I have a number of rather unpopular opinions. One is that a really good way to accurately assess a trade is to honestly assess it as completely and accurately as possible from the start. Assess what the team should realistically expect from who they have acquired. If a team adds a perceived non-entity, and that player ends up reaching MLB, congratulations on that. However, expectations ought to be considered important. Assess the trade early and somewhat often, seeing if the assumptions made were accurate. If a player expected (by virtually everyone) to be a useful piece tumbles precipitously, the trade may have made sense, but didn’t work out.
A look at the Joc Pederson trade in the context of other Cubs deals
