I Despise Noah Lowry

Many people have been speculating about a Joe Crede-for-Noah Lowry swap between the Sox and Giants, and after doing a little research, I am officially and adamantly opposed to this deal (as are many Giants fans, interestingly enough). To get you on the same page as I am, let's look at some numbers from 2007:

Noah Lowry:

IP: 156.0
WHIP: 1.55
K/9: 5.02
K/BB: 87/87

John Danks:

IP: 139.0
WHIP: 1.54
K/9: 7.06
K/BB: 109/54

Lowry posted 14 wins in 2007, compared to Danks' 6. His WHIP of 1.55 was almost 0.2 above the NL average, and would presumably increase by an additional 0.1 the minute he joined the AL ranks. And a K/BB of 1.0? Are you kidding me?

If Lowry joined the Sox, he would fill one of the back three spots in the rotation, inevitably raising the question of how much better is he than Gavin Floyd, the odd man out in this case? Anyone who has read this blog knows I'm a firm believer that Floyd is a solid starter...for a Double-A team. But Lowry hasn't topped 160 IP in the past two seasons, doesn't strike people out, and concedes a lot of baserunners, so I'm not totally sure that the value he adds over Floyd is worth Joe Crede. Actually, I'm convinced it's not.

Unless we throw together a massive package for Matt Cain (since I have since learned that Tim Lincecum is all but untouchable), we are not going to get a starting pitcher from the Giants that will benefit us greatly in 2008. And creating a package deal would effectively undermine the other acquisitions Kenny has made this offseason, so I am beginning to believe that the only way a deal with the Giants makes sense is if it is centered around some of their top prospects.

I would much rather see Jack Egbert, Gavin, and Lance Broadway battle it out for the 5th starter's spot in Spring Training than waste Joe Crede's value on an NL guy who all signs point to won't translate well into the AL. Thank God the Giants fans are convinced that Lowry's a much more valuable piece than Crede; if Brian Sabean feels the same way, he won't even give Kenny the chance to screw this up.