Adam Eaton Dealt To Rangers

Kevin Towers made a great trade today, acquiring promising youngsters Chris Young and Adrian Gonzalez (plus Terrmel Sledge) for Adam Eaton and Akinori Otsuka.  I didn't think a deal was imminent yesterday, but I also didn't think Jon Daniels would surrender a comparable, younger pitcher in the trade.

In what way is Adam Eaton better than Chris Young?  Putting their numbers side by side, I'd say Young is already the preferable pitcher.  Their strikeout rates are comparable, and Young's superior control results in fewer baserunners.  Young's durability is an unknown, but it couldn't be much worse than Eaton's.  Eaton's had a nice assist from Petco, while Young threw well in his initial exposure to the pitchers' hell that is Ameriquest.  Throw in the fact that Young is four years away from a big payday while Eaton is right around the corner, and this looks like Jon Daniels's first misstep.

What's more, Adrian Gonzalez is a better bet than Akinori Otsuka.  Gonzalez hit .338/.399/.561 in his third crack at Triple A this year.  He never stuck with the Rangers, but only received 192 at-bats in the Majors.  He's a useful player at his current level, and at 23 years old he can certainly improve.

Otsuka showed some serious signs of decline in his second Major League season.  He's 33 years old and had a dangerously bad walk rate in '05.  Strikeouts were down as well.  He still may be helpful to the Texas bullpen, as he appears to keep the ball in the yard.  But keep in mind that's based on just 66 non-Petco Major League innings. 

The Otsuka-Gonzalez part of the deal is still fairly reasonable in light of each team's needs.  Replacing Eaton with Young, however, heavily favors the Padres. 

Comments

[Texadero]

NOoooooooooooo!!!

*slams head against desk*

Why didn't they just trade for Benson and that Heilman guy?

GOD $(#*$(*# (*#$(*#

[RumorMonger]

Daniels is putting a lot of faith in a shaky guy in Eaton, which is super risky considering how valuable Young is. Interesting that both Chris Youngs were dealt this offseason. Wonder if both Luis Gonzalezes will be on the move?

[Operation Shutdown]

This deal really makes no sense at all for Texas. The Padres got a hell of a lot better this offseason, though. What happened here? This seems really one-sided.

[RumorMonger]

Dunno, but it definitely makes up for Loretta for Mirabelli.

[Ryan]

Is this paving the way for some sort of Wells-for-Gonzalez swap with Boston? The Pads have cleared a few million off the books and Adrian would be blocked by Klesko (who's not going anywhere.) We all know they want the big man and the Red Sox want a young left-handed first baseman...possible?

[RumorMonger]

Yeah, very possible Ryan. With three solid starters in tow, the Padres could contend in a weak West.

[Grant]

Is it just me, or has Daniels been a part of two of the most peculiar trades of the offseason? First, he deals Soriano to WAS for two OF's and a prospect (now Soriano wants to take his ball and go play 2B in the AL again), and now he deals one of his top MLB-ready young pitchers AND one of the best young first basemen in the game, not name Prince Fielder. Is he just making deals for the sake of making them? I can't really say either of those teams make the Rangers THAT much better. Who knows, maybe Wilkerson will be a maniac in that ballpark and Eaton lead the league in ERA (Ha). I wonder if the asking price on Millwood drove Daniels to make this deal? I can't think of another reason to overpay for an extremely unhappy veteran pitcher, a very hittable setup man, and a catcher that hit around .250 last year with little to no power. To me the Rangers gave the Padres 3 MLB-ready talents for 2 mediocre pitchers and a prospect. Am I the only one not getting it or is there a method to his madness?

[RumorMonger]

Agreed mostly, Grant, although you're higher on Gonzalez than I am. Besides this year, he didn't exactly rock it in Triple A the way a #1 draft pick should.

[Grant]

Maybe I did overstate Gonzalez's value a bit, but I think he would be a good fit in Petco with those big alleys. He could hit around .300/15/75 and close to 40 doubles if he were to play regularly(which may not be until 2007). But as mentioned above, he could be the key piece to getting David Wells from Boston. I suppose the Sox would platoon him with Youkillis at first base until one or the other plays himself into the position. No matter whether Gonzalez turns into the Mark Grace or Hee Seop Choi - this deal sent a good young SP away from Texas, where I thought those were hard to come by for a mediocre SP that is not the best fit for that ballpark. The Rangers end of the deal is still very puzzling to me because they acquired a pitcher might have been able to be attained for less (due to his public rants about his current club). At the end of the day, I think Kevin Towers bested young Mr. Daniels by adding three serviceable MLB-caliber players to his 40 man roster (possibly more if Gonzalez is part of a Wells deal), while the Rangers only add average 2 pitchers and a B-/C+ prospect.

[RumorMonger]

Alright, well that's spot-on.

[JC]

I thought the Soriano trade was a steal for the Rangers - Wilkerson is straight up better than Soriano.

But this trade is a disaster for them. I just don't understand it at all.

[Nate]

I don't seen how Gonzales is much worse than Klesko. He's only had about 200 ML AB's. Klesko is old and sucks. Why would they want Wells (bad)back? If Young stays healthy they can win the West with this team.

[NeifiChicken]

When Eaton is right, he's a legitimate no. 2 and that is what Daniels is banking on. The guy is just entering his prime and before his injury he posted a 3.42 ERA and went 9-2.

His numbers are inflated because of how inconsistent he was after returning from injury.

Still, I don't see why Daniels would trade 5 years of Young, who is still growing, for 1 year of Eaton. While Eaton is better when healthy, health is a big factor as he struggled with it last year and has had injuries in the past.

The other parts of the deal only make it worse IMO, as the NL was figuring out Aki. The AL will be a good switch for him.

[st.PETEr ROSE]

I think Gonzalez seems like a nice pick up for San Diego. I mean the fact that he didnt get much playing time or that he was up and town from triple A is somewhat insignificant. I dont know, ive heard some pretty good things about him and 338/399/561 looks pretty good to me ,even in triple A, and more importantly he's only 23. If your up and down and can't quite catch on in a judgernaut offense like Texas and your just 23 that just adds to his experience along w/ what seems like a pretty good attitude I mean it cant be easy repeatly being told your getting sent down. I dont know, If he starts for san diego he'll pretty much be on schedule for a young position talent.

[Grant]

So with this deal, I guess there is no chance of the Rangers landing the Benson family. Man, I could hardly wait to see the headline "ANNA DOES DALLAS" along the top of the Morning News.

[RumorMonger]

Niiiice. On a related note, Chicago sportswriters have been having a field day with a Bears QB named Rex. Yesterday one went with "Rex Appeal" and another with "Rex Change." I was thinking that if he made the Pro Bowl it could be "Rex On The Beach." That's all I got so far.

[Swede]

Anyone want to speculate
on Eaton's production for
2006? Will he stick, or
become a rental SP until
July trade time? I believe
he'll be a FA after 2006.
Thanks!

[TalenTED]

The trade could be a wash this year but the following years it's a big upside for San Diego. Don't forget how many millions San Diego saved with this trade.