By Jim Callis
December 15, 2002

Athletics general manager Billy Beane had pursued Erubiel Durazo for more than a year. Determined to get his man, he engineered a four-team trade to do it, breaking nearly three days of inactivity at the Winter Meetings. Oakland landed Durazo from the Diamondbacks in exchange for a player to be named later; Arizona got Elmer Dessens from the Reds; Cincinnati received Felipe Lopez from the Blue Jays; and Toronto wound up with the player to be named, whom Baseball America has learned is Double-A righthander Jason Arnold. The A's, Blue Jays and Reds each sent $333,333 to the Diamondbacks as well.

Durazo, 28, put up tantalizing numbers during his four seasons in Arizona, hitting .278-47-149 in 287 games with a .390 on-base percentage and a .528 slugging percentage. Yet the Diamondbacks deemed him expendable for several reasons. They have prospect Lyle Overbay ready to take over at first base, Durazo never could shake his history of injuries (six trips to the disabled list) or struggles against lefthanders (.206 lifetime), and he refused to play the outfield during their Division Series loss to the Cardinals. Nevertheless, his ability to mash and draw walks will fit in perfectly with the A's. He batted .261-16-48 in 76 games this year, when he missed time with wrist and oblique injuries. Durazo is slow and a poor defensive player.

Dessens, whose age recently was revised upward a year to 31, will become Arizona's No. 3 starter. He went 7-8 and led the Reds with a 3.03 ERA this year, but they wanted no part of going to arbitration with him. Though he doesn't miss many bats (93 strikeouts in 178 innings), he has been Cincinnati's most consistent starter over the last three years. Dessens doesn't have a true out pitch, relying instead on his cutter and sinker to induce groundballs. He has gone 30-35, 4.29 in 165 games over six big league seasons.

Lopez, 22, once projected as Toronto's shortstop of the future but lost his job to Chris Woodward in 2002. Lopez hit just .227-8-34 in 85 games this year and has batted .240-13-57 in 134 games over two seasons, but he has the tools to be a more dynamic offensive player than that. He has raw power and speed, though he needs to learn more about plate discipline (90 strikeouts, 23 walks in 2002) and basestealing. He has a cannon for an arm and can be a solid shortstop unless he outgrows the position. The eighth overall selection in the 1998 draft, Lopez could start at second base for the Reds in 2003 and eventually replace future Hall of Famer Barry Larkin at short.

Arnold, 23, already was involved in a huge, complicated deal this year, going from New York to Oakland in July in a three-team trade that netted the Yankees Jeff Weaver from Detroit. A second-round pick out of Central Florida in 2001, Arnold has gone 20-6 and reached Double-A in 1 1/2 years as a pro. He possesses superior game sense and instinctively knows how to vary his pitching patterns to set up hitters. In addition to his effective 88-91 mph fastball, he throws two different palmballs that serve as changeups. One floats and the other dives, and Arnold will throw them at any time in the count. His slider is too flat and needs refinement. Some scouts believe he projects more as a reliever than a starter, though he has excelled in the latter role. Arnold went 13-4, 2.61 in 26 starts between high Class A and Double-A this year, with 154 strikeouts and 51 walks in 155 innings. Opponents batted just .218 against him.

Dec. 16 update: Arnold was confirmed as the player to be named.