Blue Jays, Pirates swap Snider, Lincoln

The Blue Jays have acquired pitcher Brad Lincoln from the Pirates in exchange for outfielder Travis Snider. Both players were selected in the first round of the 2006 draft.

Snider, 24, has spent a good amount of time in the big leagues for the last few years, but hasn't really gotten the everyday gig out in Toronto. He made his MLB debut as a 20 year old back in 2008. He has battled several injuries and the Jays have repeatedly optioned him to Triple-A for extended periods, so his career high in games is 82. He has a career .247 batting average, and he has hit .235 so far this season.

Snider will be eligible for arbitration following the 2013 season. He is under team control through the 2016 season. He will join a left field mix that currently consists of Starling Marte, Drew Sutton and Alex Presley.

Lincoln, 27, has developed into a solid late inning reliever for the Pirates, although they planned on using him as a front of the end starting pitcher after they selected him with the fourth overall pick six years ago. He has a 2.73 ERA with 9.1 K/9 in 59 1/3 innings for the Pirates this year. Lincoln will be arbitration eligible after the 2013 season, and is under team control through the 2017 season.

Analysis: The Pirates got a steal in this trade. I've always been a huge fan of Snider although it seems like he is always hurt. When he is on the field, he usually isn't productive but he is still really young and has a lot of upside. He could platoon with Starling Marte for the remainder of the year, or they could just battle out for the left field job. I can definitely see Snider really developing his game in Pittsburgh and finally living up to his hype. As for the Blue Jays, Lincoln seems like a good pitcher and I know they have been desperate to find pitching lately. I've never been crazy about Lincoln because he hasn't lived up to his hype. If you throw him in the American League East, that could be a recipe for disaster. It'll be interesting to see how Toronto handles Lincoln's development. Luckily for them, he is under team control through the 2017 season, so he has a lot of time to develop.