Vernon Wells to Angels, Blue Jays tells fans to !@#$ off!

[gingi79]

I don't understand how Toronto can possibly think about trading Vernon Wells after signing him to that big contract and selling fans on rebuilding around him.

Is Bautista and his one season of greatness mean he is the new guy to build around? How can you possibly compete with the Yanks/RedSox/Rays by trading the face of their franchise?

I know Baseball is a business and every team has to make business decisions but come on now.

Others opinions? I assume Angel fans must be very happy with this trade and other Jays fans must be steamed.

[LastingsMilledge85]

I don't understand how Toronto can possibly think about trading Vernon Wells after signing him to that big contract and selling fans on rebuilding around him.

Is Bautista and his one season of greatness mean he is the new guy to build around? How can you possibly compete with the Yanks/RedSox/Rays by trading the face of their franchise?

I know Baseball is a business and every team has to make business decisions but come on now.

Others opinions? I assume Angel fans must be very happy with this trade and other Jays fans must be steamed.

I think you have it backwards Gingi. I would think Blue Jays fans would be thrilled that they are getting one of the best offensive catchers in the league and can finally get rid of that huge contract Vernon never lived up to. I don't really think Bautista has too much to do with it considering he will shift to third and they have Lawrie on the way. If Bautista falters, they have depth.

[cjw]

I attended a Jays "Hot Stove" luncheon in Vancouver this afternoon and spoke to Jays GM, Alex A., Manager John Farrell and several players (Alex and John addresses the group formally) and there was no mention of this trade.

They even provided a signed Wells 8X10 for a charity auction.

I love the team and gotta say that this is a good trade IMO. Vernon is a good guy and had shown that he has real ability but consistancy wasn't there. Play Davis and save some payroll $ I say.

[vballGuy]

I think its a great deal for the Jays. Wells has $86 mil. remaining on his contract, and the Jays got back approx. $10 mil. in salary from Rivera and Napoli. Meaning that after 2011, the Jays would have saved approx. $76 mil. Wells is on the decline. Defensively, he's not the same player who won those gold gloves a few years ago, and offensively, he's nothing spectacular. Don't get me wrong, Gingi, I am a fan of Wells, but his contract was disgusting at best.

At the beginning of last year, all the baseball experts said that Vernon's contract was "unmovable". Somehow, Antholpoulous figured out a way to get that contract off the books.

This move is great in that it gives the Jays financial flexibility, and rids them of having to play Wells in CF and batting in the middle of the order.

As a Jays fan, I'm excited about seeing this team build around younger prospects.

[vballGuy]

One more thing: Bautista has way more upside than Wells. While I am not sold on his one season of greatness, he still brings versatility defensively, and has the potential to be a great offensive player. At this point in his career, Wells is pretty one-dimensional, IMHO.