Last off-season, the Pittsburgh Pirates made a trade with the Cleveland Indians that didn’t seem very significant for either teams. The Pirates sent farmhands Jordan Luplow and Max Moroff to Cleveland in exchange for utility man Erik Gonzalez and pitching prospects Dante Mendoza and Tahnaj Thomas.
Not only has the trade proved to be very productive for the Indians, as Luplow hit for a .923 OPS and 136 OPS+ in 261 plate appearances last season, but Thomas has risen to become one of the Pirates’ best pitching prospects.