Detroit Tigers: Three Winners From Cameron Maybin Trade

Winner #3 Al Avila

Al Avila didn’t wait long to make his first trade of the offseason in bringing in Alcantara from the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

While the Halos haven’t been the gold standard of farm systems in the past, Avila did extremely well to nab arguably Anaheim’s best pitching prospects in exchange for one year of Maybin.

The reality was that with Jones having already forced his way onto the Major League roster and Derek Hill a few years away, Maybin wasn’t the best long-term fit in Detroit.

Dealing the center fielder allowed Avila to bring in a potential long-term piece in the bullpen who could eventually develop into a late-inning arm.

Alcantara isn’t perfect on the mound, but his fastball-slider combination could be extremely effective in relief.

Additionally, Avila did all this while managing to shed significant salary. Per Spotrac, Maybin had a $9 million option on his contract for next season.

With the outfielder now in Anaheim, Detroit has one less expensive contract to worry about.

Next: More on Maybin Trade to Angels

Maybin likely won’t be the only player traded by Avila this offseason. However, the general manager comes away a winner in this deal considering he was able to obtain a high-upside prospect for a potential rental.