JD Showed Genius With Gallardo Deal

Jon Daniels has taken his fair share of heat over the past year, and a lot of it has been deserved. He's also taken a ton of heat that wasn't so much warranted.

It's the life of a general manager in any sport — you win some, and you lose some, and you take way more blame than you get credit.

On Monday, Daniels made a move after an idle offseason thus far, and he should be praised heavily for it.

The Rangers acquired 28-year-old starter Yovani Gallardo, a proven innings-eater and recently turned groundball pitcher, for some nice prospects, but not any of the Rangers' most coveted ones.

Essentially, Daniels gave up a backup middle infielder who might someday find his ceiling as a defensive minded, light-hitting shortstop (Luis Sardinas), a seventh-inning reliever who could in a dream scenario become a closer (Cory Knebel) and an 18-year-old kid who projects as a great starter someday, but you know how those can go (Marcos Diplan).

For that, Daniels got a very good No. 3 starter, and a guy who has a ceiling as a No. 2, and most importantly a durable arm who wants to pitch and can rack up innings and help preserve a bullpen that got worn out by the time summer hit last season.

To make matters even better, Daniels is getting the Brewers to pick up $4 million of the $13 million he's owed in 2015, meaning the Rangers will pay $9 million for a guy who could very easily get them 15 wins. That's a bargain, and that's a win for Daniels.

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If Gallardo pitches well, and the Rangers can sign the Fort Worth native to a long-term deal, then it really becomes a win for Daniels, who hasn't had many of them lately.

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