- Twins acquire 2b Freddy Sanchez & RP Matt Capps
- Pirates acquire 2b Alexi Casilla, SP Kevin Mulvey, OF Chris Parmalee, and SP Mike Mccardell
- Overview: On paper it seems like a terrible trade for the Twins because you are trading away 2 top 20 prospects and a very talented infielder who when he is right is just as good as the guy you are acquiring. However, looking at the stats those prospects are not for sure things and both Sanchez and Capps are under team control thru next year. Looking at the stats makes this a trade that the Twins should very seriously consider.
Freddy Sanchez- .316 6 homeruns 34 rbi's with a great .356/.478/.834 and the 2006 batting title when he hit .344 and a .302 career hitter. At age 31 Sanchez makes 6.25 million and his 2010 contract vests if he makes 600 plate appearances.
Matt Capps- 1-5 6.21 era 32 games 29 inn 13 walks and 20 strikeouts 19 saves. Capps had been having a very good first half until he gave up 5 runs to Philadelphia on Friday night. However on the season he has been quite solid. He has a 3.43 career era. At only age 25 Capps is under team control for 2 more years after this year so he would be a very good setup man for the Twins and take pressure off Matt Guerrier. Capps makes 2.43 million this year and is eligible for arbitration after the 2009 and 2010 seasons and won't be a free agent until after the 2011 season.
Alexi Casilla- .180 0 homeruns 5 rbi's in 34 games. very bad .242/.225/.467 splits. At AAA his stats were much better. .340 average 2 hr 17 rbi's 9sb .379/.449/.827. At only 24 years old Casilla could turn out to be a guy that the Twins will regret getting rid of because he may turn out to be a terrific player and is under team control for 5 years and only makes 428,000 this year.
Kevin Mulvey- 3-6 3.93 era 103 inn pitched in 17 starts with 37 walks and 81 strikeouts. Kevin Mulvey is a top 10 prospect and with most teams would be in the majors starting. He is the type of player the Pirates would want because he is a top prospect and he is cheap.
Chris Parmalee- He is the biggest prospect in the trade as Parmalee has outstanding power and a good eye at the plate. Parmalee is hitting .256 hitter with 11 homeruns and 46 rbi's. His splits are impressive at .350/446/.795, but they could be better. He is a streaky hitter, but his 38 walks in 256 at bats remind many of a young Adam Dunn. He is only 21 years old so obviously his best years are ahead of him and you can play him at either RF or 1b and could be ready for the big leagues in April of 2012.
Mike Mccardell- He is a top pitching prospect for the Twins and could be on the fast track to the majors. This year Mccardell is 9-5 with a 4.03 era in 16 starts. He has worked 87 innings and only walked 16 batters. At age 24 he should be in AA and a change of scenary would do him wonders because no matter what you of theTwins minor league system they have a history of being slow with moving their prospects and with Mccardell old for his level he needs to get to AA and the Twins don't look like they are going to move him up and a change of scenary would do him good.
Overall, I believe it is a fair trade and something the Twins should really consider doing this trade because with Sanchez you have a good number 2 hitter that you can put in front of Mauer and Morneau and have Capps at the end of the bullpen to spell Matt Guerrier to get to Joe Nathan. Everyone let me know what you think and if you think it is a good trade.
