The Oakland Athletics have sent Seth Smith to the San Diego Padres for Luke Gregerson. Gregerson has been a valuable reliever for the Padres since his debut in 2009, pitching to a 2.88 ERA and compiling 3.9 WAR in his five seasons. The Padres were willing to let Gregerson go because he is going to be a free agent after 2014 and will be difficult to bring back on a contract the Padres can afford. The Athletics, in their quest to acquire on of the best bullpens possible, obtained Gregerson to push them further into the postseason. He should slide in nicely as the main setup man in Oakland come 2014.
In return for Gregerson, the A's sent outfielder Seth Smith to San Diego. The 31 year old left-hander looks to have settled into some consistent production over the past five years and can provide another lineup piece in the Padres' lineup. He is basically a platoon player that is heavily favored versus righties (.844 OPS) than lefties (.582 OPS) and is not a very good fielder. He has a strong arm but lacks the instincts and speed that a regular outfielder does. In San Diego, he enters a perplexing situation because there is no designated hitter, so he will need to platoon with another outfielder every so often. Either way, they will save roughly $800,000 in projected arbitration salary by trading Gregerson. The Athletics did not need Smith after acquiring Craig Gentry earlier in the offseason and know he fits into their lineup build better anyway.
Overall, the Athletics acquired a solid setup man capable of supporting fellow newcomer Jim Johnson and the Padres welcomed another platoon outfielder to an already confusing situation in San Diego.
Athletics - A-
Padres - D+
For more info on the trade see: http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2013/12/padres-as-swap-luke-gregerson-seth-smith.html
Image citations in order of page:
http://www.sportingnews.com/mlb/story/2012-11-24/mlb-hot-stove-2013-san-diego-padres-trade-rumors-chase-headley-dan-haren
http://kfgo.com/news/articles/2013/oct/07/as-use-long-ball-to-push-tigers-to-brink/
Overall, the Athletics acquired a solid setup man capable of supporting fellow newcomer Jim Johnson and the Padres welcomed another platoon outfielder to an already confusing situation in San Diego.
Athletics - A-
Padres - D+
For more info on the trade see: http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2013/12/padres-as-swap-luke-gregerson-seth-smith.html
Image citations in order of page:
http://www.sportingnews.com/mlb/story/2012-11-24/mlb-hot-stove-2013-san-diego-padres-trade-rumors-chase-headley-dan-haren
http://kfgo.com/news/articles/2013/oct/07/as-use-long-ball-to-push-tigers-to-brink/
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