Examples of successful trades for prospects

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Originally Posted by ashburyjohn

With all the discussion about possibly trading players away, where sometimes the opinion is "not unless we're blown away by an offer," I got to thinking about what kind of successful trade ought to be the benchmark now. Here are three, just off the top of my head:

• Rangers trade Mark Teixeira for a nucleus
• Braves trade Doyle Alexander for a future HOF starter
• Twins trade A.J. Pierzynski for three pitchers who worked out to varying degrees

What other such trades would you nominate?

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It is possible to look back and find many examples of trades that worked. To be fair we should add context.

Yes, John Smoltz became an elite player. You could have mentioned a few other details at the time of the trade. He was chosen in the 22nd round the previous season so he was not seen as a good prospect at that time. He was in the midst of his second season and was 4-10 with a 5.68 ERA. He had 86 strike outs and 81 walks in 130 innings.

So if the Twins trade Span for a player drafted in the 22nd round last year while scuffling through year 2, will you trust their scouting department to have found a gem like the Braves did in 1987?

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Originally Posted by jorgenswest

It is possible to look back and find many examples of trades that worked. To be fair we should add context.

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My purpose here isn't to try to do a complete study on how to make trades. Just to look back at trades viewed favorably for acquiring prospects, which is what the Twins probably want to try to do, and see if we can map anything to the present situation. So yes, there is a bit of 20/20 hindsight going on here, but I'm looking for successes to build on, not balance.

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Originally Posted by jorgenswest

Yes, John Smoltz became an elite player. You could have mentioned a few other details at the time of the trade. He was chosen in the 22nd round the previous season so he was not seen as a good prospect at that time.

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Guys can be chosen in the 22nd round for reasons other than being marginal. He was a 19 year old in his first pro season; maybe it was considered unlikely at draft time that he would skip college, so he dropped in the draft, and then the Tigers persuaded him. I note his signing was on Sept 22, which probably was close to some deadline (either MLB's, or enrollment in class). Unfortunately I don't know where to find signing bonuses; his Wikipedia page indicates he did attend Michigan State, and that basketball was also in the picture.

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Originally Posted by jorgenswest

So if the Twins trade Span for a player drafted in the 22nd round last year while scuffling through year 2, will you trust their scouting department to have found a gem like the Braves did in 1987?

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This is where you trust your scouting department. Just like when the Twins snared Hoey and Nishioka. :)

Larry Anderson for A baller Jeff Bagwell was a pretty good one.

Does Johan Santana for Jared Camp count? They were both minor leaguers at the time of the trade.