The Beltran deal

Allard Baird wanted a catcher and a third baseman for Carlos Beltran. We certainly needed both positions filled with Santiago's career winding down and Mike Tonis not performing the way many had hoped. And Joe Randa's days appear to be numbered in Kansas City. I hope that's not the case, but with a mutual option for the 2005 season, I can't see the Royals picking up their end.

When you look at the catcher the Royals got, John Buck, it's hard to argue that we could have received a better catching prospect. He has torn up Triple A pitching in New Orleans this season, hitting .300 with 12 HRs and 35 RBIs. He's been an All-Star the past three seasons in the minor leagues. He has an outstanding glove and a willingness to smother pitches—something Santiago is unwilling to do. The good news is, he is only 23. So, if he can hit major league pitching to even the smallest degree, he may be a guy who is around KC for a long time.

Baird has high hopes for third baseman Mark Teahen. My question about Teahen is his power. He was hitting .335 in Double A this season with 6 HRs in 53 games. That's an improvement over his first couple of minor league seasons where he hit 4 HRs. He's only 22, so that's a major plus. Let's see how he does starting in Omaha for the rest of the season.

The Royals also received a 24-year old starting pitcher named Mike Wood in the Beltran deal. His numbers in Triple A this season look to good to be true. He was 11-3 with a 2.80 ERA with 90 innings pitched for Sacramento. He throws in the upper 80's and seems to have great control of his pitches already, walking just 24 this season in the 90 innings he has pitched. He is slated to start against Baltimore this week. I'm anxious to see if he is ready to pitch at the major league level.

Like anybody else, I hated to see Carlos Beltran traded. But his affiliation with his agent, Scott Boros, made it impossible to resign Beltran. Boros wanted way too much. The Astros already know this and they don't seem to have a much better chance than the Royals did to resign him next season.

Baird took a chance by trading for prospects after initially saying that he wanted guys who could contribute at the major league level right away. All three of these guys have posted fantastic numbers in the minors. They are all young. And except for Teahen, they appear to be ready to make the jump to the major league level right now. We'll find out soon enough how good this deal was.