Brad Peacock?s cross country drive to Spring Training detoured by trade to Astros

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At some point we’ve all traveled part way to our destination before realizing we forgot something — like baseball tickets, perhaps — and had to turn around to retrieve them. That’s almost a given.

But I don’t know how many people can say they’ve started a cross country trek to work, only to learn 600 plus miles in that they had been traded and that their new destination will take them right back to where they started from.

One person who can make that claim is minor-league pitcher Brad Peacock, and his adventure just happened on Monday when was traded to the Houston Astros as a part of their five-player trade with the Oakland A’s.

Peacock began the day thinking he would be driving all the way from West Palm Beach, Fla. to Phoenix to report early to A’s camp, but that all changed with one phone call and one U-turn.

From MLB.com:

Right-hander Brad Peacock, preparing to start his second season in the Oakland A's organization, was on his way to Phoenix from West Palm Beach, to report for Spring Training. Then his phone rang, alerting him that a five-player trade with the Astros necessitated a change in direction.

So Peacock turned his vehicle around near Biloxi, Miss., and drove right back where he came from. He'll join Astros pitchers and catchers Monday in Kissimmee, Fla., but not before crashing for the night with his parents in Orlando. All in all, that's roughly 1,300 miles and 18 hours in a front seat.

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All Peacock wanted to do was get to work early and make a strong impression, and it ends up costing him a minor fortune in gas money. If he had only waited another 24 hours, it would have been a simple 150 mile drive to Kissimmee. That's all.

That financial setback should be the furthest thing from the 25-year-old's mind, though, once he reports to camp. After being traded to Oakland in December 2011 as a part of the Gio Gonzalez trade, Peacock had a rough time getting on track, posting a 12-9 record with a 6.09 ERA at Triple-A Sacramento.

His main focus will be bouncing back and making himself a viable option in a major league rotation, and there may be no better place to seek an opportunity like that than in Houston.

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