American Association Daily provides insights, features, and recaps of the action from around the American Association of Professional Baseball League, as well as player and coaching profiles and transactions. In today’s edition, Robert Pannier looks back at key trades during the off-season starting with the trade that sent Austin Faith from the Chicago Dogs to the Cleburne Railroaders for Jaylen Hubbard and Michael Krauza.

The Chicago Dogs-Cleburne Railroaders Deal

On March 8, the Chicago Dogs sent right-hander Austin Faith to the Cleburne Railroaders for infielder Jaylen Hubbard and RHP Michael Krauza. While this deal did not garner a lot of attention at the time it was made, it should have a dramatic impact on the success of both clubs this season.

How Austin Faith Affects the Cleburne Railroaders

New Railroaders skipper Pete Incaviglia is molding Cleburne into his own image, and he has made a number of moves to transform the club. In fact, it is very likely that no more than five players will return form last seasons club.

One area where the skipper wanted to make some dramatic changes was in the starting rotation. This was a group that grossly underperformed in 2023, costing Logan Watkins his job. Incaviglia does not plan the same fate, so he has changed the starting staff.

One of those acquisitions was right-hander Austin Faith. Faith was an undrafted free agent who signed with the New York Mets in 2021. He spent just one season in affiliate ball, going 3-5 with a 7.56 ERA for St. Lucie (Low-A). In 2022, the righty joined Tri-City (Frontier League), where he went 3-3 with a 6.31 EAR in 12 appearances.

The numbers were not impressive, but the arm is, and Faith found himself signed by Lake Country to begin last season, going 1-3 with a 5.98 ERA in 22 appearances, four of which were starts. He was traded later in the season to Chicago where he moved to the starting rotation and excelled, making three starts, where he posted a 1.50 ERA.

The big difference was in his command. Faith had primarily been used out of the bullpen or in a swing role and his command suffered as he allowed 33 walks in 41.2 innings in St. Lucie and 46 walks in 92.2 innings between Tri-City and Lake Country. However, in Chicago, he dominated, allowing just three walks in 12.0 innings while striking out 11. His hits to innings pitched ratio has not been great either, but the right-hander is just 25 and will definitely benefit from pitching coach Brooks Carey. He should continue to grow in his command, moving into the No. 3 spot in this rotation.

How Jaylen Hubbard, Michael Krauza Affects the Dogs

To be honest, on paper, this looks like an incredible deal for the Dogs. It starts with Michael Krauza, who is an absolute fireballer. The right-hander appeared in 17 games for Cleburne after, ironically, being released from St. Lucie.

It was his second stint with the club as the righty pitched for the Railroaders in 2021 and 2022. The right-hander was solid in 2021, going 3-2 with a 3.18 ERA in 37 appearances. In 2022, he returned and was on fire through the first two months, going 0-1 with a 2.00 ERA in 15 appearances. He struck out 23 in 18 innings, allowing 15 total base runners. That brought a transfer to the Mets organization, where he reached High-A Brooklyn.

Last season, Krauza returned to Cleburne where he went 1-0 with a 4.50 ERA in 17 appearances. He struck out 24 in 18.0 innings pitched.

Chicago has been known for their flamethrowing bullpen, and Krauza will fit perfectly into that mix. He will likely fill one of the backend spots and could even be given the chance to close.

Hubbard spent just 24 games in affiliate ball with the Nationals organization. That was in 2019 when he hit .179. He was a victim of the minor league purge following 2020, signing with Sussex County (Frontier League) in 2021 for two games. The next two seasons Hubbard played for Grand Junction in the Pioneer League. He was a solid hitter, hitting above .300 in both seasons, finished with a .321 batting average. The infielder can play both the infield and outfield and is a run producer, driving in 117 runs last season in 94 games. He also blasted 25 homers. His game should translate well to Impact Field.

Trade Analysis

This was a very smart trade for both organizations. Hubbard will be in the mix for second or short for the Dogs and could even play left or right field. Krauza is going to be a big key to a bullpen that has been inconsistent over the last few seasons. He will add some stability.

For the Railroaders, they need a starting rotation that can hold opponents to no more than four runs in six innings on a consistent basis. Faith has the talent and showed he can dominate as a starter. This is definitely a trade that benefitted both clubs.

By Robert Pannier