Friday: Ugly Trade #3

Big Tex carries a big stick

The dynasty that could have been

Just like Wednesday this is technically two different trades, but they involve the same player so I looped them into one Ugly Trade.


Trade 1:
Texas Rangers send: Mark Teixeira and Ron Mahay
Atlanta Braves send: Beau Jones, Elvis Andrus, Neftali Feliz, Matt Harrison, and Jarrod Saltalamacchia


Trade 2:
Atlanta Braves send: Mark Teixeira
Los Angeles Angels send: Steve Marek and Casey Kotchman


In 2007 the Rangers made a bold move in order to restock the farm system. They dangled their power happy, switch hitting, gold glove defending first baseman, Mark Teixeira, on the line. The Braves bit and gave Texas a haul of young players. Teixeira was a stud with the Braves, hitting .295/.395/.548 with 37 home runs in 157 games. Atlanta seemed on the verge of being a powerhouse, with an offense that was built around two powerful switch hitters in Tex and Chipper Jones. However, in 2008 their pitching dive bombed and they were struggling, so they decided to flip Teixeira to a different team. They ended up trading him to the Angels. 


So what did they give up, and what did they get in return? Starting with the latter, they didn't get jack squat. I usually respect Frank Wren, but they gave up five prospects for Tex and got two players back. Kotchman is a defensive minded first baseman, but his bat never fully developed and the Braves got nothing but average offense out of him. Marek is a 27 year old pitcher still stuck in the minors. The Braves had no reason to move Tex, and they're not a money deficient club. If they had extended Teixeira they could have built a club around him. But, they panicked and let one of the great switch hitters with power go.


The true injustice is what they gave up. The Braves have a ridiculous well of talent in their system right now, and if they had not gone through with the Teixeira trade they would be on the verge of a dynasty. Neftali Feliz has an electric arm, and though he's been a closer in Texas, he could have been a great starter in an amazing young rotation in Atlanta. Elvis Andrus is still harnessing his contact skills, but his glove and speed are sure things. He also could have filled the middle infield void Atlanta's been suffering from the last couple of years. Matt Harrison and Salty haven't been superstars yet, but they still had upside that could have done Atlanta some good. They never got much out of Teixeira, and if they hadn't been so bold they would have the premier club in all of baseball right now. Atlanta has a bright future, but it could have been so much brighter.