Rangers deal Gerald Laird to Detroit for two minor leaguers

December 8, 9:32 PMMLB ExaminerAlex Brown

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The Winter Meetings kicked off on Monday afternoon, when the Detroit Tigers and Texas Rangers hooked up on a deal to send catcher Gerald Laird to Detroit for two minor league pitchers.  How did both teams fare in this deal?

Having traded Ivan Rodriguez last July, the Tigers had an obvious need behind the plate.  Brandon Inge, who had caught full-time for the Tigers before, was unable to hit consistently and his defense suffered somewhat filling in for the departed Rodriguez.  Dusty Ryan was brought up from Triple A to audition for 2009, and he hit pretty well – however, manager Jim Leyland made it known that he preferred a veteran catcher.  Laird is a capable, if average starting catcher whose offense may suffer leaving the Ballpark at Arlington.  However, the move to spacious Comerica Park may be offset somewhat by the fact that Laird now doesn’t have to catch half his games in the Texas heat.

The Rangers did quite well in this deal also.  With four capable backstops, they had a logjam behind the plate, so somebody had to be moved.  Laird was the oldest of the four (Taylor Teagarden, Jarrod Saltalamacchia, and Max Ramirez being the others), so moving him made the most sense.  Guillermo Moscoso was the primary trade target, and he had a good year statistically in high-A ball (and a bit of Double A) though he’s old for that level at 25 years of age.  Carlos Melo was the other acquisition, and he’s difficult to project at 17 years old.

I’d rate this trade as a win for both teams.  The Tigers absolutely had to fill the catcher position, and they were able to acquire a proven starting catcher without overpaying for someone like Jason Varitek.  They also didn’t give up any arms that are sure to be successful major leaguers, so there will be no repeat of last offseason’s Jair Jurrjens for Edgar Renteria trade.  For the Rangers, moving a catcher this offseason was an obvious priority.  They were able to keep the three youngest catchers and acquire two somewhat promising arms in the process.  In Texas, stockpiling arms is never a bad plan.  All in all this trade benefited both teams but probably won’t have a major impact on the upcoming season.