With the trade deadline approaching, everyone wants to discuss what may happen. The following is a real conversation, had just this evening.
Me: The Orioles could really use David Price.
Friend: Yeah, but the Rays would never trade him within the division.
Me: Why?
Friend: They just wouldn't. They don't want Price to come back and beat them.
Me: Let me make this clear, brother. I haven't spoken to Andrew Friedman about this, but I know his level of competency. He will be evaluating every deal that comes his way based on its ability to help his club win baseball games. Sure, there are more variables if he moves one of his guys to a team that he competes against regularly. But if the package is still superior to the next-best offer, why would he dig in his heels based on some oft-repeated principle without any merit?
Here's the answer- he wouldn't
Friend: But it could turn out to be a PR disaster if a GM moves a guy to a rival club, right?
Me: Being paralyzed by fear of the worst possible outcome never serves men and women making business decisions. They must remove emotion from the equation and make evaluations based on math rather than headlines.
Friend: You're crazy; that would never happen.
Me: I love you, but you exhaust me.
