Today, the Red Sox sent shortstop Edgar Renteria and $11MM for third baseman Andy Marte. That’s got to be a record for Martes traded in one day. I don’t think it was a bad move by the Braves, considering that they’ll have a decent shortstop for three years at less than half the price of Rafael Furcal.
On the other hand, Marte has the potential be a star. I know, "potential" is a loaded word. But when a player hits .275/.372/.506 in Triple A at age 21, it screams "future star." Marte was ranked the best prospect in baseball by Baseball Prospectus heading into 2005.
Conditionally, this could be a historic trade by the Red Sox. I say conditionally because if the Red Sox flip him to Tampa Bay for a mere Julio Lugo, it would be a colossal mistake. I don’t know who should play short for the Red Sox, but it shouldn’t be at the expense of Marte. Sign Alex Gonzalez or Nomar, whatever.
Fenway would be very beneficial to Andy Marte, as it inflates home runs for righthanders by 13%. Could be an extra 40-50 bombs over the course of a long and illustrious career. It would be a shame if Mike Lowell got in the way for more than a month or two just because he makes a lot of money.
