Grading Los Angeles Angels-Oakland A's Trade Sending Alberto Callaspo to Oakland

MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez confirms, on the eve of the 2013 non-waiver trade deadline, that the Los Angeles Angels will send infielder Alberto Callaspo to the Oakland Athletics for prospect Grant Green.

It will take years to evaluate this exchange fully, but from what we know of these teams' needs, finances and recent performances, there's plenty to grade them on now.

The A's entered Tuesday night atop the AL West standings at 63-43. They're obviously the buyers in this transaction.

The 30-year-old Callaspo is in his eighth major league season, and he's been an everyday player since 2009. Los Angeles acquired him midway through the 2010 campaign and has used him regularly at third base.

The A's, meanwhile, feel extremely comfortable with Josh Donaldson at the hot corner. They'll instead relocate their new switch-hitter to second base, MLB.com's Jane Lee tweets. He has started 201 MLB games at the position.

Even more than his defensive versatility, Oakland will value his hitting skills.

The team's second basemen—mostly Eric Sogard—have combined for an underwhelming .254/.320/.340 batting line, launching only two home runs.

Now check out Callaspo's production over the past four seasons:

Year	Age	G	PA	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	OPS+
2010	27	146	601	61	149	27	2	10	56	5	31	42	.265	.302	.374	.675	85
2011	28	141	536	54	137	23	0	6	46	8	58	48	.288	.366	.375	.740	112
2012	29	138	520	55	115	20	0	10	53	4	56	59	.252	.331	.361	.692	97
2013	30	85	334	32	74	13	0	5	36	0	33	22	.253	.323	.348	.671	91

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table.
Generated 7/30/2013.

One thing that jumps out is the strikeout-to-walk ratio, especially this year. That's Dustin Pedroia-esque!

Callaspo has performed only slightly better than Sogard, but he represents an upgrade, nonetheless. The year-to-year consistency bodes well for Oakland's future.

After earning a $4.1 million salary in 2013, Callaspo will get a raise to $4.875 million the next season before reaching free agency. Good investment if he's healthy and worth 2.5-3.0 WAR between now and the expiration of the deal.

Oakland's grade: B+

The Halos didn't get any pitching! They were supposed to get pitching!

This season has gone awry for L.A. due to a lack of starting rotation depth and bullpen stability. Presumably, the front office will address those weaknesses in the coming hours or during the winter.

Green is an impact bat without a set position. The 25-year-old has tried second base this year, but he also gained considerable minor league experience at shortstop and in the outfield.

Questionable plate discipline doomed him in a brief MLB stint earlier this month. Green went hitless in 15 at-bats, whiffing six times and averaging only 3.63 pitches per plate appearance (league average is 3.83).

However, his gaudy numbers on the farm cannot be ignored. He owns a .879 OPS at Triple-A in 2013 and possesses the athleticism to pick up occasional stolen bases. With a line-drive swing and acceptable strikeout rate, Green looks destined to stick on active rosters for years to come.

Although he's much less expensive than Callaspo, he might never become as valuable overall.

L.A.'s grade: C+

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