Should we pursue Uggla as a DH?

RustInPeace · Post #1 » by **RustInPeace** » Tue Dec 29, 2009 12:43 am

We haven't addressed our offense issue this offseason and it looks like it's only getting worse). Admittedly I haven't payed much attention to any other team's offseason but our own but judging by the wiretaps he's on the market. He isn't very expensive (5-6 mil a year I think) so I doubt we'd really stay away from him.

Last year we were below average at drawing walks/OBP and slugging pct. Uggla had a .243 average last year but his OBP was a good .354. He'd be getting on base better than everyone else on our team but 3 (Magglio, Cabrera, Raburn though he did get 300 less PA). With Polanco gone we'll need all the help we can get in that department.

But the main reason why I like him is power. Sure, that might have been our strongest point last year but one of our main contributors (Grandy) is gone. Uggla had a down year with SLG last year with .459, but his career SLG is .482 so IMO he'll balance it out this year. Despite the down year however his SLG would still be 3rd best in the team behind Cabrera and Raburn (again, much fewer PAs) beating out Granderson, Inge, Guillen etc.

His power isn't limited to HRs too, unlike most of our players last year. Not only will he give you 30 HRs a year but around 30 doubles as well. We were down right terrible with XBH's last year. In fact we were dead last in the league last year with doubles. Again, despite the down-year last year Uggla still finished with more XBH's than anyone on our offense except Cabrera.

He isn't young (turning 30 next season) but he's not a bad option. It's not like we need a long term DH since they're very replacable. We won't be major contenders next season but we could still be competitive in this pathetic division. I don't think he'll decline much if at all next season. It's a way different story for most of our guys however.

Thoughts?

Bartender · Post #2 » by **Bartender** » Tue Dec 29, 2009 9:35 pm

Looks like he might join Atlanta.

Piston Pete · Post #3 » by **Piston Pete** » Mon Jan 4, 2010 3:34 pm

Why not at 2b?

We could play Sizemore as a 2b/3b backup.

RustInPeace · Post #4 » by **RustInPeace** » Tue Jan 5, 2010 9:04 pm

Uggla is a complete joke playing defense though. I'd rather take my chances on a minor leaguer

Burton · Post #5 » by **Burton** » Wed Jan 6, 2010 6:40 am

Uggla is an awesome last name.

Post #6 » by **ajaX82** » Thu Jan 7, 2010 4:25 am

RustInPeace wrote:Uggla is a complete joke playing defense though. I'd rather take my chances on a minor leaguer

He sure is. which is why DH is the best spot for Danny boy. Kid can hit, no doubt, but we arent spenders right now, so no chance

TSE · Post #7 » by **TSE** » Thu Jan 7, 2010 9:27 pm

We had a DH that could hit for more slugging percent than Uggla while at the same time doing it for a lot less money, and we couldn't even afford him. Thames has hit 10 pts higher for his career while also being over $3MM cheaper. He's the kind of value player that you want to collect, whereas Uggla doesn't provide much return. You may get what you pay for, but you don't have much of a shot at the player over-delivering. Plus the chances are very real that you don't get what you pay for, and if you make a mistake on a mid-expensive player like that, it's not fun. It's best to hedge away from situations like this unless a player is a perfect positional fit such as if Uggla was a good defensive SS, or if he was a catcher.