King

Alright kid, you had your 15 minutes of fame....... Devan Fink ‏@CoverThoseBases 2m2 minutes ago Beane gets himself that in Lawrie, plus two other strong pitching prospects. I also really like Barreto. This is a really good deal for OAK. Devan Fink ‏@CoverThoseBases 1m1 minute ago People are saying that the A's didn't get enough for Donaldson. That isn't right. The Blue Jays gave up too much for Donaldson. *unfollow*

My erection has not subsided

Keith Law The Blue Jays won the offseason two years ago with their huge deals with the Marlins and the Mets; those were mostly aimed at remaking their rotation. This winter, their moves so far have focused on overhauling the lineup, and while wins in November don't always mean wins the next October, a deal that nets them Josh Donaldson for Brett Lawrie and a trio of prospects is a damn good start for Toronto general manager Alex Anthopoulos. He's added one of the best players in baseball for a package of prospects that doesn't quite add up. Donaldson turns 29 next month and is just entering his first year of arbitration, and he'll have four such seasons because he's a super-two player this winter. He's second among position players in WAR over the last two seasons, a contributor with his bat, his eye, his power, his glove, and his arm. My No. 76-ranked prospect heading into the 2008 season, Donaldson was drafted by the Cubs out of Auburn where he caught and played the infield corners, coming to Oakland as a "sleeper" in the Rich Harden trade. The A's kept trying to make him a catcher (understandably) until 2012, but soon after they settled him at third base, that compact swing and lower-body power came back. Over the last two seasons, his only two full years in the majors, Donaldson ranks sixth in the majors in unintentional walks drawn and 18th in homers, the latter particularly impressive since he played half his games in a home-run graveyard. He's been the second-best third baseman in baseball over that span, behind only Adrian Beltre, and even a 5-WAR season from him -- worse than the Steamer projections for him for 2013 -- would be a 3-4 win upgrade for Toronto. I'd rather give up what Toronto gave up and pay Donaldson his arbitration salaries for four years than sign Pablo Sandoval for nine figures over five. What I don't quite get is the A's portion of this, even if you take fairly optimistic views of all four players they acquired. Is this really enough for four years of control of one of the best players in baseball? Brett Lawrie is still only 24 years old, and has energy and athleticism to spare, but he gets hurt way too often and has become a severe groundball hitter thanks to a swing that has his hands moving down at the ball from his load. He's an above-average defender at third; he might make you think he's elite because of his highlight-reel plays, but scouts and advanced metrics (UZR/dRS) agree that he's not. What he does do well, however, is put the ball in play, a skill that GMs seem to be telling us this winter that they're valuing more highly than ever (tip your cap in the direction of Kansas City as you read that). There's power in the body if the A's can overhaul his swing, but that's a significant undertaking with any player -- and Lawrie will have to be healthy to make it matter. I still think his upside is a 4-5 win player, but I believe the probability of him getting there is half of what it used to be. Franklin Barreto is a little fella, 5-foot-8 and 170 pounds or so, with a good feel to hit and plus speed but lacking strength to have even average power. He's a shortstop now, erratic but agile enough to become average to slightly above given time and a lot of patience, but with even odds or so that he ends up at second base because he can't develop the consistency he'll need to make 700 plays a year at short. I believe the bat will play somewhere, as his swing is very short and direct and he's shown excellent ability to barrel up the ball so far. He'll play all of 2015 at age 19 and should be able to go to the full-season Midwest League. Sean Nolin and Kendall Graveman are both back-end starter types, working with fringy stuff and no real out pitch but above-average command and control. Graveman sits at or just under average velocity as a starter, but was 90-94 in relief at the end of the year for the Jays, getting on top of the ball well to generate downhill plane. Nolin, a left-hander, sits mostly 90-92 with a decent changeup, working by changing speeds and throwing strikes, but is a below-average athlete with a stiff delivery. Graveman has a little more upside with better velocity and a new cutter, while Nolin has size and the left-handedness. The big reveal here is that Oakland loves this type of player, having had success with guys like this in the past -- Tom Milone standing out as the best example, pitching well at home for the A's but much worse away from their pitcher-friendly park, taking advantage of their strong defense everywhere they played. Graveman and Nolin may have more value to Oakland than to most other suitors, but that doesn't alter the absolute balance of the deal. I can understand what the Jays are doing -- they traded three prospects who are either far away or low upside, plus the one major-leaguer they'll directly replace in the deal, to acquire one of the best players in baseball, on top of signing one of the best catchers in baseball as a free agent. They still need to add a starting pitcher, but they have several young arms whom they can mix and match in the last two spots in the rotation. I can't quite fathom what the A's are doing, at least not yet; they signed Billy Butler, which seemed more like a win-now move, but dealing Donaldson makes the team worse in 2015 and doesn't save them that much money in the short term because he's only first-time eligible (for arbitration). They don't have a viable shortstop for this year, and could use an upgrade at second, which would imply they're thinking 2016 and beyond -- but in that case, why sign Butler for three years? If Beane isn't playing for this year, he might have to look at trading Jeff Samardzija and/or Scott Kazmir now, as both players are free agents after 2015. I don't doubt their ability to get more out of the out-of-favor players they acquire, but it'll be hard for the return on Donaldson here to match all the value they gave up.

Well yeah Ian Hunter ‏@BlueJayHunter 21m21 minutes ago "I’ve watched unlimited hours of Jose Bautista on film." - Josh Donaldson earlier this year. http://www.foxsports.com/mlb/just-a-bit-outside/story/josh-donaldson-oral-history-juice-in-his-hands-071614 …

Barreto has the highest potential with the bat, Urena is the most likely to stick at SS Also not a dumb question!

I love you brotha!!! JOSH DONALDSON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Barry Davis ‏@SNBarryDavis 12s12 seconds ago AA "Brett was surprised but understanding. He wanted to be a part of this. It was not a call I was looking forward to" #BlueJays

Barry Davis ‏@SNBarryDavis 24s25 seconds ago AA says both Lawrie and Donaldson were shocked with the deal. #BlueJays Mike Wilner ‏@Wilnerness590 1m1 minute ago AA: Haven't even thought about locking up Donaldson to a long-term extension, still have four years of control. #Bluejays #Jays Mike Wilner ‏@Wilnerness590 33s33 seconds ago AA: Both Donaldson, Lawrie were shocked, and rightly so. #Athletics had no intention of trading Josh, we had no intention of trading Brett.

Barry Davis ‏@SNBarryDavis 1m1 minute ago AA "we've become a more desirable place for FA pitchers since the Martin deal." #BlueJays Fapfapfpafpapfapfpafpap

Barry Davis ‏@SNBarryDavis 7s8 seconds ago AA "I think Brett is a very good player and a gold glove candidate. Expectations were very high after his debut.." #BlueJays LOL Wilner Mike Wilner ‏@Wilnerness590 16s17 seconds ago Suggested to AA that Lawrie didn't develop the way #Bluejays would have liked: "No. That's not fair to say at all. That's wrong." #Jays Mike Wilner ‏@Wilnerness590 2m2 minutes ago AA: Graveman/Nolin would have factored for us in time, but knowing we have middle of order power bat locked up, deal we had to make.

5th best offense in baseball wasn't good enough for you?

Hope Franky becomes a stud for the A's

Barry Davis ‏@SNBarryDavis 9s9 seconds ago AA "other than the oblique, most of Lawrie's injuries have been freak ones. His health wasn't a factor in being dealt. #BlueJays Eric Smith ‏@Eric__Smith 44s44 seconds ago Tweeted always or not? #bluejays deal may have been finalized at #raptors game. Alex A. had tix & was said to be in attendance #rtz #jays

Mike Wilner ‏@Wilnerness590 32s32 seconds ago AA: A lot of people were focused on positional needs. We had a 3B, but we didn't have a middle of the order bat to go with Bautista/EE. Barry Davis ‏@SNBarryDavis 33s33 seconds ago AA "we may not have needed a 3rd baseman but we did need another middle of the order bat" #BlueJays

Barry Davis ‏@SNBarryDavis 14s14 seconds ago AA "we clearly needed to do something to the offense with Lind traded and Melky as free agent. Trying to get better everywhere" #BlueJays Yes Alex, a win is a win is a win!!

Jose Bautista ‏@JoeyBats19 12s13 seconds ago In contrast, we also get to welcome a new member to our squad!! Come on @BringerOfRain20 let's get those leg kicks going!! Mike Wilner ‏@Wilnerness590 15s15 seconds ago AA: Donaldson very good defensive player, gamer, hard-nosed, durable, intense guy who wants to win. Will fit well with Bautista/Edwin.

Mike Wilner ‏@Wilnerness590 14s15 seconds ago AA: Agreed to the trade last night, needed to get medicals done before announcing. #Bluejays #Jays

Athletics Farm ‏@AthleticsFarm 20m20 minutes ago A's GM Billy Beane said Jays were initially reluctant but the deal happened when the Jays finally agreed to give up the 4 players involved. Barry Davis ‏@SNBarryDavis 35s35 seconds ago AA "we didn't expect him to be available. Didn't want to be aggressive but doesn't hurt to ask. Asked a 2nd time a few days ago. #BlueJays Mike Wilner ‏@Wilnerness590 15s16 seconds ago AA: We wanted to keep Brett and add to the team. Billy was very specific that he needed guys to be close and help him out, Lawrie was key. Jon Heyman ‏@JonHeymanCBS 12s13 seconds ago jays still trying for melky. he was great for them last year, and they do need a lefty bat, or 2. Justin Bourne ‏@jtbourne 3m3 minutes ago I once asked a Red Bull marketing guy (CDN) why they didn't sponsor Lawrie, and he pointed out "Why pay for what you're getting for free?" Barry Davis ‏@SNBarryDavis 15s16 seconds ago Beane insisted he wanted prospects who were close to being ML ready. Lawrie's name came into play Monday night. #BlueJays

Jeff Blair ‏@SNJeffBlair 32s33 seconds ago Hamilton, Ontario Beane called Barreto "probabluy most sought after international player two years ago." Sees as replacement for Addison Russell. Jose Bautista ‏@JoeyBats19 30s31 seconds ago One of the hardest things about our game, saying goodbye to a great person, amazing teammate and friend! You will be missed! @blawrie13 Barry Davis ‏@SNBarryDavis 24s25 seconds ago AA "it's hard when you're trading 4 players for 1 but Donaldson is a durable guy. Middle of the order bat" #BlueJays

Lawries sister speaks out http://instagram.com/p/v-FDiXuItP/

Mike Wilner ‏@Wilnerness590 25s26 seconds ago AA: Barreto developed into one of the better position prospects in baseball. #Bluejays #Jays

Mike Wilner ‏@Wilnerness590 33s33 seconds ago AA: Brett's been here a while, still so young, love the way he plays. Talked to him, it was a hard conversation. Love to have kept him. Shudddup AA!!

Mike Wilner ‏@Wilnerness590 16s16 seconds ago Alex Anthopoulos is addressing the media now. Just talked to Donaldson, told him he reminded him of Bautista. #Bluejays #Jays

Barry Davis ‏@SNBarryDavis 6s6 seconds ago AA "spoke to Donaldson 20 minutes ago and he's excited" #BlueJays

lol Ian Hunter ‏@BlueJayHunter 2m2 minutes ago For what it's worth, Ricky Romero is the only surviving member of Team Unit on the Blue Jays roster.