Padres trade for Craig Kimbrel is FRESH!

Looking around the media and bloggers for reactions, it looks like just about everyone agrees that the trade that brought Craig Kimbrel to San Diego makes the team better.  The question is whether it was worth it to lose Matt Wisler and pick up Melvin Upton's terrible contact.  Me?  I'm all in on this trade.  This team is good enough where they could be one game away from a playoff spot and if Kimbrel brings them that win, then it was worth it.

So far the trade is 75% fresh on the Tomatometer, on par with such classic films as Lone Survivor, Anchorman 2 and Secretary.

After a few more updates, we're at 71% like Napoleon Dynamite and the Footloose remake.

Apologies to RottenTomatoes.com

Atlanta comes out big winners in Kimbrel deal - Keith Law Blog - ESPN
Atlanta clears a lot of money -- one tied up in an asset with no apparent value and one tied up in a high-risk asset -- and gets some young pieces back along the way. The Padres upgrade their ninth inning, but don't address their lack of a true center fielder or lack of even a reasonable facsimile of a shortstop, and take on even more cost.

Padres Keep Building and Borrowing, Add Craig Kimbrel | FanGraphs Baseball
For the Padres, it fits with a lot of the rest of the offseason. Kimbrel isn’t exactly a one-year player, since he could be under contract through 2018, but the team’s paying a high price again, borrowing from future talent and future flexibility to make the 2015 roster stronger. That goal has been met — without question, the Padres have taken another step forward. Now we all just get to find out whether this collection of talent can come together and push for something beyond a 162nd game.

Padres make another big move, add game's best closer in Kimbrel | FOX Sports
I like the trade for the Pads because Kimbrel is by far the best of the seven players in it, and because the team’s postseason chances just got that much better. The move, though, is debatable — highly debatable in many respects.

@JonMorosi
Padres already had a championship-caliber bullpen. Now they have Craig Kimbrel, one of the best closers in the game.  Great trade for Braves. Payroll flexibility and two prospects with upside. So, yes, I am very fond of this trade for both clubs. #Padres #Braves

Opening Day notes: Do Chicago Cubs already have a SS dilemma? - MLB - Buster Olney Blog - ESPN
The consensus within the industry is that the San Diego Padres' trade for Craig Kimbrel is one of those that should be evaluated through the prism of the results, because in the value assessment, it was a wipeout, slam-dunk win for the Atlanta Braves, who shed a lot of money and also got prospects. The Padres have devoted themselves to winning this year, to re-engaging their fans in an exciting product, and if San Diego makes the playoffs, then the expensive deals for Matt Kemp, James Shields and Kimbrel will seem worth it.

Braves, Padres double-down with shocking Kimbrel blockbuster | New York Post
Why did the Padres do it? Because why stop now? New GM A.J. Preller has reenergized a dormant franchise with big moves for Justin Upton, Matt Kemp, Wil Myers, James Shields and others. Now he gets the heir to Mariano Rivera — Kimbrel has a career 1.61 ERA and has at least 42 saves in each of his four full seasons.

Tim Kurkjian
The Padres turned themselves into contenders with all the moves they made in the offseason and today they might have turned themselves into a champion.  They acquired Craig Kimbrel who is arguably the best closer in the game [SNIP] Kimbrel changes everything in that bullpen and they've gone from irrelevant to perhaps incredible if everything works out right.

Aaron Boone
Well already I had the Padres winning the Western Division in the National League and they've only bolstered themselves by adding Craig Kimbrel to a very good bullpen already but now you're able to bump Joaquin Benoit to an 8th inning role where he's spent most of his career and you make now what is a good pen a deeper pen and you've added arguably the best closer in the game.  Great move by A.J. Preller and Mike Dee, they keep pulling it off in San Diego.

@DerekNBCSD
Keep in mind ... Craig Kimbrel will turn 27 years old next month. #Padres got a stud who's JUST ENTERING his prime.

@619Sports
BJ Upton is easily one of the 5 worst players in baseball. Kimbrel is a superstar closer. But I don't think the Padres are much better.

Ho-Hum, Another Preller Blockbuster | Padres Public
It might not be a bad trade-off, considering how much emphasis the Padres have put on turning the 2015 team into a contender. If Kimbrel’s the piece that helps push them into the postseason, it’ll be hard to complain when Wisler’s a cheap, mid-rotation starter in Atlanta, especially if Kimbrel becomes a key cog in a deep October run.

Trade Analysis: Padres Make Move for Today - San Diego - Scout
Once we get the money issues out of the way, and look at it from a baseball perspective, Preller traded a pitcher with the potential to be a number three or four starting pitcher in Wisler for the best closer in the game in Kimbrel. In five years, Kimbrel has thrown 289 innings and struck out 476 batters for a 1.43 ERA. Whatever someone may or may not think of the save statistic, Kimbrel has 186 with only 19 blown saves. I’ve always liked Matt Wisler, but I will take that deal any day of the week.

UPDATE:

Padres make another trade, Braves unload an albatross - Beyond the Box Score
In the end, we have a deal centered around a star, as so many are. Kimbrel will fortify an already-strong Padres bullpen, Paroubeck and Wisler will give Atlanta's beleaguered fan base hope for the years to come, and Upton, Quentin, and Maybin will...exist. The Padres will surely like what Kimbrel brings to their team, and the Braves will definitely love not having Upton on theirs; in that way, I suppose you could call this a win-win.

@SDUTCanepa
I've looked at the Padres-Braves trade from all angles and find it impossible not to like what Preller did.

Padres Acquire Kimbrel, Melvin Upton From Braves – MLB Trade Rumors
On the surface, the trade appears to be a risky one for San Diego. Kimbrel is inarguably a great closer, but it remains to be seen whether he will prove to be worth parting with $56MM, a top prospect in Wisler and two additional prospects in Paroubeck and the draft pick. The Padres also had more pressing needs in their infield, and it’s unclear whether Kimbrel is the right player to get them over the hump.

Turn Off the Hot Stove: What the Last-Minute Craig Kimbrel Deal Means for the Padres and Braves «
And although the Padres lose their top prospect and gain one massive bogey contract, the team wants to win now, and Kimbrel most definitely helps with that. Neither side’s a loser, and on a day like today, that’s how it should be.

A full accounting of the Kimbrel trade? | FOX Sports
But also yeah, Ken’s right: the Padres are paying a steep price. There’s the $53.5 million for three seasons of Craig Kimbrel, who’s great but still ... you know. Sixty-five innings are only so valuable. If he keeps pitching as well as he’s pitched, for all three seasons, you can argue that he’s actually worth $53.5 million. A little more even.