
#20-#16
Note: salaries are rounded estimates and include all team-controlled years. Rankings from the 2011 Trade Value series in parentheses.
15. (NR) Brett Lawrie, 3B, Toronto – Under Team Control through 2017
#50-#46
#45-#41
#40-#36
#35-#31
#30-#26
#25-#21
Note: salaries are rounded estimates and include all team-controlled years. Rankings from the 2011 Trade Value series in parentheses.
20. (12) David Price, SP, Tampa Bay – Under Team Control through 2015
So, from the land of embarrassing mistakes comes this – I screwed up yesterday and copied the wrong part of the list in to the #30-#26 post and didn’t catch it until this morning. Kipnis, Moore, Upton, Moustakas, and Gio were actually 25-21, and for whatever reason, I simply grabbed those five when transposing the post into WordPress and didn’t notice that I had copied the wrong section. So, this post is actually presenting #30-#26 again. Feel free to call me an idiot in the comments. I certainly feel like one.
#50-#46
#45-#41
#40-#36
#35-#31
#30-#26
Note: salaries are rounded estimates and include all team-controlled years. Rankings from the 2011 Trade Value series in parentheses.
30. (30) Ian Kinsler, 2B, Texas – Signed through 2017 for $76 million.
#50-#46
#45-#41
#40-#36
#35-#31
Note: salaries are rounded estimates and include all team-controlled years. Rankings from the 2011 Trade Value series in parentheses.
30. (NR) Jason Kipnis, 2B, Cleveland – Under Team Control through 2017
Note: salaries are rounded estimates and include all team-controlled years. Rankings from the 2011 Trade Value series in parentheses.
35. (NR) Pablo Sandoval, 3B, San Francisco – Signed through 2014 for $15 million.
Note: salaries are rounded estimates and include all team-controlled years. Rankings from 2011 Trade Value series in parentheses.
40. (NR) Johnny Cueto, SP, Cincinnati – Signed through 2015 for $30 million.
Johnny Cueto is one of two types of pitcher — either one who, year after year, produces peripherals that are likely to lead to a league-average ERA or one who, like Matt Cain, has cracked the secret code of batted-ball suppression. The numbers support either thesis at this point. Each of Cueto’s career component stats — his 18.3% strikeout rate, his 7.6% walk rate, his 44.1% ground-ball rate — is within percentage points of league average, respectively. Cueto’s home runs per fly ball and his strand rate, however, have both improved since his rookie season — and his ERAs relative to the league have followed suit. The good news for the Reds is that even the first type of pitcher is an asset at an approximate average annual value of $8 million.
Note: salaries are rounded estimates and include all team-controlled years. Rankings from 2011 Trade Value series in parentheses.
45. (28) Ben Zobrist, 2B, Tampa Bay – Signed through 2015 for $22 million.
Since 2009, when he became a full-time player, Zobrist has posted the second-highest WAR in the major leagues, with only future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols ahead of him by that measure. Given the deal to which he’s currently signed — a four-year extension from 2010, with very afforadable option years ($7.0 and $7.5 million, respectively) in 2014 and 2015 — there’s every reason to believe that the Rays will extract considerable surplus value from Zobrist. As a trade commodity, however, Zobrist is slightly less valuable, owing to the fact that his production comes from areas that tend to have less value in the open market: defense, baserunning, and plate discipline.
