A’s Trade Ellis to Rockies
By Editorial Staff
Let the trades begin!
The first real action of the approaching deadline took place today, with the A’s sending second baseman Mark Ellis and cash to the Rockies for reliever Bruce Billings and a player to be named later.
Over his 9 major league seasons, Ellis had only ever suited up for the Athletics. As a minor leaguer he was shipped to Oakland from Kansas City along with Johnny Damon in a three-team trade.
The 34 year old has held a career line of .265/.331/.397 as a member of the A’s, but has struggled so far this season. Over 62 games, Ellis has only been able to manage an OPS of .544.
Oakland’s top prospect Jemile Weeks stepped up when Ellis was injured earlier this season, and it seemed only a matter of time before a move was made to allow Weeks to take over at second. Ellis will head to a Rockies club that has received very limited production out of their second basemen.
In return for Ellis, the Athletics receive the right handed reliever Billings. The 25 year old made his debut this season for the Rockies in May. He’s spent a majority of his 2011 season as a member of Colorado’s Triple-A affiliate, where he’s appeared in 29 contests and has held an ERA of 4.47.
Though he’s been strictly a reliever this season, Billings started 14 games in Double-A last season, and was primarily a starting pitcher before 2010. Over his 5 minor league season, Billings has a career earned run average of 3.80 to go along with 503 strikeouts in 499.1 innings of work.
For more on the Athletics and Rockies, be sure to check out Swinging A’s and Rox Pile.