Victor Who? Say Hello to Adrian Gonzalez

            I wrote last week about how Red Sox fans wouldn’t remember Victor Martinez in six months. I’d like to go back in time and rename that column “We Won’t Remember Victor Martinez in 10 Days.”

            Boston and San Diego have agreed in principle to a deal that will send All-Star 1^st Basemen Adrian Gonzalez to Boston in exchange for three minor league prospects. The prospects are pitcher Casey Kelly (ranked the top Red Sox prospect by Baseball America), 1B Anthony Rizzo (ranked 3^rd), and outfielder Reymond Fuentes (ranked 6^th).

            Gonzalez hasn’t gotten nearly enough credit nationally, but he will now. In five seasons for the Padres, he had four 30-homer seasons, three 100+-RBI seasons, and two Gold Glove awards. 30 home runs may not sound like a lot, but considering we are in the post-steroids era, and he played half of his games in San Diego (the hardest park to hit a ball out of due to the vast size of it), it’s quite a feat. The Padres’ lineup wasn’t exactly the 1927 Yankees either, leading to Gonzalez having the second most intentional walks in baseball last season. Gonzalez will have much better protection next season. In fact, let’s assume that the Red Sox are able to sign Carl Crawford. This would create a top-5 batting order that could look like this.

1. Carl Crawford, LF
2. Dustin Pedroia, 2B
3. Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
4. Kevin Youkilis, 3B
5. David Ortiz, DH

             This group should be even more dynamic than the Red Sox World Series teams in 2004 and 2007. Keep in mind that they still have Jacoby Ellsbury on the roster (assuming he’s finally recovered from his broken ribs), although he’ll probably get shipped out if they land Crawford. J.D. Drew and his slowly decaying corpse will also be manning right field, although having him hit in the bottom third of the lineup isn’t a bad thing. Boston has tremendous flexibility going forward, and plenty of trade assets to play with. Ortiz’s contract expires after this season, giving them financial flexibility going into 2012. As bleak as things looked watching Bill Hall get everyday at-bats last year, it will be fun again to watch the Red Sox.

             The price that the Sox had to pay to pick up Gonzalez is amazing. They did not have to part with anyone on their Major League roster. Sure, they gave up three highly rated prospects, but I’d rather give up a few players that could be good for a guy who is already great. Gonzalez is only 28 years old, and will be a staple in the Red Sox lineup for years to come. Kudos to Theo Epstein for pulling off this trade without having to part with someone like Ellsbury.

(READER ALERT: WRITER IS GOING TO TALK ABOUT FANTASY BASEBALL FOR A PARAGRAPH. IF YOU THINK FANTASY BASEBALL IS ONLY FOR DORKS, MOVE ON TO ANOTHER WEB PAGE).

            What does this trade do to Adrian Gonzalez’s fantasy value? Easy answer…a lot. Last season, he was generally a 3^rd round pick. On a potent Red Sox team, he at least has moved up into Mark Teixeira territory (end of the first round, start of the second, depending on if you’re in a 10 or 12 team league). He will be overvalued in any league involving a significant amount of Red Sox fans, but I would not argue with anyone that took him 7^th overall or later.