Nearly five years ago, the Padres and Braves shocked the baseball world with a trade of star closer Craig Kimbrel. MLBTR’s Jeff Todd looks back at the blockbuster deal and its many tentacles in today’s video.
One of my favorite trades of recent memory was particularly minor, and it sent Major League backup catcher Brett Nicholas to the Padres, and Emmanuel Clase to the Rangers. The Rangers found a diamond in the rough with Clase, and turned him into a high velocity guy with tons of potential and talent. Clase was then shipped to the Indians for Corey Kluber this offseason as the main guy in the package.
The funny thing about that trade is that Nicholas – after he was traded – got on Twitter and said how he lives on in the Rangers org. as Clase. Then when Clase was shipped to the Indians he got on Twitter and said his legend still lives on, but now as Corey Kluber. Nicholas has now retired, and it just goes to show how even the smallest trades can have the biggest impacts.
Im a fan of these videos! Keep up the good work guys!
Interesting footnote on the Kimbrel trade is Guera who may turn out to actually be a Kimbrel type closer. He has a high 90s/triple digit fastball like Kimbrel, can locate with filthy movement and low mileage on his arm.
In a rather circuitous fashion Guerra may be the sleeper. Still crazy how the domino affect continues after this trade!
Just think, if this trade never happened, and neither Kimbrel or B.J got traded. Would the Braves had signed Markakis that offseason? How would they off-load those salaries? Austin Riley wouldn’t be there. Crazy how much that would have changed things.
The Braves signed Markakis before they traded Kimbrel and Upton. Markakis was signed in the off-season after 2014. Kimbrel and Upton were traded the day before Opening Day in 2015 so obviously had zero impact on signing Markakis. They signed Markakis after trading Jason Heyward to the Cardinals for Shelby Miller.
@Rangers29 – Not the forum for this question, but baseball is quiet and you quoted Star Wars.
During this period of mostly quarantine, we’ve decided to finally watch the Star Wars series of movies. What order would you or others recommend watching them in?
Hector Olivera thanks you. Gave up Jose Peraza & Alex Wood (among others). Even parting with him for some salary relief to SD and getting Matt Kemp and the small resurgence he had (at least providing protection for Freeman) still wasn’t enough. Should I even mention getting arrested (later convicted) of domestic assault of a woman at the team’s hotel?
yeah I just mean Kimbrel was obviously beloved, and getting dealt the night before Opening Day was gut wrenching. Regardless of what other bad trades happened or what players traded hands….losing Kimbrel flat out sucked imo (and yes, having Riley 5 seasons later definitely softens the blow now, but still).
Well in terms of how many years he potentially has left, sure Riley has more of a future. But let’s wait for Riley to have a full year in the big leagues before insinuating he’s more valuable than one of the greatest closers ever.
because Freddie Freeman and Criag Kimbrel were my 2 favorite Braves at the time regardless of what the trade included. Is that not OK sheesh?!…its ok for people to be fans of Players sometimes and not just the ‘Laundry’ they’re wearing. Tad bit of prospective goes a long way every now and then fyi !!!
This was, IMHO, the second worse trade. For me, the absolute worst was trading Simmons to the Angels. Even if Newcomb turns out to be a 4 or 5 starter, it still wasn’t worth it.
I can live with this trade as it sure beat sitting on their hands and hoping things would get better like the Moorad era. Sure they took on money but their payroll was well below 100M and so what. Kimbrel did perform for a season and it got blown up from there. Kimbrel made no secret that he hated San Diego so an unhappy expensive closer made no sense once the true build started in mid 2016.
Purging Quinten and Maybin was cleaning up one of many broke extensions Josh Byrnes handed out and that had value.
Margot still turned into Pagan and Logan Allen turned into Trammel. Javy Guerra is a wildcard much like Riley is. They also still have Hansel Rodriquez from the Jay’s when BJ left town. Win some lose some, this one still has pieces here that can help the 2020 team and beyond.
And Logan Allen didn’t turn into Trammell. Logan Allen and Franmil Reyes, the best power-hitter on the Padres, turned into Trammell, a .230 hitting left fielder at AA.
Austin Riley is the only thing that could make this trade work. I guess there was a mandate to clear Upton’s salary, but man did the Braves sell low.
Kimbrel was better than anyone else during that time period. Meanwhile, Chapman and Miller were flipped a year-and-a-half later for Gleybar Torres and Clint Frazier, respectively. TBD on Frazier, but here’s betting the Cubs would’ve happily traded Torres for Kimbrel (who wasn’t a rental like Chapman) had the Braves hung onto him until the 2016 deadline.
I’d happily exchange Upton’s contract during non competitive years, Donaldson’s year last year, and Riley, for Torres moving forward.
Hypothetically, you’d have Freeman at first, Albies at second, Swanson at short, and Torres at third after the 2018 season. No need to spend $23 million on Donaldson if your infield is set with three 2018 All-Stars.
It all just goes to show how one move has ripple effects. With Upton on the books, do they take on Olivera’s contract? Would Coppy have had the relationship with Theo to get them to give up one of their top prospects? If Torres was acquired and follows a similar timeline in 2018, that likely means Camargo never has the chance to breakout that year. Where does that 23 million go to Donaldson? Kimbrel maybe? And then does that mean Melancon or Will Smith are brought in with their contracts? Lots of what-if’s and alternative timelimes by this trade
If Theo was willing to give up Gleyber Torres for pending FA Aroldis Chapman he’d have had no problem giving him up for Craig Kimbrel (who had two extra years of control).
The other Upton trade to San Diego is more interesting to me. The Braves got 2 1st, a 2nd, and a 5th round selection but only 1 player remains in Atlanta.
Pepperidge Farm remembers
Ha! Well played.
smotpoker remembers Fry watching a commercial of this in Futurama, “A Fishful of Dollars,” 1999. The gag was usurped by family guy years later.
One of my favorite trades of recent memory was particularly minor, and it sent Major League backup catcher Brett Nicholas to the Padres, and Emmanuel Clase to the Rangers. The Rangers found a diamond in the rough with Clase, and turned him into a high velocity guy with tons of potential and talent. Clase was then shipped to the Indians for Corey Kluber this offseason as the main guy in the package.
The funny thing about that trade is that Nicholas – after he was traded – got on Twitter and said how he lives on in the Rangers org. as Clase. Then when Clase was shipped to the Indians he got on Twitter and said his legend still lives on, but now as Corey Kluber. Nicholas has now retired, and it just goes to show how even the smallest trades can have the biggest impacts.
Great story. Thanks for sharing
Im a fan of these videos! Keep up the good work guys!
Interesting footnote on the Kimbrel trade is Guera who may turn out to actually be a Kimbrel type closer. He has a high 90s/triple digit fastball like Kimbrel, can locate with filthy movement and low mileage on his arm.
In a rather circuitous fashion Guerra may be the sleeper. Still crazy how the domino affect continues after this trade!
yeah I like the videos too, great idea! I had no idea that was an acquired pick that ends up being Austin Riley, pretty cool
Thanks!
Of all the trades Coppy pulled off during the rebuild, this one hurt the most. Thanks for bringing it back up sheesh! lol
Just think, if this trade never happened, and neither Kimbrel or B.J got traded. Would the Braves had signed Markakis that offseason? How would they off-load those salaries? Austin Riley wouldn’t be there. Crazy how much that would have changed things.
The Braves signed Markakis before they traded Kimbrel and Upton. Markakis was signed in the off-season after 2014. Kimbrel and Upton were traded the day before Opening Day in 2015 so obviously had zero impact on signing Markakis. They signed Markakis after trading Jason Heyward to the Cardinals for Shelby Miller.
“Fake and a fraud I am.” – Yoda
Ok I got mixed up, but they still wouldn’t have gotten Riley.
@Rangers29 – Not the forum for this question, but baseball is quiet and you quoted Star Wars.
During this period of mostly quarantine, we’ve decided to finally watch the Star Wars series of movies. What order would you or others recommend watching them in?
Hector Olivera thanks you. Gave up Jose Peraza & Alex Wood (among others). Even parting with him for some salary relief to SD and getting Matt Kemp and the small resurgence he had (at least providing protection for Freeman) still wasn’t enough. Should I even mention getting arrested (later convicted) of domestic assault of a woman at the team’s hotel?
yeah I just mean Kimbrel was obviously beloved, and getting dealt the night before Opening Day was gut wrenching. Regardless of what other bad trades happened or what players traded hands….losing Kimbrel flat out sucked imo (and yes, having Riley 5 seasons later definitely softens the blow now, but still).
You did get Austin Riley with the pick though
How did it hurt? They were able to dump Melvin Upton and Austin Riley has much more of a future in MLB than Craig Kimbrel does.
Well in terms of how many years he potentially has left, sure Riley has more of a future. But let’s wait for Riley to have a full year in the big leagues before insinuating he’s more valuable than one of the greatest closers ever.
If you are that upset about losing Kimbrel I’m sure the Cubs would trade him back to you for a signed Ronald Acuña jersey.
Just a jersey and notnAcuna himself? As long as the Cubs pay Kimbrel im sure the Braves would take him back
Not Acuna himself … sorry its early here
because Freddie Freeman and Criag Kimbrel were my 2 favorite Braves at the time regardless of what the trade included. Is that not OK sheesh?!…its ok for people to be fans of Players sometimes and not just the ‘Laundry’ they’re wearing. Tad bit of prospective goes a long way every now and then fyi !!!
This was, IMHO, the second worse trade. For me, the absolute worst was trading Simmons to the Angels. Even if Newcomb turns out to be a 4 or 5 starter, it still wasn’t worth it.
I remember this trade, because he (Kimbrel) was flipped the next season.
if the Padres actually did well that year this trade would be up there with some of the other horrific trades.
They should have done the trade on opening day
It’s fun watching these and how long the web of players goes.
I can live with this trade as it sure beat sitting on their hands and hoping things would get better like the Moorad era. Sure they took on money but their payroll was well below 100M and so what. Kimbrel did perform for a season and it got blown up from there. Kimbrel made no secret that he hated San Diego so an unhappy expensive closer made no sense once the true build started in mid 2016.
Purging Quinten and Maybin was cleaning up one of many broke extensions Josh Byrnes handed out and that had value.
Margot still turned into Pagan and Logan Allen turned into Trammel. Javy Guerra is a wildcard much like Riley is. They also still have Hansel Rodriquez from the Jay’s when BJ left town. Win some lose some, this one still has pieces here that can help the 2020 team and beyond.
When did Kimbrel ever hate San Diego?
And getting rid of Quentin and Maybin has no value when you have to take back a contract that is worse than the two of them put together to do it.
And there is no comparison between Austin Riley and Javy Guerra.
And Logan Allen didn’t turn into Trammell. Logan Allen and Franmil Reyes, the best power-hitter on the Padres, turned into Trammell, a .230 hitting left fielder at AA.
Austin Riley is the only thing that could make this trade work. I guess there was a mandate to clear Upton’s salary, but man did the Braves sell low.
Kimbrel was better than anyone else during that time period. Meanwhile, Chapman and Miller were flipped a year-and-a-half later for Gleybar Torres and Clint Frazier, respectively. TBD on Frazier, but here’s betting the Cubs would’ve happily traded Torres for Kimbrel (who wasn’t a rental like Chapman) had the Braves hung onto him until the 2016 deadline.
I’d happily exchange Upton’s contract during non competitive years, Donaldson’s year last year, and Riley, for Torres moving forward.
How does Josh Donaldson have anything to do with anything?
Hypothetically, you’d have Freeman at first, Albies at second, Swanson at short, and Torres at third after the 2018 season. No need to spend $23 million on Donaldson if your infield is set with three 2018 All-Stars.
It all just goes to show how one move has ripple effects. With Upton on the books, do they take on Olivera’s contract? Would Coppy have had the relationship with Theo to get them to give up one of their top prospects? If Torres was acquired and follows a similar timeline in 2018, that likely means Camargo never has the chance to breakout that year. Where does that 23 million go to Donaldson? Kimbrel maybe? And then does that mean Melancon or Will Smith are brought in with their contracts? Lots of what-if’s and alternative timelimes by this trade
If Theo was willing to give up Gleyber Torres for pending FA Aroldis Chapman he’d have had no problem giving him up for Craig Kimbrel (who had two extra years of control).
Agreed. Heck Atlanta might’ve been able to swindle Eloy Jiminez as well!
Drain the San Diego swamp!
Not happening. But feel free to watch.
Who cares
You enough to comment, apparently.
The other Upton trade to San Diego is more interesting to me. The Braves got 2 1st, a 2nd, and a 5th round selection but only 1 player remains in Atlanta.
Verlander traded Kate Upton? mmmmmmmmmmmmmm
And Steve, the youtube blurbs would work a lot better if delivered by Dr. Falchi…….