Billy Beane: Trading Donaldson to Blue Jays was 'questionable'

Rarely, if ever, does a general manager admit to his mistakes.

Oakland Athletics president Billy Beane, formerly the club's general manager, has finally acknowledged one gigantic error he made during his long tenure running the East Bay club. During the winter of 2014, a little over a month removed from his team's third consecutive playoff berth, Beane traded star third baseman Josh Donaldson to the Toronto Blue Jays for third baseman Brett Lawrie, pitchers Kendall Graveman and Sean Nolin, and shortstop prospect Franklin Barreto.

All Donaldson's done since joining the Blue Jays is turn from an All-Star into a superstar. He was named American League MVP in his first season north of the border, led the Blue Jays to consecutive AL Championship Series appearances that ended the club's 22-year playoff drought, and has accrued the third-most Wins Above Replacement (19.5) in all of baseball since 2015.

Without Donaldson, Beane's Athletics have tumbled down the standings, and are now in full-scale rebuild mode some three years after completing one of the most lopsided trades in recent memory.

"In hindsight, that (trade) was certainly questionable - and I'm being kind to myself," Beane told Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle about the Donaldson trade in an interview this week. "There were a number of reasons why, and Josh was a good player who became a great player - but when you make as many transactions as we do, some are going to be good and some are not going to be good."

Certainly the immediate results of the trade have not worked out for the Athletics. Lawrie, who took over for Donaldson at third base, produced 0.7 WAR in his lone season with Oakland before being dealt to the White Sox; he's currently a free agent. Nolin hasn't pitched at any level since 2015. Only Graveman - who owns a 4.12 ERA in three seasons since the trade - and Barreto remain with the organization.

Barreto is the one piece of the deal that could still salvage some dignity for Beane. The 21-year-old is Oakland's No. 1 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline, and he made a splash in his big-league debut earlier this year by smashing a home run for his first career hit. With veteran Jed Lowrie hitting free agency at season's end (assuming Oakland doesn't pick up his $6-million option) it's entirely possible that Barreto could become the team's second baseman a year from now.

But until Barreto proves he can be a big-league impact player on a full-time basis, Beane - for all the good he's done building some excellent Athletics teams on shoestring budgets since the late 1990s - will have to live with knowing he dealt away Donaldson for what amounts to pennies on the dollar.

"It's with some mea culpa that that one can be judged," Beane said. "Fair enough."