What? This is an out-of-nowhere stunner. Did anyone hear any rumors about a trade with the A's?
I don't know who actually broke this trade, but Dutton has tweeted that the Royals have sent David DeJesus to Oakland, in exchange for Vin Mazzaro and Justin Marks. It appears to be official.
Here are Mazzaro's (already tried to spell his name about eight different ways) numbers from the last two years in Oakland. Prepare to be underwhelmed.
| Year | Age | W | L | G | IP | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 22 | 4 | 9 | 5.32 | 17 | 91.1 | 83 | 1.741 | 11.8 | 1.2 | 3.8 | 5.8 | 1.51 |
| 2010 | 23 | 6 | 8 | 4.27 | 24 | 122.1 | 97 | 1.447 | 9.3 | 1.4 | 3.7 | 5.8 | 1.58 |
| 2 Seasons | 10 | 17 | 4.72 | 41 | 213.2 | 91 | 1.573 | 10.4 | 1.3 | 3.7 | 5.8 | 1.55 | |
Mazzaro is a 23 year old pitcher who is still pre-arb eligible in terms of salary.
Justin Marks is a 22 year old minor league pitcher who has not left A ball. His minor league numbers do not look particularly impressive. He was a 3rd round draft pick in 2009. He's a guy. A guy who throws the baseball. At the moment, it's difficult to get excited about him.
Super-early reaction: I don't get this trade. Honestly, it looks like nothing more than a salary dump, only if the Royals really cared about DeJesus's $6 million dollar salary in 2011, they could have just declined his option. I'm failing to see the appeal of adding Vin Mazzaro to the roster and Justin Marks is... Justin Marks. Moreover, why make this trade now? Why the rush? It's November 10th. Odd.
I understand that he was never spectacular, but David DeJesus was one of the best Royals of the last twenty years, and quietly one of the American League's best outfielders. Nevertheless, it was apparent from the beginning that he was never a Dayton Moore guy. From day one Dayton has appeared to be searching for his DeJesus replacement, and we've had two years of trade rumors fueled, in part, by an apparent attitude that DeJesus making between $4-$6 million dollars a year was some tremendous crime against baseball justice. And so, the saga ends with what looks like an abrupt and joyless salary dump.
You want David DeJesus and his onerous $6 million dollar salary? I'll take anything back. Anything. Send me your least appealing Major League arm and a computer generated random minor leaguer and we're in.
Now maybe, maybe, there's no market for DeJesus right now because of his wrist injury. However, that brings us back to the timing issue and the fact that the Royals certainly don't have to trade DeJesus now. The bottom line is this: the Royals didn't get back anything in this trade. Vin Mazzaro posted below average numbers in front of a great defense in a great pitcher's park, in the AL West. I don't mean to be indelicate but... it's almost certain that he just isn't a good pitcher. This is a losing trade. This is more evidence of our front office's bizarre ability to operate without any semblance of a plan.