Rays are 9 starters deep on the 40 man this year, and that’s one too many. One of Patino, Chirinos or Fleming needs to be converted to the Pen or traded. Patino has the most upside and probably trade value. BTV hasn’t valued him at all, but I don’t think it’s reasonable to assume Patino has no value around the league given his tools and the fact that he was injured for much of last year. Patino was rushed to the Majors as a 20 year old by San Diego, and he’s battled an assortment of random injuries with the Rays since they acquired him (e.g., an oblique injury cost him 1/3 of last year and seems to have held him back once he returned), but there’s no denying he has a multi-pitch assortment of plus pitches. He may just need to stay healthy and be given an opportunity to pitch through any struggles he has at the ML level. The Rays have too much pitching to give him that opportunity, so trading him to a team like LA might make sense.
Anyway, this trade gives the Angels a high upside pitching prospect who can spend the year in AAA or be called up at a moment’s notice for the cost of last year’s 3rd rounder in Ben Joyce. Joyce has a blazing fastball and might make a very good high leverage reliever one day, but Patino’s much higher upside is undeniable.
Rays are 9 starters deep on the 40 man this year, and that’s one too many. One of Patino, Chirinos or Fleming needs to be converted to the Pen or traded. Patino has the most upside and probably trade value. BTV hasn’t valued him at all, but I don’t think it’s reasonable to assume Patino has no value around the league given his tools and the fact that he was injured for much of last year. Patino was rushed to the Majors as a 20 year old by San Diego, and he’s battled an assortment of random injuries with the Rays since they acquired him (e.g., an oblique injury cost him 1/3 of last year and seems to have held him back once he returned), but there’s no denying he has a multi-pitch assortment of plus pitches. He may just need to stay healthy and be given an opportunity to pitch through any struggles he has at the ML level. The Rays have too much pitching to give him that opportunity, so trading him to a team like LA might make sense.
Anyway, this trade gives the Angels a high upside pitching prospect who can spend the year in AAA or be called up at a moment’s notice for the cost of last year’s 3rd rounder in Ben Joyce. Joyce has a blazing fastball and might make a very good high leverage reliever one day, but Patino’s much higher upside is undeniable.