Why its called a No Trade Clause

So it is safe to say that the Padres are pretty sick of Phil Nevin at this point as he invoked his no trade clause yesterday putting the kibosh on a trade that would have sent him to the Orioles in exchange for struggling Syndey Ponson.

Now look there are only a handful of players in the league who actually deserve the ironclad no trade clauses that were handed out like penny candy during the late 90s. Sadly Phil Nevin was never one of them, but in a society where we expect people to honor the deals they have, the Padres just have to sadly sit there and take it.

Nevin worked for the no trade to insure he could stay near his hometown area of southern California, and not uproot his family against his wishes. The Padres are in the thick of the playoff race, and while changing teams to us seems like just a flick of the wrist and a new uniform, Nevin was being asked to change his entire life. What is the point of a no trade clause if you don't use it to control your life?

Nevin will definitely lose ABs the rest of the season as Manager Bruce Bochy tries to find a better platoon at 1st, but what he won't lose is his peace of mind or family security.

Anyone who is being critical of Nevin needs to first blame the team for giving him that clause. Nevin will no doubt be included in trade rumors the rest of his career as teams in smaller parks than Petco, would love to get a masher like Nevin at 1st. Let's just not be surprised when he doesn't go anywhere.

- BL