This is a tough topic for me to discuss because as a fan of the team involved, I didn’t like the trade at all.  By trading Yoenis Cespedes they not only gave up a fan favorite, they gave up a guy who was a key in bringing the Oakland Athletics back to the postseason.  Another thing the team loses with Cespedes gone is a presence in the middle of the lineup that changes the way opposing pitchers pitch to the other batters in the middle of the order.  Billy Beane waved the white flag on trying to negotiate an extension with the two time Home Run Derby Champion a year before he had to. 

All of these things are reasons I don’t like the trade as a fan of Cespedes.  When I remove my bias from the situation and look at this trade through Billy Beane’s eyes, I understand why the move was made, and moreover, I see that it was the right decision.

Cespedes has not been consistent in the last season and a half, making his value shaky.  Right at the trade deadline he was coming off of his first All-Star appearance, his second Home Run Derby win, and that put his popularity at an all-time high.  He was red-hot coming out of the break.  His value was the highest it may ever be, and because of that Beane was able to get two players who normally would have cost him a load of prospects for this one player.

In Jon Lester, Beane got what he believes the team will need once the playoffs come around, a battle tested starting pitcher.  In Jonny Gomes they got a clubhouse leader who is like a second manager on the team and may be able to help turn the struggling bats around.  The Gomes Factor, as I like to call it, is debatable if it really has an impact, but there is no debating that an experienced starting pitcher in the playoffs is what the team needs if they are going to make it out of the first round of the playoffs.

For the last two seasons the Athletics have been bounced in the first round and had a rookie starting pitcher start two of the five games.  With Lester in the rotation, he will likely be the guy that starts two games if the series goes five games.  When you look at his playoff numbers, he gives the Athletics the edge in those games no matter who he is up against.

The time is now for the Athletics, and by making this trade Beane not only went all-in on this season, but he didn’t have to mortgage any more of the future stars to do so.  If they don’t make it to the World Series, this trade obviously doesn’t look as good, but it was absolutely the right decision.