BSN Roundtable: Colorado Rockies sign Gerardo Parra

1) What were your initial reactions to the Rockies signing Para?

Greg Moore

I think he is a solid pickup in that he frees the Rockies ability to move one of the incumbent outfielders for pitching. He himself at some point will likely be a solid trade piece when the young guys are ready to make the jump and step in at 20th and Blake.

Chris Schmaedeke

I have to say I was confused at first. The Colorado Rockies are stocked with outfielders and adding another one made no sense at all. If a trade is in the works, the signing makes sense in the short term. The Rockies need to see what they have in David Dahl at some point and this season could be it. Also, I don’t feel Parra is as good as Carlos Gonzalez, Corey Dickerson or Charlie Blackmon so it may be a bit of a downgrade. The Rockies will have to trade one of those three guys to have the Parra signing seem logical.

Marco Mamolen

Gerardo Parra has been one of the most overlooked outfielders over the last number of years and the Rockies acquisition of him is a low-risk move that could end up paying off, quite similar to Michael Cuddyer in 2012.

Nick Tremaroli

This move works in a vacuum, but I’m not sure it’s the right move for the Rockies. With Parra, the Rockies now have four left-handed starting-caliber outfielders. If Carlos Gonzalez stays healthy, he’ll play basically every day. Because Parra was a fairly high-profile signing, he’ll play a high percentage of the time. The final outfield spot looks to be manned by a platoon of Charlie Blackmon and Corey Dickerson. The Parra signing has put the Rockies into a bit of a bind as far as their outfield composition. The Rockies were already bad at hitting LHP last year, and now, with Parra, the Rockies will have at least three left-hadned outfielders on the roster. This move didn’t improve the Rockies.

Jake Shapiro

Wow! I was really caught off guard by this even with the several weeks worth of rumors saying this would happen. The reason I was surprised was because I thought it would be unthinkable for the Rockies to add another left-handed outfield bat without dealing one first. After a bit of thought, I realized I had always admired Parra as a player and the Rockies could be getting a steal with Parra being a good player in the past coming off of a down year.

2) Three-years 26.5 million, is that a good deal for the Rockies or a bad deal? Why?

GM

I think they signed him for a fair/market price. That being said, I fully expect them to never pay all of the 26.5 million, meaning I think he’ll be traded long before then.

CS

The Rockies spending 26.5 million on someone who can’t pitch seems like a bad deal. If the move ultimately means more pitching then it is an ok deal for a player of Parra’s skills.

MM

The contract is very reasonable based on Parra’s recent numbers as long as he sees regular playing time. Barring a series of injuries or a drop in productivity, this deal is financially safe for the Rockies.

NT

I’m not sure Parra is worth 26 million over three years. He’s a good player and he has certainly raked against the Rockies. He has slashed at .277/.326/.404 in his career, which certainly isn’t awful. Plus, once you add in the probably Coors Field statistical inflation he might hit up around .300 in 2016. The issue I see is his limited added value to the Rockies. The Rockies already had three left-handed outfielders. Adding another ~$9 million to the payroll just to duplicate what the Rockies already had seems pointless.

JS

It’s a fair price for each side, but why are the Rockies spending nine million dollars a year on something they don’t need? Where Colorado is at this point those dollars are better spent in many different areas like the domestic farm system or on international development and international free agents.

3) In order for this deal to make sense, the Rockies/Para have to do what?

GM

Trade Blackmon, Cargo or Dickerson, or maybe even two of the three. I expect Blackmon to be the least likely to be traded due to the lack of a true centerfielder in the remaining group. They need to trade any of the above for controllable pitching, and sometime in the future trade Parra for a useful piece of the rebuilding puzzle as well.

CS

Parra has to be able to play center field for this deal to make sense. If the Rockies move either Blackmon or Dickerson and decide Dahl is not ready, there is a giant hole in center field. Manning it in Coors Field is no picnic and Parra will have to be up for the challenge. Parra only played center 41 times last season between Milwaukee and Baltimore.

MM

In order for the deal to make sense, the Rockies will have to trade at least one of their outfielders to make room for Parra. The obvious choice is Carlos Gonzalez, however, Charlie Blackmon is also a solid candidate. Parra will need to continue to produce statistics similar to his career numbers with the possibility of an increase in his offensive stats batting in a potent lineup with half of his games coming at Coors Field in 2016.

NT

This move works if the Rockies trade Blackmon. Jeff Bridich has already made it apparent that Carlos Gonzalez will not be traded before Opening Day and Corey Dickerson’s bat needs to stay in the Rockies lineup. The Rockies have a glut of highly talented outfielders in their system (David Dahl, Raimel Tapia, etc.) that look to make an impact in either late 2016 or 2017. Holding onto this many decent outfielders is silly, a trade needs to happen to make the Parra signing work, and it should be Blackmon that gets dealt.

JS

They need to figure out their outfield logjam. They don’t necessarily have to trade CarGo but they need to work out a solution that keeps all four left-handed outfielders happy. For Parra, the Rockies need to get three 2 WAR seasons from him. That’s on the surface but from the day to day perspective they need him to be in the lineup and they need him to be a good role model. The Rockies have tried to bring several clubhouse guys in this offseason, maybe that will help change their culture.