New Mariners General Manager Jerry Dipoto’s Major Trade History and Grades

Unlike his predecessor, new Seattle Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto has previous experience as a top decision-maker (for lack of a better term) in a major leaguefront office.

Dipoto presided over the Arizona Diamondbacks for a short spell as the Snakes went through a transition period. The GM shipped off a number of key players.

Following his stint in the desert, Dipoto took over as the general manager of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

However, before we get to the spending and all-in moves made by Dipoto in Anaheim, his tenure in Arizona must be properly gone over with a fine-tooth comb—at least in terms of his trades.

Dipoto made a few major trades in Arizona. The most prominent of which occurred on July 25th, 2010 when he dealt Dan Haren to the Angels for Tyler Skaggs, Rafael Rodriguez, Joe Saunders and Patrick Corbin.

Haren was generally pretty outstanding in a Diamondbacks’ jersey. He earned All-Star nods in 2008 and 2009 while finishing fifth in the Cy Young voting in ’09. Over the two seasons he went 30-18 with a sparkling 3.23 ERA and 429 strikeouts in 445.1 innings pitched. His FIP was an even more outstanding 3.12. Haren led the league in strikeout-to-walk ratio in both 2008 and 2009.

The 2010 season was different for Haren. He went 7-8 with a 4.60 ERA in 21 starts. His FIP was a still-respectable 3.88, but it was clear his numbers were nowhere near his usual best. So with the Diamondbacks struggling, Dipoto sent Haren packing to his future employers in Anaheim.

The Haren trade was actually sneaky-good, in retrospect, for the Diamondbacks. Despite the ace posting an impressive 13.2 WAR in two-and-a-half seasons in the desert, he was traded. Haren was essentially dealt for three starting pitcher (Rodriguez threw 2.2 innings for the D-Backs and hasn’t seen the Majors since).

The first pitcher, Skaggs, posted a 5.43 ERA in 13 career starts for the Diamondbacks. The young pitcher was never quite able to put it together in Arizona. Dipoto later acquired Skaggs during his tenure in Anaheim. Skaggs and Adam Eaton to the Angels and White Sox respectively for Mark Trumbo (who strangely enough, was just dealt to Seattle a few months ago).

Saunders was extremely dependable as a member of Arizona’s rotation. He posted a 3.96 ERA in 424.2 innings for the D-Backs, serving as an innings eater. He only won 21 games in three seasons with Arizona, but was worth a 2.1 WAR.

Last-but-not-least,Patrick Corbin is the centerpiece of the deal. The starting pitcher has won 26 games in his three seasons with Arizona. He made the All Star team in 2013 and posted a 14-8 record with a 3.41 ERA and 178 strikeouts in 208.1 innings pitched. He missed 2014, but came back to post a 3.60 ERA in 16 starts this season. The 26-year-old is clearly one to build around for the D-Backs.

Haren never posted the brilliant stats he did in Arizona after leaving the desert. The fact that Dipoto received three major league starters for Haren, including an All Star and frontline starter in Corbin, makes the trade a win for him. Dealing an ace is never easy, but when you acquire three big-league starters, it’s looked at as a win—especially when one of the three has the potential to be a front-line starter for the foreseeable future.

Trade Grade: A

Five days after that Dipoto sent Edwin Jackson to the Chicago White Sox for David Holmberg and Daniel Hudson. Continue reading

March Madness: How Gonzaga Matches up with Duke

Gonzaga and Duke will meet in the South Regional final for a chance to go to the Final Four. In some ways, the matchup represents two very different, yet similar teams. Duke is former champion steeped in tradition seeking yet another Final Four berth while Gonzaga searches for an elusive appearance on college basketball’s biggest stage to cement itself among the best.

Both teams like to get up and down and score, so expect an entertaining game. Many will pick Duke thanks to the Blue Devil’s slightly higher seed and the fact that they don’t really respect Gonzaga. Most basketball fans won’t admit to disrespecting the Zags, but there is a level of disbelief that continues to follow Gonzaga.

Even after the program reached the Elite Eight. Yes, that’s right, the Elite Eight, pundits are still doubting the Zags. Sure, GU didn’t exactly knockout #1 seeds in the tournament, but that doesn’t mean they should be knocked for reaching this point for the first time since 1999. It’s almost like taking the easy way out and forming an opinion without watching Gonzaga enough to realize that yes, they are in fact really good and can beat anyone. They even have the size to challenge and compete with Kentucky.

After the Zags’ Przemek Karnowski-led frontline destroyed their UCLA counterparts, the Zags will face Duke in Houston on Sunday. Some will tell you otherwise, but GU actually matches up well with the Blue Devils.

The South’s top-seeded team feature three extremely talented freshman in Jahlil Okafor, Tyus Jones and Justice Winslow. Outside of the trio and Quinn Cook, Coach K has exactly zero players averaging double-figures. Duke has depth issues, but the team is generally able to overcome them thanks to their stars, especially Okafor. The Blue Devils have Marshall Plumlee and Amile Jefferson, but other than that there is a definite dearth of size. Additionally, neither are even close to being in the same discussion as Okafor offensively. Winslow was slid to the four next to Okafor at center to help combat this. While Winslow will likely be tasked with slowing down Kyle Wiltjer, Okafor will have issues with Karnowski and Domantas Sabonis on both ends of the floor.

The beauty of Gonzaga’s frontline is that they not only features a rotation of bigs, but that those bigs can beat you in different ways. Wiltjer is the stretch four who can score from any spot on the floor while Sabonis is the rare freshman with an extremely polished offensive, low-post game. He also brings energy, size and rebounding to the team when he enters the game. Karnowski is a different matchup entirely. The 7’1” center is the definition of an immovable object in the lane with soft hands and potent array of hook shots.

With all three at his disposal, Mark Few relies on a rotation, which was on full display against UCLA as the Zags’ coach constantly subbed the post players in and out in order to keep them fresh. With Duke expected to heavily rely on Okafor, tiring him out will be key. This won’t be hard with the rotation and number of screens the Zags tend to set.

Gonzaga’s opponents also have a tendency to pile up fouls quickly, often leaving the Zags in the bonus for long stretches of the game. Most of this has to do with post players trying to grapple with the “mountain masquerading as a man” known as Przemek Karnowski. Karnowski’s size also provides him the opportunity to shut down Okafor on the defensive end. Simply put, Karnowski is a big dude and despite his offensive gifts, Okafor will have trouble scoring on him.

Getting Okafor gassed and/or in foul trouble will give the Zags a leg up in the game. It will also expose the Blue Devils lack of depth. In Duke’s last two tournament games they have played one exactly one player more than 10 minutes, and that was Jefferson who averages 6.6 points per game.

Outside of the starting five for GU, Sabonis essentially plays “starter minutes” off the bench while Kyle Dranginis’ minute totals approach “starter” territory. If it turns into a game of depth, the Zags will have the upper hand.

There will be offensive fireworks with both teams likely to have adjusted to the cavernous backdrop of the stadium in Houston. Expect an entertaining match as both the Zags and Blue Devils seek a Final Four berth.

For more Gonzaga coverage, including how the 2011 recruiting class is paying dividends, click here.