Beane continues to pile up prospects:
The A's traded outfielder Nick Swisher, a former star with the River Cats, to the Chicago White Sox on Thursday for three top minor-league prospects.
Oakland acquired left-handed pitcher Gio Gonzalez, right-handed pitcher Fautino De Los Santos and outfielder Ryan Sweeney.
Swisher becomes the second major player traded this off-season by the A's, who also dealt star pitcher Dan Haren for number of prospects to the Arizona Diamondbacks last month.
The 27-year-old Swisher hit .262 with 22 home runs and 78 RBIs in 150 games in 2007, his third full season with the A's. He hit 80 home runs, a franchise record for a switch-hitter.
Gonzalez, who pitched for Double-A Birmingham in 2007, was 9-7 and led all minor-league pitchers with 185 strikeouts.
De Los Santos, the South Atlantic League's Most Outstanding Major League Prospect, was a combined 10-5 with a 2.65 ERA for Single-A Kannapolis and Single-A Winston-Salem.
Sweeney, who was named the White Sox No. 1 prospect by Baseball America entering the 2007 season, hit .270 with 10 home runs and 47 RBI in 105 games at Triple-A Charlotte.
MlbTrade Rumors.com's take on the deal:
The White Sox paid a massive price to get their man, however. Pitchers De Los Santos and Gonzalez were their two best prospects, according to Baseball Prospectus' Kevin Goldstein. De Los Santos is said to have a huge ceiling, whereas Gio is a solid lefty who's nearly big-league ready. Goldstein ranked Sweeney eighth on the team, but projects him as more of a fourth-outfielder type (he was once very highly regarded though).
If it wasn't obvious with the Dan Haren trade, the A's are in full-fledged rebuilding mode. Joe Blanton, Huston Street, and Mark Ellis could be next to go.
Originally Posted by BEETTLEBUG
