Late last night a Braves trade woke up every baseball pundit and Arizona Diamondbacks fan for almost the same reason; they thought it was a joke.
Source: #Braves acquire RHP Touki Toussaint from #DBacks. Rest of trade not know. DBacks’ No. 5 prospect, per Baseball America.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) June 21, 2015
The rest of the trade turned out to be pitcher Bronson Arroyo – currently on the DL recovering from TJ surgery – coming to Atlanta and Philip Gosselin – currently recovering for surgery on his thumb – to the Diamondbacks. And? No “and” that’s the whole trade. . . unless you consider the approximately $10M left on Arroyo’s contract a factor; hint, you should. This won’t be seen in any quotes from the Braves or the D’Backs but this is essentially Arizona’s version of the Melvin Upton Jr. trade with less of a return sure but the same desired result; payroll relief.
The Braves Trade (buy) Toussaint
If you’ve been hiding on a remote island somewhere here’s an update, the Braves are stockpiling high upside pitching. Unlike other acquisitions the high upside part of the trade is perfectly healthy and having a great year while the rehabbing arm is a veteran who may well add value next season.
Touki Tossaint
You’re going to read a lot about Touki Tossaint over the next day or so I’ll keep this brief.
- First round pick in the 2014 draft by Arizona = first round pick this year with no signing hassle.
- Features three plus pitches – yes three more on that in a bit – that runs 93-96 with late life, an above average change that he moves around between 79 and 84mph and a mid 70s hammer that Baseball America (subscription required) calls double plus.
- He’s a Potential Ace
I’ve seen tweets this morning suggesting he’s a two pitch pitcher. That’s simply wrong. Toussaint’s only issue was his control so the D’Backs decided they wanted him to shelve the curve and concentrate on control of his fastball and change this season, a very understandable move at this stage of his career. There’s every reason to believe he can pick that curve up at any time because he has the natural ability to spin the ball. TrackMan said he possessed the highest spin rate of any Perfect Game All-American in 2014. Baseball America says the 6’3”, 185t pound Toussaint has elite arm speed and big wingspan provide whip-like arm action that helps provide the late life on the heater and impart spin to the curve. This is the pre-2014 draft assessment from MLB.
Next: Why Bronson Arroyo?