A Far Better Bradley Trade That Never Was
It may shock you, but trading Milton Bradley for “pitcher” Carlos Silva was not the Chicago Cubs’ idea of the perfect trade. The Cubs actually almost participated in a four-team blockbuster (well, inasmuch as a whole bunch of salary dumps can constitute a “blockbuster”), which would have seen them land Pat Burrell and Luis Castillo.
According to ESPN’s Jayson Stark, a four-team trade involving Milton Bradley, Pat Burrell, Luis Castillo, and Gary Matthews Jr. fell apart at the winter meetings for an undisclosed reason.
According to a source, the deal would have sent Bradley to the Rays, Burrell and Castillo to the Cubs, and Matthews Jr. to the Mets. Burrell would have then been spun off elsewhere. No word on what the Halos would have received, though getting rid of Sarge Jr. and presumably at least part of his contract would have been a win. MLBTradeRumors.com.
Odds are, the deal was never particularly close to being completed. With this many overpaid players and this many teams involved, it’s highly likely they never got close on the money.
Still, how much sunnier would things look today if Milton Bradley was gone, Luis Castillo was penciled in at second base, and Obsessive Pat Burrell Trade Watch was kicking off?
Related posts:
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- Obsessive Bradley Trade Watch: Folks Are Getting a Little Bit Crazy About This Potential Bradley/Burrell Swap The hottest rumor relating to the planned trade of Milton...
- Obsessive Bradley Trade Watch: Familiar Names, Burrell and Castillo, Continue to Swirl There’s been so much smoke surrounding the Chicago Cubs’ efforts...
There are literally thousands of trades which get discussed…only to become scuttled by details.
What makes this one worth lamenting?
It’s as though you’re pretending to be overwrought…just to add a bit of drama to a weak case…
Feel free to be pleased with the trade as it went down. For me, I’ll continue to gripe, thank you very much.
But the point here is simply that hey, look at an interesting (and better) deal that was kicked around. Don’t sell me short – “Odds are, the deal was never particularly close to being completed.”