Posted on Wednesday 8 November 2006 by G @ 6:58 pm
The Indians completed a trade with San Diego, acquiring second baseman Josh Barfield in exchange for infielder Kevin Kouzmanoff and reliever Andrew Brown. Barfield is 23 years old and had a solid rookie season in 2006 with the Padres:
Barfield, the son of former Blue Jays and Yankees outfielder and 1986 American League home run champ Jesse Barfield, made his Major League debut Opening Day in ‘06. He went on to hit .280 with 13 homers and 58 RBIs for the NL West champs and finished second among big-league rookies with 21 stolen bases.
When initially informed of the trade, Barfield was shocked. But he soon warmed up to the idea of playing in Jacobs Field.
“I had no idea I was even being considered to be traded,” he said. “It took me by surprise. It’s starting to sink in now, and I’m realizing it’s going to be a better situation for me.”
Better in the sense that he won’t have to play home games in mammoth PETCO Park anymore. In ‘06, he hit .241 at home and .319 on the road. His road average was the third-highest among NL batters.
The Tribe desperately needed a second baseman, and it looks like they got a good one in Barfield. He can hit and he adds speed to the lineup, and his defense is solid.
That said, they gave up a lot of talent to get him. Kouzmanoff looks like he can be a hitting machine, though he’s unproven at the big league level. Brown is a good young reliver. With Marte at third base, the Indians had a glut of young third baseman, so trading him to fill a need at second base probably makes sense. All three players have real upside potential, so it will take several years to see who got the best of this trade. Shapiro has a good track record evaluating young position players, so let’s hope he made the right call.
I like Barfield. This may end up being a great move.
It’s nice that Shapiro got the 2nd base issue out of the way right off the bat. Now it’s time to focus on that bullpen.
I don’t know much about Barfield but from the sounds of it he could be a really solid Major Leaguer. It’s good to see that Shapiro traded for someone ready to play now and not a project down in Single-A who won’t be ready for several years.
As good as Kouzmanoff appeared last season, I think he was expendable with Marte at third. I can’t remember but can’t Kouz play first as well? We have an overflow at that position as well so he seemed to be caught up in the numbers game and glad to see we got something for him.
Brown was a decent young prospect but I wasn’t totally sold on him. With Barfield we get one of our needs out of the way.
this seems to be one of the smarter moves shapiro has made in the past 2 seasons.
Glad to see us get our 2nd baseman and not have to give up any free agent money!! This kid is young & probably still has room to grow & get better as a major leaguer!! I like the move!!
Not a fan of this move at all. Kouz is a great hitter in the making. He did more in the minor leagues hitting-wise than Belle, Thome, or anyone else who has come up with the Indians. Marte has a good glove at third, but is horrible at the plate and getting worse.
Not only do we have to hope that Barfield (who hit decent in the NL, on one of the worst hitting teams in baseball) can come to the American League and hit against superior pitching, but we get to see Kouz go to the NL and hit a ton.
Once again Shapiro gave up too much for an upside guy that hasn’t proven anything. His wagon is tied to Marte now, take it or leave it.
I agree with you Mike….. Barfield had a very successful start as a rookie–solves our 2nd base problem–adds a lot of speed to our lineup—all of which is good—BUT???—seems to me, Kouzmanoff and Brown is WAY, WAY to much to give up….Kouz looks to me like a much better hitting prospect than Andy Marte…he put up better minor league numbers than Manny R!!!! Spapiro has obviuosly hitched his wagon to Marte…we’ll see…he may be right…but I DOUBT IT.
My opinion—this offseason is CRUCIAL for Shapiro …and for the future of the Indians.
Wait,
Barfield is a second baseman who can hit, steal bases, and field. Although Kouzmanoff has better power and average numbers in the minors, but I will take the defensive numbers after last year. After complaining about the D som many times last night, the highest fielding percentage in the National League looks pretty good to me. I think Marte came around at the end of the year and will make and impact on this team this year.