Rangers Trade Salatamacchia To Braves For More Prospects

ARLINGTON, TX--One day after completing a deal that sent first baseman Mark Teixeira and reliever Ron Mahay to the Atlanta Braves for catcher Jarrod Salatamacchia and prospects, the Rangers have traded Saltamacchia back to the Braves for more prospects, rather than hold on to “Salty” until he becomes a free agent and risk losing him.

In return, the Rangers received left handed pitcher Steve Evarts and a player to be named later.

“We feel like we got a real good deal for Salty,” said Rangers GM Jon Daniels. “That Evarts kid is supposed to be pretty good and the player to be named later could be somebody really good. Now we don’t have to worry about losing Salty to free agency and getting nothing in return. We also don’t have to worry about him being a total bust. We’ve covered our asses completely here. That being said, Salty will be missed. Hopefully the change of scenery will do him good.”

The two deals left the Rangers with a handful of young prospects in place of their all-star first baseman, and Daniels will now be forced to decide which ones to deal and which ones to keep.

“We’ll have to evaluate our new youngsters and then make some decisions from there,” he said. “What we really need is some young arms. We haven’t had much luck with our young pitchers so far. For some reason they just can't seem to get it together. We’ll keep trying though. Even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while. I have that saying engraved on a plaque on the wall of my office.”

Saltamacchia had mixed feelings when he first heard about the trade to Texas. Now that he’s headed back to Atlanta, his feelings are even more mixed. In fact, the catcher/first baseman confessed to being downright befuddled by the deal.

“Now wait just a second,” he told the Atlanta Journal Constitution. “I thought I was traded to the Rangers. I thought the Braves didn’t want me anymore. I thought they didn’t have room because they already have a catcher and now they have a first baseman as well. Perhaps they’re planning to let Mark go at the end of the year and then plug me in as the first baseman. Yes, that would make sense. I’m the first baseman of the future. Interesting. Well, it’s going to be an emotional homecoming, that’s for sure. I wonder if the fans are going to give me a standing ovation.”

Though they parted with a handful of prospects, the Braves now appear loaded for a run at the NL East title. Teixeira gives them a switching hitting first baseman with power and Mahay will provide a reliable arm in the bullpen.

In addition, they were able to retain their best young player in Jarrod Saltamacchia.

“It’s a good day for the Braves, but I wouldn’t call this a coup or anything,” said Braves GM John Schuerholz. “If you ask me, the Rangers got the best of these two deals. They can build for their future and all we can do is possibly win the division. And all winning the division means is you get swept by some small market losers in the next round and everybody gets pissed off. Man, I envy teams with no hope.”

With the trade deadline approaching, league sources are reporting that the Rangers and Braves are in talks to send Andrus and Feliz back to Atlanta in exchange for reliever Ron Mahay.

Email Button Print screen button