he could sustain a 350 OBP in the majors not only because of his BABIP, but also because his MLE for arguably his best year in the minorss at the age 23 in AA would give him an OBP of 324. This is no where near 350, but it is also not likely to be his OBP. His OBP is more likely to be around 340. Now his BABIP was around 330-340 almost always during his minor league career which suggests that he has been lucky alot. If it were to decrease in the majors(which is very likely) then his batting average would drop and so would his OBP. Now I will admit that he has above average plate discipline, but that is the only above average skill that he has.

Hardy, however, has slightly above-average plate discipline, average defense, above-average power, and a slightly above-average batting average. Lowrie might be pretty simliar but Hardy’s power is what sperates him from Lowrie. If Hardy did not have the power he would also be an average shortstop.

Now I do not think Oakland will be worried about a guy who is just entering arbitration this year and will not be making any more than 4 0r 5 million. This is not a team like Florida or Pittsburgh that can not afford players that cost more than 4 million. This is Oakland who has many more player that make more than 4 million and is not afraid to spend money if they are doing it wisely.

Also, the question was who is the best shortstop that Oakland can acquire right now for Trevor Cahill. Do you honestly believe that Lowrie’s numbers will be better than Hardy’s next year?

If they get Furcal then obviously they don’t need another SS. Even with him and Holliday they might not be competitive, and if they don’t get him, then even Yunel Escobar probably won’t be enough to make them a serious team in 2009

Justin Duchsherer is currently their ace. Dana Eveland is their number 2 starter. I happen to like Gio Gonzalez, but him, Sean Gallagher and Andrew Brown isn’t exactly a stellar back-rotation for 2009 (in a few years, it might be). This staff might be alright if their offense was significantly above average. Which it isn’t. Your best case scenario that you list above has two above average hitters (Holliday and Cust), and relying on Ryan Sweeney, Eric Chavez, Daric Barton (who I actually do like, but whatever) and Kurt Suzuki just isn’t a recipe for success. The A’s are quite simply not a J.J. Hardy away from contending. Why would they deal a crucial piece from their 2011 team to win 80 games instead of 75?

Jeter, Tulo and Rollins could clearly not be had for Cahill, or even Cahill+. That’s just silly. No way in the world. Laughable. Tulo is signed to a very team friendly deal and is a core, cheap, young, star player. Why the hell would Colorado trade him for a pitching prospect- no matter how good? Jeter? Come on… Pretty much the same goes for Rollins, & he’s not far removed from an MVP campaign. Anyone who thinks Philly or NY would trade superstar, iconic players like Rollins or Jeter straight up for a pitching prospect has no clue what theyre talking about. Period. Would never happen. Heck, if the Phils wanted to trade Rollins they could get someone to better that offer(Just Cahill). Same goes for most of these guys.

A type like Hardy is all you could get and Hardy has his question marks – though I do like him. I question whether Escobar could be had – but even if he could, he and Matt Holliday alone do not come close to solving what was wrong with the 08 A’s.

Either way I still say no because I really believe Cahill is special. They have done a great job adding pitching depth, but not all pitching prospects are created equal… Id deal Anderson, Simmons, Gio easily before Cahill. if you want to deal from depth, how about the second basemen? Ellis was re-signed, so there is no pressing need there. I would definitely rather go Gio and Weeks for a legit SS solution than Cahill for an average SS with upside.

The most obvious solution is to find a shortstop in free agency, though. The A’s need impact bats and there simply wont be one available at SS – especially not one who can be had for Cahill alone. Guys like Escobar? Those are guys you look at as helping on a 6 year scale – that is not the type you trade for to help this year – out of necessity youre overpaying for a young, 0-3 guy. You could match his defense and production much more cheaply if you found it in a 32 year old – and for next year alone those guys are around and available – though I wouldnt say plentiful.

If Im Billy Beane, I find another stopgap at SS to pair with Crobsy and save my resources to find another impact bat, Id rather package say… (completely bullshitting now) Cahill, Weeks and Barton for Adrian Gonzalez and Kalil Greene. Im not sure San Diego would do that of course(doubt it actually), but the point is you need to add a lot of offense to a pathetic hitting club. That is the major need on this team – run scoring. In that light you dont go trading your best prospect for a SS – youre not going to add a premium bat that way.