Blockbuster deal
Cy Young winner traded to Dodgers for All-Star catcher
Jan. 7, 2002
Hipolito Pichardo was successful but unhappy in Cincinnati. Mike Piazza was successful and happy in Los Angeles, but deemed by management as too expensive to keep around.
The result was one of the biggest trades of baseball's Hot Stove period. Piazza and third baseman Jose Macias were sent to the Reds yesterday in exchange for Pichardo (the 2001 Cy Young Award winner for the National League), reliever Danny Graves and cash considerations.
Neither player could be reached for comment. Piazza's agent said in a statement that his player — who had been with the Dodgers for nine full seasons — was "disappointed by the move" but understood that "baseball is first and foremost about business."
Piazza, 33, batted .299 for Los Angeles this past season with 34 homers and 120 RBIs. Paul Lo Duca, who started his MLB career as Piazza's back-up but moved to first base the past couple of seasons, is expected to become LA's No. 1 backstop. Albert Pujols, who played in left field most of 2001, will take over at first base, leaving Josh Hamilton as the starter in left.
The deal has saved the Dodgers upwards of $8 million in payroll. Piazza's salary topped the $11 million mark. Pichardo's is just over $3 million, though he will be a free agent at season's end (and will likely command a lot more with a Cy Young under his belt).
Pichardo has been a new and improved pitcher since overcoming the injury problems that plagued his early career. He went 23-10 last season with a 2.92 ERA. He was 16-8 in 2000 and 19-12 in 1999. Pichardo's career record is 104-77. It's expected he'll be the Dodgers' Opening Day starter and should give LA's rotation a huge lift along with Ramon Martinez, Darren Driefort and rising stars Andrew Zarzour and Dan Smith.
Zarzour, who turned 21 in late December, led LA with 17 wins a year ago.
Graves is a quality reliever, who went 2-4 last season with a sterling 1.53 ERA in 88 innings of work. He had two saves for the Reds.
Macias, 29, hit .343 for the Dodgers' Triple A club in Las Vegas last season and could break into the Bigs this year.
The Dodgers will use some of its newfound cash to help pay for new hitting coach Richard Willie and new pitching coach Johnny Smith. Both were offered contracts at well over $1 million per year. Smith is considered legendary at his craft and will have a nice stable of arms to work with as the Dodgers try to get over the hump of post-season losses and into the World Series...
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Personal note: I'm surprised this deal went through. It was pretty one-sided, money-wise, in the Dodgers' favor. Hated to part with Piazza but LA lost a lot of $$ last season and didn't have anything to pay for coaches and free agents this year. I think it will work well with Lo Duca behind the plate, Pujols at first and Hamilton in left. I've got other guys (A-Rod, Craig Wilson, Rod Lindsey) who have nice power.
Another note: As I've progressed into the new season, Zarzour's ratings have taken a significant dip. The "star" system now has him as a 2-star guy (ouch). Not sure what caused that as he was 4-star last season and started off as a 4.5 star guy. The trade I just made may have pushed Big Z out of the rotation, if those ratings pan out as true. Hopefully the new and improved pitching coach can bring out the best in Big Z. If not, it's on to Plan B (or C or D) with this dynasty story.