SB Nation

The first Justin Upton trade, two years later

Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

Where are the five players the Braves sent to Arizona for Justin Upton and Chris Johnson?

Two years ago Saturday, the Braves and Diamondbacks pulled off a seven-player blockbuster deal that sent Justin Upton and Chris Johnson to Atlanta for Martin Prado, Randall Delgado, Zeke Spruill, Nick Ahmed, and Brandon Drury. Time flies, doesn't it?

Where are those players now and who came out on top in the trade? Let's take a look:

Justin Upton

Upton had two very good seasons in Atlanta before being traded to the Padres. He was a .267/.348/.478 hitter with a 131 wRC+, 56 homers, 172 RBI and 7.0 WAR. I have many memories from Justin's time in Atlanta; I'm not sure I've ever seen a player as locked in as he was in April 2013. It was a legitimate disappointment any time he didn't homer (or at least come close), and it was awesome.

As we all know, the Braves dealt Upton to San Diego last month in exchange for four prospects. We all know the ins-and-out of the Good Upton so let's focus on the other guys in this deal.

Chris Johnson

Considering most thought of Johnson as a throw-in on the deal, he's been pretty decent, all things considered. The contract extension Frank Wren handed him last year doesn't look good right now, but we're evaluating the trade itself today.

Johnson batted .290/.324/.406 during his first 295 games in Atlanta. He figures to be the starter in Atlanta for at least another year.

Martin Prado

Prado got a four-year, $40 million extension shortly after being traded. He really struggled in the first half of 2013 with the Diamondbacks, though he rebounded nicely and turned out a decent season with a 2.4 WAR and a .282/.333/.417 line.

Prado was traded to the Yankees last summer and was then flipped to the Marlins in December for Nathan Eovaldi. Considering Prado was one of the bigger pieces the Diamondbacks got in return, it's fair to say Kevin Towers would like a do-over on this one. As was said many times at the time of the trade, any time you can get a Justin Upton for a Martin Prado, you do it.

Randall Delgado

Once considered one of the four untouchables in the Braves' farm system, Delgado has struggled quite a bit since coming to the desert. He's made 67 appearances (23 starts) the last two years with a 4.50 ERA and 4.35 FIP over 194 innings. His strikeout and walk numbers are decent, but he's gotten killed by home runs in homer-friendly Chase Field.

Delgado will be 25 next month, and while there's still time for him to figure things out, he's running out of time and options to be anything more than a back-end starter or a bullpen arm.

Nick Ahmed

Ahmed continues to be a solid defender but the bat probably isn't going to come around enough for him to be a regular starter in the big leagues. At best he's a solid utility player off the bench, at worst he gets stuck in Four-A purgatory and bounces around the next few seasons. He's spent the last two years mostly in the minors and will compete for a big league roster spot this spring.

Zeke Spruill

Two relatively unimpressive years with the Diamondbacks and was traded to the Red Sox last month. A dime-a-dozen guy who could serve as an early-inning reliever if he can earn a roster spot in Boston.

Brandon Drury

The Braves got two very good years out of Upton and flipped him for a handful of promising prospects. Johnson, contract extension notwithstanding, has been decent over two years at third base.

Prado didn't pan out as an everyday third baseman for the Diamondbacks. Spruill and Ahmed are unlikely to ever do much, and Delgado, at best, is a decent No. 3 starter who will hit arbitration in a couple years.

Drury is the wildcard in all of this. He was ranked this offseason as the 4th best prospect in the Diamondbacks' system by FanGraphs after hitting 23 homers between High-A and Double-A last year as a 21-year-old 3rd baseman turned 2nd baseman. Here's a snippet from FanGraphs' write up on him.

Drury could be an above average everyday player if everything comes together and especially if he can play a passable second base. The big leagues are littered with everyday players that are average tools/big playability types that weren't high draft picks or hyped prospects. Drury will be in the upper levels next year with a chance for a late-season call-up.

In conclusion

The Braves have to be thrilled with this trade, and if Max Fried and any of the other prospects they received from San Diego turn out to be decent, the trade will be that much better.

Losing Drury could sting a bit in the long run, but he's far from a sure thing. And short of Delgado suddenly turning into the front-end starter most thought he could be coming through the system, the Braves really didn't lose much. The trade looked to be a win two years ago, and it continues to look like a win now.

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