Houston Astros General Manager Jeff Luhnow pulled the trigger on a trade that sent shortstop Jed Lowrie to Oakland along with reliever Fernando Rodriguez to acquire first baseman Chris Carter, right-handed starting pitcher Brad Peacock and catcher Max Stassi. Lowrie appeared in 97 games for the Astros in 2012 and hit .244 with 16 home runs and 42 RBI. Rodriguez was 2-10 in Houston last season in 71 appearances out of the bullpen with a 5.37 ERA.
Two weeks ago Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reported that the A’s were interested in Lowrie, even after signing Japanese shortstop Hiroyuki Nakajima, but the Astros‘ asking price for the shortstop was too high. Houston had interest in Carter and the deal was completed.
“This trade gives us power, pitching and catching,” Astros GM Jeff Luhnow said. “Three valuable commodities that will help improve our organization.”
Peacock posted a 12-9 record in 28 appearances (25 starts) at Triple A Sacramento in 2012 with 139 strikeouts in 134.2 innings of work. Peacock was acquired by the A’s as part of the deal that sent left-handed pitcher Gio Gonzalez to the Washington Nationals and ranked number seven on the Baseball News Source Oakland A’s Top 10 Prospects list heading into 2013.
Stassi hit .268 with 15 home runs and 45 RBI in 84 games at Single-A Stockton in 2012. In 2010, he was named as the Best Defensive Catcher in the A’s organization by Baseball America.
