After Robinson Cano’s disappointing 2008 season, over the winter months, there was much ado about trading Cano to the Dodgers. Chad Billingsley and Clayton Kershaw were two names that were often thrown around as the Yankees were said to be open to dealing Cano, but would only do so for high-ceiling arms. One name, however, that was also tossed around was Matt Kemp
The Edge dvd , the CF for Joe Torre’s boys in blue (the LA version). Kemp’s 2008 season was decent, as he hit .290/.340/.459 and had a .349 wOBA while exhibiting solid defensive play in the OF. On the other side of the coin, there was talk about him having trouble taking direction from LA’s coaching staff. At the end of the day, despite Kemp’s solid 2007 and volumes of inherent talent, he was still talked about as a trade candidate.
The Dodgers are probably happy that they didn’t move Kemp, as he is definitely delivering on his promise this season. In 2008, Kemp has blown on up on the NL, hitting .316/.380/.489 while swiping 19 bags and swatting 11 homers. His wOBA is .382—third best at his position—and he is worth 4.1 WAR. Meanwhile, his defense in center is phenomenal (14.6 UZR/150). Could the Yankees have had that type of player? Based on the reports, it was certainly possible.
Now, I often criticized trying to trade Cano (and others) for Kemp, as Cano, like Kemp, played a premium position and, in addition, Austin Jackson—the CF of the future—was seemingly on the way. For these reasons, there was no need to trade for Kemp because, in due time, we would have our own great CF who would compliment Cano. In hindsight, although Kemp is now a stud OF (he was always projected to be one), I still agree with this notion as A-Jax is seen as a 5-tool player, even if his power hasn’t developed as much as the Yankees would have liked. He could become a lesser version of Kemp in a few years (the defense and power probably won’t be as good), which is worth the wait. Also, Cano has clearly rebounded this season, putting up a .355 wOBA and he’s 2.2 WAR. If his defense gets better (it’s average) in the second half, we could see his value shoot to the level it was in 2007, when Cano was a 5 WAR player.
The Toxic Avenger movie download Behind Enemy Lines II: Axis of Evil trailer In the end, Kemp would have been a very good player to acquire and he could very well become the best CF in baseball next season, however, at the time, given A-Jax’s presence and Cano’s impending rebound, it wasn’t necessary.
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5 Responses to Catching up with Kemp
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TIQ IQ
I think what’s lost in most of this is the emergence of Brett Gardner. If he can get on base at a .340-.350 clip, he’s a HUGE asset. He hasn’t even been the starter the whole season and has a WAR of 2.1 to this point. I can think of many times a ball dropped with Melky out there and I thought to myself, Gardner would have caught that in stride.
Also, Gardner is seeing 4 pitches per at bat this season which is something that you absolutely love to see out of the bottom of the lineup. It’s to the point where this isn’t a small sample size anymore and he might be close to establishing himself as a legit major league center fielder.
Definitely. If the Yankees had a black hole in CF this season, then you would probably hear a bit more about how they could have traded for Matt Kemp. However, Melky and Gardner, together, have been above average in CF, so there isn’t a glaring void there.
A good point, though I’m not sure the Dodgers were willing to give up Kemp for Canó at the time. 2b would have become a big hole if they dealt Canó, and the Gardner/Melky duo has put up solid production in center.
Kemp is on pace to win the “non Albert Pujols MVP” this year. and of course Joe Torre’s making the most of his talent…. but batting him 8th.
He’s not experienced enough to require a move up the order yet…