[More Cowbell]

I am going to disagree with everybody else on here who says this was a bad trade. Not saying it was a good trade either, but it could be. My reasons:

1) The Reds had a surplus of outfielders at the major-league level (Griffey, Dunn, Freel, Hopper, Hamilton) and Jay Bruce waiting in the wings. You can't start more than three outfielders, so someone needed to go. Did I want Hamilton to be the one to go? No, but Bruce is a future star, Dunn's got a no-trade clause, and you wouldn't get squat for Grifey or Freel in a trade. So Hamilton was the most marketable guy who wasn't untouchable like Bruce.

2) The Reds always need pitching, and this trade helps them on that front. Ed Volquez was the top pitching prospect in the Rangers' system, which is pretty impressive when you think about it. If he develops into a solid member of the Reds' rotation, this deal looks very good.

My one qualm with this deal is I think the Reds could have gotten more for Hamilton if he had played more than just one injury-plagued season in the majors. Certainly his inability to stay healthy hurt his trade value, and I had hoped the team would wait a year before trading Hamilton in order for him to prove to other teams that he can play an entire year. Of course, if he spent a big chunk of 2008 on the DL his trade value would've really dropped. So maybe we did sell high.

Anyway, I hate to lose him, but if there was any position where we could afford to give up a talent like Josh Hamilton, it was in the outfield. I wish him well in Texas, and hopefully Volquez will be a mainstay of our rotation for years to come!