The Cubs were looking to rid themselves of a clubhouse problem. The Padres were waiting with open arms. As Dex pointed out on Gaslamp Ball, the consensus from Bleed Cubbie Blue was that the Cubs were dumping Barrett in an addition by subtraction move. They may have improved clubhouse chemistry with the move, but they also improved the best team in the NL at the same time. Credit Kevin Towers, who has already built a heck of a club, for pulling off a deal without giving up much. Michael Barrett is one of the better hitting catchers in the league. Now he's joining a team that hadn't received much offense from the catcher position between Josh Bard and Rob Bowen. Assuming Barrett can get along with the Padres staff, this is a steal by Towers. Besides, when you break down Barrett's recent run-ins, one was with A.J. Pierzynski who isn't the most popular player in the bigs, and the other was with Carlos Zambrano, who was about to use his belt in a fight. Bottom line: I highly doubt Bowen or Burke ever become productive players for the Cubs. I'm certain that Barrett will outproduce both of them combined. The Padres easily won this trade.
Previously at FanHouse:
Report: Michael Barrett Traded to Padres
