Checking on Former Detroit Tigers Prospects

The Atlanta Braves made a pair of noteworthy moves on Wednesday, officially parting ways with 300-game winner Tom Glavine and trading for all-star outfielder Nate McLouth.

Glavine spent the bulk of his career with the Braves and will certainly be wearing a Braves cap on his Hall of Fame plaque in a few years.

The other move they made is a bit more significant as far as this season is concerned.  Atlanta acquired McLouth from Pittsburgh in exchange for three prospects, including former Tigers prospect Gorkys Hernandez.

That got me thinking about what happened to some past Tigers prospects who were traded away as the Tigers attempted to contend last season. 

Here’s the quick list:

Guys sent to Atlanta for stupid Edgar Renteria:

• Gorkys Hernandez (OF): Still only 21 years old, Hernandez slumped a bit in 2008, hitting only .264. However, he got off to a good start this spring with the Braves' AA club in Mississippi. He was hitting .316 at the time of the deal, with 10 steals and a ton of strikeouts.  Hernandez is still a decent prospect.
• Jair Jurrjens (SP): I think we all know what has happened here.  Jurrjens has thrived in the Braves' big league rotation since he was traded there. He finished third in the NL in Rookie of the Year voting last season, winning 13 games and posting a sub-4.00 ERA. This season he’s 5-2 with an ERA of 2.59. His WHIP is down, but so are his strikeouts. Still, can you imagine if the Tigers had this guy starting tonight instead of Armando Galarraga?

Guys sent to Florida for Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis:

• Dallas Trahern (P): Trahern has been hit hard since leaving the Tigers organization. He posted an ERA of 5.97 in 2008 as he split time between HiA and Triple-A. This season he’s pitched for the Marlins' Triple-A club in New Orleans and has an ERA of 6.35 over six starts. Not exactly promising. He’s the only one in this group who has not appeared in the big leagues.
• Burke Badenhop (P): Badenhop has made a few spot starts for the Marlins over the past two seasons. This year he’s appeared in 13 games, all but one of them as a reliever. He has a 4-2 record and a respectable ERA of 4.15. He’s worked as the Marlins' long reliever in 2009, with seven of his appearances lasting at least two innings. He last pitched on June 2, when he threw five innings of relief and allowed only one hit and no runs.
• Eulogio de la Cruz (RP): When this trade went down, I was pretty bummed that the Tigers parted with de la Cruz. However, he’s been pretty bad since the trade and was traded by the Marlins to the Padres this past March. Over 19 big league innings he has a WHIP of 2.52 ,which is just crazy-high. He gave up 18 earned runs in nine innings of work for the Marlins in 2008.
• Cameron Maybin (OF): Maybin broke camp with the Marlins this spring and responded by hitting only .202. He has struck out 31 times in only 95 plate appearances, which was the Tigers' big concern with him when he was dealt. Maybin has always struggled with strikeouts, and the longer the problem lingers, the more you have to wonder if he’ll be able to correct it. The bright side is that he still is just 22 years old. He’s hit well at Triple-A this season, hitting over .300, so I’m guessing he’ll still get plenty of cuts with the Marlins this season.
• Andrew Miller (SP):  Miller has not pitched well since joining the Marlins.  In 37 appearances with the Marlins (26 starts), he has an ERA well over 5.00 and a WHIP comfortably over 1.60. Ugh. Miller is 24 years old, so he doesn’t have youth on his side as much as Maybin. Miller just doesn’t appear to be figuring it out. He made a pair of rehab starts in the minors this season and pitched pretty well. His main problem right now is that he walks way too many hitters.  He’s walked at least four batters in four of his six starts.
• Mike Rabelo (C): Rebalo was the least “prospecty” of this group of players. He hit .202 for the Marlins last season and has yet to play at any level in 2009. He’s also 29 years old.