Yeah, I hear you.
I just can't afford what the good ones go for on the measly budget I have here in Miami right now. This is what's so funny about my owner wanting me to be competitive. He gives me a $112m budget.. meanwhile my friends in Washington are paying $71m a year just for two top starters. It's a bit of a challenge!
I've been doing a lot of bargain-hunting in the FA market and trying to work trades... but so far all I have is a big collection of replacement level guys, a couple that are barely above replacement, and a couple that will be a bit better than that IF they develop. But they may be 2-3 years out, I don't know.
This year my strategy is going to probably be "survive until you get to the bullpen and hope to outscore." The offense is in much better shape at least and I have a lot of good 'pen arms.
I do have an opportunity to trade my closer (who is better than the next 2 guys down the list, but not extremely better) and some bit pieces for a 3 star starter with 50/50/70 ratings. This isn't my preferred profile though, and this guy has had a brutal spring (1.87 WHIP, 6.65 ERA, and surprisingly, 4.3 BB/9, which you don't expect with those numbers).
It's a small sample size, and I probably should do it since I need a decent starter much more than another righty single-inning guy. But that closer has been nearly unhittable since I got him and it's hard to pull the trigger.... His stats are currently 85/60/50.
On the plus side he was a very respectable 10-6 with a 3.34 ERA in the majors last year, and he's got only 1 year of MLB service.
What do you guys think?
