By Jim Callis
August 26, 2003

A trade that has been discussed for weeks finally came to fruition on Tuesday. The Padres brought San Diego native Brian Giles home by sending Oliver Perez, Triple-A outfielder Jason Bay and a player to be named later to the Pirates. It has been widely reported that the third player going to Pittsburgh is Double-A lefthander Cory Stewart.

The Pirates are trying to unload as much salary as possible, so they were willing to trade Giles even though he was by far their best player and is very reasonably priced. In the midst of a six-year, $45 million contract he signed in 2000, Giles makes $8.5 million in 2003 and will drop to $7 million in both 2004 and 2005. Pittsburgh originally tried to dump Jason Kendall's albatross of a contract (which has four years and $42 million remaining after 2003) in the Giles deal, which is why it took so long to hammer out.

Giles, 32, is a two-time All-Star and one of the most dangerous hitters in baseball. He hits for average, hits for power, draws a healthy amount of walks and makes consistent contact. His .951 on-base plus slugging percentage ranks sixth in the National League despite being his lowest figure since he became a full-time player in 1999. He's hitting .299-16-70 in 105 games, having missed four weeks early this season with a sprained right knee. Primarily a left fielder, Giles also has enough speed and arm strength to play in center and right when needed. His career totals are .302-204-663 with a .418 on-base percentage and .565 slugging percentage in 1,014 games.

Perez, a 22-year-old lefthander, made his major league debut last year at age 20. He hasn't been quite as effective this year, and earned a six-week demotion to Triple-A. But he still has flashed a mid-90s fastball at times, and his slider is also a plus pitch when he throws it for strikes. In 19 starts this year, Perez has gone 4-7, 5.38 with a 117-65 strikeout-walk ratio in 104 innings. Opponents are batting .258 with 20 homers against him. For his career, he has an 8-12, 4.51 record in 35 appearances. He won't be eligible for arbitration until after the 2005 season.

A 22nd-round pick out of Gonzaga in 2000, Bay won the low Class A Midwest League batting title with a .362 average in 2001, but was old for the league at 22 and his prospect status was only lukewarm. His stock has continued to rise over the last two years, however, and at the time of the trade he was one of the Padres' five best prospects. Now 24, Bay has solid tools and instincts across the board. He hits for average and some power, draws walks, runs well and is a high-percentage basestealer. He even plays a solid outfield and has a right-field arm. In 91 games at Portland, Bay hit .303-20-59 in 91 games with a .410 on-base percentage, .541 slugging percentage and 23 steals in 27 attempts. Promoted to San Diego in late May to sub for an injured Mark Kotsay, Bay went 2-for-8 in three games before Elmer Dessens broke his right wrist with a pitch, sidelining him for six weeks.

Stewart, 23, also overcame humble beginnings to become one of San Diego's top prospects. Coming out of a Texas high school in 1998, he was considered a top draft prospect but dropped to the 27th round because of signability concerns. He signed with the Reds, but hurt his shoulder, missed 2000 and got released. The Padres signed him after he spent 2001 in the independent Texas-Louisiana League, and he has had nothing but success ever since. This year at Mobile, he has gone 12-7, 3.72 in 24 starts. He has a 133-50 K-BB ratio and .222 opponent average with 10 homers in 126 innings. Stewart generated tremendous life on a 88-94 mph fastball and backs it up with a solid curveball.

Oct. 2 update: As expected, the deal was completed with the Padres sending Stewart to the Pirates.