Breaking News: Rays Trade David Price To Tigers in 3-Team Trade

It’s overwhelming. There is no other way to describe it. Whether you were rooting for David Price to be traded or not, it is extremely hard to grasp that he is actually gone. The Tampa Bay Rays have traded David Price to the Detroit Tigers as part of a three-team deal with the Seattle Mariners. All the people who confirmed that are listed here. Here is what we know about the trade so far: the Rays will receive Nick Franklin and Drew Smyly, the Tigers will receive Price, and the Mariners will receive Austin Jackson. There are presumably more pieces involved as well.

For now, we can say that Franklin gives the Rays exactly the type of player they love. He combines versatility with impressive power, and he could be the heir apparent to Ben Zobrist as both the Rays’ second baseman of the future and super-utility man. Smyly, meanwhile, is no Price, but he has been an impressive pitcher for Detroit the last three seasons and has a nice three-pitch arsenal of a low-90’s fastball, a curveball, and a cutter. Both players have the ability to help the Rays immediately–they are not calling it quits yet in the AL East even without David Price. We’ll talk about the rest of the players the Rays receive as they become known.

Update (4:27 PM): The Rays are also getting shortstop prospect Willy Adames from Detroit. 18 years old yet already at the Low-A level, Adames has seen his stock as a prospect explode thanks to improved strength and mechanics in his swing.