The Los Angeles Angels have agreed to trade slugger Mark Trumbo to the Arizona Diamondbacks this offseason in a three-team deal involving the Chicago White Sox, the Diamondbacks announce:
OFFICIAL: #Dbacks acquire Mark Trumbo and two players to be named later for Adam Eaton and Tyler Skaggs in trade with Angels and White Sox.
— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) December 10, 2013
Steve Gilbert of MLB.com later confirmed the trade:
Confirmed that #Dbacks #Angels and #Whitesox trade is now complete.
— Steve Gilbert (@SteveGilbertMLB) December 10, 2013
Fox Sports’ Jon Morosi provides full details:
Full trade: Trumbo and 2 prospects to DBacks, Eaton to White Sox, Santiago and Skaggs to Angels.
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) December 10, 2013
Steve Gilbert of MLB.com provides this quote from Trumbo:
Trumbo on teaming w/Goldschmidt: “I look forward to sharing a spot in the lineup with him and I think it’s going to be a good situation.”
— Steve Gilbert (@SteveGilbertMLB) December 11, 2013
MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez has more from Trumbo on leaving the Angels:
“I’m a lifelong Angels fan, and all my memories as a kid revolve around the Angels, and as a pro, spent 10 years with the organization. It’s all you ever know and these are the friends you meet. But you also understand as a player that these things are part of the game, and where the Angels stood, there were some holes that they needed to fill and only a few possible options as far as how they were going to do that. For me, looking at that situation, it’s almost painfully obvious that either myself or Howie where the ones who were going to bring back what the team needed.”
Dan Hayes of CSNChicago.com later confirmed who the player to be named later would be:
Per @jimcallisMLB it sounds as if player to be named later from #WhiteSox is Brandon Jacobs, who came over in the Matt Thornton trade.
— Dan Hayes (@DanHayesCSN) December 10, 2013
Hector Santiago had a 4-9 record with a 3.56 ERA and 1.40 WHIP in 34 games last year with the White Sox. He’s 25 years old and pitched 149 innings last season, including 23 starts. Tyler Skaggs compiled a 2-3 mark with a 5.12 ERA and 1.37 WHIP in seven starts with the D-Backs in 2013.
Adam Eaton had this to say about the trade:
Pumped to be a part of the @whitesox organization! Excited to get after winning the #ALCentral. Thank you for this incredible opportunity!
— Adam Eaton (@AdamSpankyEaton) December 10, 2013
Tyler Skaggs also weighed in:
Going back home to where it all started back to the @Angels couldn’t be more excited but I just want to thank the @Dbacks fans you are
— Tyler Skaggs (@TylerSkaggs37) December 10, 2013
Troy Renck of The Denver Post reveals one of the prospects:
A.J. Schugel, a promising propsect from Mountain Vista High in Highlands Rach, headed to #Dbacks in big trade
— Troy Renck (@TroyRenck) December 10, 2013
The 27-year-old All-Star Trumbo is coming off a career year that saw him record 100 RBI and 34 home runs in 159 games despite struggling to make a positive impact night in and night out. He batted just .234 with an on-base percentage of .294.
Both of those marks were considerable drop-offs from his career highs of .268 and .317, respectively, in 2012.
According to CBS Sports baseball insider Jon Heyman (via Mike Axisa), a dozen teams were rumored to be interested in acquiring Trumbo prior to the announcement.
While there are legitimate concerns regarding Trumbo‘s struggles at the plate, there’s no denying that his versatility makes him a worthwhile addition for the Diamondbacks. He has appeared at four different positions for the Angels in each of the past two seasons, including third base, left field, right field and first base.
Trumbo has shown flashes that suggest he can become a solid all-around defensive player, but he’s certainly no game-changer in that regard, at least not yet.
It will be interesting to see how Trumbo fares in a new city, though, considering he grew up in Anaheim and played his high school baseball in Villa Park, Calif., before being called up to the majors. The 6’4″, 235-pound slugger has made a name for himself by crushing the long ball in L.A., but he will face new challenges as he looks to fulfill expectations in Arizona.
Trumbo was selected in the 18th round of the 2004 Major League Baseball amateur draft by his hometown Angels. However, he wouldn’t make his major league debut until September 2010.
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