In an offseason that has saw the Tampa Bay Rays dump off frontline starters, Jeffery Loria selling anyone in a Miami Marlins jersey making any kind of money to the Toronto Blue Jays, the madness continued on Tuesday night.
According to Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports, the Cleveland Indians, Cincinnati Reds and the Arizona Diamond Backs have completed a three team trade.
The Indians will acquire Trevor Bauer, Matt Albers and Brayan Shaw from the D-Backs and get Drew Stubbs from the Reds. The Reds receive Jason Donald and Shin-Soo Choo, and the Diamondbacks will get Tony Sipp, Didi Gregorius, and Lars Anderson.
Essentially this trade makes sense for all three sides. The Indians were not going to re-sign Choo and did not want to give up Asdrubal Cabrera to acquire pitching. The Tribe also get another outfield bat to replace Choo with Stubbs and a potential frontline starter in Bauer.
The Reds get the lead off man they seeked in Choo without dipping into their wallet and overpaying on the high priced free-agent market this offseason. Jason Donald could also prove viable with his ability to play multiple infield positions.
The Reds do have to give up Bauer, a top 20 MLB prospect, but get Gregorius who could be their shortstop of the future. Tony Sipp has also been a shutdown arm in the past and could be a big piece in the Diamondbacks’ pen trying to get the ball to J.J. Putz for the ninth. The possibility of the Diamondbacks now trading Justin Upton also becomes less likely due to the fact they finally get the shortstop they have been looking for.
Out of all the trades that have taken place, I feel this has been the best trade for all parties involved.
