© Mark J. Rebilas | 2016 Nov 5
The July 31 MLB Trade Deadline was as hectic for the San Francisco Giants as it was for anybody. The Giants, who are suddenly in contention for a Wild Card spot after a blisteringly hot month of July, were the league’s biggest wild card at the deadline. Would they throw in the towel and trade Madison Bumgarner and Will Smith for prospects or would they make some acquisitions for a playoff push?
They did neither, instead Farhan Zaidi managed his first MLB Trade Deadline with the same mastery as an orchestra conductor, unleashing a flurry of moves to not only improve the team’s chances now, but also build for the future while not giving away the team’s two best players. The first of the flurry of trades: acquiring Mauricio Dubon from the Milwaukee Brewers for Drew Pomeranz and Ray Black.
Robert Murray, a Milwaukee Brewers beat writer for The Athletic, stopped by the Papa & Lund show minutes after the news broke to discuss how the trade made sense for both the Giants and Brewers and talk about the potential of Mauricio Dubon.
“He’s become one of their top prospects and you really didn’t have a spot on a Major League roster considering he was pretty much blocked with Orlando Arcia and Keston Hiura here long-term,” Murray said. “So, a trade like this makes sense with the Brewers needing another pitcher, Pomeranz makes a lot of sense for the Brewers. To see him go is not a shock but the Brewers really, really liked him.”
Dubon was the one of the best prospects in the Brewers system and has hit .295 with 16 homers and 47 RBIs in AAA so far this season.
“If he’s right, he’s got a shot to be a really good player, this is a really good trade for the Giants,” said Murray.
Murray then expanded on what makes him such a good pickup for the Giants.
“He’s very versatile,” Murray continued. “He’s primarily a shortstop, but he can also play second base, and he’s also played a little bit of outfield in different leagues as well, so he can play all over the field but I think the Giants…what they were really looking for in this kind of a deal was a really solid long-term option in the infield. So I would imagine he could end up being a replacement for Brandon Crawford or they could play him in other positions too, but what he provides is really good defensive ability. He’s just a guy that the Brewers really liked defensively, his offensive game has kinda really shifted too considering that he’s added power to his game, and whether or not that’s a product of the juiced baseball or other things with him we really don’t know. He’s a really complete player, I know the Brewers were not looking to deal him. It was a deal that they thought made sense, I mean they needed pitching as I said, and they ended up pulling the trigger on it, but it’s a bittersweet day for the Brewers considering how much they like Dubon, ’cause that was not someone they really wanted to give up.”
Listen to the full interview with Robert Murray below. To hear him discuss the Dubon trade, start from 1:12.