Big Trades! Free Agents! Retirement! Oh My!

Let’s take a break from free agency for just a sec. Because we just witnessed the biggest trade since the Boston-Dodger trade in 2012, and the biggest offseason trade in a while. 

Prince Fielder was traded to the Texas Rangers last night for 2B Ian Kinsler. It’s been noted for a while that the Rangers would trade one of their middle infielders, as they had to get rid of one of the three. It looks like Elvis Andrus and prospect Jurickson Profar will stay with the Rangers.

The Rangers just added a five time all-star, the 2007 NL Hank Aaron Award, and a two-time Home Run Derby Hitter (if that matters) to their ballclub. They did have to trade Kinsler, who has been one of the best 2B over the years, but it could turnout for the best.

Fielder, 29, batted .279/.362/.457 with 25 home runs and 106 RBI’s in 2013. Though those are still ok numbers, they are much down from previous years (he batted .313/.412/.528 with 30 homers and 108 RBI’s last year). A great part about Fielder that goes unnoticed is that despite being a very large man, he never misses a game, and you can see consistent play throughout the season with him.

Kinsler, 31, batted .277/.344/.413 with 13 homers and 72 RBI’s in 2013, and, though has never won a gold glove, is a very good defensive player. In 2011, Kinsler had a 7.0 WAR.

So why the trade? It actually makes sense for both teams. Like I said before, the Rangers had a surplus of middle infielders, and there was lots of talks of them trading one of their players. I didn’t expect Kinsler though; Elvis Andrus and Jurickson Profar both play SS, so I thought they’d trade Andrus and see how the young Profar would turn out.

For the Tigers, one’s got to notice the downplay of Prince Fielder, especially during the playoffs this year. They don’t have much in infield prospects, but they do have one big player that could take his role: Miguel Cabrera. Remember: Miggy was not only hurt towards the end of the 2013 season, but he also played terrible defense at third base. If they move him to first base, he might be able to stay healthy and play better defense.

For the Rangers, usual first baseman Mitch Moreland could serve more roles, such as the outfield. Moreland has also lost some of his offensive capability, as he batted just .232 in 2013.  They’ve also expressed interest in slugger Brian McCann in the free agency, so they are still considering adding more power to the ballclub.

 

Texas will also receive $30 million for Detroit. Fielder has a much longer and extensive contract than Kinsler, so that makes sense.

I think this is a good move by both teams. Detroit loses some power, but they gain a very good second baseman. The Rangers gain a huge target at first base, and add a power to the lineup that was lost since losing Josh Hamilton, A.J. Pierzynski, etc.

There’s going to be more on this trade later most likely, but that’s the main idea of it now. Man, now the offseason is getting exciting!

Back to free agency. Speaking of the Rangers, they just lost their veteran outfielder, David Murphy. Sources have confirmed that Murphy will be heading to the Cleveland Indians next season. Murphy, 31, batted .304/.380/.479 in 2012, but that dropped significantly in 2013, batting just .220/.282/.374.

The best part of this story is how the word got out. Murphy’s young daughter spent Tuesday telling everyone at her daycare that her father “is going to be an Indian.” When Murphy came to pick her up, he confirmed the rumor to her teachers. 

Props to Jamie Kelly, who broke the news out on Twitter. What a great story; now the baseball offseason is getting exciting!

 

Some big news in the retirement field as well. Chris Carpenter has announced his retirement from the St. Louis Cardinals after a 15-year career. Carpenter has only pitched three times in the past two years because of a boatload of injuries. He won the 2005 NL Cy Young Award and the 2009 Comeback Player of the Year Award. 

Carpenter, 38, played his entire career with Toronto and St. Louis. He was never that good in Toronto, and did not play in 2003, but pitched magically from 2004-06 before being set with injuries again in ’07 and ’08.

Carpenter was a great pitcher for the Cardinals, and a fan favorite. He will be missed in St. Louis.

 Another veteran, Mark DeRosa, announced his retirement yesterday. DeRosa was barely a starter throughout the years, and played on eight different teams. His best years came in ’07 and ’08, when he batted .289/.373/.451 in 298 games with the Chicago Cubs. He came into Toronto this year as a veteran to teach the young guys, but turned out to be a lot more.

I’ve always loved watching DeRosa play ball, and he’ll be missed. He wasn’t anything special, but he played in sixteen years in the big leagues. That’s something to be proud about.

Also, watch out for the top prospects in baseball. The Arizona Fall League just finished, and there are a lot of names to look out for. The Twins’ Byron Buxton and the Cubs’ Kris Bryant led the top 20 AFL players this year. Buxton, the number one prospect according to mlb.com, shows a lot of plus speed and great slugging. Bryant, the 4^th best prospect in the Cubs system, was named the AFL MVP Award, and shows legitimate power that will put him in the big leagues soon.

Lots of stuff mentioned today, and a lot of it will pan out greatly in the future. Email me at statsbuddy42@gmail.com for any questions/comments/concerns.

-Evan Boyd