Trades of the Decade: #7 Gold Glover to Georgia

There were many players that you could have easily guessed that might have gotten traded during the 2009 baseball season. Jack Wilson, Freddy Sanchez, Adam LaRoche, and John Grabow to name a few. All of those did get traded, but perhaps no one saw the trade of Nate McLouth to Atlanta coming.While some may argue that it may be too early to put this trade on a list of trades of the decade, the fall out from the trade, as well as some reflection, really warrant its inclusion.

Nate McLouth had just had his breakout season. He was named an All-Star, hit over 30 home runs, and won a Gold Glove. Things really seemed to be looking up for this overachieving fan favorite. Add in the fact that he had just signed a long term deal and it looked as though we would be watching Nate for some time to come. Then on June 3, almost 9 years to the day that the Pirates had drafted Nate, they dealt him to Atlanta for minor league pitcher Charlie Morton, prospect Gorkys Hernandez, and prospect pitcher Jeff Locke.

The Pirates gave up a useful player in Nate, perhaps a little overvalued in some respects, but nonetheless a very useful major leaguer, signed at a decent rate, for three younger players. Charlie Morton came to Pittsburgh immediately, and after some waiting for his Pirate debut, he displayed stuff that Pirate fans had not seen from a pitcher in some time. The movement that he has on some of his pitches and his success with them, made it plainly easy to see why the Pirates would have wanted him.

Gorkys Hernandez is a once highly touted prospect that has been traded once before. He posseses natural athletic skills that few in the system can attempt to match. While he may turn out to be a spare part, it is still a little too early to place that label on him.

Jeff Locke had a bit of a rough go, but slowly figured it out and pitched well down the stretch in the minors. While many say that there is no such thing as a pitching prospect, I'd rather have guys like Locke than not. He looks to be pretty promising, probably more so than fellow minor leaguer Bryan Morris is currently.

An analysis of the Nate McLouth trade can not be complete without looking at the fallout from it. The next day, Andrew McCutchen made his debut in Pittsburgh and we have had the pleasure of wathcing one of the more exciting young players in the game. McCutchen had nothing else to prove and with Nate gone, he could come up and show everyone what he can do.

This trade stands out from many of the others on the list because the club was not forced to make a move. They made the trade because it made baseball sense. They gave up a fine player, but got three good ones back and opened the door for an excellent player. If only more of the trades on the list were more like this one.