USA TODAY
PHOENIX (USA TODAY) -- The Arizona Diamondbacks talked about a divorce three
years ago with All-Star outfielder Justin Upton, and finally, after
numerous ups and downs, name-calling and finger-pointing, they called it
quits.
The Diamondbacks and the Atlanta Braves have agreed on the
parameters of a deal according to a Diamondbacks official who spoke to
USA TODAY Sports on the condition of anonymity because the team had not
announced the trade.
And just like that, nearly seven years to
the day Upton signed with the Diamondbacks as the No. 1 pick in the
country, becoming a two-time All-Star and the face of the franchise, he
is gone.
The only question was who was more ecstatic by the news,
the Diamondbacks or the Upton family? Justin joins his older brother,
B.J., for the first time in their professional careers. B.J. signed a
five-year, $75 million free-agent contract in November, meaning the
Braves will be paying $113.5 million to the Upton brothers. Justin is
owed $9.75 million this year, $14.25 million in 2014 and $14.5 million
in 2015.
The D-Backs also sent third baseman Chris Johnson to the
Braves for pitcher Randall Delgado, infielder/outfielder Martin Prado,
minor league shortstop Nick Ahmed, pitcher Zeke Spruill and third
baseman Brandon Drury, according to multiple sources.
It's a stunning and dramatic reversal from just three years ago when
the Diamondbacks signed Upton to a six-year, $51 million contract,
organizing a marketing campaign around him and even having a section in
right field called "Uptown'' in his honor.
Now, after engaging
in trade talks all winter with nearly a dozen teams, the Diamondbacks
made a deal that Upton couldn't veto, one day before general manager
Kevin Towers is scheduled to leave to South Africa on vacation.
Upton, 25, secretly wanted out of Arizona as much as the Diamondbacks wanted to trade him.
He was livid by the constant trade rumors, and the D-backs' refusal to
stop shopping him. He never officially demanded a trade, but informed
the Diamondbacks that he would welcome one, realizing it might be in
everyone's best interest. Still, he nixed a deal with the Seattle
Mariners two weeks ago because the team was on his no-trade list.
The Diamondbacks became privately disenchanted with Upton last season.
They questioned whether he would ever live up to his hype, believing he
would be a solid major-league player but not a superstar. They were
troubled by his wild inconsistencies and strikeout rate, believing he
grossly underachieved when he batted .280 with 17 homers and 67 RBI in
2012. Only a year earlier he finished fourth in the NL MVP voting,
hitting .289 with 31 homers and 88 RBI, leading the Diamondbacks to the
NL West title.
"He's certainly not the Justin Upton that he has
been in the past and that we would expect of him,'' Diamondbacks owner
Ken Kendrick said in June. "He's 24 years old, and it's time for him to
be a consistent performer. Right now this year he's not been that."
There were also whispers questioning Upton's work habits, which
infuriated his agent, Larry Reynolds, who angrily released a statement
in July to USA TODAY Sports.
"I know trade rumors and trades are
part of the business,'' Reynolds told USA TODAY Sports. "What I don't
like are the comments and innuendos made about Justin's work ethic and
character, especially from those gutless people that don't want to put
their name by a quote or article.
"This young man is one of the
hardest workers I've been around and more importantly, he's a good
person. If they want to trade him, that's their business, just knock off
the unfounded, negative rhetoric."
The relationship between the Diamondbacks and Upton grew ugly of late
after the season. Upton informed the team that he would be
uncomfortable performing community work as long as the Diamondbacks were
trying to trade him. He also requested that the "Uptown'' sign come
down. The D-backs, miffed, granted his request with the signage, but
maintained that the trade talks simply are part of the business.
The Diamondbacks were angrier that Upton rejected the trade to the
Mariners. Arizona would have received one of three prized pitching
prospects -- Taijuan Walker, James Paxton or Danny Hultzen -- relievers
Charlie Furbush and Stephen Pryor, and shortstop Nick Franklin. The
Diamondbacks asked Upton to reconsider, and he refused.
Upton
reiterated this week that the Diamondbacks were wasting their time
talking to the four teams on his recently submitted no-trade list. He
was not willing to play for Seattle, the Toronto Blue Jays, Boston Red
Sox or Chicago Cubs. The Diamondbacks believed the list was a
negotiating ploy, but Upton told them it wasn't about the money. He did
not want to play for those franchises.
The Diamondbacks engaged
in the lengthiest trade talks with the Texas Rangers. The Rangers badly
wanted Upton, but refused to part with All-Star shortstop Elvis Andrus
or prized prospect Jurickson Profar.
The Diamondbacks and Braves
also discussed Upton in December, but the talks went nowhere when the
Braves would not trade shortstop Andrelton Simmons. Yet, with nowhere to
turn, and the Diamondbacks having already acquired young shortstop Didi
Gregorius from the Cincinnati Reds in a three-way deal in December,
they were willing to accept the Braves' package of prospects.
The Diamondbacks, who created the surplus of outfielders when they
signed free-agent Cody Ross to a three-year, $26 million contract, had
also informed teams that Jason Kubel was available, but Upton was their
main target to move. They still have outfielders Gerardo Parra, Adam
Eaton and A.J. Pollock on the roster.
For Upton, it's a dream
come true to play with his brother, who had spent his entire career with
the Tampa Bay Rays. B.J. will be in center, Justin in left and Jason
Heyward in right.
"It's a blessing to have them both in the big
leagues,'' Manny Upton, their father, told USA TODAY last summer, "but
it's been tough on the budget.''
Now, the Upton family can be together again, once and for all, without even the sniff of a trade rumor.