Rays-Pirates Chris Archer Trade Looks So Lopsided Now You'd Assume Marlins Were Involved

When the Pittsburgh Pirates traded for Chris Archer at the deadline last year, they paid the Tampa Bay Rays a king's ransom that included both Tyler Glasnow and Austin Meadows.

To say now that the deal was lopsided would be the understatement of the year.

In fact, things have gone so horribly wrong that the prospects-for-veteran swap almost looks like the Marlins and their terrible decision-making process were somehow involved.

Glasnow, 25 years old, is a blossiming young starter with a 1.86 ERA and 56 strikeouts in eight starts this year. Meadows, who's just 24, is slashing .360/.427/.721, and his 204 wRC+ is the highest of any AL hitter with a minimum of 90 plate appearances.

And what did the Pirates get in return for such riches? A starter on the wrong side of 30 who has given them a mediocre 4.31 ERA in 15 starts.

Few trades in recent memory compare to how catastrophically bad this one is. The Rays outright robbed the Pirates to the point where I feel genuine pity for the Pittsburgh faithful.

The trade has all the hallmarks of the repeated mistakes that the Marlins have made in recent years: young, promising stars dealt away for aging veterans in a desperate but fruitless attempt to make the postseason.

It's honestly pathetic. How the front office in Pittsburgh could have been so shortsighted is beyond me.

Hopefully such a one-sided deal forces owner Robert Nutting to fire general manager Neal Huntington.

Otherwise, the Pirates are destined to follow down the dark path that the Marlins forged.