Trade Reaction:AA is Still Awesome

The big 3 that the Jays acquired yesterday, from
right to left:JJ,Reyes, and Buehrle

In case you were having doubts, Alex Anthopolous is still a top 5 GM in the MLB. You all know by now, but if you don't, the Jays and Marlins made a trade that is bigger than the one that brought Joe Carter and Roberto Alomar to Toronto in 1990.It was:

To Toronto:
Josh Johnson
Mark Buehrle
Jose Reyes
John Buck
Emilio Bonifacio
$8.5 Million

To Miami:
Henderson Alvarez
Yunel Escobar
Adeiny Hechavarria
Justin Nicolino
Jake Marisnick
Anthony Desclafini
Jeff Mathis

Yup. If not for Jeffrey Loria being a cheap skate(see this article written by our own Ewan Ross in July for more details), this trade would not have been done. But, because Loria ruined baseball in Montreal, and scammed the city of Miami out of $500 million, the Jays got lucky! So...On to some trade analysis? Why not?

Josh Johnson- JJ has long been coveted by Blue Jays fans. I can remember having countless conversations on twitter last off-season and in July about acquiring JJ from the Marlins, and it really just seemed like a forgone conclusion that it was going to happen. The Jays and Marlins matched up so well  as trade partners, and Johnson fits in perfectly with this team. In just 9 starts in 2011, he had a WAR of 2.8, so you can see how good he is. After missing most of 2011 due to injuries, he came back in 2012, and was pretty good. He pitched to a 3.40 FIP, and his velocity was basically the same on all of his pitches as it was pre-surgery, so there isn't such a big reason to be concerned about his health. He also pitched over 190 innings, so he seems to be durable once again. Josh is only under contract for 2013, so an extension seems to be something AA would like to get done. It is going to be fun watching this 2-time all-star pitch, whether that is Opening day, or game #2, we will get to witness a great pitcher, one who was considered one of the 7 or 8 aces in the MLB before having surgery.

Mark Buehrle- Workhorse. That is what Buehrle is, and that is what he hopefully will remain. Mark has pitched over 200 innings every year since 2001, and has only posted a WAR less than 2 once since then. He provides the Jays with something they haven't had in a while, and will look great in that number 3 spot for Toronto. His contract is pretty bad because he was a FA, and you always over pay in free agency, but, that doesn't seem to be a problem anymore with this new less cheap version of Rogers.

Add those famous dreads, and Reyes will look
awesome wearing the blue and white!

Jose Reyes- Remember Shannon Stewart(not the 2008 version). He is the last true lead off hitter the Jays have had. Jose Reyes, is, now, a true lead off hitter. When he is healthy, Reyes is the best offensive shortstop in the game(because Tulo is never healthy). We saw that in 2011, and we've seen that many times before. He is going to get on base a lot(.342 career), and will steal close to 40 bases yearly. The only problem with Reyes is that he tears his hamstring when signing an autograph(exaggeration), and playing on the turf at the Skydome will not help him at all! Hopefully the Beest can fulfill his impossible goal of putting grass in the dome. His contract is also pretty bad, but he's amazing, so you can't complain. Reyes batting first is going to be a sight to see. When Jose Bautista hits a home run driving in Jose Reyes, the Jose-Jose-Jose-Jose chants will be deafening in Toronto. That alone will make his contract worth it.

John Buck- There is no question that Buck was the "thrown in" in this deal, but he might be turn out to be a lot more significant than just a throw in. The re-acquisition of Buck allows AA to trade one of JP Arencibia,Travis d'Arnaud, or Buck himself. AA can get another starter, which could be very useful because right now the Jays have no depth in their rotation, or can trade on of them(package with a reliever most likely) for a left fielder. A trade of JPA and Casey Janssen to Texas for David Murphy seems fair, and Murphy would be a perfect fit.

Emilio Bonafacio- Where will Emilio play? That's the big question right now as he can play second base, and the outfield. I'd slot the speedy Bonafacio in the 2 spot in the lineup, playing left field. I personally think with our offense, we can live with Maicer Izturis playing everyday, and trading JPA for a pitcher would bring us more value than a left fielder might. Bonafacio provides a switch hitting hitter who will steal 50+ bases if he plays everyday. Runs won't be hard to come by in 2013 for the Jays, but with 1 injury to the staff, the team could lose its pitching.

There is undoubtedly a lot of risk in this trade. This trade could make the Blue Jays a dynasty, or cripple them for years to come because of the amount of questionable salary taken on. This is the biggest trade in franchise history, but, don't be worried. The odds of this trade not working out for us are much lower than the odds that it succeeds.

Be happy. Enjoy the fact that AA just stole 4 all-stars from the Marlins for a few prospects who are nothing more than prospects, and a few major leaguers who have a lot of question marks. You could worry that this might fail miserably in February, but for now, enjoy!

What do you think about this franchise changing trade? Let us know in the comments section below!


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