Dodgers' Adrian Gonzalez sets MLB record with 5 homers in first 3 games

The Dodgers' Adrian Gonzalez sets an MLB record with 5 homers in the first 3 games

Gonzo is on an incredible tear. He has started the season 10 for 13 (.769!) with two doubles and five dingers in just three games. His OPS is currently over 2.800.

Since 2007, his lowest RBI total in a season is 99.

Did you know he originally came up with the Rangers? He was traded to the Padres with Terrmel Sledge and Chris Young for Billy Killian, Adam Eaton and Akinori Otsuka.

The Pads did OK in that swap. The guys they lost:

* Eaton won only seven games as a Ranger before they shipped his 5+ ERA to the Phillies, where it soared to 6+. When the Phils sent him to the Orioles, it ballooned to 8+. Whatever he once had that the Rangers coveted, he no longer had by the time of the trade.

* Otsuka, a reliever already 34 years old at the time of the trade, had one decent year as the Rangers' closer, then injured his elbow the following year and was gone from the show.

* Killian was a weak-hitting catcher who never got close to the bigs. In about 1250 minor league at-bats, he never hit a single homer at any level.

In return, the Padres got Gonzo and Chris Young, who gave them 550 innings as a starter, amassed a decent 33-25 record, and made the all-star team in 2007.

What about Sledge? I don't really remember him at all. The record books show that he was a left fielder, BLTL, who batted .215 in 270 at bats for the Padres, Starting at about age 30, he spent five years in Japan, where they love a left-handed hitter who can reach the seats. He became a reliable power source for two different teams over there, finishing third in his league in homers in 2009, and eventually retiring from Japanese ball with a respectable .829 OPS.