SAN DIEGO -- By no means was Kevin Towers an inexperienced general manager at the time he dealt a Minor League infielder by the name of David Freese to the Cardinals for veteran center fielder Jim Edmonds.
Truth be told, Towers was well into his long tenure (1995-2009) with the Padres when he shipped Freese, who had yet to play above Class A Advanced, to acquire Edmonds in December of 2007.
"I would say the one that didn't turn out well -- and the one I learned the most from -- was the Edmonds-for-Freese deal," Towers said recently.