I don’t know if you can consider acquiring Jhonny Peralta a blockbuster trade or not. I don’t consider this a blockbuster trade but it’s definitely important. Trading for guys like Adam Dunn, Corey Hart or Prince Fielder might be considered blockbuster status. Again, every trade is important so let’s see how important Jhonny Peralta is going to be to the Tigers.
First off, we need a third baseman and Peralta will fill that spot. When Brandon Inge returns and goes back to playing third base like we’re all thinking, Peralta will be able to move to shortstop. So now my guess is that Santiago might be used to find someone to help our pitching staff, however, Dave Dombrowski said in an interview earlier today that he’s “still searching for another trade but as of right now nothing else is in the works.” Dave also thinks that Inge might beat the timetable of returning from his injury.
To get Peralta and the cash, the Tigers gave up minor league pitcher Geovanni Soto. Jhonny Peralta is under contract at $4.6 million this season, with a $7 million club option for 2011 or a $250,000 buyout. Now is he worth that kind of money, especially since the Cleveland Indians gave him up for nothing well my answer is yes. When you look at Peralta, he’s 28 years old and has a bright future in the league and with the Tigers. He’s hit .246 with seven homers and 43 RBI’s through 91 games this season while throughout his career, Peralta has hit .264 with 103 homers and 456 RBI’s. Peralta isn’t an awesome hitter but he’s going to be a pretty good hitter who can get about 70 RBI’s and can be a really good infielder. In 204 games at third base, Peralta has only committed 5 errors while at shortstop he’s committed 83 through 706 games at that position.
Overall, this is a good trade. We practically gave up nothing and we’re getting a guy who’s a veteran and knows the teams in the American League Central very well. A few weeks ago, I was actually asked about Peralta and I said I didn’t want him because Brandon Inge wasn’t hurt. Now that Inge is hurt, Peralta crossed my mind a few times but overall, I’m glad he’s here in Detroit.