As Gary Grund reported on Thursday here at Hot Foot, the Philadelphia Phillies acquired right-hander Joe Blanton from the Oakland A’s for three prospects, two of which were in the Phillies’ top five prospects.

Last offseason, while others were wondering aloud why A’s general manager Billy Beane was launching into a fire sale by trading away team stars Nick Swisher and Danny Haren, I added that Blanton would probably soon be added to the list. I then couldn’t believe that Blanton survived the offseason as a member of the Oakland Athletics. In an offseason where pitching was a premium, Blanton’s stock was high. He had finished the last season with a 14-10 record and a 3.95 ERA. Why not sell high on Blanton?

As it turns out, I figure I was half right. Pitching was at a premium during the last offseason, but there were plenty of pitching superstars on the market that overshadowed Blanton, including Haren, Johan Santana, and Erik Bedard. Beane wanted to cash in his chips on Haren and hang on to Blanton and Rich Harden until the trade deadline and the next pitching market.

Holding on to Harden really worked. Harden turned in a healthy first half with impressive numbers (5-1, 2.34 ERA in 12 starts). This raised his stock for the Cubs’ trade. However, Blanton’s pedestrian 2008 had to have lowered his trade value. He’s 5-12 with a 4.96 ERA and a 1.42 WHIP. What could Beane have gotten if he forced a deal with the Reds, whom he was negotiating with for Blanton last offseason? The Reds are a team that debuted a lot of quality talent this season; who knows who would Cincinnati have included? Regardless, Beane still got two top five prospects from the Phillies’ organization, a team desperate for pitching.

When you look at Blanton’s basic stats over his four full seasons, he’s inconsistent with bad seasons in 2006 and 2008 (thus far) and good seasons in 2005 and 2007. He went 12-12 with a 3.53 ERA and 1.22 WHIP in 2005 and 16-12 with a 4.82 ERA and 1.54 WHIP in 2006. The other numbers are above. Chances are, Blanton’s sixteen wins in 2006 were a byproduct of being on one of Beane’s most successful teams to date.

Blanton’s having this inconsistency in a true pitcher’s park. Even Blanton’s good seasons in 2005 and 2007 aren’t mindblowingly impressive, especially considering Blanton’s 2007 had an ERA just a tick below 4. That’s what made him in such prime position for a trade. That sub-4.00 ERA looks good, but a true eye could tell there’s elements of fool’s gold in it. Here’s a stat that makes that 2007 really frightening — Blanton went 7-5 with a 2.69 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, and a .227 BAA in 15 starts at home. Pretty good, right? On the road, he went 7-5 with a 5.11 ERA, 1.43 WHIP, and .304 BAA. Wow. Those are just some tremendously scary splits for anybody with this pitcher.

Grant it, these numbers could be an aberration. His home/road ERA split is just about a run in 2006 and 2008. In 2005, his ERA at home is actually only about 0.40 lower. But man, after seeing those 2007 splits, I am even more surprised that Blanton lasted the offseason.

The Phillies are acquiring Blanton in his worst season yet. While Blanton is better than say, Adam Eaton, the national media seems to treat Blanton and his talent like he’s at least a No. 2 pitcher. Particularly, because he’s been either the No. 2 starter for the Athletics or around the spot for so long with Oakland. Like with Dontrelle Willis and the Marlins, the national media could be in for a wake-up call.

Another problem with the national perception is the idea that whenever a pitcher goes from the American League to the National League, their statistics will improve. This simply isn’t the case in some instances. For example, if Jake Peavy was traded to Boston, his statistics would suffer a bit. Not because he’s moving to the American League but because he’s moving from a pitcher’s park to a hitter’s park. A better gauge for future performance is ballpark. Blanton is moving from the pitcher’s park of Oakland to that bandbox in Philadelphia. Poor performance from Blanton wouldn’t be surprising, and neither would the Athletics ultimately winning this trade.

Oakland has agreed to terms with Frank Thomas , the recently released..err…mutually agreed to deperted…Blue Jay. Oakland only has to pay roughly $330,000, with the rest of his salary being paid in loonies and toonies by the Canadians. Thomas was only hitting .157 for the Blue Jays prior to getting his playing time reduced.

I guess from a financial standpoint, it makes some sense. They pay him basically the league minimum, which is more than they’d have to pay Piazza has they kept him around. And Frank Thomas gets to come back to America, where we put ketchup on our fries instead of gravy (poutine). And Hotfoot wins, because I learned we have an Oakland Athletics tag.  So I guess everyone wins. Except probably Oakland, when they discover Frank Thomas isn’t very good anymore.

The Red Sox and A’s have finished their mini series in Japan, each team won one game.

A short recap of each game:

Game 1-Sox 6 A’s 5

• Manny Ramirez went 3-4 with four Rbis, and was the games MVP
• Huston Street blew the save in the ninth, tossing up a meatball to rookie Brandon Moss who found out he was starting for an injured JD Drew minutes before the game.

Game 2- A’s 5 Sox 1

• Rich Harden went six strong with nine k’s, allowing only a home run to Manny Ramirez.
• Emil Brown hit a three run home run off Jon Lester, leading the A’s to victory.

The AP is reporting that the Oakland A’s have dealt 1B/OF Nick Swisher to the Chicago White Sox for Pitchers Gio Gonzalez, Fautino De Los Santos and OF Ryan Sweeney.

The 27 year old Swisher batted 262, hitting 22 Home Runs and Driving in 78 runs in 150 games this past season.

The East Valley Tribune reports that the Oakland A’s are bringing a group of major league players to the Valley this week for physical evaluations. A’s general manager Billy Beane said the gathering will help shape his plans.

The article also reports that the Arizona Diamondbacks have put an offer on the table for Dan Haren, which includes Carlos Gonzalez, Emilio Bonifacio, and Brett Anderson.

ESPN reports that the A’s still have interest in signing Barry Bonds, despite his legal troubles.

A major league executive told the San Francisco Chronicle that there is “no doubt” that the A’s will sign Barry Bonds.

The A’s have been considered the favorites to sign the free-agent outfielder despite his legal troubles and potential public-relations issues.

“I’d be shocked if it didn’t happen,” the executive told the Chronicle.

I’ll believe it when I see it. I mean he could be tied up in court for the next few months, I don’t see how you can make a commitment while thats going on.

Over at MLB Trade Rumors, the following trade has been rumored according to “a trusted New York sportswriter.”

Mets send Jose Reyes, Kevin Mulvey, and Hector Pellot to A’s
A’s send Bobby Crosby and Dan Johnson to Mets
A’s send Dan Haren to Twins
Twins send Johan Santana to Mets

Mets get Johan Santana, Bobby Crosby and Dan Johnson
A’s get Jose Reyes and Kevin Mulvey
Twins get Dan Haren and Hector Pellot

Wow, I mean, I dont even know where to start with this one. I can see both the A’s and Twins saying yes, but I have a hard time seeing the Mets pulling the trigger.

Relaying information from Michael Silverman, the Boston Herald is reporting that the Diamondbacks and Athletics have had constructive talks about a deal that would send Dan Haren to Arizona and Conor Jackson, Carlos Gonzalez and two other players to Oakland.

Joel Sherman at the New York Post writes that the Mets do not have the chips to get Dan Haren, as Billy Beane sees his value equal to that of Johan Santana, considering he will be under the team’s control who he is traded to for the next three years for under $20 million. Sherman says Mike Pelfrey, Phil Humber, and Kevin Mulvey.

Beane is looking for young pitching in return. In a deal with the Yankees, he is not interested in Melky Cabrera. He wants a package starting with Phil Hughes and one of Ian Kennedy or Alan Horne.

The Dodgers have more to offer in terms of young pitching than the Yankees, Mets or Diamondbacks. In terms of Joe Blanton, Beane views him as equal in value to Brad Penny.