You’ve been following TDGX. You love TDGX. We all love TDGX.  And every week here at The Dynasty Guru, I am going to be bringing you commentary from our flagship experts’ league, directly from the participants themselves. Today we’re going to cover all of the transactions made post-draft, including a few trades–one involving an elite prospect and another involving a potential high-end starting pitcher.

The goal here is to give you insight into the moves made by our group of experts so that you can use this information the next time you need to make a trade or prominent FA move in your league. So let’s not mess around with too much longer of an introduction. We’re going to break this up into three sections: trades, major league additions, minor league additions.

TRADES

Mike Buttil trades Travis d’Arnaud to Jason Hunt for 2nd, 3rd and 5th round 2013 picks.

Mike: “D’Arnaud is another player from our “maybe” pile that we decided to dangle. He’s a nice young catcher, but in a one-catcher league we saw him as expendable. Considering he was close to a benching before he started seeing stars, we’re not likely to lose a ton of ground in stats by trading him off. We replaced him from the wire with Anthony Recker and with this deal we now have 12 picks of the first 100 players in next year’s draft. These picks will help us build up some of what we lost in the Invisible Hand bid for Trout. Hopefully d’Arnaud turns it around for Jason’s team, but for us he wasn’t going to make the 20-keeper cut.”

Jason: “While there will be value to the players selected with the picks I traded away, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to get a catcher who can be the long-term answer for me at the position. d’Arnaud is not that far removed from being viewed as a top 25 prospect, capable of providing excellent offense at the catcher position in terms of both power and batting average. His health will remain a question in all likelihood for most of his career, but there is potentially a top 5 catcher when he is healthy.”

Ben Carsley trades Domingo Santana, Darren O’Day and Ronny Rodriguez to Jason Hunt for Joakim Soria, A.J. Pierzynski and Mark Reynolds

Ben: “I covered this trade in depth here.”

Jason: “With the rebuild on, there were a number of players that I viewed as expendable in the long-term. Soria has proven to be an excellent closer so far, and would definitely have more value to an owner in contention than to me. Pierzynski became expendable after acquiring d’Arnaud to replace him long-term, and Reynolds was also not in the long-term plan given that there were no guarantees he would have a major league roster spot after this year.

J.P. Breen trades Wade Miley and a 2015 fourth pick to Nick Doran for Mike Foltynewicz, Yorman Rodriguez and Devin Williams

J.P.: “As y’all are well-aware by this point, I’m not competing this year. Wade Miley is a fringe piece, but not something that I’m going to build around. Thus, when I had the opportunity to acquire three legitimate prospects for him, I seized it. Both Folty and Rodriguez are poised to make their big-league debuts within the next couple years, and I adore Devin Williams. He has a chance to be a Top 100 prospect by the end of the season. He’s further away from the bigs than I would prefer, obviously, but as a “throw-in” type in the deal, I’m very happy.”

Nick: “I received Wade Miley and a 4th round pick by trading away Mike Foltynewicz, Yorman Rodriguez and Devin Williams. I will miss those prospects but I felt I needed to improve my pitching staff if I am going to make a strong run for the championship this year. Folty is close to the majors and is a fireballer, which I love, but he hasn’t been awesome in the minors this year and he may end up being a reliever. Even if he makes the Astros rotation he may not end up being any better than Wade Miley already is. Yorman Rodriguez will likely end up being a 4th outfielder type and Devin Williams is years away from the majors. Wade Miley isn’t an ace by any means, but he is accumulating stats in the majors right now and that is what my team needs. I am falling behind in Wins and Strikeouts and felt I needed to upgrade my rotation options before I fall too far behind in those categories to win the league this year. I think I have one of the 3 or 4 best teams in the league so I am going all in to win it.”

Mike Rosenbaum trades Cody Asche and C.J. Cron to Ian Kahn/Tim McLeod for Brian McCann and Martin Prado

Mike: “Brian McCann hasn’t been the offensive force for the Yankees I envisioned when drafting him, but he’s still on pace for 20-plus home runs and upwards of 70 RBI. With Wellington Castillo waiting in the wings (in a utility slot) and a few catching prospects developing in the minors (Reese McGuire, Carson Kelly), I felt he was expendable so long as I replaced him with at least one young power hitter.

In Cron I’m getting a 24-year-old, major-league first baseman/DH with big right-handed power and the potential to hit for a decent batting average. I like his chances of receiving more playing time moving forward, whether it be stealing more at-bats from the scuffling Raul Ibanez against right-handers or spelling Albert Pujols at first base as the season unfolds.

Prado was harder to part with than McCann due to his defensive versatility, but Ian and Tim’s willingness to include Cody Asche and a pair of second-round draft picks sold me on the deal. Asche, 24, won’t be a first-division third baseman for any team, but he has enough left-handed pop and run-producing upside to receive consideration as a near-everyday player moving forward.

Even though Maikel Franco will arrive later this season, I don’t see the Phillies hastily giving up on Asche; they could potentially dangle him as trade bait or offer Franco reps at first base to accommodate both players. Lastly, the two second-round picks next year—I was willing to include my fourth-round pick in exchange for the additional second-round slot—should net me a pair of actual first-round draft picks, probably pitchers.”

Ian: “We are always looking to find a good match in a trade. Even though we gave up a good amount of upside in this deal, we are going for the gold this year and you have to give to get. Cron might BE the rich man’s Trumbo, and Asche might be the guy we were hoping for when we drafted him, but Mccann and Prado are proven albeit older commodities. We also gave up two premium picks in the deal, so as in everything… we’ll see.”

MAJOR LEAGUE FA PICKUPS

Wilson Karaman adds Chad Qualls for $33

“My Farnsworth purchase went so well I figured I’d invest heavily in another crappy waiver wire closer option to keep the mojo rolling. I got a whopping three saves out of the Farnsworth Experience, leaving me just as desperate to land saves as before. Qualls received the “he is our closer” nod from Bo Porter a couple days ago, and seems like Houston’s best bet to roll up some trade value by saving some games over the next couple months. Same standard I had for Farnsworth applies here: if I can squeeze 10 saves out of this guy before ineffectiveness or an inevitable July trade force him out of the role it’s a win of an investment.”

Bret Sayre adds Miguel Gonzalez for $16

“A return to the rotation for Gonzalez means potential strikeouts and wins for my staff. I’m not expecting a ton of ratio help, but with two solid matchups on the docket for this week, this is a very short-term move. I had been starting Santiago Casilla, who is a nice reliever to play when you don’t have a starter, but thankfully now I have another starter until Casey Kelly returns.”

Bret Sayre adds Luis Valbuena for $8

With Aramis Ramirez, Ryan Zimmerman and Ian Stewart all hitting the DL for my squad, third base hase become a bit of a black hole. Thankfully Valbuena, though not particularly good and not getting full time PT, can get me some stats until at least one of my big boppers returns.”

Nick Shlain adds Sean Doolittle for $7

[COMING SOON]

Nick Shlain adds Reed Johnson for $7

[COMING SOON]

Jake Ciely/Chris Mitchell add Hector Sanchez for $4

“He has been hitting for a good average recently ( A need of ours)  and with the injury to Wil Middlebrooks, I claimed him as my backup CA with the idea that I may start him for the BA bump.”

Chris Crawford adds Paul Konerko for $4

“The injury to Abreu was a pit of a kick in the shins to me, so I turn to Konerko in hopes that he sees enough playing time to fall into some homers and RBI’s. I don’t love my chances, but there just aren’t a lot of alternatives.”

Jason Hunt adds Anthony DeSclafani for $3

“The Marlins called on DeSclafani to replace the injured Jose Fernandez, and he pitched well enough to continue to hold down a spot for now. He’s an interesting back-of-the-rotation type in the long-term, and while it’s not clear how long he will be in the majors, he will be back eventually and can be another innings-eater with the upside at times for more.”

Ian Kahn/Tim McLeod add David Carpenter for $2

“We picked up David Carpenter ($2) to replace Jordan Walden as the Handcuff for Kimbrell. We have been happy with drafting Melancon as the backup to Grilli. Carpenter is dealing, and it is a good insurance policy.”

Mike Buttil adds Anthony Recker for $1

“Recker replaces d’Arnaud in our lineup and should see a decent number of starts while d’Arnaud is hurt. If he hits, he could even continue to see time behind the dish since concussions tend to be tricky injuries.”

Noel Baldwin/Andy Barnes add Tyler Colvin for $0

“Much of the same thought process went into this transaction as with the Bedard add. We are replacing Darwin Barney in this move, and I feel that all readers can completely understand why. Colvin has the upside to provide some power numbers for us while most of our team is injured or under-performing.”

Mike Newman adds Nyjer Morgan for $0

“Morgan sustained an injury just after placing our FAAB bid early last week. Before coming up lame, he pummeled RHP and achieved semi-regular playing time which is better than none. By next week, he’ll likely be back on the waiver wire for somebody else.”

Wilson Karaman adds Tyler Pastornicky for $0

“Infante went on the DL, so I needed a second baseman. Bret outbid me for Valbuena because he has a death wish, so I got stuck with the only other second base-eligible hitter currently getting regular playing time.  That sentence should be in the past-tense, actually, as immediately upin adding Pastornicky himself got hurt. C’est la vie, we’ll get ’em next week at the keystone.”

Jason Hunt adds Brad Ziegler for $0

“Targeting Ziegler was a purely speculative play, as he has pitched reasonably well lately (with the exception of a bad outing), and has been the primary set up man for Addison Reed. Should Reed lost the closer’s job (which isn’t super likely at this moment), Ziegler would likely be first in line for save chances.”

Noel Baldwin/Andy Barnes add Erik Bedard for $0

“Our team is in a position of very shallow depth because our bench is filled with either prospects or injuries, so dropping a TJ-boung Johnny Hellweg to get a free chance at positive stats from Bedard was a no-brainer for us. We need on the field production at this point.”

Mike Newman adds Skip Schumaker for $0

“Desperate times call for desperate measures. Between injuries and minor leaguers, Team ROTOscouting needs bodies — any bodies in the outfield. At the moment, the Reds utility player is logging regular at bats. With the injury to Jose Fernandez, we are more playing out the string, but we owe it to the rest of the league to field a full lineup.”

Nick Doran adds Adam Ottavino for $0

“I think Ottavino rather than Rex Brothers is the heir apparent to LaTroy Hawkins as the closer in Colorado. I have Hawkins so I grabbed Ottavino as a handcuff for when the guard inevitably changes. He strikes out a lot of batters, which is always the key to success in the thin air of Coors Field.”

MINOR LEAGUE FA PICKUPS

Mike Buttil adds Ken Giles for $5

“Ken Giles is a hard-throwing right hander who could see a role in the Phillies bullpen before too long. He may even get a shot at the closer gig. Through 15 Double-A innings this year, he’s struck out 50% of the hitters he’s faced while maintaining a respectable 3.00 BB/9. Definitely worth a waiver add for a couple of Philly homers like us.”

Craig Glaser/Tom Trudeau add Pete O’Brien for $4

“I’m not sure even the Yankees know what O’Brien’s ultimate position will be, but only Joey Gallo has hit more homers than he has (17 in 40 games). He’s historically been old for his level (he turns 24 this summer and just reached AA), which is how he only now became rostered in a league this deep.”

Ben Carsley adds Cheslor Cuthbert for $1

“He’s fallen off the map after a disappointing 2013 season, but he’s now performing decently in Double-A as a 21-year-old. With Mike Moustakas floundering and Hunter Dozier years away, Cuthbert could get a shot next year.”

Ian Kahn/Tim McLeod add Keyvius Sampson for $1

“Keyvius Sampson ($1) seemed a solid possibility to come up and take Cashner’s spot in the rotation had he not been thrashed around on Sunday. Seems like we might have wasted a dollar on that one.”

Nick Doran adds Aaron Blair for $0

“Blair has raised his stock with his performance in High A ball this year after being drafted in the 1st round last year. He has racked up 56 strikeouts against only 17 walks in 44 innings and is looking more and more like a mid-rotation starter in the major leagues. I am very happy to snag him off the waiver wire this far into the season.”

Ben Carsley adds Dalton Pompey for $0

“I need some upside, and Pompey provides it. Plus, he’s already in High-A, so he’s not terribly far from the majors despite his anonymous status headed into the season. I will not make a Bastille joke.”

Nick Doran adds James Ramsey for $0

“He is a bit old for a prospect at 24 years, but if he were playing for a team other than the Cardinals he would likely already be in the major leagues. I don’t see him getting the call to St. Louis anytime soon, but I am hoping he gets traded to another organization that will give him a chance. His bat will play well. He is putting up a .976 OPS in AA ball with 11 homers already. That’s great progress for a 2012 1st round pick.”

Ben Carsley adds Jake Thompson for $0

“I owe this one all to Jordon Gorosh, who convinced me of Thompson’s worth earlier this week. He may lack a sexy ceiling, but his probability of reaching the majors as a starter is much better than many of the names left on the waiver wire.”

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