Well, today is the one year anniversary of the ATR, so I decided to do a retrospective of the highlights of the 1991 season. (Yes, the first ATR was December 25, 2002.) I guess I should have been around more during 1991, but this is the last year that I pick up seasonal work as a department store Santa. So, here are the deals that are the highlights of the 1991 season (which means no Montreal trades where Robb acquires a fourth outfielder for the Ottawa Lynx.) or just give me a chance to talk about a particular team.
This will be part one of the ATR Anniversary Special, since there are seventeen trades that deserve mention. Each volume of the Regular ATR Reports looks at five trades, but I’ll supersize these special ATR Reports as you reflect on all the emotional scars I’ve inflicted upon the CDL owners in the last year.
Oh, and if you are curious, I never had any intention of revealing my true identity, I just wanted to see who everyone thought I was.
St. Louis receives Ps Mike Walters and Jaime Navarro and SS Omar Vizquel.
Chicago (A) receives 1B John Olerud and P Andy Benes.
You know, if you trade for one of the best 1B prospects in the league and you have a mediocre at best 1B, you sack Don Mattingly and let John Olerud play 1B, in the theory that you could find a better outfielder to play LF, since Olerud’s fielding leaves a lot to be desired. Olerud is still a high quality prospect, who should displace Don Mattingly and his $4,500,000 salary (Which reminds me, I should do a special on Contract Extensions once a year, just so I can start the catch phrase, Dear God WHY!!!!!) once Mattingly’s contract expires in 1992. Andy Benes is a decent pitcher, who might fill out the back of the White Sox rotation in a year or two, but his penchant for the long ball will prevent him from being much more than that.
What did the Cardinals get for these two prospects? Well, a gaping hole at first base when Fred McGriff went down for the season. Olerud might end up being the difference between a division title and a trip home for the playoffs. Mike Walters has been one of the premier closers in the CDL, but he makes $9,000,000 next season and combined the with the $35,000,000 outfield, could create major financial troubles for the Cardinals in the next year or two. Jaime Navarro should be ready to join the Cardinals rotation in either 1992 or 1993 and will be a far better pitcher than Andy Benes. Benes may have better hit prevention, but Navarro is superior at every other facet of the game. And finally Omar Vizquel is a talented shortstop, but seems to have been rushed to the major league level this year. He still carries a good glove, but his bat is currently mediocre. However, it is better to have two young shortstops than none. The deal might haunt the Cardinals this year, but once McGriff returns, the true reasons for the deal will once more become apparent.
Winner: St. Louis
Cincinnati receives CF Ken Griffey Jr.
Toronto receives 2B Mike Sharperson, P Rob Murphy and Cincinnati’s first round Amateur draft choice in 1991.
The Blue Jays managed to trade away two players taken first overall. That’s talent. However, if you are going to trade away a player like Ken Griffey, this is not a bad package to get. Griffey is not the best player taken overall in the last few years. He’s played two seasons so far and been thoroughly mediocre, though he still has the talent to be an elite centerfielder in the CDL. His downside is his injury prone ways and the fact that he’s already had one major injury this season.
The Griffey trade is just the first of many ill-advised moves that have plagued the Reds this season. To get Griffey, the Reds had to part with the 11th pick in the 1991 draft and two very good players. Rob Murphy is one of the better relievers in the CDL. Murphy is 31, but for the last six years has continually posted ERAs in the 2 or 3 range. He has shown no signs of slowing down either and should be a major asset in the Blue Jay pen for the rest of the decade. And Mike Sharperson is truly a Toronto player. He draws walks, lacks power and normally hits for a decent batting average. 1991 has not been his best year, but Sharperson is always a threat to get on base 40% of the time. His defense leaves something to be desired at either second or third, but he is still a quality player. Not a bad haul for an injury prone centerfielder who has yet to produce.
Winner: Toronto
St. Louis receives C Wilfredo Tejada.
New York (N) receives St. Louis’s second round Amateur draft choice in 1992.
Sometimes it takes reflection to see how important a deal really is. Tejada appeared to be nothing more than a back up when traded for. Tejada is a fourth round pick who has made it, like his former organization mate, Damon Berryhill, who is probably the best player in the CDL you’ve never heard of. Tejada is one of the front runners for NL Rookie of the Year. (the other was also traded in the offseason) He has managed to run Darren Daulton out of town to Houston during the season and has claimed the starting job for himself. He’s hitting .300 this season with decent power this year and could be a solid catcher going forward. The Mets made out in this exchange as well, turning a fourth round pick into a second round pick, since Tejada was never going to displace Damon Berryhill. A surprising good deal for both teams.
Winner: St. Louis
Atlanta receives RF David Justice.
Houston receives 1B Mo Vaughn.
A rare super-prospect trade. Normally, you see a great prospect traded for a stellar veteran or a package, but here you get two prospects just swapped for one another. Justice is probably the superior player. He’s already in the Major Leagues and can play the outfield. The two players have similar ratings and talents, though Justice has a bit more talent when it comes to hitting doubles and is stronger against lefties. Vaughn’s advantage is that he is two years younger, which when you have two equally developed players is a big advantage in turning those talents into ratings. Neither team was really hurt by this deal and the Astros get a little younger and the Braves ended up a little closer to the playoffs this year.
Winner: Atlanta (Justice can play three more positions than Vaughn)
Minnesota receives RF Dan Pasqua.
San Francisco receives C Mike LaValliere, RF Mike Simms and Ps Craig McMurtry and Bill Johnson.
It appears that Chuck’s birthday is in early December and Paul gave him a package of talented players for a player who had one good season in his first six. Pasqua has been a quality hitter for the Minnesota Twins this year, finally getting on base and displaying decent power. However, I don’t think I am sold on him as a long term commitment for the Twins, since he does make $6,000,000 until 1995, by which point he should be putting up .240/.300/.380 lines again.
To acquire Pasqua, the Twins sent four quality players to the Giants. LaValliere is the worst of the four players sent to the Giants, as he is a useful utility man who can play catcher, both corner infield slots and right field. His hitting could use some work, but he would probably be a starting catcher for a number of teams in the league. Mike Simms looks like he should be a quality outfielder for the Giants in the mold of Pete Incaviglia, though he can also play 1st, 2nd and 3rd base in a pinch as well. McMurtry is a talented pitcher who has been spotty on performance. Of course upon his arrival in San Francisco, McMurtry found a way to turn his talent into results, becoming an above rotation starter in San Francisco. Finally, Bill Johnson is a very talented reliever, who has been average in the last few seasons, though has shown to be a better pitcher in the Brown and White of the San Francisco Giants. That’s quite the haul for an outfielder who makes a lot of money and has more often than not failed to live up to expectations.
Winner: San Francisco
Atlanta receives Ps Trevor Wilson and Rich Bordi.
Kansas City receives P Xavier Hernandez and Atlanta’s second round Amateur draft choice in 1992.
You know, the Kansas City Royals should be leading the AL Wild Card race, but their pitching has held back the best offense in the league. And this is the first reason why the Royals were left to scramble to find quality arms to take the ball every fourth day. Even before his talent bump, Trevor Wilson was a 25 year old pitcher with good upside. Now, Trevor Wilson is an important cog in the Braves rotation and should be pitching in the postseason. He has lowered his ERA by three runs this season and would have been an excellent contributor to the Royal rotation. Bordi is decent AAA reliever. Nothing more, nothing less.
In exchange for Wilson, the Royals added their closer in Xavier Hernandez, who always reminded me of Xavier Cugat, though for the life of me, I can’t figure out why. He has talent, but is probably one talent short of being an upper-echelon reliever. In addition to Hernandez, the Royals added a second round pick, which is beginning to look like it will be later in the round than the Royals thought it would be. I think we would all like to be able to turn a good reliever and a late second round pick into a top flight starting pitcher. Especially the Royals.
Winner: Atlanta
Cleveland receives P Curt Schilling and 2B Steve Sax.
Kansas City receives Ps Randy Johnson and Pat Hentgen, SS Manny Lee, Cleveland’s second round Amateur draft choices in 1992 and 1993 and Cleveland’s third round Amateur draft choice in 1993 and a gaping hole in the rotation.
The cardinal rule of trading superstar players is this: Thou shall not convert their superstars into a multitude of mediocre players. The Royals broke this most sacred commandment by accepting this pile of crap from the Indians for Curt Schilling, one of the true aces in the CDL. The best thing I can say for the Royals is that they managed to dump the albatross known as Steve Sax. Of course, Steve Sax is having one of the best years of his career, by being a league average offensive player and Curt Schilling has anchored the Indians rotation, placing them in the driver’s seat for making the playoffs for the first time since 1975. The lessons of the Kal Daniels trade have been learned by the Indians and applied as correctly as humanly possible here.
And here is what the Royals received for their ace. Pat Hentgen dreams of being a slightly above average pitcher at his peak. Randy Johnson dreams of posting an ERA under 6 and not walking every other batter he faces. Manny Lee is a decent hitter for a shortstop and a great defender, but all of his value is locked up in batting average, the skill least likely to be consistent from year to year and the draft picks should provide the Royals with three filler type players. WOW!!! What a haul for Curt Schilling. This deal definitely placed second in the what were they thinking category. The first deal, to be revealed next time, is among the all-time worst deals ever made, whereas this is just a bad deal that probably costs the Royals a playoff appearance or two.
Winner: Cleveland
Houston receives P Greg Hibbard and LF Kevin Reimer.
Montreal receives P Jose Mesa and C John Russell.
I know, I know, I swore I would mention any deals where the Expos trade a fourth outfielder sent to the Ottawa Lynx, but here, the Lynx’s fourth outfielder was sent away. Seriously, I wasn’t going to write about this trade until I looked at the Rookie leaderboard. But the leader in ERA amongst rookies this season is Greg Hibbard, the other front runner for NL Rookie of the Year. Hibbard isn’t much to look at with his weak hit prevention and his strong control and ability to keep the ball in the park. In fact, the only pitcher in the CDL who is really similar to Hibbard is the amazing Bob Tewksbury. The NL West might be on to something here, with two soft-tossers amongst the best pitchers in the league. There might be a new trend here. Reimer is a basically a fourth or fifth outfielder who has yet to find his power. If he does that, he could be a solid contributor, but most likely, he will wash out of the minor leagues without ever cracking the big time.
In exchange for the wunderkind pitcher, the Expos received John Russell, who is best suited to being the lesser half of a catching platoon and Joe Table, who should end up being a below average reliever as his peak, after his horrible turn as a starter last season. Not exactly a great haul for a pitcher who could have been the best fifth starter in the league for six seasons in the Expo rotation.
Winner: Montreal
Kansas City receives LF Tim Raines.
Philadelphia receives P Randy Johnson and Kansas City’s second round Amateur draft choice in 1992.
The final trade in this extended ATR Anniversary Edition. The Royals finally do something positive in all their trading, turning the disappointing Randy Johnson into one of the top outfielders in the league. Raines had the misfortune to suffer a season ending injury. Before that, he was his usual self, getting on base 40% of the time, hitting for decent power, stealing bases by the bushel and playing stellar outfield defense.
You know, teams in the 1988 LCS have had horrible luck. The Angels, the World Champions should finish with the first pick overall and the Phillies, losers in the NLCS should finish with the second pick overall. The Astros are on pace to end up with a top five pick as well. (Minnesota, the other LCS participant is the best team in the CDL.) Yet, only three seasons ago, these teams were the best in the CDL.
Anyway, a trade like this is not going to get the Phillies any closer to returning to the playoffs. Johnson is 41-68 in his four year career and has problems with his control and right handed batters, who this year are peppering him for a .300/.380/.490 line, which is not going to help Johnson turn into a league average pitcher any time soon. Adding a second round pick doesn’t make up the difference between a below average pitcher who won’t turn into anything better and one of the better outfielders in the league.
Winner: Kansas City
his state of the union naughty and nice CDL list for the first time....
To Boston owner Bill Heckel: a revised ootp6 game that is much kinder to Red Sox team...and some warm cookies and milk to sooth the pain of all the injuries and talent hits over the years...
To Houston owner Brian Marshall: a revised ootp6 game and a lump of coal for stealing pretty much every star prospect in the game...and some warm cookies and milk for being a hell of a dedicated and consistent commish...
To Toronto owner Steve Ritter...a copy of "Canada's team is really the Montreal Expos" by Paul "12 eyes" Bond and some warm cookies and milk for taking the Blue Jays out of the cellar...finally....
To Montreal owner Vegas "put a couple of bucks on 15 for me" Robb: a box of chocolates from St. Louis owner Christian Trudeau for making the 'spos the best team in the CDL....and some warm cookies and milk for taking every bad joke in reference to his living in Las Vegas with a smile...
To Detriot owner Manual Martinez...a differant divison to play where he is not haunted by the Brewers and Twins...and some warm cookies, milk and a FELIZ NAVIDAD y PROSPERO AÑO NUEVO....
To Brewers owner Matt Skutley...a young Cecil Cooper at first base..and some warm cookies and milk for never missing a damn CDL sim...
To Baltimore owner Steve Brisbois...a CFL championship for the Stampeders....and some warm cookies and milk for being the CDL owner living closest to Santa's home...
To Dodger owner Chris Daley: ...an offense and some warm cookies and milk for bringing excitement to the NL West...
To Padres owner Brian Wohldmann...three more players like Bob Tewksbury on his staff and some warm cookies and milk for revitalizing the careers of Danny Darwin and Ed "Whiner" Lynch....
To Cubs owner Chris Hanson....new fans in the cubs outfield and a sammy sosa with more talent bumps on his way to stardom...and some warm cookies and milk for ..well, just being a Cubs fan...
To Cardinels owner, Christian Trudeau...the 'spos staying in Montreal and a healthy Fred McGriff...and some warm cookies and milk for keeping the Cards competitive this year despite some adversity...
To Twins owner, Paul Groening...a pitcher under 30 years old and a new stadium....and some warm cookies and milk for always keeping the twinkies competative year after year...
To be continued....