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Grading the Leonys Martin Trade

By David Cash |

Just a few days ago I wrote about the possibility of the Texas Rangers trading centerfielder Leonys Martin.  Today that became a reality.  Jon Daniels sent Martin to the Seattle Mariners along with reliever Anthony Bass for  RHP Tom Wilhelmsen, outfielder James Jones, and a player to be named later.

If you don’t remember or didn’t read my previous article I mentioned that I thought Leonys Martin would be traded because of his recent decline in his play.  Also, attitude might be another thing that was taken into consideration.  He was supposed to report to the Arizona Instructional League during the American League Division Series, but he declined to show up because he was reportedly upset because he wasn’t included on the playoffs roster.

But, with the recent play of Delino DeShields and the addition of Josh Hamilton and Mike Napoli it wasn’t much a surprise that he was passed up and sent to Arizona.

So that’s the recap of my previous article on Martin.   Who came ahead on the trade?  Time is the best judge of that, but I’ll take a guess at it right now anyways.  The Rangers gave up a struggling centerfielder who in my opinion had hit a wall with the organization.  He was struggling at the plate and had issues in the outfield.   For him a change of scenery was almost a must.  The Rangers included reliever Anthony Bass.  Bass appeared in 33 games/64.0 IP with a 4.50 ERA and 1.344 WHIP.  He was good at eating up innings when needed, which helped save the pen.  At times he pitched well and others time he struggled.  Overall he was a pretty good pitcher in the pen.

But, the Rangers got in return a solid reliever with RHP Tom Wilhelmsen.  With Seattle he had a 3.19 ERA over 53 games/62.0 IP with 29 walks and 60 strikeouts (2.07 Strikeout to walk ratio).  The Rangers also got in return centerfielder James Jones.  He only played in 28 games for the Mariners in 2015 and struggled with a .105 batting average.  Seattle will also send another player at a later time.  Don’t expect it to be someone other than a prospect.

Jon Daniels has this to say about Wilhelmsen.

“We are getting a guy we have seen up close and personal for a number of years,” Rangers general manager Jon Daniels said. “It’s a unique story, but he has been one of the better back-end bullpen guys in the game. He gives us some depth in a power bullpen. We really like how that sets up.”  – TR Sullivan – MLB.com

Overall, after reviewing the pieces of the trade in my opinion the Texas Rangers got the better end of the deal.  I’d grade this trade with a B-.  Might have been better, but I will miss Anthony Bass.  Seattle will have someone who I’d consider needs some work and attention.  The Rangers get in return some a much needed arm they’ll immediately be able to plug in the bullpen for next season.  The Rangers also already have DeShields and Ryna Rua in center.  James Jones regain some of what he did in 2014 when he batted .250.  This is a good and expected move by Daniels. Hope he continues to upgrade the team.

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