On Thursday, the Tampa Bay Rays and St. Louis Cardinals agreed to a sizable trade. The Rays acquired outfielders Jose Martinez and Randy Arozarena as well as a draft pick in exchange for left-handed prospect Matthew Liberatore, and low-level catching prospect Edgardo Rodriguez, and a draft pick, the teams announced.
Martinez, , is the only veteran involved in the deal. He s an offense-only player who has appeared destined for the American League due to his well-below-average defense at various positions. Even so, he s posted a OPS+ for his big-league career, and is under team control through the season. Martinez figures to split time between DH and first base for the Rays, serving as a right-handed caddy for Ji-Man Choi and Yoshitomo Tsutsugo.
Arozarena, who turns in February, made his big-league debut last season. He should factor into the Rays outfield, perhaps in a platoon capacity with Austin Meadows. We named him as the riser in the Cardinals system earlier this winter when we evaluated their farm system:
All Randy Arozarena has done is hit in the minors -- he hit ... with homers and steals on attempts between Double- and Triple-A this season -- to the extent that it earned him a big-league promotion and spot on the postseason roster. Arozarena has a well-rounded skill set and ranked in the th percentile in sprint speed during his cameo, suggesting he should latch on as at least a reserve outfielder as soon as the season.
Liberatore, , was the th pick in the draft. He didn t make the Rays top-five prospect list for us due to the depth of their system, but he has a good fastball-breaking ball combination and feel for throwing strikes and a changeup. He s a few years away from the majors, yet he could become a quality starter.
Liberatore entered draft season in contention to be the top prep arm off the board. He slipped on draft day, however, and the Rays took advantage by taking him in the middle of the first round, just ahead of the Cardinals spot, amusingly enough. St. Louis chose Nolan Gorman. Liberatore spent last season in A-ball, where he appeared times and tallied innings. He posted a . ERA and he recorded . strikeouts per walk.
While this deal thins out some of the Cardinals immediate outfield depth, it s a hard one to pass on from a value perspective. The Cardinals essentially netted a top- prospect type for multiple pieces who were not going to start for them this season and perhaps not even next.
The Cardinals likely aren t done on the outfield side of things, either. They could conceivably bring back free agent Marcell Ozuna, and have been willing to eat money to move Dexter Fowler s contract, per league sources.
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