Thankfully the transaction wire cooled off over the holidays. I had to ice my fingers and replace my keyboard.
Jays Trade Batista and Hudson to the Diamondbacks for Glaus and Santos
The Blue Jays added the power source they were looking for by trading starting pitcher/closer Miguel Batista and second baseman Orlando Hudson to the Diamondbacks for Troy Glaus and minor league shortstop Sergio Santos.
After missing parts of 2003 and 2004 with a shoulder injury, Glaus proved that he had fully recovered, hitting .258 with 37 home runs and 97 RBI. He has always hit for a lower average and right-handers tended to have more success getting him out. This year, however, Glaus reversed his splits, hitting right-handers at a .260 clip. It is very possible that he could up his batting average to .275 if he continues to improve against righties and hits lefties like he used to. He will start at third and the Jays will move some of their extra corner infielders in the coming weeks.
Batista successfully converted to closer last year for the Jays, saving 31 games. He made it clear that he wished to return to starting and will do so for the Diamondbacks.
Hudson has always been a better sim player than a fantasy player. Now in his prime, he is a solid .270 hitter and in a good year he might steal 10 bases. As a sim player, Hudson's Gold Glove defense at second greatly increases his value. He’ll start at second for the Diamondbacks.
Santos had an awful year in 2005 hitting only .239 in a hitter-friendly Triple-A Tucson ballpark, making him expendable. He played shortstop, but was expected to become a third baseman or outfielder as he grew. Santos, still quite young, will report to Triple-A Syracuse in 2006 and try and get his career turned around.
Rangers Trade Young, Gonzalez and Sledge to Padres for Eaton, Otsuka and Killian
The Rangers continued to improve their rotation and bullpen, trading for starting pitcher Adam Eaton and set-up man Akinori Otsuka. The Padres take a chance on a young starter (Chris Young) who had a load of innings and a first base prospect (Adrian Gonzalez) that has not met expectations.
Young had a breakout season in 2005, winning 12 games in 31 starts with a 4.26 ERA. Now pitching in pitcher-friendly Petco Park, he should continue to improve. Young's performance declined as the innings piled on, which is a concern, but no arm problems have been found during the offseason.
Termel Sledge missed most of the year with a torn hamstring. He had an uninspiring debut in 2004, hitting .269 with 15 home runs in 398 ABs. Sledge is expected to platoon with Dave Roberts in left field.
Gonzalez was the first overall pick in the 2000 draft. The Rangers, and before them, the Marlins, were expecting the home runs to come as his body developed. They never did. He is an outstanding defender so he is often compared to a J.T. Snow or Mark Grace. Gonzalez worked in the outfield to try to increase his value to the Rangers, but as an outfielder, he has poor range and a weak arm. He will fight for the job at first with the Padres, and will most likely return to Triple-A.
Adam Eaton had a solid season in the Padres’ rotation despite an injured middle finger that prevented him from throwing any of his breaking pitches. Without his curve, he moved into the bullpen. Eaton returned to the rotation in September and finished the season with an 11-5 record and a 4.27 ERA. Keep in mind that he had a 5.09 ERA on the road. He will see a much higher ERA in hitter-friendly Ameriquest Field.
Otsuka did not match his dramatic 2004 season. He was clobbered early in the season, but finished solidly, ending the year with a 2-8 record and a 3.59 ERA.
Billy Killian is a minor league catcher who has not shown that he's headed for the majors during his brief career.
Final Notes
As you can see, this Transactional Analysis is much smaller than previous installments, thankfully. As Spring Training draws near, most of the feature baseball articles are looking to increase in frequency. When that happens, Transactional Analysis will go weekly.
I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season.