The John Lackey trade was an interesting one. He had an intriguing option for the league minimum last year that made him extremely valuable. It eventually got to the point where the question was who would bite? It seems like the Cardinals liked Lackey the most and gave up a good amount for him. Let's take a look.
St. Louis Cardinals:
The Cardinals gave up 5 years of control of Kelly and 4 years of control of Craig to get John Lackey, so they obviously like him. This is a bit of a signal, along with the Masterson trade, that the Cards are going all-in this season. They were foiled in the World Series last year by the Red Sox and they didn't want that to happen again. So they went and improved a starting rotation that was starting to weaken. Wacha is gone for a while. Miller has been pretty horrible. They have to worry about Martinez's arm. There were too many question marks in the pitching staff. So yesterday they grabbed Justin Masterson, who has the potential to thrive in the NL. Today they grabbed, John Lackey, who has been great in the AL East, but could really step up his game in the NL. They also get another year of Lackey at the league-minimum. Lackey has said he will honor the option. Lackey could be a stabilizing force behind Adam Wainwright and Lance Lynn. If Masterson also is solid and works out his problems, the Cardinals could be a force in the playoffs. All they need now is for Oscar Taveras to make the RF spot his and they will be set.
Grade : A
The Cardinals gave up 5 years of control of Kelly and 4 years of control of Craig to get John Lackey, so they obviously like him. This is a bit of a signal, along with the Masterson trade, that the Cards are going all-in this season. They were foiled in the World Series last year by the Red Sox and they didn't want that to happen again. So they went and improved a starting rotation that was starting to weaken. Wacha is gone for a while. Miller has been pretty horrible. They have to worry about Martinez's arm. There were too many question marks in the pitching staff. So yesterday they grabbed Justin Masterson, who has the potential to thrive in the NL. Today they grabbed, John Lackey, who has been great in the AL East, but could really step up his game in the NL. They also get another year of Lackey at the league-minimum. Lackey has said he will honor the option. Lackey could be a stabilizing force behind Adam Wainwright and Lance Lynn. If Masterson also is solid and works out his problems, the Cardinals could be a force in the playoffs. All they need now is for Oscar Taveras to make the RF spot his and they will be set.
Grade : A
Boston Red Sox:
The Red Sox did a good job. They gave up Lackey, who might've not accepted the club option since Lester was traded. They also got a very promising player in Allen Craig, who hasn't been able to perform consistently, but shows flashes when does play. They have him until 2018, which is worth a lot. Then they got Joe Kelly, a promising young guy, who might be able to put everything together under the tutelage of John Farrell and Juan Nieves. They have Kelly until 2019. They gave up a minor leaguer, though. He was pretty solid, but in the long-term, probably won't be anything special. The Lester got two players who have tons of potential for a minimum of 4 years together. The key to making this deal really good for the Red Sox is unlocking that potential.
Grade: A, just for the amount of control they got.
The Red Sox did a good job. They gave up Lackey, who might've not accepted the club option since Lester was traded. They also got a very promising player in Allen Craig, who hasn't been able to perform consistently, but shows flashes when does play. They have him until 2018, which is worth a lot. Then they got Joe Kelly, a promising young guy, who might be able to put everything together under the tutelage of John Farrell and Juan Nieves. They have Kelly until 2019. They gave up a minor leaguer, though. He was pretty solid, but in the long-term, probably won't be anything special. The Lester got two players who have tons of potential for a minimum of 4 years together. The key to making this deal really good for the Red Sox is unlocking that potential.
Grade: A, just for the amount of control they got.