Special_K19
02-03-2005, 11:14 AM
Smith was wasting a roster spot in AA. He went from top prospect to perenial AA. He's only 22, but he's never lived up to his hype. Sounds like this Gautreau kid is the same way.
2/02/2005 2:22 PM ET
Tribe gets Gautreau from Padres
Indians give up Smith in trade of former No. 1 picks
By Justice B. Hill / MLB.com
CLEVELAND -- The Indians cut their ties with former No. 1 pick Corey Smith when they traded him Wednesday to the Padres for infielder Jake Gautreau.
Smith had been in limbo since the Indians dropped him from their 40-man roster to sign infielder Alex Cora, a free agent. They had to either release or trade Smith, and the Tribe worked out a deal with the Padres.
In Gautreau, the Indians acquire a player who split the 2004 season between Double-A Mobile (66 games) and Triple-A Portland (48 games). He batted a combined .266 with 19 homers and 65 RBIs.
Like Smith, the 25-year-old Gautreau was a former No. 1 pick, as the Padres took him 14th overall in the 2001 draft. He played at Tulane University, where he was the National Collegiate Baseball Writer's Association Player of the Year and was named first-team All-American by Baseball America, USA Today's Baseball Weekly and Collegiate Baseball in 2001.
The Tribe signed Smith out of high school in 2000, but he never lived up to the promise the club thought he had.
In 2004, Smith, a 22-year-old third baseman, spent the majority of the season at Double-A Akron. He batted .249 with 19 homers and 66 RBIs in 128 games for the Aeros.
Justice B. Hill is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
2/02/2005 2:22 PM ET
Tribe gets Gautreau from Padres
Indians give up Smith in trade of former No. 1 picks
By Justice B. Hill / MLB.com
CLEVELAND -- The Indians cut their ties with former No. 1 pick Corey Smith when they traded him Wednesday to the Padres for infielder Jake Gautreau.
Smith had been in limbo since the Indians dropped him from their 40-man roster to sign infielder Alex Cora, a free agent. They had to either release or trade Smith, and the Tribe worked out a deal with the Padres.
In Gautreau, the Indians acquire a player who split the 2004 season between Double-A Mobile (66 games) and Triple-A Portland (48 games). He batted a combined .266 with 19 homers and 65 RBIs.
Like Smith, the 25-year-old Gautreau was a former No. 1 pick, as the Padres took him 14th overall in the 2001 draft. He played at Tulane University, where he was the National Collegiate Baseball Writer's Association Player of the Year and was named first-team All-American by Baseball America, USA Today's Baseball Weekly and Collegiate Baseball in 2001.
The Tribe signed Smith out of high school in 2000, but he never lived up to the promise the club thought he had.
In 2004, Smith, a 22-year-old third baseman, spent the majority of the season at Double-A Akron. He batted .249 with 19 homers and 66 RBIs in 128 games for the Aeros.
Justice B. Hill is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.