I’m going to make this quick. If you’ve read this blog or listened to KFAN over the past few months, you know that I was begging the Twins to trade for shortstop JJ Hardy as far back as June.

On Friday, they pulled the trigger, dealing spunky/undisciplined CF Carlos Gomez to the Brewers.

Here are some important notes to consider following this trade:

- Even though he had a poor season last year, Hardy drastically improves the Twins paltry middle infield offense.

Including Orlando Cabrera’s sizzling stretch run, Twins shortstops hit .263/.309/.374 (.683 OPS) collectively in 2009, which is worse than the American League average of .274/.329/.391 (.720 OPS) by 37 points of OPS.

Hardy limped his way to a .229/.302/.357 (.659 OPS) line, which was good (or bad) for a .292 wOBA — roughly 35-40 points below league average. BUT in 2007, Hardy posted a .786 OPS (.338 wOBA) and in 2008 he posted a .821 OPS (.355 wOBA).

Because Hardy is 27 years old, let’s assume his 2009 season was the bottom of the barrel. Let’s say he rebounds to a .270/.320/.450 line with a wOBA in the range of .333 (which is lower than the numbers he posted in ’07-’08… he could easily return to those numbers as well).

That would put Hardy in the upper echelon of offense among shortstops.

- According to RZR and UZR, Hardy is one of the best defensive shortstops in baseball (UZR of +8.8 per 150 games). Orlando Cabrera was one of the worst in 2009 (UZR of -13.7 per 150 games).

Because they used Cabrera and Brendan Harris at shortstop for a significant portion of the season, and because Nick Punto’s defense at shortstop took a step backwards in 2009, the Twins ranked in the bottom 1/3 of Major League Baseball in shortstop UZR (-4.7 per 150 games).

Hardy is worth roughly one full win above replacement level with his glove alone.

- Carlos Gomez was undervalued in Minnesota.

Because his offense never quite clicked, most fans assumed Gomez was basically worthless. In reality, he’s one of the best defensive centerfielders in all of baseball, which shouldn’t be overlooked when talking about a pitching staff that allows the most flyballs in all of baseball.

Denard Span is a league-average centerfielder. Gomez is among the elite. There is a dropoff, and it will be noticed over 162 games.

- Hardy and Mauer are friends. They played on All Star teams together at the ages of 15 and 16. When trying to reach a contract extension with one of the best players in baseball, adding one of his friends to the team certainly can’t hurt.

- This is an awesome trade.

The Twins needed a shortstop under the age of 35 who can hit and play good defense. They got one.

And they trade from a surplus. I wouldn’t be surprised if Gomez developed into a solid, every-day centerfielder at some point. But Hardy ALREADY IS a solid, every day player, with potential to be an All-Star at his position.