MLB trade grades: How experts rated A's Erceg, Blackburn deals

The Athletics, who are 8-3 in their last 11 games, made two big moves surrounding their pitching staff at the 2024 MLB trade deadline.

First, Oakland traded star right-handed setup man Lucas Erceg to the Kansas City Royals for outfielder Jared Dickey and fellow right-handed pitchers Mason Barnett and Will Klein.

The A’s soon after moved right-handed starter Paul Blackburn to the New York Mets in exchange for another right-handed pitcher in Kade Morris.

After general manager David Forst insisted that the 45-64 Oakland would not be sellers at the deadline, the A’s moved two better pitchers and prized Bay Area natives for unproven prospects. 

The belief for Forst and Co., at least, is that the A’s will develop their newly acquired assets before the team moves to Sacramento and then Las Vegas.

Here's how MLB experts graded Oakland’s deadline deals:

The Athletic

“The A’s traded for three solid pitching prospects, which was the right decision given where they are in the standings and as an organization,” Jim Bowden wrote.

“However, I thought they could have pushed more to trade their best power hitter, Brent Rooker, in a market where so many contending teams were looking for a middle-of-the-order power bat.”

Grade for all A’s deadline trades: B-

Bleacher Report

Erceg trade:

“Erceg is a very good, even borderline elite reliever with five more seasons standing between him and free agency, so it's disappointing that this is the best the A's could do,” Zachary Rymer wrote.

“Barnett was one of Kansas City's 10 best prospects, but the caveat is that they have one of the worst farm systems in MLB. He's also regressed quite a bit from a breakout 2023 season, going from a 3.30 ERA to a 4.91 ERA with a home run rate twice as high. 

“Klein's fastball is legit, but his 34 appearances for Triple-A Omaha come with only 38 strikeouts and 27 walks. Even as relief prospects go, he's iffy.”

Grade for A’s: D
Grade for Royals: A

Blackburn trade:

“Blackburn only made one start for the A's after coming off a long stint on the IL with a foot injury, so it's a small miracle that they were able to get anything for him,” Rymer added.

“And in this case, Morris is an actual prospect who had been ranked as the No. 25 talent in the Mets' system by MLB.com. The 22-year-old doesn't have any standout tools, but he has a 3.51 ERA and has struck out a little better than a batter per inning in the low minors this year. He projects as a back-end starter.

Grade for A’s: B
Grade for Mets: B

The Sporting News

Erceg trade:

“To this point, though, Erceg hasn't proven to be a shut-down reliever, which might make this package a bit more valuable than Kansas City would like,” Dan Treacy wrote.

“Oakland did well to land Barnett, who has had an up-and-down year in the minors but only allowed five home runs in 114.2 innings last season. Klein could be an MLB-ready reliever, while Dickey is more of a lottery ticket after he was drafted last year. The A's aren't in a position to be worrying about success right now, and these three offer more upside than Erceg long-term.”

Grade for A’s: A-
Grade for Royals: B-

Blackburn trade:

“The A's would have possibly liked to trade Blackburn earlier, in hindsight, before more injuries affected him, but Morris is a promising arm with a 3.51 ERA and 1.21 WHIP at the lower levels of the minors after being drafted last season,” Treacy added,

Grade for A’s: A-
Grade for Mets: B

SBNation

“Barnett is a very nice prospect with a wide repertoire, and it would not be out of the realm of possibility to see the 2022 Auburn product in the A’s rotation by season’s end,” Andrew Mearns wrote. “Klein should be a steady big-league reliever, too. But like the Halos, the A’s had other pieces to deal, and aside from Erceg, the only other trade was Paul Blackburn-for-Kade Morris.

“Whatever. Brent Rooker is simultaneously a terrific guy in the clubhouse and should no longer be with the A’s. Is the 29-year-old really going to be on the next good A’s team, whenever (and wherever) that might be? Doubtful.”

Grade for all A’s deadline trades: C-

FanSided

Erceg trade:

“As annoying as it is for A's fans, Oakland made the right move here to sell high on Erceg while he has tons of club control,” Zachary Rotman wrote. “The team won't be winning much anytime soon, so they might as well capitalize on his value now, and recoup assets that can help them win in the future.

“Barnett has a relatively high ceiling as a hard-throwing starter with good strikeout numbers, Klein can step into their bullpen right now and comes with a ton of club control, and Dickey might find his way onto Oakland's top 30 list.”

Grade for A’s: B
Grade for Royals: A-