Yes, there was the 2007 swap between the Rangers and Braves that placed Mark Teixeira in Atlanta and Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Elvis Andrus, Neftali Feliz and Matt Harrison in Texas.
Generally, though, it's rare that prospects traded for stars develop into All-Stars and Rookie of the Year candidates, as was the case in Texas. Generally, these prospects end up spending the majority of their careers either playing in the minors or reach the majors only to put up numbers that are mediocre at best.
Let's say that three years is a fair amount of time for teams that had acquired prospects to analyze their moves and see how they made out. Well, more than three years later, there are a number of teams kicking themselves for selling All-Stars for, essentially, nothing.
Matt LaPorta, a former No. 7 overall pick, was traded from Milwaukee to Cleveland for CC Sabathia in 2008. The outfielder was expected to be a premier power hitter who could hit to all fields. Instead, three years later, Laporta is batting .236 with only 10 home runs in regular playing time for the Indians. Can't completely blame the Tribe for this one, though — he has performed well in the minors, but has been unable to produce at the next stage.
Andy LaRoche was the key prospect involved in the Manny Ramirez–Jason Bay swap that landed the Pirates four prospects. In 2007, LaRoche was the top-rated rookie in the Dodgers organization, ranking above teammates like Clayton Kershaw, Matt Kemp and James Loney, and was expected to display a great glove and a powerful bat. LaRoche has 22 career home runs in over 400 games and is batting only .226. Meanwhile, he has provided a .953 fielding percentage at third which, by comparison, would rank among the bottom half of third basemen this season.
How about the players that the Yankees sent to Philadelphia for Bobby Abreu in 2006? The prize of that deal, former first-round pick C.J. Henry, was last seen playing pro ball at Single-A Tampa in 2008. Matt Smith pitched well in '06, but last pitched in the majors in '07. Carlos Monasterios finally broke into the bigs (with the Dodgers) in 2010, posting a 4.38 ERA, but has not seen action in '11. And catching prospect Jesus Sanchez has since changed teams as well as changed positions — to pitcher.
And for laughs, the 2004 Carlos Beltran trade did not give the Royals the prospects they deserved. Catcher John Buck's best season with KC came in 2007 when he slugged 18 homers –- and batted .222. He seemed to break through last season with a .281 average and 20 homers, but has regressed since. Mike Wood figured to be a promising starter, and instead contributed a 5.27 ERA in 87 appearances. Mark Teahan, who briefly made Royals fans forget their traded All-Star, has averaged 9 home runs and 47 RBI a year. Carlos Beltran? He's averaged 21 home runs and 80 RBI per season.
It takes a lot of guts for an organization to move an All-Star caliber player. This season, we saw Hunter Pence and Ubaldo Jimenez move. Come 2014, we'll see if Jarred Cosart, Drew Pomeranz or any of the other traded prospects continue the trend of being busts –- or instead become All-Stars themselves.
Photo: (Flickr/sportsphotography)
