To open up a spot for stud prospect David Price while filling their right field void, the Rays have traded Edwin Jackson for Matt Joyce. I like this trade for both teams.

The Rays did amazing on this. They kill 3 birds with 1 stone by making this deal. Tampa Bay opens up a spot for David Price, fill their right field void, and clear salary for a potential aquisition of a DH through free agency. Milton Bradley and Jason Giambi are some attractive options. Joyce was a surprise last year, but he put up some very nice numbers while showing some impressive power. He is clearly the answer to their right field hole for now and for the future. Plus, Joyce is cheap for 6 years while Jackson was getting more expensive and is only under team control for 3 years. I don’t see how the Rays could’ve done any better on this trade.

Although I like this deal better for the Rays, the Tigers also did very well. They aquire a solid
#4 or #5 starting pitcher to add some much needed depth to their rotation. Matt Joyce is a high price to pay, but the offense was clearly not the problem in Detroit. They have some other options to replace him with, anyway. Marcus Thames and maybe a cheap free agent could make a nice platoon. It looks like the Tigers rotation will be looking like this: Justin Verlander – Jeremy Bonderman – Armando Galarraga – Edwin Jackson – Nate Robertson / Dontrelle Willis. That’s not bad if certain players have some bounce-back years. Plus, top prospect Rick Porcello would be ready sometime during the year. I like this trade a lot for the Tigers.

This is a very solid deal for both of these teams, but I give the edge to the Rays on this one.