Kansas City Royals Trade Mark Teahen To Chicago White Sox

It only took a couple of hours until after the World Series ended to get the hot stove cooking.

Today, the Kansas City Royals traded 3B/OF Mark Teahen to the Chicago White Sox for 2B Chris Getz and 3B Josh Fields.

I don’t get this trade for either team. First, let’s start with the White Sox.

While I give White Sox GM Kenny Williams credit for being one of the few general managers in today’s economic climate who is willing to take on salary, sometimes I question what he is thinking.

If you are going to take on salary, the juice better be worth the squeeze. With Teahen, who will earn probably around $4.5-$5 million in 2010 (he is a second-year arbitration eligible player), I am not sure he is.

Teahen enjoyed his best year in the majors in 2006. The former first round pick out of William & Mary hit .290/.357/.517 with 18 home runs and 10 stolen bases in just 109 games. After that season, I really thought the Royals had something in Teahen.

Since that season he has been extremely mediocre with the Royals. He has never even come close to duplicating his 2006 season and for his career he is a .269/.331./.419 hitter.

I always viewed Teahen as a guy who could be a good piece/role player on a championship team. As the Royals found out, Teahen is not a star player in this league.

I have no idea how Teahen fits on the White Sox. The White Sox need a third baseman, but Teahen is a terrible defensive fielding third baseman. I am guessing he is going to be playing the outfield.

If that’s the case, the White Sox, in this down economy could have gotten a better option than Teahan to play the outfield for roughly $5 million.

As for the Royals, don’t they have enough DH-type players on their roster? Didn’t they learn their lesson last year when they traded for Mike Jacobs?

That is what the Royals got with Fields—a DH. Fields was supposed to be the heir apparent to Joe Crede in Chicago, but it never happened. After Fields hit 23 home runs in 2007 in just 100 games, I thought the White Sox had a bopper on their hands.

Not so much.

Since 2007, Fields has fallen flat on his face. He has battled injuries and has never really lived up to his promise that made him the second best prospect in the White Sox system according to Baseball America in 2007.

Fields doesn’t have a position on the Royals except for DH. The Royals have Alex Gordon at third and Billy Butler at first. And if Fields is the DH, does that mean Kila Kaaihue will never get a shot with the Royals?

I don’t get it. Kaaihue is the only player in the Royals organization who understands the meaning of a walk (206 the last two years in the minors) and he can’t see the light of day in the majors.

Getz hit .261/.324/.347 with 25 SB’s in 100 games as a 26-year-old rookie last year with the White Sox. The Royals already have a 26-year old second baseman named Alberto Callaspo.

Callaspo hit .300/.356/.457 last year and had 173 hits. It looks like Getz will be just a role player with the Royals.

The Royals can shed all the salary they want, but if you are going to shed salary, then you have to get players back who fill a need or needs.

Fields and Getz don’t fill any needs.

Essentially what the Royals did was trade a mediocre player for two mediocre players to back up the mediocre players they already have.

That’s called spinning your wheels.