Quote

Most general managers blessed with perspective and experience will never gloat after a player move works out well for them, for reasons both tangible and intangible.

First, they understand that for every trade that turns out great -- such as Cubs president Theo Epstein's acquisition of Jake Arrieta, who went on to win a Cy Young Award a couple of years later -- they also may have their fair share of moves that go bust, such as Epstein's repeated efforts to find a shortstop while with the Red Sox.

And second, many of them believe that if you exult too much over a great deal, you invite the wrath of the baseball gods, who inevitably turn against you.

But there should be some acknowledgment of some of the best moves that proved integral in 2015, such as this dozen:

Josh Donaldson 1. The Blue Jays' trade for Josh Donaldson: Toronto's GM at the time, Alex Anthopoulos, kept calling the Athletics to ask about Donaldson, and when Oakland finally blinked and asked for Brett Lawrie and others in return, the Jays moved quickly, taking advantage of an opportunity that other teams say they wish they had had.

Donaldson clubbed 41 homers and ranked third in the majors in WAR, led the Jays into the postseason and won the American League MVP award. Lawrie, on the other hand, already has been unloaded by Oakland, after one mediocre season with the Athletics.
Kendrys Morales 2. The Royals' signing of Kendrys Morales for two years and $17 million: Because Morales had struggled so badly in 2014, many teams shied away from the switch-hitter. The Royals did what the Royals have to do: They made a modest bet on a rebound for the then-31-year-old Morales, which is like someone playing the quarter slots instead of the high-stakes poker table -- and hitting big. For the modest salary of $6.5 million in 2015, the Royals got the middle-of-the-lineup hitter they needed, with Morales hitting .290, accumulating 65 extra-base hits and driving in 106 runs -- and Morales was among those players in the dogpile after the team won a championship.

Jung Ho Kang 3. Pittsburgh's signing of Jung Ho Kang to a four-year, $11 million deal: As with the Royals and Morales, this is the type of move that must work out for a small-market team such as the Pirates if the franchise is going to have high-end success, and Kang turned out to be an excellent player for Pittsburgh before he got hurt in September, posting an .816 OPS in 126 games.

Yasmani Grandal 4. The Dodgers' trade of Matt Kemp for Yasmani Grandal: The payoff for L.A. was mitigated somewhat by Grandal's injury problems in the second half, but in the first half, Grandal posted a .927 OPS, was one of the best pitch-framers in MLB and made the All-Star team. Meanwhile, the Dodgers dumped $75 million of the $107 million they owed to Kemp in moving him to San Diego.

Ryan Madson 5. The Royals' signing of Ryan Madson for $850,000: Last winter, Jim Fregosi Jr., a scout for the Royals, called Kansas City GM Dayton Moore and recommended signing Madson, based on how well Madson looked while throwing. Madson hadn't pitched in the big leagues since 2011, but Moore gave Fregosi Jr. an instant go-ahead to give Madson a deal and a minor league invite. Madson turned out to be a big asset for the Royals, helping them fill the void created by Greg Holland's injury problems, on the way to the Royals' World Series win. Madson was so good last season that he got a three-year, $22 million deal from Oakland this winter -- more money than he made in his first nine seasons in the majors. That's pretty cool for the right-hander.

Dee Gordon 6. The Marlins' trade for Dee Gordon: Miami gave up a lot to get the second baseman in pitching prospect Andrew Heaney and utilityman Enrique Hernandez, but Gordon gave them a ton, winning the NL batting title and leading the majors in hits.

Yoenis Cespedes 7. The Mets' trade for Yoenis Cespedes: This probably should be higher on this list based on how Cespedes carried the Mets through August and the first couple of weeks in September, hoisting them into the playoffs. In return for Cespedes, the Mets gave up pitching prospect Michael Fulmer (as well as minor league righty Luis Cessa), but no matter how good Fulmer turns out to be, this worked out well for the folks in Queens.

Will Harris 8. The Astros' claim of Will Harris off waivers: For relative pennies, Houston got a strong season from the veteran reliever after they plucked him off the waiver wire: Harris allowed only 42 hits and 15 earned runs in 71 innings. When pitching in the ninth inning or in extra innings, he surrendered only one earned run in 17 2/3 innings.

David Ross 9. The Cubs' signing of David Ross to a two-year, $5 million deal: The Red Sox and other teams had interest as well, but the Cubs wooed Ross as they made their case to sign Jon Lester, and Ross, as expected, was really important in providing leadership to a team that had a lot of young players.

Torii Hunter 10. The Twins' signing of Torii Hunter for $10.5 million on a one-year deal: Minnesota brought back Hunter for the final season of his career, and the Twins increased their win total from 70 to 83. Hunter wasn't the only reason for that; in fact, he might not have even been the biggest reason for the improvement. But folks within that organization speak of what a difference they feel he made because of how he nudged and pushed the other players. Hunter was high-impact for relatively little cost.

Andrew Miller 11. The Yankees' signing of Andrew Miller to a four-year, $36 million deal: Given their fragile rotation, the Yankees decided to load up their bullpen, and they lured Miller, who turned out to be just about perfect in his performance and as a teammate to Dellin Betances. With that duo locking down the eighth and ninth innings, New York got back to the playoffs for the first time in three seasons. In light of this winter's upward spiral in reliever compensation, the remaining years (three) and dollars ($27 million) on Miller's contract makes him look like one of the better values in baseball, which is why the Yankees have been measuring what they can get for him in a trade.

12. The Braves' trade of Craig Kimbrel and Melvin Upton Jr. -- including about $45 million owed to Upton Jr. -- to San Diego for Cameron Maybin, Carlos Quentin, pitching prospect Matt Wisler, outfielder Jordan Paroubeck and a competitive-balance pick in the 2015 draft: The Padres eventually flipped Kimbrel to Boston for prospects this winter and we still don't know what Wisler could be in the big leagues, but rival executives viewed this deal as a monster, wipeout trade for Atlanta because it was able to move the seemingly unmovable salary obligation to Upton Jr.