by Valerie Davies
The Yellow Springs Nine made two minor trades today, shipping off some players that didn't fit into their plans for the future as they once again reshape the 40 man roster. Neither trade should have any major impact on the team, but getting anything back for a player they don't want any longer is better than just doing a general release.
The first trade was with frequent partner Long Beach. The Surfers took on catcher Guillermo Espinoza, who spent most of 2062 as the Nine's primary backstop. He hit .224 in 100 games, but was the better man with the glove, framing at a 4.6 rate. Originally a 20th round pick(!), Espinoza was really neither fish nor foul he wasn't great with a bat, nor was he great with a glove.
In exchange, the Nine received infielder Dani Barrios. Barrios, 19, is a tweener type who probably plays better at first, but can manage second base adequately. He projects to some good contact and gap power, which would be useful in a second baseman. He hit .287 in Short A for Long Beach's Key West affiliate.
Barrios is clearly a flier type of player, but if McMonigal didn't want to retain Espinoza, getting anything for him was a good call. When I spoke to the GM, he didn't state I was outright correct, but you can read between the lines of this statement:
"We appreciated what Espinoza could do for us, but there was an opportunity to obtain a guy we liked in Barrios, so we took the deal," said McMonigal.
The second trade was with Cobble Hill (formerly Brooklyn), where new GM Shoeless was looking for some guys who might be useful at the major league level and had made it known publicly. Clearly, McMonigal saw an opportunity to ship out the under-performing Negussu Adisa.
Adisa had some promise, but has turned into the quintessential AAAA player. He hit .329, .424, and .317 in three stints at Indianapolis, but after going .244 in 260, Adisa batted only .214 and .211 the following two years, making him a very replaceable backup outfielder, especially given he had a career negative ZR as a major league outfielder.
Adisa's return is minimal. The Robins aren't exactly stacked with talent. McMonigal picked up pitcher Madhav Kapadia, who also has some modest ability with a bat but no real position. He was horrible in Rookie ball in 2062, with a 6.5 BB/9 to go with a 6.5 K/9 and a 6.52 ERA. But his stuff, if he can ever harness it, is really strong. The scouts I talked to really like the potential of all three of his pitches fastball, forkball, and changeup. He's a total project, but again,it was better than the nothing I expect was coming.
"Kapadia isn't the kind of guy I might draft, but he's a totally fascinating project player. We have such great coaches here I think we can make something of him," said McMonigal.
Even if they don't, it's no harm in trying. These deals won't mean much to either team in the grand scheme of things, but there's always a chance. And I think the odds slightly favor the Nine here, given the track record of Espinoza and Adisa. We'll see how they all do once the season starts.
