MLS Transaction Analysis - 2/13/2007

Part two continued from yesterday, this time dealing with the Western conference. Once again, all dates are to the best of my knowledge and all starting lineups include only players who are officially on the rosters. CD CHIVAS USA Lost D-Tim Regan to Toronto in the expansion draft. [11/17] Acquired M-Amado Guevara from New York for a designated player slot and a 2007 third round Superdraft pick (Sinisa Ubiparipovic). [11/27] Lost D-Johnnie Garcia, M-Juan Pablo Garcia, F-Jesus Morales, and F-Francisco Palencia who all returned to Mexico. [1/1] Acquired F-David Arvizu from New York for a 2007 fourth round supplemental draft pick (Danny Cepero). [1/12] Drafted F-John Cunliffe and D-Cameron Dunn in the 2007 Superdraft. [1/12] Drafted D-Desmond Brooks, M-Erasmo Solorzano, M-Raul Batista, F-Anthony Hamilton, and F-Lyle Martin in the 2007 supplemental draft. [1/18] Thoughts: Number one priority is replacing the SIs they lost. I guess Guevara essentially replaces Garcia as the guy who spearheads the attack, and that's an upgrade. If you aren't going to use the DP spot, then you might as well get something for it. And Guevara has a green card, so he isn't an SI. As usual, they'll be bringing in "reinforcements" from Guadalajara. While they haven't been officially announced, defender Jorge Barrera and forward Edwin Borboa will join on loan. They're both young guys (23/24) but definitely not stars. Barrera will probably start at right back. They could use some higher profile guys. Maykel Galindo, the Cuban forward who defected during the last Gold Cup and who now plays for the Seattle Sounders, played for Chivas in their first preseason game. He would be a good signing. It looks like John O'Brien will not return. If he doesn't, at least they'll get something from another team for his rights. Overall, Chivas has a mix of talented young players and talented older players. You have to be worried about how long Razov, Marsch, and Suarez can play at a high level. Possible Starting Lineup: ........Bornstein.....Razov.....Mendoza....... ........Marsch.....Guevara.....Kljestan........ ...Perez...Suarez...Hernandez...Vaughn... ..........................Guzan................................ COLORADO RAPIDS Waived D-Eric Denton, M-Alain Nkong, F-Luchi Gonzalez, F-Sasha Gotsmanov, F-Aaron King and F-Melvin Tarley. [11/21] Acquired D-Ugo Ihemelu, F-Herculez Gomez, and a 2007 second round Superdraft pick (traded to Dallas) from Los Angeles for GK-Joe Cannon and a 2007 second round Superdraft pick (Ty Harden).[12/1] Acquired D-Brandon Prideaux from DC United for a 2007 second round (Jay Needham) and 2008 third round Superdraft picks. [12/12] Lost F-Thiago Martins after contract was not renewed. [1/1] Acquired D-Greg Vanney and 2008 third round Superdraft pick from Dallas for 2007 second round Superdraft pick (Andrew Daniels) and 2008 third round Superdraft pick. [1/12] Drafted M-Nico Colaluca, M-Greg Dalby, F-Omar Cummings, M-Nick LaBrocca, and GK-Justin Hughes in the 2007 Superdraft. [1/12] Drafted M-John DiRaimondo, M-Kosuke Kimura, and F-Riley O'Neill in the 2007 supplemental draft. [1/18] Signed F-Roberto Brown. [2/5] Thoughts: If the Rapids don't improve in 2007, it certainly won't be for lack of trying. They were actually worse last season in Fernando Clavijo's second year in charge. So despite the playoff victory, they couldn't stand still. They've made some good trades and look to have more depth. But is the first XI really that much better? They got Vanney for virtually nothing, and Prideaux is solid enough. The Cannon trade was especially good. They got two solid players from LA. Granted, they now have a big whole at goalkeeper (Zach Thornton anyone?) but it makes the rest of the team solid. Plus, what they were doing wasn't working. Vanney will play left back, which leaves Ihemelu and Petke in the middle. From what I've read on Bigsoccer, Aitor Karanka will not be back which is unfortunate. Brown should be a quality player. His arrival gives the Rapids a bunch of decent forwards, along with Gomez and Nicolas Hernandez. We could actually see both Mathis and Kirovski on the bench when the year starts. Maybe they can trade for John O'Brien too. They failed to sign Jared Borgetti, however. The big question is who will play on the left. They have reportedly already signed Costa Rican U20 Yerhland McDonald, although who knows if he's good enough. Hopefully he's better than Pablo Brenes. Possible Starting Lineup: .......................Gomez........Brown............................ ...Hernandez...Beckerman...Mastroeni...Cooke... ........Vanney...Ihemelu...Petke...Freeman........... ..................................Jordan.................................... FC DALLAS Acquired D/M-Adrian Serioux and a 2007 second round Superdraft pick (Abdus Ibrahim) from Toronto for M-Ronnie O'Brien. [11/17] Waived F-Alex Smith. [11/21] Lost M-Simo Valakari after his contract was not renewed. [1/1] Acquired 2007 second round Superdraft pick (Andrew Daniels) and 2008 third round Superdraft pick from Colorado for D-Greg Vanney and 2008 third round Superdraft pick. [1/12] Acquired 2008 fourth round Superdraft pick from Salt Lake for a 2007 fourth round Superdraft pick (traded to New England). [1/12] Drafted D/M-Anthony Wallace, F-Abdus Ibrahim, F-Andrew Daniels, F-Ryan Guy, M-Scott Jones, and F-Tommy Krizanovic in the 2007 Superdraft. [1/12] Drafted M-Sandi Gbandi and M-Chase Wileman in the 2007 supplemental draft. [1/18] Announced GK-Jeff Cassar has retired to become Dallas' goalkeeper coach. [1/23] Re-signed D-Bobby Rhine. [1/30] Thoughts: Not the greatest of offseasons. O'Brien for Serioux is not a great trade, and they let Vanney go for virtually nothing. Serioux replaces him, but who replaces O'Brien? Or Valakari for that matter? They don't have a bunch of stars like DC, HOU, and NE, so they could be in a for a fall. The failure to sign Edgar Davids looms large. But he probably wouldn't have been worth the money anyway. Steve Morrow needs to do something to improve the team. The good news is that according to 3rd Degree, both Shaka Hislop and Ramon Nunez are close to green cards which opens up foreign spots. Possible Starting Lineup: ................Cooper.........Ruiz................ ...Alvarez.............................Nunez.... ...........Mulrooney.....Saragosa.......... ...Gbandi...Serioux...Moor...Rhine... ..............................Sala........................ HOUSTON DYNAMO Lost D/M-Adrian Serioux to Toronto in the expansion draft. [11/17] Waived D-Chris Aloisi. [11/21] Drafted M-John Michael Hayden, M/F-Corey Ashe, Mike Sambursky, and M-Eric Ebert in the 2007 Superdraft. [1/12] Drafted M-Nick Hatzke, F-Erik Ustruck, and D-Justin Douglass in the 2007 supplemental draft. [1/18] Signed GK-Jordan James. [1/26] Waived GK-Martin Hutton, M-Aaron Lanes, and M-Marcus Storey. [1/30] Thoughts: Dynamo should be as strong as ever. Losing Serioux is the only major occurrence of the offseason. Cochrane played the MLS Cup so he's ready to step in. I suppose Patrick Ianni may get finally some playing time as a backup since we all know Dominic Kinnear's feelings on rookies. The good news is that young players like Ianni, Stuart Holden and Chris Wondolowski all will improve if things go to plan, giving the team more depth. They'll need it with the Gold Cup and Copa America in the summer, especially since De Rosario will certainly be called up. Now that Ramiro Corrales has been deported, he would be a good guy to sign as the fans on Bigsoccer have suggested. Possible Starting Lineup: ...................Ching.........Dalglish.................... ...........................De Rosario.......................... ....Davis........................................Mullan...... ...............................Clark................................ ...Barrett...Robinson...Cochrane...Waibel... ..............................Onstad.............................. LOS ANGELES GALAXY Lost M-Paulo Nagamura to Toronto in the expansion draft. [11/17] Waived F-Michael Enfield. [11/22] Acquired GK-Joe Cannon and a 2007 second round Superdraft pick (Ty Harden) from Colorado for D-Ugo Ihemelu, F-Herculez Gomez, and a 2007 second round Superdraft pick (traded to Dallas).[12/1] Acquired F-Nate Jaqua from Toronto for a partial allocation. [12/15] Acquired second round Superdraft picks in 2007 (Robbie Findlay) and 2008 from Kansas City for GK-Kevin Hartman. [12/15] Re-signed M/F-Santino Quaranta. [12/18] Signed M-David Beckham. [1/11] Drafted F-Robbie Findlay, M-Josh Tudela, D-Ty Harden, GK-Tally Hall, and F-Bobby Burling in the 2007 Superdraft. [1/12] Drafted D-Steve Purdy, D-Gordon Kljestan, D-Kevin Long, D-Zach Kirby, M/F-Taylor Canel, and D-Kiel McClung in the 2007 supplemental draft. [1/18] Acquired conditional 2008 Superdraft third round pick from Columbus for M-Stefani Miglioranzi. [1/19] Waived GK-Josh Saunders, M-Memo Gonzalez, F-Josh Hansen, and F-Cornell Glen. [2/2] Thoughts: Yeah yeah, Becks. I know. Let's talk about the other stuff. The Cannon trade seemed like a lot to give up, even though it's an upgrade at that position. They made up for it partly by getting draft picks for Hartman, but now they have to replace Ihemelu. Can Roberts fill his shoes? Nagamura is not a huge loss, while getting Jaqua was an absolute steal. Glen's departure offsets that a little, but they never had him for long anyway. I don't think the Galaxy were horrible last year; just like in 2005, they were much better statistically when Donovan was on the field (and Albright). The bad news is they'll miss those guys again for a number of games, while Beckham will miss half the year. They're decent on paper, at least. Possible Starting Lineup: .................Donovan.....Jaqua...................... ...Quaranta...Vagenas...Beckham...Kirk... ...Jazic...Roberts...Marshall...Albright...... .........................Cannon................................ REAL SALT LAKE Lost F-Jason Kreis to Toronto in the expansion draft. [11/17] Acquired F-Jason Kreis from Toronto for a partial allocation. [11/17] Acquired M-Freddy Adu and GK-Nick Rimando, and future considerations from DC United for GK-Jay Nolly, a major allocation, and cash. [12/11] Waived D-Jake Besagno, D-Cameron Knowles, D-Douglas Sequeira, and M-Seth Trembly. [12/11] Signed F-Luis Tejada (loan). [12/14] Acquired 2007 fourth round Superdraft pick (traded to New England) from Dallas for a 2008 fourth round Superdraft pick. [1/12] Acquired F-Kyle Brown from New England for 2007 fourth round Superdraft pick (Adam Christman). [1/12] Drafted GK-Chris Seitz and M-Steven Curfman in the 2007 Superdraft. [1/12] Drafted D-Haddon Kirk, M-Jared Kent, GK-Kyle Reynish, and D-Dustin Kirby in the 2007 supplemental draft. [1/18] Signed D/M-Chris Lancos. [1/31] Waived D-Nelson Akwari, F-Adam Acosta, and F-Jafet Soto. [2/1] Thoughts: The Kreis thing symbolized the franchise's short history, giving away an allocation for nothing due to their own stupidity. Not that they had a lot of bad choices of those to protect, but still. Other than that, the Tejada signing is a good one and the Adu trade makes sense off the field. On the field, they might as well take a chance. It's good for Adu, at least. Given their defensive problems (worst in the league last year), it was surprising to read that John Ellinger will be using a 3-5-2 this year. It appears that Kreis will be a holding midfielder along with Carey Talley, which is very interesting. Ellinger himself says "the midfield is going to be crazy." (lol) I don't doubt that he's capable of success there, but Forko/Torres and Stewart as starting defenders don't inspire confidence. It could work, or it could fail spectacularly and get Ellinger fired a month into the season. Either way it should be fun to watch. Possible Starting Lineup: ..........Cunningham.....Tejada............ ...Ballouchy........Adu.............Klein.... ..................Talley........Kreis.............. ............Forko.....Pope.....Stewart...... ..........................Garlick.......................