"He knows all my tricks, and I know his," Epstein said last week. "It makes it easier to have discussions because the relationship is so good. But ultimately, it can be harder to make a deal because I think the way we’ve come to value players is pretty similar. When you value players the same way, sometimes it’s hard to make a deal than with an organization that emphasizes different attributes of players. If you have different evaluations, you can get a deal done quicker."