Street Smarts

And away we go...

The San Diego Padres made their first Winter Meetings move on Wednesday as they made a trade to acquire Huston Street from the Colorado Rockies for cash and a PTBNL.

San Diego will take on most of Street's salary, essentially using the money they may have used to pay Bell (maybe even saving a buck or two). The kicker is that the Padres will gain a solid closer in Street but also acquire the draft picks from the departed Bell.


I see this as a great deal for San Diego. They are essentially giving up nothing while not blowing up the payroll for a free agent closer. Street has some excellent overall numbers--3.11 ERA, 178 SV, 1.066 WHIP, 9.1 K/9--and that includes the last three years in Denver. He will only get better in the friendly confines of Petco National Park.

This move takes the pressure off the young relievers and enables Gregerson to remain in a role he's better suited for: setup. My first crack at the last three innings would be: Brach, Gregerson, and Street, with Frieri ready to step in if someone struggles.

I also see this as a great move to buy another year or two to see which in-house candidates rise to the role of closer: Frieri, Brach, Quackenbush are all possibilities. I give the edge to Brach with Quackenbush (great name for a closer) not far behind.


Now, the inevitable question is, what good is a closer if we don't put runs on the board? I'm happy with this first move of the meetings, but I'd really like to see what Byrnes and Co. have in mind to improve the lineup.