I agree and disagree with the pros and cons, regarding Jose Valverde trade options this winter.

Pros: His trade value is incredibly high right now. He's coming off a brilliant 2008 season in which he racked up 44 saves and a 3.38 ERA. A team like the Mets would likely offer a king's ransom for him, especially due to the fact that they'll be without Billy Wagner for all of 2009, and a good closer would most likely secure the Mets a postseason appearance, a la the Philadelphia Phillies.

Cons: The Astros sensational luck of trading away All-Star caliber closers in some recent off-seasons ( Billy Wagner prior to 2004 and Brad Lidge prior to 2008 ), while still having another All-Star caliber closer to take his place is running on thin ice at this point. That type of fortunate cycle is bound to end, sooner or later. You can't expect the Astros to trade Jose Valverde and find yet another stud to take his place.

At some point, the so-called baseball Gods will be looking for blood!

So all and all, I can see both sides.

It's all interesting conversation, but I just feel the Astros are better off keeping Jose Valverde. Keep in mind, the Astros lost so many one-run games and two-run games. Jose Valverde might have racked up 50-plus saves this season, if so many of those nailbiting losses had went our way. I don't think many teams can say they had a closer with 44 saves, and yet they had a losing record in one-run games, as well as a negative run differential.