Colorado Rockies: Looking back on the Corey Dickerson trade

The Throw-Ins

And then there’s the matter of those minor leaguers. Colorado sent third base prospect Kevin Padlo to Tampa Bay in exchange for a raw pitcher named German Marquez. In 2017, Padlo posted a .223/.324/.391 slash line for Tampa Bay’s High-A team, while Marquez just finished up a stellar rookie year for the Rockies. While his 4.39 ERA in 162 innings might not leap off the page at you, when put through the Coors filter, it’s actually pretty darn impressive. His ERA+, which takes his demanding home environment into account, was a robust 113 with a very solid 3/1 strikeout-to-walk ratio.

Since leaving the Rockies, Dickerson has done what he’s always done: hit. He had a solid 2016 with the bat, hitting 24 homers and posting a 106 OPS+ before busting out in 2017 with 27 homers, an OPS+ of 121, and his first All-Star game invitation. Despite his usual porous defense, Dickerson accumulated 4.2 total WAR with Tampa Bay before being unceremoniously DFA’d this offseason and shipped to Pittsburgh in a cost-saving move for the rebuilding franchise.

Marquez and McGee combined for 5.0 WAR in the two years since the trade, and both of them are still with the team. Marquez won’t be a free agent until 2023 and is only making $550,000 this season, so there’s no telling what his final WAR with the team will be, but it’s sure to be higher than the 3.6 WAR that he’s accumulated so far.