Manny Ramirez Traded to Dodgers, Jason Bay to Boston

In an apparent three-way trade made at the 11th hour, the Boston Red Sox have acquired Jason Bay from Pittsburgh, while sending controversial slugger Manny Ramirez to the LA Dodgers. The Pirates are supposedly getting a bunch of minor leaguers. The Red Sox also had to part with Brandon Moss and Craig Hansen.

SI.com story

So, what did Boston get in this deal?

Jason Bay

Pros:
Under contract through 2009.
Only 29 years old, still in prime of his career.
Having a good season. 135 OPS+, NL All-Star.
A defensive improvement on Manny, not far from him offensively.

Cons:
Although better defensively than Manny, he’s not “good”.
Coming off of a lousy season in 2007.
An NL player from a very small market, coming to a more challenging environment.

My initial thoughts are the same as they were before: I’m not really thrilled. On a pure talent standpoint, the Red Sox will have a slightly weaker product tomorrow than they had yesterday.  Losing Hansen and Moss does not bother me, both of these guys had a ceiling in this organization. But losing Manny, still among the top handful of hitters in baseball, doesn’t seem like much of a “win” for a team that has struggled to score runs recently. I suppose this is the deal that most of New England was pining for, after the reports from last night surfaced.

Be careful what you wish for.