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In December of 2004, then-Braves general manager John Schuerholz made arguably the best deal of his long, prolific career.
As he attempted to revamp the club's pitching staff, Schuerholz struck a deal with the Oakland A's to send Tim Hudson to Atlanta. The cost? Charles (Charlie) Thomas, Juan Cruz and Dan Meyer.
Thomas barely stuck around in the big leagues after the deal. Cruz was really bad in one season for the Athletics, and has since bounced around with four other teams. Meyer has a 5.46 ERA over the course of 113 innings, most of which came with Fredi Gonzalez in Florida.
Hudson has gone on to post a 107-65 record with a sparkling 3.51 ERA with the Braves. On Friday night, he will go for his 200th career win.
Schuerholz never really gets much credit for pulling this trade off, but he should. This was an absolute steal.
For those familiar with WAR, Hudson has been worth 19.2 WAR since his first season in Atlanta. A "win" on the market the past few years typically goes for $5 million or so. That means Huddy has been worth about $96 million to the Braves.
The cost was Charlie Thomas, Juan Cruz and Dan Meyer. If going by WAR, that trio actually cost the A's money while they were still in the Bay Area.
That, my friends, is the definition of ripping someone off.
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Hudson on the verge of notching 200th win | braves.com: News
Thoughts of Tim Hudson becoming a big leaguer seemed farfetched when his only opportunity to play collegiately was with his hometown community college. But 20 years later, he finds himself on the verge of becoming the 110th pitcher in Major League history to record 200 wins.
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First baseman Freddie Freeman is scheduled to play three injury-rehab games for Triple-A Gwinnett this weekend and could rejoin the Braves on Monday in Colorado.
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Luis Avilan experienced some trouble when he attempted to test his left hamstring by jogging on Thursday, but the Braves will attempt to wait at least three more days before deciding whether he will need to be placed on the 15-day disabled list.
While Difficult, Nobody Should Worry The Least Bit About Heyward | Capitol Avenue Club
Good stuff here from Franklin Rabon of CAC. As he writes, J-Hey will be fine. He's just run into a ton of bad luck so far.