Transaction Reaction: Anthony Rizzo for Andrew Cashner

The Cubs sent RP Andrew Cashner and OF Kyung-Min Na to the Padres for 1B Anthony Rizzo and P Zach Cates.

• At first glance, this looks to be a steal for the Cubs, and it's hard to see what the Padres' front office hopes to gain through this deal. Rizzo was a hot commodity that other teams were begging for, and it is hard to believe this is the best package a competitor was willing to offer. If patience is a virtue....what is selling off huge talent for peanuts?
• It was obvious after the Padres would be looking to move Rizzo after bringing in Yonder Alonso in the Latos deal. In my eyes, this deal is so bad for the Padres that it actually weakens the return they received in the Latos trade. To clarify, the Padres gave up a pseudo-ace pitcher to the Reds and received a studly young bat that plays a corner IF position, which the Padres already had in Rizzo. (They also got Volquez, which was solid.) Bringing in another studly, corner bat was not a bad thing because it offered the Padres flexibility and created a VERY talented surplus. Having two young, top-tier bats could be useful to flip for almost anything they wanted. By missing the mark and only obtaining Cashner and a low-ceiling OF, they went backwards. They are in a worse place now than if they would have just held the surplus in hand, or if they would have kept Latos until they found a better package. The chain of events from the Padres front office looks confusing and underwhelming to say the least, with the usual caveat - Maybe the Padres know something about Cashner or Rizzo that no one else has figured out yet. (If this is the case, we will be praising this deal in 2017. Please do not attempt to hold your breath for this length of time.)
• From the Cubs' perspective, it seems like a great play. The Cubs already had Bryan LaHair in the minors and many analysts thought he would be crucial to the rebuilding project given his huge triple A numbers. However, LaHair is already 28 while putting up those numbers, and no one really knows how long it will take for the Cubs to be relevant again. Enter Anthony Rizzo. Rizzo was almost equally as impressive in triple A when looking at league neutral stats, and he even got a cameo in the big leagues. The difference is that Rizzo is SEVEN YEARS YOUNGER. Holy cow.... See: upside.
• (And do not fret loyal Cubs fans clamoring for Lahair. This still leaves the Cubs the option of working Lahair's bat into the lineup at one of the corner outfield spots. Both of these guys will hit, and they could be squeezed into a young lineup also featuring the newly acquired Ian Stewart.)
• All of this potential, and the Cubs didn't have to give up much.... A young, enigmatic Cashner who will probably end up as nothing more than a right-handed reliever. Right-handed relievers also happen to be the easiest and cheapest thing to acquire in baseball. As we saw in the World Series during the late innings, the Rangers and Cardinals each have about 6 of these "Cashners" on their respective rosters.....only the "Cashners" we saw in October have much better control and less of an injury history than the 25 year old, actual Andrew Cashner. Obviously there was also a throw-in on each side, but neither of these players look like they will tip the scales in either direction.

Transaction Reaction: Mat Latos for Yonder Alonso, Edinson Volquez, et al

The San Diego Padres will send Mat Latos to the Cincinnati Reds. In return, the Reds will surrender Yonder Alonso, Edinson Volquez, Brad Boxberger, and Yasmil Grandal.

• With this move, the Cincinnati Reds look poised for a strong run in 2011. With the uncertainty surrounding the rest of the NL Central, kudos to the Reds front office for making a strong move. In Latos, they receive a very young pitcher (24 years old) with #1 or high #2 status. They've been searching for a #1 starter for a few years, and it seems they've finally found their guy.
• From the Padres perspective, the deal also seems fair. The addition of Edinson Volquez might make this a "steal" due to his potential, but he looks uncertain at this point. Perhaps the larger park will finally give Volquez the confidence to go right at hitters and use his terrific movement to his advantage, rather than walking batters. Yonder Alonso is another player with very high upside as we saw last year, but that comes with a number of question marks in his own right. Alonso combines tremendous power, porous defense and some curious minor league stats which will make this deal interesting for years to come.
• The fact that the Padres got a few extra pieces shows the Reds' urgency in my opinion. (Boxberger and Grandal offer A LOT more than just throw-ins). Although they gave up a bunch of talent, the uncertain state of the NL central makes this a great deal for both sides. This will definitely be a trade that will, like so many others, be a whole lot easier to evaluate with the benefit of hindsight. I'll meet you for coffee in 2016 and we'll talk it over.

Additional note: Some Padres' insiders have mentioned the mental make-up of Latos as a source of concern, so we'll see how well he handles the transition from a huge park to a tiny one. However, at 24 years old there's plenty of time to mature.

"If I Were General Manager..." Series: NL West

If I were the General Manager of the...

Diamondbacks:

-Build around the surprising trio of Kennedy, Hudson and Josh Collmenter.

-Sign a reliable, but cost-effective pitcher to fill in a #4 spot. We're looking for durability and consistency, and preferably someone who will keep the ball down. Joel Piniero might be a reasonable target, and then Joe Saunders becomes a very respectable #5.

-Use a trade or free agency to obtain a slugging left fielder. Carlos Lee would be my target, since the Astros are in full rebuilding mode, but I would also inquire about Kyle Blanks, Allen Craig, Josh Willingham, and Carlos Quentin. This lineup will be treacherous with one additional impact bat and the return of Stephen Drew.

Dodgers:

-Move Juan Uribe to the bench, and ask the Padres what it will take to obtain Chase Headley. I'll give up one of our elite bullpen arms for an everyday player, and an underrated impact bat without hesitation.

-Stretch out Blake Hawksworth and make him the fifth starter over Dana Eveland. This will give us at least 3 decent lefties out of the pen, so I'll check in with some teams that are thin on the left side of the bullpen. Target a bench bat or add the lefty into the previously mentioned deal for a respectable third baseman.

-Shop for a #3 or #4 starter in free agency. Obviously, I'll take the #3 starter, since those are bettter....and it's not my money. Even better, I'll overpay to keep Hiroki Kuroda.

-Leave a spot open for Jerry Sands play every day.... Done.

Giants:

-San Francisco's park dramatically promotes triples and suppresses home runs, so the plan is to cater to those features. I also happen to have a gaping hole at shortstop, so I'll take.......Jose Reyes please.

-Undo the Melky Cabrera for Jonathan Sanchez swap. I would want to keep the pitching depth and go after a defensive-minded center fielder given the afore-dimensions of the ballpark. Coco Crisp or a young speedster... I would settle for someone like Reed Johnson or Ryan Spilborghs via free agency or a minor trade.

-Since the signing of Reyes takes us out of the running for Beltran, we need a cost-effective outfielder. Brandon Belt plays left, Unnamed Speedster in center, and I would stick with Nate Schierholz in right. He has been surprisingly solid with the bat over the last few years, and will give you comparable production to most of the low-tier options in available in free agency. The return of Buster Posey should make this lineup decent enough for the pitchers to win games for us.

Padres:

-I didn't mind the Jaso for Luebke swap. But to fully take advantage, I would flip Nick Hundley and a prospect I don't like for a high upside shortstop prospect in the lower levels.

-Since we're rebuilding, I would shop Chase Headley and get all I can for them.

-Since Cameron Maybin is still young, I will build around the trio of Maybin, Blanks, and Venable.

-I would make Luke Gregerson the closer from day one. This is not to win games, this is so I can then trade him as soon as the league views him as a "closer" and will give me a good return.

-Save the rest of my money and resources for brighter days, hopefully in about 2-3 years.


Rockies:

-Pencil in Ian Stewart for an everyday role at second base in 2012. I'm expecting a bounce-back year and I promise he'll give you more on offense than he gives up on defense. Kouzmanoff will return at third base.

-Since curveballs and sinkers don't play well in Coors, I will seek out trades for pitchers that have a "heavy" fastball. Guys like Chad Billingly, Fausto Carmona, and Edinson Volquez are my targets. (Unfortunately, the ideal fit would be Ubaldo Jiminez, but I'm still working under the assumption that the Rockies front office knew something about Jiminez that the rest of the league doesn't.)

-Sign Ryan Ludwick or someone similar. He hits the ball hard and in the air frequently, so he should benefit from the environment. He also plays above average defense as a corner outfielder.